Raymond Brown wrote:
> Wondering why the Norsemen called 'Easter' "pâskir" and not *austrur, he
> concludes "they had never worshipped a goddess Austra, or her cultus was
> already extinct." Strange for a goddess who is supposed to have been so
> important. And what of the Goths? Ulpilas writes 'paska', not *áustro.
Old Icelandic replaced the god-names of the days of the week (Odhinn's day
etc.) with things like Firstday, Seconday and so on.
> Only, it seems did the Saxons & the High Germans call the festival
> 'Easter(n)s' and I have no reason to doubt that there was such a
> pre-Christian festival, of several days, held during the 4th month of the
> Germanic lunisolar calendar. The east, of course, is the region of
radiant
> dawn, uprising light, of resurrection of new life after winter; both the
> timing & the symbolisms must have fitted well with the Christian
> Paschaltide; little wonder, it seems to me, the name was retained.
>
> [CONCLUSION]
> I have no doubt that Bede is correctly reporting the Saxon month name and
> quite correct in saying it took its name from the festival dayS celebrated
> during that month (i.e. round about the time of the Passover/Pasch). But
> the goddess seems now even more shadowy than ever; the only evidence is
the
> short passage in Bede. Grimm's attempts of the last century to resurrect
> Eastre (still less to rename her Ostara) look desperate to me & IMHO carry
> little conviction. I do not for one moment think Bede is deliberately
> misleading us; but I am inclined to the view that her name is a bit of
> "folk etymology" to explain the name of a festival whose origin had been
> forgotten.
>
> Ray.
==========================================================
Gravissima calamitas umquam supra Occidentem accidens erat religio
Christiana
-- Gore Vidal AD 1987
==========================================================