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1 April: what is celebrated today
There are days that seem made to cast doubt on the obvious: what we read, what we believe, even the date on which a year “begins”. 1 April brings together celebrations that play with this boundary between joke and truth, ritual and custom, office and street. Today the calendar invites us to laugh—yes—but also to look more closely: at others, at traditions and at the way stories circulate.
April Fools’ Day or International Prank Day
1 April has become a day devoted to human gullibility. Impossible news, extravagant announcements and false stories circulate naturally, testing our ability to doubt. Although pranks are now mainly spread on the internet, the tradition is much older and is linked to historical changes in how time was measured and the new year celebrated in Europe.
Over the centuries, the date became established as a day of collective mischief. However, its most valuable meaning lies not in deceiving, but in sharing the game. A prank works when it prompts laughter and complicity, not when it humiliates or confuses cruelly. In times of misinformation, 1 April also recalls the importance of checking what we believe to be true.
International Fun at Work Day
Humour does not stay outside the office. Since the end of the 20th century, 1 April has also asserted fun in the workplace as a legitimate tool for improving wellbeing and productivity. This celebration defends a simple but powerful idea: working seriously does not mean doing so rigidly.
Introducing small playful gestures —creative activities, shared activities, less formal breaks— can reduce stress and foster collaboration. Fun, understood as a positive and respectful climate, does not diminish professionalism: on the contrary, it humanises the spaces where we spend a large part of our lives.
Kha b’Nissan: the Assyrian New Year
For Assyrian communities, 1 April marks a true beginning. Kha b’Nissan, also known as Akitu, is the Assyrian New Year and celebrates the arrival of spring as a symbol of renewal and cultural continuity. It is celebrated both in the historic territories of Mesopotamia and in the diaspora, through parades, music, dances and community gatherings.
Its roots go back to ancient Mesopotamian traditions linking the change of season with the fertility of the land and the rebirth of life. Beyond the calendar, this festival fulfils an essential role: keeping collective memory alive and strengthening a people’s identity through time.
Passover
April also opens with one of the Jewish calendar’s most significant celebrations. Passover, the Jewish Easter, commemorates the liberation of the Hebrew people from slavery in Egypt. It is a festival of variable date that begins in the middle of the month of Nisan and lasts several days, combining ritual, narrative and family life.
At the Seder dinner, every food has a meaning and every gesture conveys memory. Unleavened bread recalls the haste of the escape; bitter herbs evoke past suffering. Passover is not merely a historical memory: it is an annual reflection on freedom, responsibility and the need to pass on the stories that give meaning to a community.