Hanukkah

Hanukkah, also known as Chanukah, is a significant Jewish observance that carries profound historical and religious implications. Lasting eight days and nights, it commemorates the rededication of the Second Temple in Jerusalem during the second century B.C., following the Jewish people’s victory over the Syrian Greeks. The Hanukkah Ends, marking the completion of this observance, carries deep symbolic recognition of Jewish resilience and commitment to faith. During this Observance, the lighting of the Menorah, a nine-branched candelabrum, is a central feat symbolizing the miracle of the oil lamp that burned for eight days despite having only enough oil for one.

The ancient story of Hanukkah holds a universal resonance that transcends geographical boundaries, making it meaningful to diverse communities worldwide, including The Netherlands. Dutch Jews, like their counterparts globally, recount the triumphant Maccabean rebellion crucial to the Hanukkah story. Interestingly, the Hanukkah observance in The Netherlands also recognizes the Amsterdam Miracle. This event, occurring in 1945 towards the end of World War II, was when a Hanukkah lamp left by a Jewish family in their home was miraculously found still burning when the family returned after the liberation.

To mark the end of Hanukkah, Dutch Jews participate in a variety of practices. The lighting of individual hanukiahs, the prominent form of the Menorah, underscores the Observance’s festive atmosphere with the eighth night marking Hanukkah Ends. Singing traditional songs such as "Hanukkah, oh Hanukkah" and participating in family games are also part of the Dutch Jewish experience of Hanukkah Ends. Communal gatherings, while depending on the schedule set by local communities, usually occur around the same date every year, dictated by the Hebrew calendar: the 25th of Kislev to the 2nd or 3rd of Tevet.