Italiano
Pizza doesn’t need any introduction, right?
One of the most popular “street food” all over the world, millions of pizza shops in every country (there’s an “Italy Pizza” in Pyongyang, in case you were wondering) and more and more…
Going back in history, as far as we know there’s no certainity about the origin of pizza. Maybe it comes from a popular Persian recipe; maybe it was born in Ancient Greek; maybe it comes from the Ancient Roman “Focaccia”…
But where the word Pizza comes from?
Well, the most ancient document mentioning it is dated back in the Middle Ages.
AD 997: in Castelforte (a small village in between Rome and Naples) it was signed a lease. A couple of young peasants, Merco and Fasana, were granted by the Archibishop of Gaeta, the use of a watermill, propery of the bishopric. What the bishop asked was: “every year on the Lord’s Christmas day, you and your heirs will have to pay both us (the “royal we”, ed.) and our successors, as a rent and without any recrimination, twelve pizzas, a pork shoulder and a kidney; and likewise twelve pizzas and a couple of chickens on the day of the Holy Easter of Resurrection”.
So, yes. Back at the time you could rent a watermill with a bunch of pizzas and a few more pieces of raw meat….
