It’s National Pizza Day and Here Are 10 Things You Need to Know

Whether its hand-tossed New York, Detroit, Chicago or Sicilian style, there is love in America for this cheesy pizza with delicious toppings for extra flavor - hold the pineapple, please. 

February 9th is National Pizza Day and it’s no surprise that pizza has remained a staple in American food culture. Pizza is sold by the millions each day with North America selling $56.8 billion worth of pizza in 2022. 

Although pizza is a simple pleasure, it comes with a complicated history. Many pizza experts debate how and where pizza originated since there is no historical record. Some experts argue that it was not a singular event that birthed this cheesy flatbread but a series of events. 

Here are 10 facts about pizza you need to know: 

1. While Italy is commonly referred to as the birthplace of pizza, several other cultures have their own flatbread variations such as the ancient Greeks with plakous, a flatbread with cheese, garlic, onions, and herbs. 

2. It wasn’t until the 18th century that pizza, as we know it today, was born. 

3. The lazzaroni, the poorest class in Naples, were the biggest pizza enthusiast. They looked for a cheaper alternative to macaroni or vermicelli. 

4. The first pizza was much simpler than it is today. It started as a flatbread topped with readily available ingredients. This would often include tomatoes with anchovies, oregano or garlic, and herbs. 

5. The word "pizza" first appeared in a Latin text from the town of Gaeta, Italy in 997 A.D. “Pizza” first appeared in English text in the 1800s. However, in a 1958 Italian-English dictionary, the word pizza was defined as “small cake or wafer.” 

6. Historians have coined the word to refer to the Greek pita and the Langobardic bizzo.

7. While it was considered poor food, Italian aristocrats also enjoyed pizza. King Umberto I and Queen Margherita enjoyed pizza so much that pizzaiolo Raffele Espositio created a pizza in the Queen’s honor. The famous Margherita pizza is known worldwide for its red tomatoes, white mozzarella, and green basil celebrating the colors of the Italian flag. 

8. Mass immigration of Italians to the United States in the late 1800s also brought pizza to America. The first American pizza pies were called “tomato pies.” These tomato pies have more ingredients than Neapolitan pizza that includes cheese, different toppings, and tomato sauce. 

9. In 1905, the first pizzeria opened in the United States. Lombardi’s Pizza on Spring Street in the Little Italy section of Manhattan, New York is a national historic landmark and legendary pizzeria. 

10. Pizza in America boomed after World War II. American soldiers who were stationed in Italy sought out pizzerias across the United States after spending time in Naples. Businessmen, like Tom Monaghan and Frank Carney, saw this as an opportunity and opened Domino’s Pizza and Pizza Hut to supply the new demand, focusing on delivery and takeout instead of dine-in restaurants.