The April Fool Archive

John Aubrey    (April Fool's Day - 1686)

John Aubrey's Remains of Gentilism and Judaism, published in 1686, was a collection of material about folk customs and beliefs. It included a brief passage on "Fooles holy day," about which Osborne noted:

"We observe it on ye first of April… And so it is kept in Germany everywhere."

Aubrey's meaning is somewhat vague, but he appears to be saying that April Fool's Day was celebrated throughout Germany. This suggests that he regarded the custom to be primarily a German one.


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