April Fool's Day

April Fools' Day is very similar to the Korean festival/day:

만우절(萬愚節)

say: /mahn-oo-jeol/

which literally translates thusly:

Mahn = "Unexpected"

Oo = "Fool"

Jeol = "Festival"

And, it is similar to the Chinese festival/day:

say: /yu² ren² jie²/

which literally translates thusly,

Yu = "Fool(ish)"

Ren = "Person"

Jie = "Festival"

The objective in Korea is slightly different than in North America. As I understand it, in Korea, students usually try to fool their teachers, literally making a fool out of them. It's all in fun, of course. In North America, however, people try to play tricks on their family and friends.... and, maybe teachers, too. But mostly people (not only children) try to fool/trick their loved ones. Again, it's all in fun. Chinese seem to do the same as the Americans on this day.

I hope you have a Happy April Fools' Day!

Sincerely,

Leon.

History of April Fools' Day

Many of my students have asked me about the history of April Fools' Day, and I didn't know. So, I did some research on the internet. The following sites give some insight as to the origin of April Fools' Day.

http://www.infoplease.com/spot/aprilfools1.html