Kuchen
/ˈkuːkən/noun
A German-style cake or sweet baked dish, especially one associated with German-American cuisine.
Did you know?Kuchen entered English through German, especially Pennsylvania German usage, while its deeper ancestry traces back to an ancient Indo-European root meaning “to cook” or “ripen by heat.”
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*pekw-
“To cook, ripen, or mature by heat.”
Ancient Latin
Latin
coquere
“To cook or prepare food by heating.”
Late Latin
Latin
coquina
“A kitchen or place where food is cooked.”
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*kōkōn
“A borrowed Germanic form referring to cooking or a cooked preparation.”
Old High German
OHG
kuocho
“A cake or baked preparation.”
Middle High German
MHG
kuoche
“Cake or pastry.”
Modern English
English
kuchen
“A German-style cake, adopted particularly in German-American English.”