Coffee, the beverage that was accidentally discovered by Ethiopia’s dancing goats
Coffee, one of the most popular beverages in the world, has an interesting history of its own. Through ages, it has been smuggled out of rigorous regimes and stolen from various royalties. In fact, it has influenced global culture in more ways than one. Isn’t it incredible how small beans harvested from tiny trees in Ethiopia have grown to become the world's second most traded commodity? Let us take you through the fascinating origin of coffee, legends surrounding its discovery and some fun facts.
Who discovered coffee and where?
Legend tells us that Kaldi, a goat herder from Ethiopia, noticed one day that his goats were acting strangely. Actually, they seemed to be having a good time eating red berries. Kaldi deduced that the berries were the source of their strange behaviour. After discovering this magical fruit through his herd of goats, he told a monk about it. Interestingly, the monk was overjoyed to have discovered something that would help him pray all night. In turn, he (the monk) informed other priests at the monastery about his discovery, and the word about stimulating berries spread quickly. However, according to another version, Kaldi gave these beans to a monk who disapproved of their use and flung them into the fire! Peculiar were the ways of the monks back in those days, no?
How did coffee get its name?
While the backstory behind coffee is quite interesting, what will intrigue you more is the origin of the term coffee. It is believed to have emerged from a variety of languages. Curious to know more? Here’s the entire story for you. Initially, coffee was known as “qahwah” in Yemen. This was derived from a romantic term for wine. Oh, that’s impressive! However, later, it was shortened to Turkish “kahveh” and Dutch “koffie”, until the English people started calling it ‘coffee’.
How did the modern-day coffee come into existence?
So, roasted coffee, as we know it now, is said to have originated in Arabia. In fact, you might be surprised to know that coffee was quite popular among the Islamic community way back in the 13th century! Okay, but why was that? Coffee’s stimulating properties helped them during their long prayer sessions. Gradually, the Arabs were able to control the market on coffee plantations by parching and boiling the beans, rendering them infertile. In fact, until the 1600s, when Baba Budan, an Indian pilgrim, left Mecca with fertile coffee beans connected to a strap across his abdomen, there was no coffee plant outside of Arabia or Africa. Well, as you can see, Baba's beans ushered in a new era of European coffee competition.
Coffee drinking traditions from around the world
Coffee is a cherry-like fruit, that turns red when ripe. In fact, the coffee bean is found in the middle of the red coffee fruit in its most basic, unprocessed form. Initially, the fruit was combined with animal fat to produce a high-protein snack bar. Moreover, the fermented coffee pulp was once used to make a wine-like beverage! Until coffee became our preferred morning beverage, it was available in a number of forms. Legend would have us believe that a drink produced with the entire coffee fruit, including the beans and hull, first appeared around 1000 A.D. Roasting coffee beans, the first step in the process of creating coffee, did not begin until the 13th century.