A Short History of the Coffee

The history of coffee drinking tradition begins with a legend in Africa, spreads across the globe as a prized commodity.

The Legendary Beginning in Ethiopia

The most famous story of coffee’s discovery is that of Kaldi, a 9tth century Ethiopian goat herder who noticed his goats became energetic after eating berries from a certain tree. According to the tale, he shared his find with local monks, who made a drink from the berries to help them stay awake during night prayers. While Kaldi’s story is a legend, the region of Kaffa in Ethiopia is widely believed to be the birthplace of the Coffea arabica plant, and its name is thought to be the root of the word “coffee”.

From Arabia to the World

The first written evidence of coffee drinking comes from 15 century Yemen, across the Red Sea from Ethiopia. Here, it was initially used by Sufi monks in religious ceremonies to maintain alertness. By the 1450s, it had become a popular social drink, and Yemen became the first place to cultivate coffee commercially.

Coffee reached Europe around the mid-16th century, first appearing in apothecaries as a medicinal remedy before becoming a social drink. The first coffeehouses opened in Venice in 1645, followed by London in 1652 and Paris in 1672. These quickly became hubs for socializing, business, and intellectual exchange. These establishments quickly earned the nickname “penny universities” because, for the price of a cup, a patron could engage in lively intellectual debate, business deals, and political discussion. Coffee had become the fuel of the Enlightenment.

Global Expansion and a Dark Colonial Legacy

The demand for coffee fueled a rapid global expansion of production, which came at a terrible cost.
The Dutch were instrumental in smuggling coffee plants out of Arabia and establishing plantations in their colonies, like Suriname in the Caribbean. The massive growth of coffee production in the Caribbean and the Americas was built on the brutal labor of enslaved people. This is considered the darkest chapter in coffee’s history, mirroring the horrors of the sugar trade. Later, other countries like Brazil and Cuba became major producers, relying on large-scale enslaved and coerced labor as well.

Coffee in the Current Times

In the modern era, Brazil emerged as the undisputed king of coffee production, a title it still holds today. The invention of instant coffee in the early 20th century and the rise of espresso culture in Italy further transformed the drink into a daily necessity. After World War II, American soldiers developed a taste for the strong Italian espresso, which led to the global phenomenon of chain coffee shops. Today, the “third wave” coffee movement treats coffee like fine wine, focusing on single-origin beans, artisanal roasting, and sustainable, fair-trade farming practices. From a goat herder’s discovery to a morning ritual for billions, coffee’s history is a brew of legend, trade, colonial hardship, and global connection.