Jewish Holidays Everyone Should Know

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If you’re not Jewish, the only holiday that you may be familiar with is Hanukah. However, after naming that popular celebration you may be left scratching your head trying to remember other Jewish holidays. Believe it or not, there are a number of Jewish holidays that the average person oftentimes overlooks and doesn’t recall. These holidays are very important to the Jewish culture and represent various historical elements within Judaism.

During the celebration of some of these Jewish holidays work is forbidden or better yet frowned upon. Depending on how engulfed within the Jewish faith may reflect whether or not an individual chooses to still work or if they opt for a personal day. Like other celebrations, you’ll find that some of the Jewish holidays last for several days while others are observed in a single day. In addition, each holiday has various traditional elements that coincide with the celebration and recognition of the day.

Purim

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Purim is a Jewish holiday that commemorates the deliverance of the Jewish people in the ancient Persian Empire from destruction in the wake of a plot by Haman, a story recorded in the Biblical Book of Esther. The holiday is celebrated annually according to the Hebrew calendar on the 14th day of the Hebrew month of Adar. Purim celebrations include: exchanging gifts of food and drink known as mishloach manot, donating charity to the poor, eating a celebratory meal, public recitation of the Scroll of Esther, and reciting additions, known as Al HaNissim, to the daily prayers and the grace after meals.

It is common to greet one another on Purim in Hebrew "Chag Purim Sameach", "Freilichin Purim" or "Purim Allegre.” The Hebrew greeting loosely translates to "Happy Purim Holiday" and the Yiddish and Ladino translate to "Happy Purim.” The most impressive part of the holiday is the carnival. Purim in Israel is considered one of the most spectacular holidays in the world. Thousands of people take to the streets, showing off their costumes that they made especially for the holiday. Costumes at Purim are a special industry in Israel, and during this period the prices go up.

Passover

Passover commemorates the story of the Exodus, in which the ancient Israelites were freed from slavery in Egypt. Passover begins on the 15th day of the month of Nisan in the Jewish calendar, which is in spring in the Northern Hemisphere, and is celebrated for seven or eight days. It is one of the most widely observed and known Jewish holidays.

It is traditional for Jewish families to gather on the first night of Passover for a special dinner called a seder. The table is set with the finest china and silverware to reflect the importance of the meal. During this meal, the story of the Exodus from Egypt is retold using a special text called the Haggadah. Four cups of wine are consumed at various stages in the narrative.

Children have a very important role at the Passover seder. Traditionally the youngest child is prompted to ask questions about the Passover seder, beginning with the words, "Mah Nishtana HaLeila HaZeh" (Why is this night different from all other nights?). The questions encourage the gathering to discuss the significance of the symbols in the meal. Other questions range may include - Why is this night different from all other nights? On all other nights, we eat either unleavened or leavened bread, but tonight we eat only unleavened bread?

Shavuot

The festival of Shavuot is a Jewish holiday that occurs on the sixth day of the Hebrew month of Sivan – which is late May or early June. Shavuot commemorates the anniversary of the day God gave the Torah to the entire Israelite nation assembled at Mount Sinai. The holiday is one of the Shalosh Regalim, the three Biblical pilgrimage festivals. This Jewish holiday marks the conclusion of the Counting of the Omer.

Shavuot is unlike other Jewish holidays because there is no prescribed mitzvot other than traditional festival observances of meals and merriment. The traditional holiday observances of special prayer services and the required abstention from work apply during Shavuot. Dairy foods such as cheesecake, cheese blintzes, and cheese sambusak, cheese ravioli, and atayef which is a cheese-filled pancake are traditionally consumed on the Shavuot holiday. For the most part, meat is usually served at night and dairy is served either for the day meal or for the morning.

Rosh Hashanah

Rosh Hashanah commemorates the creation of the world and marks the beginning of the Days of Awe, a 10-day period of introspection and repentance that culminates in the Yom Kippur holiday, also known as the Day of Atonement. Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur are the two “High Holy Days” in the Jewish religion. Rosh Hashanah is a two-day celebration, which begins on the first day of Tishrei. Tishrei is the first month of the Jewish civil year, but the seventh month of the ecclesiastical year.

According to Judaism, the fact that Rosh Hashanah is the beginning of the year is explained by it being the traditional anniversary of the creation of Adam and Eve, the first man and woman according to the Hebrew Bible, and their first actions toward the believed realization of humanity's role in God's world. Rosh Hashanah customs include sounding the shofar which is a hollowed out horn – this is mentioned in the Torah. It is also customary to eat symbolic foods such as apples dipped in honey to evoke a "sweet new year.”

Yom Kippur

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Yom Kippur is also known and referred to as the Day of Atonement. This is the holiest day of the year in Judaism. Its central themes are atonement and repentance. Jewish people traditionally observe this holy day with an approximate 25-hour period of fasting and intensive prayer, often spending most of the day in synagogue services.

According to Jewish tradition, God inscribes each person's fate for the coming year into a book, the Book of Life, on Rosh Hashanah, and waits until Yom Kippur to seal the verdict. During the Days of Awe, a Jew tries to amend his or her behavior and seek forgiveness for wrongs done against God and against other human beings. The evening and day of Yom Kippur are set aside for public and private petitions and confessions of guilt. At the end of Yom Kippur, one hopes that they have been forgiven by God for their sins.

Hanukkah

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Hanukkah is a Jewish holiday commemorating the rededication of the Holy Temple, also known as the Second Temple, in Jerusalem at the time of the Maccabean Revolt against the Seleucid Empire. Hanukkah is observed for eight nights and days, starting on the 25th day of Kislev according to the Hebrew calendar. All in all, the celebration may occur at any time from late November to late December in the Gregorian calendar. This Jewish holiday is also known as the Festival of Lights and the Feast of Dedication.

The festival is observed by the kindling of the lights of a unique candelabrum, the nine-branched menorah, one additional light on each night of the holiday, progressing to eight on the final night. The typical menorah consists of eight branches with an additional visually distinct branch. The extra light, with which the others are lit, is called a Shamash and is given a distinct location, which is usually above or below the rest.

Other Hanukkah festivities include playing dreidel and eating delicious foods such as doughnuts and latkes. Since the 1970s, the worldwide Chabad Hasidic movement has initiated public menorah lightings in open public places in many countries – and each year more and more lightings take place publicly.