I Just Learned What Cappuccino Really Means, And It's Surprisingly Religious

First, came the news that ASDA stands for Asquith and Dairies (yep, really). 

Then, I found out that HARIBO is an acronym and Twix is a clever portmanteau; even Quality Street and Ferrero Rocher have secret second meanings. 

Now I’ve learned that the humble cappuccino has an interesting backstory, too.

On a recent episode of the history podcast You’re Dead To Me, coffee historian and author Professor Jonathan Morris revealed that the name “cappuccino” has surprisingly religious origins.

First up, what actually is a cappuccino?

The warming beverage has an espresso base and, according to Esquires coffee, is made from equal parts coffee, milk and foam. 

A latte, in contrast, is made of one part coffee, three parts milk and is then topped with foam, while a flat white is stronger – it has a double shot of espresso and is topped with milk and then finished with ‘micro-foam’. 

The word ‘cappuccino’ has a religious past 

We still say ‘Capuchin’ in relation to two things today, historian and You’re Dead To Me host Greg Jenner said: “One would be a type of monkey, and another one would be a type of monk.” 

In this case, it’s named after the latter: Italian Capuchin friars. 

“This is a fun one,” Prof Morris agreed, “because people kind of look at a cappuccino today and think it looks like a monk because it’s got the white on the top, so it must be the bald shaved monk.” 

But Capuchin monks didn’t sport tonsures (the distinctive old-fashioned monk haircut), Prof Morris said.

Instead, the name refers to “the amount of milk I want in my coffee to make it the colour of the robes that Capuchins wear”.

According to Merriam-Webster, the Capuchin friars “are members of the larger Franciscan orders of monks, and their order was founded in the 16th century in Italy”.

They were known for their missionary work, “as well as their dedication to extreme austerity, poverty, and simplicity”.

Huh. Anything else?

I was pretty surprised to learn from Prof Morris that the coffee bean is, in fact, a seed. 

Two seeds grow in a “cherry-like” fruit, he explained, and stay green until coffee roasters work their flavour and colour-intensifying magic. 

Gardener’s World adds that the harvest is pretty meagre: “A coffee plant grown in the right conditions might produce enough for an espresso,” they write.