愚人节的来历英语版.doc

愚人节的来历[ 2007-03-31 17:46 ] 马上就要愚人节了。关于这个节日的来源有各种不同的说法，有人说与一群不愿接受公历纪年的法国保守者有关；也有人说它来源于纪念丰收女神的女儿被诱拐到地狱；还有人说，这个节日始于英国一个名叫“愚人村”的天才村民；另一些说法则认为春天的天气变化无常，因此人们在春分前后可以选择某一日颠倒乾坤，以荒诞的闹剧来迎接春神的到来……以下关于“愚人节”的五种传说，其趣味各有千秋，至于哪种更为真实全凭您的亮眼一辨真伪喽！ ? As it was called years ago, All Fools Day is observed in many countries around the world. The origin of April Fools Day remains clouded in obscurity. But what is clear is that the tradition of a day devoted to foolery had ancient roots. As we look back in time, many ancient predecessors of April Fools Day are found. ? A? French legendary ? The most widespread theory about the origin of April Fools Day links the Gregorian calendar reform. In 1582 France became the first country to switch from the Julian to the Gregorian calendar. This meant that the beginning of the year was moved from the end of March to January 1. If someone failed to keep up with the change and continued to celebrate the New Year between March 25th and April 1st, various jokes would be played on him. This story might explain why April 1st specifically became the date of the modern holiday. ? Mythological roots There have been quite a few attempts to provide mythological explanations for the rise of April Fools Day. One story dates back to Roman mythology, particularly the myth of Ceres (the Goddess of grain and the harvest) and Proserpina. In Roman mythology Pluto, the God of the Dead, abducted Proserpina and brought her to live with him in the underworld. Proserpina called out to her mother Ceres for help, but Ceres, who could only hear the echo of her daughters voice, searched in vain for Proserpina. The fruitless search of Ceres for her daughter was commemmorated during the Roman festival of Cerealia and believed by some to have been the mythological antecedent of the fools errands popular on April 1st. British folklore linked April Fools Day to the town of Gotham. According to the legend, it was traditional in the 13th century for any road that the