On the Sixth Day of..

Gingerbread

Run, Run as fast as you can, you can’t catch me! I’m the Gingerbread Man!

We have all heard this tale, and it also happens to be that the Gingerbread man (and the houses that he lives in) are a popular Christmas tradition. But where did it start?

Gingerbread History

It is believed that Ginger Root was first cultivated in ancient China for medical treatment. It also can be traced to ancient Greeks and Egyptians, who used it for ceremonial purposes. Eventually, it was introduced to Europeans through the Silk Road. The first known gingerbread recipe came from Greece in 2400 B.C. Chinese recipes surfaced during the 10th century. During the European Middle Ages, it was used to disguise the taste of decaying meats. It was also used for medical treatments. “Henry VIII is said to have used a ginger concoction in hopes of building a resistance to the plague” (PBS). The earliest known gingerbread recipe in Europe consisted of ground almonds, breadcrumbs, rosewater, sugar, and ginger. The paste was pressed into wood molds and served as a storyboard. Later, the English added flour and eggs. Queen Elizabeth is credited with the “Gingerbread Man” by decorating cookies that resembled visiting honored guests and dignitaries and presenting the baked decorated cookies to their likeness. In England, gingerbread became popular at fairs, and for the rich and elegant, they were sometimes decorated with the gold leaf.

Gingerbread Houses originated in Germany in the 16th Century. These elaborate houses with fancy cookie walls were decorated with foil and gold leaf, eventually became a Christmas tradition. It is said that gingerbread houses gained even more popularity after the Brothers Grimm introduced the story “Hansel and Gretel” in their collection of fairy tales.

Sources:

The History and Origin of Gingerbread (thespruceeats.com)

History of Gingerbread | The History Kitchen | PBS Food

The Fairy Tale

The fairy tale (or folk tale) of The Gingerbread Man, originally called The Gingerbread Boy was first published in writing in St. Nicholas Magazine, a children’s publication in May 1875 by Jim Aylesworth. The tale begins, “Now you shall hear a sto-ry that some-body’s great, great-grand-mother told a lit-tle girl ev-er so ma-ny years a-go;”

The tale has been retold with different variations of the same plot of an escaped cookie, and now I will do my best to recap it here if you are unfamiliar:

Once upon a time, a little old woman and old man lived happily in the woods, but one thing was missing, a child of their own. So, one day when the old woman was making gingerbread, she formed the dough into a shape of the boy. When the gingerbread boy was finished baking, it jumped out of the oven and exclaimed to the little old woman: “Run, run as fast as you can, you can’t catch me I’m the Gingerbread man!” Both the little old man and old woman tried to catch the Gingerbread man, but he was too fast. Soon he runs into all sorts of characters. He runs into threshers and other farm workers. He runs into cows, pigs, and owls. Each character he meets tries to catch him. For he looks delicious! But the Gingerbread man was too fast! He would always taunt them, “Run, run as fast as you can, you can’t catch me I’m the Gingerbread man!” Eventually, he came to a rushing river. Since he is made of flour, he cannot swim across. He must escape all the people and animals chasing after him! At that moment a sly fox comes along. He convinces the Gingerbread boy that he can trust him, after all, foxes do not like gingerbread. “Just get on my back and I will swim you across the river.” The Gingerbread trusted the fox and climbs up on his back, as they are swimming across the river, the fox tells the Gingerbread man, “I am starting to sink, you should climb on top of my head.”  And so, the Gingerbread climbs on top of the fox’s head. Soon the fox says, “I am still sinking, you should climb on top of my nose.” The Gingerbread boy obeys and climbs on the top of the fox’s long nose. Finally, right before they cross over to the other side of the river, the fox flicks the gingerbread off his nose and gulps the gingerbread man in one swift bite. That was the end of the Gingerbread boy.

In the original Alylesworth story, the gingerbread man’s song was slightly different “I’ve run a-way from a lit-tle old wom-an, A lit-tle old man, And I can run a-away from you, I can!” Additionally, in this version, the poor gingerbread documents his death, “O dear! I’m quarter gone!’ And then: Oh, I’m half gone!” and soon: “I’m three-quarters gone!” and at last: “I’m all gone! And never spoke again.”

Of course, the lesson here is to be careful with who you trust. If the Gingerbread boy had not run away from the little old woman, he may have lived a very long, luxurious cookie life. Being pampered by the little old woman and man as their very own son. Instead, he runs away and chooses to put his trust in a sly fox, consequently ending his very short, but adventurous life.

St. Nicholas: A Monthly Magazine for Boys and Girls – Google Books