How do you play dreidel?

The rules

Everyone starts with the same number of tokens – nuts, raisins, chocolate coins or pennies – and puts one into the middle. Players spin in turn. Nun (Yiddish “nisht”, nothing): no change. Gimmel (“gants”, all): take the pot. Hey (“halb”, half): take half, rounded up in most homes. Shin (“shtel”, put in): add one to the pot. In Israel the fourth letter is Pe, for “Nes gadol hayah po” – “a great miracle happened here” – and landing on it is usually played like Shin. A player who runs out of tokens is out; the game ends when one player has everything, or when the latkes are ready.

Where it comes from

The game is a version of a spinning-top game played across Europe; Jewish children adopted it and gave the letters a Hanukkah meaning. A popular explanation says that when the Greeks banned Torah study, children kept a top at hand so that they could pretend to be playing if soldiers came. Later commentators, such as the Bnei Yissaschar, found deeper meanings: the numerical value of the four letters, 358, equals that of “Mashiach”.

In Hebrew and Yiddish

Dreidel is Yiddish, from “to turn”; in Hebrew it is a sevivon. Many Israeli songs and children’s crafts revolve around it.

Is it gambling?

Playing for nuts or chocolate, among family, is a game, not gambling. Some families have children give their winnings to charity. Games are not played while the candles are being lit, and are part of the warmth of the evenings of Hanukkah.