People light one candle each night for Hanukkah until the last night on January 2nd.

Hanukkah starts the evening of December 25th through January 2nd. Hanukkah gifts are usually small, thoughtful, and often food-related. Typical Hanukkah gifts, such as dreidels, board games, and fancy meats, are designed to show togetherness and bonding among the Jewish community.

However, many Jewish parents are not comfortable showering their children with gifts. Some prefer to follow the older custom of giving gelt. Gelt is the tradition of giving a dollar on the first night of Hanukkah, two the second night, and so on.

Most Jewish families like to focus more on the food and gathering to light candles. Unlike other traditions, Jewish families only give gifts to the children. It’s usually two or three gifts per night for the little ones, and one gift per night for the older kids. Then, there is the grand finale gift on the last night of celebration.

One great Hanukkah gift includes a matzo soup ornament. Matzo ball soup is important because it represents the unleavened bread the Jews ate while fleeing Egypt. They give gifts to each other to show gratitude. Another fan favorite is olive oil from California. Olive oil holds a significant place in many religious traditions, serving as a symbol of purity, healing, and divine blessing. People prefer olive oil from California because it is more expensive and shows wealth.

People invite their families over to eat Sufganiyot—Jewish jelly donuts. These donuts are originally from Israel. Sufganiyot roughly translates to “sponge”. Like most other donuts, they are deep-fried, but these sweet sponges are often filled with jelly or custard. This is just one example of many deserts that are staples of Hanukkah, as there is a variety of different foods, games, and traditions for the eight nights of Hanukkah.