Editing Easter egg (section)

=== Parallels in other faiths ===
[[File:Noruz1387.jpg|thumb|upright|Eggs at the Iranian [[Nowruz]]]]

The egg is widely used as a symbol of the start of new life, just as new life emerges from an egg when the chick hatches out.<ref name="fertility" />

Painted eggs are used at the Iranian spring holidays, the [[Nowruz]] that marks the first day of [[Spring (season)|spring]] or [[Equinox]], and the beginning of the year in the [[Persian calendar]]. It is celebrated on the day of the astronomical [[Northward equinox]], which usually occurs on March 21 or the previous/following day depending on where it is observed. The painted eggs symbolize fertility and are displayed on the Nowruz table, called [[Haft-Seen]] together with various other symbolic objects. There are sometimes one egg for each member of the family. The ancient [[Zoroastrians]] painted eggs for Nowruz, their New Year celebration, which falls on the [[Spring equinox (Northern Hemisphere)|Spring equinox]]. The tradition continues among Persians of [[Islam]]ic, [[Zoroastrian]], and other faiths today.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://theotheriran.com/2016/03/26/photos-painted-eggs-across-tehran/|title=Photos: Painted eggs across Tehran|date=2016-03-26|work=The other Iran|access-date=2018-04-02|language=en-US|archive-date=2018-04-01|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180401210159/https://theotheriran.com/2016/03/26/photos-painted-eggs-across-tehran/|url-status=live}}</ref> The Nowruz tradition has existed for at least 2,500 years. The sculptures on the walls of [[Persepolis]] show people carrying eggs for Nowruz to the king.{{Citation needed|date=April 2010}}

The [[Neopagan]] holiday of [[Wheel of the Year#Spring Equinox (Ostara)|Ostara]] occurs at roughly the same time as Easter. While it is often claimed that the use of painted eggs is an ancient, pre-Christian component of the celebration of Ostara, there are no historical accounts that ancient celebrations included this practice, apart from the [[Old High German lullaby]] which is believed by most to be a modern fabrication. Rather, the use of painted eggs has been adopted under the assumption that it might be a pre-Christian survival. In fact, modern scholarship has been unable to trace any association between eggs and a supposed goddess named Ostara before the 19th century, when early folklorists began to speculate about the possibility.<ref name=Winick2016>Winick, Stephen. [https://blogs.loc.gov/folklife/2016/04/ostara-and-the-hare/ Ostara and the Hare: Not Ancient, but Not As Modern As Some Skeptics Think] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190508135124/https://blogs.loc.gov/folklife/2016/04/ostara-and-the-hare/ |date=2019-05-08 }}. ''Folklife Today'', 28 Apr 2016. Accessed 8 May 2019 at https://blogs.loc.gov/folklife/2016/04/ostara-and-the-hare/ </ref>

There are good grounds for the association between [[hare]]s (later termed [[Easter bunny|Easter bunnies]]) and [[bird egg]]s, through folklore confusion between hares' forms (where they raise their young) and [[plover]]s' nests.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/A18190677|publisher=BBC.com|title=H2g2 - The Easter Bunny|access-date=2012-09-24|archive-date=2010-11-06|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101106113755/http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/A18190677|url-status=live}}</ref>

In [[Judaism]], a hard-boiled egg is an element of the [[Passover Seder]], representing festival sacrifice. The children's game of hunting for the [[afikomen]] (a half-piece of matzo) has similarities to the Easter egg hunt tradition, by which the child who finds the hidden matzah will be awarded a prize. In other homes, the children hide the afikoman and a parent must look for it; when the parents give up, the children demand a prize for revealing its location.