Sukkot is the Jewish harvest festival celebrated for seven days in Israel and eight days in the Jewish diaspora.
The festival begins on the 15th day of Tishrei, the seventh month of the Hebrew calendar, usually in September or October. Its name means “booths” or “huts,” referring to the temporary shelters built and occupied during the festival.
Sukkot combines agricultural and historical meanings. It was an ancient pilgrimage festival associated with the autumn harvest, and Jewish tradition also connects the temporary booths with the Israelites’ wilderness journey after the Exodus. Four plant species—the etrog, lulav, hadas, and aravah—are used in religious rituals.
Sukkot is sometimes confused with Shavuot, another biblical harvest festival. Shavuot is linked especially with the wheat harvest and occurs in late spring, while Sukkot is an autumn festival associated with the ingathering of crops.