The idea of an egg-laying bunny came to the United States in the 18th century. German immigrants in the Pennsylvania Dutch area told their children about the "Osterhas," sometimes spelled "Oschter Haws." "Hase" means "hare," not rabbit… According to the legend, only good children received gifts of colored eggs in the nests that they made in their caps and bonnets before Easter. In 1883, Jakob Grimm wrote of long-standing similar myths in Germany itself…
The German and Amish legends were most likely rooted in European folklore about hares' eggs which seems to have been a confusion between hares raising their young at ground level and the finding of plovers' nests nearby, abandoned by the adult birds to distract predators… So in the Spring, eggs would be found in what looked like hare forms, giving rise to the belief that the hare laid eggs in the spring. (Wikipedia)
Where did you originally find this picture
ReplyDeleteI almost always cite my sources for photos and quoted text, so I assume the image was on Wikipedia at that time, but that was over 15 years ago and I don't see it there today.
DeleteSo I searched the image today with Google Lens and found it posted at dozens of sites including Flickr, Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook, and many more. So nowadays it is viral. Good luck finding the original.