The Origin Of Easter

Easter is derived from the name Eastre (Eostre), who is the Teutonic Goddess of Spring. Her sacred animal is a hare.

Using eggs as part of the Easter celebration comes from something even more ancient than the name. Eggs have been symbols of rebirth and fertility for so long the roots of the tradition are now unknown. Some say it dates back to the beginning of human civilization. Ancient Romans and Greeks used eggs as symbols of fertility, rebirth, and abundance. Eggs were solar symbols and figured in festivals of numerous resurrected Gods.

Pagan fertility festivals during the Spring equinox were common. The hare is often associated with the moon goddesses, the egg and hare together represent the God and Goddess respectively.

So how did these Pagan symbols become entwined with the Christian holiday of Easter? When the Christian Church was first trying to convert the Pagans to Christianity, they ran into problems. The Pagans did not want to give up their festivals as well as their gods, so the Christians simply incorporated some Pagan practices into the Christian festivals. This made Christianity more palatable to the Pagan people who were reluctant to give up their festivals for the more sombre Christian practices.

But how did the rabbit who lays eggs come into practice you ask? 1500 years or so after the incorporation, the Germans had a tradition of their own. A rabbit, called Oschter Haws, layed colored eggs in nests and delighted children who then got to 'find' the eggs. This was introduced to America by German settlers in Pennsylvania.

In these modern times, you can buy chocolate representations of rabbits and eggs. While some still hold to old traditions and color eggs by hand, those who do not have the time or inclination can simply go to the store and buy candy, pre-dyed eggs, and other goodies. Ducks, chickens and rabbits are also highly popular choices for childrens gift baskets on Easter morning.

Starting with the obvious: You need to hard boil your eggs before you dye them. Then you have to be sure they are completely cool and dry. Cool so no one gets burned by the hot shells, and dry so the dye sticks where it's supposed to.

If you want to do different colors and patterns on your eggs, use a crayon to color on the shell. Simply write over the surface area that you do not want dyed, and dip the egg into the dye. After it has dried, you can scrape off the crayon.

You can also buy clear crayons to use for no chance of the color coming off on your eggs. For two-tone patterns, dye the egg in the first color. Wait for it to dry, and color over with a crayon the part you wish to stay the first color. Then dye it again and scrape off the crayon when the egg is dry.

You may not wish to eat some of these eggs after dying them, as they can take on the flavor of whatever you used to make the dye. But if you wish to use something other than food coloring, these are some pretty good choices.

Put 1 layer of eggs in a large pan and fill the pan with water until it is 1/2 inch over the top of the eggs. Add 2 tsp of white vinegar (unless you are using onion skins, the vinegar will make the eggs turn brown when paired with onion skins). Then add one of the following to dye the eggs:

Red/Pink: Fresh beets, canned cherries or frozen, crushed cranberries or juice (not cranberry sauce or jelly), Wild Raspberries

Orange: yellow onion skins

Light Yellow: lemon peels, orange peels or ground cumin

Golden yellow: Ground Tumeric (a kind of spice)

Light Green: Spinach

Blue: Red cabbage leaves (pre-boil the cabbage for 30 minutes) or blueberries (crushed)

Purple: Grape juice

Beige: Strong coffee

If the eggs don't turn out dark enough for you, return them to the pan and let them sit in the liquid overnight. The vinegar softens eggshells, so be careful when removing them in the morning. If you let them sit on the counter and dry completely, the shells should reharden.

Tired of the usual Easter Egg Hunt? Here's a few more unusual games to try...

Instead of pin the tail on the donkey, why not try pin the tail on the rabbit? Cut out a paper Rabbit (or buy one from a store) and give each child a cotton ball with double-sided tape on one end. Blindfold them and have them stick the cotton where they think the rabbits tail is.

If you'd rather print out your templates, you can find some here:

Colored Bunny Body
Black and White Bunny Body
Tails

Bunny In The Middle: Cut out a large paper egg. All the players form a circle with one child in the center of the circle. That child has to close their eyes while the others pass the egg around the circle. When the chant comes to an end, the child left holding the egg has to sit on it. Then the child in the middle has 3 guesses as to who is sitting on the egg. If the guesser gets it right, they switch places and the one who had been sitting on the egg is the new guesser.

Chant: Easter egg, Easter egg, in my hands. Around the circle, Child's Name must guess where it lands!

Easter 20 Questions: One person picks an Easter related person/place/thing. The others try to guess what it is in 20 questions or less. They may only ask yes/no questions.

Broken Egg Riddle:

Make up riddles and write the question on the top half of a paper egg. The answer goes on the bottom half. Cut the eggs in half so the question is on one piece, and the answer on the other. Each person gets one half of the egg. The ones with the answer half are stationary. The people with the questions must go around asking them to the others. When you find the correct answer to your riddle, you sit down with your partner until everyone has found the answers.

The Origin of Easter is now listed on The Isle of Squid

If you'd like to take a moment to review this lens there, you may do so Here.