Thanksgiving customs around the world

Since we are Exploring Countries and Cultures this year in our home school classes I thought it would be appropriate to study Thanksgiving customs around the world. Listed below are some of the countries we will study about this week. For a Thanksgiving quiz click here.

In Korea, the harvest festival is called Chusok or Chuseok. Chuseok is a major three-day holiday in Korea celebrated on the 15th day of the 8th month of the lunar Korean calendar. On a side note this is also Kylan's birthday! We always read Sori's Harvest Moon Day, In the moonlight mist and talk about the Korean traditions of Chusok. Asia for Kids is my favorite resource for Asian books and Korean items for my kiddos since we like to incorporate their birth country as much as we can!

In China they celebrate the August Moon Festival and it is held on the same day as Chusok in Korea which is Aug. 15th.

In Africa, the yam festival is usually celebrated in the beginning of August after the rainy season.

Australia has an apple and grape harvest festival that is celebrated in the month of March .

The United Kingdom has a Harvest festival but it's not a national holiday like in the USA.

The Canadian Thanksgiving is celebrated the 2nd Monday in October and is similar to the US Thanksgiving.

Succoth is the Jewish Harvest Festival. It begins on the 15th day of the Hebrew month of Tishri. It is usually held in September and October. The celebration lasts for 7 days.

In Vietnam, Têt-Trung-Thu (tet-troong-thoo) or the Mid-Autumn Festival is one of the most popular family holidays. It is held on the 15th day of the 8th lunar month.

The Kwanzaa celebration is another celebration and is based on African harvest traditions. Kwanzaa means first fruits in Swahili. The celebration starts on December 26 and lasts for 7 days.

Pongal is a popular harvest festival in South India. Pongal starts on January 14 of each year. The celebration lasts for three days.

In India Thanksgiving is popularly known as 'Ladin' or 'Ladainha'.

Of course last but not least is the USA. Most of us celebrate with Turkey, family, friends and lots of giving Thanks for all of our blessings but each family celebrates in their own special way. If you have a special tradition please comment and let me know. Ours is that we each go around the table and say what we are thankful for this year.