For people who show any interest in the holiday, he most obvious thing noticed I that the word is spelled many different ways. Is it 1 “n” and 2 “k’s” or 2”no’s” and 1 “k?” Is the last “h” necessary? Why does it sometimes start with a “c?” The Hebrew alphabet, or “Aleph-Bet” does not easily translate into our system. The closest you can get is actually “Chnvch,” which looks unpronounceable.
The first “Ch” is underlined above because it represents one letter. It is difficult for Americans to pronounce in everyday speech and kind of sounds like the noise you make when trying to hock a lougie, or clear your throat. The word chutzpah may help you imagine it, or maybe not. The short “o” sound represented by the letter “a” would be drawn under the ”ch.” A dot next to the Hebrew “v” makes it into an “oo” sound, and the final short “o” would be drawn under the “c.”
So, we Americanize the CH into just an H. An added benefit to doing this is avoiding the ugly “Chappy Chanukkah” sign. Above, I used a “c” instead of a “k” because in Hebrew, there are also 2 letters to make the hard c sound, and one of them can be used for a softer sound. The one used in the Hebrew is the one that has both hard and soft values. Personally, I spell it as in the title of the piece, but my rule is that if it reasonably looks like it should be pronounced “Hanukkah” then it is spelled correctly no matter how many no’s or k’s you use. Though, I’d advise against 3 k’s.
More Mysteries below the fold
The next subject I’m asked about during Hanukkah is the Menorah (the nine branch candelabra). Is it right to left or left to right? Are there the correct number of candles lit? Thanks to the Google, I can confidently say that candles are added from the right to the left. When I was growing up, I used to walk down my block, and if there were 9 menorahs, 5 would be one way and 4 would be the other. I always said that if someone told us our menorah was facing the wrong way, we should just say they are looking at it from the wrong side.
The number of candles is always off by 1. On the first night, there are 2 candles and on the eighth, there are 9. This is because the elevated candle does not count. It is lit for the purpose of lighting the others. Why? Because you couldn’t possibly light all 8 with a match.
The Dreidel is a 4 sided top, and I don’t recommend making it out of clay. The four Hebrew letters on the sides are called Nun, Gimmel, Hay, and Shin. These stand for the words “A Great Miracle Happened There.” Playing the game is gambling. Children ante with their “Gelt” which is chocolate coins in gold foil. When the top stops spinning if it lands on Nun, that is nothing, Gimmel is Great and you win the pot, Hay is half the pot, and Shin is Sh-t you have to ante up some more.
Jews wrote some of the greatest Christmas Carols, and yet Hanukkah songs suck. I have no idea why.