Sunday, March 23, 2008

Happy Easter!

Eggs have been part of the Easter tradition for thousands of years, and the Christian tradition may have its roots in an earlier Judaic one, where eggs as a symbol of new life were a symbolic part of the Passover Seder. Numerous ancient cultures adopted the egg as part of the Easter holiday tradition. Greeks exchange red ones that symbolize the blood of Christ; Germans and Austrians green ones. Armenians decorated theirs with holy pictures, and Slavic people adorn theirs with silver and gold. The Romanovs took this a step further, adding precious metals, enamels, precious and semi-precious gems, and clocks and mechanical toys.

As spring is a time of rebirth; it’s not surprising that animals, especially baby ones, are an easily recognized symbol of the holiday. Lambs, chicks, ducklings, and especially bunnies are the Easter ambassadors of the animal world. It is thought that the pagans worshipped the Goddess Eastre, who was symbolized by a rabbit and, like so many Christian traditions, was co-opted from earlier cultures. The Germans brought the tradition of the Easter Bunny to the new world, exchanging the bonnet in which the bunny brought colored eggs for the basket.

16 comments:

Karen H. said...

Good Afternoon Nan,
I thought I would drop back by to see if you had posted for today and I'm glad I did. "THANK YOU" for sharing the information about the Easter Egg with us. I had no idea that the Germans brought it over here to us. I learn something new everyday here in blogland. Take care my friend and I hope you are having a great Easter. May God Bless You and Yours.

Love & Hugs,
Karen H.

Anonymous said...

I love your lessons Nan. Thanks for the great explanation. Have a Blessed and joyous Easter! Christy :-)<><

Cottage Contessa said...

Happy Easter sweetie, I hope it's really wonderful for you and your family!
Amanda (aka Cottage Contessa)

bj said...

I've never known the story behind the Easter Egg...thanks for sharing this with us.
hugs, bj

Carletta said...

A wonderful post. Many people think that the eggs and bunnies we decorate with take away from the true meaning of Easter. They fail to see and accept the symbolism of of other cultures.
Thanks Nan!

Anonymous said...

Thanks for the lesson...I needed that.

Rue said...

Hi Nan!!

I've missed you :) How was your Easter??

Thank you for the history lesson. I love those :)

Hugs,
Rue

BittersweetPunkin said...

Popping in to say Hello...I hope you had a very lovely Easter.
Hugs,
Robin

Linda said...

Just stopped by to say Happy Easter...hope your day was great. I enjoyed learning more about Easter...thank you for the interesting information about the eggs and the Easter basket too. Linda

Meggie said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Meggie said...

Thanks for that little bit of history, Nan. Some of that I've heard before but some of it was very new. I had never heard the part about pagans worshipping the goddess Eastre. I find bloggers to be a constant source of knowledge.

Unknown said...

Hi Nan,

please stop by I have something for you.

Suzy

Tracie~MyPetiteMaison said...

Hi Nan,
I'm visiting from Suzy's blog (such a true sweetheart!).

Beautiful post and blog you have here!

Happy weekend,
~Tracie
My Petite Maison

bj said...

Since you haven't posted since Easter, I am scared that you are sick!?? I sure hope not....that you are just so busy!
hugs, bj

bj said...

BAILEY.....go find your mama....we haven't seen her in days....
FETCH, girl....FETCH!!

Kissing of the Frogs said...

Nan,
I always know I'm going to learn something when I come over. Yes indeed I have. Thanks for the post. And are you okay? Haven't heard from you in a while. Just checking on ya.
Hugs,
Rose