--- title: "December 2017 updates (Maccabees): what Google said and what to do" url: https://seomadman.com/updates/december-2017-updates section: updates language: en published: 2026-09-26T00:00:00.000Z modified: 2026-09-26T00:00:00.000Z author: Adam Hafez topics: ["Core updates"] --- # December 2017 updates (Maccabees): what Google said and what to do ## The short answer The December 2017 updates were several minor changes to Google's search algorithm in mid-December 2017, first reported on 12 December. Google confirmed them in a statement on 20 December but said there was no single update. Search Engine Roundtable's Barry Schwartz nicknamed the changes Maccabees, after the Hanukkah holiday. ## Key takeaways - Ranking changes were first reported around 12 December 2017, with forum chatter peaking on 13 and 14 December. - Google said it released several minor improvements during that timeframe to improve relevancy. - Danny Sullivan of Google said reports calling it a single update did not reflect Google's statement. - Barry Schwartz of Search Engine Roundtable coined the Maccabees name because it happened during Hanukkah. - Google gave no dates or impact figures, so its core update guidance is the practical reference today. ## What Google changed Google said it made several small changes, not one update. In a statement first given to Search Engine Land and posted on Twitter by Danny Sullivan, Google's public liaison for search, on 20 December 2017, Google wrote: "We released several minor improvements during this timeframe, part of our regular and routine efforts to improve relevancy." Sullivan added that after publishers reported changes, Google "checked and didn't see any major or single change on our end," and that reports calling it a single update "don't reflect what we actually said." Google described nothing about what the improvements did. ## When it rolled out Google stated no dates. Search Engine Roundtable reported on 15 December 2017 that the changes seemed to touch down on Tuesday, 12 December, with forum chatter building late on 13 December and into 14 December. The date used here is that first reported day, so it is approximate. ## What is known about its impact Google published no impact figures and called the improvements minor. Barry Schwartz of Search Engine Roundtable reviewed more than 100 affected sites and reported, as his own small-sample observations, patterns such as: - Doorway-like pages targeting many keyword permutations. - Low-quality content with many ads or affiliate links. - A number of e-commerce sites, for reasons he could not pin down. The Maccabees name is Schwartz's, not Google's. He suggested it on 15 December 2017 "since it happened during the holiday of Chanukah," and the industry adopted it. ## What site owners should do Because Google described these as routine relevancy improvements, its current core update guidance is the most useful reference: - Compare a week of traffic after the changes with a week before, not the volatile days between. - A small drop needs no drastic action; a large, sustained drop warrants a site-wide review against Google's helpful, reliable, people-first content questions. - Google's helpful content guidance warns against search engine-first content, made primarily to gain search engine rankings. - Avoid quick fixes, and treat deleting content as a last resort. ## How to check whether it affected you This is historical. Search Console keeps only 16 months of data, so December 2017 is not in it. If you kept analytics from the time, compare Google organic traffic in the first week of December 2017 with the week before Christmas, allowing for seasonal patterns. The [Google Algorithm Updates timeline](/updates) lists the updates around it. ## Related updates - The [Fred update](/updates/fred-update-2017) was an earlier 2017 change; some reports reused its name here. - The [March 2018 core update](/updates/march-2018-core-update) was the next Google-confirmed core change. ## Frequently asked questions ### Did Google confirm the Maccabees update? Partly. Google said it released several minor improvements during that timeframe as part of routine work to improve relevancy, but Danny Sullivan said Google saw no major or single change on its end. ### Why is it called Maccabees? Barry Schwartz of Search Engine Roundtable suggested the name on 15 December 2017 because the changes happened during Hanukkah. It is an industry nickname; Google never used it. ### When did the December 2017 updates happen? Google gave no dates. Search Engine Roundtable reported that the changes seemed to touch down on Tuesday, 12 December 2017, with forum chatter building on 13 and 14 December. ### What kinds of sites were affected? Google did not say. Schwartz reported that, in his small sample of over 100 sites, many affected sites had doorway-like pages targeting many keyword variations or thin content with heavy ads. ## Sources 1. [Danny Sullivan on Twitter: Google's statement on the December 2017 changes](https://twitter.com/dannysullivan/status/943612494928535552) - Danny Sullivan (Google) on Twitter (primary) 2. [Google Confirms Search Ranking Updates But Calls Them Minor & Many](https://www.seroundtable.com/google-confirms-ranking-updates-24958.html) - Search Engine Roundtable 3. [Google Search Ranking Algorithm Update: The Maccabees Update](https://www.seroundtable.com/google-hanukkah-update-24928.html) - Search Engine Roundtable 4. [Google Search's core updates and your website](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/appearance/core-updates) - Google Search Central (primary) 5. [Creating helpful, reliable, people-first content](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/fundamentals/creating-helpful-content) - Google Search Central (primary)