We challenge contemporary perceptions of Yemen as a "backwater" by revealing the pivotal role of its port city, Mocha, in the making of our modern world. Historian Nancy Um delves into the fascinating history of coffee, from its origins in 15th-century Yemen to its global spread and the economic transformations it spurred. She explores the rich maritime trade routes of the Indian Ocean, highlighting Yemen's centrality as a crossroads for goods, ideas, and people long before European influence. Um discusses the Ottoman Empire's cultivation of coffee in Yemen, the rise and decline of Mocha as a trade hub, and the unique cultural adaptations of coffee consumption within Yemen itself, such as the popular Qishr drink. We also touch upon the broader impact of hot beverages and porcelain on global social and consumption patterns, revealing how these everyday items were once revolutionary technologies. Um shares insights into the ongoing efforts to revive Yemen's coffee industry and offers recommendations for further reading on Yemen's vibrant history.
0:00 Mocha: A Bustling 17th-18th Century Trade Center
0:50 Yemen's Monopoly on Coffee
2:46 Nancy Um's Interest in Maritime Trade and Yemen
3:40 Yemen's Historical Significance Beyond Recent Decades
5:51 What Made Mocha a Prime Trade Hub?
7:58 Mocha's Rival: Aden
8:11 The History of Coffee as a Drink
10:01 Debunking Coffee Origin Myths: The Story of Kaldi and the Goats
12:20 Coffee as a Hot Brewed Beverage from Yemen
12:32 The Evolution of Coffee as a Commodity and Social Habit
13:21 Early Suspicion and Prohibitions Against Coffee
14:41 The Global Journey of the Coffee Plant
15:57 The Dutch and Coffee Cultivation in Java
17:22 Yemen's Shifting Coffee Fortunes
18:14 The Ottomans and Yemen's Coffee Cultivation
19:06 Ottoman Control of the Red Sea Trade
20:37 Diversification of Trade Beyond Coffee
21:37 European Influence on Mocha's Popularity
22:21 Qishr: Yemen's Unique Coffee Husk Drink (aka Cascara)
24:19 Efforts to Rebuild Yemen's Coffee Industry
26:01 The Red Sea Trade Route's Enduring Importance
29:02 The Indian Ocean: A Space of Exchange and Imagination
30:51 Reconsidering Land-Based vs. Water-Based Cultural Identities
33:20 Nationalizing Watery Metaphors and Icons
35:10 Historical Naming Conventions and Cultural Continuities
37:39 Coffee, Tea, and Chocolate: Technologies Reshaping Society
40:30 The Coffee House and the Enlightenment
42:07 The Decline of Mocha as an Economic Hub
43:10 Beneficiaries of Mocha's Decline
44:58 Challenge of Contradictory Stories in Historical Narratives
47:20 Disproving Coffee Plant Smuggling Myths
50:27 Misunderstandings About Yemen's History
51:34 Book Recommendations on Yemen
53:56 Access to Local Historical Documents in Yemen
Nancy Um is Associate Director for Research and Knowledge Creation at the Getty Research Institute. Her research program explores art, architecture, and material culture around the Indian Ocean, the Red Sea, and the Arabian Peninsula, with a focus on trade and cross-cultural exchange in the early modern era. She is also the author of "The Merchant Houses of Mocha: Trade and Architecture in an Indian Ocean Port," and "Shipped but Not Sold: Material Culture and the Social Protocols of Trade during Yemen’s Age of Coffee."
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