Fun facts about Easter

Holidays
Easter
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Did you know? Many people assume that Easter is always the first Sunday after the first full moon of spring, but it is actually based on a specific ecclesiastical calendar that does not always align with real-time astronomical events.

Fact 1 of 28

28 facts about Easter

  1. 1
    The date of Easter is calculated using a lunisolar calendar, meaning the calculation requires determining the ecclesiastical full moon which can differ from the actual astronomical full moon by up to two days.
  2. 2
    In the United States, children consume millions of pounds of jelly beans every Easter, and if you lined them all up, they would circle the Earth several times.
  3. 3
    Many people believe the Easter Bunny is a rabbit, but historical folklore suggests he was originally a hare, which are biologically larger and much more athletic than domestic rabbits.
  4. 4
    In the 1800s, some people believed that wearing new clothes on Easter Sunday would bring them good luck and that if they did not, birds would drop 'mess' on their old outfits.
  5. 5
    The tradition of the Easter Egg Roll at the White House began because kids were rolling eggs on the grounds of the U.S. Capitol until Congress banned it for destroying the grass.
  6. 6
    The Sunday of Easter is officially part of a 50-day period known as Eastertide.
  7. 7
    Putting a chocolate bunny in the microwave to see if it explodes is generally discouraged by both parents and physics teachers.
  8. 8
    The custom of decorating eggs is technically called pysanka in Ukrainian tradition, involving beeswax and intricate patterns.
  9. 9
    The tallest chocolate bunny ever made weighed over 9,000 pounds and was taller than a professional basketball player.
  10. 10
    In some European countries, people traditionally wear new clothes on Easter Sunday to symbolize a fresh start and good luck for the year.
  11. 11
    If you try to balance an egg on its end during the spring equinox, it will work just as well on any other day of the year, despite the popular internet rumor.
  12. 12
    The world's largest Easter egg hunt involved 501,000 eggs and was held in Florida in 2007.
  13. 13
    It is widely believed that the Easter Bunny is a rabbit, but folklore experts note he was originally a hare, which is a much faster and more athletic animal.
  14. 14
    Some ancient cultures believed the world was hatched from a giant cosmic egg.
  15. 15
    The word Easter is thought to come from Eostre, an ancient Anglo-Saxon goddess of spring and dawn.
  16. 16
    Easter is a 'moveable feast,' meaning its date is not fixed to the solar calendar like Christmas.
  17. 17
    Chocolate bunnies should be eaten ears-first according to 76 percent of American consumers.
  18. 18
    A common misconception is that the Easter Bunny has always delivered chocolate; originally, the hare was said to bring colorful eggs in its basket.
  19. 19
    The earliest possible date for Easter is March 22, and the latest possible date is April 25.
  20. 20
    In some parts of rural England, there is a tradition called bottle-kicking that takes place around Easter, involving a violent race to move small barrels across a field.
  21. 21
    Rabbits are physically unable to vomit, which is a fun bit of biology that makes them very different from many other pets.
  22. 22
    In the Middle Ages, people believed that eggs laid on Good Friday would turn into diamonds if kept for a hundred years.
  23. 23
    Many people mistakenly believe the date of Easter changes just because of the moon, but it is actually tied to a specific ecclesiastical calendar that does not always align with the actual astronomical moon.
  24. 24
    Americans consume over 120 million pounds of Easter candy every year.
  25. 25
    The world's tallest chocolate Easter egg was made in Italy in 2011, and it stood over 34 feet tall and weighed more than 15,000 pounds.
  26. 26
    The tradition of the Easter Bunny originated from a German folklore figure called Oschter Haws, a mysterious hare that judged whether children were good or bad at the start of the season.
  27. 27
    The date of Easter is determined by a complex astronomical calculation called the Computus, which hinges on the first Sunday after the first ecclesiastical full moon occurring on or after the vernal equinox.
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