Shemini Atzeret and the seventh day of Pesaḥ are described as atzeret, the name was taken to mean "the closing festival". Significance Shemini: "Eighth Day" of Sukkot When Shemini Atzeret is mentioned in the Torah (Pentateuch), it is always mentioned in the context of the seven-day festival of Sukkot, which it immediately follows. For example, Sukkot is described in detail in Leviticus 23:33–43. Shemini Atzeret is mentioned there only in verses 36 and 39. The Hebrew word shemini means eighth. This refers to the date of Shemini Atzeret relative to Sukkot; it falls on the eighth day. It is therefore often assumed that Shemini Atzeret is simply the eighth day of Sukkot. That characterization, however, is only partly accurate. The celebration of Sukkot is characterized by the use of the sukkah (booth or tabernacle) and the Four Species (tree branches and fruit used in the celebration). However, the Torah specifies use of those objects for seven days only, not eight. The observance of Shemini Atzeret therefore differs in substantial ways from that of Sukkot. The Talmud describes Shemini Atzeret with the words "a holiday in its own right" (regel bifnei atzmo). The Talmud describes six ways in which Shemini Atzeret differs from Sukkot. Four of these relate principally to the Temple service. Two others remain relevant to modern celebration of the holiday. First, the blessing known as Shehecheyanu is recited on the night of Shemini Atzeret, just as it is on the first night of all other major Jewish holidays. Second, the holiday is referred to distinctively as "Shemini Atzeret" and not as "Sukkot" in the prayer service. Immediately below that discussion, however, the Talmud describes Shemini Atzeret as the "end holiday of the festival [of Sukkot]". The context here is that the Sukkot obligations of joy and recitation of Hallel (Psalms 113–118) last eight days. This is also why one of Sukkot's liturgical aliases, "Time of Our Happiness" (zman simḥatenu), continues to be used to describe Shemini Atzeret (and by extension Simchat Torah) in prayers. Shemini Atzeret is therefore simultaneously "a holiday in its own right" and the "end holiday of [Sukkot]". Atzeret: A day for assembly—or pause Spiritually, Shemini Atzeret can also be seen to "guard the seven days of Sukkot". The Hebrew word atzeret is generally translated as "assembly", but shares a linguistic root with the word atzor, meaning "stop" or "tarry". Shemini Atzeret is characterized as