Did you know that there is also an April Fool’s Museum?
The first of April is a reference point in time because it reminds us that summer is coming. The days have become longer, brighter and more colorful. But April Fool’s Day is also intertwined with lies. Have you ever wondered why we got into this habit of saying every April 1st lies; We thought about it, we looked for it and we share it with you.
The art of lying
Origin of custom
The custom is European and although there are various versions regarding its origin, two are the most prevalent. One maintains that the custom originated with the Celts from Northwestern Europe. So it is said that the fishing season started on the 1st of April and that the fishermen, because the season did not catch good fish, lied about how many fish they caught. So this habit also became with the passage of time, custom.
The second and most prevalent version places the birthplace of the custom in 16th century France. Until 1564 the French New Year was April 1st. In that year and during the reign of Charles IX, this changed and January 1 was now considered New Year’s Day. Those who protested this decision continued to celebrate their New Year on April 1st, while the rest sent them New Year’s gifts to mock them. This situation turned over time into a custom.
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The custom in Greece
We love April Fool’s Day in our country and this is evident from the lies we tell, which of course we must say here that for some it is a way of life.
Be that as it may, in our country the custom must have been known since the time of the Crusades. Lying, according to the folklorist Georgios Megas, is a mechanism in the attempt to ensure the success of a magical action or a difficult task, based on the notion that pseudoscience deceives and hinders harmful forces. And the April Fool’s lie is “a deliberate mockery of the harmful forces that would hinder agricultural production,” according to folklorist Dimitrios Loukatos.
In some areas of our country, it is believed that anyone who manages to deceive another person with his lies will have luck on his side, will have a good harvest in his crops, etc. On the contrary, whoever is deceived is said to have a bad luck.
Museum of … Hoaxes
Interestingly, in the USA there is even a Hoax Museum and it includes everything related to lies. At the museum or on its website (www.museumofhoaxes.com) one can see some of the best April Fool’s pranks.
In 1995, the tomb of Socrates was found near the Acropolis. The find was accompanied by remains of the hemlock. The news was even hosted in the foreign media, only for the truth to be restored a little later.
In 1998, a fast food chain in America launched a hamburger for left-handed people on April Fool’s Day, saying that the ingredients had been rotated 180 degrees.
Finally, in the same year, the physicist Marc Boslough spoke about the intention of Alabama to change by law (!) the value of the mathematical constant “π” from 3.14159 to 3.0, following the symbolism of the Bible.