The Bible refers to ḥag ha-asif (“Feast of the Ingathering,” Exodus 23:16), when grains and fruits were gathered at the harvest's end, and to ḥag ha-sukkot (“Feast of Booths,” Leviticus 23:34), recalling the days when the Israelites lived in huts (sukkot) during their years of wandering in the wilderness after the Exodus from Egypt. The festival is characterized by the erection of huts made of branches and by the gathering of four species of plants, with prayers of thanksgiving to God for the fruitfulness of the land. As part of the celebration, a sevenfold circuit of the synagogue is made with the four plants on the seventh day of the festival, called by the special name Hoshana Rabba (“Great Hosanna”).

The eighth day is considered by some a separate festival and called Shemini Atzeret (“Eighth Day of the Solemn Assembly”). In Israel the eighth day also commemorates the completion of the annual cycle of readings from the Torah (the first five books of the Bible) and is called Simḥat Torah (“Rejoicing of the Law”). Outside Israel, Simḥat Torah is celebrated independently on the following day. See also Shemini Atzeret; Simhath Torah.