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Is Hanukkah responsive to Christmas?

Author

Listed:
  • Ran Abramitzky

    (Department of Economics, Stanford University)

  • Liran Einav

    (Department of Economics, Stanford University)

  • Oren Rigbi

    (Department of Economics, Stanford University)

Abstract

We study the extent to which religious activity responds to the presence and activity of other religions. Specifcally, we employ individual-level survey data and county-level expenditure data to examine the extent to which Hanukkah celebration among U.S. Jews is driven by the presence of Christmas. We find that: (1) Jews with children at home are more likely to celebrate Hanukkah than Jews without children. (2) The effect of having children on Hanukkah celebrations is higher for reform Jews than for orthodox Jews; and, it is higher for Jews who feel a stronger sense of belonging to Judaism. (3) Jewish-related expenditures in Hanukkah are higher in counties with lower share of Jews. These findings are consistent with the hypothesis that Jews increase religious activity during Hanukkah because of the presence of Christmas, and this response is primarily driven by the presence of children at home. One underlying motivator might be that Jewish parents in the U.S. celebrate Hanukkah more intensively so heir children do not feel left out, and/or because they are concerned that their children will convert or intermarry. Creation Date: 2008-03 Revision Date:

Suggested Citation

  • Ran Abramitzky & Liran Einav & Oren Rigbi, "undated". "Is Hanukkah responsive to Christmas?," Discussion Papers 07-049, Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research.
    • Handle: RePEc:sip:dpaper:07-049
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Danny Cohen-Zada & Todd Elder, 2012. "Religious Pluralism, Religious Market Shares and the Demand for Religious Schooling," Working Papers 1201, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Department of Economics.
    2. Cohen-Zada, Danny & Elder, Todd, 2018. "Religious pluralism and the transmission of religious values through education," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 150(C), pages 325-349.
    3. Laura Birg & Anna Goeddeke, 2016. "Christmas Economics—A Sleigh Ride," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 54(4), pages 1980-1984, October.
    4. Eiji Yamamura & Yoshiro Tsutsui & Fumio Ohtake, 2023. "Would Monetary Incentives to COVID-19 vaccination reduce motivation?," Papers 2311.11828, arXiv.org.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Religions; Hanukkah; Identity;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J15 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Minorities, Races, Indigenous Peoples, and Immigrants; Non-labor Discrimination
    • Z12 - Other Special Topics - - Cultural Economics - - - Religion

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