It is the time of year again when the sun shines ever so warmly, the flowers begin to bloom in multitudes of colors, and the Easter Bunny comes to bring Easter eggs for Easter egg hunts. How did the tradition of Easter egg hunts come about though?

To be clear, the Easter Bunny is the key to understanding the history of Easter egg hunts. Simply stated, rabbits have been a symbol of fertility for decades upon decades due to their ability to produce much offspring. These fluffy creatures are also considered the sacred animal of the Saxon goddess of spring and fertility.

The legend of the Easter Bunny came about in Germany with an egg-laying hare named “Osterhase.” Much like leaving stocking for Santa Claus, German children made nests and left them outside of their homes for Osterhase to lay her eggs in. Even before the Germans, the Romans had believed that all life came from eggs alone, which made another connection between rabbits and eggs.

When the Germans immigrated over to America in the 1700s, they brought their Osterhase tradition to Pennsylvania and began Easter egg hunting. Easter egg hunting soon spread across the nation and began to replace the old German tradition of nests to baskets. The festive game of Easter egg hunting evolved over time into a treasure hunt where parents would hide the eggs for their children to find on Easter morning. Even the actual prize of the eggs changed since it went from just hard-boiled eggs to plastic eggs with chocolate, candy, toys, and coins or egg-shaped chocolates covered in colorful foils. Reminiscing on Easter egg hunts from when she was younger, Anh-Thu Tran (10) says, “I would always get really excited if there were Reese’s pieces in them [the Easter eggs].”

The tradition of Easter egg hunts continue today with much excitement and love for these colorful and treat-filled treasures. Hope you have a wonderful Spring Break, Mustangs, and enjoy those Easter egg hunts, goodies, and time with family on this coming Sunday!