Does China Celebrate Thanksgiving? (Plus How to Say Happy Thanksgiving in Chinese)

沉浸 TeamOctober 15, 20266 min read

Does China celebrate Thanksgiving? No. Thanksgiving is an American and Canadian holiday, and in China it isn't a public holiday, a day off, or a family tradition. The fourth Thursday of November is a normal workday in Beijing. That said, China does have a name for it, 感恩节 (Gǎn'ēnjié, "gratitude festival"), most young people know roughly what it is, and a few groups do mark it.

If you came here for the greeting, it's 感恩节快乐 (Gǎn'ēnjié kuàilè), "Happy Thanksgiving". Below: who in China does celebrate, what China has instead (the Mid-Autumn Festival is the closest thing to a Chinese Thanksgiving), and the vocabulary for turkey, pie, and being thankful. This post is part of our guide to Chinese holidays.

Is Thanksgiving a holiday in China?

No. Mainland China's public holidays follow the traditional lunar calendar plus a few national dates: Chinese New Year, Qingming, Labor Day, Dragon Boat Festival, Mid-Autumn Festival, and National Day. Thanksgiving isn't on the list and never has been. Schools and offices stay open, families don't gather, and there's no turkey in the supermarket.

Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan don't observe it either. Hong Kong has a strong Christmas because of its British history, but Thanksgiving is American, and it never took root.

Who in China does celebrate Thanksgiving

A few circles mark it, and the pattern is the same as for Christmas in China: imported, urban, and social rather than familial.

Americans and Canadians living in China. Expat communities in Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen and Chengdu organize potlucks, and Western restaurants in those cities advertise turkey dinners for the week.
International and bilingual schools. Many teach Thanksgiving as part of American culture: kids make paper turkeys and learn the Pilgrim story in English class. This is where most Chinese people first hear the word.
English-learning programs and universities. Foreign teachers often hold a Thanksgiving class or dinner. For a lot of Chinese students, their only Thanksgiving memory is a teacher explaining cranberry sauce.
Christian churches. Some congregations hold a thanksgiving service in late November, framed around gratitude rather than the American history.
Brands and apps. Chinese social media runs light 感恩节 content, usually "thank the people in your life" posts, and some stores borrow the gratitude theme for promotions. Nothing like the scale of Christmas decorations, though.

Walk through a Chinese city on Thanksgiving and you won't notice anything. Walk through a Chinese city two weeks earlier, on November 11, and you'll be in the middle of 双十一 (Shuāng Shíyī, Singles' Day), the biggest shopping day on earth. That's the November event China cares about.

What China has instead: the closest things to a Chinese Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is a harvest festival plus a family reunion plus a big meal. China has all three, on different dates.

Mid-Autumn Festival, 中秋节 (Zhōngqiūjié). The closest match. It falls on the full moon of the eighth lunar month (September or early October), it started as a harvest celebration, and it's about going home to eat with family. People in China sometimes call it "the Chinese Thanksgiving" when explaining it to foreigners. The meal centers on mooncakes rather than turkey.
Chinese New Year's reunion dinner, 年夜饭 (niányèfàn). The single most important family meal of the year, on the eve of the Spring Festival. If Thanksgiving is about getting everyone to one table, this is China's version, with hundreds of millions of people traveling home for it.
Winter Solstice, 冬至 (Dōngzhì). Around December 21-22, families eat dumplings in the north and sweet rice balls in the south. A quieter family-meal day that lands close to Thanksgiving on the calendar.
Qingming, 清明节. Not a feast, but it's the holiday for honoring ancestors and expressing gratitude to family who came before, which is part of what Thanksgiving means to many families.

The deeper point: gratitude in Chinese culture is expressed toward specific people, especially parents, teachers and elders, rather than on a fixed national day. 感恩 (gǎn'ēn, "to feel grateful") is a value taught in school and quoted constantly, and 孝 (xiào, filial devotion) sits at the center of family life. Our guide to Chinese culture covers both.

How to say Happy Thanksgiving in Chinese

感恩节快乐！ (Gǎn'ēnjié kuàilè!) Happy Thanksgiving! The same "X快乐" pattern as 生日快乐 (happy birthday) and 新年快乐 (happy new year).
感恩节 (Gǎn'ēnjié): Thanksgiving. 感恩 (gǎn'ēn) is "to be grateful" and 节 (jié) is "festival".
祝你感恩节快乐。 (Zhù nǐ Gǎn'ēnjié kuàilè.) Wishing you a happy Thanksgiving. The full, slightly warmer form.

Say it to a Chinese friend in the US and they'll be delighted. Say it to a friend in China and they'll know what you mean, but it'll read as "ah, it's your holiday today", the way "Happy Fourth of July" would in London.

Thanksgiving vocabulary in Chinese

If you're explaining the holiday to Chinese friends, or hosting one in Chinese:

火鸡 (huǒjī): turkey. Literally "fire chicken", which is the best thing about this list.
南瓜派 (nánguā pài): pumpkin pie. 派 is a sound-borrowing of "pie".
土豆泥 (tǔdòu ní): mashed potatoes.
蔓越莓酱 (mànyuèméi jiàng): cranberry sauce.
玉米 (yùmǐ): corn.
丰收 (fēngshōu): a good harvest.
团聚 (tuánjù): to reunite, as a family.
感谢 (gǎnxiè): to thank, to be grateful. 我很感谢你 (wǒ hěn gǎnxiè nǐ), "I'm grateful to you". See our guide to thank you in Chinese for the everyday versions.
我感恩… (wǒ gǎn'ēn…): I'm thankful for... The phrase for going around the table. 我感恩我的家人 (wǒ gǎn'ēn wǒ de jiārén), "I'm thankful for my family."
黑色星期五 (Hēisè Xīngqīwǔ): Black Friday. Known in China mostly through overseas shopping, and overshadowed by Singles' Day.

Print any of these on our free character practice sheets, or paste a sentence into the Chinese to pinyin converter to check the tones.

A Thanksgiving toast in Chinese

If you have Chinese guests at your table, this works as a short toast before the meal:

感恩节快乐！感谢大家今天来。我们一起吃饭，一起感恩。干杯！ (Gǎn'ēnjié kuàilè! Gǎnxiè dàjiā jīntiān lái. Wǒmen yìqǐ chīfàn, yìqǐ gǎn'ēn. Gānbēi!) "Happy Thanksgiving! Thank you all for coming today. Let's eat together and be thankful together. Cheers!"

Want to hear 感恩节快乐 said by a native voice before you try it on a Chinese friend? Every linked word in this post has audio, and a free Chenjin account lets you save the holiday phrases as flashcards. Sign up free to start.

FAQ

Do Chinese people celebrate Thanksgiving?

Not as a tradition. It isn't a holiday in China, and most families don't mark it. Expats, international schools, some churches, and some English programs hold Thanksgiving dinners, and that's where most Chinese people encounter it.

How do you say Happy Thanksgiving in Chinese?

感恩节快乐 (Gǎn'ēnjié kuàilè). 感恩节 is "Thanksgiving" and 快乐 is "happy".

Is there a Chinese Thanksgiving?

The Mid-Autumn Festival (中秋节) is the closest equivalent: a harvest-season family reunion with a big meal, in September or October. The Chinese New Year reunion dinner is the other big family-gathering meal of the year.

What is turkey in Chinese?

火鸡 (huǒjī), literally "fire chicken". It's rare in Chinese cooking and mostly sold in big cities around November and December for expat dinners.

Does Hong Kong or Taiwan celebrate Thanksgiving?

No. Neither has it as a public holiday, though Western restaurants in both places offer Thanksgiving menus for American residents.