咖啡的來源已無從稽考。諸多傳說之一指咖啡原產地衣索比亞西南部的咖法省高原地區，據說是一千多年前一位牧羊人發現羊吃了一種植物後，變得非常興奮活潑，因此發現了咖啡。也有說法是由於一場野火，燒燬了一片咖啡林，燒烤咖啡的香味引起周圍居民的注意。人民最初咀嚼這種植物果實以提神，後來烘烤磨碎摻入麵粉做成麵包，作為勇士的食物，以提高作戰的勇氣。不過這些傳說故事都缺乏歷史文件佐證，只出現於後世的旅遊傳記中，是無法考究真正的咖啡起源。
直到11世紀左右，人們才開始用水煮咖啡做為飲料。13世紀時，衣索比亞軍隊入侵葉門，將咖啡帶到了阿拉伯世界。因為伊斯蘭教義禁止教徒飲酒，有的宗教界人士認為這種飲料刺激神經，違反教義，曾一度禁止並關閉咖啡店，但埃及蘇丹認為咖啡不違反教義，因而解禁，咖啡飲料迅速在阿拉伯地區流行開來。咖啡Coffee這個詞，就是來源於阿拉伯語Qahwa，意思是「植物飲料」，後來傳到土耳其，成為歐洲語言中這個詞的來源。咖啡種植，製作的方法也被阿拉伯人不斷地改進逐漸完善。
但在西元15世紀以前，咖啡長期被阿拉伯世界所壟斷，僅在回教國家間流傳；當時主要被使用在醫學和宗教上，回教醫生和僧侶們承認咖啡具有提神、醒腦、健胃、強身、止血等功效；15世紀初開始有文獻記載咖啡的使用方式，並且在此時期融入宗教儀式中，同時也出現在民間做為日常飲品。因回教世界嚴禁飲酒，因此咖啡成為當時很重要的社交飲品。直到16、17世紀，透過威尼斯商人和海上霸權荷蘭人的買賣輾轉將咖啡傳入歐洲，很快地，這種充滿東方神秘色彩、口感馥郁香氣迷魅的黑色飲料受到貴族仕紳階級的爭相競逐，咖啡的身價也跟著水漲船高，甚至產生了「黑色金子」的稱號，並且在接下來風起雲湧的大航海時代，藉由海運的傳播，全世界都被納入了咖啡的生產和消費版圖中。
Coffee has played a crucial role in many societies. The energizing effect of the coffee bean plant is thought to have been discovered in the northeast region of Ethiopia , and the cultivation of coffee first expanded in the Arab world. The earliest credible evidence of coffee drinking appears in the middle of the 15th century, in the Sufi monasteries of Yemen in southern Arabia . From the Muslim world, coffee spread to Italy , then to the rest of Europe, to Indonesia , and to the Americas . In East Africa and Yemen , it was used in religious ceremonies. As a result, the Ethiopian Church banned its secular consumption, a ban in effect until the reign of Emperor Menelik II of Ethiopia . It was banned in Ottoman Turkey during the 17th century for political reasons, and was associated with rebellious political activities in Europe .
Coffee berries, which contain the coffee seed, or "bean", are produced by several species of small evergreen bush of the genus Coffea. The two most commonly grown are the highly regarded Coffea arabica, and the 'robusta' form of the hardier Coffea canephora. The latter is resistant to the devastating coffee leaf rust (Hemileia vastatrix). Once ripe, coffee berries are picked, processed, and dried. The seeds are then roasted to varying degrees, depending on the desired flavor. They are then ground and brewed to create coffee. Coffee can be prepared and presented in a variety of ways.
An important export commodity, coffee was the top agricultural export for twelve countries in 2004, and it was the world's seventh-largest legal agricultural export by value in 2005. Some controversy is associated with coffee cultivation and its impact on the environment. Many studies have examined the relationship between coffee consumption and certain health conditions; whether the overall effects of coffee are ultimately positive or negative has been widely disputed. The method of brewing coffee has been found to be important to its health effects.
資料來源: http://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%92%96%E5%95%A1#.E8.B5.B7.E6.BA.90
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