Origins & Information - "Breadwinner"

(Props if you know where the above picture's from) Someone asked me what "breadwinner" really meant and where it came from - I thought that it'd be an interesting blog post. Unfortunately, my research produced somewhat skimpy results as to the origin of the word in terms of unique or intriguing facts, unlike my previous post on the phrase "tastes like chicken." Quite simply, "breadwinner" is a straightforward term and doesn't have any complex history. The definition of the word itself is "a member of a family whose wages supply its livelihood," which has the tendency to refer to the male head of the household. The first known use of this word was in 1771 or more commonly 1818 when it was used to refer to the "skill or art by which one makes a living." A compound word, the bread in "breadwinner" refers to the food that was a staple for many households throughout history and for the overall general referential term for food, and winner is what you all know it as. The breadwinner was the person who was able to "win" the most "bread" for the family, most likely the one who had the highest paying job. It's a term that many still use today!