Passover: History, Facts & Insights

This is an in-depth look at all the must-know facts about Passover (2024) 🗓️ that no one tells you about. Passover is celebrated on April 5th.

Among the information you’ll find below: the history of Passover, activities to do on and how to observe this holiday, as well as fun facts you may want to know about Passover.

📅 What day is Passover 2024?

In 2024, Passover is on Wednesday, April 5th. It is the 1st Wednesday in April; in 2024, it is Friday. There are until the next observance. You also can see all fascinating details and facts about April 5, 2023, that you might not be aware of.

According to the Jewish calendar, Passover starts on November 30th this year, which is the 15th day of the month of Nisan. Passover, also known as the Feast of Unleavened Bread, usually begins in late March or early April on the Gregorian calendar. This ancient celebration marks the first day of the Jewish Passover tradition, which lasts for seven or eight days. It serves as a remembrance of the Jews’ liberation from slavery in Egypt more than 3,000 years ago.

📜 Passover History

The Jewish people have a special celebration called Passover Seder, where they gather with their close relatives and friends on the first evening of Passover. Those outside of Israel also have a second seder on the second evening. During the feast, they read from a book called the “Haggadah,” which tells the story of the Jews’ freedom from slavery. They also take sips of wine at specific moments in the story. The traditional Passover seder includes a plate with symbolic foods that represent different parts of the Passover story. These foods include unleavened bread, bitter herbs, bitter lettuce, and a nut and fruit paste called charoset. Other items on the plate are a vegetable soaked in salt water or vinegar, a hard-boiled egg, and a roasted bone from a goat, chicken, or lamb. After the seder, participants pray, sing, and spend the rest of the day relaxing to honor their liberation.

✅ Passover Facts

🔖 Biggest matzah in the world
In August 2009, Noah’s Ark Original Deli in New York City created a matzah ball that broke the record for being the largest in the world, according to Guinness World Records. This enormous matzah ball measured 29.2 inches wide and weighed a whopping 267 pounds!

🔖 Maxwell House’s “Haggadah”
As of April 2020, Maxwell House’s Passover Haggadah has been distributed in nearly 60 million copies, making it the most widely circulated Haggadah in the United States.

🔖 Several names, one festival
Passover, often referred to as Pesach, is a Jewish holiday that goes by different names such as Chag HaMatzot, Chag Ha Herut, and Chag Ha-Aviv. These names symbolize the Festival of Unleavened Bread, the Festival of Freedom, and the Festival of Spring respectively.

👍 Why Is Passover Important

During the Seder, Jews recite the Passover tale. Children are rewarded for asking questions and participating in religious rituals. The four questions posed by youngsters are also included in the First Day of Passover traditions. The youngest kid in the family usually asks the four classic questions about the Passover Seder and why the first night is different from the other nights of the celebration. Children are also expected to discover or steal the afikomen, a piece of matzo placed somewhere in the house and eaten later as dessert. If a youngster takes or attempts to steal the afikomen, the parents must bargain a release in exchange for sweets, toys, or other modest gifts.

During the seder, guests consume a range of ancient delicacies. The z’roa is a lamb shank bone or roasted chicken wing, and the haroset is an apple, cinnamon, honey, and sweet wine mixture. A fifth, untouched cup of wine is poured ceremoniously (and left untouched) for the prophet Elijah, whom Jews believe will return someday to announce the arrival of the Messiah. Guests have four glasses of red wine throughout the Seder. While this wine might be sweet and syrupy, there are now a plethora of tasty, high-quality kosher choices to select from.

Passover is a holiday of liberation, independence, and fresh life for Jews. For many years, the Israelites had lived in Egypt under harsh conditions. Over 3,000 years ago, Passover and the First Day of Passover commemorated their release and transition into a life of freedom from slavery, torture, and hard labor.

🙂 How To Observe Passover

⚡ Clean your home before Passover begins
It is important to make sure that your home remains kosher throughout the festival. Be sure to focus on thoroughly cleaning all the difficult-to-reach areas that you may not clean on a regular basis.

⚡ Try making matzah
Creating matzah, a type of unleavened flatbread, may seem challenging, but in reality, it is quite straightforward. All you need is Passover flour, water, salt, and oil.

⚡ Read up on Exodus
The book of Exodus in the Old Testament recounts how Moses leads the Israelites to freedom from slavery and narrates their journey across the desert to Mount Sinai.

📅 When is Passover?

Discover all 🔗 April holidays, including 🔗 Religious and other 🔗 Festivities holidays.

We will continue to update this page with new information and fun facts about Passover. So be sure to check back soon.