The origins of the word coffee: etymology, history and meaning

Have you ever wondered what the word coffee actually means? Two main etymologic theories have been linked to its origins.

The meaning of the Italian term caffè

The first theory is that it derives from the Arabic word ahwa, a term which, preceded by a “q”( qahwa), is still used by the Arabs today to describe this drink. It literally indicates a wine, spirit or, more generally speaking, a beverage with exciting, stimulating effects, also suitable for medicinal purposes.

The Arabic term qahwa (or also qawah) can in turn be traced to the lexicology of the Arabic verb qahā, meaning “lack of hunger”, a property attributed to coffee. But it can also be traced to the Arabic noun quwwa meaning “power, energy”, another characteristic property of our beloved black beverage. Or to the feminine word qahwah which means “dark colouring, matt, arid, tart”.

The second theory is that it derives from the Ethiopian term caffa (or kaffa), with reference to the Kaffa region of southwestern Ethiopia, known as a land in which coffee plants thrived in the wild. However, it could also be a reference to the city of Kaffa, where the black beverage was served at specific collective rituals and from where it was exported as far as Arabia in the medieval period.

Of course, theories are all we have as no historical documents offering proof of the word’s origins exist. And in fact, both theories are still the subject of much heated debate. All we can say is that Ethiopia is one of the world’s most symbolic coffee-growing countries, and in fact it even hosts a celebratory ceremony in its honour.

Instead, the origin of the English word appears clearer. Historical documents exist proving that, in 1582, the term coffee became part of the English language through the Dutch term koffie. If we trace the origin of the term back, it appears that koffie derives from the Turkish word kahve used in the Ottoman period, which could in turn be related to one of the original two terms mentioned above: the Arabian word qahwa and its original version ahwa. And so we come full circle to the same origins… for which unfortunately no certainty exists.

Origins of the word caffè in Italy

In Italy the term caffè was introduced between the mid-1600s and the early 1700s, when the product first entered the country. And it may have had Turkish, and so indirectly Arabic origins, or Ethiopian origins, depending which story about the origin of the first coffee brought to Italy we choose to believe. Because here too, two different versions of its history have been passed down through the generations:

• the first concerns Prospero Alfino, a herbal doctor who opened the very first “coffee shop” under the porticoes of Piazza San Marco, in 1683. The story goes that Alfino, an expert in plants and shrubs, on his return from a long stay in Egypt, brought with him several coffee plants, so introducing Venetians to the black drink, which was initially proposed for medicinal purposes.
• according to the second version, in the late 1600s, and again in Venice, some Turkish traders were the ones responsible for introducing the first berries of the drink that would, over the centuries, become a symbol of Italy worldwide.

If you’re curious about the origins of coffee as a drink, discover the story of coffee through our short guide to coffee.