Foiled-wrapped chocolate Easter eggs

Easter eggs are specially decorated eggs given to celebrate the Easter holiday or springtime. The oldest tradition is to use dyed and painted chicken eggs, but a modern custom is to substitute chocolate eggs, or plastic eggs filled with confectionery such as jellybeans. These eggs are often hidden, supposedly by the Easter Bunny, for children to find on Easter morning. The first easter egg. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1600x1200, 1024 KB) Easter eggs // Ostereier Photographer: Lotus Head Source: sxc. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1600x1200, 1024 KB) Easter eggs // Ostereier Photographer: Lotus Head Source: sxc. ... Ukrainian Easter eggs Egg decorating is the easter special. ... This article is about the Christian festival. ... Spring is one of the four seasons of temperate zones. ... Chicken egg (left) and quail eggs (right), the types of egg commonly used as food An egg is a body consisting of an ovum surrounded by layers of membranes and an outer casing of some type, which acts to nourish and protect a developing embryo. ... Cadburys Creme Eggs are filled chocolate eggs. ... Jelly beans or jelly eggs are a type of confectionery that comes in many different (primarily fruit) flavors. ... This article is about the holiday figure. ...

History and folklore

The ancient Persians painted eggs for Nowrooz, their New Year celebration, which falls on the Spring equinox. This tradition has continued every year on Nowrooz since ancient times. One source of information on Eostre, a pagan goddess who may have given her name to the festival, does not mention eggs at all. ^[1]. It is, however, the more accepted historical line that Eostre was associated with eggs and hares. ^[2]. There are also good grounds for the association between hares (later termed Easter bunnies) and eggs, through folklore confusion between hares forms (where they raise their young) and plovers nests. ^[3] In the 18th Century Jakob Grimm theorised a pagan connection to Easter eggs, with a putative goddess of his own who he named Ostara, a suggested German version of Eostre. The Persians of Iran (officially named Persia by West until 1935 while still referred to as Persia by some) are an Iranian people who speak Persian (locally named Fârsi by native speakers) and often refer to themselves as ethnic Iranians as well. ... Norouz (also spelled Norooz, Noruz, Naw-Rúz or Nowrouz) is the traditional Iranian festival of the New Year which starts at the exact moment of the vernal equinox, commencing the start of the spring. ... In astronomy, the vernal equinox (spring equinox, March equinox, or northward equinox) is the equinox at the beginning of spring in the northern hemisphere: the moment when the sun appears to cross the celestial equator, heading northward. ... Eostre (Easter) and Ostara are the name of a putative Germanic goddess. ... For other uses, see Hare (disambiguation). ... This article is about the holiday figure. ... Genera Pluvialis Charadrius Thinornis Elseyornis Peltohyas Anarhynchus Phegornis Oreopholus Plovers are a widely distributed group of wading birds belonging to the subfamily Charadriinae. ... (17th century - 18th century - 19th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 18th century refers to the century that lasted from 1701 through 1800. ... Jacob Ludwig Carl Grimm (January 4, 1785 – September 20, 1863), German philologist and mythologist, was born at Hanau, in Hesse-Kassel. ...

Overall, despite the speculation regarding a goddess, there is little doubt that the Western name for the festival, Easter derives from the germanic word Eostre which is also a name mentioned by Bede as a past English goddess. It is only in Germanic languages that a derivation of Eostre is used as Eostre is a Germanic goddess (or at least a Germanic word) and thus not likely to appear in non-Germanic countries. In Spanish, for example, it is Pascua; in French, Paques (both derived from the Hebrew pasch meaning passover). In Croation it is Uskrs, meaning Resurrection. This article is about the Christian festival. ... Eostre (Easter) and Ostara are the name of a putative Germanic goddess. ... Look up Resurrection in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

Ukrainian Easter eggs, or pysanky.

At the Passover Seder, a hard-boiled egg dipped in salt water symbolizes both new life and the Passover sacrifice offered at the Temple in Jerusalem. http://www. ... http://www. ... Ukrainian pysanky Pysanka (plural: pysanky, pysankas) is a Ukrainian word for an egg decorated using a wax resist (batik) method. ... This article is about the Jewish holiday. ... Seder is a Hebrew word meaning order, and can have any of the following meanings: Seder - readings of the Torah according to the ancient Palestinian triennial cycle. ... A hard-boiled egg is a prepared food. ... The Temple Mount A reconstruction of Herods Temple in Jerusalem. ... For other uses, see Jerusalem (disambiguation). ...

Christian practice

The egg is widely used as a symbol of new life just as a chick might hatch from the egg. The Easter egg tradition may have celebrated the end of the privations of Lent in the West, though this is speculation. Eggs were forbidden during Lent as well as other traditional fast days. Likewise, in Eastern Christianity, both meat and dairy are prohibited during the fast, and eggs are seen as "dairy" (a foodstuff that could be taken from an animal without shedding its blood). It was also traditional to use up all of the household's eggs before Lent began, which established the tradition of Pancake Day. For other uses, see Lent (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Lent (disambiguation). ... Fasting is primarily the act of willingly abstaining from some or all food, drink, or both, for a period of time. ... Eastern Christianity refers collectively to the Christian traditions and churches which developed in Greece, Russia, Armenia, the Balkans, Eastern Europe, Asia Minor, the Middle East, northeastern Africa and southern India over several centuries of religious antiquity. ... A dairy farm near Oxford, New York in the United States. ... Pancake Day or Pancake Tuesday is the name by which Shrove Tuesday is also known in Britain and Ireland, and Australia. ...

Another Orthodox tradition is the presenting of red colored eggs to friends while giving Easter greetings. According to a History channel documentary about Mary Magdalene and her role in Christianity, the custom derives from a supposed extra-Biblical event. After the Ascension of Christ, Mary supposedly went to the Emperor of Rome and greeted him with “Christ is risen,” whereupon he pointed to an egg on his table and stated, “Christ has not risen no more than that egg is red.” After making this statement it is said the egg immediately turned blood red. She then began preaching Christianity to him. [4]. Of course such a journey by a a minor disciple (as Mary Magdalene is seen to be in the wider aspect of all the gospels, rather than just the preferred four) of a cult in Palestine, could not actually hope to meet the emperor, so this tale has little credibility. The egg is seen as symbolic of the grave and life renewed by breaking out of it. The red supposedly symbolizes the blood of Christ redeeming the world and our regeneration through the bloodshed for us by Christ. The egg itself is a symbol of the Resurrection: while being dormant it contains a new life sealed within it. This article is about the disciple of Jesus. ...

Easter egg traditions

Pace-eggs

One would have been forced to hard boil the eggs that the chickens produced so as not to waste food, and for this reason the Spanish dish hornazo (traditionally eaten on and around Easter) contains hard-boiled eggs as a primary ingredient. Image File history File linksMetadata Pace-eggs01. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Pace-eggs01. ... Boiled eggs are cooked by immersing eggs (typically chickens eggs) in boiling water with their shells unbroken. ... A sort of Spanish meat pie eaten in the province of Salamanca, made with flour and yeast and stuffed with pork loin, spicy chorizo sausage and hard-boiled eggs. ...

In the North of England, at Eastertime, a traditional game is played where hard boiled pace eggs are distributed and each player hits the other players egg with their own. This is known as "egg tapping", "egg dumping" or "egg jarping". The winner is the holder of the last intact egg. The losers get to eat their eggs. It is also practiced in Bulgaria, Croatia, Serbia, Romania, the Republic of Srpska and other countries. They call it tucanje. In parts of Bavaria, Austria and German-speaking Switzerland it is called Ostereiertitschen. In South Louisiana this practice is called Pocking Eggs^[4][5] and is slightly different. The Cajuns hold that the winner eats the eggs of the losers in each round. The North of England , also the North country or simply The North, is a term which strictly refers to any part of Northern England north of a line from the Humber to the Dee estuaries. ...

Decorating techniques

Hanácké kraslice, Easter eggs from the Haná region, the Czech Republic, decorated with straw

Easter eggs are a widely popular symbol of new life in Ukraine, Romania and other Slavic countries' folk traditions. A batik-like decorating process known as pysanka produces intricate, brilliantly-colored eggs. The celebrated Fabergé workshops created exquisite jewelled Easter eggs for the Russian Imperial Court. A 27-foot (9 m) sculpture of a pysanka stands in Vegreville, Alberta. Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (2048x1536, 1962 KB) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Easter egg User:Jan. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (2048x1536, 1962 KB) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Easter egg User:Jan. ... Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... This article is about the textile dyeing technique. ... Ukrainian pysanky A pysanka (Ukrainian: писанка, plural: pysanky, or pysankas) is a Ukrainian Easter egg, decorated using a wax-resist (batik) method. ... The Moscow Kremlin egg, 1906 A Fabergé egg is any one of sixty eight [1] jewelled eggs made by Peter Carl Fabergé and his assistants for the Russian Tsars and private collectors between 1885 and 1917. ... The July Pysanka Festival showcases Ukrainian culture in Alberta. ...

There are many other decorating techniques and numerous traditions of giving them as a token of friendship, love or good wishes. A tradition exists in some parts of the United Kingdom (such as Scotland and North East England) of rolling painted eggs down steep hills on Easter Sunday. In the U.S., such an Easter egg roll (unrelated to an eggroll) is often done on flat ground, pushed along with a spoon; the Easter Egg Roll has become a much-loved annual event on the White House lawn. An Easter egg hunt is a common festive activity, where eggs are hidden outdoors (or indoors if in bad weather) for children to run around and find. This may also be a contest to see who can collect the most eggs. This article is about the country. ... North-East England is one of the nine official regions of England and comprises the combined area of Northumberland, County Durham, Tyne and Wear and a small part of North Yorkshire. ... Hills redirects here. ... Categories: Stub ... An egg roll is an appetizer which was originally eaten on the continent of Asia but has spread throught the world as a staple of Asian cuisine. ... For other uses, see Spoon (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see White House (disambiguation). ... Easter eggs are specially decorated eggs given out to celebrate the Easter holiday. ... Contest may refer to: A contest, is an event in which two or more individuals or teams compete against each other, often for a prize or similar incentive. ...

When boiling hard-cooked eggs for Easter, a popular tan colour can be achieved by boiling the eggs with onion skin. In the North of England these are called pace-eggs or paste-eggs. They were usually eaten after an egg-jarping (egg-tapping) competition. For other uses, see Onion (disambiguation). ...

Deep-fried chocolate Easter eggs are sold around Easter time in Scottish fish and chips shops.^[6] A Deep-fried Twinkie Deep-frying is a cooking method whereby food is submerged in hot oil or fat. ... This article is about the country. ... Fish and chips in modern packaging Fish and chips or fish n chips, a popular take-away food with British origins, consists of deep-fried fish in batter or breadcrumbs with deep-fried potatoes. ...

Easter eggs for the visually-impaired

Girl holding a beeping Easter egg

Beeping Easter eggs are Easter eggs that emit various clicks and noises so that the visually-impaired children can hunt for Easter eggs. Some make a single, high-pitched sound and others play a melody. Image File history File links Easteregghunt. ... Image File history File links Easteregghunt. ...

Easter eggs from Croatia Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (1600x1200, 785 KB) Traditional painted easter eggs in Croatia. ...	Drapanka from Poland Image File history File links Drapanka003. ...	Sorbian easter eggs Image File history File links Download high resolution version (974x684, 164 KB) eigenes Foto von Ostereiern - selbst fotografiertes Lichtbild von 2 Selbstgemachten und 3 gekauften Ostereier - unter GNU Free Documentation License gestellt. ... The Sorbs are a Slavic minority indigenous to the region known as Lusatia in the current German states of Saxony and Brandenburg (in former GDR territory). ...	Easter eggs from Vienna Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (1114x719, 1027 KB) Easter eggs for sale at a market in Vienna. ... For other uses, see Vienna (disambiguation). ...
American Easter eggs from Washington, United States Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 800 × 571 pixel Image in higher resolution (2800 × 2000 pixel, file size: 2. ... For the capital city of the United States, see Washington, D.C.. For other uses, see Washington (disambiguation). ...	Belarusian pisanka Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 800 × 600 pixel Image in higher resolution (2048 × 1536 pixel, file size: 1. ...	Candle dripped Easter eggs from South Bend, IN, USA. Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 800 × 600 pixelsFull resolution (2048 × 1536 pixel, file size: 1. ... South Bend is a city located in St. ...

See also

• Paas

References

2008 (MMVIII) is the current year, a leap year that started on Tuesday of the Anno Domini (or common era), in accordance to the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 79th day of the year (80th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2008 (MMVIII) is the current year, a leap year that started on Tuesday of the Anno Domini (or common era), in accordance to the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 79th day of the year (80th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 99th day of the year (100th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Easter egg

• The Vegreville Easter Egg
• Pace-eggs and jarping
• Psanky - Ukrainian Easter Eggs Easy How-to Guide
• EasterEgg Website
• Darbar (dot) info || May 2004 | Easter egg tradition