This is the Village of 'Keffa', the Birthplace of COFFEE! Coffee took its name long ago from the African region of 'Keffa' located in Ethiopia about 4000 feet up in the Simien mountains. Keffa is actually a province on the southwestern side of Ethiopia; its capital city was Bonga. It was named after the former Kingdom of 'Kaffa'. The etymology of Kaffa is thought to be from 'qahwah' an Arabic word meaning "a drink from berries". The English word coffee is derived from the same root. Traditionally, the ground coffee is slowly stirred into the black clay coffee pot locally known as 'jebena'. And keeping true to African tradition, along with the 'Keffa' came the 'Keffa Ceremony'. What is life without Ceremonies ?😊
If you are ever honored to be invited to a Coffee Ceremony, don't miss out, just GO! This is a Ceremony of Friendship. Usually, this Ceremony takes place in honor of guests coming to visit. The cool part? The ceremony is also performed on a very regular basis as a normal part of daily life, inviting family and friends over for regular company. It is usually performed by the beautiful ladies who are always wearing a certain magnetic regalia like these you see in the pics. The coffee ceremony also took on a spiritual aspect among the monks who would pray deep into the night. This was the Ethiopian way of enjoying coffee for centuries before it spread to the rest of the world. Ethiopia is the primary center of origin of the Arabica coffee plant. Coffee has been a global tradition for a long time in the modern world. But next time you find yourself sitting in a Starbucks or Dunkin' Donuts, encourage them to put a big colorful mural on the wall to celebrate the beautiful African region and culture of Keffa, where it all started, and from whence Coffee gets its name . . . "It is the deliberate omission of the contributions of aborigine people to the worlds civilization that created the need for a "black history month". Period!
Credits: Dean Brown
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