Will you be the Amadán or Óinseach today?

A Tradition started by Different Calendars

The Irish are known for their quick wit and love of laughter, which makes April Fools' Day a perfect match for our culture. On this day, everyone becomes a prankster, trying to outwit their friends and family with hilarious gags and hoaxes. Many believe that the tradition of April Fools' Day dates back to the adoption of the Gregorian calendar in France, officially with the Edict of Roussillon in 1564. Charles IX decreed that the new year would no longer begin on Easter, as had been common throughout Christendom, but rather on January 1. Because Easter was a moveable date, those who clung to the old ways were the “April Fools”.

Here in Ireland, date-chaos was the norm for the next couple of hundred years as Gaelic and Catholic Ireland moved to the new Gregorian calendar in the 1560's. Meanwhile the English controlled areas around the Pale stayed on the older Julian calendar. Around the 1630's after the collapse of the Gaelic Petty Kingdoms, the Catholic clergy asked the pope for a dispensation to move back to the Julian calendar (which by then, everyone knew to be incorrect) as the difference in dates of major religious holidays made Catholics easier to identify. This was the era of priest hunters and harsh penal laws.

Then in the 1640's much of Ireland was back on the Gregorian calendar under the new Irish Catholic Confederation but after Cromwells reign of terror in the 1650's and the defeat of the Confederation, we moved back to the Julian calendar for the next 100 odd years, before finally switch back again to the Gregorian calendar in 1752 when the English finally saw some sense.

"Fool! Fool! you pulled the leg of the hairy stool"

This peculiar phrase is often used in conjunction with April Fools' Day pranks in this area of West Cork. It's a playful expression that essentially means, "You've been fooled!" The phrase is rooted in the image of someone literally trying to pull the leg of a hairy stool, which, of course, is an impossible and absurd task. By using this phrase, the prankster is essentially saying, "I've tricked you into attempting something ridiculous."

Celine hails from Co. Monaghan and the phrase up there was "April's Fool is dead and gone and you are the one to carry it on"

Killarney's and Ireland's funniest placename An Háhá or The Haha



Amadán or Óinseach

Amadán is the Irish word for a fool and April's Fool's Day is sometimes called Amadán Aibreáin or Lá na nAmadáin in Irish. Lá na nAmadáin (lit. the day of the fools) is interesting as we always simply called it Fool's Day in our youth.

Growing up here in West Cork, we always differentiated between a male fool and a female fool.

• We called a female fool an óinseach
• We called a male fool an amadán
• It's diminutive is amadáinín, it can mean a little fool but is also one of the Irish words for a bat!

Some Notable Irish April's Fools

Ireland has seen its fair share of unforgettable April Fools' pranks over the years. Some notable examples include:

• A local classic from days gone-by was to send an unsuspecting victim to a neighbours house with an important sealed letter. The amadán would be given strict instructions 'not to open the letter under any circumstances and to await instructions' after delivering the letter. Once the neighbour opened the letter it would normally say "send the amadán one stop further" and of course he would send the victim to another neighbour and so on.
• The Spaghetti Tree Hoax: A local radio station once announced that a farmer in County Cork had successfully grown a spaghetti tree, with strands of pasta hanging from its branches. Many gullible listeners believed the hoax which was based on a BBC TV hoax from decades before!
• The Leprechaun Sighting: In 2010, a group of pranksters dressed up as leprechauns and were spotted "dancing" on a roundabout in Dublin. They convinced many passers-by that they had spotted the mythical creatures, creating quite the buzz on social media.
• The "Invisible" Statue: In 2015, a Dublin-based artist announced the unveiling of his latest sculpture, which he claimed was invisible to the naked eye. Curious onlookers gathered at the site, straining to see the nonexistent artwork, only to be met with laughter and the realization that they had been fooled.

Embracing the Spirit of April Fools' Day

In Ireland, we take pride in our ability to poke fun at ourselves and others. April Fools' Day is an opportunity to embrace this spirit and share laughter with friends, family, and even strangers. So whether you're attempting to pull the leg of a hairy stool, or plotting your own elaborate prank, remember that laughter is the true essence of this lighthearted day.

Lá na nAmadáin sona daoibh!

Happy April Fools' Day!