The first coffeehouses, originally called qahveh khaneh in Farsi, appeared in the Islamic world. They appeared in Mecca, in the Arabian Peninsula, in the 15th century, then spread to the Ottoman Empire's capital of Istanbul in the 16th century. Coffeehouses became popular meeting places where people gathered to drink coffee, have conversations, play board games such as chess and backgammon, listen to stories and music, and discuss news and politics. They became known as schools of wisdom for the type of clientele they attracted, and their free and frank discourse.