History & Culture
The millennia-old history of cannabis, its cultural significance and the road to legalization.
Cannabis has accompanied humanity for at least 5,000 years — as a medicinal plant, as a raw material and as a recreational substance. The history of cannabis is a story of use, prohibition and rediscovery.
From the first documented medical applications in ancient China through the industrial use of hemp in Europe to the worldwide prohibition in the 20th century and the gradual legalization since the 2010s — the relationship between humans and cannabis is complex and changeable.
Our articles trace this history: the cultural significance of cannabis in different societies, the industrial history of hemp, the path to prohibition and the current legalization movement worldwide and in Germany.
All Articles — History & Culture
The History of Cannabis: 5,000 Years of Use
From the cradle of civilization to modern legalization: cannabis has accompanied humanity for millennia as a medicinal plant, fibre source and recreational substance.
The Road to Legalization in Germany
From the Narcotics Act through the decriminalization debate to the KCanG: how Germany arrived at partial cannabis legalization and what the future holds.
Cannabis in Culture and Society
How cannabis has influenced music, film, literature and art – and how societal perception is shifting from stigmatization to normalization.
Hemp as an Industrial Crop: From Ropes to Bioplastics
From ancient rope-making through textiles and paper to modern hempcrete and bioplastics: how industrial hemp shaped economies for millennia and is now experiencing a renaissance as a sustainable raw material.
Legalization Worldwide: How Other Countries Regulate Cannabis
From Canada's full legalization to Uruguay's pioneering model and the Netherlands to Thailand: a comprehensive comparison of international cannabis regulation models and their outcomes.
Cannabis in Post-War Germany
From occupation law through the Opium Act to the BtMG 1971: how cannabis was gradually criminalised in the Federal Republic – and why alcohol took a different path.
Hemp as an Industrial Crop — 10,000 Years of History
From the earliest fibres in China through ropes, paper and textiles to the renaissance of industrial hemp: an overview of the most versatile cultivated plant in human history.
Cannabis Social Clubs — The Model from Spain
Barcelona is considered the birthplace of Cannabis Social Clubs. How does the Spanish model work, what legal grey area does it operate in, and what can Germany learn from it?
Cannabis in the USA: From Reefer Madness to Legalisation
How the USA criminalised cannabis, declared a global war on drugs – and today is itself leading in dismantling its prohibitionist policies. A political history.
Cannabis as Medicine Through History
For 5,000 years, humanity has used cannabis for healing – from ancient Chinese pharmacopoeias through colonial medical books to modern medical research.
Cannabis in the Colonial Era: Hemp, Trade and Control
In the 16th–19th centuries, hemp was a strategically important raw material of colonial empires – for sails, ropes and paper. At the same time, cannabis as a recreational substance was increasingly criminalised in the colonies.
Cannabis and the Counterculture of the 1960s and 1970s
From the Beats to Woodstock to the anti-Vietnam movement: cannabis became a symbol of the counterculture in the 1960s–70s, with direct consequences for global drug policy.
