Thanksgiving Day is a very important traditional holiday in America. On the fourth Thursday of each November, families and friends gather together for the occasion to celebrate with a traditional turkey dinner, usually in the mid-afternoon. Thanksgiving Day originated as a celebration of the year's harvest and is similar to the Mid-Autumn Festival in China.
感恩節(jié)是一個(gè)很重要的美國(guó)傳統(tǒng)節(jié)日。每年11月的第四個(gè)星期四，人們都會(huì)與家人、朋友歡聚一堂，下午3時(shí)左右吃傳統(tǒng)的火雞大餐。該節(jié)日最初主要是為了慶祝一年的豐收，與中國(guó)的中秋節(jié)有些相似。

This American tradition started in 1621 before the United States of America was established. It was a huge celebration for a hard-earned harvest in the first year after the first group of immigrants arriving in the New World.
這個(gè)美國(guó)傳統(tǒng)節(jié)日始于1621年，美國(guó)成立以前。來(lái)源于美洲新大陸第一批移民為慶祝到達(dá)新大陸之后第一年的辛苦勞作獲得的豐收而舉行的盛大宴會(huì)。

On September 6, 1620, the Mayflower ship set sail from Plymouth, Devon, England, taking all the English Pilgrims to the New World. The English Pilgrims numbered about a hundred people, and left England to escape religious persecution.
1620年9月6日，一批不堪忍受?chē)?guó)內(nèi)宗教迫害的英國(guó)清教徒乘坐“五月花”號(hào)從英格蘭德文郡普利茅斯出發(fā)，開(kāi)始了到美洲新大陸的航行。這批清教徒大約有100人。

The Pilgrims sailed sixty-six days, arrived in the New World in November of the same year. They first settled in a cornfield abandoned by Native Indians and named it Plymouth Plantation.
清教徒們?cè)诤Ｉ虾叫辛?6天，終于在當(dāng)年的11月到達(dá)美洲新大陸。他們最初在當(dāng)?shù)赜〉诎踩藦U棄的一個(gè)玉米地安頓下來(lái)，并把它命名為普利茅斯種植園。

They worked on the land with much difficulty and were beset by a devastating plague in which half of the Pilgrim died in the long winter of 1620. In the spring of 1621，an Indian brave named Squanto and her Wampanoag tribe came to their help.The tribe taught the Pilgrims how to work the earth and plant corn，beans，pumpkins，squash and other crops.
1620年那個(gè)寒冷而漫長(zhǎng)的冬天，他們?cè)谶@塊土地上費(fèi)盡千辛萬(wàn)苦地勞作著，困難重重，還遭遇了一場(chǎng)災(zāi)難性的瘟疫，一半人在這場(chǎng)瘟疫中死去。到了1621年的春天，一個(gè)名叫Squanto的印第安英雄率其瓦帕濃部落開(kāi)始主動(dòng)幫助他們。部落里的人們教這些清教徒怎樣耕種土地，怎樣種植玉米、大豆、南瓜以及其他農(nóng)作物。

In late September 1621, the Pilgrims were pleased with their great harvest. To celebrate their first harvest, the Pilgrims wanted to thank God and the Native Indian. They invited Squanto and the entire Wampanoag tribe to celebrate together in a shared feast.
1621年9月底，他們的辛勤勞作終于獲得大豐收，清教徒們歡欣鼓舞。為了慶祝這第一次來(lái)之不易的大豐收，他們想要好好感謝一下上帝和當(dāng)?shù)氐挠〉诎踩?，便邀?qǐng)Squanto及其瓦帕濃部落參加他們的慶祝盛宴。

The first Thanksgiving dinner is said to have lasted from three days to one week.It was indeed a time of happiness, fellowship and rejoicing for the Pilgrims. They arranged a friendly treaty with the Native American Indians, built houses in the wilderness, and raised sufficient crops to feed themselves for the upcoming long winter. The Pilgrims had become the first generation of settlers in this new land holding so much promise.
這第一次的豐收慶祝盛宴據(jù)說(shuō)從三天一直延長(zhǎng)到一個(gè)星期。對(duì)于清教徒們來(lái)說(shuō)，這的確是一段享受高興、愉悅、友誼的時(shí)間。他們和善良的當(dāng)?shù)赜〉诎踩艘黄饻?zhǔn)備了慶祝盛宴，在荒野中蓋了房子，并為即將來(lái)臨的漫長(zhǎng)冬天儲(chǔ)存了充足的食物。于是，在這塊充滿希望、憧憬和向往的新大陸上，清教徒們便成了第一代移民定居者。

From then on, Thanksgiving became a holiday for celebrating the harvest in the New World, dates varied from October to November each year over the next 150 years.
從那以后的150多年里，感恩節(jié)便成為一個(gè)慶祝新大陸豐收的固定節(jié)日，在每年的10月或11月舉行慶?；顒?dòng)。

The first National Thanksgiving was declared by the Continental Congress in 1777. On October 3, 1789, President George Washington declared that the people of the United States should observe "a day of public thanksgiving and prayer" on Thursday, 26 November. In 1941, a Congressional Joint Resolution set the fourth Thursday of November as a national holiday for Thanksgiving.
1777年，美國(guó)大陸會(huì)議第一次宣布感恩節(jié)為全國(guó)性節(jié)日。1789年10月3日，美國(guó)總統(tǒng)喬治·華盛頓號(hào)召美國(guó)人民把當(dāng)年的11月26日（星期四）看作“一個(gè)感恩、祈禱的公開(kāi)紀(jì)念日”。1941年，一項(xiàng)國(guó)會(huì)聯(lián)合決議把感恩節(jié)定為全國(guó)性節(jié)日，時(shí)間定在每年11月的第四個(gè)星期四。