28/11/2025
Thanksgiving.
Thanksgiving Day is an American holiday celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November. Its origins date back to 1621 in Plymouth, Massachusetts, where English colonists known as Pilgrims (who arrived on the Mayflower) and the Wampanoag Native Americans shared a three-day feast to give thanks for an abundant harvest after a harsh winter. This tradition draws inspiration from European and Protestant harvest festivals, symbolizing gratitude for survival and intercultural collaboration.
It was established as a national holiday in 1863, when President Abraham Lincoln officially proclaimed it to unite the country during the Civil War, promoting reconciliation and thanksgiving for divine blessings and abundance. Earlier, in 1789, George Washington had declared it a day of thanksgiving, but it wasn't fixed on the calendar. The purpose was to foster unity, reflection, and collective gratitude, evolving from local rituals to a federal holiday.
Today, it is seen as a family celebration featuring traditional dinners (turkey, mashed potatoes, pumpkin pie), parades, American football, and massive travel, emphasizing values like gratitude and family bonds. However, it sparks controversy: for many Native Americans, it represents the beginning of colonialism and oppression, observed as a "National Day of Mourning" in places like Plymouth, fueling debates on its historical and cultural reinterpretation.
