
The English word is derived from the Yiddish lox, "salmon"; which is a cognate of Swedish "lax", Danish/Norwegian "laks", German "Lachs", and Old English "læx". It is often served with bagels and cream cheese. Lox is prominent in Jewish cuisine.
A Gravad Lox is a Scandanavian traditional appetizer, that is not smoked but coated with a mixture of spices. It is then weighed down to force the moisture out. The cured fillet is thinly sliced and served in the same fashion, either in a sandwich or a one biter appetizer; generally with mustard-dill sauce.