Q: All offensive posts will be reported. I'm looking for a serious answer. I was born in the middle east and have been having hummus since I was a kid. I just assumed it was a local Arab dish. But seeing the movie Zohan, I realized Israelis are just as fond of it. That makes me wonder, where did it really originate?
A: Apart from all the common answers above this is what I found at wikepedia 'While the antiquity of hummus is not well documented, the history of its two principle ingredients is more widely understood. Chickpeas are hummus' main ingredient and have been a human food item for over 10,000 years. The chickpea was used as a food item in Palestine before 4000 BC, was a common street dish in ancient Rome and was one of the earliest crops cultivated in Mesopotamia. Archeological evidence identifies chickpeas in the Sumerian diet before 2500 BC'