The Evolution of Thanksgiving as a Holiday
The Evolution of Thanksgiving as a Holiday This is a painting of what the original Thanksgiving was imagined to be like. Thanksgiving is now regarded as one of the most popular and commonly-celebrated American holidays, thanks to traditions started by both natives and pilgrims. I learned that after a successful harvest in the year 1621, a three day gathering was held by pilgrims and natives from the Wampanoag tribe to celebrate. At the time, this represented unification between different groups of people and celebration. It wasn’t until over 200 years later that it was officially regarded as “Thanksgiving” in the 1830’s. Many Thanksgiving traditions have evolved, and many of the are now regarded as being more related to Halloween instead. An example of this is Thanksgiving masking. Children would dress up in costumes and ask for candy or "something for thanksgiving?". This directly mirrors the modern tradition of trick or treating, a Halloween tradition. There ar