December is a month filled with holidays that bring families, friends, and loved ones together. Among these special occasions are Christmas, New Year’s, and Hanukkah. On December 16, President Biden remarked on Hanukkah during a speech, as noted on The White House website: “Look, when you walk around the White House, you feel the history and the story of our nation, including the story of the Jewish people who came to our shores in the 1600s after fleeing persecution abroad.” He added, “Like the ancient Hanukkah story when the Jewish Maccabees fought for religious freedom thousands of years ago, a letter to George Washington echoed the same vision for freedom. And ever since, the values and contributions of the Jewish Americans have shaped the very foundation and character of our nation.”
Learn more about Hanukkah, the eight-day Jewish holiday during which the menorah is lit each night, below. Hollywood Life has gathered key details about the festival, including when it takes place in 2024, whether it is a federal holiday, and more.
The Jewish holiday begins the evening of December 25, 2024, coinciding with Christmas Day, and comes to an end on January 2, 2025. According to Britannica, the festival “reaffirms the ideals of Judaism and commemorates in particular the rededication of the Second Temple of Jerusalem by the lighting of candles on each day of the festival.”
While the United States observes Christmas as a federal holiday, President Biden recently announced that federal employees would also have December 24 off for Christmas Eve. As stated on The White House website, he declared: “All executive departments and agencies of the Federal Government shall be closed and their employees excused from duty on Tuesday, December 24, 2024, the day before Christmas Day.”
Hanukkah, however, is not recognized as a federal holiday in the United States.
Since Hanukkah is not a federal holiday, most stores and businesses remain open. However, some Jewish-owned businesses may close during the holiday to observe the tradition.
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