http://www.holidays.net/thanksgiving/Throughout history mankind has celebrated harvest with thanksgiving celebrations. Long ago, many ancient farmers believed their crops contained "spirits" which caused their crops to grow and then die. Many also believed that these spirits would be released when the crops were harvested or they would take revenge on the farmers who harvested them. Some harvest festivals were to celebrate defeat of these spirits.
The ancient Greeks worshipped many gods and goddesses and their goddess of grain was Demeter who was honored at the festival of Thesmosphoria held each autum. Possibly connecting childbearing and raising of crops, many women would build leafy shelters and furnish them with couches made with plants. They would feast on the second day and on the third day a feast was offered to the goddess Demeter including gifts of seed corn, cakes and fruit. It was hoped that this gratitude would grant them a good harvest.
The Romans celebrate harvest time with a festival called Cerelia honoring Ceres their goddess of grains (hence the term cereal). These celebrations would include music, parades as well as games and sports concluding with a thanksgiving feast.
The ancient Chinese celebrated a harvest festival called Chung Ch'ul with the full moon and this fell on the 15th day of the 8th month. This day is considered the birthday of the moon whereby special "mooncakes" were made (round and yellow like the moon). Each cake was stamped with a picture of a rabbit, as it was a rabbit, not a man, which the Chinese saw on the face of the moon.
According to legend, Chung Ch'ui also gave thanks for another special occasion. China had been conquered by enemy armies who took control of the Chinese homes and food. The Chinese found themselves homeless and with no food.
In the United States, in 1621, after a hard and devastating first year in the New World the Pilgrim's fall harvest was very successful and plentiful. There was corn, fruits, vegetables, along with fish which was packed in salt and meat that was smoke cured over fires. They found they had enough food to put away for the winter.
The Pilgrims beat the odds. They built homes in the wilderness, raised enough crops to keep them alive during a long winter and were at peace with their Indian neighbors. Their Governor, William Bradford, proclaimed a day of thanksgiving that was to be shared by all the colonists and the neighboring Native American Indians.
In 1817 New York State adopted Thanksgiving Day as an annual custom. By the middle of the 19th century many other states also celebrated a Thanksgiving Day. In 1863 President Abraham Lincoln appointed a national day of thanksgiving. Since then, each president has issued a Thanksgiving Day proclamation, usually designating the fourth Thursday of each November as the holiday.
Well...a little Thanksgiving History and traditions of other countries. Myself, I plan to lay on the couch and watch football all afternoon after I've sufficiently stuffed myself on an inordinate amount of food at my mom's house with my family. We will all give thanks for our blessings, for those who are no longer with us at the table this year and celebrate those who are. It's also a time for strategizing the Christmas Holidays and shopping for the day after Thanksgiving. I can't say I'll be one of those up at dawn to fight the lines at Target and Walmart, but I will probably shop online as much as I can. Wishing all of you a blessed and safe Thanksgiving Holiday.
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