Dictionary definition of “Hanukkah bush”

Hanukkah bush

n. a small tree decorated by some (secular) Jews at the time of the Jewish holiday Hanukkah, in imitation of the Yule or Christmas tree. Subjects: English, Religion

Editorial Note: Alexander Tille in 1892 wrote in the article “German Christmas and the Christmas-Tree” in the journal Folklore (July 1892, vol. 3, no. 2, p. 170) that in Germany “the Christmas-tree has long since broken through the barrier of different creeds, and many Jewish families have adopted it to celebrate Yuletide.”

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Citations: 1959 Cynthia Lowry Indiana Evening Gazette (Pa.) (Dec. 22) “Fills Female Scrooge Parts” p. 14: Two of the brightest moments of the weekend’s viewing were Gertrude Berg’s account—on the Ed Sullivan show—of her father’s substitution of a “Chanukah bush” for a Christmas tree. 1960 Martin Tolchin New York Times (Dec. 12) “Jewish Families Puzzled By Problem of Christmas” p. 40: For many years, some Jewish children who have longed for a Christmas tree have been permitted by their parents to have a “Hanukkah Bush.” This is a tree with the Star of David or a candelabra—the symbol of Hanukkah, the Jewish holiday that falls in the Christmas season. 1979 W. Gunther Plaut Globe and Mail (Toronto, Can.) (Dec. 14) “Christmas and Hanukah different at heart” p. P7: Jews do not have a Hanukah bush, they have an eight-branched candelabrum called hanukiyah or menorah. 1991 Bret Easton Ellis American Psycho p. 37 @ (Mar. 1, 2000): The bastard brought a Hanukkah bush into the office last December. 1994 Wes Nisker If You Don’t Like the News (Sept.) p. 3: Although we had an evergreen like everybody else, decorated with Christmas-tree lights, my mother always put a Star of David on top and called it a “Chanukkah bush.” I remember taking some price in that we Jews had one more point on our star than the Christians. 1999 David M. Bader Haikus for Jews (Sept. 7) p. 16: Look, Muffy! I’ve found/the most splendid tchotchke for/our Hanukkah bush. 2005 Liz Spikol Philadelphia Weekly (Pa.) (Nov. 16) “Yiddle Me This”: I’ve learned that the phrase “Hanukkah bush” was what people called Christmas trees put up in Jewish homes.

Posted 17 Nov 05 | Permalink | Tell a Friend

Reader comments:

Chanukah is the correct spelling for the jewish holiday, get it right

by Rartemass 29 Nov 05, 0927 GMT

No Anglophone dictionary-maker agrees with you about what is “correct.” Hannukah is the more common, most-often preferred form. Either one is a valid and acceptable transliteration of the Hebrew characters חנכה or חנוכה.

by Grant Barrett 29 Nov 05, 1014 GMT