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As I write this, the Easter holidays are just beginning. In their honour, I have a question about Easter:

I've widely heard that the name of the festival has its roots in its pagan origins, and particularly a goddess called Eostre.

Example:

The name of this festival, itself, shows its heathen origin. "Easter" is derived from Eastre, or Eostre, the Anglo-Saxon Goddess of spring and dawn. There also is some historical connection existing between the words "Easter" and "East," where the sun rises. The festival of Eostre was celebrated on the day of the Vernal Equinox (spring). Traditions associated with the festival of the Teutonic fertility Goddess survive in the Easter rabbit and colored eggs.

However, I have also hear that this idea of a precursor goddess was invented in the 8th century.

Who should I believe?

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Coincidentally, I've asked a very similar question on English.SE, last year! – Sklivvz♦ Apr 6 '12 at 2:37
I've decided to close my own question, because the related question on English.SE gives as good an answer as I could hope for. – Oddthinking♦ Apr 8 '12 at 12:03

closed as too localized by Oddthinking♦ Apr 8 '12 at 12:03

This question is unlikely to help any future visitors; it is only relevant to a small geographic area, a specific moment in time, or an extraordinarily narrow situation that is not generally applicable to the worldwide audience of the internet. For help making this question more broadly applicable, see the FAQ.

1 Answer

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Yes, at least if you accept the OED as authoritative. From The Compact Edition of the Oxford English Dictionary, 1971, Vol. 1, pg. 827:

the strong forms occas. appearing seem to have been derived from the combining form éastor- ... derives from the word Eostre (Northumb. spelling of Éastre), the name of a goddess whose festival was celebrated at the vernal equinox; her name (:-OTeut. *austrôn- cogn. w. Skr. usrā dawn) shows that she was originally the dawn-goddess.

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