Thanksgiving Day

Now I would like to give you some details about thanksgiving day in the United States. Thanksgiving day is the most truly American of the national holidays in the United States and is most closely connected with the earliest history of the country.

In 1620, the settlers, or pilgrims, sailed to America on the May Flower, seeking a place where they could have freedom of worship. After a tempestuous two-month voyage they landed at in icy november, what is now plymouth, massachusetts.

During their first winter, over half of the settlers died of[1] starvation or epidemics. those who survived began sowing in the first spring.

all summer long they waited for the harvests with great anxiety, knowing that their lives and the future existence of the colony depended on the coming harvest.finally the fields produced a yield rich beyond expectations. and therefore it was decided that a day of thanksgiving to the lord be fixed[2]. years later, president of the united states proclaimed the fourth thursday of november as thanksgiving day every year. the celebration of thanksgiving day has been observed on that date until today.

the pattern of the thanksgiving celebration has never changed through the years. the big family dinner is planned months ahead. on the dinner table, people will find apples, oranges, chestnuts, walnuts and grapes.There will be plum pudding, mince pie, other varieties of food and cranberry juice and squash. the best and most attractive among them are roast turkey and pumpkin pie. they have been the most traditional and favorite food on thanksgiving day throughout the years.

everyone agrees the dinner must be built around roast turkey stuffed with a bread dressing[3] to absorb the tasty juices as it roasts. but as cooking varies with families and with the regions where one lives, it is not easy to get a consensus on[4] the precise kind of stuffing for the royal bird. Thanksgiving today is, in every sense, a national annual holiday on which Americans of all faiths and backgrounds join in to express their thanks for the year’ s bounty and reverently ask for continued[5] blessings

The custom of Thanksgiving

Every Thanksgiving Day, the United States crowded the whole nation, people customarily do thanksgiving to the church, urban['ə:bən] and rural：['rurəl] make-up demonstrations：[,demən'streiʃən] held around the town, theater ['θiətə] performances and sports competitions, schools and shops are also required day off. Children also mimic the appearance of the Indians then put on bizarre [bi'zɑ:] clothing, painted mask or put on a mask onto the streets singing, trumpet. ['trʌmpit] Scattered ['skætəd] field in the foreign land will be home for the holidays the family, the family sitting around together, munching on delicious turkey ['tə:ki], and to the family said: "Thank you!." After Thanksgiving, the school will let students draw a picture of Thanksgiving, most students are painting a turkey.

Meanwhile, the hospitality [,hɔspi'tæliti] of the Americans can not forget this day, invite your friends, singles or the person away from home for the holidays. From the 18th century, the United States to poor people began to send a basket of food customs. There were a group of young women who wish to select one day a year dedicated to charity, ['tʃæriti] that Thanksgiving is selected the most appropriate thing to. So one Thanksgiving, they are loaded on to a basket full of food to the poor people themselves. Rumors of this distance, and soon learn there are many people doing it their way. No matter who, they say: "Thank you!"

Thanksgiving shopping has become the American customs. From Thanksgiving to Christmas this month, U.S. retail sales to account for the year 1 / 3 of all businesses is the traditional peak season discounts. Months from the crazy shopping day after Thanksgiving (Friday), the day came to be known Black Friday (Black Friday). The reason that name is said to this day because Friday morning, everyone rushed to the mall Mo Zhehei queuing up to buy cheap goods, such behavior has a very image of the statement, called Early Bird (early bird .)

每逢感恩节这一天，美国举国上下热闹非凡，人们按照习俗前往教堂做感恩祈祷，城乡市镇到处举行化装游行、戏剧表演和体育比赛等，学校和商店也都按规定放假休息。孩子们还模仿当年印第安人的模样穿上离奇古怪的服装，画上脸谱或戴上面具到街上唱歌、吹喇叭。散居在他乡外地的家人也会回家过节，一家人团团围坐在一起，大嚼美味火鸡，并且对家人说：“谢谢！”。感恩节后，学校会让同学们画一张感恩节的画，大部分学生都画的是火鸡。

同时，好客的美国人也忘不掉这一天邀请好友、单身汉或远离家乡的人共度佳节。从１８世纪起，美国就开始出现一种给贫穷人家送一篮子食物的风俗。当时有一群年轻妇女想在一年中选一天专门做善事，认为选定感恩节是最恰当不过的。所以感恩节一到，她们就装上满满一篮食物亲自送到穷人家。这件事远近传闻，不久就有许多人学着她们的样子做起来。不管遇到谁，他们都会说：“Thank you！”

感恩节购物已经成为了美国人的习俗。从感恩节到圣诞节这一个月，美国零售业总销售额能占到全年的1/3强，是各个商家传统的打折促销旺季。疯狂的购物月从感恩节的次日（星期五）开始，这一天即被称为Black Friday（黑色星期五）。之所以叫这个名字，据说是因为周五这天一大早，所有人都要摸着黑冲到商场排队买便宜货，这种行为有个非常形象的说法，叫Early Bird（早起的鸟儿）。

The Thanksgiving legacy has been alive for hundreds of years. The customs we see in our homes today remind us of ancient celebrations of harvest, thankfulness for peace, and the endeavors of native Americans. It consists of stories of those who believe that gratitude for blessings is a virtue all must possess.

Custom of Praying
For centuries, 'Thanksgiving Day' is associated with communal prayers in church and in homes. People offer various meal time prayers during the day. It is a time, when mankind thanks God for all his blessings and grace. It is also a day to show gratitude to your friends and relatives for all the good deeds.

Custom of Family Dinner
Everyone follows the custom of family dinner and reunion religiously every year. Distances don't really matter as relatives drive down to be with their family. Feasts are usually held at home. It is a time to enjoy their favorite 'Roasted Turkey' with the family.

Custom of Decoration
Thanksgiving is a time to decorate homes with wreaths, fresh and dried flowers. People beautify their homes, give the interiors a whole new look and feel. They light lamps to brighten the environment. Tables are adorned with best china and antique silver cutlery to mark the occasion.

Custom of sending messages
Thanksgiving is a day when people send loving messages and warm wishes to their relatives, colleagues at work place, superiors and subordinates, near and dear ones. It is a day of conveying their feelings through Thanksgiving cards.

Written by Jerilyn Watson

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

Welcome to THIS IS AMERICA in VOA Special English. I'm Faith Lapidus.

VOICE TWO:

And I'm Steve Ember. The story of the Thanksgiving holiday is our report this week.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

This Thursday is Thanksgiving Day. Thanksgiving is celebrated every year on the fourth Thursday of November. The month of November is in autumn, the main season for harvesting crops.

The writer O. Henry called Thanksgiving the one holiday that is purely American. It is not a religious holiday. But it has spiritual meaning.

Some Americans travel long distances to be with their families. They eat a large dinner, which is the main part of the celebration. For many people, Thanksgiving is the only time when all members of a family gather. The holiday is a time of family reunion.

VOICE TWO:

Alma Scott-Buczak gathers her family for Thanksgiving dinner every year. She welcomes about thirty people to her home in northern New Jersey, near New York City.

Guests sit at several tables. Children eat together at their own table. Most people who are invited are relatives. But anyone can bring a friend.

Miz Scott-Buczak serves the traditional American Thanksgiving dinner. But she adds a few special foods that are especially popular in some African-American homes, dishes like sweet potato pie and corn pudding.

Before the meal begins, the people all say a few words about what they are most thankful for.

VOICE ONE:

The family of Ismaila Sanghua of Silver Spring, Maryland, also eats a large Thanksgiving dinner. It comes just weeks after their big dinner that celebrated the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr, the end of the observance of Ramadan.

Mister Sanghua was born in Sierra Leone. He says the family began a Thanksgiving tradition because the children, ages nine through sixteen, wanted to celebrate an American holiday.

VOA producer, writer and editor Subhash Vohra was born in India. Mister Vohra has been a journalist there and in Britain and Germany. He says he is pleased to take part in the traditions of places where he lives. He says he, his wife and two daughters have been enjoying an American Thanksgiving holiday meal in this country for many years.

VOICE TWO:

More than twenty Korean young people will eat their first Thanksgiving dinner on Thursday in Washington, D.C. The celebration is for first-year international students at the Wesley Theological Seminary, a graduate school for religious studies. Several students said they are looking forward to learning about this American custom.

Listen now as the Paul Hillier Singers present an early-American song of thanks, "Give Good Gifts One to Another."

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

Joan and Sandy Horwitt of Arlington, Virginia, have been holding a Thanksgiving dinner for almost thirty years. All the guests bring food to share. The Horwitts started this tradition when they moved to Virginia from the Midwest.

They regretted not being able to be with all their family members. But they soon met new friends. So they started a holiday dinner for others who were also unable to travel to family homes for the holiday.

At first, many people brought their babies and young children. Now some of the first guests are grandparents.

Mister and Missus Horwitt serve a turkey as the center of the meal. So do many other Americans. Most people serve it with a cooked bread mixture inside.

VOICE TWO:

This year, some Americans asked poultry companies if it all right to eat turkey. These people feared bird flu, a disease that has struck birds in Asia and Europe. But public officials say no turkeys in the United States have been infected with the deadly kind of avian influenza.

Other traditional Thanksgiving foods served with turkey are potatoes, a cooked fruit called cranberries and pumpkin pie. Many people eat more at Thanksgiving than at any other time of the year.

Some families serve other meats besides turkey. And some American homes have vegetarian Thanksgiving dinners. This means no meat is served.

VOICE ONE:

Many Americans also help others who might not have had a chance for Thanksgiving dinner. All across America, thousands of religious and service organizations provide holiday meals for old people, the homeless and the poor.

Over the years, Americans have added new traditions to their Thanksgiving celebration. For example, a number of professional and college football games are played on Thanksgiving Day. Some of the games are broadcast on national television.

Many people also like to watch Thanksgiving Day parades on television. Big stores in several cities organize these parades. For example, Macy's has a very famous Thanksgiving Day parade in New York.

VOICE TWO:

Thanksgiving began with the first European settlers in America. They gathered their crops, celebrated and gave thanks for the food.

Tradition says Pilgrim settlers from England celebrated the first thanksgiving in sixteen twenty-one. There is evidence that settlers in other parts of America held earlier thanksgiving celebrations. But the Pilgrims' thanksgiving story is the most popular.

The Pilgrims were religious dissidents who fled oppression in England. They went first to the Netherlands. Then they left that country to establish a colony in North America. The Pilgrims landed in sixteen twenty in what later became known as Plymouth, Massachusetts.

Their voyage across the Atlantic Ocean was difficult. Their first months in America were difficult, too. About one hundred Pilgrims landed just as autumn was turning to winter. During the cold months that followed, about half of them died.

VOICE ONE:

When spring came, the pilgrims began to plant crops. An American Indian named Squanto helped them. When summer ended, the Pilgrims had a good harvest of corn and barley. There was enough food to last through the winter.

The Pilgrims decided to hold a celebration to give thanks for their harvest. Writings from that time say Pilgrim leader William Bradford set a date late in the year. He invited members of a nearby Indian tribe to take part. There were many kinds of food to eat. The meal included wild birds such as ducks, geese and turkeys. That thanksgiving celebration lasted three days.

Listen as Paul Hillier leads his singers in "The Apple Tree."

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

As the American colonies grew, many towns and settlements held thanksgiving or harvest celebrations. Yet it took two hundred fifty years before a national observance was declared.

In the eighteen twenties, a writer named Sarah Josepha Hale began a campaign for an official holiday.

Support for her idea grew slowly. Finally, in eighteen sixty-three, President Abraham Lincoln declared the last Thursday in November as a national holiday of thanksgiving. Later, Congress declared that the holiday would be celebrated every year on the fourth Thursday in November.

VOICE ONE:

As in the past, many Americans will gather on Thursday with family and friends. We will share what we have. And we will give thanks for the good things of the past year.

VOICE TWO:

Our program was written by Jerilyn Watson and produced by Caty Weaver. Internet users can read and listen to our programs at www.unsv.com. I'm Steve Ember.

VOICE ONE:

And I'm Faith Lapidus. Please join us again next week for another report about life in the United States, on THIS IS AMERICA in VOA Special English.

We leave you now as the Boston Pops Orchestra and chorus perform "Prayer of Thanksgiving."

Thanksgiving Day

Thanksgiving Day falls on the Fourth Thursday in November


The Double Ninth Festival

The "Chong Yang Festival" is celebrated on the ninth day of the ninth lunar month, and it is as such known as the Double Ninth Festival.

Throughout history mankind has celebrated the bountiful harvest with thanksgiving ceremonies.

Before the establishment of formal religions many ancient farmers believed that their crops contained spirits which caused the crops to grow and die. Many believed that these spirits would be released when the crops were harvested and they had to be destroyed or they would take revenge on the farmers who harvested them. Some of the harvest festivals celebrated the defeat of these spirits.

Harvest festivals and thanksgiving celebrations were held by the ancient Greeks, the Romans, the Hebrews, the Chinese, and the Egyptians.

The Greeks

The ancient Greeks worshipped many gods and goddesses. Their goddess of corn (actually all grains) was Demeter who was honored at the festival of Thesmosphoria held each autumn.

On the first day of the festival married women (possibility connecting childbearing and the raising of crops) would build leafy shelters and furnish them with couches made with plants. On the second day they fasted. On the third day a feast was held and offerings to the goddess Demeter were made - gifts of seed corn, cakes, fruit, and pigs. It was hoped that Demeter's gratitude would grant them a good harvest.

The Romans

The Romans also celebrated a harvest festival called Cerelia, which honored Ceres their goddess of corn (from which the word cereal comes). The festival was held each year on October 4th and offerings of the first fruits of the harvest and pigs were offered to Ceres. Their celebration included music, parades, games and sports and a thanksgiving feast.

The Chinese

The ancient Chinese celebrated their harvest festival, Chung Ch'ui, with the full moon that fell on the 15th day of the 8th month. This day was considered the birthday of the moon and special "moon cakes", round and yellow like the moon, would be baked. Each cake was stamped with the picture of a rabbit - as it was a rabbit, not a man, which the Chinese saw on the face of the moon.

The families ate a thanksgiving meal and feasted on roasted pig, harvested fruits and the "moon cakes". It was believed that during the 3 day festival flowers would fall from the moon and those who saw them would be rewarded with good fortune.

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. Many staved. In order to free themselves they decided to attack the invaders.

The women baked special moon cakes which were distributed to every family. In each cake was a secret message which contained the time for the attack. When the time came the invaders were surprised and easily defeated. Every year moon cakes are eaten in memory of this victory.

The Hebrews

Jewish families also celebrate a harvest festival called Sukkoth. Taking place each autumn, Sukkoth has been celebrated for over 3000 years.

Sukkoth is know by 2 names - Hag ha Succot - the Feast of the Tabernacles and Hag ha Asif - the Feast of Ingathering. Sukkoth begins on the 15th day of the Hebrew month of Tishri, 5 days after Yom Kippur the most solemn day of the Jewish year.

Sukkoth is named for the huts (succots) that Moses and the Israelites lived in as they wandered the desert for 40 years before they reached the Promised Land. These huts were made of branches and were easy to assemble, take apart, and carry as the Israelites wandered through the desert.

When celebrating Sukkoth, which lasts for 8 days, the Jewish people build small huts of branches which recall the tabernacles of their ancestors. These huts are constructed as temporary shelters, as the branches are not driven into the ground and the roof is covered with foliage which is spaced to let the light in. Inside the huts are hung fruits and vegetables, including apples, grapes, corn, and pomegranates. On the first 2 nights of Sukkoth the families eat their meals in the huts under the evening sky.

The Egyptians

The ancient Egyptians celebrated their harvest festival in honor of Min, their god of vegetation and fertility. The festival was held in the springtime, the Egyptian's harvest season.

The festival of Min featured a parade in which the Pharaoh took part. After the parade a great feast was held. Music, dancing, and sports were also part of the celebration.

When the Egyptian farmers harvested their corn, they wept and pretended to be grief-stricken. This was to deceive the spirit which they believed lived in the corn. They feared the spirit would become angry when the farmers cut down the corn where it lived.

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 had beaten the odds. They built homes in the wilderness, they raised enough crops to keep them alive during the long coming winter, and they 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.

The custom of an annually celebrated thanksgiving, held after the harvest, continued through the years. During the American Revolution (late 1770's) a day of national thanksgiving was suggested by the Continental Congress.

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.

Canada

Thanksgiving in Canada is celebrated on the second Monday in October. Observance of the day began in 1879.

Thanksgiving Day