Why is Thanksgiving so late this year?

On November 13, 2024By Littum

Thanksgiving is a day when families across the country spend time together enjoying a big meal, usually a turkey, complemented by lots of side dishes.

But as people start making their plans and begin their meal prep and shopping, one thing they may notice is that the holiday falls later in November this year.

When is Thanksgiving this year?

Thanksgiving will take place on November 28, 2024. In 2023, the day was celebrated on November 23, and it was November 24 in 2022.

Why is Thanksgiving late this year?

This year, Thanksgiving is on the latest possible date. Typically, the holiday is on the fourth Thursday in November, but the dates can change depending on which day of the week November 1st falls on, which in turn can be bumped later by leap years. And a leap year occurred in 2024.

A November 28 Thanksgiving occurs approximately every five to six years, meaning the next time the holiday falls on November 28 will be in 2030.

Why is Thanksgiving celebrated on Thursday?

President George Washington issued a proclamation designating Thursday, November 26, 1789, a “Day of Publick Thanksgivin”—the first time Thanksgiving was celebrated under the new Constitution, according to The National Archives.

Other presidents issued Thanksgiving proclamations, but the dates and months of the celebrations varied. But President Abraham Lincoln’s 1863 proclamation declared that Thanksgiving was regularly celebrated each year on the last Thursday in November.

The National Archives noted that Congress later decided to set a fixed date for the holiday. On October 6, 1941, the House passed a joint resolution declaring the last Thursday in November to be the legal Thanksgiving Day. However, the Senate amended the resolution to establish the holiday as the fourth Thursday, which for some years took into account the fact that November has five Thursdays.

In addition, the House agreed to the change, and President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the resolution on December 26, 1941, establishing the fourth Thursday in November as the federal Thanksgiving Day holiday.