A Brief History of April Fools' Day and Links to Great Jokes Played

The lighthearted day when you are given implied permission to pull practical jokes on others occurs each year on April 1st, otherwise known as April Fools' Day. The history of this time-honored tradition is uncertain, but one theory seems to be that it began around 1582, in France.

King Charles IX reconstructed the calendar at that time and introduced the Gregorian Calendar. Along with this alteration, the first day of the year was changed to January 1st, from the April 1st date that it had previously been.

Many stayed with the April date, however; and those who chose to were called "April Fools" for doing so. The so-called "fools" were then subject to many practical jokes played on them, which became known as "poisson d'avril" (the April Fish).

poisson d'avril card

As years went by, the association with the date continued to include frivolous antics and those traditions spread to other parts of the world.

It is believed that the French and English introduced the tradition to America. It seems that each corner of the world "observes" the day with their own unique flare and there is never a shortage of examples of April Fools' Day jokes played.

• This site keeps a log of successful AFD jokes that will keep you busy checking out for hours.

• As does the Museum of Hoaxes, beginning with the 1957 Swiss Spaghetti Harvest.

Happy April Fools' Day! 

Photo by Mykl Roventine