The history of April Fools’ Day

Every year, april 1 is a day where jokes, pranks, and hoaxes are common place. While it is not an official holiday anywhere in the world (except in Odessa, Ukraine where the first of april is an official city holiday), most people participate and then shouting “april Fools!” But where did this funny, and sometimes irritating, practice originate?

Some think that april Fools’ Day dates back to 1582. according to The History Channel’s website, www.history.com, the French switched from the Julian calendar to the Gregorian calendar by request from the Council of Trent in 1563. In the Julian Calendar, the new year began with the spring equinox. Coincidentally, the spring equinox began around april 1.

“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 and were called ‘april fools’,” states the website.

Other historians believe that april Fools’ Day is linked to ancient Roman festivals that took place at the end of March. These festivals had people dress up in disguises and mocking their fellow citizens.

Pranks have escalated as time has passed. Some newspapers even get in on the fun reporting on outrageous fictional claims. an early Easter egg for you: there’s one such article in this edition of The Pilot News.

Here are some april Fools’ Day pranks:

• In 1992, National Public Radio ran a spot with former President Richard Nixon announcing he would be running for president again. However, it wasn’t actually Nixon, but an actor.

• In 2008, the BBC reported on a newly discovered colony of flying penguins. Of course, it wasn’t real. It was a video segment featuring Terry Jones walking with the penguins in antarctica following their flight to the amazon rainforest.

• In 1996, Taco Bell took a full-page ad in seven major newspapers announcing that they had purchased the Liberty Bell and renamed it the “Taco Liberty Bell.” When asked about the sale, the White House press secretary at the time replied that the Lincoln Memorial had also been sold and renamed the Lincolnmercury Memorial.

Regardless of how the day originated, april Fool’s Day is meant to be a day of lighthearted humor and a means to have fun. although, if you’re really gullible at heart then perhaps you stay home.