On the fourth Thursday in November, which this year fell on November 26, the United States celebrates Thanksgiving. This holiday is known around the world, but it is widely celebrated in only two countries - the United States and Canada. Thanksgiving is associated with many traditions, the most famous of which is baked turkey.
In America and Canada, this holiday is celebrated on different days. In the United States, people gather at a festive table on the fourth Thursday in November, and in Canada on the second Monday in October.
The holiday is associated with many traditions that are mandatory for all Americans. On this day, they go to church with their families and have dinner, where the table must be baked turkey with mashed potatoes and cranberry sauce.
History of the holiday
Thanksgiving in the United States has its roots in 1620, when after a two-month voyage to the shores of America moored the English ship Mayflower, which was about a hundred pilgrims looking for new and free land. The first winter on the new land was severe: many died, but those who survived learned to hunt, grow beans, corn, and pumpkins - all thanks to the locals. As a result, the settlers celebrated as a sign of gratitude to God for his generosity. Indians were also invited to the holiday - this is how the world's first Thanksgiving Day took place.
The holiday received its official name and date only more than 160 years after the decree of the then US President George Washington in 1789. Interestingly, the president himself invested in the holiday the idea of American gratitude for his Constitution.
Thanksgiving: traditions
The main tradition of celebrating Thanksgiving is to spend this day with family and close friends, to be with those to whom you are grateful for every minute of communication.
Be sure to include roast turkey in cranberry sauce, pumpkin pie and mashed potatoes on the table. The holidays also have their own traditional drink - apple cider. Before eating, all family members usually thank God and each other for all the good that has happened to them over the past year. There is a tradition of counting the "gifts of destiny", when everyone takes a blank sheet of paper and writes down on the one hand all the good things that happened to him, for which he is grateful, and on the other - what was bad and that you forgive everyone.
Parades have also become traditional. This tradition dates back to 1924, when Macy’s department store workers decided to hold a carnival to mark the beginning of Christmas fairs in the chain’s stores. Then 400 people in carnival costumes marched through the streets of New York accompanied by professional orchestras and 25 live animals from the local zoo. Now, instead of animals in the parades involved huge inflatable figures - cartoons Mickey Mouse, Snoopy, Garfield and the fabulous Santa Claus.
On the eve of Thanksgiving, it is customary to do good deeds. Distribution of free lunches to the homeless and low-income is very popular among philanthropists.
Thanksgiving is also a kind of opening of the Christmas and New Year period, so immediately after the holiday comes "Black Friday" - the time of sales.
What does the rite of "pardon the turkey"
Another Thanksgiving tradition is the "pardon" of turkeys. During the ceremony, on the eve of the holiday on the lawn in front of the White House, the President of the United States reads a decree pardoning a turkey. After that, the "pardoned" bird is sent to the zoo, where he lives until his death.
This tradition is about 50 years old and was started by US President Gary Truman. Many turkeys are eaten during the holiday, but according to this tradition, at least one bird should avoid such a fate.
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