Can You Spell Hanukkah With A Ch

When you translate it into the english alphabet however there s no exact spelling.

Can you spell hanukkah with a ch. As little as about five years ago the top spelling. The 1 question during hanukkah is. As i blogged about last year since it s a hebrew word that is transliterated into english there.

For most individuals hanukkah is spelled like that or it may be spelled like chanukah. Do you ever wonder how do you spell hanukkah properly. Thus in the 18th century another spelling appeared hanukkah even though the h doesn t really sound like ḥet either.

This is because of the hebrew translation of the word so it can be spelled many different ways as the sound of the word starts with ch so many feel it is spelled as chanukah while others prefer starting it with ha and saying hanukkah. So in some cultures hanukkah is spelled as chanukkah and is spoken as cha nuuu oouuu kaa. Put the confusion behind you with the correct spelling and background of its origins.

The name of the eight day jewish holiday originates in the language of hebrew where it s spelled as חנוכה. Those looking to emphasize the guttural sound of the chet will often use ch while those looking for the closest english equivalent letter tend towards the h also the eighth letter of the alphabet. Since english doesn t have that sound an h is sometimes used in hanukkah but other times a ch to make things more complicated the first letter in the hebrew version is pronounced differently in modern hebrew than it was in classical hebrew 2 3.

However when the english ch appears at the beginning of a word it sounds quite different than the hebrew ḥet compare loch and chair. This may be how and why hanukkah has become more common but no. Merriam webster identifies hanukkah as the primary spelling of the holiday and chanukah as a secondary way of writing the holiday.

Some people emphasize the ch sound in hanukkah while others will emphasize the kah sound. Virtually alone among jewish holidays the eight day festival of lights in spelled in many ways. What is the correct way to spell the name of this holiday.