1. East Asia
In Korea, Thanksgiving is known as Chuseok. On Chuseok, people come home to celebrate by eating rice cakes (songpyeon), stir-fried noodles (japchae), and rice pancakes (jeon), among others. They also exchange gifts, spam being particularly prevalent, and play games. The date of Chuseok varies, and the celebration typically lasts three days, one day before and one day after. This year, Chuseok fell on September 10th.
2. Europe
In Germany, Thanksgiving is known as Erntedankfest, and it’s celebrated on the first Sunday of October. Like in America, Germans typically eat turkey (Truthahn), but they may exchange this for other fowl, such as fattened chicken, rooster, or hen (though the latter aren’t done just for Erntedankfest). Erntedankfest is traditionally a religious celebration, and so the day often includes dancing and eating in and outside a church, among other activities.
3. South America
Dia de Ação de Graças is the Brazilian Thanksgiving, and it’s celebrated on the last Thursday of November. It was inspired by America, as popular belief holds that the Brazilian ambassador to America brought it back with him. As such, they typically eat the same things America does, but with some variations. For example, cranberry sauce is made with jabuticaba instead of cranberries.
4. Africa
Ghana celebrates Thanksgiving with the Homowo festival, which dates back to the 16th century, when the Ga people suffered a harsh famine. After their first harvest, they celebrated with a feast, inspiring the festival. Like Thanksgiving in America, the Ga celebrate with food, but they celebrate for three months longer and much earlier than America does – from May, when the crops are planted, to August or even September (the celebration and feast). In contrast to our turkey, the Homowo traditional dish is kpekpei/kpokpoi, made from steamed and fermented corn meal and palm oil.