This essay originally appeared in Kveller.

The miracle of Hanukkah came early this year: Hanukkah Barbie is here.

Mattel would like us to call her “Holiday Sweater Barbie.” Respectfully, no. This is Hanukkah Barbie.

She is dressed in the blue-and-yellow color palette that retailers have apparently decided belongs exclusively to Hanukkah. Her sweater is covered in Jewish stars and dreidels, with a light-up hanukkiyah built right into the front.

As if the sweater isn’t Hanukkah enough, she also dons blue-and-white gingham pants. And then there are the tiny tan shearling boots, because Hanukkah Barbie understands comfort.

Naturally, I bought her immediately.

Unboxing her involved approximately 613 tiny plastic ties, but once I finally freed her, I was even more delighted than I expected to be. I have spent an unreasonable amount of my adult life thinking about Hanukkah merchandise, and holding an actual Hanukkah Barbie feels slightly surreal. 

This story also has a wonderfully Jewish twist: Barbie was created by Ruth Handler, the daughter of Jewish immigrants, who co-founded Mattel and introduced Barbie in 1959.

It feels almost bashert that a doll created by the daughter of Jewish........

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