Question 1 of 20Religious backgroundEasy
Easter quiz
Hop into spring with 20 Easter quiz questions and answers covering traditions from around the world, from decorated eggs and holiday baking to the surprising math behind the date. This Easter trivia mixes easy warm-ups with a few real head-scratchers, so the whole family can play along.
A free quiz from Megan Moran.
Question 2 of 20The Easter BunnyEasy
The Easter Bunny reached America in the 1700s with immigrants from which country, many of whom settled in Pennsylvania?
Question 3 of 20Religious backgroundMedium
Maundy Thursday, during Holy Week, commemorates which event?
Question 4 of 20Religious backgroundEasy
In Western churches, Lent, the season of fasting and reflection before Easter, traditionally lasts how many days, not counting Sundays?
Question 5 of 20Finding the dateMedium
In Western churches, Easter is the Sunday after the first church-calculated full moon falling on or after which date?
Question 6 of 20EggsHard
The famous jeweled Fabergé Easter eggs began in 1885, when which Russian tsar ordered one as a gift for his wife?
Question 7 of 20Traditions worldwideMedium
Which threatened native marsupial is promoted in Australia as an Easter alternative to the bunny, because rabbits are destructive pests there?
Question 8 of 20Religious backgroundEasy
What does Mardi Gras, the name for the last day of feasting before Lent begins, mean in French?
Question 9 of 20EggsMedium
Pysanky, Easter eggs decorated with intricate designs using beeswax and dyes, are a famous folk-art tradition of which country?
Question 10 of 20Finding the dateHard
What is the latest possible date for Western Easter Sunday?
Question 11 of 20EggsMedium
Which US president hosted the first official White House Easter Egg Roll, in 1878?
Question 12 of 20Traditions worldwideEasy
In Greece, Easter eggs are traditionally dyed which color?
Question 13 of 20Traditions worldwideMedium
In Sweden and Finland, children traditionally dress up as what around Easter and go door to door for treats?
Question 14 of 20Religious backgroundHard
Which 8th-century English monk wrote that the Anglo-Saxon month Eosturmonath was named after a goddess called Eostre?
Question 15 of 20Easter foodMedium
Colomba, an Easter cake shaped like a dove and topped with almonds and pearl sugar, comes from which country?
Question 16 of 20Easter foodEasy
Hot cross buns are traditionally eaten on which day of Holy Week?
Question 17 of 20Easter foodHard
Paskha, a pyramid-shaped Easter dessert in Russian and Ukrainian Orthodox tradition, is made mainly from what?
Question 18 of 20Religious backgroundMedium
The names Pascua in Spanish and Pasqua in Italian come from Pascha, a word that originally referred to which Jewish festival?
Question 19 of 20Traditions worldwideHard
Which island is famous for flying colorful, hexagonal homemade kites at Easter?
Question 20 of 20Traditions worldwideMedium
Nearly all Easter lily bulbs grown for North America come from a small coastal area on the border of California and which state?
Answer all 20 to see your score.
Want a free 100-question bonus quiz?
A printable general-knowledge quiz for your next quiz night, sent straight to your inbox.
Like this? See the Megan Moran quiz books.
Show all the answers, with the facts behind them
- For Christians, Easter Sunday celebrates which event in the life of Jesus? His resurrection from the deadBritannica calls Easter a principal festival of the Christian church, placing the Resurrection on the third day after the Crucifixion.
- The Easter Bunny reached America in the 1700s with immigrants from which country, many of whom settled in Pennsylvania? GermanyThey called it the Osterhase, meaning "Easter hare." In the original folklore, the egg-bringer was a hare rather than a rabbit.
- Maundy Thursday, during Holy Week, commemorates which event? The Last SupperIn the UK, the monarch hands out specially minted Maundy coins to one man and one woman for each year of the sovereign's age.
- In Western churches, Lent, the season of fasting and reflection before Easter, traditionally lasts how many days, not counting Sundays? 40In Eastern Orthodox churches, Great Lent begins on a day called Clean Monday and runs for 40 continuous days, Sundays included.
- In Western churches, Easter is the Sunday after the first church-calculated full moon falling on or after which date? March 21Church tables use a fixed "ecclesiastical" equinox and full moon rather than the astronomical ones, so the result can differ slightly from the actual sky.
- The famous jeweled Fabergé Easter eggs began in 1885, when which Russian tsar ordered one as a gift for his wife? Alexander IIIThat first egg looks like plain white enamel outside but opens to reveal a gold yolk holding a tiny gold hen with ruby eyes.
- Which threatened native marsupial is promoted in Australia as an Easter alternative to the bunny, because rabbits are destructive pests there? BilbyA rabbit-control group championed the idea in 1991, and sales of chocolate versions have helped fund conservation of the animal.
- What does Mardi Gras, the name for the last day of feasting before Lent begins, mean in French? Fat TuesdayIn Britain and Ireland the same day is called Shrove Tuesday or Pancake Day, a last chance to use up eggs, butter and milk.
- Pysanky, Easter eggs decorated with intricate designs using beeswax and dyes, are a famous folk-art tradition of which country? UkraineThe name comes from a verb meaning "to write," because the designs are written onto the shell with a wax stylus called a kistka.
- What is the latest possible date for Western Easter Sunday? April 25Working out Easter's date is called the computus, short for the Latin computus paschalis, meaning "Easter computation."
- Which US president hosted the first official White House Easter Egg Roll, in 1878? Rutherford B. HayesHe opened the White House grounds after children lost access to the Capitol grounds. The event is held on Easter Monday on the South Lawn.
- In Greece, Easter eggs are traditionally dyed which color? RedThe color stands for the blood of Christ, and families crack their eggs against each other's to see whose stays whole.
- In Sweden and Finland, children traditionally dress up as what around Easter and go door to door for treats? WitchesOld folklore claimed these figures flew on broomsticks to a mysterious place called Blåkulla on the Thursday before Easter.
- Which 8th-century English monk wrote that the Anglo-Saxon month Eosturmonath was named after a goddess called Eostre? BedeHe recorded it in The Reckoning of Time, a book about calendars and how to calculate the date of Easter.
- Colomba, an Easter cake shaped like a dove and topped with almonds and pearl sugar, comes from which country? ItalyA Milan bakery company popularized it in the 1930s so it could use its Christmas panettone dough and machinery in spring.
- Hot cross buns are traditionally eaten on which day of Holy Week? Good FridayIn 1592, London banned the sale of spiced buns except at burials, at Christmas and on this day, so many people baked them at home.
- Paskha, a pyramid-shaped Easter dessert in Russian and Ukrainian Orthodox tradition, is made mainly from what? Curd cheeseIt is set in a special mold, decorated with Cyrillic letters and taken to church to be blessed on Holy Saturday.
- The names Pascua in Spanish and Pasqua in Italian come from Pascha, a word that originally referred to which Jewish festival? PassoverIn Greek and in many Eastern Orthodox churches, Easter itself is still called Pascha.
- Which island is famous for flying colorful, hexagonal homemade kites at Easter? BermudaThe kites are built from wooden sticks and colored tissue paper, and each needs a long cloth tail to fly.
- Nearly all Easter lily bulbs grown for North America come from a small coastal area on the border of California and which state? OregonBefore World War II most US Easter lily bulbs came from Japan, until the supply was cut off after the attack on Pearl Harbor.
