Why Is "Arabica" Called "Arabica"?

In Han Huaizong's book "The Fourth Wave: Specialty Coffee Studies," there's a sentence that FrontStreet Coffee particularly appreciates: "The birth of Arabica is a miracle of creation, and the naming of Arabica is an even more beautiful misunderstanding!"

The reason for this statement is that the scientific name of small-seeded coffee—"Arabica"—resulted from a misconception that led to its incorrect naming.

How the Misnaming Occurred

How did the misnaming of Arabica occur? As we all know, Arabica originates from Ethiopia in Africa, but in the early days of coffee discovery, people didn't believe this. The earliest records of coffee date back to the 9th century—a very long time ago—when people only documented the coffee plants and had no interest in coffee cherries or green coffee beans. It wasn't until 1400 that people began treating them as raw material for beverages and gradually came to appreciate these cherry-like red fruits.

During the 17th-18th centuries, coffee had spread to Europe and become the daily "spiritual beverage" for people across European countries. However, at that time, people didn't know that coffee growing regions were in the forests of Ethiopia; instead, they generally believed that all coffee came from Arabia.

Reasons for the Misunderstanding

There are two reasons for this misunderstanding. The first reason comes from Ethiopia itself! The primary discovery site of Arabica is located in the Kaffa forest of Ethiopia. However, this forest was known as the "impenetrable treasure trove" for a long time because it was managed by the Kingdom of Kaffa, which was closed and exclusionary, making it difficult for outsiders to gain access. Since foreigners could barely enter, it's no wonder they didn't know it was a golden treasure trove rich in coffee.

Furthermore, the Arabia we mentioned earlier refers to modern-day Yemen. At that time, almost all coffee beans worldwide had to be traded through the port of Mocha, and the burlap sacks of beans passing through Mocha port were stamped with "Mocha" to prove they were legitimate beans exported from Mocha. Consequently, when Europeans saw the word "Mocha," they mistakenly believed these coffees were produced by Arabia.

As European merchants, travelers, and botanists visited Yemen during that era, tasted Yemeni coffee, and saw Yemeni coffee trees, their conviction was strengthened: "Yes, coffee beans are produced in Yemen!" Therefore, in his 1753 publication "Species Plantarum," the renowned Swedish botanist Carl Linnaeus systematically classified and named plants worldwide. These "Yemeni coffee beans," which had not yet been classified or named, were given their scientific name using binomial nomenclature: Coffea arabica L. Plant scientific names are typically based on their nature, characteristics, or growing region. The first word represents the genus name, the second word represents the species name, followed by the namer's initial. Translated, this means: Arabian species of the coffee genus, named by Linnaeus.

Conclusion

Therefore, if Linnaeus had known at the time that coffee originated from Ethiopia, the "arabica" in the scientific name would have been changed to "ethiopica," and the Arabica species would have become the Ethiopian species! Finally, let me quote another sentence from "Specialty Coffee Studies": "Although Arabica has been widely accepted and the error has persisted for centuries, coffee enthusiasts who pursue truth can still understand the twists and turns of this story."

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