Easter comes to us through the Anglo-Saxon Eastre, and usually found
in the plural, Eastron. The German word is Ostern. It stands for
the heathen festival at the vernal equinox in April, honoring the
Teutonic goddess of dawn. This is why the word Easter is tied in
with the word for East. Aurora.

It was not uncommon to convert or link pagan holidays with Christian
holidays to make the conversion process more palatable to the pagan
population. (For example, the Christmas date was moved so it could
be linked with the Roman Saturnalia at the Winter Solstice.)

Other cultures, such as Russia, use the older terms pascha or paska
that link Easter with its roots in the Passover.