When is Chag HaBanot (the Girls' Festival) 2026?

Chag HaBanot, the Girls' Festival, is marked on Rosh Chodesh Tevet, the new month that falls during Hanukkah. In 2026 Rosh Chodesh Tevet is two days: Thursday, 10 December (30 Kislev 5787) and Friday, 11 December (1 Tevet). The festival is held on the first, 10 December, the sixth day of Hanukkah.

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The festival comes from the Jewish communities of North Africa. It was kept most fully in Tunisia, and is also recorded in Libya, Algeria, Morocco and Thessaloniki. It honours women and girls, and is linked to the story of Judith and to other Jewish heroines.

Customs described in the sources include women reconciling with one another, gifts for girls, charity, and gatherings for young women. The custom almost disappeared, and in recent years groups of women in Israel from different communities have revived it.