Significant November

The first thing that comes to mind when I think of November is Thanksgiving & Harvest Festivals. Thanksgiving is a major part of November but did you know harvest celebrations occurs around the time of the main harvest of a given region? Given the differences in climate & crops around the world, harvest festivals can be found at various times throughout the world.

Boy & Scarecrow in Autumn

Harvests festivals typically feature:
feasting, both family and public, with foods that are drawn from crops that come to maturity around the time of the festival. Ample food and freedom from the necessity to work in the fields are two central features of harvest festivals: eating, merriment, contests, music and romance are common features of harvest festivals around the world. See List of Festivals

Month Long Observances:
Now since my blog is all about feasting, celebration foods, and food holidays... the first thing I wanted to list was the month long food observances for November.

National Bread Month, Banana Pudding Lovers Month, National Pepper Month, National Georgia Pecan Month, National Raisin Bread Month, Good Nutrition Month, National Pomegranate Month in the United States, National Fun with Fondue Month (fondue recipes), National Peanut Butter Lovers' Month & National  Apple Month which is observed for 3 months.

November is Native American Heritage Month, Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Month, COPD Awareness month, National Novel Writing Month, Alzheimer's Disease Awareness Month, American Diabetes Month, Lung Cancer Awareness Month, National Homeless Youth Awareness Month, Crohn's & Ulcerative Colitis Awareness Month, the month dedicated to the Holy Souls in Purgatory in the Roman Catholic Church. November is also International Drum Month.

Movember:
It is quite common for some males in Australia, (especially in the city of Melbourne) New Zealand, and New Orleans to sport a moustache during the month of November. The custom is known as Movember (Movember being a portmanteau of the words 'Moustache' and 'November'), a fundraising event for men's health issues. In the United States, it has recently become known as No-Shave November or Noshember with growing participation from men and women alike to raise awareness of a variety of charities, and men's health issues, mainly testicular and prostate cancer.

The Great American Smokeout:
sponsored by the American Cancer Society occurs on the third Thursday of November, one week before Thanksgiving. Smokers are encouraged to quit smoking for these 24 hours, in hopes that they will quit forever. wikipedia
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Events in November

• All Saints' Day (formerly All Hallows Day), a Christian holy day, is celebrated on November 1. The day before, Halloween, is therefore "All Hallows Eve". In Sweden the All Saints' official holidays takes place on the first Saturday of November.
• In Ireland, November 1 is regarded as the first day of Winter.
• November 1 is called November Day (Lá Samhna) in Celtin tradition and is thus named in the Irish Calendar, where the month is called Mí na Samhna.
• In the Roman Catholic calendar, November 2 is All Souls Day. It is known in Mexicon as el Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead), and the whole month of November is especially dedicated to praying for the dead
• Britain and New Zealand celebrate Guy Fawkes Night, the anniversary of the failed Gunpowder Plot, on November 5.
• Remembrance Day is celebrated on November 11in the Commonwealth of Nations and various European countries (including France and Belgium) to commemorate World War 1 and other wars. It is known as Veterans' Day in the United States.
• The Leonids meteor shower reaches its peak around November 17.
• International Men's Day is commemorated on the 19 November.
• National Adoption Day – November 21
• The United States and Puerto Rico observe Thanksgiving on the fourth Thursday in November.
• For Western Christians, Advent usually begins on a Sunday during the last week of November.
• November is known as sassytassie awareness month in some parts of Western Canada

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