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Easter myth #1:
Easter is named after Eostre, but it isn't based on an Eostre festival. The festival originated in the 2nd century Mediterranean. The name 'Easter' is an oddity, specific to English. Most languages call it something related to 'Pascha' (< Pesach 'Passover').
Easter is named after Eostre, but it isn't based on an Eostre festival. The festival originated in the 2nd century Mediterranean. The name 'Easter' is an oddity, specific to English. Most languages call it something related to 'Pascha' (< Pesach 'Passover').
Easter myth #2:
Easter doesn't have anything to do with Ishtar/Astarte. Ishtar comes from ancient Babylonia; 'Easter' is specifically English in origin, and comes from an 8th century Northumbrian source. (And most languages don't call it that ... see myth #1 above.)
Easter doesn't have anything to do with Ishtar/Astarte. Ishtar comes from ancient Babylonia; 'Easter' is specifically English in origin, and comes from an 8th century Northumbrian source. (And most languages don't call it that ... see myth #1 above.)
Easter myth #3:
Incidentally, 'Eostre' may be related to a proto-Germanic goddess 'Ostara', but Ostara is only conjectural. The only evidence for a goddess named Ostara is Eostre. Old Germanic 'Ostara' was simply the word for ... Easter. The Christian festival, that is.
Incidentally, 'Eostre' may be related to a proto-Germanic goddess 'Ostara', but Ostara is only conjectural. The only evidence for a goddess named Ostara is Eostre. Old Germanic 'Ostara' was simply the word for ... Easter. The Christian festival, that is.
(Note on myth #3: English and German are the only languages that name the festival in this way. It's possible this is because of the role played by English missionaries like St Boniface in the christianisation of Germany.)
Easter myth #4:
The date of Easter is affected by lunar phases, but that doesn't make it pagan. Lunar and lunisolar calendars were simply the standard way of designing calendars in antiquity. The first ever solar calendar was introduced about 75 years before Jesus' execution.
The date of Easter is affected by lunar phases, but that doesn't make it pagan. Lunar and lunisolar calendars were simply the standard way of designing calendars in antiquity. The first ever solar calendar was introduced about 75 years before Jesus' execution.
(Myth #4, continued.) It's also related to the equinox. That isn't especially pagan either. Equinox festivals weren't exactly a dime a dozen in ancient religions. If you're looking for the origin of equinox festivals, Easter itself is a strong candidate.
Easter myth #5:
The Easter Bunny isn't pagan. It comes from 17th century Germany. Rabbit imagery exists all over history, but there's no reason to see it as genetically related: rabbits are common. The 17th century Easter Bunny is a millennium away from anything pagan.
The Easter Bunny isn't pagan. It comes from 17th century Germany. Rabbit imagery exists all over history, but there's no reason to see it as genetically related: rabbits are common. The 17th century Easter Bunny is a millennium away from anything pagan.
(Note on myth #5: it was probably originally an Easter Critter. Different parts of Germany have had the Easter Fox and the Easter Stork, and possibly others. Rabbit-ness doesn't seem to be an integral part of the Easter Bunny.)
Easter myth #6:
Hot cross buns DEFINITELY aren't pagan. They come from 18th century England. They were always solidly commercial, not driven by the church. (Which was a Protestant church, by the way.)
Hot cross buns DEFINITELY aren't pagan. They come from 18th century England. They were always solidly commercial, not driven by the church. (Which was a Protestant church, by the way.)
(Note 1 on myth #6: sorry, St Albans, the Alban bun isn't the original. The story about a 14th century monk inventing the bun was a marketing idea made up by a London baker in or shortly before 1850. His name was G. Collier, and his bakery was at 66 Wardour St.)
(Note 2 on myth #6: there's no such thing as ancient Greek cross buns. The origin of the idea is an 1876 book that REJECTED it. The ancient Greek word is 'bous', not 'boun', and it nearly always means 'cow', not 'bun'. And Roman bread was usually divided into 8 segments, not 4.)
Easter myth #7:
Easter eggs MAY POSSIBLY have pagan origins, but there's no way to reconstruct a chain of influence. It's like with the rabbits: they're common, so there's no reason to imagine a genetic relationship between imageries of different times and places.
Easter eggs MAY POSSIBLY have pagan origins, but there's no way to reconstruct a chain of influence. It's like with the rabbits: they're common, so there's no reason to imagine a genetic relationship between imageries of different times and places.
(Myth #7, continued.) The earliest association of eggs with Easter seems to lie in egg blessings at Easter, in mediaeval western Europe. The mediaevalists I've read on the subject think the idea was that eggs were simply a special treat after the end of Lent.
(Note 1 on myth #7: yes, early Christians did like phoenix imagery, as a symbol of resurrection. But the contemporary belief about phoenixes were reborn by emerging from rotting flesh, not by hatching out of eggs.)
(Note 2 on myth #7: yes, I know Wikipedia lists a bunch of legends, and says painted eggs existed in Mesopotamia. Maybe try looking at the sources. The Mesopotamian one is 17th century: it's talking about Christians living in modern era Mesopotamia.) https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Easter_egg&oldid=948166259#Christian_traditions
More details with references in my pieces from 2018. Here's part 1: http://kiwihellenist.blogspot.com/2018/03/easter-and-paganism-1.html
