Nyelwilág

Thanksgiving or Thanksgiving Day - a time for family, food, and football, an unofficial beginning of the winter holiday season.
The holiday's origins can be traced to harvest festivals that have been celebrated in many cultures since ancient times. The American holiday has religious undertones related to the deliverance of the English settlers by Native Americans after the brutal winter at Plymouth, Massachusetts.
Thanksgiving is celebrated on the 4th Thursday of November, which this year (2008) is November 27th. It is America's most delicious holiday, often referred to as T-Day or Turkey Day.

Most people celebrate by gathering at home with family or friends and eat a lot. Turkey is the centerpiece of the meal, and typical menu items include mashed potatoes, stuffing, sweet potatoes, green bean casserole, cranberry sauce and pumpkin pie for dessert.
A very popular tradition on Thanksgiving Day is for each person at the table to say what they are thankful for in their lives.
Apart from food and family togetherness, the biggest Thanksgiving traditions are football and parades. The traditional American Thanksgiving football game was usually between the Detroit Lions and the Green Bay Packers, but as football has become more popular, there are now more games on Thanksgiving day.
The tradition of Thanksgiving parades goes back to the early 20th century, when people began to associate Thanksgiving with the beginning of the Christmas shopping season. In order to attract customers, stores like Macy's sponsored elaborate parades like the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. The Friday after Thanksgiving is called Black Friday. Shops are open very early in the morning and have incredible bargains.
Some people choose to express their gratitude by giving back to the community. Volunteer activities, such as helping out at a soup kitchen or at a shelter, are popular ways to spend Thanksgiving Day.
Since 1947, the National Turkey Federation has gifted a live Thanksgiving turkey to the White House. It's not known exactly when United States presidents began pardoning the White House Thanksgiving turkey, but the tradition is thought to be connected to Abraham Lincoln sparing a turkey named "Jack" from becoming the main dish in a holiday meal. Today, the Annual Turkey Ceremony takes place in advance of Thanksgiving, and the public has the opportunity to name the spared turkey, who lives its remaining days at the Kidwell Farm, a petting zoo in Virginia.