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Birthday Cake History

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Birthday Cake History

In our society today birthdays are one of the celebrations that we hold in a year. Every year a person gets older and we celebrate that factor. The day that the person was born on is the day that we celebrate their birthday. We have party favors, noise makes, food, punch, balloons, presents and cake. So when the person’s birthday is happening everyone is always excited for the cake, but why is the cake so important to us, how did the tradition of the birthday cake get started and what is the deal with the birthday candles?

It is said that back in the time of the Greeks they would make these sweet beads and top them off with honey and bring them to the temple and offer them to the gods. In an article that I found this is what they understand “Cakes were initially called by the name ‘plakous’ by the Greeks, which is a similar word to ‘flat.’ These were a combination of nuts and honey. Besides, they also made a cake called "satura," which was a flat heavy cake. It is also believed that the Greeks offered round shaped cake to the Goddess of Moon called Artemis[1].” In another article it talks about the Romans ad how they brought cakes into play, “During Roman times, 'cakes' were served at special birthdays. However, these cakes did not resemble contemporary cakes in the least. They were simply flat rounds made with flour containing nuts, leavened with yeast, and sweetened with honey. In early Europe, the words for cake and bread were virtually interchangeable; the only difference being that cakes were sweet while bread was not[2].”

Romans also had a different name and cake that they used for there birthdays that they celebrated, but as the same as the Greeks they offered a celebration for there gods. “They were even called "libum" by the Romans and were primarily used as an offering to their gods. Placenta was sort of a cheesecake, baked on a pastry base, or sometimes inside a pastry case. Moreover, there were three types of birthdays celebrated by Romans, including private celebrations with family and friends, city and temple birthdays and the birthdays of past and present emperors or members of the imperial family. It is even said that the 50th year was celebrated with a honey cake made of wheat flour, grated cheese, honey, and olive oil[3].

As we have found out birthday cakes have been in two different cultures for same reason and different reason altogether. But the question is still why are candles put on the birthday cake, when did it start and what do they mean? With the Greeks we already found out that they had an offering for the goddess Artemis. As we also know she is the goddess of the moon, as it was stated before, “It is this for reason that even candles were placed on the cake to make it glow like the moon. The Romans followed the suite, with a slight change in the name of the cake, which became "placenta" as derived from the Greek term[4].

The other way that we know that the candles came about is from, “18th century German birthday celebration for children. A letter written in 1799 by Goethe recounts: "when it was time for dessert, the prince's entire livery, carried a generous-size torte with colorful flaming candles - amounting to some fifty candles - that began to melt and threatened to burn down, instead of there being enough room for candles indicating upcoming years, as is the case with children's festivities of this kind". As the excerpt indicates, the tradition at the time was to place candles for each of the individual's life with some added candles 'indicating upcoming years'. Candles, being slow-burning, are believed to be symbolic of the passage of time. In fact, they were often used as timekeepers[5].

What do the candles on top of the cake stand for besides years that you have lived and will live. When you blow out the candles what does it all add up to? People thin that when they blow out candles all at once you get your wish. When candles on the birthday cakes were first started that is not what it always meant. “Birthday candles originally were placed on cakes to bring birthday wishes up to God. In ancient times, people prayed over the flames of an open fire. They believed that the smoke carried their thoughts up to the gods. Today, we believe, that if you blow out all your candles in one breath, your wish will come true[6].

We know how birthday cakes started, why they were started, and why the candles are so important. But why do we still have them around. The reason is “Birthday is surely one of the most memorable and cheerful events in everyone’s life. The main attraction in a birthday is the yummy birthday cake[7]. “The birthday cake has been an integral part of the birthday celebrations in Western cultures since the middle of the 19th century. Certain rituals and traditions, such as singing of birthday songs, associated with birthday cakes are common to many Western cultures[8].

We have learned that cakes come from the Greeks and Romans in the same but different ways. The candles come from the Greeks, who light up the cake for the Moon Goddess to see the offering from a far. Birthday cakes is one of the most important part of the birthdays for a person who is celebrating that they are getting older once a year on the day that they are born.

Bibliography http://whatscookingamerica.net/History/Cakes/BirthdayCake.htm http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Birthday_cake http://lifestyle.iloveindia.com/lounge/history-of-birthday-cake-2041 -----------------------
[1] http://lifestyle.iloveindia.com/lounge/history-of-birthday-cake-2041.html
[2] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Birthday_cake
[3] http://lifestyle.iloveindia.com/lounge/history-of-birthday-cake-2041.html
[4] http://lifestyle.iloveindia.com/lounge/history-of-birthday-cake-2041.html
[5] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Birthday_cake
[6] http://whatscookingamerica.net/History/Cakes/BirthdayCake.htm
[7] http://lifestyle.iloveindia.com/lounge/history-of-birthday-cake-2041.html
[8] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Birthday_cake

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