There is a lot of history surrounding holidays, such as Christmas being associated with the birth of Jesus Christ among people of the religious belief of Christianity, or thanksgiving going as far back as 1600s where pilgrims ate a feast with the Native Americans. With all this, what about April fools? Is there a history with this unspoken holiday?

At first, it may seem like a gag created by kids to have an excuse to play pranks among each other without the consequences, but there is actually a lot more to it. Although, the true origin of the mundane holiday is unknown it does resemble a few things. It resembles festivals going as far back as Ancient Rome and the Hilaría. Which was held on March 25, as well as a Hindu spring festival named Holi, which celebrated on the full-moon day of Phalguna (February-March). Some believe it traces back to France, mainly with the Edict of Roussillon who was promulgated in August of 1564. In this year, Charles IX decreed during that the new year would no longer begin on Easter Day. He did this due to it being common throughout Christendom, he then declared the new year as January 1. This was because Easter was a lunar and easily movable date. A few others believe it goes with the vernal equinox March 21 due to people being fooled by the sudden changes in weather.

In France, April fools is called “poisson d’avril” which stands for “April fish”. Which means young fish as they are easy to be caught. It is common among French children to pin a paper fish on the backs of their unsuspecting friends. It is called Gowkie Day or Hunt the Gowk in Scotland. The Gowk or cuckoo is a symbol of who/what is the fool. The day following is named “Tailie Day” and signs reading “kick me” would be pinned to the back of friends’ backs. Some places newspapers and other medias take part through false headlines or new stories.

Many pranks have been made for centuries, even comics and posters made in the late 1800s and early 1900s. The simple holiday has been celebrated throughout the world and will continue to do so for years to come.