Ancient Greek flat cakes cooked between hot metal plates were called obelios.
These early cakes were flat, wafer-like foods rather than the deep, leavened waffles familiar today. Their basic mixture was likely grain flour with water or milk, sometimes including eggs. The heated plates cooked both sides at once, an approach that later spread through Europe.
By the early Middle Ages, related wafer irons were used for communion wafers and secular oublies. The French term oublie became associated with thin wafer pastries, helping connect the ancient technique to the later waffle tradition. The familiar grid pattern developed much later as irons acquired engraved designs.
A common mix-up is to call obelios “pizzelle” or “oublies.” Pizzelle are a later Italian wafer cookie, while oublies are medieval European descendants or relatives—not the ancient Greek name. The English word waffle itself did not appear until 1725.