Hanukkah 2027 begins at sundown on Friday, December 24, 2027, and ends at nightfall on Saturday, January 1, 2028. In the Hebrew calendar, that is 25 Kislev to 2 Tevet 5788.
Hanukkah 2027 is the year the eight-day festival opens on Christmas Eve, with its first full day on Christmas Day itself.
It is also a year with two Fridays inside it, which changes when the menorah is lit: on a Friday the candles go up before the Shabbat candles, and on Saturday night they wait until Shabbat has ended.
This page gives the night-by-night schedule for 2027, the dates from 2025 to 2031, what the holiday commemorates, how the menorah is lit and how many blessings are said, the foods, the dreidel, and what is open and closed.
Table of Contents
When is Hanukkah 2027?
Hanukkah 2027 runs from sundown on Friday, December 24, 2027, to nightfall on Saturday, January 1, 2028.
Each candle is lit the evening before the Hebrew date it belongs to, so the first candle is lit on Friday evening and the first full day of the festival is Saturday, December 25.
| Night | Candle lit on the evening of | Holiday day | Hebrew date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Friday, December 24, 2027 | Saturday, December 25, 2027 | 25 Kislev 5788 |
| 2 | Saturday, December 25, 2027 | Sunday, December 26, 2027 | 26 Kislev |
| 3 | Sunday, December 26, 2027 | Monday, December 27, 2027 | 27 Kislev |
| 4 | Monday, December 27, 2027 | Tuesday, December 28, 2027 | 28 Kislev |
| 5 | Tuesday, December 28, 2027 | Wednesday, December 29, 2027 | 29 Kislev |
| 6 | Wednesday, December 29, 2027 | Thursday, December 30, 2027 | 30 Kislev |
| 7 | Thursday, December 30, 2027 | Friday, December 31, 2027 | 1 Tevet |
| 8 | Friday, December 31, 2027 | Saturday, January 1, 2028 | 2 Tevet |
The two Fridays, and what they change
Nights one and eight both fall on a Friday in 2027, and night two falls on a Saturday, so the lighting time shifts on three of the eight nights.
My Jewish Learning states that candles are normally lit “after sundown, when it is dark,” that on Friday evenings the menorah is lit “before the Shabbat candles” while daylight remains, and that Saturday evening lighting happens after Shabbat ends, with rabbinic opinions differing on whether it comes before or after havdalah.
| Night in 2027 | Day | When to light |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Friday, December 24 | Before the Shabbat candles, while it is still light |
| 2 | Saturday, December 25 | After Shabbat ends |
| 3 to 7 | Sunday to Thursday | After dark |
| 8 | Friday, December 31 | Before the Shabbat candles |
Hanukkah dates 2025 to 2031
The festival always begins on the eve of 25 Kislev, which lands anywhere from late November to late December.
The table lists each year’s start and end.
| Year | Begins at sundown | Ends at nightfall |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Sunday, December 14, 2025 | Monday, December 22, 2025 |
| 2026 | Friday, December 4, 2026 | Saturday, December 12, 2026 |
| 2027 | Friday, December 24, 2027 | Saturday, January 1, 2028 |
| 2028 | Tuesday, December 12, 2028 | Wednesday, December 20, 2028 |
| 2029 | Saturday, December 1, 2029 | Sunday, December 9, 2029 |
| 2030 | Friday, December 20, 2030 | Saturday, December 28, 2030 |
| 2031 | Tuesday, December 9, 2031 | Wednesday, December 17, 2031 |
The 23-day swing between 2027 and 2029 comes from the Hebrew calendar, which is lunisolar and adds a thirteenth month in seven years out of every 19.
What it commemorates
Hanukkah marks the rededication of the Temple in Jerusalem after the Maccabees defeated the Syrian-Greek forces that had suppressed Jewish practice.
Chabad describes how “a small band of faithful but poorly armed Jews, led by Judah the Maccabee, defeated one of the mightiest armies on earth,” then reclaimed and rededicated the Temple.
My Jewish Learning dates the rededication to 164 BCE and calls the holiday “the Festival of Rededication.”
Why Hanukkah lasts eight days
The eight days come from the story of a single day’s worth of oil that burned for eight.
Chabad recounts that the Maccabees found “only a single cruse of olive oil that had escaped contamination by the Greeks,” and that “miraculously, the one-day supply of oil lasted for eight days, until new oil could be prepared.”
My Jewish Learning notes that “rabbinic tradition ascribes the length of the festival to a miraculous small amount of oil that burned for eight days.”
Hanukkah or Chanukah?
Both spellings are correct, because the Hebrew first letter has no exact English equivalent.
The name means dedication, and My Jewish Learning uses “Hanukkah” while Chabad and Hebcal use “Chanukah.”
Common variants include Hanukah, Chanukkah, and Hanukka. None is more authoritative than the others.
| Name | What it refers to |
|---|---|
| Hanukkah, Chanukah | The same Hebrew word, meaning dedication |
| Festival of Rededication | The rededication of the Temple, per My Jewish Learning |
| Festival of Lights | The eight nights of candle lighting |
How to light the menorah
Candles are placed in the menorah from right to left and lit from left to right, so the newest candle is always lit first.
My Jewish Learning states that candles are “placed in the menorah from right to left” but “are lit from left to right,” with the first night’s candle in the rightmost spot and one added each night.
The ninth flame is the shamash, and it does the lighting. Chabad explains that the menorah “holds nine flames, one of which is the shamash (‘attendant’), which is used to kindle the other eight lights,” and that the menorah is “placed in a doorway or window.”
My Jewish Learning adds that in Ashkenazi practice the shamash “is the first one lit, and it is used to light the others, starting with the left-most one.”
| Step | What to do |
|---|---|
| 1 | Add candles right to left, one more than the night before |
| 2 | Light the shamash first |
| 3 | Recite the blessings |
| 4 | Light the newest candle first, working left to right |
| 5 | Place the menorah in a doorway or window |
How many blessings are said
Three blessings are said on the first night and two on each night after. My Jewish Learning states that three are recited “on the opening night,” then “two on every night thereafter,” with the third, Shehechiyanu, said only on the first night.
| Night in 2027 | Date of lighting | Blessings |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Friday, December 24, 2027 | 3, including Shehechiyanu |
| 2 to 8 | Saturday, December 25, 2027 to Friday, December 31, 2027 | 2 |
Foods, dreidel and gelt
Fried foods are eaten because of the oil in the story. Chabad states that “since the Chanukah miracle involved oil, it is customary to eat foods fried in oil,” naming “the potato latke (pancake) garnished with applesauce or sour cream” and “the reigning Israeli favorite,” the “jelly-filled sufganya (doughnut).” My Jewish Learning gives the same reason, “in commemoration of the legendary cruse of oil.”
The dreidel’s four letters spell out the miracle. Chabad describes “a four-sided spinning top bearing the Hebrew letters nun, gimmel, hei, and shin, an acronym for nes gadol hayah sham, ‘a great miracle happened there.'” My Jewish Learning notes that in Israel the last letter changes to pey, for “nes gadol haya po,” a great miracle occurred here, and gives each letter’s move in the game.
| Letter | Game move |
|---|---|
| Nun | “The player does nothing” |
| Gimel | “The player gets everything in the pot” |
| Hey | “The player gets half of the pot” |
| Shin, or pey in Israel | The player adds a piece to the pot |
Gelt is money given to children. Chabad describes the tradition as “gifts of money, to children,” which also gives them “the opportunity to give tzedakah (charity).”
My Jewish Learning notes the custom “developed in Europe to give small amounts of money” to children.
Hanukkah, Christmas and Kwanzaa in 2027
All three observances overlap in 2027, and Hanukkah’s first full day is Christmas Day. The table lines them up.
| Observance | 2027 dates |
|---|---|
| Hanukkah | Sundown Friday, December 24, 2027 to nightfall Saturday, January 1, 2028 |
| Christmas Day | Saturday, December 25, 2027 |
| Christmas Day, federal observance in the US | Friday, December 24, 2027, because December 25 falls on a Saturday |
| Kwanzaa | Sunday, December 26, 2027 to Saturday, January 1, 2028 |
The federal observance is the detail most calendars miss. Because Christmas Day 2027 falls on a Saturday, United States federal offices take the holiday on Friday, December 24, the same day Hanukkah begins at sundown.
Hanukkah 2027 closures
Hanukkah is not a United States federal holiday, so offices, banks, schools, and markets follow their normal December schedules.
The federal list runs to 11 days, and Christmas is the only religious holiday on it. What closes during Hanukkah 2027 closes for Christmas and New Year, not for Hanukkah.
| Date in 2027 | Status in the US |
|---|---|
| Friday, December 24 | Federal offices closed for the observed Christmas holiday; Hanukkah begins at sundown |
| Saturday, December 25 | Christmas Day; weekend |
| Monday, December 27 to Thursday, December 30 | Normal working days; Hanukkah continues |
| Friday, December 31 | Normal working day; eighth candle lit that evening |
| Saturday, January 1, 2028 | New Year’s Day; Hanukkah ends at nightfall |
What Hanukkah 2027 is not
Hanukkah is not the Jewish Christmas. The two fall together in 2027 only because the Hebrew calendar happens to place 25 Kislev on December 25 that year, and in 2026 the festival is finished by December 12.
It is not a High Holiday either: those are Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, in the autumn. It is not a biblical festival with a date given in the Torah, which is what it shares with Purim: both mark later events.
Finally, the menorah is not lit on the dates in the table above, but on the evenings before them, which is why the first candle of a holiday beginning December 25 is lit on December 24.
Frequently asked questions
When is Hanukkah 2027?
Hanukkah 2027 begins at sundown on Friday, December 24, 2027, and ends at nightfall on Saturday, January 1, 2028, according to Hebcal. The Hebrew dates are 25 Kislev to 2 Tevet 5788. The first candle is lit on Friday evening, December 24, and the first full day of the festival is Saturday, December 25.
Does Hanukkah overlap Christmas in 2027?
Yes. The first candle is lit on Christmas Eve, Friday, December 24, 2027, and the first full day of Hanukkah is Christmas Day, Saturday, December 25. Kwanzaa then runs from December 26 to January 1, so all three overlap. In the United States, the Christmas federal holiday is observed on Friday, December 24, since December 25 is a Saturday.
Why does Hanukkah change dates every year?
Hanukkah always begins on the eve of 25 Kislev, but the Hebrew calendar is lunisolar, so its dates move against the Gregorian calendar. A thirteenth month is added in seven years out of every 19, which is why the festival starts on December 4 in 2026 and December 24 in 2027, and why it can fall as early as late November.
How do you light the Hanukkah menorah?
Place the candles from right to left, adding one each night, then light the shamash and use it to light the newest candle first, working left to right, according to My Jewish Learning. Three blessings are said on the first night and two after that. Chabad advises placing the menorah in a doorway or window.
Why is Hanukkah eight days long?
Because of the oil. Chabad recounts that the Maccabees found only one cruse of undefiled olive oil, enough for a single day, and that it “lasted for eight days, until new oil could be prepared.” My Jewish Learning notes that rabbinic tradition ascribes the eight days to that small amount of oil burning far longer than it should have.
Is Hanukkah spelled Hanukkah or Chanukah?
Both. The Hebrew first letter has no exact English equivalent, so the name is transliterated several ways, including Hanukkah, Chanukah, Hanukah and Chanukkah. My Jewish Learning uses Hanukkah while Chabad and Hebcal use Chanukah. The word means dedication, for the rededication of the Temple in Jerusalem.
Is Hanukkah a federal holiday in the US?
No. Hanukkah is not a United States federal holiday, so federal offices, banks, and markets keep their usual schedules through the eight days. The federal calendar has 11 holidays, and Christmas is the only religious one. In 2027, the closures that fall inside Hanukkah are for the observed Christmas holiday on Friday, December 24, and for New Year’s Day on Saturday, January 1, 2028.
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