Geographic Origins
Since we have looked at the scientific origin story of coffee, let us delve into the cultural origin story. Perhaps it is best to begin with the story that is most widely known regarding the birthplace of what we know as coffee today, and perhaps the narrative that reaches farthest back into history, as far back as 800 CE. It is the legend about Kaldi and the Dancing Goats. Our story begins in Africa, in the pasturelands of Ethiopia, with Kaldi the goat-herder. One day, Kaldi notices that it is nightfall, and his goats have not yet returned. This is quite odd, because his goats were good goats and they always returned to the stables at night. Worried, Kaldi goes out in search of them, and finds them feeding. Surprisingly though, they are not feeding on pastureland grass and shrubs that they normally eat. Instead, Kaldi discovers that they are eating from a peculiar shrub with red berries that he has never seen before. More surprising, however, is the fact that his goats start dancing. He decides to try eating some of the berries too, and finds that he cannot stop dancing himself. The legend goes that Kaldi brought some of the berries to the monks at the local monastery, who were happy to discover that this strange fruit helped them stay awake through their prayers that lasted throughout the long hours of the night (Back Yard Beans).
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In the context of big history, both the legend of Kaldi and the Dancing Goats as well as the story of the coffee tree is a prime example of an origin story (Day 2 lecture, Cameron Gibelyou). The coffee tree's evolutionary history provides a scientific origin story, while the story of the Dancing Goats, because of its mythical nature, can almost be seen as akin to a creation story (Kaldi discovers the bean and creates coffee). In this case, however, the two do not clash. In fact, the big history of coffee's origins paints a picture in such a way that the two blend together; in a sense, the "creation" story picks up where the scientific story left off and continues the evolution of coffee in a human context.
Although this is just one among various origin myths of coffee, it is commonly accepted by historians today that coffee originated as an integral part of Ethiopian culture. The Ethiopians first chewed the berries themselves, then discovered more creative ways of consuming it, such as making the leaves and berries into a tea, mixing the beans with animal fat to form caffeine bars, and fermenting the pulp to create a wine. Pendergrast believes that such berries from a strange shrub became the drink as we know it today sometime in the 15th century, when people actually roasted and ground the beans (Pendergrast, Uncommon Grounds).
Although this is just one among various origin myths of coffee, it is commonly accepted by historians today that coffee originated as an integral part of Ethiopian culture. The Ethiopians first chewed the berries themselves, then discovered more creative ways of consuming it, such as making the leaves and berries into a tea, mixing the beans with animal fat to form caffeine bars, and fermenting the pulp to create a wine. Pendergrast believes that such berries from a strange shrub became the drink as we know it today sometime in the 15th century, when people actually roasted and ground the beans (Pendergrast, Uncommon Grounds).
From there, it is believed to have spread to the Arab population through trade over the Red Sea. It may be that Ethiopians, the first discovers and cultivators of the plant, established coffee tree plantations in Yemen. Nevertheless, it is certain that Yemen is the original location where coffee began as a commodity—roasted, ground, and made into the drink as we know it today (Pendergrast). Arab Sufi monks first drank it to keep them awake through their long prayers throughout the night. However, the drink soon spread throughout the Arab population and eventually to many different countries. The initial global spread of coffee is largely thanks to Muslim pilgrims who introduced the drink "throughout the Islamic world in Persia, Egypt, Turkey, and North Africa, making it a lucrative trade item" (Pendergrast).
Coffee plantations were plentiful in the Arab world, but it soon spread to the Western world through smuggling and trade of the Arabian coffee trees. India welcomed coffee when a Muslim pilgrim named Baba Budan smuggled out seven seeds from Yemen. The Dutch smuggled a tree to Holland, from whence they grew trees in Ceylon. The Dutch also planted trees from Malabar to Java (Pendergrast). The Dutch were so influential in the across-seas trade of the coffee tree due to their dominance of the shipping industry during the 1600s (cite). With its arrival in the Western world, coffee soon became a commodity that was globally spread through commercial trade, largely helped by the Europeans' control of slave populations managing the extremely laborious task of cultivating the coffee tree (refer to Trade Overview section or more information).
Coffee plantations were plentiful in the Arab world, but it soon spread to the Western world through smuggling and trade of the Arabian coffee trees. India welcomed coffee when a Muslim pilgrim named Baba Budan smuggled out seven seeds from Yemen. The Dutch smuggled a tree to Holland, from whence they grew trees in Ceylon. The Dutch also planted trees from Malabar to Java (Pendergrast). The Dutch were so influential in the across-seas trade of the coffee tree due to their dominance of the shipping industry during the 1600s (cite). With its arrival in the Western world, coffee soon became a commodity that was globally spread through commercial trade, largely helped by the Europeans' control of slave populations managing the extremely laborious task of cultivating the coffee tree (refer to Trade Overview section or more information).
Upon observing the evolution of coffee with humans having entered the scene, it is evident that the origins of coffee lie with the Arabs, because they are the first people who established a culture around the beverage that mirrors that of today. First of all, once it reached Yemen, it was already a drink—the same form of coffee that we have today. It was in this country that many coffee plantations began multiplying and spreading, eventually reaching out to the rest of the Arabian Peninsula. With this spread, coffee gradually became imbued in all of Arab culture. Pendergrast describes this revolution perfectly: "While coffee was first considered a medicine or religious aid, it soon enough slipped into everyday use. Wealthy people had a coffee room in their homes, reserved for ceremonial imbibing. For those who did not have such means, coffeehouses, known as kaveh kanes, sprang up. By the end of the fifteenth century, Muslim pilgrims had introduced coffee throughout the Islamic world in Persia, Egypt, Turkey, and North Africa, making it a lucrative trade item" (Pendergrast). It was within the Arab culture that coffee became part of "everyday use," where coffeehouses were born, and even where coffee entered cross-national trade. Before the Arabs were the Ethiopians, the first discoverers of coffee. However, their culture surrounding the drink was nowhere near as revolutionary as the Arabs, and most of their stories are shrouded in mystery and legend anyway. We cannot settle the origins of coffee with the legend of Kaldi and the Dancing Goats either, because it is a myth, after all, and once again, they did not drink the coffee but ate the raw berries from the coffee shrub itself. With the advent of coffee popularization in the Arab culture, coffee soon spread to other parts of the world through smuggling and trade. This means that all coffee in any part of the world would be historically traced back to the Arabs, thus making sense that they would be the origins. And can it be mere coincidence that the word coffee derives from the Arabic word qahwa, the Arab word for wine?
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Works Cited:
"80.05.01: The Evolution of Plants." 80.05.01: The Evolution of Plants. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Apr. 2015., http://www.yale.edu/ynhti/curriculum/units/1980/5/80.05.01.x.html
"Biology Reference." Coffee, Botany of. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Apr. 2015., http://www.biologyreference.com/Ce-Co/Coffee-Botany-of.html
"Botanical Aspects." International Coffee Organization -. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Apr. 2015., http://www.ico.org/botanical.asp
"Coffee (Coffea) - Information on Coffee - Encyclopedia of Life." Encyclopedia of Life. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Apr. 2015., http://eol.org/pages/29482/overview
Pendergrast, Mark. Uncommon Grounds: The History of Coffee and How It Transformed Our World. New York, NY: Basic, 1999. Print.
"The Coffee Tree." Just About Coffee. Just About Coffee and Kolb, n.d. Web. 17 Apr. 2015., http://justaboutcoffee.com/index.php?file=coffeetree
"15. THE BOTANY OF THE COFFEE PLANT." 15. THE BOTANY OF THE COFFEE PLANT., N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Apr. 2015., http://www.web books.com/Classics/ON/B0/B701/20MB701.html
Gibson, C. Arthur, "KAHVEH, PRAISE ALLAH." Coffee. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Apr. 2015., N.p., n.d. Web., http://www.botgard.ucla.edu/html/botanytextbooks/economicbotany/Coffea/
"80.05.01: The Evolution of Plants." 80.05.01: The Evolution of Plants. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Apr. 2015., http://www.yale.edu/ynhti/curriculum/units/1980/5/80.05.01.x.html
"Biology Reference." Coffee, Botany of. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Apr. 2015., http://www.biologyreference.com/Ce-Co/Coffee-Botany-of.html
"Botanical Aspects." International Coffee Organization -. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Apr. 2015., http://www.ico.org/botanical.asp
"Coffee (Coffea) - Information on Coffee - Encyclopedia of Life." Encyclopedia of Life. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Apr. 2015., http://eol.org/pages/29482/overview
Pendergrast, Mark. Uncommon Grounds: The History of Coffee and How It Transformed Our World. New York, NY: Basic, 1999. Print.
"The Coffee Tree." Just About Coffee. Just About Coffee and Kolb, n.d. Web. 17 Apr. 2015., http://justaboutcoffee.com/index.php?file=coffeetree
"15. THE BOTANY OF THE COFFEE PLANT." 15. THE BOTANY OF THE COFFEE PLANT., N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Apr. 2015., http://www.web books.com/Classics/ON/B0/B701/20MB701.html
Gibson, C. Arthur, "KAHVEH, PRAISE ALLAH." Coffee. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Apr. 2015., N.p., n.d. Web., http://www.botgard.ucla.edu/html/botanytextbooks/economicbotany/Coffea/