The first of April, usually a day when you prank someone, be it in your family or your friends. But, have you wondered how it actually came to be?

April Fools’ Day has been celebrated for several centuries by different cultures, though its exact origins remain a mystery. April Fools’ Day traditions include playing hoaxes or practical jokes on others, often yelling “April Fools!” at the end to clue in the subject of the April Fools’ Day prank. While its exact history is shrouded in mystery, the embrace of April Fools’ Day jokes by the media and major brands has ensured the unofficial holiday’s long life.

Origins of April Fools' Day 

It is often speculated that April Fools' Day dates back to 1582, when France switched from the Julian calendar to the Gregorian calendar. In the Julian calendar, like the Hindu calendar, the new year begins with the spring equinox around April 1. 

People who were slow to receive the news or failed to recognise that the start of the new year had been moved to January 1 continued to celebrate it during the last week of March through April 1; it became the subject of jokes and hoaxes and were called 'April Fools.' These pranks included having paper fish placed on their backs and being referred to as “poisson d’avril” (April fish), said to symbolize a young, easily caught fish and a gullible person.

Other possible origins: 

Hilaria

Historians have also linked April Fools’ Day to festivals such as Hilaria (Latin for joyful), which was celebrated in ancient Rome at the end of March by followers of the cult of Cybele. It involved people dressing up in disguises and mocking fellow citizens and even magistrates and was said to be inspired by the Egyptian legend of Isis, Osiris and Seth.

Vernal Equinox and April Fools'

There’s also speculation that April Fools’ Day was tied to the vernal equinox, or first day of spring in the Northern Hemisphere, when Mother Nature fooled people with changing, unpredictable weather

How it spread to UK

April Fools’ Day spread throughout Britain during the 18th century. In Scotland, the tradition became a two-day event, starting with “hunting the gowk,” in which people were sent on phony errands (gowk is a word for cuckoo bird, a symbol for fool) and followed by Tailie Day, which involved pranks played on people’s derrieres, such as pinning fake tails or “kick me” signs on them.