The United States is the best-known country that celebrates Thanksgiving. In the US it falls on the fourth Thursday of November, which is November 26 in 2026. Canada also has a national Thanksgiving, held on the second Monday of October. Liberia, Saint Lucia, Grenada and Australia’s Norfolk Island keep their own official versions, and many other countries hold harvest festivals of thanks.
Each country’s holiday has its own history. Some grew out of English church custom. Others came from American settlers, whalers or soldiers. A few started in the 20th century. The holidays share a name and a spirit of gratitude, but the dates, foods and reasons behind them differ.
Which countries celebrate Thanksgiving as an official holiday?
Four countries keep Thanksgiving as a national holiday: the United States, Canada, Liberia and Saint Lucia. Norfolk Island, an Australian territory, has its own Thanksgiving too. Grenada has a national Thanksgiving Day too. Its origin has nothing to do with harvests.
| Country or territory | Date rule | Next date (from Oct. 30, 2026) | How it is celebrated | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | Fourth Thursday of November | Nov. 26, 2026 | Family dinner with turkey, parades, football | Colonial days of thanks; made a national holiday in 1863 |
| Canada | Second Monday of October | Oct. 11, 2027 (2026’s fell on Oct. 12) | Long-weekend family meal with turkey and pumpkin pie | English and colonial thanksgiving customs |
| Liberia | First Thursday of November | Nov. 5, 2026 | Church services, then family meals | Settlers from the US; written into law in 1883 |
| Norfolk Island (Australia) | Last Wednesday of November | Nov. 25, 2026 | Churches decorated with produce, community meals | American whaling crews in the 1800s |
| Saint Lucia | First Monday of October | Oct. 4, 2027 (2026’s fell on Oct. 5) | Thanks for the harvest and for getting through hurricane season | Local tradition of gratitude |
| Grenada | October 25 | Oct. 25, 2027 | National day of remembrance | The 1983 US-led intervention |
As a US territory, Puerto Rico observes the American holiday on November 26, 2026.
Why does Canada celebrate Thanksgiving in October?
Canadian Thanksgiving comes in October partly because harvests finish earlier that far north. It also grew out of separate traditions. The holiday is held on the second Monday of October, which turns it into a long weekend. One Canadian origin story points to explorer Martin Frobisher. The first recorded “Thanksgiving” in North America occurred in 1578, when his expedition held a service of thanks after reaching what is now the Canadian Arctic. Historians don’t agree on a single origin story, though.
Canadian Thanksgiving falls on the same day as Columbus Day (also called Indigenous Peoples’ Day) in the US. Canada has no Black Friday tied to its Thanksgiving.
How the other Thanksgiving countries got their holidays
- Liberia. Liberia’s Thanksgiving traces back to the country’s founding by Black Americans who left the US in the early 1820s. Liberia’s legislature set the holiday in 1883. The day centers on church, and some services include an auction of fresh fruit and vegetables.
- Norfolk Island. This small South Pacific island is an Australian external territory. American whaling crews who called at the island brought the holiday with them. Today islanders fill their churches with fruit, vegetables and flowers and give thanks for the harvest.
- Grenada. Grenada’s Thanksgiving Day, held every October 25, marks the anniversary of the U.S.-led invasion of the island in 1983. It’s a political anniversary, not a harvest feast.
- Saint Lucia. Saint Lucia holds its Thanksgiving on the first Monday of October. It’s a day of thanks for the harvest and for getting through hurricane season.
When did the first Thanksgiving occur in America?
The three-day harvest feast of 1621 at Plymouth Colony, in present-day Massachusetts, is popularly called the first American Thanksgiving. The Pilgrims and the Wampanoag people shared that meal. Historians separate the popular story from the record, however. Plymouth Colony’s first formal day of thanksgiving on record came in 1623, two years after the 1621 feast.
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1578 | Frobisher expedition holds a service of thanks in the Canadian Arctic |
| 1621 | Harvest feast at Plymouth, later called the “first Thanksgiving” |
| 1623 | Plymouth Colony declares a formal day of thanksgiving |
| 1846 | Sarah Josepha Hale begins her campaign for a national holiday |
| 1863 | President Abraham Lincoln proclaims a national Thanksgiving in November |
| 1883 | Liberia’s legislature makes Thanksgiving a national holiday |
| 1939 | Franklin D. Roosevelt moves the holiday a week earlier |
| 1941 | Congress fixes the date as the fourth Thursday of November |
| 1983 | US-led intervention in Grenada, the event behind Grenada’s Thanksgiving |
The push for a national US holiday came from Sarah Josepha Hale, editor of Godey’s Lady’s Book, who began campaigning for it in 1846. In 1863, in the middle of the Civil War, Lincoln answered with a proclamation for the last Thursday of November. After Roosevelt moved the holiday earlier, critics nicknamed it “Franksgiving.” Congress settled the dispute in 1941 by setting the fourth Thursday. Because of that rule, the earliest Thanksgiving can occur is November 22; the latest is November 28.
Countries with harvest festivals similar to Thanksgiving
Many countries don’t have an American-style Thanksgiving, but they do hold festivals of thanks.
- Germany, Austria and Switzerland: Erntedankfest. Erntedankfest means “harvest thanks festival.” It’s a church-centered celebration held in early October, often on the first Sunday of the month. Altars are decorated with produce, and some towns hold processions, music and a harvest crown.
- Japan: Labor Thanksgiving Day (Kinrō Kansha no Hi). This national holiday falls every November 23. It honors work and workers and gives thanks for what labor produces. Its roots are in an old rice-harvest rite.
- South Korea: Chuseok. Chuseok is a major harvest festival on the 15th day of the eighth lunar month, so its date moves each year on the Western calendar. Families travel home, honor their ancestors and share songpyeon, which are half-moon rice cakes.
- United Kingdom: Harvest Festival. Churches and schools hold harvest services in September or October, with hymns and donations of food for local charities.
- The Netherlands: Leiden. Many Pilgrims lived in Leiden before sailing on the Mayflower. The city holds a Thanksgiving morning service at the Pieterskerk on the same day as the US holiday.
- Brazil. Brazil marks Dia de Ação de Graças unofficially on the fourth Thursday of November, but it isn’t a nationwide day off.
Common mix-ups about Thanksgiving around the world
- Not every harvest festival is “Thanksgiving.” Chuseok and Erntedankfest are separate traditions with their own histories. They aren’t copies of the American holiday.
- Grenada’s holiday isn’t about a harvest. It marks a 1983 military event.
- Canada’s date changes every year. It’s tied to a Monday, not a fixed date. In 2026 it fell on October 12. In 2027 it falls on October 11.
- Liberia celebrates before the US does. Liberia’s first-Thursday rule puts its holiday about three weeks ahead of the American one.
To check a date for a future year, count weekdays on a calendar. For the US, find the fourth Thursday in November. For Canada, find the second Monday in October.
FAQ
– Which US president refused to celebrate Thanksgiving as a national holiday?
Thomas Jefferson declined to proclaim national days of thanksgiving while he was president. He believed that calling for religious observances went beyond a president’s role under the separation of church and state. Earlier, George Washington had issued a national thanksgiving proclamation in 1789. The holiday didn’t become a lasting annual tradition until Lincoln’s 1863 proclamation.
– What countries celebrate Thanksgiving in November?
The United States, Liberia and Norfolk Island all celebrate Thanksgiving in November. Liberia’s falls on the first Thursday, Norfolk Island’s on the last Wednesday and the US holiday on the fourth Thursday. Japan’s Labor Thanksgiving Day on November 23 is a related but separate holiday.
– What countries celebrate Thanksgiving in October?
Canada, Saint Lucia and Grenada celebrate Thanksgiving in October. Canada’s is on the second Monday, Saint Lucia’s on the first Monday and Grenada’s on October 25. Germany’s Erntedankfest harvest festival also usually falls in early October.
– How does Brazil celebrate Thanksgiving?
Brazil’s Dia de Ação de Graças is a low-key, unofficial observance on the fourth Thursday of November. It isn’t a national day off.