History of Coffee

What is Coffee?

History of Coffee

-How was coffee discovered?

-How did coffee spread to the world?

-Where does coffee get its name?

Turkish Coffee

Coffee is a type of beverage obtained by separating the seeds from the fruits of the tree called coffea and the history of coffee dates back. Also preparing it with brewing methods that differ from region to region. The seeds of these fruits are consumed by brewing in water after various processes. Although each country has its own unique beverages that it has created according to cultural palate habits, coffee has managed to enter the lives of most people on earth, unlike these.

Each society has attributed its own meanings to coffee; It is roasted, brewed and presented in its own way. Since its emergence, it has been a source of livelihood for countless people and has shaped the economy of the region where it grew up. Today, it continues to gain the appreciation of people by increasing its value and reaches every corner of the world without stopping. For this reason, it still remains the most traded commodity in the world after oil.

History of Coffee

-How was coffee discovered?

Although coffee is one of the most consumed beverages in the world, there is no proven information about when it first appeared. This situation leads to the emergence of many independent rumors about the discovery of coffee.

While this is the case, it is not possible to describe the discovery of coffee in precise terms. But we can have an idea about the discovery of coffee through the most spoken and common legends.

The most famous of these stories tells that coffee was found in Ethiopia thanks to goats. In this narration, the Arab were shepherds within the borders of Abyssinia at the time and in a region that is now connected to Ethiopia. They observed that the goats did not sleep for days and were full of energy. Later, when they examined what the goats did to find out the reason for this, they found out that they had eaten a plant that had never been seen before and these plants had caused the situation.

After, they collected this plant and took it to their dervishes for advice, and when a dervish named Şazili saw the same effects on himself, the magical effects of coffee and caffeine were understood for the first time by human beings. The coffee bean was first consumed by turning into flour and mixing into bread dough. Then it was boiled in water and drunk, and thus began the adventure of coffee that continues to this day.

How did coffee spread to the world?

After being consumed in Abyssinia for the first time, coffee was brought to Yemen and gained its real fame here. Today, Yemen is the first country that comes to mind when it comes to coffee, but this is not the real homeland of coffee. Yemen is the country that created the coffee culture.

It is said that the person who made coffee spread from Abyssinia to the world was Ottoman Officer Özdemir Pasha. When Turkish coffee is compared with other coffee cultures periodically, it is enough to prove that this claim is true.

Where does coffee get its name?

It is said that Kaffa, a coffee-growing region in Abyssinia, gave its name to coffee. The similarity between the two words and the claim that coffee was discovered in Abyssinia support this view.

Turkish Coffee

The most distinctive feature of Turkish coffee is that it is cooked in a cezve. And it is served with its ground. In other coffee cultures the coffee pulp is filtered after the brewing process. But this is not the case with Turkish coffee. Even after serving, the coffee continues to brew in the cup. In addition, the portions are too small, resulting in a strong coffee. For those who do not like coffee this way, at first, it was tried to sweeten it by mixing honey. In the next period, sugar replaced honey.

Despite such tasting features, Turkish coffee is a type of coffee that stands out not with its taste but with its spiritual aspect. The naive understanding of hunger by offering water to the incoming guests along with coffee, cooking coffee at betrothal ceremonies. And its identification with Turkish delight, another important part of Turkish culture, are just a few of the elements that strengthen the spiritual aspect of coffee. As a result, “A cup of coffee has 40 years of memory.” Many proverbs emphasizing friendship related to coffee find their place in Turkish culture.