Wikipedia talk:Selected anniversaries/April 1

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This is the talk page for making suggestions or discussing improvements to Wikipedia:Selected anniversaries/April 1.

To report an error when this list is currently on the Main Page, see Main Page errors. Please remember that this list defers to the supporting articles, so it is best to achieve consensus and make any necessary changes there first.
Before making a suggestion, please read the selected anniversaries guidelines. Please remember that this list usually defers to supporting pages when there is disagreement, so it is best to achieve consensus and make any necessary changes there first.
To discuss improvements to the corresponding April 1 article, see Talk:April 1 instead.

Frequently asked questions

Q1: Why is [Insert event here], an event that is "more important and significant" than all the others that are currently listed, not posted?: A1: Relative article quality along with the mix of topics already listed are often deciding factors in what gets posted. Any given day of the year can have a great many important or significant historical events. The problem is that there is generally only room on the Main Page to list about 5 events at a time, so not everything can be posted.

As stated on Wikipedia:FAQ/Main Page, the items and events posted on the Main Page are chosen based more on how well they are written, not based on how much important or significant their subjects are. It is easier for admins to select a well-written, cited, verifiable article over a poor one versus trying to determine objectively how much a subject is important or significant.

Keep in mind that the quality requirements only apply to the selected bolded article, not the other links. Thus, an event may qualify for multiple dates in a year if there is an article written in a summary style and an article providing detailed content; if one of those pages have cleanup issues, the other page can be bolded as an alternate.

Another criterion is to maintain some variety of topics, and not exhibit, just for example, tech-centrism, or the belief that the world stops at the edge of the English-speaking world. Many days have a large pool of potential articles, so they will rotate in and out every year to give each one some Main Page exposure. In addition, an event is not posted if it is also the subject of this year's scheduled featured article or featured picture.

Q2: There are way too many 20th-century events listed. Why aren't there more events from the 19th century and before?

A2: The short, basic reason is the systemic bias of Wikipedia. There are not enough good, well-written articles on 19th-century and earlier events for all 365 days in the year. Currently, a majority of users seem to be generally more interested in writing articles about recent events. If you would like to further help mitigate the systemic bias in Wikipedia, see Wikipedia:WikiProject Countering systemic bias.

Q3: This page seems to be biased toward events based in [Insert country or region here]. What can be done about it?

A3: This again is attributed to the systemic bias of Wikipedia. Many users are generally more interested in working on good, well-written articles pertaining to their home country. Since this is the English Wikipedia, there will be more English-speaking users, and thus more articles pertaining to English-speaking countries. And if there are more users who are from the United States, there will probably be more well-written articles about events based in the United States. Again, if you would like to further help mitigate the systemic bias in Wikipedia, see Wikipedia:WikiProject Countering systemic bias.

Q4: Why is the birthday/death anniversary of [Insert name here] not listed?

A4: There are only four slots available for birth and death anniversaries. As with the events, article quality and diversity in time period, geography, and reason for notability are all contributing factors in whether an article gets selected for inclusion.

Q5: Are the holidays/observances listed in any particular order?

A5: Yes, there is a specified order: International observances first, then alphabetically by where observed.

Q6: Some of the holidays/observances that are listed have dates in parentheses beside them. What do they mean?

A6: There are two reasons that some holidays/observances have dates next to them:

Non-Gregorian-based holidays/observances are marked with the current year as a reminder to others that their dates do in fact vary from year to year.
National Days, Independence Days, and other holidays celebrating the nationhood of a country are generally marked by the year of the significant historic date being observed.

Today's featured article for April 1, 2025
Wikipedia:Today's featured article/April 1, 2025 create – talk – watch
Picture of the day for April 1, 2025
The featured picture for this day has not yet been chosen. In general, pictures of the day are scheduled in order of promotion to featured status. See Wikipedia:Picture of the day/Guidelines for full guidelines. create

← Wikipedia talk:Selected anniversaries/March 31 * Wikipedia talk:Selected anniversaries/April 2 →

A possible candidate:

1939 - Generalísimo Francisco Franco of the Spanish State proclaimed victory in the Spanish Civil War.

--PFHLai 20:53, 16 March 2006 (UTC)[reply]

This ought to be changed to all jokes[edit]

It seems kind of boring to have the actual facts printed on April Fool's day. --Nintendorulez [[User talk:Nintendorulez|talk]] 01:50, 5 January 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Just because it's April Fools day doesn't mean the real events that occured on this date have to be ignored. But if the mainpage is going to be a big April Fool's Joke that day, then I don't think it'd be innapropriate to change the references accordingly. -- SmthManly / ^ManlyTalk / ^{ManlyContribs} 22:57, 12 March 2006 (UTC)[reply]

If anything, we should have unusual anniversaries on this page. -- user:zanimum

Yes, perhaps, but please keep the April Fool's Day reference. It's the only explanation people from some cultures will have of why their most useful reference source has gone crazy for a day. BigBlueFish 20:18, 31 March 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I am going to add a few entries from Wikipedia:April Fool's Main Page. All but the last are April Fool's jokes that these organisations played on the public, so therefore I am not putting false information into the Main Page. These entries are as follows:

1957 - Spaghetti trees: The BBC television programme Panorama ran a documentary showing the Swiss spaghetti harvest.
1997 - Comic strip switcheroo: Cartoonists of popularly syndicated comic strips swapped cartoons for the day.
2004 - Google launched Gmail, an email service.

--D e athphoenix ʕ 06:13, 1 April 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I thought there was already an April Fools Joke up there! "Ordered to hold Five Forks, Confederate General George Pickett instead lost almost 3,000." I find it hilarious that General Pickett cant hold five forks in his hand and instead drops 3,000! SGGH ^speak! 00:39, 1 April 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Iran[edit]

Good day all. Stuffed into the code of this page is an entry that states that a very important date in Iran's history occurred on April Fools day 1974. I can't find any reference to anything like that when I looked around, except for one mention on a "brainy encyclopedia" site that doesn't really count because all the site does is rip text off Wikipedia. Since I can't apparently edit the inaccurate thing out of the page itself, could someone who CAN edit it do so? The "anniversary" has plopped itself onto Iran's talk page... Never Cry Wolf 12:48, 21 April 2006 (UTC)[reply]

The entry you're referring to is currently commented out, which means that it does not appear. There's also a comment next to it that the date of the event could not be found or verified yet; that's why it was commented out. Thanks! Flcelloguy (A note?) 23:30, 21 April 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Assyrian New Year[edit]

I was wondering if we could add Assyrian new year to the list? Chaldean 16:28, 6 February 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Be bold! (Although in this case, I would probably link to Akitu, which is where the main article on the holiday seems to be, and add a few references in beforehand to ensure that we have the correct date.) Thanks! Flcelloguy (A note?) 01:51, 7 February 2007 (UTC)[reply]

How can I be bold when I dont have access to be edit :D Chaldean 03:12, 7 February 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Ah, I didn't even notice that; for future reference, you may wish to use {{editprotected}} to request editing of a protected page or for a quick response - I only happened to have this page on my watchlist and came across your request. In any case, the page is now unprotected. Thanks! Flcelloguy (A note?) 00:58, 8 February 2007 (UTC)[reply]

2007 and beyond[edit]

. Zzyzx11 (Talk) 02:19, 29 March 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Nikolai Gogol[edit]

Nikolai Gogol's 200th birthday is this April 1st. - Banyan Tree 05:11, 30 March 2009 (UTC)[reply]

You better verify the citation on the article. The link currently listed says March 31.[1] Zzyzx11 (Talk) 14:31, 30 March 2009 (UTC)[reply]

"Permanent Pain Relief" vs "Euthanasia"[edit]

"The Netherlands became the first country to approve medical treatments that provide permanent pain relief from all known human diseases and disorders." Does this not smack of POV if it doesn't contain the term "euthanasia"? Right now when I see this I think the Netherlands discovered some miracle panacea that's a cure-all. I think it needs to mention assisted suicide or euthanasia. I'm going to sleep and won't have time to argue this point, but I just want to bring it up. Valley2city^‽ 22:15, 31 March 2011 (UTC)[reply]

2012 notes[edit]

Omitted: Speaker of the United States House of Representatives; Wally Hammond; Hawker Siddeley Harrier
Included: Robert Winchelsey (3rd appearance, last in 2010); Royal Air Force (4th appearance, last in 2009; rescued from Ineligible); AMC Gremlin (3rd appearance, last in 2010); Same-sex marriage in the Netherlands/Euthanasia in the Netherlands (2nd appearance for both, both last in 2008); Serious Organised Crime Agency (3rd appearance, last in 2010)
Repeats: Battle of the Curragh (2nd consecutive appearance, 2 total)

—howcheng {chat} 10:25, 1 April 2012 (UTC)[reply]

2013 notes[edit]

Moved to Ineligible: Speaker of the United States House of Representatives (maintenance)
Omitted: Battle of the Curragh; Robert Winchelsey; Royal Air Force; AMC Gremlin; Same-sex marriage in the Netherlands; Serious Organised Crime Agency
Included: Convention of 1833 (first appearance); Brill Tramway (first appearance); Wally Hammond (2nd appearance, last in 2011); Hawker Siddeley Harrier (3rd appearance, last 2011); Nunavut (2nd appearance, last in 2008; rescued from Ineligible)

—howcheng {chat} 06:57, 31 March 2013 (UTC)[reply]

2014 notes[edit]

Rescued from Ineligible (unused): Battle of Okinawa
New articles (unused): Daughter of Emperor Xiaoming of Northern Wei
Omitted: Brill Tramway; Wally Hammond; Hawker Siddeley Harrier; Nunavut
Included: Capture of Brielle (first appearance, rescued from Ineligible); Reserve Bank of India (first appearance); Polytechnic University of the Philippines (2nd appearance, last in 2013; moved from October 19); Gmail (first appearance)
Repeats: Convention of 1833 (2nd consecutive appearance, 2 total)

—howcheng {chat} 06:02, 30 March 2015 (UTC)[reply]

Giuditta Pasta (19th century; female; 150 years)[edit]

The Italian opera soprano Giuditta Pasta died 150 years ago on 1 April 1865. I'd be bold and add this for any other day, but I haven't understood the weird cheesy entries or the double lists for April Fool's versions. So, can someone please add:

1865 – Death of the prima donna Giuditta Pasta, Donizetti's Anna Bolena and Bellini's Norma

or

1865 – Death of the Italian soprano Giuditta Pasta, the prima donna for whom Donizetti wrote Anna Bolena, and Bellini wrote Norma

Ta! Scarabocchio (talk) 08:07, 24 March 2015 (UTC)[reply]

Sorry, but per the rules, births and natural deaths are only included on multiples of 100 years. —howcheng {chat} 11:14, 30 March 2015 (UTC)[reply]

2015 notes[edit]

Omitted: Capture of Brielle; Convention of 1833; Reserve Bank of India; Polytechnic University of the Philippines; Gmail
Included: Daughter of Emperor Xiaoming of Northern Wei (first appearance); Robert Winchelsey (4th appearance, last in 2012); Battle of Five Forks (2nd appearance, last in 2008); Battle of Okinawa (3rd appearance, last in 2005; 70th anniversary); Halifax, Nova Scotia (2nd appearance, last in 2010)

—howcheng {chat} 11:14, 30 March 2015 (UTC)[reply]

Five Forks should be capitalized; draft has it in lower case. Donner60 (talk) 21:27, 31 March 2015 (UTC)[reply]

No, then you don't get the visual of him holding 5 forks in his hand and dropping 3000 of them. —howcheng {chat} 05:38, 1 April 2015 (UTC)[reply]

Unfunny jokes[edit]

Presenting a female child as a male is not a sex change. Claiming it's a joke doesn't make it one; even if we do stipulate that it is a joke, it's a completely unfunny one, and should be replaced by some other event entirely. Why @Howcheng: persists in making insulting unfunny pseudo-jokes based on this event is beyond me; surely there's something else we could use.—chbarts (talk) 19:47, 5 April 2015 (UTC)[reply]

Of course it's not a sex change. That's the whole point! —howcheng {chat} 20:10, 5 April 2015 (UTC)[reply]

Reverted unfunny, incorrect, uncited, and transphobic edit per rules. I would like to come to a consensus on this, but hate and rule-breaking will not stand.—chbarts (talk) 01:00, 15 April 2015 (UTC)[reply]

WP:CIVIL and transphobia.[edit]

Transphobia cannot meet the standards of WP:CIVIL, by definition. As WP:CIVIL is a core principle, a contribution which doesn't honor it must be removed. Is there going to be any further discussion on this?—chbarts (talk) 00:29, 17 July 2015 (UTC)[reply]

I'm not sure if the version on today's page in 2018 is the same as what you were bringing up for discussion in 2015, but I came here to say I agree. Poor taste, even for April Fool's Day and its associated whatnot. Worse still is seeing this on the main page, the day after the International Transgender Day of Visibility; I don't suppose that this was noted on yesterday's main page? Echoedmyron (talk) 20:04, 1 April 2018 (UTC)[reply]

2016 notes[edit]

Moved to Ineligible: Same-sex marriage in the Netherlands (maintenance)
New articles (unused): 1947 Royal New Zealand Navy mutinies
Omitted: Iran (ineligible—maintenance); Daughter of Emperor Xiaoming of Northern Wei; Robert Winchelsey; Battle of Five Forks; Halifax, Nova Scotia; Gmail (ineligible—maintenance)
Included: Battle of the Curragh (3rd appearance, last in 2012); Speaker of the United States House of Representatives (3rd appearance, last in 2011); Apple Inc./Apple I (Apple Inc: 4th appearance, last in 2010; Apple I: first appearance); Serious Organised Crime Agency (4th appearance, last in 2012)

—howcheng {chat} 07:47, 30 March 2016 (UTC)[reply]

2017 notes[edit]

Moved to Ineligible: Capture of Brielle (maintenance); Royal Air Force (maintenance); Reserve Bank of India (maintenance); Halifax, Nova Scotia (maintenance); Nunavut (maintenance)
Omitted: Kha b-Nisan (ineligible—maintenance); April Fools' Day (ineligible—maintenance); Battle of the Curragh; Speaker of the United States House of Representatives (ineligible—maintenance); Apple Inc.; Serious Organised Crime Agency (ineligible—maintenance)
Included: Robert Winchelsey (5th appearance, last in 2015); Brill Tramway (2nd appearance, last in 2013); Wrigley Company (first appearance; rescued from Ineligible); 1947 Royal New Zealand Navy mutinies (first appearance; 70th anniversary); Same-sex marriage in the Netherlands (3rd appearance, last in 2012; 20th anniversary); William Harvey (first appearance); Sophie Germain (first appearance); Scott Joplin (first appearance)

—howcheng {chat} 06:25, 1 April 2017 (UTC)[reply]

Can I ask a question about the Royal Air Force (maintenance) tag, causing it to be ineligible? I've had a look over the article and can't see anything. It's the 100 year anniversary of the biggest military joke in 2018, so I'd love to see the world's oldest independent air force get a mention on the main page. -LÒÓkingYourBest^(Talk|Edits) 13:39, 24 July 2017 (UTC)[reply]

@LookingYourBest: Someone removed my maintenance tag. I've now gone through the entire article and it's not in very good shape. There are a lot of sections that are severely lacking in citations. Thanks. —howcheng {chat} 16:12, 24 July 2017 (UTC)[reply]

"Adolf Hitler (pictured) was placed in a cage"[edit]

"1924 – Adolf Hitler (pictured) was placed in a cage"
What is this supposed to mean? Is this vandalism or am I missing something? Adolf Hitler was never placed in any cage! And such wording is not present in the corresponding article!--Adûnâi (talk) 00:22, 1 April 2018 (UTC)[reply]

@Adûnâi: Hitler was sentenced to prison on April 1, 1924. The wording is for April Fool's. —howcheng {chat} 01:09, 1 April 2018 (UTC)[reply]

2018 notes[edit]

Omitted: Robert Winchelsey; Brill Tramway; Wrigley Company (ineligible—maintenance); 1947 Royal New Zealand Navy mutinies; Same-sex marriage in the Netherlands; William Harvey (ineligible—maintenance); Sophie Germain; Scott Joplin
Included: Daughter of Emperor Xiaoming of Northern Wei (2nd appearance, last in 2015); Convention of 1833 (3rd appearance, last in 2014); Royal Air Force (5th appearance, last in 2012; 100th anniversary; rescued from Ineligible); Beer Hall Putsch (4th appearance, last in 2007; rescued from Ineligible; previously appeared on November 8); Polytechnic University of the Philippines (3rd appearance, last in 2014; 40th anniversary); Joseph de Maistre (first appearance); Frederick Denison Maurice (first appearance); Cynthia Lennon (first appearance)

—howcheng {chat} 01:07, 1 April 2018 (UTC)[reply]

2019 notes[edit]

Omitted: Daughter of Emperor Xiaoming of Northern Wei (moved to February 12, her birthday); Convention of 1833; Royal Air Force; Beer Hall Putsch; Polytechnic University of the Philippines; Joseph de Maistre; Frederick Denison Maurice; Cynthia Lennon
Included: Robert Winchelsey (6th appearance, last in 2017); Battle of Five Forks (3rd appearance, last in 2015); 1947 Royal New Zealand Navy mutinies (2nd appearance, last in 2017); Hawker Siddeley Harrier (4th appearance, last in 2013; 50th anniversary); Aimery of Cyprus (first appearance); Giuditta Pasta (first appearance); Henri Cochet (first appearance)

NOTE: Beginning this year, we are no longer doing the joke versions of the blurbs, as Wikipedia April Fool's seems to be mostly dead. —howcheng {chat} 17:39, 1 April 2019 (UTC)[reply]

No mention of April Fools' Day?[edit]

I notice that, on the Main Page, in the "On this day" box, there isn't any mention of today being April Fools' Day. Iranian Islamic Republic Day and Edible Book Day are noted, but not April Fools' Day. Why has it been omitted? Is this some kind of a joke? —Matthew - (talk) 21:52, 1 April 2020 (UTC)[reply]

@MatthewHoobin: The article is tagged for maintenance, and per the rules it's ineligible for inclusion. —howcheng {chat} 16:02, 2 April 2020 (UTC)[reply]

Ah, understood. —Matthew - (talk) 16:04, 2 April 2020 (UTC)[reply]

2020 notes[edit]

Moved to Ineligible: Same-sex marriage in the Netherlands (maintenance)
New articles (unused): Ferruccio Busoni
Omitted: Robert Winchelsey; Battle of Five Forks; 1947 Royal New Zealand Navy mutinies (ineligible—maintenance); Hawker Siddeley Harrier; Aimery of Cyprus; Giuditta Pasta; Henri Cochet
Included: Edible Book Festival (rescued from Ineligible); Battle of the Curragh (4th appearance, last in 2016); Brill Tramway (3rd appearance, last in 2017); Royal Air Force (6th appearance, last in 2018); Public Health Cigarette Smoking Act (2nd appearance, last in 2007); Sophie Germain (2nd appearance, last in 2017); Shivakumara Swami (first appearance); Marvin Gaye (first appearance)

Note to future self: There is a dearth of pre-19th century suitable birth/death articles for today. —howcheng {chat} 16:01, 2 April 2020 (UTC)[reply]

2021 notes[edit]

Omitted: Edible Book Festival (ineligible—date not certain); Battle of the Curragh; Royal Air Force; Public Health Cigarette Smoking Act; Sophie Germain; Shivakumara Swami; Marvin Gaye
Included: Niels Ebbesen (first appearance); Wally Hammond (3rd appearance, last in 2014); Hainan Island incident (first appearance); Aimery of Cyprus (2nd appearance, last in 2019); Ferruccio Busoni (first appearance); Alan Kulwicki (first appearance)
Repeats: Brill Tramway (2nd consecutive appearance, 4 total; 150th anniversary)

—howcheng {chat} 06:53, 3 April 2021 (UTC)[reply]

Proposed addition to eligible articles[edit]

Could Jofra Archer be added to the eligible articles? His birth date is 1 April 1995, and article is well sourced, so would be eligible for adding to this list and maybe being used in a future year. The specific change needed would be:

OLD text:

Born/died this day: | Aimery of Cyprus |d|1205| Joseph de Maistre |b|1753| Sophie Germain |b|1776| Giuditta Pasta |d|1865| Ferruccio Busoni |b|1866| Shivakumara Swami |b|1907| Scott Joplin |d|1917| Marvin Gaye |d|1984| Henri Cochet |d|1987| Alan Kulwicki |d|1993| Cynthia Lennon |d|2015

NEW text:

Born/died this day: | Aimery of Cyprus |d|1205| Joseph de Maistre |b|1753| Sophie Germain |b|1776| Giuditta Pasta |d|1865| Ferruccio Busoni |b|1866| Shivakumara Swami |b|1907| Scott Joplin |d|1917| Marvin Gaye |d|1984| Henri Cochet |d|1987| Alan Kulwicki |d|1993| Jofra Archer |b|1995| Cynthia Lennon |d|2015

Thank you for your consideration. This is my first nomination, so let me know if I've done anything wrong. Joseph2302 (talk) 14:07, 1 April 2022 (UTC)[reply]

@Joseph2302:

Done. —howcheng {chat} 17:08, 2 April 2022 (UTC)[reply]

2022 notes[edit]

Moved to Ineligible: Apple I (maintenance); Polytechnic University of the Philippines (maintenance)
New articles (unused): Jofra Archer
Omitted: Niels Ebbesen; Brill Tramway; Wally Hammond; Hainan Island incident; Aimery of Cyprus; Ferruccio Busoni; Alan Kulwicki
Included: Robert Winchelsey (7th appearance, last in 2019); Convention of 1833 (4th appearance, last in 2018); Fântâna Albă massacre (first appearance); Same-sex marriage in the Netherlands (3rd appearance, last in 2017; rescued from Ineligible); Franz Egon von Fürstenberg-Heiligenberg (first appearance); Frederick Denison Maurice (2nd appearance, last in 2018; 150th anniversary); Anne McCaffrey (first appearance)

—howcheng {chat} 17:05, 2 April 2022 (UTC)[reply]