Thanksgiving in Canada can be traced back to Martin Frobisher in 1578.
He came from England in search of a way to get to the Orient by going
north. While he never found the passage, he did establish what later
became Newfoundland and Labrador. His celebration of making it all the
way from England to his new home became the first Thanksgiving in North
America. More settlers joined Frobisher, and as the settlements
expanded, people continued to celebrate Thanksgiving. That means the first Thanksgiving in Canada was celebrated 43 years before the pilgrims landed in Plymouth.
Another reason for Canadian Thanksgiving arriving earlier than its American counterpart is that Canada is geographically further north than the United States, causing the Canadian harvest season to arrive earlier than the American harvest season. And since Thanksgiving for Canadians is more about giving thanks for the
harvest season than the arrival of pilgrims, it makes sense to celebrate the holiday in October. So what are the differences between Canadian and
American Thanksgiving, other than the date? Not much! Both Canadians and Americans celebrate Thanksgiving with parades, family gatherings,
pumpkin pie and a whole lot of
turkey! Thanksgiving in the United States is always celebrated on the fourth Thursday in November.
In the United States Columbus Day is celebrated on the same day as Canadian Thanksgiving.
A U.S. national holiday since 1937, Columbus Day commemorates the arrival of Christopher Columbus in the New World on October 12, 1492. The Italian-born explorer had set sail two months earlier, backed by the Spanish monarchs King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella. He intended to chart a western sea route to China, India and the fabled gold and spice islands of Asia; instead, he landed in the Bahamas, becoming the first European to explore the Americas since the Vikings set up colonies in Greenland and Newfoundland during the 10th century.
Later that month, Columbus sighted Cuba and believed it was mainland China; in December the expedition found Hispaniola, which he though might be Japan. There, he established Spain's first colony in the Americas with 39 of his men. In March 1493, the explorer returned to Spain in triumph, bearing gold, spices and "Indian" captives. He crossed the Atlantic several more times before his death in 1506; by his third journey, he realized that he hadn't reached Asia but instead had stumbled upon a continent previously unknown to Europeans.
Many countries in the New World and elsewhere celebrate the anniversary of Christopher Columbus' arrival in the Americas, which happened on October 12, 1492, as an official holiday. The landing is celebrated as
Columbus Day in the United States, as
Día de la Raza in many countries in Latin America, as
Discovery Day in the Bahamas, as
Día de la Hispanidad and
Fiesta Nacional in Spain, as
Día del Respeto a la Diversidad Cultural (Day of Respect for Cultural Diversity) in Argentina, and as
Día de las Américas (Day of the Americas) in Belize and Uruguay. These holidays have been celebrated unofficially since the late 18th century, and officially in various areas since the early 20th century.
All that talk of Thanksgiving turkey flying around being eaten has made Cody, Coco and I hungry so we're going to have this.
