Speech by Mátyás Fekete, Győr Synagogue, 29 December 2024
A trenderli or dreidel is a four-sided spinning wheel played on the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah.
The four letters of the Hebrew alphabet appear on the sides of the dreidel, which when read together in the correct order form the abbreviation“נ ס גדול היה שם” (Nes Gadol Haya Sham), meaning “A great miracle happened there”. נ (Nun), ג (Gimel), ה (Hei), ש (Shin),
The letters also correspond to the rules of the game of fortune played with the trenderli: נ (Nothing), ג (All), ה (Half), ש (Except)
Some Jewish Torah commentators attribute symbolic significance to the signs of the trenderli. For example, one of them links the four sides of the trenderli to the four historical exiles of the people of Israel: those caused by the Babylonians, Persians, Greeks and Romans.
The customs and observances associated with Hanukkah have been expanded in the past to include a number of other customs, one of which is playing with the trenderli. After lighting the Hanukkah candles, it is still customary in many homes to play trenderli: each player starts with 10 or 15 coins (real or chocolate) or peanuts, and one is put in the talon. The first player rolls the trenderli and then, depending on which side it falls on, either wins the talon or has to put in his part.
The trenderli is thus a characteristic feature of Jewish tradition and contemporary customs that, while evoking the history of Judaism, is also a fun game for children and adults.
This memory, game and symbol is also a way for a community to express its gratitude to all those who have tirelessly helped the Győr Jewish Community over the decades and continue to do so today. For the festive occasion, such as today, the Jewish Community had a special porcelain version of the trenderli made, which cannot be played with, but can serve as an everlasting reminder to its owner and his family that his work has not gone unrecognized.
Allow me to briefly introduce you to a man who has been known to many of you for a long time, a well-respected, now retired master photographer whose studio was known and visited by many in the city centre. Fewer people know that his activities were much more than photographing family events, taking ID photos and laboratory work for amateur shots, for he is the chronicler of Jewish history and of the Jewish Community of Győr, who has been documenting our festive events, compiling exhibition material and writing books for the past ten to twenty years. For example:
- In 2010 he published Quiritatio (Scream), edited with the help of Gábor István Benedek
- Ten years ago, in 2014, he took an active part in putting together an exhibition at the Menház. He made a lot of family tableaux using original photographs and documents of the contributors.
- In 2016 and 2017, he photographed all the gravestones of the Győrsziget Jewish Cemetery one by one. This material was used to complete the restoration of the gravestones.
- In 2024, the translation of the Hebrew-language gravestones into Hungarian began. This work will probably continue in the coming year.
- Two publications were produced to mark the eightieth anniversary of the Holocaust. One of them presents the work of painter Éva Quittner. The other publication contains the recollections of eight Holocaust survivors, which convey a moving insight into the events of the past for present and future generations.
And now the moment has come, I ask master photographer István Nagy to accept the token of thanks from the Jewish Community of Győr, the porcelain trenderli with his name on the box – and it is fully deserved. We wish him in his family and amongst us inexhaustible strength and continued good health!
István Nagy is dedicated to helping the remaining Jews of Győr and thus contributing to the preservation of their memory and the survival of the community. He also helped to prepare the Jewish Roots in Győr World Reunion (Győr, 4-7 July 2024), organised by our Foundation on the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the deportations. Among other things, he was in charge of the publication of the book “The Pictures Tell a Story – Jewish Past and Present captured by József Glück and István Nagy”, which was distributed to all participants of the World Reunion in July. Prior to that, in July 2023, we published a life interview with him, see this link. Some of the publications he edited were also supported by our Foundation.
Thank you, István.
Péter Krausz, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Győr Roots of Jews Public Benefit Foundation
Cover image: link