Unlike most of the other non-foolish
holidays, the history of April Fool's Day, sometimes called All Fool's Day, is
not totally clear. It is not like Halloween, where despite an interesting
history, most people just put on Halloween costumes, get candy, and leave it at
that. There really wasn't a "first April Fool's Day" that can be pinpointed
on the calendar. Some believe it sort of evolved simultaneously in several
cultures at the same time, from celebrations involving the first day of spring.
The closest point in time that can be
identified as the beginning of this tradition was in 1582, in France. Prior to
that year, the new year was celebrated for eight days, beginning on March 25.
The celebration culminated on April 1. With the reform of the calendar under
Charles IX, the Gregorian Calendar was introduced, and New Year's Day was moved
to January 1.
However, communications being what
they were in the days when news traveled by foot, many people did not receive
the news for several years. Others, the more obstinate crowd, refused to accept
the new calendar and continued to celebrate the new year on April 1. These
backward folk were labeled as "fools" by the general populace. They
were subject to some ridicule, and were often sent on "fools errands"
or were made the butt of other practical jokes.
This harassment evolved, over time,
into a tradition of prank-playing on the first day of April. The tradition
eventually spread to England and Scotland in the eighteenth century. It was
later introduced to the American colonies of both the English and French. April
Fool's Day thus developed into an international fun fest, so to speak, with
different nationalities specializing in their own brand of humor at the expense
of their friends and families.
In Scotland, for example, April Fool's
Day is actually celebrated for two days. The second day is devoted to pranks
involving the posterior region of the body. It is called Taily Day. The origin
of the "kick me" sign can be traced to this observance.
In France and several other European
countries, April 1 is often referred to as April Fish. The prank is to stick a
paper fish on the back of another person without being noticed.
Mexico's counterpart of April Fool's
Day is actually observed on December 28. Originally, the day was a sad
remembrance of the slaughter of the innocent children by King Herod. It
eventually evolved into a lighter commemoration involving pranks and trickery.
Pranks performed on April Fool's Day
range from the simple, (such as saying, "Your shoe's untied, or I
accidentally stepped on your glasses!), to the elaborate. Setting a roommate's
alarm clock back an hour is a common gag. Whatever the prank, the trickster
usually ends it by yelling to his victim, "April Fool!"
Practical jokes are a common practice
on April Fool's Day. Sometimes, elaborate practical jokes are played on friends
or relatives that last the entire day. The news media even gets involved. For
instance, a British short film once shown on April Fool's Day was a fairly
detailed documentary about "spaghetti farmers" and how they harvest
their crop from the spaghetti trees.
April Fool's Day is a
"for-fun-only" observance. Nobody is expected to buy gifts or to take
their "significant other" out to eat in a fancy restaurant. Nobody
gets off work or school. It's simply a fun little holiday, but a holiday on
which one must remain forever vigilant, for he may be the next April Fool!
You Know What
They Say About Fools...
It's better to keep your mouth shut
and be thought a fool than to open it and leave no doubt. --Mark Twain
However big the fool, there is always
a bigger fool to admire him. -- Nicolas Boileau-Despréaux
[Politicians] never open their mouths without subtracting from the sum of human knowledge. -- Thomas Reed
He who lives without folly isn't so wise as he thinks. -- François, Duc de La Rochefoucauld
The ultimate result of shielding men from the effects of folly, is to fill the world with fools. -- Herbert Spencer
Sometimes one likes foolish people for their folly, better than wise people for their wisdom. -- Elizabeth Gaskell
Looking foolish does the spirit good. -- John Updike
Let us be thankful for the fools. But for them the rest of us could not succeed. -- Mark Twain
A fool sees not the same tree that a wise man sees. -- William Blake
A fool must now and then be right by chance. -- Cowper
It is better to be a fool than to be dead. -- Stevenson
The first of April is the day we remember what we are the other 364 days of the year. -- Mark Twain
