Seven days of questions and answers

Easter Trivia Answers Archive

Review earlier daily rounds, reveal the correct answer, and use the short explanation to learn the fact behind each question. Page 3 of 12 covers seven completed UTC days.

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Daily round

  1. The tradition of dyeing Easter eggs using onion skins produces which color most commonly?

    Answer: Reddish-brown

    Onion skins contain tannins and quercetin pigments that stain eggshells a warm reddish-brown or amber tone.

  2. What is the earliest possible date for Easter Sunday in the Western calendar?

    Answer: March 22

    Easter can fall as early as March 22, which last occurred in 1818 and will next occur in 2285.

  3. Lamb is a traditional Easter main course in many Mediterranean and European cultures. Which of these dishes is a Greek Easter specialty made of offal, herbs, and rice wrapped in lamb intestine?

    Answer: Kokoretsi

    Kokoretsi is a festive Greek dish of seasoned organ meats wrapped in lamb intestines and slow-roasted on a spit, commonly served at Easter celebrations alongside roast lamb.

  4. Which liturgical color is commonly used for Easter Sunday celebrations in Western churches?

    Answer: White or gold

    White or gold is commonly used at Easter to express celebration, light, and resurrection in Western liturgy.

  5. In Bermuda, Good Friday kite-flying is a popular tradition. What shapes are the kites most commonly made in?

    Answer: Hexagonal with long tails

    Bermudians craft colorful hexagonal kites with long, flowing tails and tissue-paper hummers that buzz in the wind, flying them on Good Friday in a tradition that blends Christian symbolism of the ascension with older folk customs.

Daily round

  1. Which bird is a traditional Christian symbol of peace and sometimes appears in Easter artwork?

    Answer: Dove

    A dove is a longstanding Christian symbol of peace and the Holy Spirit and can appear in Easter-season art.

  2. In many European traditions, spring cleaning is done before Easter. What is the German term for this thorough seasonal cleaning?

    Answer: Frühjahrsputz

    Frühjahrsputz literally means 'spring cleaning' in German and refers to the tradition of thoroughly cleaning the home around Easter.

  3. In the context of the Easter calendar, what is a "moveable feast"?

    Answer: A religious observance whose date changes each year based on a calculation

    A moveable feast is a church observance whose calendar date varies from year to year, with Easter being the primary example because its date depends on lunar and solar calculations.

  4. In Germany, the "Osterbaum" (Easter tree) is a custom involving what activity?

    Answer: Decorating tree branches with hung eggs

    Families in Germany and parts of Austria hang blown and decorated eggs from the branches of cut trees or outdoor bushes to create an Osterbaum, a colorful Easter display that has been documented since at least the 16th century.

  5. Which word, from the Latin for 'renewal,' is often used in religious and literary contexts during Easter?

    Answer: Renovatio

    Renovatio is the Latin word for renewal and has historically been used in theological writings about the Easter season.

Daily round

  1. Which spice commonly provides the warm, sweet aroma in hot cross buns?

    Answer: Cinnamon

    Cinnamon is a common spice in hot cross buns, often paired with nutmeg or mixed spice.

  2. An Easter egg hunt typically involves hiding what type of eggs?

    Answer: Hard-boiled or plastic eggs

    Easter egg hunts most commonly use hard-boiled dyed eggs or plastic eggs filled with small treats or coins.

  3. Which ecclesiastical computation method, developed in the medieval period, was used to calculate the date of Easter each year?

    Answer: The Computus

    The Computus was the medieval system of calendar calculation used to determine the date of Easter, involving the interplay between the solar year, the lunar month, and the fixed date of the vernal equinox.

  4. The Easter Bunny legend in its current form is widely traced to German immigrants who brought the tradition of the "Osterhase" to which country in the 1700s?

    Answer: The United States

    German settlers in Pennsylvania Dutch country introduced the Osterhase, or Easter Hare, which laid colored eggs for well-behaved children, and the custom spread throughout the United States over the following decades.

  5. What is the common Amharic name for the Ethiopian Orthodox celebration of Easter?

    Answer: Fasika

    Fasika is the Amharic name commonly used for Ethiopian Orthodox Easter, celebrated after a long fasting season.

Daily round

  1. What is the traditional name for the Sunday before Easter that commemorates Jesus' entry into Jerusalem?

    Answer: Palm Sunday

    Palm Sunday recalls the Gospel accounts of Jesus entering Jerusalem riding on a donkey while crowds spread palm branches on the road, an event mentioned in all four canonical Gospels.

  2. What famous painting by Leonardo da Vinci, housed in Milan, depicts the moment Jesus announces that one of his disciples will betray him?

    Answer: The Last Supper

    Leonardo's "The Last Supper," painted in the late 1490s for the refectory of Santa Maria delle Grazie in Milan, captures the dramatic moment when Jesus says one of the twelve will betray him.

  3. What does the Exsultet, sung at the Easter Vigil, proclaim?

    Answer: The glory of the Paschal candle and Christ's victory over death

    The Exsultet (or Praeconium Paschale) is an ancient hymn of praise sung at the Easter Vigil, blessing the Paschal candle and declaring Christ's resurrection as the triumph of light over darkness.

  4. Which type of pastry, a hollow chocolate egg filled with small toys or candies, is a staple Easter treat in Italy?

    Answer: Uovo di Pasqua

    The Uovo di Pasqua is a large hollow chocolate egg, commercially produced and often containing a small surprise gift inside, given to children and loved ones throughout Italy during the Easter season.

  5. What does the word "Lent" itself derive from?

    Answer: An Old English word meaning "lengthening of days"

    The word "Lent" comes from the Old English "lencten," referring to the lengthening of daylight hours in spring, which is when the season falls.

Daily round

  1. What is the meaning of the Greek word "Pascha," from which the term "Paschal" is derived?

    Answer: Passover

    Pascha is the Greek form of the Hebrew word Pesach, meaning Passover, reflecting the close connection between the Jewish Passover and the Christian celebration of Christ's death and resurrection.

  2. Which amphibian typically lays long strings of eggs rather than floating clumps of spawn?

    Answer: Common toad

    Common toads lay their eggs in long gelatinous strings, while many frogs lay eggs in clumps.

  3. Which plant process allows many spring bulbs to pause growth during unfavorable winter conditions?

    Answer: Dormancy

    Dormancy lets many bulbs suspend visible growth through winter before resuming when conditions improve.

  4. The word 'maundy,' as in Maundy Thursday, is thought to derive from the Latin word for what?

    Answer: Command

    Maundy likely comes from the Latin mandatum, meaning commandment, referring to Jesus' new commandment to love one another as recorded in the Gospel of John.

  5. What is the name of the prayer service held at the tomb of Jesus in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem on Holy Saturday?

    Answer: The Holy Fire ceremony

    The Holy Fire ceremony takes place at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem on Holy Saturday, during which the Orthodox patriarch enters the tomb and emerges with a flame that is passed among the faithful.

Daily round

  1. What significant event in Christian tradition is said to have occurred 50 days after Easter Sunday?

    Answer: The coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost

    Pentecost, celebrated 50 days after Easter, commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the apostles as described in the Acts of the Apostles.

  2. Which long-eared Australian marsupial is featured in Easter-themed conservation fundraising because rabbits are invasive there?

    Answer: Bilby

    The bilby, a nocturnal marsupial with long ears, has been championed since the 1990s by Australian conservationists as a native alternative to the rabbit, which is an invasive pest in Australia, with chocolate bilbies sold to raise funds for bilby conservation.

  3. Which common kitchen ingredient acidifies an egg-dye bath and helps many food colorings bind to the shell?

    Answer: White vinegar

    White vinegar adds acetic acid to the dye bath, helping many water-based food colorings adhere more evenly to an eggshell.

  4. Mämmi is a traditional Finnish Easter dessert made from rye flour, water, and dried malt, then baked slowly in a low oven. What is its characteristic appearance?

    Answer: A dark brown, gelatinous pudding

    Mämmi has a distinctive dark brown, almost black color and a firm, gelatinous texture; it is traditionally baked in rectangular containers made of birch bark and served cold with cream or sugar.

  5. Fanesca is a thick, hearty soup served during Holy Week in which South American country, containing up to twelve different types of grains and beans?

    Answer: Ecuador

    Fanesca is a traditional Ecuadorian Easter soup made with salt cod, pumpkin, milk, cheese, and twelve different grains and legumes, said to represent the Twelve Apostles and the diversity of Andean ingredients.

Daily round

  1. On what day of the week does Holy Week begin?

    Answer: Sunday

    Holy Week begins on Palm Sunday, which commemorates the entry of Jesus into Jerusalem and falls one week before Easter Sunday.

  2. In which century did the practice of observing a pre-Easter fast of 40 days become standardized in the Western church?

    Answer: 4th century

    The 40-day Lenten fast became formally established in the 4th century, with the Council of Nicaea (325 CE) providing early evidence of its widespread acceptance.

  3. Decoupage, a technique often used to decorate Easter eggs, involves adhering what material to the shell surface?

    Answer: Cut paper

    Decoupage is the art of decorating objects by gluing colored paper cutouts onto them and sealing with varnish.

  4. In the United Kingdom, which chocolate confection resembling a cracked eggshell, filled with a whipped fondant center, has been produced by Cadbury since 1963 and is closely linked to Easter?

    Answer: The Creme Egg

    The Cadbury Creme Egg, with its thick chocolate shell and sugary white-and-yellow fondant filling designed to mimic a raw egg yolk, has become one of the best-selling Easter candies in the UK and several other countries.

  5. Which term names the festive season extending from Easter Sunday to Pentecost?

    Answer: Eastertide

    Eastertide is the Christian liturgical season that begins on Easter Sunday and continues through Pentecost.