Pizza is a flatbread generally topped with tomato sauce and cheese and baked in an oven. It is commonly topped with a selection of meats, vegetables and condiments. The term was first recorded in the 10th century, in a Latin manuscript from Gaeta in Central Italy.
In 2009, upon Italy's request, Neapolitan pizza was safeguarded in the European Union as a Traditional Speciality Guaranteed dish.
The Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana is a non-profit organization founded in 1984 with headquarters in Naples. It promotes and protects the "true Neapolitan pizza".
Pizza is sold fresh, frozen or in portions. Various types of ovens are used to cook them and many varieties exist. Several similar dishes are prepared from ingredients commonly used in pizza preparation, such as calzone and stromboli. It is a popular fast food item.
Etymology
The origin of the word pizza is uncertain. The term "pizza" first appeared "in a Latin text from the southern Italy town of Gaeta in 997 AD, which states that a tenant of certain property is to give the bishop of Gaeta duodecim pizze every Christmas Day, and another twelve every Easter Sunday".
Suggested etymologies include:
The Ancient Greek word πικτή, "fermented pastry", which in Latin became "picta", and Late Latin pitta > pizza. Compare Greek pita bread and the Apulia and Calabrian pitta.
The Ancient Greek word πίσσα, "pitch", or pḗtea, "bran" .
The Italian word pizzicare meaning "to pluck", which refers to pizza being plucked quickly from the oven .
The Old High German word bizzo or pizzo meaning "mouthful", which was brought to Italy in the middle of the 6th century AD by the invading Lombards.
History
The ancient Greeks covered their bread with oils, herbs and cheese.
Modern pizza evolved from similar flatbread dishes in Naples, Italy in the 18th or early 19th century. Prior to that time, flatbread was often