Cafeneh

/kæfəˈneɪ/ noun

Definition

A traditional Middle Eastern coffee house or café, particularly common in Persian and Arab cultures where people gather to drink coffee, tea, and socialize.

Etymology

From Persian کافه‌نه (kāfe-neh), combining kāfe (coffee, from Turkish kahve) with -neh (house/place). The word spread across the Middle East and into European languages through Ottoman trade and cultural exchange.

Kelly Says

The cafeneh is where some of the most important conversations in Middle Eastern history happened—they were gathering places for poets, philosophers, and revolutionaries. Coffee houses became so influential that some sultans tried to ban them because they were worried people were organizing against them!

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