Easter Symbols and Their Meanings

Many of the symbols for modern holidays started hundreds of years ago, and Easter's symbols are not exception. Easter is associated with spring and Christianity, so some of the symbols that we recognize as being related to Easter will remind us of things we would expect to see in the spring. But some of the symbols of Easter go back even before the era of Christ. In the days before Christ, pagans celebrated a spring festival in honor of the goddess Eastre. When the Christians came along, their celebration of the resurrection of Christ occurred at about the same time as the festival of Eastre. So converts from pagan worship to Christianity still had a spring festival to enjoy while celebrating the resurrection of Christ.

Easter eggs originate from pagan celebrations that occur during springtime. Eggs symbolize new life for many people, therefore symbolize the newness of Spring. Eggs also symbolize emerging life, since the chick comes out of the egg when it hatches. Eggs symbolize the resurrection of Christ from the grave at Easter time, for Christ comes from the grave just as a chick emerges from an egg when it hatches. People have been decorating eggs in some way since about the 1200s. In some traditions, eggs were not eaten during Lent. When Lent was over, and Easter was celebrated, people decorated the egg's shell and ate the eggs as a celebration of Easter and the end of Lent's penance and fasting.

Decorating Easter eggs is a fun tradition of Easter, but eggs have been decorated for many centuries even before Christ. Eggs were wrapped in gold leaf or colored with paint and exchanged in the times before Christ as a symbol of new life in the spring. Part of some people's Easter celebration is to hide the eggs for children to hunt and find. The White House in America's capitol has an Easter Egg Rolling contest that was originated by President Rutherford B. Hayes in 1878. There is no religious significance to rolling eggs in a race. The contest is just for fun. Today adults hide candy eggs plastic eggs with chocolate or prizes inside them.

Easter candy is also a part of the Easter tradition in many countries. Lent is a time where some Christians give up certain foods. Sweets are one of the foods frequently given up during Lent. When Easter is celebrated, the Lenten fast is over. If a person gave up eating sweets or candy for Easter, they can start eating candy again on Easter Sunday. One of the most popular types of Easter candy is the chocolate Easter egg, which originated in 1800s Europe. Other types of egg shaped candies are enjoyed at Easter time as well. Jelly beans are egg shaped, and are a popular item to place in Easter baskets. Many children receive gifts of candy and toys in an Easter basket on Easter Sunday.

Easter rabbits or bunnies actually originated with the Anglo-Saxons of ancient times. The Anglo-Saxon goddess, Eastre, was symbolized by a rabbit. The Germans brought the Easter rabbit to America and eventually became a part of the Easter celebration in America, even though Americans did not celebrate Easter outside of church until after the American Civil War in the mid 1800s.

Easter lilies, or any type of flower that blooms in the early spring, are symbols of Easter. The Easter lily is actually the Madonna lily, whose pure white color symbolizes the purity of Christ. Flowers such as daffodils, tulips and crocus can be symbols of both Easter and springtime, as well.

Butterflies are symbolic of death and resurrection, because of their life cycle. The caterpillar forms a cocoon, seems to die, and emerges from the cocoon as a butterfly. People liken the lifecycle of the caterpillar, cocoon, and butterfly to that of the death burial and resurrection of Christ.

Candles, lights and Bonfires are used to celebrate Easter in some countries. It is common for Christian churches to use candles to symbolize the light of Christ, whose salvation pierces the darkness of evil. Lights and bonfires are used at Easter time to symbolize the light of Christ, as well.