Today is no ordinary day – today is Star Wars Day!

Every year on May 4th, Star Wars fans everywhere celebrate their love for the franchise by using a greeting straight from a galaxy far, far away: “May the fourth be with you.”

And while the term is simply a play on words deriving from the one of the saga‘s most infamous phrases “May the Force be with you,” it turns out, the Star Wars fandom weren’t the first ones to coin the popular saying.

Apparently, Star Wars fanatics have former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher to thank for the tradition. It’s believed that the phrase dates back to May 4, 1979, the day Thatcher became Prime Minister – and two years after the release of the first Star Wars film. Thatcher’s political party placed a congratulatory ad in a London paper that read “May the Fourth Be with You, Maggie. Congratulations.”

Will you be celebrating today?