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The Marvelous Beverage That Captivated the World—Coffee

Published: 2026-01-27 Author: FrontStreet Coffee

Last Updated: 2026/01/27, The word coffee originated from a small town called Kafa in Ethiopia, Africa, where the world's first coffee tree grew. Coffee, along with tea and cocoa, is collectively known as the world's three major non-alcoholic beverages. Coffee first appeared around the 8th century BC, but records of coffee can be found in the works of the ancient Greek poet Homer and ancient Arabian legends, where coffee was documented as

The Origins and History of Coffee

The word "coffee" originates from a small town called "Kaffa" in Ethiopia, Africa, where the world's first coffee tree grew. Coffee, along with tea and cocoa, is known as one of the three great non-alcoholic beverages in the world.

The earliest appearance of coffee was around the 8th century BC, but records of coffee can be found in the works of the ancient Greek poet Homer and in ancient Arabian legends. Coffee was documented as a magical, bitter-tasting black beverage that could bring people intense stimulating power.

Legends of Coffee's Discovery

There are two legends about the discovery of coffee. One story tells that over a thousand years ago, a shepherd was grazing his sheep in an area with coffee trees. After the sheep ate the coffee fruits, they showed extraordinary excitement and became overly active. The shepherd then took the coffee fruits home, boiled them for drinking, and discovered their wonders. The shepherd told a monk about this, who improved upon it and extracted a dark, bitter beverage that could eliminate drowsiness and sleepiness. Another version tells of a fire occurring in an area with coffee trees. The coffee fruits that had been burned emitted a captivating fragrance, so people began chewing these fruits to refresh themselves. Later, they adopted the method of roasting and grinding them, mixing them with flour to make bread or for drinking. At this time, coffee fruits were already regarded as noble food.

The Historical Journey of Coffee

According to historical records, around the 11th century AD, Africans began boiling coffee with water as a beverage. Around the 13th century AD, the Ethiopian army invaded Yemen and brought coffee to the Arab world. Since Islamic doctrine prohibits drinking alcohol, stimulating coffee became popular in Islamic regions. The Arabs devoted great effort to improving and enhancing coffee, elevating the cultural quality of the beverage. Coffee was once monopolized by the Arab world. Around the 15th and 16th centuries AD, Italian Venetian merchants and Dutch merchants entered the coffee field, and coffee quickly spread to Europe and became popular worldwide.

Today, coffee has spread throughout the world, and coffee trees are cultivated in various countries. However, in terms of coffee quality, those from Arab countries and East Africa regions are considered the best. Coffee fruits grown in these high-altitude regions have unique characteristics in terms of taste, effective ingredient content, and yield per plant, belonging to premium coffee and the nobility of the coffee family.

Coffee in Philately and Culture

Africa's Papua New Guinea once issued a coffee-themed stamp souvenir sheet. The border of the sheet featured lush coffee trees, containing four stamps depicting the four processes of coffee fruit harvesting, selection, drying, and roasting. Portugal in Europe once issued a set of delicious beverage stamps, one of which directly featured a cup of fragrant, delicious coffee. After seeing these stamps, your taste buds are naturally stimulated by the rich passion and mellow aroma of coffee – that feeling is undeniable.

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