Video on French culture

Salut tout le monde ! Me voilà de retour après une longue absence, avec cette vidéo sur LE PREMIER AVRIL EN FRANCE, April First in France. I’m back right on time, for April Fools’ Day !

French traditions on April 1st, le Premier Avril

In France, we don’t actually call it LA JOURNÉE DES IDIOTS but it is definitely a day to be silly ! LE PREMIER AVRIL, EN FRANCE,

ON FAIT DES BLAGUES, DES PLAISANTERIES = We make jokes.

ON PIÈGE SES AMIS. = We trick friends

ON RACONTE DES MENSONGES, DES BOBARDS. = We tell lies, fake stories.

ON FAIT DES CANULARS. = We do pranks

BREF, ON S’AMUSE COMME DES PETITS FOUS ! = We have a lot of fun!

…SOUVENT AUX DÉPENS DES AUTRES, DE SES PROCHES EN GENERAL ! =often at others’ expense, one’s close friends and family in general. Even TV presenters do pranks. 

ET LES ENFANTS DESSINENT DE JOLIS POISSONS QU’ILS VOUS COLLENT DISCRETEMENT DANS LE DOS ! ET ILS S’EXCLAMENT : « POISSON D’AVRIL » LORSQUE LEUR VICTIME DÉCOUVRE LE POT AUX ROSES !

History of April First in France

MAIS D’OÙ VIENT DONC L’IDÉE D’UN POISSON ? ET POURQUOI DONC LE PREMIER AVRIL ?

Mystery… Nobody actually knows for sure where these traditions come from. Y ou can find all sorts of explanations. But here are some interesting clues I’ve discovered…

To start with, April 1st used to be the first day of the calendar year. People would wish each other a happy new year that day, and exchange DES CARTES DE VOEUX …until 1564, when King Charles decided to move the beginning of the year to January 1st.  

But the French being the rebels that they are, they continued to exchange cards on April 1st in France. And those cards featured: LES MASCOTTES DU PREMIER AVRIL, J’AI NOMMÉ LES POISSONS.

A wide variety of vintage April First cards exist and they represent all sorts of fish in all sorts of situations. They are super cute and funny. A lot of them happen to be romantic, because, for a while, the tradition was for lovers to send sweet notes, with a fish or two, to the object of their desire. 

LES HOMMES ENVOYAIENT DES DÉCLARATIONS D’AMOUR.

By the way, did you know that a type of fish,LE MAQUEREAU, French for mackerel, is slang for PIMP.  Not so romantic, yep. Told you, fish in all sorts of situations….

Why a fish on April 1st in France?

But why fish and not… horses or butterflies or toads ?! Again, nobody knows for sure, but…

April 1st happens to be around the time fish reproduce, so usually there was no fishing allowed that day. Or was it that April 1st was the day fishing could actually resume ? Well, one or the other…

Then, around April 1st Catholics usually ended their fasting period. 

They ate fish to break the fasting since it was an important food item at the time, a lean dish authorized by the Church while meat and laughters were forbidden. According to historian Nadine Cretin, 

SE MOQUER DU POISSON, C’ÉTAIT SE MOQUER INPUNÉMENT DES AUTORITÉS RELIGIEUSES.

– Finally, April 1st also coincides with the astrological sign pisces, POISSON. 

Again, these are a few possible explanations but there are others. Pick your favorite, I guess.

I always find these stories fascinating.

Anyway, more importantly here, grab your color pencils or felt pens and draw the prettiest fish to stick and go stick it… on someone’s back! Or plot your prank and pick your victims ! ALLEZ, AMUSEZ-VOUS BIEN ET À LA PROCHAINE !