When is Thanksgiving celebrated?

Thanksgiving is celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November each year in the United States due to a law passed by Congress in 1941 during President Franklin D. Roosevelt's term.

The tradition began in 1789, when President George Washington proclaimed the first national Thanksgiving.

In 1863, President Abraham Lincoln made it a national holiday, set for the last Thursday of November, to foster unity during the Civil War.

In 1939, Roosevelt moved the date to the second-to-last Thursday to extend the holiday shopping season, sparking public debate.

To resolve the confusion caused by differing state observances, Congress standardized the holiday in 1941, combining economic considerations with historical tradition.