There is much evidence for much earlier use, but most historical
accounts of Theobroma cacao begin with the Olmecs, a civilization that
predominated in present day Mexico, on the Gulf coast, and whose
influence extended as far south as Honduras or Nicaragua, from around
1400 to 400 BC.
The Olmec were the first major civilization in Mexico. They built large
stone heads. The Olmec broke down ripe cacao pods to make a drink from
the sweet pulp inside.
The staple of the Olmec diet was maize, which sat overnight in tall urns
filled with water and wood ash, or sometimes lime and then pulverized
shells of snails. They’d beat the grain into a doughy mass, then serve
it to the masters often fortified by the dark, magical substance they;
extracted from the bean, cocoa.
The Olmec women serve it as thick, bitter-tasting drink, stimulating, nourishing and they believed to healing as well.
The word cacao is derived from the Olmec and the subsequent Mayan languages (Kakaw) and the chocolate-related term
cacahuatl is Nahuatl derived from Olmec/Mayan etymology.
Olmecs civilization and cocoa
