The Most Important Jewish Holidays During the Year  

Throughout the year there are numerous Jewish holidays, each of which rich in history and tied to tradition. That being said, there are certainly some that are considered to be more important than others:

Rosh Hashanah

As the Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah’s significance is one of the easiest to appreciate. It is regarded as a time of reflection to look back on the past year and prepare for the next one, and is one of the two holidays when Jews generally will go to the synagogue.

From a religious standpoint, Rosh Hashanah commemorates the creation of the world and the creation of man on the sixth day.

Yom Kippur

Shortly after Rosh Hashanah (on the 10th day of a new Jewish year), is the Day of Atonement known as Yom Kippur. It is the second of the two holidays when Jews will go to the synagogue and many also abstain from food and drink.

It is intended to be a day spent devoted to prayer, study, and self-examination.

Hanukkah

Probably one of the most well-known Jewish holidays, Hanukkah is an 8-day winter festival that celebrates the small miracle of one day’s worth of oil lasting eight days instead after the victory of the Jewish Maccabees over the Syrian Greek army.

That victory was followed by a rededication of the Temple of Jerusalem, and it is from there that the holiday acquires its name.

Passover

Celebrated for seven to eight days, Passover commemorates the exodus of the Jews from Egypt, led by Moses. Strictly speaking, no Jews conduct business or go to work on the first two or last two days of Passover, though that tradition is sometimes not observed nowadays.

Make no mistake, there are many other Jewish holidays too – including Shabbat (the Sabbath services) that occurs every week from midnight Friday to midnight Saturday. Still, the ones above are probably the most iconic – due to how steeped they are in history and tradition.