What Do the Signs on a Dreidel Mean?
A dreidel is a Jewish toy used in a popular Jewish children's game. There are four symbols on a dreidel: Nun, Gimmel, Sin and Heh. These symbols each have two meanings---one for game play and one for Jewish culture.
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Two Meanings
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To children, each side represents a different action as part of the dreidel game. However, to Jewish people and religious scholars, the signs of the dreidel have much deeper meanings. They represent the story and history of Judaism because each symbol represents one of the four kingdoms that persecuted and exiled the Jewish people, according to the Torah.
Nun
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Nun represents the kingdom of Babylon. Centuries ago, the Babylonian emperor Nabuchadnezer destroyed the first of the Jewish Holy Temples, according to Jewish texts. Jewish people believe that when that temple was razed, the spiritual connection between it and God was demolished as well. This connection is called "nefesh" in Hebrew and is represented on the dreidel by its first letter "Nun." In the dreidel game, spinning a Nun means the player loses a turn, and the dreidel is passed to the next person.
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Gimmel
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Gimmel symbolizes the kingdom of Persia. When the Jewish people were thrown out of Persia, they faced ultimate annihilation or genocide. The bodies of the people, called "guf" in Hebrew, were threatened. "Guf" begins with the Hebrew letter "Gimmel," thus Gimmel represents Persia and the avoidance of genocide. During the dreidel game, Gimmel is the most coveted spin---it means the player wins everything in the pot.
Sin (or Shin)
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Though the Persians tried to rid the world of Jewish people, the Greeks tried to eradicate the Torah in favor of dramatic---but superficial---accounts, according to Jewish texts. The Torah is called "sechel" in Hebrew. "Sechel" begins with the letter "Sin," therefore Sin represents the kingdom of Greece and the saving of the Torah. If a player spins a Sin in the dreidel game, he either loses one or all of his coins, depending on which variation of the game the players are using.
Heh (or Hey)
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Finally, the fourth symbol---Heh---represents the kingdom of Rome. To Jewish people, Rome represents all of their injustices combined. Romans destroyed the second Jewish Holy Temple with the intent of genocide. Romans then turned to Christianity as their primary religion, but in modern times, Rome has embraced secularism and materialism, according to Jewish beliefs. "HaKol" signifies all of these injustices take together, and the first letter "Heh" represents "HaKol" on the dreidel. In the dreidel game, spinning a Heh---which can also mean "half"---means the player takes half of the pot.
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- Photo Credit dreidel. image by diligent from Fotolia.com
