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domingo, abril 29

April Fools' Day: how did the tradition originate and what are the best pranks?

(An article from Emily Allen written at Daily telegraph on 14th March 2016)

What happens on April Fools’ Day? 
April Fools’ is a light-hearted day of national prankery and is celebrated every year on April 1. Millions of people in homes, schools and workplaces spend the morning of April 1 playing practical jokes on each other in the hope of a quick laugh (and to avoid doing work).

The media love to play the joker and many publications, including the Daily Telegraph, relish the
once-a-year chance to publish a fake news story to wind up their readers.

‘Victims’ of April Fools’ jokes are known as April Fools, but only until midday. Then the person
playing the joke is considered the April Fool.

Sadly the day, which has been popular throughout the Western world since the 19th century, is not a
public holiday.

But why would you want a day off when there’s a legitimate chance to play a joke on your boss?


Where did the day originate?
The origins of the day are uncertain. Most people think it stems from Pope Gregory XIII. In 1582, he wanted his new Gregorian calendar to replace the old Julian Calendar.

This called for New Year’s Day to be celebrated on January 1 instead of the end of March. But some people apparently didn't get the memo and continued to celebrate New Year’s Day on April 1. These poor folk were made fun of and were sent on ‘fools errands’ for a laugh.

However, others think April Fools' Day stems from the age when people used to hold spring festivals
marking the end of winter with 'mayhem and misrule', according to the Museum of Hoaxes.

The Ancient Roman festival of Hilaria celebrated the resurrection of the god Attis and involved
dressing in disguise.Many other cultures have held renewal festivals in Europe around April 1 and there are references to these dating back to the 1500s.

What is clear though is that by the 1700s, the day of hilarity was well entrenched in Britain, and now
April 1 is officially the most amusing day of the year.

Fools around the world
April Fools' is celebrated in many countries all over the world, including Poland, Scotland and even
Iran. The French call the day Poisson d’Avril, or ‘April Fish’. French children will often tape a picture of a fish on to the back of their friends and wait for them to realise.

This is also the case in Italy.

In Scotland, April Fools’ Day used to be called Huntigowk Day – gowk being Scots for a cuckoo or
a foolish person.

Traditionally people were sent on a foolish errand to deliver a sealed message reading ‘Dinna laugh,
dinna smile. Hunt the gowk another mile’.

In Iran pranks have been played on April 1 since 536 BC. The day is the 13th day of the Persian
New Year, and is called Sizdah Bedar.

Families and friends will mark the new season by spending the afternoon outside with food, games
and jokes.

India’s Holi festival is celebrated on March 31. On this day people play jokes, throw coloured dust
and wear face and body paint to officially welcome spring.

Meanwhile, in Portugal people throw flour over each other.

Danes, Finns, Icelanders, Norwegians and Swedes also celebrate April Fools’ Day, heralding
warmer weather after the long winter.

April Fools' Day on stage and screen
Although no reference is made to April Fools' Day in any of Shakespeare's works, many of his plays
feature a fool, clown or jester character. Puck and Bottom in A Midsummer Night's Dream, The Fool in King Lear and Feste in Twelfth Night are perhaps the most notable examples.

The fool was usually a clever peasant or commoner who used his wits to outdo people of higher
social standing.The character often appears after dramatic or horrific scenes, bringing a bit of light or comic relief to the stage. The fool was also used to make complex ideas easier for the audience to understand.

The 1986 horror film April Fool's Day featured a group of college students staying at a friend's
remote island mansion. They begin to fall victim to an unseen murderer over the April Fools' Day weekend. A remake of the film was made in 2008.

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