. There are multiple problems with this theory, however, the Venerable Bede notwithstanding. (Her name means East, from where the sun rises.) Art Print available on my Etsy shop! The word Easter is not inspired by the goddess . Also the hare in the corner of the card. Eggs. While some scholars argue that the word Easter comes from "Pesach," the Hebrew word for Passover, others believe it was derived from an Anglo-Saxo spring goddess . Her name means "alive, living, being, existing.". This goddess was a symbol of fertility and there is an element of new life to the story, as she was believed to have raised up plants from . For centuries, the Church fought to turn people from paganism. The Ostara is a pagan festival, celebrated on the spring equinox because this is the period of fertility and the rebirth of the earth. In the lore of the English Saxons, her name is recorded but once, by the English churchman, Bede. As a holiday, Easter predates Christianity and was originally the name for Spring Equinox celebrations. She is also a dawn goddess, and may be related to the Greek Goddess of the dawn Eos. Easter eggs are the most popular out of all non-Christian Easter pagan traditions. She has many similarities to the Nordic fertility Goddesses Frigg and Freya. Called Ēastre in some dialects, and in others Ēastr o, this famous Anglo-Saxon goddess is associated with Spring, and the East. The traditional colors of the festival are green, yellow and purple. 4 yr. ago. So where does this story come from? iUniverse, 2010, p. 133) . sukiagi. How the Goddess of Spring Can Help You Eostre rules over fertility, ask Eostre Goddess to bring fertility to you if you're trying to conceive. Many historians believe that the evidence is strong that Eostre is the same as ISHTAR or ASHTORETH. Eostre is associated with the coming of spring and the dawn, and her festival is celebrated at the spring equinox. Semiramis (Easter) was the goddess of Fertility. 2. Continue this thread . The spring goddess Eostre, as depicted by Franz Xaver Winterhalter in his painting titled "Spring". While Easter is a Christian holiday, many of the customs associated with it have their roots in pagan traditions. Easter Origin: Eostre - Ostara Eostre and the German variation of that name Ostara all mean East. Here are more: The Encyclopedia Mythica explains that: Ostara is the personification of the rising sun. 11 followers Eostre is the Germanic goddess of dawn who is celebrated during the Spring Equinox. For centuries, the Church fought to turn people from paganism. Once Christianity spread through Europe and the holiday . One theory is that the symbol of the rabbit stems from pagan tradition, specifically the festival of Eostre—a goddess of fertility . Eggs represent similar themes of . Nice spot! The pagan religion having died out at the onslaught of Christianity, little is known about the goddess Ēastre, or Ēostre (Northumbrian Old English), besides that she was . While Easter is a Christian holiday, many of the customs associated with it have their roots in pagan traditions. Modern pagans latched onto this idea, and further associated Eostre, the Anglo-Saxon goddess of spring and fertility, with Ostara, a Germanic goddess of spring. Contemporary pagans cite this source as a reason to say that Eostre was the goddess of Easter. She is the goddess of spring and dawn and the goddess of fertility. Easter eggs, representing birth, nod to both pagan and Christian traditions. Ostara is elebrated around or during the spring equinox in March. Eostre has been made to be a . Goddess Eostre / Ostara. In China, figures of hares are commonly found at Chinese moon festivals, where they represent fertility. Eostre was regarded as a goddess of fertility and has been associated with the Northern European Saxons, though there are variations of her name as she was adopted by different pagan civilisations. Eggs, a symbol of birth and fertility, were naturally associated with springtime. The word Easter looks a lot like the Spring Goddess's name Eostre, doesn't it? In 520, Dionysius Exiguus used the old data of Alexandria to create a new table to calculate Easter. Since Ishtar or Eostre, was a goddess of fertility-and because rabbits procreate quickly-the rabbit became associated with the sexual act, and the egg became a symbol of "birth" and "renewal." (Chapman TL. "The sun rises in the East…". Eostre might sound a bit odd to a person; however, it does sound quite similar to the holiday of Easter. Shaw and Garden Stone in their books make clear that ZERO mentions of fertility exist with the Goddess Eostre until the 1600s when this suddenly is equated with Christian Easter in the written record. On the old Germanic calendar, the equivalent month to April was called "Ōstarmānod" - or Easter-month. Ostara is oft compared to the Sumerian goddess Ishtar, the goddess of Fertility. All About Eostre - The Pagan Goddess of Dawn. For centuries, the Church fought to turn people from paganism. There is very little documented evidence to prove this, but one popular legend is that Eostre found a . Ēostre or Ostara (Northumbrian Old English: Ēostre; West Saxon Old English: Ēastre; Old High German: *Ôstara) is a goddess in Germanic paganism who, by way of the Germanic month bearing her name (Northumbrian: Ēosturmōnaþ; West Saxon: Ēastermōnaþ; Old High German: Ôstarmânoth), is the namesake of the festival of Easter. The word Easter originated from the West Saxon Old English Ēastre, goddess of the dawn of the Germanic peoples of Europe, including the English or Anglo-Saxon people. Easter eggs are the most popular out of all non-Christian Easter pagan traditions. The month of April was called Eosturmonath and is the namesake of the festival of Easter. Eostre might sound a bit odd to a person; however, it does sound quite similar to the holiday of Easter. The books and historical sources (two) have words meaning "East" and . Živa. In this book, he writes a few lines about ancient Easter traditions of the pagan Anglo-Saxons. Eostre Goddess represents new life or rebirth. There is no evidence of them being goddesses of fertility. He writes that they called it Ēostre in the Old English language, that it was held during a month they referred to as the Ēosturmōnaþ ("Eostre´s Month"), which was the equivalent of April, and that it was held in honor of a goddess called Eostre. Indeed, some folklorists have suggested that the Easter Bunny derives from an ancient Anglo-Saxon myth, concerning the fertility goddess Ostara. Eostre is the pagan fertility goddess of humans and crops. Ostara is a spring celebration. Eostre (Ostara) is an Anglo-Saxon Goddess who is associated with the beginning of summer, freshness, fertility, May Queen, Beltane festival and a young girl becoming a woman. They aren't directly linked to Christianity or Jesus' resurrection but were a part of the north and east European pagan springtime holiday in honor of the goddess Eostre. Area of Influence: Their fertility Fertility and rebirth of the earth were the two main reasons for Ostara festivities. The Sumerian goddess Inanna was known outside of Mesopotamia by her Babylonian name, "Ishtar.". Some historians claim Easter comes from Eostre, the pagan goddess of fertility and spring. She is believed to be in charge of the birth, germination, and growth of living things in Nature. At the Equinox of Spring, when the hours of light are balanced to be precisely the same as those of hours of darkness . The word "Easter" is thought by many to derive from the name of an ancient Northern goddess of spring and fertility, Eostre. She was revered in the ancient world for ushering in the coming of the new season, and as we know from watching the world transform at this time of year, life itself. There are multiple problems with this theory, however, the Venerable Bede notwithstanding. One theory is that the symbol of the rabbit stems from pagan tradition, specifically the festival of Eostre—a goddess of fertility . A Christian scholar around 672-735, asserted that Easter was named after Eostre (a.k.a. Eggs and rabbits are sacred to Her, as is the full moon, since the ancients saw in its markings the image of a rabbit or hare. In it, I wrote about the "Easter is originally the celebration of Ishtar, the Assyrian and Babylonian goddess of fertility and sex." Contrary to popular opinion, the idea that ancient deities were somehow the gods or goddesses "of" simple, particular things is far too simplistic. The first association of the rabbit with Easter, according to Professor Cusack, was a mention of . Also known as the Vernal Equinox, will occur on March 20th, 2021 and 2022. According to Hann, rabbits and hares are associated with ancient symbols of fertility, particularly the idea of fertility in the spring and the spring equinox. Once Christianity spread through Europe and the holiday . . Origins and Genealogy: Very little is known about the origins of this Germanic Goddess. Ostara is named after the German goddess Eostre, which is traditionally held in April months to celebrate birth, renewal, and rebirth. However, Easter isn't the only festival with pagan origins. You probably know most of the symbols of Ostara. However, Easter isn't the only festival with pagan origins. Eostre is widely regarded as the goddess of fertility. Today, Wiccans and Neo-pagans recognise Eostre in the form of Ostara, from Old German, and they celebrate Ostara, the start of the zodiacal year, as . One of the most revered aspects of Ostara for both ancient peoples was a spirit of renewal. Spiritually speaking, this is a time to renew ourselves and our devotion to any deities we may work with. According to the Venerable Bede, Eostre was the Saxon version of a Germanic goddess called Ostara. The "hare in the moon" is far more prevalent than the "man in the moon." In ancient Anglo-Saxon myth, the goddess Eostre/Ostara/Astarte, etc., is associated with the spring and fertility, the moon, and also personifiies greeting the rising sun. Her sacred animal was probably the hare. The world is being reborn. Eostre - the Germanic goddess of dawn and fertility, whose name gives us the word Easter - must be pleased. Eostre is thought to have been the Anglo-Saxon goddess of Spring and of Rebirth, but we don't know much about her. Eostre (pronounced East-ra) was the Anglo-Saxon goddess of the dawn, from whom "East" (where the sun rises) and "Easter" got its name. The Goddess Ēostre from Old Germany In "The Reckoning of Time" published in 725, English monk Saint Bede wrote that the Paschal month was an English month that corresponded to April. ). Eostre: the Goddess of Renewal and the Pagan Origins of Easter. We must also "ditch" the idea that Eostre is a Fertility Goddess. In some cases these deities are directly associated with sex, and in others they simply embody related attributes. A few months ago, I wrote a piece titled "The Greatest Story Ever Sold," which became one of the more popular of my columns. Many Christians choose to call Easter "Resurrection Day," which is more accurate due to the fact that the word "Easter" is connected to a pagan goddess and pagan myths. Eostre was a goddess of the sunrise and spring. Eostre, Goddess of Spring and Fertility. It's a time to plant the seeds for what you want to grow throughout the year. Here is a comprehensive look at the origins of Ostara and the traditions and practices . Domains: Fertility, Sex, Planting. --~Attributes and Correspondences~--. In modern pagan and Wiccan tradition, Ostara is the time when the maiden Goddess meets her reborn consort in the form of Pan or the . We will have to go centuries back, to an old monk. Eastre). What most pagans don't know is that his description of Pre-Christian traditions is contemptible (after all he is a Christian monk, with the sole goal of converting pagans).What's more, we have to remember that the Anglo-Saxons invaded and merged with the native Britons. While some scholars argue that the word Easter comes from "Pesach," the Hebrew word for Passover, others believe it was derived from an Anglo-Saxo spring goddess . She is only mentioned once in Anglo-Saxon literature. Her feast day was held on the full moon following the vernal equinox-almost the identical calculation as for the Christian Easter in the west. Her symbols (like the egg and the bunny) were and still are. Hares, Birds, Eggs, a Woman with a hare. According to most sources, the name "Easter" comes from Eostre, a Germanic and Norse goddess named for the dawn, or a similarly named Celtic . The exact origins of the Easter bunny are clouded in mystery. Ēostre is attested solely by Bede in his 8th-century work De . ). But in England, where Eostre was honored during the Eostre-month (Eosturmonath, as Bede called it), the goddess lent her name to Easter. The Easter egg is often said to be a symbol of Eostre and this 'fact' is used as 'evidence' that Eostre was a fertility goddess. We must also "ditch" the idea that Eostre is a Fertility Goddess. Both celebrate the season's new life and renewal. Share. Modern-day pagans celebrate Ostara as part of the eight sabbats who observe it from March 19 to March 23. English and German are in the minority of languages that use a . The exact origins of the Easter bunny are clouded in mystery. This goddess became the namesake of Easter. He added that early traditions from Germany involved a festivity dedicated to the pre-Christian German goddess Ēostre. According to the tale, Eostre found a bird freezing to death and turned it into a rabbit to keep it warm . A fertility deity is a god or goddess in mythology associated with fertility, pregnancy, and birth. She was the Great Mother Goddess of the Saxon people in Northern Europe. There are multiple problems with this theory, however, the Venerable Bede notwithstanding. The books and historical sources (two) have words meaning "East" and . It is a pastoral recognition of the Spring Equinox, and although a figment of the imagination, her incarnation is glorified in myths and legends and rites and rituals. Historical Attestations. Modern pagans latched onto this idea, and further associated Eostre, the Anglo-Saxon goddess of spring and fertility, with Ostara, a Germanic goddess of spring. Symbols of Eostre and Ostara " 1 Their names were derived from the ancient word for spring: "Eastre." It's likely that Eostre was a localized goddess . In southern Medieval Germany, the festival Ôstarûn similarly gave its name to the month Ôstarmânôth, and to the modern feast of Ostern ('Easter'), suggesting that a goddess named * Ôstara was also worshipped there. The Anglo-Saxons worshipped the goddess Eostre, referred to by the Venerable Bede in De Temporum Ratione (AD 725), in which he also mentions the indigenous English name of the month: "Eostur-monath has a name that is now translated as 'Paschal month', and which was once called after a goddess of theirs named Eostre, in whose honour feasts were celebrated in that month." Eostre's first appearance in primary sources in when the Venerable Bede tells us that April is known as Eostremonath, named for a goddess that the Anglo-Saxons honored in the spring. According to Bede in his "De temporum ratione" ("The Reckoning of Time"), the Christian holiday "was called after a goddess of theirs named Ēostre, in whose honor feasts were celebrated in that.