Every year, Easter marks the arrival of spring with its decorated eggs and family traditions. This holiday, associated with the resurrection of Christ, seems to have well-defined origins. Yet, on closer inspection, many of its symbols and customs recall much older celebrations. Behind the bells and chocolate bunnies lies a broader story, where renewal is celebrated.
If this type of topic interests you, you can read our articles on the pagan origins of Candlemas and the pagan origins of Epiphany.
1. The Ostara Equinox or When Night Yields to Day
In Germanic and Anglo-Saxon traditions, the spring equinox symbolizes a moment of balance where light regains the upper hand over darkness. This transitional period is associated with a deity named Eostre, sometimes spelled Ostara. Known through medieval sources, she is described as a goddess of renewal, fertility, and the awakening of nature. Her name is believed to have given rise to the English word Easter, used to designate the Easter holiday.
The monk Bede the Venerable (an English monk and scholar who notably contributed to the calculation of liturgical hours), in his 8th-century writings, mentions that the Anglo-Saxons celebrated a festival in honor of Eostre during the month dedicated to her, Eosturmonath. As you might guess, this timing could vary from year to year since the ancient Germanic and Anglo-Saxon calendars were lunar or lunisolar, not Gregorian as today.
This period corresponded to the arrival of spring, when the earth warmed and vegetation was reborn after winter. Although information about this deity remains limited, her connection to fertility and renewal has endured through time.
The Arrival of Spring
The hare is originally associated with Eostre. A lunar animal and symbol of fertility, it represents the cycle of life and spring renewal. Its association with the goddess and the equinox festival could explain its presence in modern Easter traditions. The egg, another recurring element, embodies gestation and the promise of a prosperous new season. Rituals involved painting eggs and offering them as gifts to promote the fertility of the land and families.
2. Greco-Roman Festivals: From Cybele to the Resurrection of Attis
Mediterranean peoples also placed great importance on natural cycles and spring rebirth. In Rome, the cult of Cybele, great goddess of nature and fertility, was accompanied by celebrations marked by purification rites and processions. Her companion Attis, whose myth involves death and return to life, was at the center of these festivities. Every year, at the equinox, ceremonies recalled his resurrection, thus announcing the victory of life over the shadow of winter.
According to legend, Cybele falls in love with Attis, a mortal of exceptional beauty. However, Attis is unfaithful to her and falls for a nymph or mortal woman (depending on the version). Furious and consumed by jealousy, Cybele drives him mad. In his delirium, Attis mutilates himself and bleeds to death at the foot of a pine tree before dying. Filled with remorse, Cybele regrets her act and, as reparation, obtains from Zeus that her beloved returns to life every spring, symbolizing the return of fertility after winter.
Representation of Attis. Source: Honor the Gods
The festivities dedicated to Cybele and Attis took place over several days, during the Hilaria. They began with periods of mourning and lamentation, followed by rituals symbolizing rebirth. Initiates participated in purification rites, using water and blood to signify spiritual and physical renewal.
An interesting parallel exists between these myths and that of Persephone, whose time in the Underworld and return to the living world illustrate the passage from winter to spring. Each year, her ascent from the realm of the dead announced the awakening of vegetation, marking the long-awaited renewal.
3. A Gradual Assimilation by Christianity
When Christianity established itself in Europe, it absorbed and transformed the pagan celebrations that marked the seasons. The Church sought to give new meaning to existing festivals rather than abolish them completely, thus easing the transition to the new religion. Easter, which celebrates the resurrection of Christ, incorporated several elements from older rites related to the return of light and spring fertility.
But since Ostara never took place on a fixed date, Easter also follows a movable calendar. The Council of Nicaea in 325, whose mission included setting the very first liturgical calendar, established that Easter should be celebrated on the first Sunday after the full moon following the spring equinox. This choice is a compromise between different traditions and aims to distinguish Easter from Jewish festivals while respecting the symbolism of spring renewal.
This method of calculation echoes ancient pagan practices, where celebrations were linked to lunar and solar cycles. In many cultures, the return of spring was marked by rites depending on the position of the stars rather than a fixed date. The choice of a full moon to determine Easter’s date recalls these traditional systems where the increasing light of the night star announced the end of winter and the return of abundance.
4. Death and Resurrection in Ancient Religions
The idea of a dying and resurrecting god is not unique to Christianity. Many civilizations developed myths where a deity undergoes a symbolic death before returning to life, illustrating the perpetual cycle of nature.
We saw this earlier with Attis. This pattern is also found in the myth of Osiris in Egypt and Dionysus in Greece, two figures linked to the renewal of vegetation.
The Resurrection of Christ
The story of Christ’s resurrection fits into this continuity. It symbolizes the victory of life over death, a message that echoes ancient beliefs where spring renewal was seen as a cyclical "miracle." This is what made Easter one of the most important Christian holidays of Holy Week (Palm Sunday commemorating Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem, Maundy Thursday recalling the Last Supper, Good Friday evoking Christ’s crucifixion, the Easter Vigil celebrating the resurrection, Easter Sunday, and Easter Monday).
5. (Almost) Intact Symbols
What is interesting is that Easter almost word-for-word adopts the pagan symbols of Ostara and more generally of spring. The egg was especially sacralized, notably by forbidding its consumption during Lent (the strict 40-day fast before Easter).
Symbols of Lent
Families then kept their laid eggs and, to prevent them from spoiling, they boiled them or decorated their shells. At the end of Lent, these eggs were shared and given as gifts during Easter festivities.
One addition concerns the paschal lamb. In Judaism, it is associated with the Jewish Passover (Pessa’h), which commemorates the liberation of the Hebrews from Egypt. In Christianity, Jesus is compared to a sacrificed lamb. He is called "the Lamb of God" (Agnus Dei), referring to his sacrifice to redeem the sins of humanity.
6. And What About Chocolate?
Chocolate is a relatively recent addition to Easter traditions and does not have its origins in pagan spring celebrations. Its introduction into this holiday mainly results from changes in dietary habits and religious practices.
Cacao was introduced to Europe from the 16th century onward, thanks to Spanish explorers who brought it from the American continent. At that time, chocolate was first consumed as a hot drink, reserved for European elites due to its high cost. Over the centuries, its use became more widespread, and its transformation into confectionery became more common.
It was between the 18th and 19th centuries that chocolate began to be associated with Easter. As a rare and refined product, it was especially appreciated for major festive occasions. It then became a prized gift to mark the end of the Lenten fast.
