Holidays Calendar for April 1, 2020
Greek Cypriot National Day is annually observed by the Cypriots on April 1. It commemorates the establishment of EOKA, a Greek Cypriot nationalist organization.
Islamic Republic Day in Iran is annually celebrated on the 12th of Farvardin, the first month of the Solar calendar. This date corresponds to April 1 in the Gregorian calendar. This holiday celebrates the anniversary of the establishment of the Islamic Republic in 1979.
Investiture of the Captains Regents is held in San Marino annually twice, on April 1 and October 1. The Captain Regents serve as heads of state and government during a six-month term, then they are re-elected. The day of investiture is a non-working holiday.
April Fools’ Day is one of the jolliest and funniest holidays of the year (of course, if it’s you who plays harmless pranks on other people, and not the other way around). This unofficial observance is known and loved in many countries, primarily in the Western World. It is celebrated on April 1.
International Tatting Day is observed annually on April 1. The holiday was created to celebrate a lace-making technique that has been around for about two centuries and popularize it among DIY and crafting enthusiasts around the globe.
National Broadcasting Day (Hari Penyiaran Nasional) is observed in Indonesia every year on April 1. It was created to celebrate the country’s broadcasters and commemorate the establishment of the first Indonesian radio station in 1933.
National Tree Planting Day in Tanzania is celebrated on April 1. The campaign was launched in 1999 in order to fight deforestation and contain the encroachment of desert.
Fossil Fools Day is an annual environmental campaign that coincides with April Fools' Day. It aims to raise awareness of the hazards caused by harvesting, processing and utilizing fossil fuels.
April 1 is Edible Book Day. This is a very unusual holiday, that is celebrated around the world since 2000.
Assyrian New Year, also known as Kha b-Nisan, Ha b-Nison, Ha b-Nisin or Resha d-Sheta, occurs on April 1 every year. Rooted in the ancient Mesopotamian religion, it is celebrated by the Assyrian diaspora across the world.
Civil Service Day is annually observed in Thailand on April 1. The holiday celebrates the anniversary of enactment of the first Civil Service Act in 1929.
Odisha Day, also known as Odisha Divas or Utkala Dibasa, is an official holiday in the Indian state of Odisha, formerly known as Orissa. It is celebrated on April 1 to commemorate the formation of Odisha as a separate state (then province) in 1936.
Sourdough bread is arguably the oldest kind of leavened bread known to humanity. Although most industrial bakeries rely on chemical leavening agents and yeast these days, sourdough baking has a devoted community of amateur and artisan bakers. They even celebrate National Sourdough Bread Day on April 1.
On April 1, all lovers and connoisseurs of hard liquors celebrates the birthday of cognac. Contrary to what you might think, it does not mark the day when cognac was allegedly invented; such a date was chosen because it is used in the industry to count the age of cognac.
Festivals on April 1, 2020
- Museums and the Web in Los Angeles, USA
- International Cherry Blossom Festival in Macon, USA
- UK Asian Film Festival in London, United Kingdom
- National Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington, USA
- Trans-Siberian Art Festival in Novosibirsk, Russia
- Vilnius International Film Festival “Kino Pavasaris” in Vilnius, Lithuania
- CPH:DOX Film Festival in Copenhagen, Denmark
- PAX East in Boston, USA
- Carnival of Tarazona de la Mancha in Tarazona de la Mancha, Spain
- World Amigurumi Exhibition in New York, USA
This Day in History
- 2020 Died: Adam Schlesinger, American singer-songwriter, record producer, and guitarist, who won three Emmys and a Grammy. He was a victim of the COVID-19 pandemic.
- 2018 Died: Stephen Bochco, American TV producer and writer. He developed a number of television series, including Hill Street Blues, L.A. Law, Doogie Howser, M.D., and NYPD Blue.
- 2016 The 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, also known as the April War or Four-Day War, began along the former Nagorno-Karabakh line of contact.
- 2010 Died: John Forsythe, American stage, film and television actor who starred in three well-known TV series: Bachelor Father, Charlie's Angels, and Dynasty.
- 2004 Google launched an invitation-only beta release of Gmail, a free email service. Gmail became available to the general public in 2007.
- 2001 The Netherlands became the first country in the world to legalize same-sex marriage. As of 2024, same sex-marriage is legally performed and recognized in 36 countries.
- 1997 Born: Asa Butterfield, English actor known for his roles in the films The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas and Ender's Game, and for his lead role in the Netflix series Sex Education.
- 1991 Died: Martha Graham, American modern dancer and choreographer whose career spanned more than 70 years. She was the first dancer to perform at the White House.
- 1987 Born: Mackenzie Davis, Canadian actress known for he roles as Cameron Howe on Halt and Catch Fire, Yorkie on Black Mirror, and Grace in Terminator: Dark Fate.
- 1986 Born: Hillary Scott, American country music singer-songwriter who is best known as the co-lead singer of the country group Lady Antebellum.
- 1982 Born: Taran Killam, American actor and comedian who first garnered attention for his brief stint on MADtv, followed by becoming a cast member on Saturday Night Live.
- 1976 Born: David Oyelowo, British actor, director, and producer. He rose to prominence for portraying Martin Luther King Jr. in Selma and Peter Snowdin in Nightingale.
- 1976 Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak, and Ronald Wayne founded Apple to sell the Apple I PC kit. The company was incorporated in 1977 without Wayne.
- 1976 Died: Max Ernst, German painter, sculptor, and poet who was a primary pioneer of the Dada art movement and surrealism that developed from it.
- 1973 Born: Kris Marshall, English actor of stage and screen. He is known for his roles as Colin in Love Actually and as DI Humphrey Goodman in Death in Paradise and Beyond Paradise.
- 1968 Died: Lev Landau, prominent Soviet physicist who was awarded the 1962 Nobel Prize in Physics for his pioneering theories for condensed matter.
- 1965 Died: Helena Rubinstein (born Chaja Rubinstein), Polish-born American cosmetics entrepreneur who founded Helena Rubinstein, Inc.
- 1961 Born: Susan Boyle, Scottish singer who earned international fame when she participated in the third series of Britain's Got Talent in 2009.
- 1957 The BBC broadcast the spaghetti-tree hoax which is probably one of the most famous April Fools' Day pranks to have ever appeared in media.
- 1953 Born: Barry Sonnenfeld, American filmmaker and television director who is best known for directing The Addams Family and the Men in Black trilogy.
- 1950 Died: Charles R. Drew, American physician, surgeon, and medical researcher best known for his research in the field of blood transfusions.
- 1946 A 8.1 magnitude earthquake occurred near the Aleutian Islands, Alaska. It was followed by a tsunami that struck the Hawaiian Islands.
- 1940 Born: Wangari Maathai, Kenyan environmentalist and political activist who was awarded the 2004 Nobel Peace Prize, becoming the first African woman to receive the award.
- 1933 In Germany, the Nazis organized a one-day boycott of all Jewish-owned businesses. Six days later, Jewis were banned from being employed in government.
- 1932 Born: Debbie Reynolds, American actress, singer, and businesswoman whose prolific career spanned almost 70 years. She was the mother of Carrie Fisher and the grandmother of Billie Lourd.
- 1929 Born: Milan Kundera, Czech and French author who is best known for his 1984 postmodern novel The Unbearable Lightness of Being.
- 1925 The Hebrew University of Jerusalem was established. It is the second-oldest university in Israel, after the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology.
- 1922 Died: Charles I of Austria (Charles IV of Hungary), the last ruler of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the last Emperor of Austria and the last King of Hungary.
- 1922 Died: Hermann Rorschach, Swiss psychiatrist and psychoanalyst who is best known for developing the Rorschach test, one of the most common projective tests.
- 1919 Born: Joseph Murray, American plastic surgeon who was awarded the 1990 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine along with E. Donnall Thomas.
- 1917 Died: Scott Joplin, American composer and pianist who is best known for his ragtime compositions. He was often referred to as the King of Ragtime Writers.
- 1917 Born: Sydney Newman, Canadian film and television producer who is best known for initiating the creation of the British sci-fi series Doctor Who.
- 1908 Born: Abraham Maslow, American psychologist best known for the creation of Maslow's hierarchy of needs which he proposed in 1943.
- 1891 The William Wrigley Jr. Company was founded in Chicago. Originally it sold soap and baking powder, but later was reoriented to produce chewing gum.
- 1873 RMS Atlantic ran onto the rocks and sank off the coast of Nova Scotia, killing more than 500 people. Ironically, it was owned by White Star Line, the same company that owned RMS Titanic.
- 1868 Born: Edmond Rostand, French neo-romantic dramatist and poet who is best known for his plays Cyrano de Bergerac and Les Romanesques.
- 1865 Died: Giuditta Pasta, Italian soprano who is considered to be one of the greatest opera singers to whom Maria Callas was often compared.
- 1826 American inventor Samuel Morey received a patent for his internal combustion engine. Morey's engine has much in common with modern ones.
- 1815 Born: Otto von Bismarck, Prussian statesman who made a significant contribution to the unification of German states into the German Empire.