If you’ve ever been to a graduation ceremony you may have seen recent grads lighting up a cigar. It’s also a fairly common tradition to see new fathers celebrating with a cigar in hand. But have you ever wondered where these traditions came from?
Some of the first cigars were smoked by Native Americans. Smoking for the celebration of life-changing events was commonplace in Native American cultures. Cigars started being smoked in the celebration of marriage, birth, death, and elevation of social rank.
When cigars were first introduced to Europe, tobacco shipments took a long time to get all the way across the ocean. Initially, cigars were not easy to come by. The scarcity of cigars in Europe established them as a luxury item. People would smoke them as a sign of prosperity. When the Toscano style cigar was invented in Italy in the early 1800s it was the first widespread cigar in Italy. This innovation provided a steady supply of cigars to the Italian population. These cigars were more convenient to enjoy, rather than waiting for cigars to be imported from the North American market.
After years of hard work, graduates will often smoke a cigar to celebrate receiving their diploma. It’s also common to see a newly married couple, along with the wedding party, smoking cigars on the big day. Lighting up a cigar is a fun way to celebrate marriage. Sharing cigars at a wedding is also thought to bring luck to the newly married couple. Cigars are often smoked after a baby is born to celebrate the new life and bring prosperity to the family.
Even though cigars are now readily available, the Native American traditions and rarity of cigars in Europe led to the enjoyment of cigars in celebration as we see it today. We recommend a long-lasting Parodi Superiore to keep the celebration going all night long!