The funny holiday has French roots
Author’s Note: Research is credited to the French Moments webpage, Travel France Online and French Together.
April Fool’s Day, celebrated every year on April 1, is basically the one day out of the year when people can play pranks on one another and have a valid excuse. That’s the name of the game, after all.
While this celebration is particularly popular in the United States, France also celebrates its own version of April Fool’s Day: Poisson D’avril, or “April’s Fish”, to translate literally.
The origins of the fish used on this day date back to early Christian traditions. The sign of the fish is still popular among Christian churches today, but it was more so during its early years. Also, with April Fool’s typically occurring during Lent, the symbolism of fish to Catholics becomes another possibility of its early popularity.
The start of April Fool’s Day dates back to the 1500s. The New Year in France at the time began on April 1. This changed in 1563 when King Charles IX issued the Edict of Roussillon, changing the date to January 1, leaving the Julian calendar to use the Gregorian one.
True to human nature, the people of France weren’t too pleased about the change and many continued to have their own celebrations on April 1, just like they had been doing. Those who complied with the calendar change more easily played pranks and sent gag gifts to those who resisted.
This tradition ties back to the theory that April’s Fish originated from Lent. When April 1 fell during the New Year, their celebrations would often involve fish. After the calendar change, false fish became the object of many of the resulting jokes.
Other theories include the joke of April being a bad month for fishing or tracing it back to early carnival traditions in France. There are multiple different theories, and no one is quite sure which one is correct, if any, but whatever it was, it made an impact that lasts today.
In France today, April 1 is much like it is in the United States. People play jokes on one another, but most don’t take any special consideration into the day.
Children get the most fun out of the fish joke. They will color paper fish and try to tape them to their friend’s backs without being noticed. This tradition isn’t for kids alone, but they are often the ones who make the most out of this holiday.
April Fool’s Day, no matter where you live, has its ties to joking and pranking others. It has a rather obscure history, but a history that still impacts the start of April today.