Where Did Marijuana Originate?

Cannabis dates back to 8,000 BC in Taiwan. After close examination, pottery discovered in an ancient Taiwanese village was found to contain cords of hemp. This discovery makes cannabis one of the first cases of documented human agriculture.

Similarly, in 6,000 BC, hemp seeds were being used in China where their oils were made into salad dressing. At around 2,373 BC, the Emperor Shen Neng, of China, began using marijuana medicinally, prescribing it to treat rheumatism, gout, malaria and poor memory.

At around this period in history (2000 BC- 800 BC specifically) Hindus in India were using cannabis both ritually and medicinally referring to it in the text Atharvaveda as a “Sacred Grass” that they would use as an offering to Shiva.

In 1500 BC, cannabis use can be noted in Scythia (modern day Iran). The Scythian culture used cannabis to weave hemp clothing and since the Scythian kingdom connected eastern Europe to central Asia, it is likely that the Scythians are responsible for cannabis’ arrival to the continent of Europe.

Marijuana’s widespread recreational use likely traces back to the Middle East. Indeed, in Persia (700 BC- 600 BC) an ancient religious text containing hundreds of volumes refers to “bhang” or Marijuana as a “good narcotic”, making the Persians the first known culture to take advantage of the euphoric and sleep-inducing properties of marijuana.

Marijuana in Europe first appears in Greece (47-200 AD) where the Greek scholar Plutarch mentions that the Thracians, a tribe of Indo-Europeans inhabiting Southern Europe, used cannabis to get intoxicated. Also, the Greek physician known as Galen was said to prescribe medical marijuana to his patients.

From there, marijuana can be traced back to Rome (50-70 AD) where the Roman philosopher Pliny the Elder writes of its usefulness as a pain reliever in The Natural History. Marijuana is also mentioned in the Pharmacopoeia, written by Dioscorides (a Roman army physician). In terms of its roots in North America, cannabis was first brought to the Americas by colonists from Britain and France with Hemp coming to Port Royal in Canada in 1606. Cannabis was first used as a medicinal drug in US pharmacies from 1850 to 1914. At this point in history it was widely sold in both drug stores and even general stores. This came to a halt in 1914 with the advent of the Harrison Act, making marijuana a criminal substance for the first time in US history. Its status as a taboo substance prevailed that century when in 1986, president Ronald Raegan signed the Anti-Drug Abuse Act which specified mandatory minimum sentences and federal penalties for the possession and distribution of marijuana. Today, marijuana is finally beginning to see decriminalization for medicinal use in specific US states and all across Canada. The Canadian government is now working towards widespread legalization both medicinal and recreational cannabis.