Thanksgiving Traditions from Around the World
“Canada
Despite American Thanksgiving being the vastly commercialized one, Canadian Thanksgiving’s origin story takes place many years before the infamous American one. In 1578, English explorer named Sir Martin Frobisher, had been on a tough journey to find the northwest passage that would help connect Europe and Eastern Asia together for easier trading. Instead of making his way to Asia, he landed himself in Canada but was so grateful he and his shipmates survived the journey that he had a feast. However, throughout the years the reason to celebrate has changed from celebrating the end of WW1 to a religious feast. The holiday had a slower take-off than the American one, with it’s confusing origins and the date changing drastically every year. They landed on the holiday being celebrated every second Monday in October. Although, today the holiday is still not recognized as a national holiday. There are several provinces in Canada that do not recognize the day as a legitimate holiday either to detach from the religious origins or other reasons. The food typically eaten on this day seems to vary greatly as well, they primarily eat turkey on Thanksgiving like Americans but sometimes they eat ham or other meats. Regardless, the holiday is a time to celebrate the harvest season and to connect with loved ones.
South Korea
Every year, Chuseok or the Korean harvest festival, is celebrated in South Korea. The holiday is started off with a ritual, practiced in a non-religious manner, meant to honor one’s passed on relatives. There is a table set up with food including meat, rice wine, steamed vegetables, fruit, rice cakes, and traditional Korean desserts. The family does between two to six full bows, head almost touching the floor to symbolize respect and honor for their ancestors. They usually celebrate one ancestor during this day, which tends to be like a grandmother or grandfather. Their name is written on a piece of paper in Chinese. Once the ritual has been done, the piece of paper is burned. The family may make space for the ancestor’s spirit in the home or visit the graveyard but this entire ritual differs from family to family.
Germany
On the first Sunday in October, Germany celebrates a harvest festival called Erntedankfest. It is a German Christian festival that has been celebrated for about 90 years so far. They perform religious ceremonies, throw parades, play traditional music, and decorate churches with autumn crops to make these beautiful art pieces for everyone to see. Like Saint Lucia, in the early days of Erntedankfest, farmers in Germany give thanks to God for the plentiful harvest for the year during this holiday but now has morphed into a holiday for anyone, farmer or accountant. At the end of the festival, there is a carnival set up with rides and food for everyone to enjoy. They tend to serve traditional German cuisine during this time but there is no one trademark meal for this holiday like there is in America.”
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✨Takeaway: Thanksgiving is a holiday celebrated by Americans. But there are also similar holiday/harvest festival traditions worldwide. It’s always nice to learn about other cultures!
✨Reflection: How do you celebrate your own version of thanksgiving in your culture?
#Thanksgiving #World #Culture #Celebrate #Appreciation #Grateful
I think most Canadians view Thanksgiving as a secular holiday although it is common to incorporate prayer into it for those who are religious. It's not as much of a travel holiday like it is in the US. So while many do spend it with family it tends to be those who live closer, where it's easy to visit for a day or just a 1 night trip. So it's also common for friends, neighbours and student groups to celebrate together if family is a far drive or a flight away.
While it's true it's not a stat holiday everywhere it is for most of the country, it's one region where it isn't.
I think the emphasis here is much more on giving thanks. This is done in schools and many people will go around the table stating what they are thankful for before dinner.
Turkey is definitely the traditional meal, or chicken if the group is smaller. Ham is more common at some of the other holidays, not so much at Thanksgiving unless it's a big group with both options. Of course some people do non-traditional meals, especially if some are vegetarian.
I have celebrated Thanksgiving with big family groups, friends, small family, just my husband and I. Most unusual year was when we had planned to see our parents in another city but turned around before we even hit the highway as there was a snow storm (yes, fairly common in October here) after rain and many vehicles were off the road. We had a fun diner breakfast at the close restaurant while we contacted our family and reset our plans. We often like to do a slow cooker turkey dish just for us near American Thanksgiving - give or take a week, so had turkey breasts already in the freezer. We went with that and invited our boss/friend over as he had been working out of the city all week and he had cancelled his family plans last minute as well. So a rather casual dinner with what we already had in the freezer and pantry but containing traditional meal elements.
@AffyAvo
That's interesting! I love that friends, neighbors and students get together to celebrate! That must bring such a strong sense of community. I feel like the US it's mostly celebrated with family. But, I love the idea of the community coming together.
Also, yes. That sounds similar to the US. Going around and giving thanks before eating. At least that's how my family does it. I think everyone has their own unique traditions.
I'm glad you were able to turn that experience around. It would have been easy to just go home and call it day. But, I love that you instead choice to celebrate with your boss/friend. Even if it was a bit more casual, it's great to spend it with others<3 Thanks for sharing Affy!💜