Feast of the Dedication
- noun
:
Fiesta de la Dedicación
- 10:22 And it was the feast of the dedication at Jerusalem.
Examples
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The story of the Maccabees is often told during the Feast of the Dedication in Jewish homes.
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The Feast of the Dedication, also known as Hanukkah, celebrates the rededication of the Temple in Jerusalem.
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Families gather each year to light candles during the Feast of the Dedication, which lasts for eight days.
Synonyms
1
5.6
An eight-day Jewish festival when people light a menorah each night
An eight-day Jewish festival when families light a special candle holder and eat traditional foods
An eight-day Jewish festival when families light candles to remember the Temple in Jerusalem being made holy again
An eight-day Jewish festival also called Hanukkah that remembers the Temple in Jerusalem being made holy again
An eight-day Jewish holiday called Hanukkah when families light candles each night to remember a miracle
An eight-day Jewish holiday celebrating the Temple in Jerusalem being made holy again by lighting a menorah
Surface Forms
Morphology
feast + of + the + dedication
The phrase is directly compositional: 'feast' (a celebration) + 'of the' (indicating relation) + 'dedication' (a formal consecration), so a learner who knows the words can infer it denotes a celebration marking a dedication. While they may not know the specific historical/religious referent (Hanukkah), the basic meaning 'a festival celebrating a dedication' is transparent and predictable.
Etymology
Feast of the Dedication is an older name for Hanukkah, and it comes from the time when Jewish people cleaned and gave the Temple back to God after an enemy had taken it; a small jar of lamp oil then kept burning for eight nights, a 'miracle'. So the name remembers the 'rededication' of the Temple and the 'miracle', which is why people light candles for eight nights today.