Category: Culture Articles

Hanukah finds a prominent place in the list of global festivities. It is a festival celebrated by the Jews during the winter solstice. The festival epitomizes religious freedom. Hanukah, alternatively known as Hanuka, Chanukkah, Chanuka, Chanukah and Hanukkah, has a historical origin.

How the Chanukah festival began

In the second century BC, the Syrians conquered the Jews. The sanctity of the Jerusalem temple was lost at the hand of the Syrians. That was the time of the winter solstice. The Syrians extinguished the light of the menorah burning before the altar. After three years, the Maccabees defeated the Syrians and restored sanctity of the temple.

During consecration, the victors found oil sufficient enough to light the lamp just for a day. Surprisingly enough, the lamp remained lit for eight days! From then on the Jews continued to celebrate the festival of Hanukah every winter solstice and the festivities last for eight days.

Hanukah is considered to be a celebration of Jewish national survival and religious freedom. You might be curious to know about Maccabees. During the period of the Syrian oppression, Judah Maccabees and his four brothers organized a resistance group to fight back the Syrians. They posed stiff resistance to the Syrians and adopted guerilla warfare techniques. Eventually they were able to drive out the mighty Greek-Syrian army out of Judea. The victory reinforced prophet Zachariah s message- Not by might, not by power, but by My spirit.

The significance of lighting candles

In fact, lighting has been traditionally the most significant part of the Hanukkah celebration. The lighting arrangement consists a candle stand with nine branches. This is the traditional Jewish menorah. Eight of the candles (corresponding to each day of Hanukah) are of the same height. The middle one is known as shamesh (servant). It is taller than the rest and is used to light up the others. On each evening, during the festival, the families gather around the menorah reciting blessings and chanting religious hymns.

Celebrating Hanuka

Religious and historical backgrounds apart, Hanukah promises lots of fun and frolic for you. During this Jewish festival, you will find many traditional food items to relish. The items are cooked in oil, in remembrance with the oil that lit up the candles in the Jewish temple. Latkes (potato pancakes) have earned global distinctions. Another item that you will love to relish during Chanuka is Sufganiya a special preparation of doughnut in oil.

At the end, you might wonder what the literal meaning of Hanuka is. In Hebrew, Hanuka means dedication . If you are a global tourist, why not plan your visit to the Jewish land during November-December? Hanukah promises you gala family celebration replete with foods and songs. You will love to see children enjoying the festivities. The Jews will cordially welcome you to have a share of the fun during Hanukah.

Hanukkah, the Jewish word for dedication , is the festival of lights . Also named Chanukah, the holyday commemorates the rededication of the holy Temple in Jerusalem following military victory of the Jewish Macabees over the Greek-Syrians by lighting candles.

Hanukkah is celebrated for eight consecutive days and nights, starting on the 25th of Kislev on the Hebrew calendar (which coincides with November-December on the Gregorian calendar).

History of The Festival of Lights

The holy Temple of the Jewish faith was seized by the Greek-Syrians in 168 B.C. The temple was desecrated, extinguishing the holy light of the menorah that burned on the altar. Antiochus, the Greek King of Syria, banned all Jewish rituals, even ordering the Jews to worship Greek gods.

Not all Jews could take this oppression lying low and put up resistance. Exactly three years later, during the winter solstice in 165 B.C., the Macabees defeated the powerful Greek-Syrian army (using guerilla warfare) and re-established their control. They restored the temple and arranged for a big celebration. The Macabees decided to light their sacred menorah for the celebration but could find oil to keep it alight for only a day. In a miraculous turn of events, however, the menorah continued to burn for eight days; this gave the Jews enough time to arrange fresh oil.

Today, this tradition is continued and Hanukkah is observed for eight continuous days in the winter solstice.

The Hanukkah Ceremonies

The chief ceremony revolves round the lighting of the Hanukkah menorah. The menorah has nine branches eight holders meant for the candles representing the eight days of Hanukkah and an extra holder for the candle used to light the candles. One candle is lit each night and by the last night of Hanukkah, all the eight candles are lit. Family members chanting special prayers gather round the menorah when it is being lit. As per commandments, the Menorah is placed beside a window/door to publicize the miracle .

Celebration During The Holyday

The festival of lights is a festival full of fun and merry making. Traditional Hanukkah foods cooked in oil like Latkes (or potato pancakes) and Sufganiya (a kind of jelly donut) in remembrance of oil burning in the temple are among Hanukkah favorites. Sweet dishes are also popular. Family members and guests are offered delicacies after the candle lighting ceremony.

Traditional Hanukkah games like Dreidel (Sivovon in Hebrew) are also played in many households. The gift-exchanges that take place in many Jewish families today carry forward the age-old custom of giving Hanukkah gelt (money) to children.

Christmas worksheets are organized around several Christmas themed activities like writing puzzles and coloring pages, shaping book patterns and religious coloring pages. These teaching tools can be effectively used both in schools and at home to guide younger kids. Christmas-themed worksheets blend Christmas gaiety with learning, making it a pleasant experience for kids. No wonder that schools, often times, make presents of Christmas worksheets.

Christmas based worksheets cover a wide curriculum, befitting varied age groups and/or their comprehension-level. Thus, there are worksheets for playgroup students as well as for 1st grade students. The curriculum also varies with countries.

Christmas worksheets are generally inclusive of math, word games, coloring worksheets, etc. There are simple counting games, missing numbers worksheets, etc. for beginners. Christmas Math worksheet meant for advanced learners like 1st grade students include real math like addition and subtraction. The word games inducted into the worksheets on Christmas include alphabetical order worksheets for basic learners to word scramble worksheets, etc. for higher-graders.

Internet has huge collection of Christmas based worksheets. These include:

• Greetings Addition Worksheet
• Greetings Mixed Worksheet
• Math Puzzle Worksheet
• Addition With 4
• Word Search Worksheet
• Word Scramble Worksheet
• Addition With 2
• Addition Worksheet
• Word Math Worksheet
• Greetings Subtraction Worksheet
• Counting Worksheet

These apart, there are many Christmas Group Coloring contest pages. For children who are well familiar with the concept of double letters there are seasonal crossword puzzles as essential parts of Christmas related worksheets.

Many sites even provide print-ready Christmas worksheets. Some of these worksheets on Christmas are quite large in size (because they include several images and have complex configurations). Downloading and printing may take time; however, if you are patient and succeed in taking prints, they will prove immensely helpful.

Christmas worksheets are truly beneficial for the kids because they initiate a child into learning the right way through real fun and entertainment. The colorful looks of the worksheets with pictures of Santa Claus, Christmas trees, bells and gift boxes scattered all through the pages, children easily get hooked to these worksheets. Christian worksheets, in fact, succeed in striking the right chord that takes a child s concentration to peak-level; this is what is needed to initiate a successful learning process.

The 1st of April is celebrated as the April Fools Day. Most of the countries consider it to be a national holiday. On this day, hoaxes and practical jokes of a great variety are cracked among friends and neighbors. People also send their close relatives fools errands and make them the butts of ridicule. The April Fools Day is now celebrated across the net too.

The April Fools Day hoaxes are only pranks and fair games. Nowadays, different media houses too organize such fun games to entertain public. There are a number of monthly journals too, which prepare such things too in their April version.

There is no initial date to be regarded as the first April Fools Day. The closest possible date that can mark the beginning of this celebration can be 1582, in France. It is a custom that might have developed in different countries at the same time. The April Fools Day is primarily the day when people celebrate the arrival of Spring.

Prior to the year 1582, the New Year was celebrated for long eight days, beginning from March 25th and ended in April 1st. During the Georgian rule, a new calendar was introduced, where the New Year was marked to be on 1st January. But an inflexible sect continued to celebrate the New Year on 1st of April itself. The local populace called this backward class the fools . They were often subjected to ridicule and fools errands.

Pranks and jokes cracked during the April Fools Day range from small to elaborate ones. Some practical jokes are kept up the whole day before the victim realizes what day it is. Whatever the prank is, the charlatan ends the game by crying April Fool and bursts forth in laughter.

Celebrations of the April Fools Day is all about enjoying unlimited fun and turning a friend the prey of your prank.

The celebration of April Fools Day in different countries

It is generally believed that Europe has derived its concept of April Fools Day from France, since France was the first country to celebrate the New Year on 1st January during the reign of Charles IX. According to the French and Dutch references, they too regard the date of 1st of April to be the April Fools Day.

In England, the April Fools Day began to be celebrated from the 18th century. In Scotland, the custom of harassing friends is known as hunting the gawk or the cuckoo. In France, this is known as poisson d’avril. The zodiac sign for April is a Fish , and is believed to be caught easily.

People Of Scotland celebrate the April Fools Day for forty-eight hours. The second day is called Taily , symbolized by the kick me sign. In Mexico, the April Fools Day is celebrated on 28th December. It is the day when king Herod mercilessly killed small children. Later it became a day when people would mourn lightly, involving pranks and trickery. Chaucer too referred to the April Fools Day, in his Nun s Priest s Tale.

Thus, April fools Day is celebrated across the world with a lot of mirth and light-hearted ridicule.

Columbus Day is an important day celebrated in different countries of America. The day re-celebrates Christopher Columbus’s arrival in the New World on October 12th 1492. The early settlers of the “New World” had already discovered America before Christopher Columbus. The contemporary America celebrates the Columbus Day for the actual reason. We now celebrate it, since Columbus did discover the New World to the Europeans, who somehow believed that the world ended some where in the Atlantic.

The Columbus Day is celebrated with different names in different countries. In Latin America it is known as “The Day of The Race”, and “The Day of Cultures” in Costa Rica. In Venezuela, it is known as “The Day Of Indigenous Resistance”.

The Columbus Day is also known as the “Discoverer’s Day”. Columbus started his journey with three ships: “Nina”, “Pinta” and “Santa Marina”. For his trip, King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella financed him. At first, he landed on the Caribbean islands and then reached the “New World”.

The discovery of America happened before dawn on October 12, 1492. When the crew discovered the New World, they began to shout “Tierra”, “Tierra”. Today Columbus Day is observed as a holiday in the United States, Central and South America, Italy, Spain and in other countries.

Celebrations In The United States

In America, San Francisco has the oldest Columbus Day celebrations. Later, President Franklin Roosevelt declared it to be a national holiday. The day also commemorates the second Monday in October, observed as the Thanksgiving Day. On this special day, the banks, schools and offices remain closed, but the business organizations remain opened with their full session.

The Columbus Day is celebrated with a great pomp in New York’s Fifth Avenue. The smaller towns and cities are greatly decorated too. The Government of America faced the demands of thousands of Americans to declare the day as a national holiday. Finally, Columbus Day was categorized as the Federal Legal holiday in 1971. Thus, Columbus Day became an important day for the Americans. On this day, the children sing in chorus: “In Fourteen Hundred And Ninety Two, Columbus Sailed In Ocean Blue”.

There is no literal celebration attached to the “Columbus Day”. It is observed with a spirit of discovery and an insoluble sense of nationality.

The traditional festival, Groundhog Day is commemorated in the United States and Canada on February 2. The history of Groundhog Day originated as a cross-quarter day, which falls midway between the Winter Solstice and the Vernal Equinox.

The traditional weather teachings speak of the end of winter when a ground hog fails to see its shadow as a consequence of the weather being cloudy. On the other hand, it is believed that winter will be staying on for another six weeks, if a ground hog is able to see its shadow because of a bright and clear day and is compelled to run back into its hole out of fear.

History of Groundhog Day

The 5th century had European Celts believing that on certain days, falling half-way between the Winter Solstice and Spring Equinox, animals had special supernatural powers. Legends from Germany and France reveal that when bears and marmots came out of their winter burrows too early, they got scared of their own shadows and went back to their dens for another four to six weeks.

The first known American reference to the Groundhog s Day is found at the Historical Society of Berks County in Reading, Pennsylvania.

The history of Groundhog Day was an outcome of the Native American rituals. The ancient tribes sacrificed the most well-fed member of the tribe for the blessing of a short winter. They thought it was the best way to please the ancient nature gods. This is similar to the biblical reference to the sacrifice of oxen or a fat lamb.

The ancient tribal people cut the chosen member s neck and asked if the person could see his own shadow. If he could, then the winter would be short and if he could not, it meant that the gods were not pleased with the victim and the winter would stretch for a period of another three moons. A short winter facilitated a long hunting and planting season.

Gradually, with many tribes converting to Christianity, the procedure of human sacrifice was frowned upon. This is when a fat groundhog replaced the human in being sacrificed. Here, the Shamam had to use his skills to denote if the groundhog could see its own shadow. The late 19th century, started the Victorian animal cruelty movement and from that time onwards, groundhogs were not allowed to be sacrificed.

Assuming that in the medieval cultures, the equinox fell on the first day of the spring as it is now in the Western countries, Groundhogs Day occurred exactly six weeks before the spring. It is funny to note that it was obvious that if the groundhog could see its shadow, there would be six more weeks of the winter season and if it could not there would be an added 42 days of winter. The result would be same in both the cases.

How is Groundhog Day celebrated?

This day is all about fun and frolic. There are no rules or rituals for celebrating Groundhog Day. Some of the most common things that are done include partying and enjoying indoor games like passing a stuffed toy groundhog with the music or trying to toss the toy into a basket. Some even make groundhog shaped cookies and you would also get groundhog shaped candies nowadays.

Though the history of Groundhog Day is a modern adaptation of an ancient Celtic celebration called Imbolc, it has its own flavor and enthusiasts.

Hanuka, the Jewish festival is a tale of religious freedom. It is a festival of light and is celebrated during Winter Solstice. In the second century BC, the Syrians invaded the Jewish lands. It was the time of winter solstice and they restricted their faith by not only ruining the temple of Jerusalem but also extinguishing the light of Menorah that burned in front of the altar.

The Jews were compelled to eat pig meat and worship idols, which their religion forbade. Matthathias, a Jewish high priest was also forced to oblige but he bravely defied. He not only killed the officer but also killed the other soldiers with the aid of his five sons and other villagers.

Later the other Jews joined him in his endeavor and killed the Greek soldiers. But when Judah Maccabee and the soldiers went to the temple they found many things were missing from the temple and the light of the Menorah was also blown off.

Eventually, the Jews restored their temple and rekindled the Menorah with the holy oil that they found. The oil was very little and so they thought that the light would cease in one day. But to their surprise the light burned for eight consecutive days. Therefore, it is popularly known as the eight days of Hanukkah and became a popular festival among the Jews. This courageous victory has been written into a story and restored in the First book of Macabeess.

Celebrating the Festival

The festival is celebrated from the 25th of Kislev according to the Hebrew calendar. The Jews celebrate the Chanukkah festival by lighting the Menorah. The process of lighting is considered the most auspicious ritual of the festival. On the first night one candle is lit and another candle is lit that night and successively the eight candles are lit all the eight days.

The candle stand has nine branches and eight candles are lighted to mark the eight days of the Hanuka festival. The middle candle, known, as the Shamash is a little bigger than the other candles and is used to light the others. People gather round the candle when prayers and blessings are delivered. Maoz Tzur, a traditional song is sung after lighting the candle. Foods are mainly cooked in oil to honor the oil that was burned in the temple. Pancakes and Latkes are the popular foods of this festival.

It is also a tradition to eat fried foods and foods cooked in olive oil, since the festival revolves around the discovering of the flask full of oil. People also love to exchange gifts on this special occasion of the Hanuka festival.