Many people collect all sort of things without questioning why. The instinct to collect is rooted in the evolution of mankind – indeed, in primeval times, hunting and gathering were essential to provide for and ensure the survival of one’s own clan.
Various motivations underline the phenomenon of collecting. As well as serving for personal entertainment and a meaningful pastime, it has a stress-reducing and relaxing effect as it offers an escape from everyday life. There are countless serious collectors who, over a long period of time, have acquired knowledge in their fields and are thus constantly improving their individual education.
The fact that many collections, which have been assembled over many years, represent considerable investment and often form the basis of museums, should not be underestimated.
Many of my German ancestors, including my great-grandmother, my grandmother and my father, were Holocaust survivors. My father, born in 1932, survived the war in disguise, living in different Christian families. He married out and so the Jewish religion played only a minor role in my childhood, however individual Jewish rites, such as the dreidel game, were transmitted.
After several visits to Israel, including a few weeks working in a hospital as part of my medical training (I am a surgeon in Germany), in August 1993 I got engaged at the Western Wall in Jerusalem. On the same day I spotted a silver dreidel in the window of a Judaica shop, and I bought it as a reminder of this special day.
Over the next few days, I bought more dreidels and the basis of my collection was created. In the past 31 years, I have bought silver dreidels on trips together with my wife to Belgium, Netherlands, USA, France, Germany, Hungary and Italy but I have bought most of my collection in Israel. I now have over 250 silver dreidels and the passion for collecting continues.
Put simply, a dreidel is a four-sided spinning top. The word dreidel comes from the Yiddish word dreyen, which corresponds to the English verb ‘to turn’. Each side of the spinning top shows a Hebrew letter: נ (Nun), ג (Gimel), ה (He), ש (Schin). In Israel you find a פ (Pe) instead of a Shin.
These letters form the acronym for the following sentences: Nes gadol haja scham (in the diaspora) – A great miracle happened there, or Nes gadol haja po (in Israel) – A great miracle happened here.
One analysis says that the four letters stand for the four ancient empires Babylon, Persia, Greece and the Roman Empire, which tried to destroy Israel. Another explanation is based on gematria, whereby each Hebrew letter is assigned to a number. The numerical value of the letters on the dreidel is 358, which corresponds to the value of the letters of the word Moshiach (Messiah). In this way it creates a spiritual connection between the dreidel and the Redeemer.
According to legend, during the reign of Seleucid in Israel in the second century BC, the Jews were forbidden to teach and learn the Torah. Practising the Jewish faith was punishable by imprisonment and death. Despite the ban, the Jews encouraged their children to study religious traditions. When enemy patrols appeared, the children fooled the occupiers with a game of dreidels.
Originally, there was probably no connection between the dreidel, Chanukah and Judaism. Although the historical roots of the dreidel have not been conclusively clarified, it has been proven that a small spinning top made its way to Germany via England and Ireland in the 16th century. The letters on this spinning top, called a teetotum, were the Latin first letters of the words: nothing, half, everything and put in.
In Germany, the teetotum was renamed trendel. When Yiddish-speaking Jews living in Germany took over the spinning top game, the Latin letters were transliterated into Hebrew, since Yiddish script is rendered in Hebrew letters.
There are dreidels made of glass, porcelain, wood, plastic, bone, gold, silver and many other materials. My collection exclusively consists of silver, which has for many centuries been the classic material of craftsmen producing Judaica.
Ever since the small spinning top was associated with the Festival of Lights, the dreidel has stood for liberation from oppression and the victory of Judaism over cultural assimilation. The use of silver in the manufacture of Jewish spinning tops gives the dreidel an adequate appreciation.
Lamir veyter dreyen dem dreydl – let’s go on spinning the dreidel!
The Dreidel Game
The players place the same bet, eg chocolate money, raisins, nuts etc and turn the dreidel one after the other. The side facing up indicates the win:
Nun – nothing
You don’t win anything, but you don’t lose anything either.
Gimel – everything
You win the entire contents of the till – after that each player has to put a piece back into the pot.
He – half
You win half of the pot (rounded up). Sometimes it is requested that if only one piece remains, everyone will have to add one.
Schin – put in
You have to put a piece in the till. If you can’t put anything more in the pot, you are out of the game.
