Origin of April Fools Day
In this illustration from the 19th century,
these three boys show the April Fools’ Day tradition alive and well,
celebrating the spirit of the holiday by harassing an elderly gentleman. Corbis
Images
April 1 or All Fools Day, has long been
celebrated as a day to celebrate, well, foolishness to be exact. More
specifically, April Fools’ Day is about making other people look stupid with
practical jokes.
Where Did April Fools’ Day come from
The most common and earliest April Fools’ celebrations goes
like this:
In 1582, Pope Gregory XIII issued a papal bull decreeing a new standard calendar for Christian Europe (Click here for calendar article) that would take his name and centuries later become the
standard internationally in the 21st century.
Prior to the 15th century, Europe’s nations and city-states
operated using the Julian calendar. The Gregorian calendar moved the date of
the New Year from April 1 to January 1, among other changes. Catholic
monarchies were naturally its earliest adopters, though Protestant nations later
followed suit.
Given the nature of the reform, both in terms of
communicating such a fundamental change to a large population and dealing with
critics of the new calendar, some Europeans continued to celebrate the new year
between March 25 and April 1.
April fools were those who still celebrated
the holiday in the spring, and were the subject of pranks and ridicule by those
who observed the New Year months ago.
Other
occasions resembling April Fools’ Day preceded the more contemporary
incarnation by centuries.
Ancient Romans held a festival known as Hilaria. The
occasion was used to celebrate the resurrection of the god Attis.
 |
| Attis |
Hilaria, of course,
resembles the word hilarity in English. The modern equivalent of Hilaria is
called Roman Laughing Day.
Hi·lar·ia
noun \hə̇ˈla(a)rēə, hīˈ-\
: an imperial
Roman festival of the cult of Cybele held on the vernal equinox to celebrate
the renewal of life on earth in the spring symbolized by the resurrection of
the god Attis. |
| Cybele |
15 March. "The Reed Entered". Its exact significance is uncertain (the
reeds may refer to the river bank where Attis was exposed as a child and
rescued by Cybele). A nine-day period of abstinence from bread, pomegranates,
quinces, pork, fish, and probably wine began. Only milk was permitted as a
drink.
22 March. "The Tree Entered" (Arbor intrat). A pine tree from a
wood sacred to Cybele is felled following the sacrifice of a ram at its roots.
The tree was carried in procession through the city as if in a funeral to the
Temple of Cybele on the Palatine Hill.
23 March. A day of mourning.
24 March. "The Day of Blood" (Sanguis). Frenzied rites including
scourging and whipping. Castration rituals would take place on this day. The
tree is symbolically buried.
25 March. "The Day of Joy" (Hilaria) celebrating the
resurrection of Attis. This was the hilaria proper (as opposed to the
mournful tone of the previous days).
26 March. A day of rest.
27 March. "The Washing" (Lavatio). Added by Marcus Aurelius.
Other non-Western cultures have their own
traditions similar to April Fools’ Day as well.
In India, a colorful
Hindi festival called Holi, frequently entices non-Hindi participants to join
in, often is celebrated by people playing jokes and throwing colorful dyes on
each other.
 |
| Hindu Holi Festival |
Persian culture also has a holiday with a similar theme,
known as Sizdahbedar , Festival of Nature. On this day, which typically
coincides with April Fools’ Day itself, Iranians play pranks on one another.
 |
| Sizdahbedar-Festival of Nature |
References
This
article incorporates text from a publication now in the public
domain: Smith, William, ed. (1854–1857).
"Hilaria". Dictionary of Greek and Roman
Geography. London: John Murray.
This article incorporates
text from a publication now in the public
domain: Chambers,
Ephraim, ed. (1728). "hilaria".
Cyclopaedia,
or an Universal Dictionary of Arts and Sciences 1 (first ed.).
James and John Knapton, et al. p. 250.
Mary
Beard, John North, Simon Price. Religions of Rome.
Cambridge University Press. 1998. ISBN
0-521-45646-0. pp 133–134.
Robin
Osborne. Studies
in Ancient Greek and Roman Society. Cambridge University Press. 2004. ISBN
0-521-83769-3. p 365.
"Hilaria". Oxford English Dictionary.
Oxford University Press. 2nd ed. 1989. 