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.
New
Year's Day Moves
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, amused, 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 humor."
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 realize 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 1 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.