Did you know that Hanukkah promotes gambling? That's right. The dreidel — a four-sided spinning top — has different Hebrew letters on each side: nun, gimel, hay and shin. In Hebrew, the letters form the initials of the message, "A great miracle happened there" (referring Hanukkah's everlasting oil). To play the dreidel game, players start out with the same amount of money (or candy) and they lose or gain depending on which letter turns up when they spin the top.
If you think you're good at the game, you might want to join Major League Dreidel, a New York City–based association of hard-core dreidel enthusiasts. Over 100 people are expected to participate in their Dec. 12 Hanukkah tournament in Manhattan.