Question: where does the term cake walk come from

title: Cakewalk
text: The cakewalk or cake walk was a dance developed from the `` prize walks '' held in the late 19th century , generally at get - togethers on black slave plantations after emancipation in the Southern United States . Alternative names for the original form of the dance were `` chalkline - walk '' , and the `` walk - around '' . At the conclusion of a performance of the original form of the dance in an exhibit at the 1876 Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia , an enormous cake was awarded to the winning couple . Thereafter it was performed in minstrel shows , exclusively by men until the 1890s . The inclusion of women in the cast `` made possible all sorts of improvisations in the Walk , and the original was soon changed into a grotesque dance '' which became very popular across the country . 

Answer: answer: The cakewalk or cake walk was a dance developed from the `` prize walks '' held in the late 19th century , generally at get - togethers on black slave plantations after emancipation in the Southern United States . At the conclusion of a performance of the original form of the dance in an exhibit at the 1876 Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia , an enormous cake was awarded to the winning couple .