The dreidel game has been played during the Hanukkah season in homes all over the world for generations. Dreidel, which means ‘to turn around’ in Hebrew, is a top with 4 sides.
Each side contains one of the following letters from the Hebrew alphabet: Nun, Shin, Hey, Gimmel (see pictures below).
The dreidel game is fun for the whole family, young and old alike.
How to Play the Dreidel Game…
- All players sit around a hard-surfaced playing area such as a table.
- Each player has 10-15 tokens or small objects such as chocolate gelt (candies in the shape of coins) to put in the center “pot.”
- Each player puts one token into the center pot to start.
- Players take turns spinning the dreidel once during their turn. Once the dreidel stops spinning, the side facing up gives the instruction for the player.
If the dreidel lands on…
Nun
The player does nothing. The player to the left spins.
Gimmel
The player takes the whole pot. Then each player, including the one who landed on gimmel, puts another token in the pot. The player to the left spins.
Hey
The player gets half of the tokens in the pot. If there is an odd number, the player takes one additional token. The player to the left spins.
Shin
The player puts another token in the pot. The player to the left spins.
Keep playing for as long as you like!
These individually handcrafted dreidel pieces are made from olivewood from olive trees in Israel.
The Qiesieh family, the artisans who make these beautifully handcrafted dreidels as a way to provide for themselves, own souvenir shops in both Bethlehem and Jerusalem. For many years they have made their living crafting olive wood items such as figurines and nativity scenes for tourists.
However, when the coronavirus hit in 2020, tourism stopped and so did sales in their shops.
The Qiesiehs barely had enough food to fill their stomachs, so they were forced to barter their beautiful olive wood for meat.
My Olive Tree heard about their plight and reached out to help. George and Elijah, the two Qiesieh brothers who own their souvenir shops and do all of the woodworking themselves, were thrilled when we asked them to create these unique, one-of-a-kind, olive wood dreidels, exclusively made for the My Olive Tree online store.
Your purchase of every dreidel helps the Qiesieh family in Israel overcome financial needs in this difficult time by providing the extra income necessary to put food on their table.
Thank you!