🐣Crack Open the Fun: 5 Egg-citing Easter Facts You Never Knew!🎉

🐣🌿 Dear egg-plorers! Spring is in the air, ready to hatch some egg-cellent fun this Easter? We’ve got a basketful of egg-citing Easter facts that’ll have you hopping with joy. So grab your pastel-colored bonnet, fluff up your bunny tail, and let’s dive into this egg-stravaganza! 🌸🎇

Goddess Name

🧝‍♀️The name Easter seems to find its roots in the Anglo-Saxon goddess of spring and fertility, Eostre. The Venerable Bede, a British monk from the 8th century, first mentioned her name. This ancient deity's influence blended with Christian traditions, giving rise to the holiday we now celebrate with egg hunts, colorful decorations, and joyful gatherings. 

Want to know more mysteries about Eostre, Watch: 

1) Did a Pagan Goddess Inspire Easter?

2) Eostre / Ostara | Who Was the Pagan Easter Goddess? 🌺

Easter Eggs

🐣During Lent - a solemn 40-day period marked by fasting, prayer, and almsgiving, leading up to Easter, eggs were forbidden. People hard-boiled them to preserve them. After Lent, there were many eggs to eat! This tradition of Easter eggs began in medieval Europe as a celebration of Christ's resurrection. Eggs are a symbol of new life and the empty tomb of Jesus!

Fun fact: the first chocolate Easter egg wasn't made by Cadbury, but by a British company called Fry's in 1873! This pioneering chocolate treat, a simple dark chocolate egg, beat Cadbury to the punch for a whole 24 years! 🍫

Hot Cross Buns

🌟Fast forward to the 14th century in England, a monk named Brother Thomas Rodcliffe is credited with creating a similarly spiced bun called the "Alban Bun" that was distributed to the poor on Good Friday. Over time, these buns became linked to Easter and the cross became a symbol of Jesus' crucifixion. Today, we still savor these buns during Lent, especially in the week leading up to Easter. 

How to make it? Take a look at this video: How are Easter Hot Cross Buns made? | Maddie Moate 🍞

Easter Bunny

🐰During the 1500s in Germany, the Easter Bunny made its debut. Known as the Easter hare, this mythical creature was associated with the spring equinox, fertility, and rebirth. Its remarkable reproductive abilities aligned perfectly with the season of new life.

There were stories of an "Osterhase" (that's German for "Easter Hare"). He judged children's behavior and rewarded the good ones with colored eggs! Fast forward to the 1700s, German immigrants brought this tradition to America. 🐇

Easter Sunday Date

🌲Unlike Christmas, which has a fixed date on December 25th, Easter remains a moving target with the lunar calendar, marking the arrival of spring and the promise of new beginnings.

The Council of Nicaea in 325 played a crucial role in determining the date of Easter. It decreed that Easter should be observed on the first Sunday following the first full moon after the spring equinox (March 21), the day when day and night are roughly equal. Consequently, Easter can fall on any Sunday between March 22 and April 25. 🌝

🌼👣 Whether you're planning an egg hunt, decorating eggs with loved ones, or simply enjoying a delicious chocolate treat, remember the magic and wonder that this egg-ceptional holiday brings. Happy Easter! 🐰🐣🎉