9 Of The Biggest Differences Between Canadian & American Thanksgiving

For one, Canadians don’t sweat the Thanksgiving drama like their neighbours.
By: John MacFarlane
The fall harvest was a far bigger deal back when refrigerators were a block of ice and some sawdust and international shipping involved wooden ships with canvas sails — but many people in Canada and the USA take Thanksgiving pretty seriously even in this era of hydroponic lettuce and year-round tropical fruit.
Of course, if you’re a cynic, many or all of our modern holidays seem like they’ve had the historical and cultural significance scooped out and replaced with consumerism. And if you’re less jaded, you observe that many harvest activities — such as apple orchard visits, fall foliage tours and pumpkin picking — endure, plus the end of summer is a real thing and kind of a big deal. And can’t cynics just shut up and enjoy a chance to hang out with friends and family?
In Canada, that chance happens on the second Monday of October, which is a full month and a half from the holiday celebrated in the U.S. But the timing is by no means the only, nor the most significant, difference between the two holidays.
Here are the key differences, with everything from dumping summer loves to the inclusion of marshmallows in savoury dishes.
Why is American Thanksgiving in November and Canadian Thanksgiving in October?
The short (and kind of obvious) answer is that it gets cold here sooner. The Canadian harvest ends a lot sooner because Canada is further north. But as the Canadian Encyclopedia notes, Thanksgiving in Canada happened all over autumn for years, sometimes even overlapping with the U.S. event, until it was finally fixed to the second Monday of October by Parliament on January 31, 1957. In the U.S., the event has generally been in late November.
Canadian Thanksgiving isn’t equated with family dysfunction
In spite of American Thanksgiving’s obligatory status, it can seem like nobody actually wants to be there. The internet is stacked with articles from U.S. publications offering tips on how to navigate family feuds, handle stress, stop grandparents from criticizing grandkids, avoid tricky dinner table topics and generally “survive” the holiday.
Canadian Thanksgiving tends to swing towards a more laid-back celebration. While the emphasis is still on family and gratitude, there’s less societal pressure, and thus, fewer proverbial eggshells to tread on. The dinner table north of the border often sees lively conversations and storytelling rather than tense debates and unsolicited advice. While every family has its quirks, Canadians often view their Thanksgiving as a simple, unpretentious time to enjoy good food and company without the high-stakes drama that sometimes permeates the American experience. ”Source: https://www.mtlblog.com/