There is doubt about the origins of pretzels. Some say that the pretzel is derived from German Brezel, and others that they could date from mediaeval times or even from the Roman Empire. There is a legend that an Italian monk shaped the dry dough into the shape of a monk praying, with his arms folded across his breast, to reward good children. Another says that bakers in Germany used to hang a sign with three rings, though there is an argument about whether the pretzels took on the shape of the sign or the sign took on the shape of the pretzels. Pretzels may be either hard or soft, with soft ones being traditional. These are particularly popular in Germany, about the size of a hand, while hard ones are gaining ground as a bar snack throughout Europe and the United States. Sweetened varieties are also becoming well known. George W Bush, President of the United States, had a misadventure with a pretzel whilst watching an NFL football game on television in January 2002, choking and losing consciousness. He recovered.
