When was introduced the first birthday cake and by whom?
Birthday Celebrations
Every year you celebrate the arrival of your life in this world, you sing and blow candles without knowing what is the origin of this tradition so popular in most countries of the world.
A birthday is a special moment in the life of a person because it is remembered with great affection, affection, love, the anniversary of the birth of this with some kind of celebration such as a song, Happy Birthday in the United States or the mornings in Mexico , with a party or barbecue, with food, drinks (Beers, alcohol, punch) and with a dessert such as a Pie, cake, cake or cake.
Why The Birthday Cake is Round?
Have you ever wondered why you use a cake (generally round) instead of a plate of salty food or anything else or the reason for blowing candles, for example? These are all habits that have a long and ancient history to remember and tell.
This is a tradition that dates from before Christ, but many historians not to be confused decide to admit that this is a practice adopted more than 5000 years ago, in the cultures of the Sumerians, Egyptians, Persians, Babylonians, Greeks , Romans and the account extends.
The Origin of The Birthday Parties
The origin of the birthday parties dates back to 3000 B.C. where the ancient Egyptians celebrated them to male monarchs and in it free men and women, servants and even slaves participated, everything was a great feast in the governed territory.
In the case of Egypt, the pharaohs used to organize parties where they celebrated every year the birth of a member of royalty, apparently birthday parties were not held between the lower classes and women, although it is said that there is evidence of Birthday celebrations of Cleopatra II and according to Plutarch (historian, biographer and Greek essayist, born in 45 AD).
The birthday parites in ancient Greece
The same happened in Greece, where only rich men were the ones celebrating their birthday. They believed that people had a protective spirit that accompanied them on the day of their birth and then take care of them for the rest of their days. Likewise, this spirit had a direct relationship with the god who ruled the day of birth. These customs had a touch of superstition according to the publication: Birthday Parties Around the World in Spanish: The birthday party in the world since:
Some time later the Greeks adopted this tradition but they added something, not precisely alcohol, since it was already consumed in the form of wine daily, they added a round cake or cake since it represented the goddess Artemis, goddess of the moon, and some historians claim that candles were placed because they simulated the moonlight and its smoke the way in which desires and prayers traveled to heaven.
People believed in good and bad spirits and being afraid that these spirits caused harm to the birthday celebrant, he was surrounded by friends and family whose goodwill and his presence protected him from the unknown dangers of his birthday.
According to the Athenian writer Filócoro, the worshipers of Artemis (Apollo’s brunette, the goddess of the night, the moon, the animals and forest resident, independent and competitive and midwife) celebrated the birth of the goddess on the sixth day of each month, in which they prepared a cake based on flour and honey and this one in particular, was adorned with burning candles that represented the light and brightness that the moon radiates, sending the particular message that Artemis was the moon that emanated light and shine to the earth.
The introduction of the birthday candles
Likewise, Ralph and Adelin Linton, in their publication The Lore of Birthdays. New York, 1952 share:
“In popular belief, candles have a special magical power to grant wishes. . . Burning candles and sacrificial fires have had a special mystical meaning … The candles on the birthday cake are, therefore, a tribute and a tribute to the birthday boy and bring good luck. ”
The Romans for their part got used to these practices and assimilated them into their culture, but focused on celebrating the births of the most important people, incorporating them into national festivities. Over time this social practice spread throughout many regions of the world, where emperors and female and male elites celebrated their birthday with joy.
The Romans were not far behind, they used the cake in three different parties, in the celebrations celebrated to friends and family, anniversaries of temples and cities foundations and on the emperor’s birthday; When someone turned 50, a special cake made from wheat flour, grated cheese, honey and olive oil was prepared, which gave it a peculiar flavor.
They also used to hold parties for the deaths of famous people, but as these celebrations were considered pagan, with the arrival of Christianity these customs ceased, and they became festivities on the day of the death of the saints, as well as the birth of Jesus Christ who in the year 245 it is about specifying the exact date of his birth. In Zeit un Welt magazine (p. 4, 1981) it is also mentioned how magic was impregnated in these pagan holidays and how such customs were rejected from Christianity.
Root in the realm of magic and religion. The custom of congratulating, making gifts and a party – with burning candles – in ancient times was intended to protect the celebrant from demons and ensure his safety in the new year. . . Until the fourth century, Christianity rejected the celebration of birthday by judging it as a pagan custom. ”
Finally, with the mandate of Emperor Aurelian the order was given to celebrate the birth on January 6, however, already by the fourth century it was Pope Julius I who celebrated the birth of Christ on December 25, the Christmas that We celebrate every year so far.
The german birthday cake tradition
In 18th-century Germany, the history of candles on cakes dates back to Kinderfest, a birthday celebration for children.5 This tradition also makes use of candles and cakes. German children were taken to an auditorium-like space, where they were free to celebrate another year of life in a place where the Germans believed that adults protected children from evil spirits trying to steal their souls. In those days there was no tradition of bringing gifts to a birthday.
The guests would simply bring good wishes to the person who turns years old. However, if a guest brought gifts, it was considered a good sign for the birthday boy. Later, the flowers became quite popular as a birthday gift.
In 1746, a great birthday festival was held for Count Ludwig von Zinzendorf in Marienborn, near Büdingen. Andrew Frey described the party in detail and mentions: “there was a cake as large as any oven, and holes made in the cake according to the age of the person, each with a candle stuck, and one in the middle.
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, having spent August 24-30, 1801 in Gotha as a guest of Prince Augustus of Saxony-Gotha-Altenburg, recounts his 52nd birthday on August 28: “… when the time came of dessert, Prince’s service dressed in the most real way entered, led by the butler.
He carried a generous-sized cake with colorful burning candles, which amounted to about fifty candles, which began to melt and threatened to burn, instead of having enough space for the candles that indicate the coming years, as is the case for children’s festivities of this type. “8 As the extract indicates, the tradition at that time was to place a candle on the cake for each year of the individual’s life, so that the number of candles on the top of the cake represented the age that someone I had reached; sometimes a birthday cake would have some candles added “that indicate the coming years”
The Industrial Revolution Spread the Birhtday Cake Habbit
Gradually, thanks to technologies, cakes began to evolve. For example in seventeenth-century England objects such as coins and thimbles were incorporated.
Then, in the nineteenth century, the formal cake or cake was presented thanks to the industrialized production of the factories and technological advances beginning to use refined white flour and baking powder.
With the passage of time modern times arrived where they began to design cakes from photographs or drawings in addition to the incorporation of more visual and aesthetic effects combined with the new flavors and colors.
The technology allowed to process some ingredients and make them flavoring substances reaching the strangest ones such as: Ham, Avocado, Mayonnaise and edible gold; In addition to amazing figures such as robots, guitars and pianos with effects such as those used with fireworks and small engines.
Birthday cakes in different cultures
There are many variations of sweets that are eaten worldwide on birthdays. The Chinese birthday cake is shòu bāo (壽 包, simp. 寿 包) or shòu táo bāo (壽桃 包, simp. 寿桃 包), a bun filled with lotus paste made of wheat flour and shaped and colored for Look like a peach. Instead of serving a large dough, each guest receives their own shou bao. In Korea, the traditional birthday dish is seaweed soup. In western Russia, children receive fruit pies with a birthday greeting carved into the scabs. Men on the other hand, receive pretty ladies, like escorts! That is their sweet!
The Swedish birthday cake is made like a sponge cake that is often covered with marzipan and decorated with the national flag. Dutch birthday cakes are fruit tarts covered with whipped cream. In India there are very few people who celebrate birthdays in villages, but in cities and towns, birthday cakes are used similarly to Western countries, especially among people with higher education.
