April Fools' Day
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April Fools' Day or April Fool's Day or All Fools' Day is an annual custom on April 1st consisting of practical jokes and hoaxes. Jokesters often expose their actions by shouting "April Fools!" at the recipient. Mass media can be involved in these pranks, which may be revealed as such the following day. The day is not a public holiday in any country except Odessa, Ukraine, where the first of April is an official city holiday. The custom of setting aside a day for playing harmless pranks upon one's neighbour has been relatively common in the world historically.
Origins[edit | edit source]
People have set aside a special day for playing jokes for centuries. The ancient Romans had a holiday called Hilaria.
In the Middle Ages, New Year's Day was celebrated on March 25 in most European towns. In some areas of France, New Year's was a week-long holiday ending on April 1. Some people think that April Fools' started because those who celebrated on January 1 made fun of those who celebrated on other dates.
Media outlets[edit | edit source]
Sometimes a large media corporation would broadcast or publish a fake news story on April 1. For example, in 1957 the BBC broadcast a story about spaghetti trees. According to the story, people in Switzerland grew spaghetti on trees. Later, many people called the BBC asking how they could get a spaghetti tree.