The Real Reason You Get 13 In A Baker's Dozen

Most people have likely heard of the term "a baker's dozen." Most people probably even know that it means 13, but where did this standardized term come from and why has it found its way into our everyday vocabulary? Like most things in the English language, the term baker's dozen is an old usage from England. Britannica states that there a number of possible reasons, but say the most likely version of the story dates back to medieval times when bakers were concerned about not having baked all their loaves the same size. Out of fear of a possible flogging, they would throw in an extra loaf or two to orders for good measure. This supposedly came about after some bread makers were caught purposefully making smaller-sized loaves, with the intention of overselling them.

Though, it wasn't all necessarily in bad faith. As Britannica reports, regardless of how much planning goes into bread making, due to all bakers not having proper scales at the time and variations in rising, bread could come out of the oven in an assortment of sizes.

It all comes down to regulations

On top of the simple notion of different sized loaves, Phrases delves further into the explanation of the baker's dozen. It wasn't just the neighborhood ruffians that wanted perfectly sized bread, but something more. In the 1200s, King Henry III put forth some economic and trade regulations; the Assize of Bread and Ale law was one of them. This stated that bread was to be sold by weight as opposed to in units, terrifying the bakers into adding extra loaves to stay in line with the law. Those who made bread or beer, but didn't abide by the king's new regulation, could be fined or even beaten.

While that's where the idea of a baker's dozen came from, it wasn't actually until 1599 that playwright John Cooke officially coined the term in his comedy Tu Quoque. From there, it was added into the original Urban Dictiorary, Hotten's Slang Dictionary in the mid-1800s. Point being, next time you're at the bakery, don't ask for 12 donuts – ask for a baker's dozen.