WELCOME TO APRIL IN THE NORTHERN HEMISPHERE
April is known for "APRIL FOOL'S DAY!"
What is April Fool's Day?
April Fools' Day is an annual Western celebration commemorated on April 1st
by playing practical jokes and spreading hoaxes.
The jokes and their victims are called April Fools.
People playing April Fool jokes often expose their prank by shouting
"April Fool" at the unfortunate victim.
April Fools' Day: Origin and History
The uncertain origins of a foolish day
by David Johnson and Shmuel Ross
April Fools' Day, sometimes called All Fools' Day, is one of the most light-hearted days of the year. Its origins are uncertain. Some see it as a celebration related to the turn of the seasons, while others believe it stems from the adoption of a new calendar.
Ancient cultures, including those of the Romans and Hindus, celebrated New Year's Day on or around April 1. It closely follows the vernal equinox (March 20th or March 21st.) In medieval times, much of Europe celebrated March 25, the Feast of Annunciation,
as the beginning of the New Year.
In 1582, Pope Gregory XIII ordered a new calendar (the Gregorian Calendar) to replace the old Julian Calendar. The new calendar called for New Year's Day to be celebrated Jan. 1. That year, France adopted the reformed calendar and shifted New Year's day to Jan. 1. According to a popular explanation, many people either refused to accept the new date, or did not learn about it, and continued to celebrate New Year's Day on April 1. Other people began to make fun of these traditionalists, sending them on "fool's errands" or trying to trick them into believing something false. Eventually, the practice spread throughout Europe.
Problems With This Explanation
There are at least two difficulties with this explanation. The first is that it doesn't fully account for the spread of April Fools' Day to other European countries.
The Gregorian calendar was not adopted by England until 1752, for example, but April Fools' Day was already well established there by that point.
The second is that we have no direct historical evidence for this explanation, only conjecture, and that conjecture appears to have been made more recently.
Constantine and Kugel
Another explanation of the origins of April Fools' Day was provided by Joseph Boskin, a professor of history at Boston University. He explained that the practice began during the reign of Constantine, when a group of court jesters and fools told the Roman emperor that they could do a better job of running the empire.
Constantine was amused and allowed a jester named Kugel to be king for one day. Kugel passed an edict calling for absurdity on that day, and the custom became an annual event.
"In a way," explained Prof. Boskin, "it was a very serious day. In those times fools were really wise men. It was the role of jesters to put things in perspective with humour."
This explanation was brought to the public's attention in an Associated Press article printed by many newspapers in 1983. There was only one catch: Boskin made the whole thing up.
It took a couple of weeks for the AP to realise
that they'd been victims of an April Fools' joke themselves.
Spring Fever
It is worth noting that many different cultures have had days of foolishness around the start of April, give or take a couple of weeks. The Romans had a festival named Hilaria on March 25, rejoicing in the resurrection of Attis. The Hindu calendar has Holi, and the Jewish calendar has Purim. Perhaps there's something about the time of year, with its turn from winter to spring, that lends itself to lighthearted celebrations.
Observances Around the World
April Fools' Day is observed throughout the Western world. Practices include sending someone on a "fool's errand," looking for things that don't exist; playing pranks;
and trying to get people to believe ridiculous things.
The French call April 1st "Poisson d'Avril", or "April Fish."
French children sometimes tape a picture of a fish on the back of their schoolmates,
crying "Poisson d'Avril" when the prank is discovered.
ABOVE TEXT COURTESY OF:
David Johnson and Shmuel Ross
It's a common part of modern culture, from America to Asia, but yet the story behind
April Fool's Day couldn't be more obscure.
The origin of this day, filled with pranks and jokes, has no direct tale in history. However, there are various theories as to why the day came into being.
One of the most popular stories takes the day back to 1582, to the time of the switch from the Julian calendar to the Gregorian calendar.
The Gregorian calendar, named after Pope Gregory XIII, marked January 1 as the New Year. People who didn't follow the new calendar, and continued to celebrate the New Year during the last week of March through April 1 were at the receiving end of jokes and pranks,
a tradition that has continued.
However, other theorists say that the first mention of the day was in
Geoffrey Chaucer's 'The Canterbury Tales'.
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April is also known for "APRIL SHOWERS" in the UK
What are April Showers?
