Juan Tamad, seeing a lot of turkey displays and offers in food stores, asked.
Juan: Why is turkey so popular these days?
Einstein: Because it is Thanksgiving Day on Thursday.
Juan: What is Thanksgiving Day?
Einstein:
Thanksgiving is a holiday celebrated in
North America, generally observed as an expression of gratitude. The most common view of its origin is that it was to give thanks to God for the bounty of the autumn harvest. In the United States, the holiday is celebrated on the fourth Thursday in November. In Canada, where the harvest generally ends earlier in the year, the holiday is celebrated on the second Monday in October, which is observed as Columbus Day in the United States.
Juan: Is there a story behind the Thanksgiving Day?
Einstein: The story of Thanksgiving is basically the story of the
Pilgrims and their thankful community feast at
Plymouth, Massachusetts.
The Pilgrims, who set sail from Plymouth, England on a ship called the
Mayflower on September 6, 1620, were fortune hunters, bound for the resourceful 'New World'. The Mayflower was a small ship crowded with men, women and children, besides the sailors on board. Aboard were passengers comprising the 'separatists', who called themselves the "Saints", and others, whom the separatists called the "Strangers".
After land was sighted in November following 66 days of a lethal voyage, a meeting was held and an agreement of truce was worked out. It was called the Mayflower Compact. The agreement guaranteed equality among the members of the two groups. They merged together to be recognized as the "Pilgrims." They elected John Carver as their first governor.
Although Pilgrims had first sighted the land off
Cape Cod, Massachusetts, they did not settle until they arrived at a place called Plymouth. It was Captain John Smith who named the place after the English port-city in 1614 and had already settled there for over five years. And it was there that the Pilgrims finally decided to settle. Plymouth offered an excellent harbor and plenty of resources. The local Indians were also non-hostile.
But their happiness was short-lived. Ill-equipped to face the winter on this estranged place they were ravaged thoroughly.
Somehow they were saved by a group of local Native Americans who befriended them and helped them with food. Soon the natives taught the settlers the technique to cultivate corns and grow native vegetables, and store them for hard days. By the next winter they had raised enough crops to keep them alive. The winter came and passed by without much harm. The settlers knew they had beaten the odds and it was time to celebrate.
They celebrated it with a grand community feast wherein the friendly native Americans were also invited. It was kind of a harvest feast, the Pilgrims used to have in England. The recipes entail "corn" (wheat, by the Pilgrims usage of the word), Indian corn, barley, pumpkins and peas, "fowl" (specially "waterfowl"), deer, fish. And yes, of course the yummy wild turkey.
However, the third year was real bad when the corns got damaged. Pilgrim Governor William Bradford ordered a day of fasting and prayer, and rain happened to follow soon. To celebrate - November 29th of that year was proclaimed a day of thanksgiving. This date is believed to be the real beginning of the present Thanksgiving Day.
Though the
Thanksgiving Day is presently celebrated on the
fourth Thursday of every November. This date was set by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1939 (approved by Congress in 1941). Earlier it was the last Thursday in November as was designated by the former President Abraham Lincoln. But sometimes the last Thursday would turn out to be the fifth Thursday of the month. This falls too close to the Christmas, leaving the businesses even less than a month's time to cope up with the two big festivals. Hence the change.
Juan: Is it an important holiday here in the US?
Einstein: Thanksgiving is traditionally celebrated with a feast shared amongst family and friends. In the United States, it is an important family holiday, and people often travel across the country to be with family members for the holiday. The Thanksgiving holiday is generally a "four-day" weekend in the United States, in which Americans are given the relevant Thursday and Friday off. Thanksgiving is almost entirely celebrated at home, unlike the Fourth of July or Christmas, which are associated with a variety of shared public experiences (fireworks, caroling, etc.) In Canada, Thanksgiving is only a three day holiday and the holiday is not as important as in the US. Because of the shortened break there is far less travel on the Canadian Thanksgiving and it is far harder for families to come together. In part because of this, Christmas is far more family oriented in Canada than it is in the United States.
Juan: Are there also Thanksgiving Day around the world?
Einstein: Throughout history many cultures have given thanks for a bountiful harvest. They might differ in their forms and presentations. But their spirit - setting aside a date to reflect on life's blessings, remains the same.
As evident from most of the cultures people would associate these with harvest festivals in gratitude of the God who protects them and their crops.
The Greeks - The ancient Greeks worshipped Demeter as their goddess of all grains. Each autumn the festival of
Thesmosphoria was held to honor the goddess.
The Hebrews - For over 3000 years Jewish families have been celebrating an autumnal harvest festival called
Sukkoth. Sukkoth begins on the 15th day of the Hebrew month of Tishri, 5 days after
Yom Kippur the most solemn day of the Jewish year.
The Muslims - At the end of
Ramadan, Muslims throughout the world have a joyous three-day celebration called
Eid al-Fitr (the Festival of Fast-Breaking). It is a time to give in charity to those in need, and celebrate with family and friends the completion of a month of blessings and joy.
This was a glimpse of the overwhelming unity in the spirit of the thanksgiving celebration in all ancient cultures across the world. Prayer, parade, feast and the fervor are common to most of them, though the mode of celebration differs.
Juan: What else do we expect on Thanksgiving?
Einstein: Since at least the 1930s, the Christmas shopping season technically begins when Thanksgiving ends. In New York City, the
Macy's (department store)
Thanksgiving Day Parade is held annually every Thanksgiving Day in Midtown Manhattan. The parade features moving stands with specific themes, scenes from Broadway plays, large balloons of cartoon characters and TV personalities, and high school marching bands. It always ends with the image of Santa Claus passing the reviewing stand. While the second-biggest day of shopping of the year in the U.S. is still the
Black Friday after Thanksgiving (the biggest is now the Saturday before Christmas), most shops start to stock for and promote the holidays immediately after Halloween, and sometimes even before.
'Why do we eat turkey on Thanksgiving?' and 'What is a typical Thanksgiving Dinner?'
