Starting as a spontaneous event in the 1870s, the New York Easter parade became increasingly popular in the mid-20th century--in 1947, it was estimated to draw over a million people.

In Sweden, kids dress up as wizards and witches rather than bunnies. Apparently, this was all a big mix-up, as German immigrants brought the idea of the Easter Bunny with them to Sweden, only to find that the Swedish word for the Easter Bunny, "Påskharen", sounds very similar to "Påskkarlen," which means the Easter Wizard. And since the good people of Sweden have always held at least a little bit to their old pagan ways, they were totally cool with adopting Gandalf as the symbol of Easter.

Over 1500 Easter eggs from all over the world are gathered in the Easter Egg Museum in Ciechanowiec, Poland, founded by Irena Stasiewicz-Jasiukowa and Jerzy Jasiuk.

Oh, precious is the flow
That makes me white as snow
No other fount I know
Nothing but the blood of Jesus

Despite being widely associated with the Christian holiday, the Easter bunny is never mentioned in the Bible.

The yellow chicks were the original form of the candy (hence their name) but the manufacturer would go on to introduce other colors and, eventually, the myriad shapes in which they are now produced.

According to a recent survey by the National Retail Federation, about 50% of all Americans plan to attend church on Easter Sunday.

In 1933, Irving Berlin introduced the Easter Bonnet into American pop culture with his ballad "Easter Parade", in which he wrote:
"In your Easter bonnet with all the frills upon it,
You'll be the grandest lady in the Easter parade"

According to some sources, the twists of the pretzel are meant to look like arms crossed in prayer.

Their wings were clipped in 1955, two years after the first marshmallow chicks hatched, to give the candy a sleeker, more "modern" look.