Vaping is a modern trend, but even new vapes have their roots in ancient history. Ancient Egypt is known for its vaping techniques, such as using hot stones to vape herbs. Thousands of years ago the first shisha was introduced to India. All those techniques led to the invention of current vapes as we know them today.  The modern history of vaping has its origins in ancient times. The first who came up with the idea of an e-cigarette is Joseph Robinson in 1927. In 1963, Herbert A. Gilbert invented a “smokeless nontobacco cigarette,” but it was never commercialized. In the 80s Phil Ray and Normal Jacobson worked more towards commercializing the idea of e-cigarettes. However, in the 90s FDA didn’t allow tobacco companies to introduce e-cigarettes to the market. In Europe, vaping was also popular, and in the 90s “Eagle” Bill Amato invented the cannabis vaporizer. Of course, Amsterdam was the place. Interestingly enough, they based the German stationary/desktop vaporizer Volcano, from 2000, on his revolutionary ideas. “Vaping,” or smoking electronic cigarettes, first became widely popular in China, where 60 percent of men are smokers. Modern e-cigarettes were patented in 2003 by Chinese inventor Hon Lik. In 2003, Hon Lik developed a device to allow smokers to have a “smoking” experience without actually inhaling combusted tobacco. Hon’s father had died from lung cancer and he himself was a smoker who wanted to quit. He patented his device and the company he worked for changed its name to Ruyan (meaning “like smoke”). There had been previous stabs at developing a “smokeless cigarette” by other inventors and even by tobacco companies, but for various reasons no one got as far as actually making and selling a commercial product. After Hon Lik launched the Ruyan device, it was about three years before e-cigarettes made their way to Europe and the United States. The first e-cig appeared in the U.S. in 2007 and has become a very popular trend among people. Since then, vaporizers have gone through many modifications. All those events led to the invention of vapes as we know them today.

Vaping has a long history. Thanks to ancient practices we have the present vape gadgets we can find everywhere. They range from the local gas station to a prestige website (WWW.VapeDojo.com). There are many variations of vaping, and we can even claim that vaping brings people together. You can use it with friends on a night out or chat about it with ex-smokers on online forums. Additionally, the different flavors on the market make vaping enjoyable. Also, rechargeable and refillable kits can save a lot of money in the long-term. Incidentally, many countries have already put some strict restrictions on vaping. Despite that, there’s still a long future ahead of vaping. Always familiarize yourself with the products you choose and be aware of the areas where you can vape. Vape in moderation and taste history!

Eric M. Bowersox