Autumn's association with the
transition from warm to cold weather in the northern
hemisphere, and its related status as the season of
the primary harvest, has dominated its themes and popular
images. In Western cultures, personifications of Autumn
are usually pretty, well-fed females decked out with
fruits, vegetables and grains that ripen at this time.
Most ancient cultures featured autumnal celebrations
of the harvest, often the most important on their calendars.
Still extant echoes of these celebrations are found
in the late-Autumn Thanksgiving holiday of the United
States, the Jewish Sukkot holiday with its roots as
a full moon harvest festival of "tabernacles" (huts
wherein the harvest was processed and which later gained
religious significance), the many North American Indian
festivals tied to harvest of autumnally ripe foods
gathered in the wild, the Chinese Mid-Autumn or Moon
festival, and many others.
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