What is Nittle Nacht? What does the name mean? What is its significance? Which Halachic authorities speak about it, and what do they say? What is the actual date for it? How is it effected this year when it comes out on Shabbos?
asked Dec 24, 2010 at 5:15
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One other acronymic origin -- notein ta'am lifgam. Maybe a good discussion would be on the nafka minah between reasons -- we in the US don't have the same kind of fear wandering the streets and can learn at home, so should we still not learn tonight or go to shiurim? If the issue is a spiritual/supernatural one then the reasoning still holds.– rosendsDec 24, 2013 at 14:57
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1It appears that 6 questions sure being asked.– mevaqeshSep 1, 2016 at 6:34
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In Yiddish, "ניטל" means 'Christmas'. "נאחט" means 'night'. Where it is discussed, it is usually in the context of specific minhagim. Many have the minhag not to learn Torah that night, which would mean until after midnight. The idea being that learning Torah adds vitality to the world and specific time when it is done. Those who follow this practice do not wish to add vitality to the influences associated with that time.– Yaacov DeaneJul 27, 2017 at 18:38
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@YaacovDeane First of all, it's not 100% true that ניטל means "Xmas" in Yiddish. Sure, it's the word used to refer to Xmas when used in the phrase ניטל נאכט, but its meaning is actually up to debate and of speculation. Secondly, the Yiddish word meaning night is spelled נאכט, not נאחט.– ezraDec 9, 2018 at 16:52
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@ezra I’m using the definition found in Modern English-Yiddish Yiddish-English Dictionary by Uriel Weinreich. He is the Professor of Yiddish language, literature and culture at Columbia Universty. If he has it wrong, I apologize. On the spelling error of נאכט, thanks for pointing it out. I try to be careful with spelling errors.– Yaacov DeaneDec 9, 2018 at 17:22
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5 Answers
"Nittle nacht" is the Yiddish reference to the night going into Christmas. (It was observed on different dates, depending on if you lived in a Catholic/Protestant country, or an Eastern Orthodox [Christian] country; the former have Christmas on December 25th, thus "nittel nacht" starting at sunset December 24th; the latter have a different calendar.). There were customs in Eastern Europe about men not learning Torah and/or women not going to the mikva that night, at least not until after midnight.
The simple meaning of the term is "nacht" means night; "nittel" as in "neonatal"; "birth night", as it was the night observed by Christians for the birth of Jesus.
The simplest explanation is found in Rabbi Dr. Leiman's lecture on yutorah.org; that the night of Christmas often had a lot of non-Jews roaming the streets (occasionally drunk), and thus it was a dangerous time to be outside. Therefore, women were told not to go the mikva, and men not to go out to study halls or synagogues to study (most people didn't have a lot of study material at home). Past midnight, everyone was in church (or headed home), and it was safer outside.
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I've heard this as well from a person who lives in Vienna where Nittle Nacht is more well know than here. Feb 21, 2013 at 1:53
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1The problem with Rabbi Leiman's suggestion (not having heard the lecture, myself) is that if it were merely a question of safety then a far better date for abstaining from these things would be Easter. The anniversary of Jesus's crucifixion was always a considerably more dangerous time to be a Jew in Europe than the celebration of his birth. Nativity plays were somewhat less incendiary than passion plays, for obvious reasons. Dec 25, 2013 at 0:21
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@shimonbM good question, but things were more dangerous at night. I'd think Easter was a day observance.– ShalomDec 25, 2013 at 0:45
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@SAH asimplejew.blogspot.com/2006/12/… points out that it is a play on words meaning both birth and Nittel, in Yiddish, is also the diminutive form of the word “nit” – meaning nothing. Nittle = little nothing. Nittle Nacht is thus both “cratzmach eve” and “night of little nothing” or “little-nothing night.” Jul 26, 2017 at 17:32
In Hayom Yom (17 Teves), the reason given (in the name of R' Shalom Dovber Schneersohn, fifth Lubavitcher Rebbe) is "to avoid adding vitality." The point is that the person whose birthday they're celebrating on this day was a Jew, and since on a person's birthday his mazal (spiritual source) is stronger, we don't want the spiritual benefits generated by our Torah learning to be diverted towards strengthening his mazal.
I've heard different customs about what to do when it comes out on Friday night. Some say that Shabbos overrides this issue, since as the Zohar, recited by some on Friday night, says, וכל דינין מתעברין מנה - all harsh judgments go away in the face of Shabbos. Others keep this custom even on Friday night, though they will sing zemiros, tell stories of tzaddikim, or the like, instead of regular divrei Torah.
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1so if shabbos is doche nittle nacht, when are we supposed to rip all the toilet paper we need for the year?– JeremyDec 27, 2010 at 3:14
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1Maybe on the Julian-calendar (Eastern Orthodox) Nittel - Jan. 7 on our Western calendar?– AlexDec 27, 2010 at 16:37
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2Shouldn't everyone observe Nittle Nacht practices on the evening before any sect of Christianity's date for Christmas? It's not like we should be paskining which of them is right.– Double AA ♦Dec 23, 2012 at 0:16
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If Jews normally went about their business at all hours of day and night, wouldn't their absence on Christmas Eve raise suspicion that Jews were engaging in some sort of activity, whether good or bad?– JJLLDec 26, 2016 at 17:52
Nitel Nacht is the eve of the non-Jewish holiday celebrating the birth of the Nazarene (see Divrei Yatziv O.C.2 240:1). According to some Nitel is associated with the Latin for being born, nacht of course meaning "night". (Nitei Gavriel on Nittel 1:2, see also Halichos Chaim, Moadim u'Zmanim, nittel 1 note 2).
December 25th for the Eastern Church falls out on January 7th, so in eastern Europe the observance coincided with the tekufas Teves.
The practice was, and in some communities is, to refrain from learning Torah on the night of Nitel Nact. Some explain it as a pragmatic concern since anti-Jewish violence was a common feature of non-Jewish religious holidays. I believe the Chasam Sofer hypothesizes that it was to be rested in order to wake up and learn at midnight so the situation wouldn't occur thant non-Jews were up worshiping while the Jews slept. Another view is that we do not wish to strengthen the negative spiritual forces brought about by the celebration, a view that seems to be particularly prevalent among those who observe the practice.
Some observe the practices of Nittel Nacht even if it falls out on Friday night, others do not.
Nitei Gavriel has one of the more extensive discussions of the topic, including the various other practices associated with it and questions arising from the fact that their holiday is observed at different times. He suggests that many authorities did not mention the practice out of fear of the government.
There are a number of theories as to where the term "Nittel", or "Nittel Nacht" originate from. Some suggest that it comes from the Latin "Natale Dominus", meaning, "The birth of our God". Others surmise that the use of the word Nittel etymologically comes from the Hebrew "natal", meaning "to have been hanged". Nittel can also be construed as the Hebrew word for "being taken away". Alternatively, it may simply be a derogatory nickname that was used to refer to Jesus in all circumstances. The more likely meaning of the term Nittel is that of an acronym for "Nolad Yeshu Tet L'tevet", meaning, "Jesus was born on the ninth of Tevet."
answered Dec 24, 2010 at 14:45
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See Nitei Gavriel Chanukah page 416 who gives the Peshat that Nittel stands for נולד יש"ו ט' לטבת and adds that therefore some fast then. See Shulchan Aruch 580:2 which says that some fast on the 9th of Teves but its not clear why. He explains that the reason it's not clear why is because the Jews were scared of saying the reason explicitly out of fear of retribution from the Christians so instead were Meramez it in the name Nittel.– EliyahuDec 27, 2016 at 4:54
I had just heard another reason for this a few weeks ago at our Daf Yomi shiur, I will IY"H try to get the source. The idea was to stay home initially to be able to rest, and then be awake and learning at midnight to counter the forces or what have you coming from the churches at midnight.
