A dreidel
(Yiddish: דרײדל dreydl,
Hebrew: סביבון
Sevivon) is a four-sided spinning top,
played with during the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah.
The dreidel is used for a gambling game similar to Teetotum.
Each side of the dreidel bears a letter of the Hebrew alphabet: נ (Nun), ג
(Gimel),
ה (Hei), ש (Shin), which together form
the acronym for "נס גדול היה
שם" (Nes Gadol
Haya Sham
– "a great miracle happened there"). These letters also form a mnemonic
for the rules of a gambling game played with a dreidel: Nun stands for
the Yiddish
word nite ("nothing"), Hei
stands for halb ("half"), Gimel for gants
("all"), and
Shin for shteln ("put"). In the land of Israel,
the fourth side of most dreidels are inscribed with the letter פ (Pei),
rendering the acronym, נס גדול היה
פה, Nes Gadol
Haya Po—"A great
miracle
happened here" referring to the miracle occurring in the land of
Israel. Some stores in Haredi neighbourhoods may
sell the
traditional ש dreidels. |
MATERIAL | |||||
CANDY | CLOTH | ERASER | FOAM | GLASS | METAL |
PAPER | PLASTIC | POLYMER CLAY (SCULPY) |
RUBBER | WAX (CRAYON) |
WOODEN |