The American tradition of Thanksgiving has gone through much change over the years until 2023

Thanksgiving is typically understood as a time for gratitude with family, many opt to spend it with their beloved friends

When is Thanksgiving 2023?

America celebrates Thanksgiving on the fourth Thursday of November each year. The White House on 23 November 2023 honoured Thanksgiving in a pledge:

During the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed Thanksgiving a national holiday to honor the blessings of our country, even as he fought to preserve our Union.  This week, Americans will gather with their loved ones and families, celebrating the love they share and the traditions they built together. 

In 2023, The established tradition of Thanksgiving has evolved to focus more on friendship showing that people’s idea of family has expanded. While many may not be with their relatives due to distance or any reason, choose to gather with friends hence Friendsgiving.

USA Thanksgiving Holiday changes in 2023

An American in South Africa, @chrystlejones made the effort to celebrate Thanksgiving while abroad. Even a distance away, the American thought it important to mark the day the best way she could Watch a video of the items she thought she’d struggle to find in SA.

Social media has been awash with people preparing dishes together with friends for the American holiday. Youtuber with over 3 million subscribers, @jackieaina, for example, posted a video of her elaborate Friendsgiving.

Why is Thanksgiving tradition changing?

The increasing popularity of friends as family indicates how intercommunal humans are Where there is none, people go out of their way to make families. Our World In Data shows that most Americans in their 20s spend more time alone, and family comes in second place. This changes After 20, when most get settled in their careers in a capitalist world that demands more time spent a. Between 21-30, most time is spent with co-workers if not alone and even less time with family as time goes on.

Thanksgiving being celebrated among colleagues instead of family has also become more common.

NASA shared how their astronauts gathered a co-worker for the holiday since 1995. The 2023 Thanksgiving gathering by NASA included a picture of Expedition 70 crew members Andreas E. Mogensen of the European Space Agency, NASA astronauts Loral A. O’Hara and Jasmin Moghbeli, and Satoshi Furukawa of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency. It seems the holidays are increasingly less family-orientated and more centred on establishing community, whether it be a friend group in the same city or co-workers in space together in NASA’s case.

The loneliness epidemic, as NPR reported, shows that the US population is not at its most social stage. The so-called holiday blues can be spurred on during holiday time in our increasingly capitalist society.

This is a developing story. ClickHub contacted a psychologist on how to combat holiday blues and loneliness.