April Fools’ Day, celebrated on April 1 each year, has been celebrated for several centuries by different cultures, though its exact origins remain a mystery. Some historians speculate that April Fools’ Day dates back to 1582, when France switched from the Julian calendar to the Gregorian calendar, as called for by the Council of Trent in 1563. People who were slow to get the news or failed to recognize that the start of the new year had moved to January 1 and continued to celebrate it during the last week of March through April 1 became the butt of jokes and hoaxes. These pranks included having paper fish placed on their backs and being referred to as poisson d’avril (April fish), said to symbolize a young, “easily hooked” fish and a gullible person.
Generally, nowadays, April Fools’ Day traditions include playing hoaxes or practical jokes on others, often yelling “April Fools!” at the end to clue in the subject of the April Fools’ Day prank. Classic April Fools’ jokes include caramel covered onions or fake doggy doo-doo in inconvenient places. Businesses launch impractical or unbelievable products for the fun of the day and newspapers print incredible headlines catching readers off guard.
Are you curious to discover any of the most noted fooleries in history?
• In 1950, The Progress in Clearfield Pennsylvania published a picture of a UFO flying over the town. Claiming to have “scooped” larger publications of the first-ever published picture of a real flying saucer.
• Times of London reported in 1992 that Belgium was negotiating to join Holland.
• In 1993, a radio station in San Diego, California told listeners that the Space Shuttle had been diverted to a small, local airport. Over 1,000 people drove to the airport to see it arrive in the middle of morning rush hour. There was no shuttle flying that day
• In 2000, the Triple J breakfast show hosted by Adam Spencer announced that the International Olympic Committee had stripped Sydney of its right to host the 2000 Summer Olympics, including a phone conversation with then-New South Wales Premier Bob Carr.
• In 2008, the BBC presented a documentary on flying penguins.
April fools across the world
April Fools’ Day is celebrated all around the world. Because who doesn’t like playing a friendly prank on their loved ones? Here are some examples:
In France, the fooled party is called the poisson d’avril, which literally means “April fish.” France’s customary prank involves pinning a paper fish to a friend’s back.
In Scotland, April Fools’ Day was traditionally called Gowk Day, gowk being another name for the cuckoo, a common symbol of the fool. Pranks continued into April 2, Tailie Day, when celebrants traditionally attach a “paper tail” (or a “kick me” sign) to their friends’ backs.
Brazil celebrates April 1 as Dia da Mentira, or “Lie Day,” in which people try to fool their loved ones. Always for comedic effect, of course.
