Chicken in a biscuit in england12/1/2023 ![]() Also called sea biscuit, sea bread, ship biscuit. A hard biscuit or bead made with only flour and water. Here is the entry for hardtack in The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, fifth edition (2010): In pioneer days, land travelers as well as sea travelers commonly carried hardtack with them on long trips. It seems clear from this instance that Knolles used the term bisket for what much later in the United States came to be called hardtack. ![]() There was such a dearth in the Turks armie, that they were enforced to giue their camels bisket and rice, and when that failed, they gaue them their pack-saddles to eat, and after that pieces of wood beaten into pouder, and at the last the very earth : which dearth endured vntill they arriued at VAN. ![]() ![]() In fact, Knolles uses bisket five times in the course of his Historie-including this instance: Richard Knolles, The Generall Historie of the Turkes (1603) does indeed contain the passage that Johnson quotes, but he spells the word bisket:įor all the water thereabout was most vnpleasant and exceeding brackish, so that both sicke and whole were glad when they could get a crab to quench the extremitie of their thirst : although the emperour did what he might to remedie these extremities, and much releese was in good time sent both from SICILIA and NAPLES : the bisket also in the ships, especially in the Spanish gallies, was growne hoarie and vnwholesome. A composition of fine flour, almonds, and sugar, made by the confectioners.įrom Johnson's remark that sea biscuits are baked for long voyages four times, we might conclude that a more suitable name for these items would be quadriscuits or tetriscuits. Many have been cured by abstinence from drink, eating dry biscuit, which creates no thirst, and strong frictions four or five times a day. The biscuit also in the ships, especially in the Spanish gallies, was grown hoary, and unwholesome. A kind of hard dry bread, made to be carried to sea it is baked for long voyages four times. Next to weigh in is Samuel Johnson, A Dictionary Of The English Language (1755), with entries for biscotin and biscuit:īISCOTIN, n. This same definition appears in editions of Dyche & Pardon as late as the eighteenth edition (1781). also the bread carried to sea, is called sea biscuit. Thomas Dyche & William Pardon, A New General English Dictionary, third edition (1749) is the earliest dictionary I've been able to find that lists the spelling biscuit:īISKET, BISCUIT, or BISQUET (S.) commonly understood of small cakes made by the confectioners, of fine flower, eggs, sugar, &c. Two dictionaries-Edward Phillips & John Kersey, The New World of Words: Or, Universal English Dictionary (1706) and John Kersey, Dictionarium Anglo-Britannicum: or, a General English Dictionary (1708)-have identical definitions for biscotin:īiscotin, ( F.) a sort of Confection made of fine Flower, the Whites of Eggs, Powder-Sugar, &c.īut John Kersey, A New English Dictionary or, A Compleat Collection of the Most Proper and Significant Words, and Terms of Art commonly used in the English Language (1713) has this very different definition for bisket:Īt least superficially, the definition of biscotin might describe a type of modern English biscuit, while the definition of bisket might serve as a rough description of a modern American biscuit. A look at early (pre-1800) English dictionaries points to a possible source of confusion early in the career of biscuit.
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