c. 1600, from Latin confarreationem, from confarreare "to unite in marriage by the Ceremony of the Cake," from com- "with, together" (see com-) + far, farris "spelt, grain, meal" (see barley). In ancient Rome, the most solemn form of marriage, in which an offering of bread was made in the presence of the Pontifex Maximus and 10 witnesses.
