In America, potlucks are now synonymous with get-togethers of family and friends, centered around good food. The idea is simple enough—everyone does his or her part by bringing a dish, which combine to form a well-balanced meal. But the origin of the term “potluck” is not as simple as the concept behind it.

The word dates back as far as medieval Europe, when people would continuously heat up leftover food in a large pot to serve to visitors at a moment’s notice. It was also common at this time for pubs to have a pot of leftover food for guests. It was said that patrons would get the “luck of the pot,” and so the potluck was born.

A similar tradition of food and goods swapping, called a “potlach,” is a long-standing part of Native American culture in the Pacific Northwest. The potlach has been studied by various anthropologists as one of the earliest recorded cultural gatherings that closely resembles our modern-day potluck, but because these celebrations only have ties to groups that weren’t in contact until many years later, it is difficult to make a clear connection between the potlach and the potluck.

The most widely accepted theory for how the potluck became an American tradition is that English settlers brought the tradition with them when they came to America—with the first Thanksgiving dinner being the most prominent example. As the legend goes, the first English settlers to come to America, the pilgrims, struggled for the first year after their arrival in 1620 to maintain crops and sustain themselves in the New World. After a more successful farming season in 1621, the remaining settlers decided to celebrate with a feast that included many members of the Native American tribe who assisted them.

While this “first Thanksgiving” more closely resembled a traditional English feast than the nationally recognized holiday we celebrate today, it is believed to have sparked our American tradition of gathering around for a dinner in which everyone contributed and our thankfulness to have such a meal. Since those days, the potluck certainly has seen some modern revamping. After a period of less popularity through America’s economic downturns of the early 1900s, the 1950s brought in a new era of food-driven gatherings.

Surpluses in income and the popularization of cookbooks and recipe swaps brought the potluck back to life during the middle part of the twentieth century. The ability to cook food in new ways, via modern-day home appliances and their heavy promotion through advertising on television and radio, allowed people to prepare completely different dishes that would later become potluck staples. Recipes like grape jelly meatballs and tuna-and-jello casserole (or anything encased in jello, for that matter) skyrocketed in popularity, thanks in part to their appearance at potlucks.

Nowadays, the potluck has much more variety than jellied meat. In fact, today’s potlucks are often set up as a way to trade family recipes, celebrate an occasion, raise funds for charity, or even host a more formal gathering—and the possibilities for what to bring are endless. Though it’s probably best to bring dishes that don’t need refrigerating and can be heated or reheated in a cinch, there are plenty of inventive ways to make the most of your potluck party.

Fall, in particular, is a popular time to host potlucks because of all the delicious fruits and vegetables that are in season, and the spike in holiday parties to host and attend. Robust foods like pumpkin and butternut squash pair perfectly with a number of other seasonal foods and spices, and are great ways to avoid the typical meat and potato dishes.

Take your potluck up a notch! Turn it into a competition or simply include a way for guests to recreate the meals at home. Whether you or a friend is doing the hosting, these printable tent cards, recipe cards, and voting ballots are a delightful way to add some flair to your feast and are guaranteed to put a smile on your guests' faces when they realize their dishes were crowd favorites!

To get a delicious recipe for vegetable lasagna with pumpkin sauce—the perfect option for your potluck—and other fall entertaining tips, visit americanlifestylemag.com/blog.