The Legend of the Pretzel

As the story goes:   An Italian teaching monk was preparing bread when he decided to cut some of the dough into thin strips.  He made a circle with a strip then took the ends of the strip brought them to the center, gave them a quick twist and set it down over the center of the strip.  He believed it was like folding his arms when he prayed.  

At the end of each day the monk would give one to each student who had recited their prayers.  He named these tiny breads  Pretida which translates to "little reward".