David Castleton (Author) on Nostr: Christmas crackers were invented by the London confectioner Tom Smith in 1847. ...

Christmas crackers were invented by the London confectioner Tom Smith in 1847. Alarmed by slumping sales of bon bons, he was inspired to come up with a new concept when watching a log snapping and crackling on the fire. He combined the wrapping of the French bon bon - with a twist at each end - with an internal banger mechanism. His product was initially called Cosaque - French for 'Cossack' - but the onomatopoeic term 'cracker' soon became more popular. #history #Christmas #Yule #weird #folklore #London #linguistics