Tobacco And The Columbian Exchange

In 1492, after aiming to reach India, the Italian explorer Christopher Columbus came across the Americas, somewhere neither he nor anyone else in Europe had known about. While in the Americas, he met multiple indigenous peoples, including the Tainos, and discovered many new ideas and innovations that he brought back to Europe. This was called the Columbian Exchange. The Columbian Exchange was the transfer of plants, animals, and diseases between the Old World of Europe and the New World of the Americas (Horgan). Many coin the term global interconnectedness or globalization. Globalization is the process by which spreading and sharing ideas, goods, techniques, and technologies creates a constant connection between countries (Mann 7). There were

The first use of tobacco was by indigenous peoples in the Americas, but it wasn't used as much. Tobacco was first utilized by the people of the pre-Columbian Americas. It was developed by the Indigenous peoples and planted and smoked in pipes for medicinal and religious reasons ("A Brief History of Tobacco"). Tobacco began to become more popular among indigenous peoples in the Americas around 1400-1000 BCE and was regarded as sacred to many. The indigenous people viewed tobacco as a sacred plant that permitted access to the spirit world as well as a medicinal substance (Mark). Tobacco continued to succeed for years, but after being discovered by Christopher Columbus, its use began to change, and it started to become more widely known and popularized. The original use of tobacco in Native American culture remains rather unknown, but it is assumed it originated in Mayan civilization for sacred and religious ceremonies. Nonetheless, it surely played a more ceremonial and structured role than it would be in Europe and still today (Mishra). Tobacco was a successful crop for the indigenous peoples, and it was able to assist them with everyday life for hundreds of

After being introduced to Europe, the use of tobacco began to change as people in Europe saw a new potential in tobacco: its ability to be used recreationally. From the time it was introduced to Europe up through the late 18th century CE, the users of tobacco smoked tobacco in pipes or chewed it (Mark). As a result of this, tobacco began to spread along trade routes, such as the Silk Roads. With tobacco being exchanged on the Silk Roads, it was able to spread to many new cultures and empires. Tobacco was one of the first crops brought over from the Americas that was enjoyed by Europeans, as some brought over by Columbus weren’t well-liked. Tobacco was one of the most successful discoveries of the New World. It was used by many different indigenous groups and was one of the first American crops that Europeans enjoyed (Burns). While many believed there were downsides to tobacco, experts in the health field started promoting it. Health experts such as France's Jean Nicot, after whom nicotine is named, began to popularize the use of tobacco. It was introduced to France in 1556, Portugal in 1558, Spain in 1559, and England in 1565 (a brief history of tobacco). Tobacco's popularity skyrocketed after it was taken to Europe and spread as a result of the Columbian