I think it's something to do with the original pilgrims to the US. A celebration of a good harvest and thanks to the native Americans for helping them through the winter. It might also be a celebration of some victory over the Briish later.

Turkeys - probably part of the original feast!

Someone has to stick up for those poor turkies. At least we only cull them once a year. IN the US the poor things have to go through it twice. I think Americans are very cruel to turkeys because of this.

allow me to contribute my two cents' worth here. shaky was right to say it's gotta do with the original pilgrims thanking the lord blahyadda for the safe passage and the native americans' generosity for allowing them to live side by side. turkeys got into the picture 'cos at that time they were the only livestock around. no chickens whatsoever. or summat. so they have become a must.

what most folk don't know is that the canucks have their very own thanksgiving and it's on the second monday of october. and they were in fact the first to celebrate this event 40 years prior to the landing in massachusetts. meaning the yanks nicking the idea off them. but for the canucks, thanksgiving is celebrating the bountiful harvests they were blessed with.

Thanks for clearing that up. Now I can go back to not caring.

Typical that Yanks steel the idea and claim it was theirs all along. Damn Cultural Imperialism from way back.

Meanwhile this little Aussie has somehow been roped into cooking for my first ever Thanksgiving experience. How the hell do I make pumpkin pie...?

who cares why it is - at least it gets them off the streets and out of the bars for a day so the rest of us can hear ourselves think.

and on a technical note for shaky - the americans have never defeated the british because they've never fought us. what they quaintly refer to as the war of independence was actually a british civil war as both sides were british subjects and part of british sovereign territory at the time.
they only became a seperate nation after the event.

Fair point Giles. Of course history shows the English lost that one too.

Oh dear God - wait till Conrad gets his chops into this one.

but we also won - as they weren't independent until after the victory... at the moment of victory they were british. that's the joy of civil wars - you can't lose!

Turkeys were not part of the first feast, actually. Geese? check. Duck? check. Bambi? check. Eels? check. Fish? check.

Just want to make sure your comments are historically accurate. ;-) Carry on.

Thanskgiving - the holiday where we give Thanks for what have. Quite humble of those culturalimperialisthegemonicguntotingformerungratefulbritishsubjectsnotcontentwithakingorqueenyanks!

PS I was not aware that the Canadians were the first celebrate Thanksgiving. Great idea and a hat tip to the Canadians. Thanks.

It was a great day indeed. Large quantities of turkey were had by all. What a feast!!

It was a great day indeed. Large quantities of turkey were had by all. What a feast!!

Sheesh, so much ire over a 'bloody holiday' and losing a civil war...you'd think I was surrounded by foreigners. ;-)

US vs. Great Britain: War of 1812.

Win, lose or draw, the USA seems to have come out on top in the end.

You're right, we do celebrate Thanksgiving more than other places; I've noticed that, living in Canada. Bonus: I got two Thanksgivings this year. Yey me.