The spinning-top name (not the game) appears to be of recent origin, perhaps first employed in the 19th century. From the German word drehen meaning to turn or to spin our Yiddish-speaking forefathers forged the neologism dreidel despite the fact that the German term Kreisel for a spinning-top existed. In southern Germany the final /l/ sound often is used to indicate diminutive objects suggesting that the word dreidel originated from this geographical area. Alternatively speakers of Yiddish no longer living in southern Germany may have created the word dreidel. In any event, the creator or creators of the word dreidel cleverly selected a German word root to name a distinctively Jewish object, thereby, avoiding a German word to commemorate an upbeat rabbinic holiday.
This process of giving names to concepts within the framework of the German and Hebrew languages gave birth to an astounding number of creatively designed Yiddish words. For example yahrzeit comes from the German word Jahreszeit whose meaning only references the seasons: summer, winter, fall and spring. The word schlimmazel, is a combination of the German word schlimm meaning bad or evil and the Hebrew word mazel meaning luck that is generated by the constellations resulting in a word often used to reference an individual who is the object of minor unfortunate experiences.
Our dreidel is inscribed with the four Hebrew letters: nas-gadol-hayah-sham (or po) meaning: A great miracle was there (here). But unfortunately this English translation is grammatically ill formed. Therefore, the commonly used English expression is: A great miracle happened there. To me this is an unfortunate translation. The Webster dictionary defines happens as follows: to take place especially without being planned and to do or be something by chance. The miracle of the everlasting shemen that we celebrate was decidedly not by chance. Let’s use: A great miracle occurred there (or here).