How did the story of oil lasting eight days become associated with Hanukkah?

The story of the oil lasting eight days originated centuries after the Maccabean revolt, appearing in the Babylonian Talmud (c. 450–550 ce) rather than in the original Books of the Maccabees.12

While the earlier texts explain that Judas Maccabeus established an eight-day celebration to mark the rededication of the Temple of Jerusalem—possibly as a belated observance of the festival of Sukkot—the Talmudic account provides a different theological focus. According to this later tradition, when the Maccabees reclaimed the Temple, they found only one small jar of undefiled oil, which was sufficient to light the temple lamp for only one day. Miraculously, the oil burned for eight days until a new supply of consecrated oil could be prepared. This narrative transformed the holiday into a commemoration of a divine miracle, establishing the eight-day duration as a reflection of that event.3241