Thanksgiving refers to a time of the year when families gather and together expresses their thanks for what they are thankful to and for. It is believed that the first Thanksgiving celebration took place in year 1621; this was the time when Wampanoag Indians and Plymouth colonists came together to celebrate the event of autumn harvest. This tradition is has continued since then to this day.
Today, Thanksgiving is celebrated for various reasons revolving round various family traditions. The occasion could be anything from just watching football, reuniting with friends and family members or enjoying juicy turkey meal.
Let’s have a look at some interesting fun facts associated with the ‘Thanksgiving’
- It is not clear if pilgrims ever ate turkey during their inaugural Thanksgiving event in the 1620’s, it is believed to have been celebrated with lobster, rabbit, fish, chicken, squashes, beans, onions, chestnuts, hickory nuts, leeks, maple syrup, dried fruits and honey, cabbage, radishes, eggs, carrots and goat cheese. The well known writer Calvin Trillin has carried out mock campaigns for years to change the usual turkey to the modern day spaghetti carbonara!
- There is a football game hosted by the Detroit Lions on Thanksgiving Day which first took place in 1934 and it has continued on every Thanksgiving Day since then.
- The first ever Thanksgiving event is believed to have lasted for three days.
- In their inaugural feast the pilgrims never used forks; they instead ate with spoons, knives and their fingers.
- When Benjamin Franklin was in office he wanted the turkey to be declared as the national bird.
- Turkey contains more protein when compared with beef or chicken.
- Male turkeys gobble while hens on the other hand create a clucking sound.
- A fully grown turkey will have about 3,500 feathers.
- Turkeys raised commercially seldom fly.
- Turkeys can get heart attacks!
- The heaviest turkeys would weigh about 86 pounds.
- Wild turkeys have been known at times to spend the night up in a tree.
- Female turkeys are called a Hen whereas males are called a Tom.
- Wild turkeys are able to run twenty five miles per hour and are also able to fly up to fifty five miles per hour.
- Though turkeys do not have external ears they possess fantastic hearing power.
- No one knows exactly how turkeys got their name. It is believed that Christopher Columbus took the bird to be a peacock due its close resemblance and since East Indians used the word “tuka” for peacock, eventually the name got evolved to “turkey.” Another theory is that the turkey makes a ‘turk-turk’ sound instead of saying ‘gobble-gobble’ and hence the name ‘turkey’.
