How did Easter egg hunting originate?

Not just a Christian symbol, the egg is a symbol of rebirth and renewal and was a pagan symbol for spring. In European Pagan history there was a goddess called Eostre, whose name gives us both Ostara and Easter. Historically, Eostre was a goddess of fertility, which connects her to both eggs and rabbits. In Persia, eggs have been painted for thousands of years as part of the spring celebration of No Ruz, which is the Zoroastrian new year. The festival of No Ruz predates the reign of Cyrus the Great, whose rule in 580-529 B.C. is about the beginning of Persian history and well before Christ. The Easter Bunny first appeared in 16th-century German writings, and said that if well-behaved children built a nest out of their hats or bonnets, they would be rewarded with brightly colored eggs. The legend of the Easter bunny became part of American folklore in the 18th century, when German immigrants settled in America.