Nittel Nacht () or Nittel is a name given to Christmas Eve by Jewish scholars in the 17th century, observed as early as the late 16th century by Rabbi Samuel Eidels.

Etymology

The Yiddish word "Nittel" for Christmas is likely derived from the

medieval Latin Medieval Latin was the form of Literary Latin used in Roman Catholic Western Europe during the Middle Ages. In this region it served as the primary written language, though local languages were also written to varying degrees. Latin functione ...

name for Christmas, , although it is also often associated with the Hebrew ("the hanged one"), which was used in medieval times to refer to

Jesus Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label= Hebrew/ Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religiou ...

Customs

The most prominent custom commonly observed on Nittel Nacht is to abstain from

Torah The Torah (; hbo, ''Tōrā'', "Instruction", "Teaching" or "Law") is the compilation of the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, namely the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. In that sense, Torah means the ...

study, although historically some read the ''

Toledot Yeshu (, ''The Book of the Generations/History/Life of Jesus''), often abbreviated as ''Toledot Yeshu'', is an early Jewish text taken to be an alternative biography of Jesus of Nazareth. It exists in a number of different versions, none of which is c ...

'' instead. Staying up late and playing

card games A card game is any game using playing cards as the primary device with which the game is played, be they traditional or game-specific. Countless card games exist, including families of related games (such as poker). A small number of card ...

chess Chess is a board game for two players, called White and Black, each controlling an army of chess pieces in their color, with the objective to checkmate the opponent's king. It is sometimes called international chess or Western chess to dist ...

were also popular. Some Jewish mystics believed

apostates Apostasy (; grc-gre, ἀποστασία , 'a defection or revolt') is the formal disaffiliation from, abandonment of, or renunciation of a religion by a person. It can also be defined within the broader context of embracing an opinion that ...

were conceived on the day and as a result forbade married couples from

sexual relations Human sexual activity, human sexual practice or human sexual behaviour is the manner in which humans experience and express their sexuality. People engage in a variety of sexual acts, ranging from activities done alone (e.g., masturbation) t ...

on Nittel Nacht.

Origin

The first explicit reference to the practice of avoiding Torah study appears in Rabbi

Yair Bacharach Rabbi Yair Chayim Bacharach (1639, Lipník nad Bečvou, Moravia — 1702; also known by his work Chavos Yair) was a German rabbi and major 17th century posek, who lived first in Koblenz and then the remainder of his life in Worms and Mainz. H ...

's ''Mekor Chaim'', composed sometime between 1660 and 1692, where he wrote “and there is a custom of abstaining from study on the evening of that man's 'i.e.'', Jesus' holiday." The first allusion to the practice of staying up late playing games appears in a Jewish communal ordinance from 1708 and was later mentioned in the work of

Moses Sofer Moses Schreiber (1762–1839), known to his own community and Jewish posterity in the Hebrew translation as Moshe Sofer, also known by his main work ''Chatam Sofer'', ''Chasam Sofer'', or ''Hatam Sofer'' ( trans. ''Seal of the Scribe'', and acron ...

. Another early written reference to the practice of abstaining from reading the Torah is in a 17th-century writing by Rabbi Yair Bacharach. In the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

Christendom Christendom historically refers to the Christian states, Christian-majority countries and the countries in which Christianity dominates, prevails,SeMerriam-Webster.com : dictionary, "Christendom"/ref> or is culturally or historically intertwine ...

, Jews were often forbidden from appearing in public during the Christmas holidays, and Christmas Eve frequently marked the beginning of attacks on the Jewish population. Many Jews observed Nittel Nacht as a way to avoid leaving their homes, and to avoid giving the appearance of celebrating the Christian holiday. Many also sought to avoid experiencing any pleasure or joy on Christmas, to ensure that no glory would be given to the day. Medieval

such as

Johann Pfefferkorn Johannes Pfefferkorn (original given name Joseph; 1469, Nuremberg – Oktober 22, 1521, Cologne) was a German Catholicism, Catholic theologian and writer who Conversion to Christianity, converted from Judaism. Pfefferkorn actively preached again ...

, Julius Conrad Otto, Johann Adrian, and

Samuel Friedrich Brenz Samuel Friedrich Brenz (born in Osterburg, in the latter half of the 16th century; date and place of death unknown) was an anti-Judaism writer, himself born Jewish. He converted to Christianity in 1601 in Feuchtwangen, and wrote ''Jüdischer Ab ...

wrote that the common belief among Jews at the time was that on Christmas Eve, Jesus would wander all the toilets of the world as a punishment for spreading false teachings. They wrote that Jews feared that if Jesus heard them reading the Torah, he would get a respite from his suffering, so they refrained from it. The apostates also wrote about Jews eating a lot of garlic on Christmas Eve to ward off the demon Jesus, as well as Jewish children being hesitant to use the latrine on Christmas Eve from the fear of Jesus reaching out and pulling them in. The observance of Nittel Nacht was popularized by the

Baal Shem Tov Israel ben Eliezer (1698 – 22 May 1760), known as the Baal Shem Tov ( he, בעל שם טוב, ) or as the Besht, was a Jewish mystic and healer who is regarded as the founder of Hasidic Judaism. "Besht" is the acronym for Baal Shem Tov, which ...

in the 18th century. After the advent of the

Gregorian Calendar The Gregorian calendar is the calendar used in most parts of the world. It was introduced in October 1582 by Pope Gregory XIII as a modification of, and replacement for, the Julian calendar. The principal change was to space leap years dif ...

, Orthodox Christians and

Catholic Christian The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwide . It is am ...

s observed Christmas Eve on two separate dates; this led to Rabbinic debate, and Nittel Nacht is observed in accordance with the local Christian community. In modern times, with less tense

Jewish-Christian relations Christianity began as a movement within Second Temple Judaism, but the two religions gradually diverged over the first few centuries of the Christian Era. Differences of opinion vary between denominations in both religions, but the most importa ...

, Nittel Nacht is less observed, although certain Hasidic communities still observe it, with many communities observing it according to the Julian Calendar rather than the Gregorian Calendar, and some communities observing both nights.

Notes

References

{{Reflist Christianity and Judaism Christmas-linked holidays December observances Jewish observances

Etymology

Customs

Origin

See also

Notes

References