deadcake

English

Alternative forms

• dead cake

Etymology

Calque of Dutch doodkoek (literally “death cake”), equivalent to dood + koek (English dead + cake).

Noun

deadcake (plural deadcakes)

1. (historical) A small cake or cookie served at a funeral in Dutch-settled colonial New York, often with the initials of the deceased inscribed.
   • 1905, George S. Roberts, Old Schenectady, page 45:

     The cakes were of an especial kind and were called "deadcakes." In the case of a funeral in the family of the rich, or of those high-up in the official life of the Colony, large sums were spent on the wine and it was not unusual for a supply of it to be put in the cellar long before the first death so that it would be on hand and improving by age.

   • 1980, Jonathan Pearson, First Reformed Church of Schenectady, Three centuries: the history of the First Reformed Church of Schenectady, 1689-1980:

     ...and of the festivities following Dutch Reformed Church funerals, during which the men who had been invited met after the interment and heartily (some said riotously) toasted the departed with choice wine and "deadcakes" prepared especially for the occasion.

   • 2009, Don Corbly, The Last Colonials, →ISBN, page 191:

     In addition, they delivered a bottle of wine, a pair of gloves, and two “deadcakes” that were actually large cookies not to be eaten, but kept as a memento of the deceased.