A baker is a tradesperson who bakes and sometimes sells breads and other products made of flour by using an oven or other concentrated heat source.

[2] In ancient Rome several centuries later, the first mass production of breads occurred, and "the baking profession can be said to have started at that time.

[5] In Medieval Europe, baking ovens were often separated from other buildings (and sometimes located outside city walls) to mitigate the risk of fire.

[5] Because bread was an important staple food, bakers' production factors (such as bolting yields, ingredients, and loaf sizes) were heavily regulated.

[6] Soon after the enactment of the Assize, "baking became a very stable industry, and was executed much more professionally than brewing, resulting in towns and villages having fewer bakers than brewers.

Bakers were among the thousands of servants who served in the Ming Palace,[10] including recruited cooks, imperial eunuchs, and trained serving-women (Shangshiju).

[14] In addition to the secular aspect of baking, Ming bakers also were responsible for providing pastries for use in various rituals, festivals and ceremonies, such as zongzi.

For example, in Feng Menglong's story, when Mr. Bo went out looking for the family's lost silver, his wife was ordered to take care of the bakery.

[14] Ming fiction and art records examples of various bakers; for example, in Feng Menglong's story, the Bo couple owns a bakery to sell the cakes and snacks while in Water Margin, the character Wu Dalang does not have a settled store and sells pancakes on the shoulder pole along the street[15] The Ming-era painter Qiu Ying's work Along the River During the Qingming Festival shows food stores alongside the street and peddlers who are selling food along the streets.

[22] Joseph Lochner, a bakery owner in Utica, New York, was subsequently convicted of violating the law for forcing his employees to work more than sixty hours a week.

[25] Baker is an easily recognizable English surname of medieval occupational origin; Baxster is the female form.

[26][27] Equivalent family names of occupational origin meaning "baker" exist in other languages: Boulanger, Bulinger, Dufour, and Fournier in French, Bäcker in German, and Piekarz in Polish.

Bakers produce various types and quantities of breads, pastries, and other baked goods sold by grocers, wholesalers, restaurants, and institutional food services.

OOH reports that bakeries, "especially large manufacturing facilities, are filled with potential dangers such as hot ovens, mixing machines, and dough cutters.

Although their work is generally safe, bakers may endure back strains caused by lifting or moving heavy bags of flour or other products.