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Canadian Thanksgiving ~ History and Traditions An article by Maggie Boak, Canadian Embassy
In Canada, Thanksgiving is celebrated on the second Monday in October. This year, Canadian Thanksgiving will be celebrated on Monday, October 9th. On this day, Canadians give thanks for a successful harvest and celebrate with family around a traditional feast of turkey, a wide variety of vegetables, and pumpkin pie. Thanksgiving Monday is a national holiday at which time the majority of Canadians are given an extra day of rest.
There is a long history and a number of traditions behind Canadian Thanksgiving Day: 1. The first North American thanksgiving event occurred in Newfoundland in 1578. This event was a celebration thrown by the English explorer Martin Frobisher to give thanks for surviving the long journey from Europe. Frobisher had failed to find a Northern passage to the Orient and instead established a settlement in what is now known as Newfoundland (today, one of Canada�s 10 provinces). 2. European farmers who immigrated to Canada brought with them the tradition of holding celebrations at the time of harvest to give thanks for a bountiful harvest and abundance of food. 3. The first Canadian Thanksgiving was celebrated on April 15, 1872 in thanks for the recovery of the future King Edward VII from a serious illness. The next Canadian Thanksgiving did not occur until 1879 when it was celebrated on a Thursday in November. From 1879 until 1957, Canadian Thanksgiving was celebrated annually on a number of different days in October and November. On January 31, 1957 parliament issued a proclamation to fix permanently the second Monday in October as �a day of general Thanksgiving to Almighty God for the bountiful harvest with which Canada has been blessed.� Today, Canadian Thanksgiving is a time spent with family in the midst of autumn marking the passing of summer and the coming of winter. Colors associated with Canadian Thanksgiving are: orange, brown, yellow, and red. These colors reflect the changing colors of the leaves that occur at this time of year. Symbols associated with Canadian Thanksgiving are: turkeys, pumpkins, and images of autumn. Sources: 1. Government of Canada Canadian Heritage Website: (Last visited September 25th, 2005) 2. Twilight Bridge Association (Last visited September 26th, 2005) 3. Thanksgiving Traditions
(Last visited September 26th, 2005)
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