Contemporary Dreidl

Silver dreidl marked “Sterling by Netafim.” One of the traditions of the festival of Channukah is playing with dreidls. A dreidl is a four-sided spinning top used in a gambling game. The Yiddish word dreydl comes from the word dreyen, meaning “to spin.” Each side features a letter of the Hebrew alphabet (Nun, Gimel, Hei, and Shin) which together form an acronym for the Hebrew phrase Nes Gadol Hayah Sham—“A great miracle happened there.” The letters also stand for the Yiddish words associated with the game: Nun for nite (“nothing”), Gimel for gants (“all”), Hei for halb (“half”), and Shin for shteln (“put”).

Sydney Jewish Museum Collection
M2006/029:002