How is hanukkah calculated

If you're Jewish, though, you might need to double-check the calendar to figure out exactly when Hanukkah begins this year. Does Hanukkah change dates every year? Well, the answer is yes…and no! Hanukkah is sometimes spelled Hanuka, Chanukah, or one of several other variations. This is because it's a Hebrew word meaning "dedication" , and the symbols of the Hebrew language represent sounds rather than specific letters.

Thus, they can be transliterated a number of different ways into English and mean the same thing since they all sound the same. Hanukkah, also known as the Jewish Festival of Lights, celebrates the rededication in B. The annual celebration lasts for eight days. Hanukkah usually begins sometime between Thanksgiving and Christmas. The exact date changes from year to year…sort of. In reality, Hanukkah always begins on the 25 th day of Kislev, which is the ninth month on the Jewish calendar.

The Jewish calendar is a lunar calendar, which means it's based upon the cycles of the Moon. The modern secular calendar most people around the world use known as the Gregorian calendar , is a solar calendar, which means it's based upon Earth's revolution around the Sun. There are about twelve and a half lunar months in a solar calendar year. To make sure that lunar months always occur in the same seasons, the Jewish calendar incorporates a leap month every few years.

Since the Jewish and Gregorian calendars are based upon different cycles, set dates on one calendar correlate to different dates on the other calendar each year.

Although Hanukkah always begins on the 25 th day of Kislev, that date can fall anywhere between late November and late December on the Gregorian calendar. So that's why Hanukkah always changes dates every year on the Gregorian calendar…while always being on the same date every year on the Jewish calendar!

Are you ready to celebrate Hanukkah? Don't forget to check out the following activities with a friend or family member:. Did you check out this Wonder yet, Brayden? Maybe you can give us a little more information about what you are still WONDERing about so that we can find an answer for you? Hi, Bob! The article gave a brief description about Hanukkah but if you are interested, we suggest going on your own Wonder Journey to find out more about it. Let us know what you learn! We are undergoing some spring clearing site maintenance and need to temporarily disable the commenting feature.

Thanks for your patience. Drag a word to its definition. You have answered 0 of 3 questions correctly and your score is:. Want to add a little wonder to your website? On the contrary. Back in —the only other time Hanukkah and Thanksgiving converged—the weekly Jewish American newspaper, The American Hebrew, "encouraged readers to enthusiastically embrace both holidays, because Hanukkah is itself a holiday of Thanksgiving," says Dianne Ashton, author of the recently published book, Hanukkah in America: A History.

The message was, "when it's Thanksgiving, you can completely join in with American society" to celebrate this ecumenical holiday, she says. Ultimately, "Thanksgiving is a civic holiday with spiritual overtones," says Rabbi Julie Schonfeld, executive vice president of the Rabbinical Assembly , the international association of Conservative rabbis. Regardless of your religion or lack of faith, the holiday "speaks to gratitude, to forces greater than ourselves, and calls upon us to help others," she points out.

That this year Thanksgiving happens to coincide with a religious holiday simply makes all the more obvious the need common to all humans in all cultures to express gratitude and say thanks.

And that holds true whatever name you give the holiday. All rights reserved. Why is Thanksgiving different from all others?

Because this year, it's not just Thanksgiving. It's also Thanksgivukkah. Avoiding the "December Dilemma" Is there an unexpected benefit to Thanksgivukkah? Share Tweet Email. Read This Next Wild parakeets have taken a liking to London. Animals Wild Cities Wild parakeets have taken a liking to London Love them or hate them, there's no denying their growing numbers have added an explosion of color to the city's streets.

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Go Further. Animals Wild Cities This wild African cat has adapted to life in a big city. Animals This frog mysteriously re-evolved a full set of teeth. Has anyone seen a UDF that can return the a date for Hanukkah start date or end date as applicable?

I am not Jewish, and I am unaware of how the dates are established. Thanks, Mr. Excel Facts. Waterfall charts in Excel? Click here to reveal answer. Office customers have access to Waterfall charts since late They were added to Excel Joined Sep 4, Messages 1, I found this. Would it help? Unfortunately, no. Hanukkah, Easter, and Ramadan are all calculated on a lunar calendar, not a solar calendar. The Julian calendar is a solar calendar based on the earth's rotation about the sun.

I say loosely because for Ramadan, it is a requirement that an observer see the crescent moon - not calculate when it is possible in theory. I would like to be able to calculate these dates approximately for planning, and inclusion in an Outlook holiday calendar. You must log in or register to reply here. Similar threads B.