:April Fools' Day

Although many theories have been proposed throughout the years, the origin of April Fools' Day is not exactly known.

A disputed association between 1 April and foolishness is in Geoffrey Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales (1392).{{Cite magazine |last=Ashley Ross |date=31 March 2016 |title=No Kidding: We Have No Idea How April Fools' Day Started |url=https://time.com/4276140/april-fools-day-history/ |magazine=Time |access-date=24 March 2018 |archive-date=28 March 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180328141206/http://time.com/4276140/april-fools-day-history/ |url-status=live }} In the "Nun's Priest's Tale", a vain cock, Chauntecleer, is tricked by a fox "Since March began, full thirty days and two,"{{Cite web |title=The Canterbury Tales (unsourced)/The Nun's Priest's Tale - Wikisource, the free online library |url=https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/The_Canterbury_Tales/The_Nun%27s_Priest%27s_Tale |access-date=2025-04-01 |website=en.wikisource.org |language=en}}{{Cite book |url=http://www.umm.maine.edu/faculty/necastro/chaucer/translation/ct/21npt.html |chapter=The Nun's Priest's Tale |date=21 September 2007 |title=Chaucer in the Twenty-First Century |publisher=University of Maine at Machias |access-date=20 September 2008 |archive-date=12 May 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110512203020/http://www.umm.maine.edu/faculty/necastro/chaucer/translation/ct/21npt.html |url-status=dead }} i.e. the 32nd day from 1 March, which is 1 April.{{Cite news |title=April Fool's Day 2021: how Chaucer, calendar confusion and Hilaria led to jokes and fake news |work=The Telegraph |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2021/04/01/april-fools-day-2021-pranks-jokes-history-what-facts/ |url-status=live |url-access=subscription |access-date=24 September 2021 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220111/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2021/04/01/april-fools-day-2021-pranks-jokes-history-what-facts/ |archive-date=11 January 2022}}{{cbignore}} However, it is not clear that Chaucer was referencing 1 April since the text of the "Nun's Priest's Tale" also states that the story takes place on the day when the sun is "in the sign of Taurus had y-rune Twenty degrees and one," which would not be 1 April. Modern scholars believe that there is a copying error in the extant manuscripts and that Chaucer actually wrote, "Syn March was gon".{{Cite book |last=Travis |first=Peter W. |title=Constructions of Time in the Late Middle Ages |date=1997 |publisher=Northwestern University Press |isbn=0-8101-1541-7 |editor-last=Poster |editor-first=Carol |location=Evanston, IL |pages=16–17 |chapter=Chaucer's Chronographiae, the Confounded Reader, and Fourteenth-Century Measurements of Time |editor-last2=Utz |editor-first2=Richard J. |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LaOwCaPBJk8C&pg=PA16 |access-date=21 September 2020 |archive-date=28 March 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230328144303/https://books.google.com/books?id=LaOwCaPBJk8C&pg=PA16 |url-status=live }} If so, the passage would have originally meant 32 days after March ended, i.e. 2 May.{{Cite web |last=Boese |first=Alex |date=2008 |title=The Origin of April Fool's Day |url=http://hoaxes.org/af_database/permalink/origin_of_april_fools_day/ |website=Museum of Hoaxes |access-date=23 March 2015 |archive-date=29 March 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150329043848/http://hoaxes.org/af_database/permalink/origin_of_april_fools_day |url-status=live }}

In 1508, French poet Eloy d'Amerval referred to a poisson d'avril (April fool, literally "April's fish"), possibly the first reference to the celebration in France.{{Cite book |last=Eloy d'Amerval |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=53xTGw1T2P8C |chapter=Le Livre de la Deablerie |title=De maint homme et de mainte fame, poisson d'Apvril vien tost a moy. |publisher=Librairie Droz |year=1991 |page=70 |isbn=9782600026727 |access-date=17 November 2016 |archive-date=28 March 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230328144237/https://books.google.com/books?id=53xTGw1T2P8C |url-status=live }} Some historians suggest that April Fools' originated because, in the Middle Ages, New Year's Day was celebrated on 25 March in most European towns,{{Cite book |last=Groves |first=Marsha |title=Manners and Customs in the Middle Ages |year=2005 |page=27}} with a holiday that in some areas of France, specifically, ended on 1 April,{{Cite encyclopedia |title=April Fools' Day |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/30821/April-Fools-Day |access-date=4 April 2013 |archive-date=7 March 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130307032703/http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/30821/April-Fools-Day |url-status=live }}{{Cite book |last=Santino |first=Jack |url=https://archive.org/details/allaroundyear00jack/page/97 |title=All around the year: holidays and celebrations in American life |publisher=University of Illinois Press |year=1972 |isbn=978-0-252-06516-3 |page=[https://archive.org/details/allaroundyear00jack/page/97 97]}} and those who celebrated New Year's Day on 1 January made fun of those who celebrated on other dates by the invention of April Fools' Day.{{Cite web |last=Winick |first=Stephen |date=28 March 2016 |title=April Fools: The Roots of an International Tradition {{!}} Folklife Today |url=https://blogs.loc.gov/folklife/2016/03/april-fools/ |access-date=12 March 2022 |website=blogs.loc.gov |archive-date=20 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220320145049/https://blogs.loc.gov/folklife/2016/03/april-fools/ |url-status=live }} The use of 1 January as New Year's Day became common in France only in the mid-16th century, and that date was not adopted officially until 1564, by the Edict of Roussillon, as called for during the Council of Trent in 1563.{{Cite web |date=30 March 2017 |title=April Fools' Day |url=https://www.history.com/topics/holidays/april-fools-day |website=History.com |access-date=2 April 2021 |archive-date=2 April 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210402004319/https://www.history.com/topics/holidays/april-fools-day |url-status=live }} However, there are issues with this theory because there is an unambiguous reference to April Fools' Day in a 1561 poem by Flemish poet Eduard de Dene of a nobleman who sent his servant on foolish errands on 1 April, predating the change. April Fools' Day was also an established tradition in Great Britain before 1 January was established as the start of the calendar year.{{Cite news |last=Kaplan |first=Sarah |date=2016-03-31 |title=A brief, totally sincere history of April Fools' Day |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2016/03/31/a-brief-totally-sincere-history-of-april-fools-day/ |access-date=2025-04-01 |newspaper=The Washington Post |language=en-US |issn=0190-8286}}{{Cite web |title=The Origin of April Fool's Day |url=http://hoaxes.org/af_database/permalink/origin_of_april_fools_day |access-date=12 March 2022 |website=Museum of Hoaxes |language=en |archive-date=4 April 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220404072247/http://hoaxes.org/af_database/permalink/origin_of_april_fools_day |url-status=live}}

In 1686, John Aubrey referred to the celebration as "Fooles holy day", the first British reference. On 1 April 1698, several people were tricked into going to the Tower of London to "see the Lions washed".

Although no biblical scholar or historian is known to have mentioned a relationship, some have expressed the belief that the origins of April Fools' Day may go back to the Genesis flood narrative. In The Complete Compendium of Universal Knowledge of 1895, writer William Ralston Balch wrote:

{{blockquote|All Fools' Day is traced through every country of Europe to the Hindoos. The "Public Advertiser" for 13 April 1789, contains the following paragraph: {{blockquote||style=font-size:inherit;|text="Humorous Jewish Origin of the Custom of Making Fools on the First of April.{{mdash}}This is said to have begun from the mistake of Noah in sending the Dove out of the Ark before the water had abated, on the first day of the month among the Hebrews, which answers to the 1st of April; and to perpetuate the memory of this deliverance it was thought proper, who ever forgot so remarkable a circumstance, to punish them by sending them upon some sleeveless errand similar to that ineffectual message upon which the bird was sent by the Patriarch. The custom appears to be of great antiquity, and to have been derived by the Romans from some of the Eastern nations."}}|William Ralston Balch (1895){{Cite book |last=Balch |first=William Ralston |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=X5sRAAAAIAAJ |title=The Complete Compendium of Universal Knowledge: Containing All You Want to Know of Language, History, Government, Business and Social Forms, and a Thousand and One Other Useful Subjects |date=1895 |publisher=Elliott Publishing Company |language=en |page=497}}}}

The Hebrew calendar is lunisolar, and so no specific day always correlates with 1 April in the Julian or Gregorian calendars.

{{more citations needed section|date=April 2023}}

In Armenian culture, an April Fool prank is revealed by saying {{lang|am|ապրիլ մեկ!}} (april mek), which means 1 April.{{Citation needed|date=May 2025}}

In Germany, an April Fool prank is sometimes later revealed by shouting "April, April!" at the recipient, who becomes the "April fool".{{Citation needed|date=July 2022}}

=== Iran ===

{{Cleanup|reason=Bad grammar and unnecessary code sections|date=April 2025}}

There is a historical misattribution of April Fools by the public, to Iranian ancient traditions (specifically regarding Farvardin 13th on the Persian Calendar). It is called "Dorugh-e Sizdah" (lie of Thirteen).{{Cite web |date=29 March 2018 |title=For Your Pranking Inspiration: April Fools' Day Traditions From 9 Countries |url=https://www.afar.com/magazine/for-your-pranking-inspiration-april-fools-day-traditions-from-9-countries |access-date=27 January 2024 |website=AFAR Media |language=en}}

It appears, that this term was imported from the «April Fools» from western cultures into the Iranian modern society;

and mistakenly attributed to their ancient national traditions, due to a date proximity between April Fools and Farvardin 13th

(also known as Sizdah Be-dar, which plays a major role in Iranian new year holidays and is of vital cultural importance to them).

The ancient Persians perceived the act of "lie" as a mortal sin, and lying was considered a capital crime;[https://brill.com/view/title/19582 book: «The Persian Empire: A Corpus of Sources from the Achaemenid Period»][https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.5325/jpersiastudieduc.1.1.0001 Lying and Deception in Ancient Persia]

as truthfulness was highly valued in their society, following the directives of Zoroastrianism on this matter.[https://www.academia.edu/35412312/Truth_and_Falsehood_in_Zoroastrianism Truth and Falsehood in Zoroastrianism][https://www.researchgate.net/publication/327123456_The_Role_of_Truth_in_Zoroastrianism The Role of Truth in Zoroastrianism]

The Persians believed that deceit could lead to rebellion and chaos, making honesty a fundamental principle in their culture.

Herodotus highlights that Persians considered lying "the most disgraceful thing in the world", implying that the Greeks, by comparison, were more prone to dishonesty.[https://www.worldhistory.org/article/149/herodotus-on-the-customs-of-the-persians/ Herodotus: On The Customs of the Persians]

In Ireland, it was traditional to entrust the victim with an "important letter" to be given to a named person. That person would read the letter, then ask the victim to take it to someone else, and so on. The letter when opened contained the words "send the fool further".{{Cite web |last=Haggerty |first=Bridget |title=April Fool's Day |url=http://www.irishcultureandcustoms.com/ACalend/AprilFools.html |access-date=3 April 2014 |website=Irish Culture and Customs |archive-date=4 April 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140404135340/http://www.irishcultureandcustoms.com/ACalend/AprilFools.html |url-status=live }}

In Italy, France, Belgium and French-speaking areas of Switzerland and Canada, the 1 April tradition is often known as "April fish" (poisson d'avril in French, aprilvis in Dutch or pesce d'aprile in Italian). Possible pranks include attempting to attach a paper fish to the victim's back without being noticed. This fish feature is prominently present on many late 19th- to early 20th-century French April Fools' Day postcards. Many newspapers also spread a false story on April Fish Day, and a subtle reference to a fish is sometimes given as a clue to the fact that it is an April Fools' prank.{{citation needed|date=March 2017}} Bakeries, pâtisseries and chocolatiers in France sell chocolate fishes in their shop windows on the day.{{cite web|url=https://www.patriciasandsauthor.com/2017/03/april-1st-chocolate-fish-france-no-joke/|title=April 1st and Chocolate Fish in France ~ no joke!|last=Sands|first=Patricia|date=31 March 2017|accessdate=1 April 2023}}

In Lebanon, an April Fool prank is revealed by saying {{lang|ar|كذبة أول نيسان}} (which translates to "First of April Lie") to the recipient.{{Citation needed|date=May 2025}}

Danes, Finns, Icelanders, Norwegians and Swedes celebrate April Fools' Day (aprilsnar in Danish; aprillipäivä in Finnish; aprilsnarr in Norwegian; aprilskämt in Swedish). Most news media outlets will publish exactly one false story on 1 April; for newspapers this will typically be a first-page article but not the top headline. In Sweden, April Fools' jokes are revealed with the phrase, "April, April, din dumma sill, jag kan lura dig vart jag vill!" This can be translated to, "April, April, you silly fool, I can trick you wherever I want!" They can also be revealed with the phrase 'Maj maj måne, jag kan lura dig till Skåne!' (May, may moon, I can trick you into Scania!). The tradition of April Fools' Day dates back to the 17th century. There were also April Fools' letters, with one of the earliest known examples dating back to 1742. This letter discussed an earlier church service.{{cite web | url=https://www.nordiskamuseet.se/utforska/hogtider/forsta-april/ | title=Första april | Varför skämtar vi? }}{{cite web | url=https://lektionsbanken.se/lektioner/april-april-din-dumma-sill/ | title=April, april, din dumma sill }}{{Cite news |last=Bora |first=Kukil |date=12 March 2012 |title=April Fool's Day: 8 Interesting Things And Hoaxes You Didn't Know |work=International Business Times |url=https://www.ibtimes.com/april-fools-day-8-interesting-things-hoaxes-you-didnt-know-432502 |access-date=27 May 2013 |archive-date=1 April 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220401021750/https://www.ibtimes.com/april-fools-day-8-interesting-things-hoaxes-you-didnt-know-432502 |url-status=live }}

In Poland, prima Aprilis ("First April" in Latin) as a day of pranks is a centuries-long tradition. It is a day when many pranks are played: sometimes very sophisticated hoaxes are prepared by people, media (which often cooperate to make the "information" more credible), and even public institutions. Serious activities are usually avoided;{{Citation needed|date=January 2025}} every word said on 1 April could be untrue. The conviction for this is so strong that the Polish anti-Turkish alliance with Leopold I, signed on 1 April 1683, was backdated to 31 March.{{Cite web |date=3 April 2012 |title=Origin of April Fools' Day |url=http://tribune.com.pk/story/359171/origin-of-april-fools-day/ |access-date=27 May 2013 |website=The Express Tribune |archive-date=3 February 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140203101328/http://tribune.com.pk/story/359171/origin-of-april-fools-day/ |url-status=live }} However, for some in Poland, prima Aprilis ends at noon of 1 April and prima Aprilis jokes after that hour are considered inappropriate and not classy.{{Citation needed|date=January 2025}}

In many Spanish-speaking countries (and the Philippines), "Día de los Santos Inocentes" (Holy Innocents Day) is a festivity that is very similar to April Fools' Day, but is celebrated in late December (27, 28 or 29 December depending on the location).{{citation needed|date=August 2018}} Despite this, in Galicia April Fools' Day is also traditional, as accounted by Ramón Otero Pedrayo, as "Día dos enganos", and the tradition is embedded in a traditional saying about this day being the day when donkeys go where they must not go.{{Cite web |date=1 April 2021 |title=O 1 de abril... os burros van onde non teñen que ir! |url=https://www.nosdiario.gal/articulo/social/1abril-burros-van-onde-non-tenen-ir/20210401133234118767.html |access-date=1 April 2023 |website=www.nosdiario.gal |language=gl }}

Turkey also has a custom of April Fools' pranks.{{Cite web |date=1 April 2022 |title=1 Nisan şakaları 2022! |url=https://www.haberturk.com/1-nisan-sakalari-2022-en-guzel-ilginc-ve-komik-1-nisan-sakalari-ile-guldurun-eglendirin-3394631 |access-date=2 April 2022 |website=www.haberturk.com |language=tr |archive-date=2 April 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220402084044/https://www.haberturk.com/1-nisan-sakalari-2022-en-guzel-ilginc-ve-komik-1-nisan-sakalari-ile-guldurun-eglendirin-3394631 |url-status=live }} Pranks and jokes are usually verbal and are revealed by shouting "Bir Nisan! / Nisan Bir!" (1 April!).{{Citation needed|date=May 2025}}

April Fools' Day is widely celebrated in Odesa and has the special local name Humorina (in Ukrainian Гуморина, Humorina{{--)}}. This holiday arose in 1973.{{Cite web |last=Sinelnikova |first=Alexandra |date=1 April 2019 |title=Humorina time |url=https://www.odessitclub.org/index.php/novosti-i-publikatsii/2700-yumorina |website=Odessitclub |access-date=24 December 2019 |archive-date=24 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191224204145/https://www.odessitclub.org/index.php/novosti-i-publikatsii/2700-yumorina |url-status=live}} An April Fool prank is revealed by saying "Перше квітня — брехня всесвітня" ("Pershe kvitnya — brekhnya vsesvitnya{{-"}}, translating as "First of April — worldwide lies") to the recipient. The festival includes a large parade in the city centre, free concerts, street fairs and performances. Festival participants dress up in a variety of costumes and walk around the city fooling around and pranking passersby. One of the traditions on April Fools' Day is to dress up the main city monument in funny clothes. Humorina even has its own logo—a cheerful sailor in a lifebelt—whose author was the artist Arkady Tsykun.{{Cite web |year=2019 |title=Humorina festival in Odessa |url=https://leodessa.com/april-fools-day/ |access-date=24 December 2019 |archive-date=24 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191224204134/https://leodessa.com/april-fools-day/ |url-status=live }} During the festival, special souvenirs bearing the logo are printed and sold. Since 2010, April Fools' Day celebrations include an International Clown Festival, and both celebrated as one. In 2019, the festival was dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the Odesa Film Studio and all events were held with an emphasis on cinema.{{Cite web |date=1 April 2019 |title=Одеса святкувала Гуморину: великий фоторепортаж |trans-title=Odesa celebrates Humorine. Picture story |url=https://www.omr.gov.ua/ru/news/215189 |url-status=dead |access-date=24 December 2019 |language=uk |archive-date=24 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191224204134/https://www.omr.gov.ua/ru/news/215189/ }}

File:Big ben closeup.jpg announced Big Ben's clock face was going digital and whoever got in touch first could win the clock hands.]]

In the UK, an April Fool prank is sometimes later revealed by shouting "April fool!" at the recipient, who becomes the "April fool". A study in the 1950s, by folklorists Iona and Peter Opie, found that in the UK, and in countries whose traditions derived from the UK, this continues to be the practice, with the custom ceasing at noon, after which time it is no longer acceptable to play pranks.{{Cite book |last= Great Britain: Home Office |title=Life in the United Kingdom: a guide for new residents |date=2017 |publisher=Stationery Office |isbn=9780113413409 |edition=2014 |language=en}} Thus a person playing a prank after midday is considered the "April fool" themselves.{{Cite news |last=Archie Bland |date=1 April 2009 |title=The Big Question: How did the April Fool's Day tradition begin, and what are the best tricks? |work=The Independent |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/this-britain/the-big-question-ow-did-the-april-fools-day-tradition-begin-and-what-are-the-best-tricks-1658944.html |access-date=4 April 2013 |archive-date=19 October 2017 |archive-url=https://wayback.archive-it.org/all/20171019231417/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/this-britain/the-big-question-how-did-the-april-fools-day-tradition-begin-and-what-are-the-best-tricks-1658944.html |url-status=live }}

In Scotland, April Fools' Day was originally called "Huntigowk Day".{{Cite book |last=Opie |first=Iona & Peter |title=The Lore and Language of Schoolchildren |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=1960 |isbn=0-940322-69-2 |pages=245–46}} The name is a corruption of "hunt the gowk", gowk being Scots for a cuckoo or a foolish person; alternative terms in Gaelic would be Là na Gocaireachd, "gowking day", or Là Ruith na Cuthaige, "the day of running the cuckoo". The traditional prank is to ask someone to deliver a sealed message that supposedly requests help of some sort. In fact, the message reads "Dinna laugh, dinna smile. Hunt the gowk another mile." The recipient, upon reading it, will explain they can only help if they first contact another person, and they send the victim to this next person with an identical message, with the same result.

In England a "fool" is known by a few different names around the country, including "noodle", "gob", "gobby", or "noddy".{{Citation needed|date=May 2025}}

Since 1986, New York City has hosted the Annual April Fools' Day Parade, founded by artist and activist Joey Skaggs.{{Cite book |last=Boese |first=Alex |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=q5PaAAAAMAAJ |title=The Museum of Hoaxes: A Collection of Pranks, Stunts, Deceptions, and Other Wonderful Stories Contrived for the Public from the Middle Ages to the New Millennium |date=2002 |publisher=Dutton |isbn=978-0-525-94678-6 |language=en}} The parade features satirical floats and performances that lampoon political figures, celebrities, and current events. Participants often dress in costumes and carry props to embody the year's most notable "fools." The event begins at Fifth Avenue and 59th Street and proceeds to Washington Square Park, where a "King (or Queen) of Fools" is crowned. The parade has become a platform for public commentary and satire, drawing attention to societal issues through humor and performance art.{{Cite web |date=2025-03-31 |title=NYC's Outrageous April Fools' Day Parade Turns 40 |url=https://www.untappedcities.com/nyc-april-fools-day-parade/ |access-date=2025-04-14 |website=Untapped New York |language=en}}

{{Main|List of April Fools' Day jokes}}

One common prank is to carefully remove the cream from an Oreo, then replacing it with white toothpaste, and there are many similar pranks that replace an object (usually food) with another object that looks like the object but tastes different such as replacing sugar with salt or vanilla frosting with sour cream. As well as people playing pranks on one another on April Fools' Day, elaborate pranks have appeared on radio and television stations, newspapers, and websites, and have been performed by large corporations. In one famous prank in 1957, the BBC broadcast a film in their Panorama current affairs series purporting to show Swiss farmers picking freshly-grown spaghetti, in what they called the Swiss spaghetti harvest. The BBC was soon flooded with requests to purchase a spaghetti plant, forcing them to declare the film a hoax on the news the next day.{{Cite web |title=Swiss Spaghetti Harvest |url=http://www.museumofhoaxes.com/hoax/archive/permalink/the_swiss_spaghetti_harvest |access-date=1 November 2013 |archive-date=3 November 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131103195818/http://www.museumofhoaxes.com/hoax/archive/permalink/the_swiss_spaghetti_harvest/ |url-status=live }}

With the advent of the Internet and readily available global news services, April Fools' pranks can catch and embarrass a wider audience than ever before.{{Cite news |last=Moran |first=Rob |date=4 April 2014 |title=NPR's Brilliant April Fools' Day Prank Was Sadly Lost On Much Of The Internet |url=http://junkee.com/nprs-brilliant-april-fools-day-prank-was-sadly-lost-on-much-of-the-internet/32077 |access-date=6 April 2014 |archive-date=6 April 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140406025100/http://junkee.com/nprs-brilliant-april-fools-day-prank-was-sadly-lost-on-much-of-the-internet/32077 |url-status=live }}

28 December, the equivalent day in Spain{{cite journal |title=Today is Spanish April Fools' – Dia de los Santos Inocentes!|journal=Euroweeklynews|date=28 December 2023 |url=https://euroweeklynews.com/2023/12/28/today-is-spanish-april-fools-dia-de-los-santos-inocentes/ |access-date=30 December 2023}} and Hispanic America,{{cite journal|title=Bogotá Christmas: Key holiday dates|journal=The Bogota Post |date=6 December 2016 |url=https://thebogotapost.com/bogota-christmas-key-holiday-dates/19111/ |access-date=30 December 2023}}{{cite journal|title=Today is "Día de los Inocentes" in Mexico! Watch out for pranks|journal=The Yucatan Times|date=28 December 2023 |url=https://www.theyucatantimes.com/2023/12/today-is-dia-de-los-inocentes-in-mexico-watch-out-for-pranks/ |access-date=30 December 2023 |last1=Times |first1=Yucatan }} is also the Christian day of celebration of the Day of the Holy Innocents. The Christian celebration is a religious holiday in its own right, but the tradition of pranks is not, though the latter is observed yearly. In some regions of Hispanic America, after a prank is played, the cry is made, "Inocente palomita que te dejaste engañar" ("You innocent little dove that let yourself be fooled!"; not to be confused with another meaning of palomita, which means "popcorn" in some dialects).{{cite news |title=Día de los Inocentes: ¡Inocente palomita, no te dejes engañar! Lo que tienes que saber sobre esta tradición|journal=Informador|url=https://www.informador.mx/estilo/Inocente-palomita-no-te-dejes-enganar-20211228-0038.html |access-date=30 December 2023}}

In Argentina, the prankster says, "¡Que la inocencia te valga!" which roughly translates as advice to not be as gullible as the victim of the prank. In Spain, it is common to say just "¡Inocente!" (which in Spanish can mean "innocent" or "gullible").{{Cite web |date=1 April 2003 |title=Avui és el Dia d'Enganyar a Menorca |trans-title=Today is Fooling Day on Minorca |url=http://www.vilaweb.cat/noticia/670807/20030401/noticia.html |access-date=4 April 2013 |publisher=Vilaweb |language=ca |archive-date=2 May 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130502035023/http://www.vilaweb.cat/noticia/670807/20030401/noticia.html |url-status=live }}

In Colombia, the term is used as "Pásala por Inocentes", which roughly means: "Let it go; today it's Innocent's Day."{{cite journal |title=Día de los Inocentes: en qué consiste la tragedia santa y por qué se celebra cada 28 de diciembre|journal=Infobae|date=28 December 2023 |url=https://www.infobae.com/colombia/2023/12/28/dia-de-los-inocentes-en-que-consiste-la-tragedia-santa-y-por-que-se-celebra-cada-28-de-diciembre/ |access-date=30 December 2023}}

In Belgium, this day is also known as the "Day of the Innocent Children" or "Day of the Stupid Children". It used to be a day where parents, grandparents, and teachers would fool the children in some way. But the celebration of this day has died out in favour of April Fools' Day.{{cite journal |title=Today is the "Day of the Innocent Children", but what exactly is being celebrated on that day?|journal=Ground|date=28 December 2023 |url=https://ground.news/article/today-is-the-day-of-the-innocent-children-but-what-exactly-is-being-celebrated-on-that-day |access-date=30 December 2023}}

Nevertheless, on the Spanish island of Menorca, Dia d'enganyar ("Fooling day") is celebrated on 1 April because Menorca was a British possession during part of the 18th century. In Brazil, the "Dia da mentira" ("Day of the lie") is also celebrated on 1 April due to Portuguese influence.

In many English-speaking countries, mainly Britain, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa, it is a custom to say "pinch and a punch for the first of the month" or an alternative, typically by children. The victim might respond with "a flick and a kick for being so quick", and the attacker might reply with "a punch in the eye for being so sly".{{Cite web |title=pinch and a punch for the first of the month - Wiktionary |url=https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/pinch_and_a_punch_for_the_first_of_the_month |access-date=11 May 2020 |website=en.wiktionary.org |archive-date=23 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201223151200/https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/pinch_and_a_punch_for_the_first_of_the_month |url-status=live }}

Another custom in Britain and North America is to say "rabbit rabbit" upon waking on the first day of a month, for good luck.{{Cite web |last=Willingham |first=AJ |date=July 2019 |title=Rabbit rabbit! Why people say this good-luck phrase at the beginning of the month |url=https://www.cnn.com/2019/07/01/us/rabbit-rabbit-first-day-of-the-month-good-luck-trnd/index.html |access-date=23 March 2021 |website=CNN |archive-date=9 October 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201009213821/https://www.cnn.com/2019/07/01/us/rabbit-rabbit-first-day-of-the-month-good-luck-trnd/index.html |url-status=live }}

Similar events include Poisson d'avril (France) and in the US the International day of the joke event which is assigned the first Sunday in May.{{Cite news |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/53241083 |title=BBC News: International joke day |newspaper=BBC Newsround |date=July 2020 |access-date=1 May 2022 |archive-date=1 May 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220501065330/https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/53241083 |url-status=live }}

The practice of April Fool pranks and hoaxes is controversial.{{Cite web |last=Doll |first=Jen |date=1 April 2013 |title=Is April Fools' Day the Worst Holiday? |url=https://news.yahoo.com/april-fools-day-worst-holiday-175852795.html |access-date=1 April 2014 |publisher=Yahoo! News |archive-date=7 April 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140407102625/http://news.yahoo.com/april-fools-day-worst-holiday-175852795.html |url-status=live }} The mixed opinions of critics are epitomised in the reception to the 1957 BBC "spaghetti-tree hoax", in reference to which newspapers were split over whether it was "a great joke or a terrible hoax on the public".{{Cite news |title=Is this the best April Fool's ever? |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-26723188 |access-date=1 April 2014 |archive-date=1 April 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140401070100/http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-26723188 |url-status=live }}

April Fools' can be good for one's health because it encourages "jokes, hoaxes ... pranks, [and] belly laughs", and brings all the benefits of laughter.{{Cite web |date=1 April 2013 |title=Why April Fools' Day is Good For Your Health – Health News and Views |url=http://news.health.com/2013/04/01/why-april-fools-day-is-good-for-your-health/ |access-date=1 April 2014 |publisher=News.Health.com |archive-date=4 April 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130404100533/http://news.health.com/2013/04/01/why-april-fools-day-is-good-for-your-health/ |url-status=dead }} Many "best of" April Fools' Day lists showcase the best examples of how the day is celebrated.{{Cite web |title=April Fools: the best online pranks |date=April 2014 |url=http://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/2014/04/01/april-fools-best-online-pranks |access-date=1 April 2014 |publisher=Sbs.com.au |archive-date=1 April 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140401154234/http://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/2014/04/01/april-fools-best-online-pranks |url-status=live }} Various April Fools' campaigns have been praised for their innovation, creativity, writing, and general effort.{{Cite web |date=1 April 2019 |title=April Fool's Day: A Global Practice |url=https://aljazirahnews.com/april-fools-day-a-global-practice/ |access-date=8 April 2019 |website=aljazirah news |language=en-US |archive-date=22 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191222144250/https://aljazirahnews.com/april-fools-day-a-global-practice/ |url-status=live }}

Negative views describe April Fools' hoaxes as "creepy and manipulative", "rude" and "a little bit nasty", as well as based on Schadenfreude and deceit. When genuine news or a genuinely important order or warning is issued on April Fools' Day, there is risk that it will be misinterpreted as a joke and ignored – for example, when Google, known to play elaborate April Fools' Day hoaxes, announced the launch of Gmail with 1-gigabyte inboxes in 2004, an era when competing webmail services offered 4-megabytes or less, many dismissed it as a joke outright.{{Cite news |first1=Lisa |last1=Baertlein |date=1 April 2004 |title=Google: 'Gmail' no joke, but lunar jobs are |publisher=USA Today |url=http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/tech/news/2004-04-01-gmail-no-joke_x.htm |access-date=1 August 2014 |archive-date=14 October 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141014174358/http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/tech/news/2004-04-01-gmail-no-joke_x.htm |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |last=Horton |first=Alex |title=When Gmail Was First Announced, People Thought It Was an April Fools' Joke |url=https://www.sciencealert.com/when-gmail-was-first-announced-people-thought-it-was-an-april-fools-joke |access-date=8 November 2020 |website=ScienceAlert |date=April 2019 |language=en-gb |archive-date=7 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201107235143/https://www.sciencealert.com/when-gmail-was-first-announced-people-thought-it-was-an-april-fools-joke |url-status=live }} On the other hand, sometimes stories intended as jokes are taken seriously.

Either way, there can be adverse effects, such as confusion,{{Cite web |last=Woods |first=Michael |date=2 April 2013 |title=Brazeau tweets his resignation on April Fool's Day, causing confusion |url=https://globalnews.ca/news/445856/brazeau-tweets-his-resignation-on-april-fools-day-causing-confusion/ |access-date=1 April 2014 |publisher=Globalnews.ca |archive-date=7 April 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140407063951/http://globalnews.ca/news/445856/brazeau-tweets-his-resignation-on-april-fools-day-causing-confusion/ |url-status=live }} misinformation, waste of resources (especially when the hoax concerns people in danger) and even legal or commercial consequences.{{Cite news |last=Hasham |first=Nicole |date=3 April 2013 |title=ASIC to look into prank Metgasco email from schoolgirl Kudra Falla-Ricketts |work=The Sydney Morning Herald |url=http://www.smh.com.au/business/markets/asic-to-look-into-prank-metgasco-email-from-schoolgirl-kudra-fallaricketts-20140402-35yy7.html |access-date=3 April 2014 |archive-date=3 April 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140403052043/http://www.smh.com.au/business/markets/asic-to-look-into-prank-metgasco-email-from-schoolgirl-kudra-fallaricketts-20140402-35yy7.html |url-status=live }}{{Cite news |date=3 April 2014 |title=Justin Bieber's Believe album hijacked by DJ Paz |work=The Sydney Morning Herald |url=http://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/music/justin-biebers-believe-album-hijacked-by-dj-paz-20140403-35zy2.html |access-date=3 April 2014 |archive-date=3 April 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140403051945/http://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/music/justin-biebers-believe-album-hijacked-by-dj-paz-20140403-35zy2.html |url-status=live }}

In March 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, various organizations and people warned not to observe April Fools' Day, as a mark of respect due to the large amount of tragic deaths that COVID-19 had caused up to that point, the wish to provide truthful information to counter any misinformation about the virus, and to pre-empt any attempts to incorporate the virus into potential pranks.{{Cite web |last=Willingham |first=A. J. |date=1 April 2020 |title=April Fools' Day pranks are not funny right now. Don't do them. |url=https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/01/us/april-fools-coronavirus-prank-trnd/index.html |website=CNN |access-date=29 March 2022 |archive-date=29 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220329224523/https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/01/us/april-fools-coronavirus-prank-trnd/index.html |url-status=live }} For example, Google decided not to do its traditional April Fools' jokes that year.{{Cite web |last=Gartenberg |first=Chaim |date=27 March 2020 |title=Google cancels its infamous April Fools' jokes this year |url=https://www.theverge.com/2020/3/27/21197260/google-cancels-april-fools-jokes-2020-coronavirus-covid19-pranks |website=The Verge |access-date=29 March 2022 |archive-date=29 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220329224523/https://www.theverge.com/2020/3/27/21197260/google-cancels-april-fools-jokes-2020-coronavirus-covid19-pranks |url-status=live }} Because the pandemic was still ongoing a year later in 2021, Google also decided not to do pranks that year.{{Cite web |last=Price |first=Rob |title=Google is canceling its famous April Fools' Day pranks for the 2nd year in a row |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/google-cancels-april-fools-day-pranks-coronavirus-2021-3 |website=Business Insider |access-date=29 March 2022 |archive-date=29 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220329224523/https://www.businessinsider.com/google-cancels-april-fools-day-pranks-coronavirus-2021-3 |url-status=live }}

In Thailand, the police warned ahead of April Fools' in 2021 that posting or sharing fake news online could lead to maximum of five years imprisonment.{{Cite news |date=1 April 2021 |title=Phuket News: Police warn of prison terms for April Fool's stories |language=en |work=The Phuket News |url=https://www.thephuketnews.com/police-warn-of-prison-terms-for-april-fool-stories-79526.php |access-date=1 April 2021 |archive-date=1 April 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210401003441/https://www.thephuketnews.com/police-warn-of-prison-terms-for-april-fool-stories-79526.php |url-status=live }}

Other examples of genuine news on 1 April mistaken as a hoax include:

• 1 April 1946: Warnings about the Aleutian Island earthquake's tsunami that killed 165 people in Hawaii and Alaska.{{Cite web |title=1946 Aleutian Tsunami |url=http://www.usc.edu/dept/tsunamis/alaska/1946/webpages/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160112224842/http://www.usc.edu/dept/tsunamis/alaska/1946/webpages/ |archive-date=12 January 2016 |access-date=29 March 2022 |website=www.usc.edu}}
• 1 April 1984: News that the singer Marvin Gaye was shot and killed the day before his 45th birthday by his father Marvin Gay Sr. (sic) on 1 April 1984. Several people close to Gaye such as fellow singers Smokey Robinson and Jermaine Jackson, brother of Michael Jackson didn't believe the news initially and had to call other people who knew Gaye to confirm the news, Al Sharpton during his interview for the VH1 documentary VH1's Most Shocking Moments in Rock & Roll referenced the coincidence of the date when he said that Gaye's death came "like a sick, sad joke to all of us."American Masters: What's Going On – The Life and Death of Marvin Gaye, PBS, 2008VH1's Most Shocking Moments in Rock & Roll, VH1, 1998{{sfn|Ritz|1991|p=334}}
• 1 April 1995: News that the singer Selena was shot and killed by the former president of her fan club Yolanda Saldívar on 31 March 1995. When radio station KEDA broke the news on 31 March 1995, many people accused the staff of lying because the next day was April Fools' Day.{{sfn|Patoski|1996|p=199}}
• 1 April 2005: News that the comedian Mitch Hedberg had died on 29 March 2005.{{Cite news |last=Rusnak |first=Jeff |date=2 April 2005 |title=MITCH HEDBERG, 37, COMEDIAN, FILMMAKER |work=South Florida Sun-Sentinel |url=https://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/fl-xpm-2005-04-02-0504010855-story.html |url-status=live |access-date=29 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630144030/https://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/fl-xpm-2005-04-02-0504010855-story.html |archive-date=30 June 2021}}
• 1 April 2005: Announcement about Powerpuff Girls Z, by Aniplex, Cartoon Network and Toei Animation. The TV show was an anime adaption of the cartoon The Powerpuff Girls and the idea that a cartoon would get turned into an anime was considered very outlandish in 2005 as this was the first time it happened.{{Cite web |title=Powerpuff Girls Z Debut |url=http://ppgcom.gooside.com/ppgz/index2.html |access-date=30 September 2017 |archive-date=19 October 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171019231545/http://ppgcom.gooside.com/ppgz/index2.html |url-status=live }}
• 1 April 2009: Announcement that the long running soap opera Guiding Light was being cancelled. The date was so heavily associated with jokes and pranks that even some of the cast and crew members did not believe the news when it was announced by CBS, the TV network that aired the show.{{Cite web |date=15 September 2009 |title=Guiding Light, Snuffed: Scene From A Dying Daytime Drama |website=The New York Observer |url=https://observer.com/2009/09/guiding-light-snuffed-scene-from-a-dying-daytime-drama/ |access-date=30 March 2022 |archive-date=28 June 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220628092204/https://observer.com/2009/09/guiding-light-snuffed-scene-from-a-dying-daytime-drama/ |url-status=live }}
• 1 April 2011: Isaiah Thomas declared for the NBA draft. Basketball players in the NBA are usually taller than average as height gives advantage to playing basketball, and Thomas is comparatively short.{{Cite web |last=Gould |first=Andrew |title=Isaiah Thomas Laughs at Doubters on April Fools' Day |url=https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2701247-isaiah-thomas-laughs-at-doubters-on-april-fools-day |access-date=8 November 2020 |website=Bleacher Report |language=en |archive-date=14 April 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210414043541/https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2701247-isaiah-thomas-laughs-at-doubters-on-april-fools-day |url-status=live }}

Books, films, telemovies and television episodes have used April Fools' Day as their title or inspiration. Examples include Bryce Courtenay's novel April Fool's Day (1993), whose title refers to the day Courtenay's son died. The 1990s sitcom Roseanne featured an episode titled "April Fools' Day". This turned out to be intentionally misleading, as the episode was instead about Tax Day in the United States, occurring on 15 April. The 19th episode of the first season of SpongeBob SquarePants, "Fools In April", also centers around a plot that takes place on April Fools' Day. Video game developer Mojang Studios have released April Fool's Day updates for Minecraft: Java Edition over the years.{{cite web | url=https://screenrant.com/minecraft-april-fools-day-joke-prank-update-2022/ | title=Every Minecraft April Fools Joke (Including 2023) | website=Screen Rant | date=7 May 2022 }}{{cite web |author-last1=Kabra |author-first1=Akshat |date=2023-04-01 |title=Minecraft reveals the Vote Update for April Fool's Day |url=https://www.sportskeeda.com/minecraft/news-minecraft-reveals-the-vote-update-april-fool-s-day |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230401171737/https://www.sportskeeda.com/minecraft/news-minecraft-reveals-the-vote-update-april-fool-s-day |archive-date=2023-04-01 |website=Sportskeeda}}

{{Portal|Comedy}}

• Feast of Fools, a similar medieval festival
• List of April Fools' Day jokes
• List of practical joke topics

{{Reflist|30em}}

• {{Cite book |last=Patoski |first=Joe Nick |url=https://archive.org/details/selenacomolaflor00pato_0 |title=Selena: Como La Flor |publisher=Little Brown and Company |year=1996 |isbn=978-0-316-69378-3 |location=Boston}}
• {{Cite book |last=Ritz |first=David |title=Divided Soul: The Life of Marvin Gaye |publisher=Da Capo Press |year=1991 |isbn=0-306-81191-X |location=Cambridge, Massachusetts}}

• {{Cite book |last=Wainwright |first=Martin |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PTLgAAAAMAAJ |title=The Guardian Book of April Fool's Day |publisher=Aurum |year=2007 |isbn=978-1-84513-155-5}}
• {{Cite journal |last=Dundes |first=Alan |title=April Fool and April Fish: Towards a Theory of Ritual Pranks |journal=Etnofoor |year=1988 |volume=1 |pages=4–14 |jstor=25757645 |author-link=Alan Dundes |issue=1}}

{{Sister project links|v=no|b=no|wikt=April Fools' Day|commons=category:April Fools' Day}}

{{Library resources box}}

• {{Cite web |title=Wikipedia is victim of an onslaught of April Fool's jokes |date=2005 |publisher=Wikinews |url=https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/Wikipedia_victim_of_onslaught_of_April_Fool%27s_jokes}}
• {{Cite EB1911|wstitle=April-Fools' Day|volume=2|page=231}}
• {{Cite web |title=Top 100 April Fools' Day hoaxes of all time |url=http://hoaxes.org/aprilfool/ |publisher=Museum of Hoaxes}}
• [https://2time.info/countdowns/holidays/april-fools-day/ April Fool's Day Countdown Timer.] How many days to next April Fool's holiday.
• {{Cite web |title=April Fools' Day On The Web|url=http://aprilfoolsdayontheweb.com/}}: List of all known April Fools' Day Jokes websites from 2004 until present

{{Authority control}}

Category:April observances

Category:Unofficial observances