April Fool's

Many countries have the tradition of celebrating April fool’s day, a day when people play pranks and hoaxes on their friends. I am sure that many people have done it just to mess with their friends and families, and most do it for the fun of seeing someone fall on their trick, but where did this tradition come from? 

April fools have been celebrated for centuries, but we do not know its true origins since it resembles many customs and festivals from different cultures, such as the Hilaria in ancient Rome, the Holi in India, and even the Vernal Equinox, in which people thought they were being fooled by nature and the sudden changes in the weather. However, some historians believe that it may have started in France around 1564 when they changed from their Julian calendar, in which the year started on Easter, to the Georgian calendar, which starts on January 1st. People who forgot that the start of the year had changed and celebrated it during the last week of March through April were the butt of jokes and pranks, like having a paper fish placed on their backs and being called “Poisson d’avril'' to symbolize a gullible and easily caught fish, but we now know as April fools. The tradition spread through Europe during the 18th century, especially in Scotland, where they celebrated it in two days. In the first one people were sent on fake errands, and they called it “hunting the gowk” since gowk is another word for the cuckoo bird, which is a symbol for a fool. On the second day, they played pranks on each other’s backs like putting them tails or “kick me” signs.

Nowadays, people put a lot of time and effort into planning their hoaxes or pranks, and even big companies like google participate in this fun tradition. Many people record their pranks, and post their loved ones’ reactions and become viral hilarious videos for everyone to watch, or others may even try to prank as many people as they can by posting unbelievable news or hilarious facts. 

All in all, this is a fun and mostly innocent tradition, so start preparing next year’s prank!