Fancy That!
Facts to make you go“WOW!”
◆ THE NAME EASTER ORIGINATES FROM EOSTRE, THE PAGAN GODDESS OF LIGHT AND FERTILITY, WHO WAS HONOURED IN FESTIVALS TO CELEBRATE THE ARRIVAL OF SPRING.
In 2012, London hosted the world’s biggest ever Easter egg hunt
◆ The UK’s first ever chocolate Easter egg was produced in 1873 by Fry’s of Bristol.
◆ The world’s most popular popu a egg-shaped chocola te is Cadbury’s Creme Egg g, made in Birmingham m where they produce 1.5 million of them every day!
◆ WHEN EATING A CHOCOLATE EASTER BUNNY, 76% BITE OFF THE EARS FIRST, 5% GO FOR THE FEET FIRST, AND 4% OPT FOR THE TAIL FIRST. WOW! In 2007, a Fabergé Easter egg made in 1902 sold for almost £9 million, breaking Fabergé records.
Every child in the UK receives an average of 8.8 Eastereggs – double their recommended calorie intake for a whole week!
◆ THE ART OF PAINTING EGGS FOR EASTER IS SAID TO HAVE BEGUN IN THE UKRAINE. CALLED PYSANKA (PIE-SAHN-KAH), THEY WERE DECORATED WITH WAX AND NATURAL DYES. WHEN UKRAINIANS MIGRATED TO THE US, THETE TRADITIONTADTO TOOTOOK OOFF.
◆ Americans love a small marshmallow sweet that resembles chicks called “Peeps” at Easter – they eat around 1.5 million of them.
◆ THE CUSTOM OF GIVING EGGS AT EASTER CAN BE TRACED BACK TO EGYPTIANS,
PERSIANS, GREEKS AND ROMANS, FOR WHOM THE EGG SYMBOLISED NEW LIFE.
Sales S at Eastermakeup
10% of UK chocolate sales s for the entire year
◆ Until 2018 it was illegal to sell alcohol on Good Friday in Ireland.
◆ DANCING IS BANNED IN GERMANY OVER EASTER! IT’S THOUGHT IT WAS ORIGINALLY OUT OF RESPECT FOR CHRISTIANS MOURNING THE DEATH OF CHRIST ON GOOD FRIDAY.
WOW! Medieval superstitions hold that if you wear new clothes at Easter, you will have good luck the rest of the year.
◆ AMERICANS ALSO TRADITIONALLY EAT JELLY BEANS AT EASTER TIME – MORE THAN 16 MILLION OF THEM, WHICH IS ENOUGH TO CIRCLE THE WORLD
THREE TIMES!
◆ The idea of the Easter bunny seems to have originated in Germany in the Middle Ages, with the first written mention of this tradition in the 16th century.