Why Is a Wedding Speech Called a “Toast”?
A slice of bread and a speech over raised glasses share a name. The connection may once have been sitting inside the drink.
The word toast came through Old French from a Latin verb meaning “to scorch” or “parch.” In English, it first meant bread browned by heat. People later put pieces of toasted, sometimes spiced, bread into wine or ale. Online Etymology Dictionary
By the late seventeenth century, a toast could also be a person honored with a drink—often a celebrated woman. The word then spread to the good wishes spoken over the glass. The likely idea was that an admired person added flavor to the occasion, as toast did to the drink. The precise link remains uncertain, though; stories told about its origin may be more entertaining than reliable. Merriam-Webster
The bread has vanished from most glasses, but both meanings survived. At breakfast, you eat toast. At a wedding, you give one.
So when everyone raises a glass to the newlyweds, an old piece of browned bread may be hiding in the ceremony’s name.
