Where did the idea of the Easter bunny originate?

Answer 1

Eggs, like rabbits and hares, are fertility symbols of extreme antiquity; since birds lay eggs and rabbits and hares give birth (to large litters) in the early spring, these became symbols of the rising fertility of the earth at the Vernal Equinox.

The saying "mad as a March hare" refers to the wild caperings of hares as the males fight over the females in the early spring, then attempt to mate with them. Since the females often rebuff the males' advances before finally succumbing, the mating behavior often looks like a crazy dance; these fights led early observers to believe that the advent of spring made the hares "mad". Rabbits and hares are both lagomorphs; they are prolific breeders. The females can conceive a second litter of offspring while still pregnant with the first (the two are born separately); this phenomenon is known as superfetation. Lagomorphs mature sexually at an early age and can give birth to several litters a year (hence the saying, "to breed like bunnies"). It is therefore not surprising that rabbits and hares should become fertility symbols, or that their springtime mating antics should enter into Easter folklore; however, the notion of a rabbit that lays eggs has an uncertain past. It may have simply arisen from a confusion of symbolism but, like much of the holiday of Easter itself, it could be a direct heritage from older traditions. In Germanic and Slavic languages, the word "Easter" comes from an ancient pagan goddess of the spring named Eostre. According to myth, Eostre once saved a bird whose wings had frozen during the winter by turning it into a rabbit. Because the rabbit had once been a bird, it could still lay eggs, and that rabbit became the modern Easter Bunny[1].

The precise origin of the custom of coloring eggs is not known, although it too is ancient; Greeks to this day typically dye their Easter eggs red, the color of blood, in recognition of the renewal of life in springtime (and, later, the blood of the sacrificed Christ). Some also use the color green, in honor of the new foliage emerging after the long "dead" time of winter. Other colors, including the pastels popular in the United States and elsewehere (possibly symbolizing the rainbow), seem to have come along later. [citations needed]German Protestants wanted to retain the Catholic custom of eating colored eggs for Easter, but did not want to introduce their children to the Catholic rite of fasting. Eggs were forbidden to Catholics during the fast of Lent, which was the reason for the abundance of eggs at Easter time.[citations needed]

The idea of an egg-laying bunny came to the United States in the 18th century. German immigrants in the Pennsylvania Dutch area told their children about the "Osterhase". "Hase" means "hare", not rabbit, and in Northwest European folklore the "Easter Bunny" indeed is a hare, not a rabbit. According to the legend, only good children received gifts of colored eggs in the nests that they made in their caps and bonnets before Easter.[citations needed]

A hundred years later Jakob Grimm wrote of long-standing similar myths in Germany itself. Noting many related landmarks and customs, Grimm suggested that these derived from legends of Ostara

Answer 2

The bunny was first used as a symbol of Easter in 16th century Germany, where it was first mentioned in German writings. The first edible Easter bunnies, made primarily of pastry and sugar, were produced in Germany as well, during the early 1800s. Also in Germany, children made nests of grass and placed them in their yards. They believed the Easter Bunny would fill these baskets with brightly decorated eggs during the night.

The Easter bunny was introduced to American by the German settlers who arrived in the Pennsylvania Dutch country during the 1700s. The arrival of the "Oschter Haws" was considered "childhood's greatest pleasure" next to a visit from Christ-Kindel on Christmas Eve. The children believed that if they were good the "Oschter Haws" would lay a nest of colored eggs.

Hope this helps

Answer 3

Promoted as a occasion of Christ’s resurrection, Easter is actual rooted in fake faith. The call Easter itself has been related to Eostre, or Ostara, the Anglo-Saxon goddess of the daybreak and of spring. and how did eggs and rabbits become linked with Easter? Eggs “have been well-referred to as symbols of recent existence and resurrection,” says the Encyclopedia Britannica, on an identical time as the hare and the rabbit have long served as symbols of fertility. Easter, as a result, is actual a fertility ceremony thinly disguised as a occasion of Christ’s resurrection. The Westminster Dictionary of the Bible says that Easter became “initially the spring competition in honor of the Teutonic goddess of light and spring ordinary in Anglo-Saxon as Eastre,” or Eostre. after all, the Encyclopedia Britannica (eleventh version) states: “there's no indication of the observance of the Easter competition interior the recent testomony.” Easter became no longer an early Christian observance. The Catholic Encyclopedia tells us: “an incredible many pagan customs, celebrating the return of spring, gravitated to Easter. The egg is the logo of the germinating existence of early spring. . . . The rabbit is a pagan image and has continuously been an logo of fertility.”—(1913), Vol. V, p. 227.

Answer 4

I was talking with a girl at the office who had just moved to the US a few years ago. And we were talking about what we were doing for Easter. She says we are doing this thing at church were we hunt eggs?!? And just laughs her @ss off. I then realized that his is an English or American thing. So I decided to look it up...hunting easter eggs symbolizes the search for Jesus' tomb. But I'm sure the rabbit has no religious meaning behind it...its just a character that was made up some time ago as a marketing ploy to sell more stuff for the easter holiday.

Answer 5

originally there was no relation between bunnies and Easter, its only the mater of time..... Easter is in the spring time were lots of bunnies were running and jumping around... so this is the whole idea.