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Whether you love it or dread it, the time has come to dust off your whoopee cushions and put on your thinking caps to plan pranks. April Fools' Day is today!

Believe it or not, there is no confirmed origin of April Fools’ Day, but historians have multiple theories. A known precursor is Hilaria, a Roman festival that celebrated the goddess Cybele by devoting the day to laughter fun. Some historians also believe that it could have stemmed from 1582, when Pope Gregory XIII adopted the Gregorian calendar that moved New Year’s Day to January 1 rather than the end of April and people unknowingly celebrated New Year’s three months late. There is also speculation that April Fools' Day could be linked to the Northern Hemisphere’s first day of spring, marking the start of a season filled with unpredictable weather.

Friends, family members, news outlets and even businesses take advantage of the one day a year where lying and trickery are socially acceptable in nearly every environment. In 1957, a news outlet said farmers in Switzerland were harvesting spaghetti from trees and many people fell for it. In 1950, residents of Skyforest, Calif., hung 50 thousand oranges on pine trees on the Rim of the World Highway to fool motorists driving on the scenic highway.

Mother Nature has also had tricks up her sleeve on April Fools' Day. In 1997, an extremely late-season blizzard dumped more than 2 feet of snow on Boston and eastern New England, making it the biggest snowstorm for Boston in the month of April and the fourth biggest snowstorm ever. Sleet and snow wiped out power for hundreds of thousands of people in the Northeast and three people died in storm-related incidents.

On April 1, 1973, a rare tornado touched down in Prince William and Fairfax counties in Virginia, which are just outside of the nation’s capital. The twister injured 37 people, caused $13.5 million in damages and damaged more than two hundred homes. In 2016, a severe weather outbreak occurred across the Southeast, spawning six tornado reports across Georgia and numerous strong wind reports.

Want to know if the weather will foil your prank plans this year? Check your WeatherBug mobile phone app for the latest forecasts!

Story Image: A car is wrapped in cellophane on April Fool's Day (dave_7, Wikimedia Commons)

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April Fools' Day - How Did It Start?