Hanukkah World Records - HISTORY

Hanukkah celebrates the triumph of Jewish people over religious persecution.

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What is Hanukkah? History.com's Ask a Rabbi explains Hanukkah and this Jewish holiday's customs. Learn about the menorah, dreidel and other items that have become part of the Jewish holiday Hanukkah.

On April 9, 1860, 17 years before Thomas Edison invented the phonograph, Parisian inventor Edouard-Leon Scott de Martinville made a recording on a "phonautograph," which worked by tracing sound waves onto paper blackened by smoke. Unplayable for more than a century, the recording was recently brought to life by new audio technology. On the recording, Scott is heard singing a snippet from the French folksong "Au Clair de la Lune."

Judith: Hanukkah Heroine

On August 15, 1973, President Richard Nixon addresses the nation concerning Watergate, explaining his refusal to turn over subpoenaed presidential tape recordings.

History Shorts: Hanukkah's Celebration of Religious Freedom

An August 17, 2008, CBS news report highlights the new Olympic record set by Michael Phelps, who won eight gold medals in eight swimming events, breaking Mark Spitz's standing 36-year record of seven gold medals.

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