Birth of an Icon: Not So Ancient After All

Contrary to romantic myths, the baguette isn't ancient. Most food historians date its emergence to the early 20th century, with multiple origin stories competing for truth—each revealing something essential about French society.

One theory credits the 1920 labor law limiting bakers' working hours. Traditional round loaves required starting at 2 AM; the quicker-baking baguette let bakers sleep until 4 AM. "My great-grandfather was among the first baguette bakers," shares Cambodian-French baker Sophie Keo. "He wasn't preserving tradition—he was inventing it, adapting to modern life. That spirit of adaptation is why I can put lemongrass in my baguettes today."

Another story involves Metro construction, where workers allegedly needed bread that could break without knives (weapons were banned underground). Whether true or not, it highlights bread's connection to working-class life—a connection that Congolese-French baker Marie Lubaki honors in her Belleville boulangerie: "The baguette was always the people's bread. That's why I keep prices low, even if margins suffer. Some things matter more than profit."