- The Middle East is usually known for its food, culture, and its involvement in recent troubled history, but most do not know about the region’s innovative past.
- Coffee, clocks, and soap are just some of the inventions you may not know originated in the Middle East.
- In fact, an abundance of tools that we use every day were born out of the Middle East.
- Visit Insider’s homepage for more stories.
The Middle East is known in the west for its food, as a center of religion, and for its often troubled recent history.
But it is also known for its history of innovation in philosophy, mathematics and literature, and science – which has given us many items, concepts, and institutions that we now use all the time.
Here are 15 everyday things you probably did not know were invented in the Middle East.
Coffee — from Yemen and Ethiopia in the 11th century
It was an Ethiopian shepherd named Kaldi who first discovered the effects of coffee beans when he noticed that his herd of goats became significantly more energetic after eating a certain berry.
It was then transported to Yemen where it was used by Sufi Muslims to increase their concentration while they prayed.
Source: BBC, The Independent
Cafes— from 15th-century Turkey
The use of coffee spread across the region and led to a second invention-the cafe. Although the use of coffee became increasingly widespread in society, it was for hundreds of years closely associated with religion.
The record of the world's first coffee shop is thought to be Kiva Han, which opened in Constantipole (modern-day Istanbul, Turkey) in 1475.
Toothbrushes — from Babylonia and Egypt in 3,500 BC
The first toothbrush was made by fraying the edges of a twig by the ancient Babylonians. Similar devices have also been found in ancient Egyptian tombs.
Source: Colgate.com
The check — from 9th-century Baghdad and Morocco
The check as a form of payment originates from the 'saqq'- the Arabic word for a written vow to pay for goods after they were delivered.
The system was developed in order to avoid having to transport money through dangerous territories.
Source: The Independent
A flying machine — from 9th-century Andalusia
Abbas Ibn Firnas was a poet, astronomer, musician and engineer who lived in Andalusia, modern-day Spain.
At the time, the area was part of an Islamic civilization which stretched from modern-day Portugal in the west to Pakistan in the east.
In 857 AD, at the age of 70, Ibn Firnas made the world's first ever flying machine from silk and eagle feathers and jumped from a mountain while strapped into it.
The machine floated into the sky and successfully stayed there for all of ten minutes, before making a crash landing.
Source: The Independent
Fountain pens —from 10th-century Egypt
The fountain pen was made in the year 953 in Egypt after the Sultan at the time expressed his frustration at how messy it was using ink and a quill.
Source: Forgotten Islamic History, The Independent
The three-course meal — from 9th-century Andalusia
The three-course meal was invented by Ziryab, a Persian musician, poet and teacher who lived in 9th-century Andalusia.
He insisted meals be served in the format of a soup, followed by a main dish of meat or fish and ending with a sweet dessert.
Source: Vogue
Telling time — from 2,000 BC in modern-day Iran and Iraq
One of the most significant inventions from the Middle East was the clock, and even formalized time-keeping itself.
The system of counting from zero to 60 originates from 2000 BC in Sumer, modern-day Iran and Iraq.
The water clock, a device which measured time through the amount of water passing in or out of a container using weights, was also invented and used by the ancient Egyptians.
Source: Live Science, Ancient Origins
The crankshaft — 12th-century Turkey.
Ismail al-Jazari was an Engineer born in 1136 in modern day Turkey.
His most significant invention was the crankshaft, a device which converts rotation into linear movement.
It is the basis for much of the machinery in the modern world, including the bicycle.
Sources: X Engineer, The Independent, CNN
The combination lock — from 12th-century Turkey
al-Jazari was also the inventor of the combination lock.
Source: History of Sciences in the Islamic World
Soap — from 2,800 BC in ancient Babylonia
Soap was invented by the Arabs through combining vegetable oils with sodium hydroxide and aromatic oils.
Source: Live Science
Algebra and the algorithm — from 9th-century Iran
Al-Khwarizmi was a 9th Century Persian mathematician who is often referred to as "The Father of Algebra," for his scholarship in the subject. He also invented the algorithm.
Source: Al Jazeera
The university — from 9th-century Morocco
The world's first university was opened by princess Fatima al-Firhi in Fez, Morocco in 859 AD. The al-Qarawiyyin university was first educational facility which granted degrees and still operates as a higher education institution today teaching Islamic sciences and law.
Hospitals — from 9th-century Egypt
The first hospital was the Ahmad Ibn Tulun Hospital founded in 872 in Cairo
It was also entirely free to use.
Source: CNN
Windmills — from 7th-century Iran
Some 1,000-year-old windmills in Iran are still in use today.
Source: National Geographic