Tomorrow is April Fools’ Day! The day it’s acceptable to be silly and play pranks- does everyone have some good ones planned? I was curious about how the tradition got started so I did some Googling and decided to share the fun facts. Well, not facts exactly, more like theories. Even though April Fools’ Day is observed pretty much everywhere throughout the Western world, there is no definitive answer as to why April first is a day for jokes and pranks. Some believe it originates from the Roman festival Hilaria (related to the English word ‘hilarity’), which was celebrated on March 25, or maybe the Medieval Feast of Fools on December 28. The answer that kept coming up was that it began in 1582, when the Gregorian Calendar (the calendar we use now) was established. Before that, New Years’ Day was celebrated on April first. With the new calendar, the official celebration was moved to January first. Some old fashioned folks were a little slow to adopt the new practice, leading the “modern” citizens to mock them, calling them fools.

Alex Boese, director off the Museum of Hoaxes (yes, it’s real! Check it out: museumofhoaxes.com), says that theory isn’t accurate. His explanation involves a lot of other history which I will skip here in the interest of not turning this post into a lecture. Other theories say it might be a sort of hazing ritual to usher in Spring, and mention the Hindu festival of Hoti and the Jewish holiday of Purim, which occur around the same time of  year and are also about merry-making and pranks. But this is the best:  In 1983, in an interview with the Associated Press, a Boston University professor dated the tradition to the reign of Roman Emperor Constantine. A group of fools and  jesters bragged that they could run the empire better than he could. Constantine was amused and allowed them to try it one day- the first of April- an it became an annual event. Happy April Fools’ Day! This story was totally made up and the AP ran it as a real  bit of history. Well done, Professor!

So, what are some good ones? Of course there are the classics- Saran wrapping things and hiding things, dying milk, etc. I saw some funny pranks like making caramel onions to look like caramel apples, coating a bar of soap with clear nail polish, and taping the bottom of a co-worker’s mouse. Have fun, but try not to be too mean. And make sure to watch your back- you don’t know what others have planned for you!