Easter symbols and where they actually come from

The Easter Bunny traces to German folklore, not ancient paganism

The rabbit's connection to Easter is well-documented from the 17th century onward, but the deeper origins remain unclear (particularly why a mammal that does not lay eggs became the egg-loving holiday's secular mascot). German immigrants brought the tradition in the 1700s, introducing the mythical egg-laying rabbit known as the "Osterhase," whose nests became the Easter basket.

Easter is an uncommon name for Pascha, from the Hebrew 'pesach'

It's often said Easter is derived from pagan rituals. The word "Easter" does stem from a Germanic term for "dawn," but most cultural names for the holiday more clearly point to its Jewish history in the Passover.

Traditionally, a glut of unused eggs during Lent would be decorated at Easter

That's how the tradition started, at least in the more orthodox (or strict) branches of Christianity, which didn't eat meat, dairy, or eggs the whole period. By the end, there was more than could be eaten, so decorations ensued.

Countries that celebrate Easter

Easter is observed as a national holiday in more than 95 countries, with traditions varying wildly—from water fights in Hungary to crime novel reading in Norway—reflecting how thoroughly Christian practice has mixed with local culture.

The average US adult spends roughly $195 on Easter

That's up from $189 in 2025 and the previous record of $192 in 2023. The vast majority of consumers intend to use it on candy (92%), followed by food (89%) and other gifts.

How Eastern Orthodox and other Christians celebrate Easter differently

Western churches switched to the Gregorian calendar in 1582, though the Orthodox Church still calculates Easter using the Julian calendar, which runs 13 days behind. Orthodox Easter also must always follow Jewish Passover. The result is two Easters that can fall up to five weeks apart.

Why Easter's date changes, making it a 'moveable feast'

Unlike Christmas, Easter has no fixed date: It falls on the first Sunday after the first full moon on or after March 21, a formula set by the Council of Nicaea in 325 CE to form a standard across Christianity. The result is a window of 35 possible dates, from March 22 to April 25.

Many New Year's Eve traditions came from German immigrants

While it’s hard to trace the origins of many New Year’s traditions, many of the norms for American New Year’s Eve celebrations come from German immigrants, who significantly influenced American culture in the 1800s. Below is an excerpt from an 1863 New York Times article describing a German New Year’s celebration.

Some believe Valentine's Day evolved from the Roman holiday Lupercalia

The festival, which took place in mid-February, featured Roman priests sacrificing a goat and using its hide to lightly slap women and the land, believing it would bring fertility. Some believe that the Catholic Church repurposed the pagan holiday as a Christian one by attaching it to a saint, but scholars are not certain that this is true.

The prominent role of women in the Easter story

In the first century, women's testimony was not legally admissible in Jewish courts—the historian Josephus wrote that their accounts were not admissible based on a prejudiced view of women. Scholars who argue for the historical reliability of the resurrection point to this as counterintuitive evidence: no one fabricating the story would have chosen women as the prime witnesses.

Halloween originated with the Celtic festival of Samhain

Halloween, a holiday primarily popular in the US and Canada, originated 2,000 years ago with the Celtic people. The Celts interpreted this transition as when ghosts returned to the land of the living, leading to rituals like feasts, bonfires, and wearing costumes made of animal body parts on Oct. 31.

The dreidel is a gambling toy common in Europe in the 18th century

It comes with many Jewish legends and folklore, including claims that young Torah scholars in ancient times used the toy as a secretive means of studying. Historians agree, though, that no evidence of dreidels exists beyond the 18th century.

Krampus is known in Central Europe as Santa's scary counterpart

If you live in Austria or Germany, you've likely heard of the Krampus—a horned, half-goat demon who punishes bad children, sometimes by kidnapping them, sometimes by hitting them with birch switches, and occasionally by bringing them back with him to Hell.

Google Search includes over 50 Easter eggs hidden behind specific search terms

Some queries—besides providing search results—trigger additional effects on the site, including tilting the page after searching for "askew," having the page perform dance moves to the song after searching for "[cha-cha slide]," and the ability to play a version of block breaker after searching for "Atari breakout."

German printer Richard Sellmer revived Advent calendars after World War II

Advent calendar production resumed in 1946, when German printer Richard Sellmer began issuing nostalgic winter-town designs that became classics, later exporting them to the United States. His company still operates today, producing more than 140 varieties.

Stonehenge was part of a continent-wide "henge" boom

While Stonehenge is the most famous, it was one of roughly 1,300 henges built across prehistoric Europe. This piece from the British Museum situates Stonehenge within the broader ceremonial tradition.

The science of springtime, 101

Dive into the basics on springtime including the astronomy that brings it about, natural signs of spring's arrival, and some of the cultural approaches to the season.

The history of ectogenesis and artificial wombs

While the science of artificial wombs is new, the idea goes back to a 1923 Heretics Society of the University of Cambridge lecture where an English biologist was one of the first people to propose an egg could be fertilized outside the womb. This...

No one's sure why it's spelled 'sundae'

There are several different folktales explaining the origins of the popular ice cream dish and its curious name. One claims an enterprising pharmacy used chocolate syrup instead of soda, which was banned on Sundays. Another claims the dish's unique spelling was to avoid offending religious folks who might object to an unholy reference to the Sabbath.

The history and significance of rosemary

Rosemary is more than just an herb—it’s a powerful symbol intertwined with ancient Egypt, Christianity’s origins, Shakespeare, the culinary arts, and more. Native to the Mediterranean area, this plant has accompanied humanity for centuries, providing us with pleasant aroma, adornment, and even medicine. Explore this article for further insight into the significance of our long-standing relationship with rosemary.

The scientific name for northern lights came from two Greco-Roman gods

Although cave paintings may have depicted them millennia earlier, one of the oldest known references to auroras is a Babylonian cuneiform tablet from about 600 BCE. In 1619, Galileo Galilei named the phenomenon in the northern hemisphere "aurora borealis" after the Roman goddess of dawn—Aurora—and the Greek god of the north wind—Boreas.

Chicken vendors are an integral part of Oktoberfest

Ever since the first roasted chicken stall appeared at Oktoberfest in 1885, this rich, satisfying dish has been a crowd favorite for soaking up all that beer. Some estimates put the number of Wiesenhendl, or Wiesn chickens, served each year at 700,000.

Coffee brewing likely originated in Ethiopa and the Arabian Peninsula

A mixture of merchants and colonialism then launched the drink across Europe and the New World. Many European coffee traditions, like the Viennese custom of serving it alongside a small cup of water, are remnants of how coffee has been prepared in the Middle East for centuries.

How Eurovision mirrors European politics

Although Eurovision claims to be nonpolitical, historian Dean Vuletic argues that it is inherently political and, in many ways, the only election in which most of Europe participates. In this brief explainer, he unpacks how the song contest's politics extend back to its first broadcast in 1956, which featured Walter Andreas Schwarz, a Jewish West German who signaled a rebuke to Germany's Nazi past.

Hóngbāo, or traditional red envelopes, can now be shared digitally

The red envelopes people exchange during the Lunar New Year have a long history and plenty of lore. Symbolizing the triumph of good over evil, hóngbāo may be given to anyone from a grandparent to a favorite celebrity. However, never give an amount with a "4" in it, as the pronunciation sounds like the Chinese word for death.

Clever Hans was a 1900s horse that was believed to be able to solve math equations, tell time, and read and comprehend German, until a psychology student discovered how he got his answers.

The idea for the Federal Reserve was conceived in secret in 1910—with bankers donning duck hunt gear for disguise while traveling to a remote country club on Georgia's Jekyll Island

The Brothers Grimm were lawyers before they were storytellers, but became interested in fairy tales as they began investigating how rules and customs had been passed down through cultures.

The American cockroach is actually from Africa, an apparent hitchhiker aboard ships carrying enslaved people, with evidence suggesting the bug may have arrived in the New World as early as the 1600s.

Georgia O'Keeffe's flower paintings are often assumed to be sexual, though the artist claimed she was simply interested in highlighting the beauty of flowers that most people neglect

Learn more about the history of fireworks, which dates back to an accidental invention during an alchemist's quest for information about immortality.

Budweiser stores yeast derived from the original 1800s strain in a secret bunker, which only the Head of Yeast Management can access—not even the CEO

El Niño, Spanish for 'the boy,' was named after Jesus Christ because the phenomenon resembled the weather changes observed around Christmastime.

Poison ivy was sent to Europe in the 1600s as an exotic, ornamental oddity, where it was purposefully grown in the English royal gardens at Kew, the Faculty of Medicine in Paris, and a few other locations.

After the Boston Tea Party, colonists switched to coffee, which became the main morning drink for revolutionaries.

Up to a million Girl Scouts sell about 200 million cookie boxes every spring, generating $800 million, largely because refusing a child is frowned upon

The Dracula character, now seen as the vampire archetype, was inspired by a seafood-induced nightmare its creator experienced.

Explore fun facts from the USPS, including unique post office buildings, a stamp that traveled past Pluto, and more.

The word 'jazz' evolved from 'jasm,' 19th-century American slang for 'energy'

While the first exchange-traded fund (a 'basket' of different assets that can be bought and sold on a stock exchange) in the US only launched in 1993, the global ETF market has grown to more than $10T in the short time since.

The term 'algorithm' originated from the Latinized name of al-Khwārizmī, a 9th-century mathematician whose works introduced Arabic numerals and the decimal-based numeral system to Europe and whose treatise 'Al-Jabr' gave algebra its name.

Ebola species have historically been named after where they were discovered, stigmatizing residents who live there, including Bundibugyo, in Uganda.

Visualize the path of every solar eclipse from 1900 to 2099 and see what each looks like when observed from different locations on Earth.

For centuries, it was common to sleep in two shifts: a few hours at the beginning of the night, and a longer period beginning around midnight

44% of Americans say they pray at least once a day—discover how your state's religiosity stacks up against the rest of the country.

Hotels in Cannes, the glamorous city on the French Riviera, hire hawks to ward off seagulls during the city's famous film festival.

Fear or disgust related to clusters of holes and cracks, called trypophobia, may stem from evolutionary processes to help us avoid pathogens.

SpongeBob exemplifies Aristotle's philosophy for living well because he understands that happiness doesn't come from external factors like money, recognition, or power.

The Great Salt Lake's distinct dual coloration results from high-salinity organisms that only live in the northern portion and produce a purple protein.

See photos of Meteora, a mountainous site in central Greece, home to 14th-century monasteries perched atop soaring outcroppings.