Mythical narratives (tales that are told)

These stories are widely popular, but they are not supported by contemporary documents :

Kaldi Ethiopian Shepherd

The story of the sheep that danced after eating coffee beans, and the shepherd tried the beans and they woke him up—the most famous coffee legend in the world. The earliest known mention of it appears late in the 17th century (centuries after coffee became widespread), not in the 9th century.

Sheikh Omar (or Uwais/Uthman) exiled near Mocha

It is said that he became hungry in a cave near Wisab/Mocha, so he tried roasting grains, then boiling them, and drank a "fragrant broth" that helped him survive. His fame spread, and he was considered "the miracle worker." The story is narrated in later manuscripts attributed to al-Jaziri, and is considered a traditional account rather than a definitive historical document.

Al-Shadhili: Coffee is sometimes attributed to the Sufi pole Abu al-Hasan al-Shadhili . Local traditions even link the founding of the city of Mocha to the name "al-Shadhili." In short: More of a symbolic-Sufi attribution than a historical account.

Early historical narratives (rooted in scholarly texts)

Here we approach solid ground:

Jamal al-Din al-Dhabhani (Mufti of Aden)

Later sources, citing al-Jaziri , mention that Sheikh Jamal al-Din al-Dhubhani (d. 1470 CE) was among the first to adopt coffee drinking around 1454 CE , and that he brought the habit to Yemen through his association with Abyssinian traders. This is an early and plausible account in the context of Adeni trade.

Yemeni bark

Before whole-bean roasting became common, the qishr drink (coffee husk infusion) was popular in Yemen. The presence of qishr explains the progression of coffee culture from husk infusion to roasting the beans themselves.

Al-Jazeeri: “The elite leader in coffee.”

The most important early text on coffee was written by Abd al-Qadir al-Jaziri in the sixteenth century. In it, he compiled a history of coffee, its jurisprudential disputes , and its spread from Yemen to the Hijaz, then to Egypt, the Levant, and Istanbul. The book's date of composition is given in sources as between 1558 and 1587 ; in any case, it is the first influential historical compilation to have survived.

What we know for sure (the transformation from a “Sufi custom” to a global phenomenon)

• Yemen - Mid-15th Century AD: Sufis drink coffee for staying up late and remembering God - this is the oldest reliable evidence .
• 1511 AD – Mecca: The first major campaign of prohibition, led by Governor Khair Bek , was launched. Coffee was discussed in Islamic jurisprudence (was it considered equivalent to wine, since “coffee” was one of the names of wine?). The prohibition did not last long and was later dispelled.
• 1532 AD - Cairo: A new siege and raids on coffee shops and coffee stores, then a retreat.
• 1554 AD - Istanbul: The first Ottoman coffee houses were opened by merchants from Aleppo and Damascus. This is where coffee culture began in its social sense (coffee houses, discussions, music, chess, etc.).
• Mocha – 16th-17th century AD: The rise of the port of Mocha as the gateway to the world for coffee, and its transformation into the name of the type (Mocha).

Europe - 17th century AD:

• Venice and the Adriatic Sea via Eastern trade. (To be fair, the exact dates of the first coffee house in Venice are disputed, but coffee certainly entered Italy via its ports.)
• London 1652 : The Pasqua Rosi Café is an early and influential landmark in Britain.
• Vienna 1683? The story of “Turkish grain left behind after the siege of Vienna” and the character of Kulchitsky — a beloved legend ; the coffeehouses in Vienna were most likely initiated in 1685 by Johannes Dioadato , and the legend later amplified their role.

Coffee between jurisprudence, language, and politics

• Language and jurisprudence: The word “coffee” in Arabic was also used as a name for wine; this is what led to the ancient jurisprudential comparison between coffee and wine, and sparked the Mecca debates (1511).
• Why were some rulers afraid of coffee? Because it created a public sphere : coffeehouses where people could gather to discuss and think. This was new and disturbing to the authorities at certain times—hence the repeated attempts to ban it, which failed socially.

From a "Sufi Cup" to a Global Economy

• Mocha monopolizes and exports : For centuries, Yemen became the global coffee platform , and the name “Mocha” became associated with European trade and markets.
• Breaking the Monopoly and Globalizing Coffee Cultivation: In the late 17th century, the Dutch transported seedlings to Java , from where cultivation spread to several colonies—and the balance of trade shifted. (The story of the transport is well-known in modern coffee literature, although the precise details vary among sources.)

So... who really had the "first cup"?

• If you mean the first historically documented cup : it is most likely a Yemeni Sufi cup from the mid-15th century AD .
• If you mean the first popular story : the Kaldi legend is the most famous, but it was recorded late .
• If you mean the first coffee shop : The first signs of coffee shop culture appeared in Istanbul in 1554 , then jumped to Europe (London in 1652 and others).

How did coffee change history?

1. The birth of the “coffee house” as a social institution : a space for discussion, news, commerce, and literature—which is why British historians called them “penny universities.” (The concept is well documented in studies of coffeehouse history.)
2. New Economy : From the Mocha monopoly to global supply chains, coffee was a driver of trade and ports on the Red Sea, the Mediterranean, and Europe.
3. Religious and cultural influence : early theological debates and then widespread acceptance; the legend of Pope Clement VIII's "baptism" of coffee is common but without conclusive evidence in the records of his time (it is told as a folk tale).

Brief timeline

• Mid-15th century AD : Coffee drinking in Sufi corners in Yemen.
• 1511 : Debate and temporary ban in Mecca.
• 1532 : A siege began in Cairo, then its decline.
• 1554 : The first known coffee houses in Istanbul.
• 17th century AD : The rise of Mocha, the spread of coffee to European ports, London 1652 a turning point.
• 1685 : The earliest reliable documentation of a Viennese coffee house (Deodato), not the 1683 legend.

Sources

• Encyclopaedia Britannica (History of Coffee, Mocha).
• Abdul Qader Al-Jaziri (Mayor of the Elite) – An early comprehensive presentation of the history of coffee and other things.
• Jonathan Morris (25 Magazine) on Al-Dhabhani .
• Ralph Hattox , Coffee and Coffeehouses (A Study of the Beginnings and Prohibition in Mecca 1511).
• Turkish coffee / Istanbul's history of early coffee houses.
• Pasqua Rosée, London 1652.
• Vienna myth —corrected myth 1683corrected myth.