Potluck

A potluck is a communal gathering where each guest or group contributes a different, often homemade, dish of food to be shared.

Other names for a "potluck" include: potluck dinner, pitch-in, shared lunch, spread, faith supper, carry-in dinner, covered-dish-supper, fuddle, Jacob's Join, bring a plate, and fellowship meal.

Etymology
The word pot-lucke appears in the 16th-century English work of Thomas Nashe discussing wine, and in his play "Summer's Last Will and Testament", spoken in a dialogue concerning wine. The modern execution of a "communal meal, where guests bring their own food", most likely originated in the 1930s during the Great Depression.

Some speakers believe that it is an eggcorn of the North American indigenous communal meal known as a potlatch (meaning "to give away"). There are others who acknowledge the mixed traditions of Potluck.

Description
Potluck dinners are events where the attendees bring a dish to a meal. The only traditional rule is that each dish be large enough to be shared among a good portion of the anticipated guests. Guests may bring in any form of food, ranging from the main course to desserts.