愚人节到底起源于哪国？

　　The French?

　　法国？

　　The most popular theory attributes the day to 16th-century France. When King Charles IX（查理九世） moved New Year's from the end of March to Jan. 1, those who kept celebrating in spring were mocked（嘲弄） and called fools. Another theory ties the tradition to the ease with which newly hatched fish could be caught in early April. Fooling people on April 1 became a way of celebrating the abundance of "foolish" fish. The French still call April Fool's pranks¹ Poisson d'Avril, or April Fish.

　　The Germans?

　　德国？

　　An important meeting of German lawmakers in Augsburg（奥格斯堡市） was scheduled for April 1, 1530, but was canceled（取消）. Some citizens had wagered（打赌） that the meeting would occur; they lost their money and were mocked for their foolishness, setting off the tradition of joking on the first of April.

　　The British?

　　英国？

　　British legend traces（追溯） the celebration to a town called Gotham（愚人村）. Residents prevented the king from passing through town because any road he traveled became public property（公共财产）. The king sent his Army to punish them, but the soldiers found the citizens behaving like lunatics（疯子）. The clever townspeople were only putting on an act, but the king decided³ they were too foolish to be punished.

　　The Dutch?

　　荷兰？

　　The Dutch gained their independence（获得独立） from Spain after nearly a century of war. In one critical battle on April 1, 1572, Dutch rebels captured（占领） the town of Den² Briel. They began commemorating（庆祝） the humiliation⁴ of the Spanish forces with a tradition of pulling pranks （恶作剧）on the anniversary of the battle.

　　The Romans?

　　罗马？

　　When Constantine ruled the Roman Empire, a group of jesters（小丑） persuaded him to make one of their own king for a day. Constantine agreed and made a fool, called Kugel, king on April 1. During his brief reign（统治）, the jester proclaimed that the day would be one of absurdities⁵ （荒谬）and hoaxes（恶作剧）, hence the origins of the celebration. note: this theory was itself an April Fool's day hoax⁶ by Boston university professor Joseph Boskin in 1983. He fooled an associated press reporter into believing it, and the story was published widely before the news organization realized its mistake.

1 pranks   

n.玩笑，恶作剧( prank的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Frank's errancy consisted mostly of pranks. 法兰克错在老喜欢恶作剧。 来自辞典例句
• He always leads in pranks and capers. 他老是带头胡闹和开玩笑。 来自辞典例句

2 den   

n.兽穴；秘密地方；安静的小房间，私室

参考例句：

• There is a big fox den on the back hill.后山有一个很大的狐狸窝。
• The only way to catch tiger cubs is to go into tiger's den.不入虎穴焉得虎子。

3 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

4 humiliation   

n.羞辱

参考例句：

• He suffered the humiliation of being forced to ask for his cards.他蒙受了被迫要求辞职的羞辱。
• He will wish to revenge his humiliation in last Season's Final.他会为在上个季度的决赛中所受的耻辱而报复的。

5 absurdities   

n.极端无理性( absurdity的名词复数 )；荒谬；谬论；荒谬的行为

参考例句：

• She has a sharp eye for social absurdities, and compassion for the victims of social change. 她独具慧眼，能够看到社会上荒唐的事情，对于社会变革的受害者寄以同情。 来自辞典例句
• The absurdities he uttered at the dinner party landed his wife in an awkward situation. 他在宴会上讲的荒唐话使他太太陷入窘境。 来自辞典例句

6 hoax   

v.欺骗，哄骗，愚弄；n.愚弄人，恶作剧

参考例句：

• They were the victims of a cruel hoax.他们是一个残忍恶作剧的受害者。
• They hoax him out of his money.他们骗去他的钱。