Thanksgiving Sayings

exactly what is the history of Thanksgiving?

My husband, who is from a different culture, asked me the history and significance of Thanksgiving. I was soo ashamed of myself for not really knowing the answer. Help.

Public Comments

1. allegedly to celebrate the bounty of the New World
2. Thanksgiving is all about when the Pilgrims (people coming here from Britain) came. They didn't know how to adapt to the new climate here and were starving because they didn't know how to farm, so they Indians helped them and they all had a banquet which was the first Thanksgiving. =)
3. Here is a whole guide to the history and traditions of thanksgiving - hope that helps! http://www.findingdulcinea.com/guides/Entertainment/Holidays/Thanksgiving.topic__ss_categories_ss_food_ss_Thanksgiving.pg_0.html
4. 1 story was that the pilgrams had a fast day on the first thanksgiving for surviving their first year. another was that they had a great meal with an abundant harvest after the first year with the local native americans.
5. thanksgiving.... Thanksgiving, or Thanksgiving Day, is a traditional North American holiday, and is a form of harvest festival. The date and whereabouts of the first Thanksgiving celebration is a topic of modest contention. Though the earliest attested Thanksgiving celebration was on September 8, 1565 in what is now Saint Augustine, Florida[1][2], the traditional "first Thanksgiving" is venerated as having occurred at the site of Plymouth Plantation, in 1621. Today, Thanksgiving is celebrated on the second Monday of October in Canada and on the fourth Thursday of November in the United States. Thanksgiving dinner is held on this day, usually as a gathering of family members.
6. I'll make it short. Pilgrims came to America seeking freedom. So they stole food and resources from the Native Americans to get by. The Natives noticed their dilemma and decided to help. But the pilgrims later decided to kill the natives so they could have all of their belonging. That's the sad reason we celebrate giving thanks. See book: Lies they taught me in School. James Loewen.
7. In the year 1621, colonists and the Wompanoag Indians in a celebration about the harvest, a long tradition kept by the colonists. This was considered the first Thanksgiving. The Wompanoags and colonists were in a sort of an alliance, not to be confused with friendship. Many people believe the Pilgrims and Indians sat together at a long table, joyous and social, but this is not true. There was still the language barrier and tension, so the two groups probably sat apart from each other with minimum interaction, not to mention the lack of chairs and tables. Basically, Thanksgiving was just dinner between two groups that didn't really know each other.