Thanksgiving 2024: Date, history, significance, celebration and all you need to know

The much-awaited holiday season is set to kickstart with Thanksgiving. A time to have a hearty meal with family and feel gratitude for the blessings in life and the abundance of nature’s harvest, the ancient festival of Thanksgiving dates centuries back. This cherished holiday, deeply rooted in gratitude and unity, has a rich history and holds unique significance in the United States and Canada.

When is Thanksgiving in 2024?

The fourth Thursday in November is celebrated as Thanksgiving every year. The holiday can fall as early as November 22 or sometimes at the end of the month. This year Thanksgiving Day is arriving a little late, on Thursday, November 28, 2024.

Thanksgiving history

Thanksgiving in the US has origins in a 1621 harvest feast that was shared between the Pilgrims and the Wampanoag tribe in Plymouth, Massachusetts. It was considered as one of the first Thanksgiving celebrations in the colonies. However, earlier ceremonies of giving thanks for harvests or safe voyages were already practiced in North America. For instance, in 1578, English explorer Martin Frobisher held a Thanksgiving ceremony in Newfoundland, Canada, to express gratitude for surviving his search for the Northwest Passage. Native American tribes also celebrated harvests with rituals and feasts long before European settlers arrived. Pilgrims held their second Thanksgiving celebration in 1623 to mark the end of a long drought that had threatened the year’s harvest. In 1817, New York became the first of several states to officially adopt an annual Thanksgiving holiday.

President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed it a national holiday in 1863 during the Civil war to promote unity and gratitude. On the other hand, in Canada, Thanksgiving became an official holiday in 1957, and is celebrated annually on the second Monday of October to align with the earlier Canadian harvest.

Thanksgiving significance

Thanksgiving is all about gratitude and celebration of unity and abundance. While it started out as a harvest festival and to express gratitude to nature for abundance, it has evolved into a modern-day festival rooted in gratitude for family, health, and achievements. For many Indigenous communities, Thanksgiving is also a time to honor their cultural traditions and acknowledge historical contexts of colonization.

Thanksgiving celebration

As the families come together, they soak themselves into the joy of partaking in various Thanksgiving traditions like enjoying a festive meal featuring turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce, and pumpkin pie. Families gather to watch parades, such as the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City, and enjoy football games. For many, the holiday also involves volunteering to support the less fortunate.

(Picture courtesy: Freepik)