History of Cardamom or Elaichi - Find its Origins

Learn about the History and origins of Cardamom or Elaichi & how it propagated globally.

The History of Cardamom or Elaichi

Get to know the origin of cardamom, "The Queen of Spices"

Find How did"The Queen of Spices" become an important article of trade

This distant relative of ginger appears to have originated in the Kerala Hills in the Western Ghats of southern India.

So abundant were these wild plants, the whole region was named the Cardamom Hills, a name that remains to this day.

References to cardamom in ancient Sanskrit texts date back five thousand years to the Late Vedic period.

Cardamom is also mentioned in Sanskrit texts of the 4th century BC in a treatise on politics – Kautilya’s Arthashastra & Taittiriya Samhita where it is used in offerings during ceremonies.

Both Babylonians and Assyrians were quite well informed about many plants of medicinal importance. It reached Babylon by 7000 BCE and arrived in Greece no later than 50 CE.

At around the same time, the Greeks were using two varieties from the East which they called amomon & kardamomon which could be the source of the name.

To find and learn more about green & black cardamoms, do click the link below and read all about it.