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The history of bath soap dates back thousands of years.

Ancient Beginnings (c. 2800 BC): The earliest evidence of a soap-like material comes from ancient Babylon. Clay cylinders were inscribed with a recipe involving fats boiled with ashes, a basic method for making soap. This early product was likely used for cleaning textiles and as a medicinal treatment for skin diseases, rather than for daily bathing.

Early Cleansing: Ancient Egyptians (c. 1500 BC) bathed regularly and used a combination of animal/vegetable oils and alkaline salts for washing. The Greeks and early Romans often used oil and then scraped it off the body with a tool called a strigil to cleanse, with soap for personal hygiene only becoming more common around the 2nd century AD.

The Medieval Era: After the fall of Rome, bathing habits declined in much of Europe. However, soap-making remained an established art in the 7th century in parts of Europe like Italy, Spain, and France, often using olive oil. During the Middle Ages, soap was often an expensive luxury.

Industrialization: A major turning point came in 1791 when French chemist Nicolas Leblanc patented a process for making soda ash (a key alkali ingredient) from common salt. This discovery made soap production cheaper and allowed for large-scale commercial manufacturing in the 19th century, making soap accessible to the general public and significantly improving public hygiene.

Modern Soap: In the 20th century, especially during wartime shortages of fats, synthetic detergents were developed as alternatives to traditional soap, and today, many products marketed as “soap” are actually synthetic detergents. However, traditional soap made from fats or oils and a strong alkali remains a popular product.