Early December marks the celebration of the Festival of Lights by Jewish communities. Better known as Hanukkah, this holiday lasts for eight days. Since it follows the Hebrew lunar calendar, the dates shift each year. This time around, Hanukkah will be observed from December 14 to December 22, 2025.
On this festival, established by the Talmud, the Jewish people commemorate "the miracle of the lights". This story happened in the 2nd century BC.
King Antiochus IV Epiphanes ruled Judea with an iron fist. He forced the Hebrews to follow the ancient Greek religion, massacring Jews who rebelled and tried to practice their religion. The Great Temple of Jerusalem had been desecrated and converted into a temple in honor of Zeus. To counter this order, some Jews built a new altar in the temple. The word "hanouka" symbolizes this act of resistance, meaning "inauguration".
When the Hebrews attempted to light the new temple's Menorah, they were only able to recover one vial of olive oil, a quantity that was far from sufficient to maintain the candelabra permanently, as tradition dictates. The oil takes eight days to make. And then the miracle happened: during those eight days, the vial of oil continued to burn, despite all expectations.
To commemorate this inauguration and the miracle associated with it, every evening at dusk Jews light one of the candles on the menorah, starting with the right-hand one.
During this celebration, it is also customary to participate in songs and blessings. Jews also gather around dishes cooked in oil (latkes, potato pancakes and other fritters). Another tradition is to play with a four-sided spinning top, with symbols forming the phrase"nes gadol haya sham", or"a great miracle happened there".
No specific prayers are added to religious services. However, special readings are added to the usual liturgies.
Hanukkah 2024: where and when are the public lighting ceremonies taking place in Paris and the Île-de-France region?
Like every year, the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah is accompanied by public lighting of hanukiahs, the traditional eight-branched candlesticks of this winter celebration. Find out when and where the public lighting takes place in Paris and the Île-de-France region for this 2024 edition. [Read more]
Dates and Opening Time
From December 14, 2025 to December 22, 2025
Hanukkah 2024: where and when are the public lighting ceremonies taking place in Paris and the Île-de-France region?
