Why is a hamburger called a hamburger when it doesn't even have ham in it?

Question

Why don't they call it a beef burger or a beef sandwhich. And why is it that if they put fish instead of beef, they call it a fish sandwhich instead of a fish burger?

Answer 1

it's from Hamuburg, Germany

Answer 2

It doesn't come from what it's made of, but rather WHERE it came from.

The word comes from the seaport city - Hamburg in Germany. During the time of American settlement, a lot of European immigrants moved to the New World. At that time the port of Hamburg meant the last piece of European soil immigrants felt under their feet before their voyage to the unknown. Hamburger was a food European immigrant often used to consume on the boats of the Hamburg-America Line. Like the Italians immigrant that brought in pizzas, the German immigrant brought in hamburger. Strangely enough they did not use the names for hamburger in their mother tongue (German name ‘Frikadelle’). Maybe that was because the word hamburger reminded them nostalgic of their voyage and was an element of recalling their old homeland.

Answer 3

Hamburger also refers to the cooked patty of ground meat by itself. The patty alone is also known as a beefburger, or burger. Adding cheese makes it a cheeseburger. Hamburger is actually a distinct product from ground round and other types of ground meat. However, ground beef of any form is often commonly referred to as "hamburger." A recipe calling for 'hamburger' (the non-countable noun) would require ground beef or beef substitute- not a whole sandwich. The word hamburger comes from Hamburg steak, which was named after the German city of Hamburg. Contrary to what folk etymology might lead one to believe, there is no actual 'ham' in a hamburger.



A grilled patty of ground meatAccording to the American Heritage Dictionary, the term "hamburger" comes from Hamburg steak, which was first recorded in English in 1884 but was probably used much earlier. A form of pounded beef called "Hamburg Steak" was common in Hamburg in the middle of the 19th century. The recipe was brought to North America by the large numbers of people immigrating from Germany at the time, many of whom passed through the port of Hamburg. There is indirect evidence for its use on an American menu in 1836. The form hamburger steak first appeared in a Washington state newspaper in 1889. The first recipe close to the current idea of a hamburger, using ground beef mixed with onion and pepper dates from 1902. The Oxford English Dictionary of 1802, on the other hand, defines "Hamburg Steak" simply as cured beef. In a time without refrigerators, when it took weeks to travel from Europe to the USA, cured meat was a standard food for poor US immigrants, who often started from Hamburg (which was and is the biggest German seaport and one of the biggest in the world). In a tween deck, where cooking is nearly impossible, cutting tough cured beef into pieces and putting it between slices of bread may suggest itself

Answer 4

just like cream cheese pie, nobody will ever understand it.

Answer 5

it originated in Hamburg, Germany

Answer 6

That was its city of origin. Frankfurters are not made from a guy named Frank - they just came originally from that city. You can't take names too seriously.

Answer 7

idk

Answer 8

At a World's Fair early in the 1900s, a Hamburg Steak vendor ran out of plates.  

He started putting the chopped steak (minced or ground beef) patties on buns so he could continue to serve his customers.

Answer 9

ask the guy who named it that

Answer 10

It originated in Hamburg Germany.  And, I have heard it called fish burger.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hamburger

Answer 11

It comes from the word hamburg steak, which was the form of beef commonly used to make hamburgers when brought to America. Hamburg steak was a common meat in Hamburg, Germany, and when people imigrated here they brought it with them.

Answer 12

The original idea of grounding up beef and making into patties with spices and frying it originated in the town of Hamburg Germany (hence the name hamburger).  

Oh by the way, there is no law saying that you can't name a fish sandwich a "fishburger!"  Give it a shot, see if you get a rise out of people.