{"id":896,"date":"2022-04-13T15:35:00","date_gmt":"2022-04-13T22:35:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/sacred-hares-banished-winter-witches-and-pagan-worship-the-roots-of-easter-bunny-traditions-are-ancient\/"},"modified":"2025-02-10T15:38:13","modified_gmt":"2025-02-10T23:38:13","slug":"ancient-roots-of-easter-bunny","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/ancient-roots-of-easter-bunny\/","title":{"rendered":"Sacred hares, banished winter witches and pagan worship &#8211; the roots of Easter Bunny traditions are\u00a0ancient"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n    \n                                          \n\n  \n    \n\n\n\n\n\n\n<div\n  class=\"cc--component-container cc--article-hero \"\n\n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  >\n  <div class=\"c--component c--article-hero\"\n    \n      >\n\n    \n<div class=\"inner-wrapper\">\n          \n<div class=\"f--field f--image\">\n\n    \n    \n    \n    \n    \n    \n              \n      <img\n                            data-src=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2023\/04\/story-3674-768x432.jpg\"\n          data-srcset=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2023\/04\/story-3674-768x432.jpg 768w\"          data-sizes=\"(min-width:1200px) 75vw, (min-width:768px) 83vw, 100vw\"          class=\"lazyload\"\n        \n                  alt=\"Sacred hares, banished winter witches and pagan worship - the roots of Easter Bunny traditions are\u00a0ancient\"\n        \n        \n                                      \/>\n\n    \n    \n  \n  \n\n<\/div>\n  \n      <div class=\"image-caption\">\n          \n<div class=\"f--field f--description\">\n\n    \n  Children celebrating Easter, with their Easter eggs. (Image Source: iStock.)\n\n\n<\/div>\n    <\/div>\n  \n  <div class=\"text-wrapper\">\n          <nav aria-label=\"Breadcrumb\" class=\"breadcrumbs\">\n        <ul>\n                      <li><a href=\"\/news\/stories\/\">News<\/a><\/li>\n                      <li><a href=\"\/news\/stories\/\/?category=faculty\">Faculty<\/a><\/li>\n                  <\/ul>\n      <\/nav>\n    \n              \n<div class=\"f--field f--page-title\">\n\n    \n  <h1>Sacred hares, banished winter witches and pagan worship &#8211; the roots of Easter Bunny traditions are\u00a0ancient<\/h1>\n\n\n<\/div>\n    \n          <div class=\"subtitle\">\n            \n<div class=\"f--field f--description\">\n\n    \n  The Easter Bunny typically evokes memories of fun and colorfully painted eggs, but this mythical rabbit has prehistoric origins and is a longstanding cultural symbol that keeps returning each spring.\n\n\n<\/div>\n      <\/div>\n    \n           <strong class=\"author-field\"><span >By<\/span><a href=\"mailto:communication@dornsife.usc.edu\">Tok Thompson<\/a><\/strong>\n    \n          <span class=\"post-date-field\">April 13, 2022<\/span>\n      <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n  <\/div><\/div>\n\n  \n    \n\n\n\n\n\n\n<div\n  class=\"cc--component-container cc--social-share \"\n\n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  >\n  <div class=\"c--component c--social-share\"\n    \n      >\n\n    \n  <div class=\"content-wrapper\">\n    <span class=\"a2a_kit a2a_kit_size_32 addtoany_list\" style=\"line-height: 32px;\">\n      <span class=\"title\">\n        Share\n      <\/span>\n                        <a class=\"a2a_button_copy_link\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"\/#copy_link\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" title=\"Link\">\n            <span class=\"a2a_svg a2a_s__default a2a_s_copy_link\">\n              <svg height=\"19\" viewBox=\"0 0 19 19\" width=\"19\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"m7.43475275 9.52380952-2.17490843 2.26076008c-1.08745421 1.058837-1.68841575 2.518315-1.68841575 4.0350275 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xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"m8.14285714 9.42857143c-.17142857 0-.34285714 0-.51428571.08571428l7.28571427 6.34285719c.3428572.2571428.6857143.2571428.9428572 0l7.2857142-6.34285719c-.0857142-.08571428-.2571428-.08571428-.4285714-.08571428zm-1.28571428 1.11428567v.1714286 8.5714286c0 .6857143.6 1.2857143 1.28571428 1.2857143h14.57142856c.6857143 0 1.2857143-.6 1.2857143-1.2857143v-8.5714286c0-.0857143 0-.0857143 0-.1714286l-7.2 6.3428572c-.7714286.6857143-1.8857143.6857143-2.6571429 0z\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\" transform=\"translate(-6 -9)\"\/><\/svg>\n            <\/span>\n            <span class=\"a2a_label visually-hidden\">Email<\/span>\n          <\/a>\n                  <\/span>\n  <\/div>\n\n  <\/div><\/div>\n \n\n\n\n  \n    \n\n\n\n\n\n\n<div\n  class=\"cc--component-container cc--rich-text \"\n\n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  >\n  <div class=\"c--component c--rich-text\"\n    \n      >\n\n    \n      \n<div class=\"f--field f--wysiwyg\">\n\n    \n  <p>The Easter Bunny is a much celebrated character in American Easter celebrations. On Easter Sunday, children look for hidden special treats, often chocolate Easter eggs, that the Easter Bunny might have left behind.<\/p>\n<p>As a <a href=\"https:\/\/scholar.google.com\/citations?user=prZyKrMAAAAJ&amp;hl=en\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">folklorist<\/a>, I\u2019m aware of the origins of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.researchgate.net\/publication\/346357286_The_Shifting_Baselines_of_the_British_Hare_Goddess\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">long and interesting journey<\/a> this mythical figure has taken from European prehistory to today.<\/p>\n<h2>Religious role of the hare<\/h2>\n<p>Easter is a celebration of spring and new life. Eggs and flowers are rather obvious symbols of female fertility, but in European traditions, the bunny, with its amazing reproduction potential, is not far behind.<\/p>\n<p>In European traditions, the Easter Bunny is known as the Easter Hare. The symbolism of the hare has had many tantalizing ritual and religious roles down through the years.<\/p>\n<p>Hares were <a href=\"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1016\/j.jasrep.2020.102672\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">given ritual burials<\/a> alongside humans during the Neolithic age in Europe. Archaeologists have interpreted this as a religious ritual, with hares representing <a href=\"https:\/\/www.exeter.ac.uk\/news\/research\/title_787590_en.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">rebirth<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Over a thousand years later, during the Iron Age, ritual burials for hares were common, and in 51 B.C., Julius Caesar mentions that in Britain, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.researchgate.net\/publication\/346357286_The_Shifting_Baselines_of_the_British_Hare_Goddess\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">hares were not eaten<\/a>, due to their religious significance.<\/p>\n<p>Caesar would likely have known that in the Classical Greek tradition, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theoi.com\/Text\/PhilostratusElder1A.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">hares were sacred to Aphrodite<\/a>, the goddess of love. Meanwhile, Aphrodite\u2019s son Eros was often depicted carrying a hare, <a href=\"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1515\/9783110308815.311\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">as a symbol of unquenchable desire<\/a>.<\/p>\n<div class=\"news-image-full\">\n<figure style=\"width: 433px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/images.theconversation.com\/files\/458014\/original\/file-20220413-26-khhsks.jpeg\" alt=\"A painting depicting a young woman handing baby Jesus to Virgin Mary, who puts one hand around him, while holding a hare with the other.\" width=\"433\" height=\"342\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">\u2018The Madonna of the Rabbit,\u2019 a painting from 1530, depicting the Virgin Mary with a hare. (A painting by artist Titian (1490-1576), Louvre Museum, Paris.)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>From the Greek world through the Renaissance, hares often appear as symbols of sexuality in literature and art. For example, the Virgin Mary is often <a href=\"http:\/\/musee.louvre.fr\/oal\/viergeaulapinTitien\/viergeaulapinTitien_acc_en.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">shown with a white hare or rabbit<\/a>, symbolizing that she overcame sexual temptation.<\/p>\n<h2>Hare meat and witches\u2019 mischief<\/h2>\n<p>But it is in the folk traditions of England and Germany that the figure of the hare is specifically connected to Easter. Accounts from the 1600s in Germany describe children hunting for Easter eggs hidden by the Easter Hare, much as in the contemporary United States today.<\/p>\n<p>Written accounts from England around the same time also mention the Easter Hare, particularly in terms of traditional Easter hare hunts, and the eating of hare meat at Easter.<\/p>\n<p>One tradition, known as the \u201cHare Pie Scramble,\u201d was held at Hallaton, a village in Leicestershire, England, which involved eating a pie made with hare meat and people \u201cscrambling\u201d for a slice. In 1790, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.jstor.org\/stable\/1253567\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">local parson tried to stop the custom<\/a> due to its pagan associations, but he was unsuccessful, and the custom continues in that village until this day.<\/p>\n<p>The eating of the hare may have been associated with various longstanding folk traditions of scaring away witches at Easter. Throughout Northern Europe, folk traditions record a strong belief that witches would often <a href=\"https:\/\/www.jstor.org\/stable\/1260796\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">take the form of the hare<\/a>, usually for causing mischief such as stealing milk from neighbors\u2019 cows. Witches in medieval Europe were often believed to be able to suck out the life energy of others, making them ill, and suffer.<\/p>\n<p>The idea that the witches of winter should be <a href=\"https:\/\/www.jstor.org\/stable\/24862791\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">banished at Easter<\/a> is a common European folk motif, appearing in several festivities and rituals. The spring equinox, with its promise of new life, was held symbolically in opposition to the life-draining activities of witches and winter.<\/p>\n<p>This idea provides the underlying rationale behind various festivities and rituals, such as the \u201cOsterfeuer,\u201d or the Easter Fire, a celebration in Germany involving large outdoor bonfires <a href=\"https:\/\/www.twosmallpotatoes.com\/osterfeuer-embracing-easter-traditions-in-germany\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">meant to scare away witches<\/a>. In Sweden, the popular folklore states that at Easter, the witches all fly away on their broomsticks <a href=\"http:\/\/realscandinavia.com\/in-sweden-easter-is-a-time-for-witches\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">to feast and dance with the Devil<\/a> on the legendary island of Bl\u00e5kulla, in the Baltic Sea.<\/p>\n<h2>Pagan origins<\/h2>\n<p>In 1835, the folklorist <a href=\"https:\/\/www.newworldencyclopedia.org\/entry\/Jacob_Grimm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Jacob Grimm<\/a>, one of the famous team of the fairy tale \u201cBrothers Grimm,\u201d argued that the Easter Hare <a href=\"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1080\/00438243.2018.1515655\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">was connected with a goddess<\/a>, whom he imagined would have been called \u201cOstara\u201d in ancient German. He derived this name from the Anglo-Saxon goddess Eostre, that <a href=\"https:\/\/exploringcelticciv.web.unc.edu\/bede-the-history-of-the-english-church\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Bede<\/a>, an Anglo-Saxon monk considered to be the father of English history, mentioned in 731.<\/p>\n<div class=\"news-image-full\">\n<figure style=\"width: 467px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/images.theconversation.com\/files\/458019\/original\/file-20220413-26-jdne8p.jpeg\" alt=\"The goddess \u00c3\u201e\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ostre\/*Ostara flies through the heavens surrounded by winged angels, beams of light and animals.\" width=\"467\" height=\"292\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">\u2018Ostara\u2019 by Johannes Gehrts, created in 1884. The goddess \u00c3\u201e\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ostre flies through the heavens surrounded by Roman-inspired putti, beams of light, and animals. (Felix Dahn, Therese Dahn, Therese (von Droste-H\u00fclshoff) Dahn, Frau, Therese von Droste-H\u00fclshoff Dahn (1901) via Wikimedia Commons.)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>Bede noted that in eighth-century England the month of April was called Eosturmonath, or Eostre Month, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.jstor.org\/stable\/1253567\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">named after the goddess Eostre<\/a>. He wrote that a pagan festival of spring in the name of the goddess had become assimilated into the Christian celebration of the resurrection of Christ.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s interesting that while most European languages refer to the Christian holiday with names that come from the Jewish holiday of Passover, such as P\u00e2ques in French, or P\u00e5sk in Swedish, German and English languages retain this older, non-biblical word, Easter.<\/p>\n<p>Recent <a href=\"https:\/\/www.researchgate.net\/publication\/346357286_The_Shifting_Baselines_of_the_British_Hare_Goddess\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">archaeological research<\/a> appears to <a href=\"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.2752\/175169708X329372\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">confirm the worship of Eostre<\/a> in parts of England and in Germany, with the hare as her main symbol. The Easter Bunny therefore seems to recall these <a href=\"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1080\/00438243.2018.1515655\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">pre-Christian celebrations of spring<\/a>, heralded by the vernal equinox and personified by the Goddess Eostre.<\/p>\n<p>[<em>Over 150,000 readers rely on The Conversation\u2019s newsletters to understand the world.<\/em> <a href=\"https:\/\/memberservices.theconversation.com\/newsletters\/?source=inline-150ksignup\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Sign up today<\/a>.]<\/p>\n<p>After a long, cold, northern winter, it seems natural enough for people to celebrate themes of resurrection and rebirth. The flowers are blooming, birds are laying eggs, and baby bunnies are hopping about.<\/p>\n<p>As new life emerges in spring, the Easter Bunny hops back once again, providing a longstanding cultural symbol to remind us of the cycles and stages of our own lives.<!-- Below is The Conversation's page counter tag. Please DO NOT REMOVE. --><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" style=\"border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;\" src=\"https:\/\/counter.theconversation.com\/content\/180484\/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic\" alt=\"The Conversation\" width=\"1\" height=\"1\" \/><!-- End of code. If you don't see any code above, please get new code from the Advanced tab after you click the republish button. The page counter does not collect any personal data. More info: https:\/\/theconversation.com\/republishing-guidelines --><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\/profiles\/tok-thompson-567103\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Tok Thompson<\/a>, Professor of Anthropology and Communication, <em><a href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\/institutions\/usc-dornsife-college-of-letters-arts-and-sciences-2669\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<p>This article is republished from <a href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Conversation<\/a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\/sacred-hares-banished-winter-witches-and-pagan-worship-the-roots-of-easter-bunny-traditions-are-ancient-180484\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">original article<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n  <\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n  \n        \n  \n    \n\n\n\n\n\n\n<div\n  class=\"cc--component-container cc--article-related-stories \"\n\n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  >\n  <div class=\"c--component c--article-related-stories\"\n    \n      >\n\n    \n  <div class=\"inner-wrapper\">\n    \n                  <article>\n              \n<div class=\"f--field f--cta-title\">\n\n    \n  <h3>\n          <a href=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/history-of-christianity-and-dance\/\" \n                        class=\"\" \n      >Why Christianity put away its dancing shoes \u2014 only to find them again centuries later<\/a>\n      <\/h3>\n\n\n<\/div>\n        <\/article>\n              <article>\n              \n<div class=\"f--field f--cta-title\">\n\n    \n  <h3>\n          <a href=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/on-the-naughty-list-beware-krampus-is-coming\/\" \n                        class=\"\" \n      >On the naughty list? Beware, Krampus is coming!<\/a>\n      <\/h3>\n\n\n<\/div>\n        <\/article>\n              <article>\n              \n<div class=\"f--field f--cta-title\">\n\n    \n  <h3>\n          <a href=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/halloween-ghost-folklore-morality-and-ethics\/\" \n                        class=\"\" \n      >Why believing in ghosts can make you a better person<\/a>\n      <\/h3>\n\n\n<\/div>\n        <\/article>\n            <\/div>\n\n\n  <\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Easter Bunny typically evokes memories of fun and colorfully painted eggs, but this mythical rabbit has prehistoric origins and is a longstanding cultural symbol that keeps returning each spring.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":52,"featured_media":899,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[23,10],"tags":[129,87,103,104,83],"class_list":["post-896","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-arts-and-culture","category-faculty","tag-anthropology","tag-expert-viewpoint","tag-holidays","tag-religion","tag-the-conversation"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.1.1 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Sacred hares, banished winter witches and pagan worship - the roots of Easter Bunny traditions are\u00a0ancient<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The Easter Bunny has prehistoric origins and is a longstanding cultural symbol that keeps returning each spring.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/ancient-roots-of-easter-bunny\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Sacred hares, banished winter witches and pagan worship - the roots of Easter Bunny traditions are\u00a0ancient\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The Easter Bunny has prehistoric origins and is a longstanding cultural symbol that keeps returning each spring.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/ancient-roots-of-easter-bunny\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"USC Dornsife News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/uscdornsife\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2022-04-13T22:35:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-02-10T23:38:13+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2023\/04\/story-3674.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"800\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"520\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Margaret Crable\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@uscdornsife\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@uscdornsife\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/ancient-roots-of-easter-bunny\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/ancient-roots-of-easter-bunny\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Margaret Crable\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/079941d34348eaa3a2f145191f66290c\"},\"headline\":\"Sacred hares, banished winter witches and pagan worship &#8211; 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