Etymology:
The word "ventriloquism" comes from a Latin rendering of the Greek word engastrimantis or engastrimuthos, literally "belly-prophet" or "belly-speaker" respectively, a word which first appears in texts from the classical period of the fifth century BCE.

The first known ventriloquist was Louis Brabant, a member of the court of the French King Francis the First (16th century). Understandably, for a long time, ventriloquism was viewed negatively by the Christian church, but eventually it became looked upon as simply a form of entertainment. In 1896 in London's Palace Theater, a comedian by the name of Fred Russell came up with an act in which he performed with his dummy, He became known as the father of modern ventriloquism.

References:
1. Charles B. Davis, Distant Ventriloquism: Vocal Mimesis, Agency and Identity in Ancient Greek Performance, Theatre Journal 55.1 (2003) 45-65
2. Leigh Eric Schmidt, "From Demon Possession to Magic Show: Ventriloquism, Religion, and the Enlightenment," Church History 67:2 (June 1998), 274-304. Copyright 1998, American Society of Church History
3. “Ventriloquism,” Harper's New Monthly Magazine, vol. 5, iss. 28, pp. 350-352, September 1852