How many nights does Hanukkah traditionally last?

Hanukkah traditionally lasts eight nights. The Jewish festival commemorates the rededication of the Second Temple in Jerusalem after the Maccabean revolt against the Seleucid Empire in the second century BCE.

According to the Talmudic account, when the Temple was rededicated, a small quantity of ritually pure oil that should have lasted one day burned for eight days. Hanukkah’s central ritual, lighting the hanukkiah, recalls this tradition by adding one light on each successive night.

A hanukkiah has nine branches: eight for the festival nights and one shamash, or “helper,” used to light the others. The number of branches is why the festival lamp is often distinguished from the seven-branched menorah associated with the ancient Temple.

Hanukkah dates vary on the Gregorian calendar because its dates follow the Hebrew calendar. Common celebrations include blessings, songs, fried foods such as latkes and sufganiyot, and games with a dreidel.