April Fools’ Day is called Prima Aprillis in Poland. It is celebrated on April 1st. Once in Poland the government changed their decision to arrange the anti-Turkish alliance with Leopid I that was signed on April 1st, 1693 was pre-poned to 31st of March because they though on the Fools’ Day things would take a different turn. There is a popular rhyme: “Prima Aprilis – uważaj, bo się pomylisz!” – which means, “April Fools’ Day, be careful, you can be wrong.”
The traditions and the customs are followed as same as other countries. It is a day full of jokes and fun for the people of Poland. They plan for huge hoax stories to fool the media, public institutions and government by fooling them until the situation gets more serious. People love to play pranks on their friends, relatives and also on strangers.
Though it may go by different names in other countries, the pranking and joking nature of the holiday remains at the core of April Fool’s Day celebrations. Here are a few examples of how the silliest day of the year is celebrated around the world:
The Scottish celebrate what they call “Hunt-the-Gowk” over the course of two days. In Scotland, a gowk is a cuckoo or a fool. The first day involves sending people on phony errands, and the second day includes pulling pranks, such as pinning “kick me” signs on people’s rears.
In Portugal, the holiday is celebrated on the Sunday and Monday prior to Lent. The most common prank is throwing flour on friends’ faces.
The 13th day of the Persian New Year, known as Sizdeh Bedar, usually falls on April 1 or April 2. In Iran, the holiday is celebrated by having picnics and playing tricks on friends. It is said that pranks have been pulled on this day since as early as 536 BC, which makes it perhaps the oldest known day for jokes. Green vegetables are thrown away after the Sizdeh Bedar picnic, signifing getting rid of any potential illnesses or bad luck for the coming year.
In most regions in England, pranks are only allowed to be pulled in the morning. The victims of these pranks are called “noodles.”
Do następnego razu… (Till next time…)
