Thanksgiving Around the World
With fall weather settling in and Halloween behind us, I am ready for Thanksgiving! The next few weeks will be filled with family get-togethers, baking, cooking, and gathering around bonfires.
It may surprise you, but the United States. is not the only country to celebrate Thanksgiving. According to www.history.com, there are eight other countries with Thanksgiving holidays. As you will read, the dates and reasons for the holidays differ, but all are grounded in a spirit of thankfulness:
Canada’s first Thanksgiving celebration actually predates America’s—by more than 40 years. In 1578, an expedition led by the English navigator Martin Frobisher held a ceremony in what is now Nunavut, giving thanks for the safety of their fleet.
Germany’s equivalent of Thanksgiving is Erntedankfest (“harvest festival of thanks”). This religious holiday often takes place on the first Sunday in October. During a typical Erntedankfest, celebrants may carry an Erntekrone (“harvest crown”) of grains, fruit and flowers to the church in a solemn procession, and feast on hearty fare.
The West African Republic of Liberia may seem an unlikely place for an American-style Thanksgiving tradition, but only until you consider its history. Freed slaves from the United States established Liberia in the early 1820s with help from the American Colonization Society. In the early 1880s, Liberia’s government passed an act declaring the first Thursday of November as National Thanksgiving Day. Instead of turkey and pumpkin, Liberia’s Thanksgiving tables boast items such as spicy roast chicken and mashed cassavas, and live music and dancing are part of the Thanksgiving tradition.
Japan’s variation of Thanksgiving, Kinro Kansha no Hi (Labor Thanksgiving Day) evolved from an ancient rice harvest festival, Niinamesai, the roots of which go back as far as the seventh century A.D. The modern tradition of Labor Thanksgiving Day began in 1948 as a celebration of the rights of Japan’s workers. Today, labor organizations lead events at which citizens are encouraged to celebrate the principles of hard work and community involvement.
Norfolk Island, a former British penal colony and current Australian territory, has a Thanksgiving tradition that dates back to the mid-1890s, when American trader Isaac Robinson held an American-style Thanksgiving service. Parishioners on the island continue to celebrate the holiday today, bringing fruits, vegetables and corn stalks to decorate the church and singing American hymns on the last Wednesday of November each year.
Every October 25, people on the West Indian island of Grenada celebrate Thanksgiving Day to mark the anniversary of a joint Caribbean and U.S. military invasion of Grenada in 1983. The troops’ arrival restored order after an army coup. While stationed there, U.S. soldiers told local citizens about the upcoming American holiday. Today, the Grenadian Thanksgiving features formal ceremonies of remembrance in the cities, but largely goes unmarked in more rural areas.
Some 40% of English settlers who traveled to the New World on the Mayflower spent the years 1609 to 1620 living and working in the Dutch city of Leiden. As a result, some have claimed that the Pilgrims’ first Thanksgiving celebration was actually inspired by Leiden’s annual commemoration of the breaking of the Spanish siege in 1574. People of today’s Leiden continue to celebrate their ties with the Mayflower’s passengers by holding non-denominational church services on the fourth Thursday of November.
After Puerto Rico became a territory of the United States in the late 19th century, its residents adopted many of the traditions of the holiday. However, they put their own twist on the traditional Thanksgiving Day feast adding roast pork, plantain dishes,and rice and beans to the menu.
According to studies, people who express thanks and feel grateful report better sleep, less fatigue, less depression, and more confidence in their ability to care for themselves. Bottom line – focusing on thankfulness and gratitude enhances your well-being. So, wherever you live, I encourage you to cultivate a spirit of thanksgiving. And, not just in the next few weeks, but all year long.
I wish you a Happy Thanksgiving and may it last throughout the year!
Karen Schuster, CEO