There are so many events that occur in the autumn which center around gratitude. While Thanksgiving is probably the event that comes to mind first, did you know there’s also a World Gratitude Day?
This day falls annually on September 21st, and is dedicated to celebrating and sharing gratitude. No matter how you express it, whether through actions like sending gratitude quotes, or by expressing it verbally to friends and family, today is a great day to spread thankfulness.
This September national day of gratitude is one that is celebrated worldwide! Keep reading to get gratitude facts, learn World Gratitude Day history, and get a list of ways to celebrate the day.
Want to get your children involved in practicing gratitude? Scroll down to get our free gratitude coloring page printable below. Even if you don’t have kids, it’s a relaxing activity you can do to celebrate this September 21 national day!
National days of the year are a fun way to celebrate foods, animals, concepts and items that you come into contact with. Be sure to check out this national days guide for more information about the history of national days, why we celebrate them.
World Gratitude Day history
The idea for World Gratitude Day came from a Thanksgiving dinner reception held by the United Nations 1963. An attendee, Mrs. Edna Fuerth Lemle asked the ambassador of Ceylon (Sri Lanka) if he and his countrymen would be interested in celebrating Thanksgiving too.
The ambassador didn’t anticipate support from his countrymen for celebrating a strictly American holiday. This caused Mrs. Edna Fuerth Lemle to aspire to create a holiday of gratitude which could celebrated by everyone in the world, together.
She proposed World Gratitude Day as a new holiday with a focus of uniting the world through gratitude on a new date, September 21.
Her idea was well received with international support. Each supporter pledged to hold a gratitude gathering the following year in their respective countries, and from there, World Gratitude Day was born.
September 21 was chosen for the date of World Gratitude Day because it is also the date of the autumnal equinox. Though the date of the autumnal equinox changes every year (falling anywhere between September 21 and 24), the date of World Gratitude Day is always on September 21.
Equinoxes are the only times in the year when there are roughly the same amount of hours in the day as there are the night (12 hours of day, and 12 hours of night). This equality of day and night was important to Mrs. Edna Fuerth Lemle, as she wanted all people to feel equal and united in gratitude, and in celebrating World Gratitude Day.
AND WHEREAS, September 21 is a special day. It is an equinox: one of the two times of the year when the sun passes over the equator and night and day are everywhere of equal length and everyone is equal under the sun;
THEREFORE let us proclaim World Gratitude Day, a holiday for all peoples, a day of meditation for all religions, a day of celebration for all humanity, united by knowledge of simultaneously shared emotion, a day when triumph of the spirit can make a world community.
-Quoted from The Proclamation of World Gratitude Day, published in The Seeker’s Mind by Sri Chinmoy
World Gratitude Day and Sri Chinmoy
Every year, The World Gratitude Day Board gives an award to a person who embodies the spirit of World Gratitude Day. In 1977, the board’s president, Mrs. Edna Fuerth Lemle presented Sri Chinmoy the World Gratitude Day award.
Sri Chinmoy was an Indian spiritual leader and meditation teacher. He was also the founder of The United Nations Meditation Group. He frequently wrote about gratitude, and even composed a song for World Gratitude Day.
There is some discrepancy as to whether Sri Chinmoy or Mrs. Edna Fuerth Lemle founded this September 21 national day. While noted as a participant in World Gratitude Day, Sri Chinmoy’s website gives credit to Mrs. Edna Fuerth Lemle as the founder of the day.
Facts about gratitude
Brush up on your knowledge of this September 21 national day with these gratitude facts. Some may surprise you!
- November is celebrated as National Gratitude Month. Each month has many monthly observances, but this one is particularly fitting!
- The word “gratitude” comes from the latin word gratus which literally translates to mean “thankful”.
- There have been studies (1, 2, 3) which indicate a positive correlation between expressing gratitude and overall well-being and happiness.
- It is considered polite to send thank-you cards after receiving gifts.
- Some common events to after which it is appropriate to send thank-you notes are birthdays, for Christmas, baby showers, graduations, and weddings.
If you’re interested in learning more about more expressions of love and gratitude through sending notes, be sure to check out our post on the first Christmas card. You can also learn how Valentine’s Day cards became a symbol of the holiday.
How to celebrate World Gratitude Day
Would you like to celebrate this September 21 national day in a special way? Try one of these ideas.
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- Print the gratitude coloring page from this link, or by using the print function at the bottom of this post, and color it in! You can even print several of them, and have a gratitude coloring pages party with your friends or family.
- Practice gratitude by writing down what you’re thankful for.
- Get a gratitude journal, so that you’ll have a specific, sacred, place to express your gratitude.
- Share your gratitude with others. Phone a friend, or meet up with them in person and steer the conversation towards gratitude. Share some things you’re thankful for, and ask them some things they’re grateful for as well.
- Spend time meditating on what you’re grateful for. You could even set up an outdoor garden meditation space for this experience.
- Write a letter to a person you’re particularly grateful for. Send it to them in the mail!
- Get a gratitude tattoo – or if you’re looking for something less permanent, try using a temporary tattoo of something you’re grateful for.
- Practice doing acts of kindness to give back to others. Some examples would be making a home cooked meal for a friend or loved one, or donating books you’re no longer in need of.
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Thanksgiving isn't the only holiday this fall centered around gratitude. Head to Always the Holidays to learn all about World Gratitude Day, which falls on September 21st! 🙏 💗 #Gratitude #Thankful Share on XMore September 21 national days
Did you enjoy learning about World Gratitude Day? Well you’re in luck, September 21 is host to more than just one national day!
Here is a complete list of all the September 21 national days:
- World Gratitude Day
- National Chai Day
- National Pecan Cookie Day
- National New York Day
- National Day of Civic Hacking
- Batman Day
- Pause the World Day
- World Alzheimer’s Day
More national days in September
There are close to 2000 national days in the year and over 150 of them are celebrated in September. Some are nationally recognized days, while others are international days or world days.
To see all of the special days this month, have a look at this post to discover more about the national days in September and the September national months.
If you enjoy doing puzzles, be sure to also check out the September word search printable which feature many of the national days hidden in a word find puzzle.
Is food your thing? Each day of the month has a food or drink associated with it, too. You’ll find all the September food holidays here.
Be sure to also check out these national days this month:
- National Hot Cross Bun Day – Get a recipe for this tasty Easter bread, and learn the history of this cinnamon flavored appetizer which has its own national day on September 11th.
- National Chocolate Milk Day – Ever wondered who invented chocolate milk? Visit the post to find the answer and a quick and easy recipe for homemade chocolate milk.
- National Johnny Appleseed Day – Learn about Johnny Appleseed, the man behind this apple themed national day, celebrate in both the spring and fall.
- National White Chocolate Day – Celebrate this chocolate themed national day with a list of white chocolate recipes!
- Labor Day – Get our free Labor Day word search and Labor Day word scramble with answers to celebrate this holiday.
Pin this post on World Gratitude Day for later
Would you like a reminder of this post for this September 21 national day? Just pin this image to one of your trivia boards on Pinterest so that you can easily find it later.
You can also watch our video about the national days of September on YouTube.
Now that you've learned the World Gratitude Day history, and read a list of gratitude facts, it's time to celebrate! Honor this September 21 national day by printing out the gratitude coloring page below. You can even print several copies and have a gratitude coloring pages party with your friend and family! As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.Celebrate World Gratitude Day with a Free Gratitude Coloring Page
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About the author
Since graduating from The University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Jess has been living and working in Los Angeles, CA. She is a freelance writer, specializing in content related to fashion, food and drink and film industry topics. Find out more about Jess here.