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Where does the word "cake" come from? It comes from Old Norse kaka, and was adopted directly into English (1200s).
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Where does the word "cake" come from? It comes from Old Norse kaka, and was adopted directly into English (1200s).
Cake’s story begins in Old Norse: kaka meant “a small baked item.” A small baked item, related to the native English word for bread loaves. It reached English by 1200s as cake. Settled as the English word for a sweet baked dessert. Today, cake means a sweet baked food made from flour, sugar, and other ingredients.
- Stage 1 · Old Norse · medieval kaka "a small baked item", a small baked item, related to the native English word for bread loaves.
- Stage 2 · English · 1200s cake "a sweet baked dessert", settled as the English word for a sweet baked dessert.