Dates go back to ancient times and are considered one of the earliest fruits cultivated by man. The original home of the date is believed to be in the Persia Gulf area of in Mesopotamia (land of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers). The exact origin of the date palm is uncertain; however, it is known that date palms were around at least as early as 4000 B.C because they were used in building a temple near Ur in southern Iraq-Mesopotamia.
Sacred date palm in Sumerian and Babylonian era
Also in the same region of Mesopotamia, more than 5000 years old bricks have been found to contain instructions for growing date palm trees. The Sumerians in the southern region of Mesopotamia show date cultivation before 3,000 B.C and appear symbolically on pottery, seals and other common objects.
Date palms spread east to Iran and were introduced in the West in early 19th century. Today, dates are widely grown in Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Spain, Italy, China and U.S.A.
Adam and Eve with a date palm between them