Whether one calls it ‘tee’ in Afrikaans, ‘harbatu’ in Belarusian, ‘sencha’ in Japanese, ‘shai’ in Arabic or ‘chai’, tea is universally-loved.

So loved that it remains the second-most consumed beverage in the world after water.

Contrary to unchecked assumptions, tea did not originate in the United Kingdom.

This is despite the fact that Britons now consume some 60 billion cups of the amber liquid every year since tea was introduced there over three centuries ago.

That number of cups means, considering the population of the UK numbers just 66 million people, that each person consumes more than 900 cuppas each year.

But, historians agree that the practice of drinking tea originated in China as early as the second century AD, while some argue that tea was discovered much earlier.

Legend has it that a leaf blew down from the Camellia sinensis tree (that’s the tea tree) into Chinese emperor Shen Nung’s cup as he sat under the tree. The water had turned brownish but the emperor drank it anyway and found it refreshing.

Thus, cha (tea) came into being.

Tea was later introduced to Japan in the eighth century by Japanese Buddhist monks, and it was the Portuguese and Dutch traders working in the East who would bring back packets of tea as gifts to their home countries sometime during the sixteenth century.

For centuries, China remained the world’s sole tea exporter, and it was only when tea was introduced to the British in the seventeenth century that cultivation by the East India Company began in Assam, India.

Plantations grew and the tea trade is now worth over US$50 billion annually, becoming an inexorable part of many cultures – though deservedly so.

It has many a healing proper-tea

Numerous studies, including one from the National University of Singapore, have stated the multiple health benefits of drinking tea.

Among the benefits are prevention of cardiovascular disease, healthy cognitive function and mood improvement. So, it’s good for your head, your heart and your sense of well-being.

Another report from the Harvard Medical School published in 2013 states that green tea is especially good for tea-drinkers as, like its black tea sibling, it contains substances such as polyphenols and catechins.

In tandem with good dietary habits and other healthy lifestyle habits, drinking tea can help towards lowering the risk for heart diseases, diabetes and cancer, the report says.

Tea devotees speak of its health-boosting anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties, and as a bonus, tea contains far fewer calories than other comfort-giving beverages – if you have it without sugar or milk.

Tastes and cultural importance

While tea-lovers run the gamut in personal preferences from having tea with honey, with milk, a slice of lemon or even with herbal or fruit infusions, the growth of tea as a central part of some cultures remains.

The Japanese tea ceremony, for instance, symbolises much more than the careful preparation of sencha (green tea).

The tea ceremony in Japan, a distinct attraction for travellers, embodies the love of Zen-like simplicity, a focus on spirituality, the creation of exquisite teacups and the cultural intertwining of tradition, rules, tranquility and calmness.

Tea is an immovable part of the British way of life, too, with part of its appeal being that it cuts across demographics and social class.

Having a cup of afternoon tea is as much a part of the day for the workman on the street during his afternoon break as it is for the gentleman in a suit and tie at the swankiest hotel in London.

The social significance of tea can be found in Russian samovars (which are a hybrid of bubbling hot water heaters and teapots), as a conversational lubricant in Britain and Europe, and in the Middle East where tea is served in glasses, not cups.

Let’s not forget tea’s significance in the Boston Tea Party and the ensuing American Revolution!

It has indeed travelled a long way from its roots in China as an imperial drink to being an essential part of billions of lives today.

Such is the power of tea.