It is impossible to describe the Jewish holidays 2022 of the Jewish people only in a few words. Each holiday celebrates some historical event that occurred thousands of years ago and at the same time reflects an aspect of one’s life as it is lived today.
People have constantly observed their surroundings and the sky to make sense of time. It has been a question of making sense of time according to the sun, moon, and other stars. The daily and annual movements of the sun depending on the movement of the earth caused the formation of the solar calendar, and the movements of the moon around the earth caused the formation of the lunar calendar.
The Hebrew calendar or Jewish calendar is a lunisolar calendar used predominantly in Jewish religious sites today. Appropriately reads dates and Torah chapters of Jewish holidays, yahrzeit (dates to commemorate a relative’s death), and daily Psalm readings, among many ceremonial uses. It is used only for religious purposes in Israel, not officially.
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What is the history of the Hebrew Calendar?
The first known Hebrew calendar is the Gezer calendar, which was held during the reign of King Solomon. It consists of twelve lunar-based months. The calendar, which was designed to plan agricultural activity, had a lunar basis but was later changed to a solar calendar. The Israelites, on the other hand, used a complex structure that they created based on the Babylonian calendar system.
An example of the calendar from the 10th century BC is in the Istanbul Archaeological Museum.
What are the Hebrew months?
Hebrew months are lunar months. It is arranged according to the movements of the moon and each lasts 29 or 30 days. Each month begins with the first appearance of the New Moon (Molad) and covers the period until the next appearance of the New Moon. A year calculated as 12 months in the solar calendar is calculated as 12.4 months in the lunar calendar. To make up for this difference, a month is added to the Hebrew calendar at regular intervals.
The months in the Hebrew calendar are listed as follows:
| Hebrew calendar | Length | Gregorian calendar |
| Tishrei (officially the first month) | 30 days | September – October |
| Cheshvan (or Marcheshvan) | 29/30 days | October – November |
| Kislev | 30/29 days | November – December |
| Tevet | 29 days | December – January |
| Shevat | 30 days | January – February |
| Adar | 29 days | February – March |
| Adar Sheni (the second Adar)In a 19-year period, 7 years, which is a leap year | 29 days | February – March |
| Nisan (religiously the first month) | 30 days | March – April |
| Iyar | 29 days | April – May |
| Sivan | 30 days | May – June |
| Tammuz | 29 days | June – July |
| Av | 30 days | July – August |
| Elul | 29 days | August – September |
Jewish Holidays in 2022
| Jewish Holidays 2022 | Day | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Tu Bishvat 2022 | Monday | 17 Jan |
| Fast of Esther 2022 | Wednesday | 16 Mar |
| Purim Eve 2022 | Wednesday | 16 Mar |
| Purim 2022 (Tel Aviv) | Thursday | 17 Mar |
| Shushan Purim 2022 (Jerusalem) | Friday | 18 Mar |
| March Equinox 2022 | Sunday | 20 Mar |
| Aliyah Day 2022 | Monday | 11 Apr |
| Passover Eve 2022 | Friday | 15 Apr |
| Passover 2022 (Day 1) | Saturday | 16 Apr |
| Passover (Day 2) | Sunday | 17 Apr |
| Passover (Day 3) | Monday | 18 Apr |
| Passover (Day 4) | Tuesday | 19 Apr |
| Passover (Day 5) | Wednesday | 20 Apr |
| Passover (Day 6) | Thursday | 21 Apr |
| Passover (Day 7) | Friday | 22 Apr |
| Yom HaShoah 2022 | Thursday | 28 Apr |
| Yom HaZikaron 2022 | Wednesday | 4 May |
| Yom HaAtzmaut 2022 | Thursday | 5 May |
| Lag BaOmer 2022 | Thursday | 19 May |
| Jerusalem Day 2022 | Sunday | 29 May |
| Shavuot Eve 2022 | Saturday | 4 Jun |
| Shavuot 2022 | Sunday | 5 Jun |
| June Solstice 2022 | Tuesday | 21 Jun |
| 17th of Tammuz 2022 | Sunday | 17 Jul |
| Tisha B’Av Eve 2022 | Saturday | 6 Aug |
| Tisha B’Av 2022 | Sunday | 7 Aug |
| September Equinox 2022 | Friday | 23 Sep |
| Rosh Hashana Eve 2022 | Sunday | 25 Sep |
| Rosh Hashana 2022 | Monday | 26 Sep |
| Rosh Hashana (Day 2) | Tuesday | 27 Sep |
| Gedaliah Fast 2022 | Wednesday | 28 Sep |
| Yom Kippur Eve 2022 | Tuesday | 4 Oct |
| Yom Kippur 2022 | Wednesday | 5 Oct |
| Sukkot Eve 2022 | Sunday | 9 Oct |
| Sukkot 2022 (Day 1) | Monday | 10 Oct |
| Sukkot (Day 2) | Tuesday | 11 Oct |
| Sukkot (Day 3) | Wednesday | 12 Oct |
| Sukkot (Day 4) | Thursday | 13 Oct |
| Sukkot (Day 5) | Friday | 14 Oct |
| Sukkot (Day 6) | Saturday | 15 Oct |
| Sukkot (Day 7) / Hoshanah Rabah | Sunday | 16 Oct |
| Shemini Atzeret 2022 / Simchat Torah | Monday | 17 Oct |
| Aliyah Day School Observance 2022 | Tuesday | 1 Nov |
| Hanukkah 2022 (Day 1) | Monday | 19 Dec |
| Hanukkah (Day 2) | Tuesday | 20 Dec |
| Hanukkah (Day 3) | Wednesday | 21 Dec |
| December Solstice | Wednesday | 21 Dec |
| Hanukkah (Day 4) | Thursday | 22 Dec |
| Hanukkah (Day 5) | Friday | 23 Dec |
| Hanukkah (Day 6) / Rosh Chodesh Tevet | Saturday | 24 Dec |
| Hanukkah (Day 7) | Sunday | 25 Dec |
| Hanukkah (Day 8) | Monday | 26 Dec |
Since the dates of Eid and Mourning days in Judaism are calculated according to the Jewish Calendar, the holidays do not always come on the same date, but they always coincide with the same season.
The most important holiday is New Year’s Day (Rosh Hashanah), followed ten days later by the 26-hour fasting day, called Yom Kippur, which means the Day of Atonement. Sukkot, a Torah-commanded holiday celebrated for seven days, comes after Kippur.
Simchat Tora is also celebrated, which symbolizes that the reading of all parts of the Torah is completed and started again in a year. Hanukkah, also known as the Festival of Lights is celebrated in December commemorating the recovery of Jerusalem. Between March and April, Purim is celebrated for 2 days in Babylon to commemorate the last-minute destruction of the Jews by Haman, the Anti-Semite, who was prevented by Esther.
Passover, also called Pesach, which celebrates the liberation of Egypt from slavery under the leadership of Moses is also taking part in these months. Shavuot, which celebrates the receipt of the 10 Commandments, and Tisha B’Av, which is a day of mourning and commemorating the destruction of the temple and various unfortunate events, are one of the important days.
What are the differences between the Gregorian calendar and the Hebrew calendar?
In the Gregorian calendar, a year is 365 days. The annual revolution of the earth around the sun takes roughly this long: 365 days. This quarter-day difference is compensated by making February 29 days every four years. Judaism, on the other hand, counts the months according to the moon in the sky.
The time from the “birth” of the new moon (celebrated as Rosh Chodesh and means “the beginning of innovation”) to the next is about 29 days. A lunar year has 354 days instead of 365. This makes each year shorter than the previous. Feasts celebrated in the spring soon coincide with the cold days of winter.
Judaism follows a solar calendar based on the moon in the sky. Months are determined by the moon in the sky, but the missing eleven days each year are made up for by adding a “leap” month seven times in a 19-year cycle. The extra month is added to the third, sixth, eighth, eleventh, fourteenth, seventeenth, and nineteenth years of the cycle. The contradiction between the lunar and solar calendars is thus minimized.
There is another big difference between the Jewish calendar and the Gregorian calendar: According to the Gregorian calendar, there is only one New Year. The Jewish calendar has two New Years.