Spa History

There is debate as to where the word SPA truly originated from. Some believe that it comes from Spa, Belgium, a town which is known for its hot mineral springs. While others claim that SPA is an acronym for 'Salus Per Aquam' or 'Sanitas Per Aquam,' Latin for 'heath through water.' In any case, the concept of Spa is centuries old.

The oldest concept of Spa dates back over 2000 years during the Ancient Roman Empire. Bathing was one of the most important leisure activities of culture and society. As a communal activity, it was shared by many within balneum (small bathhouses often privately owned but accessible by the public) or thermae (very large bathhouses often owned by the state). Bathing was such an important and popular activity of the time that in 354 A.D., a building index of Rome had 952 baths documented in the city.

Now leap ahead to 16th century England. Medicinal bathing became popular in the towns of Bath and Yorkshire. In 1571 William Slingsby built an enclosed well around a chalybeate spring (determined to contain iron which helped heal those with illnesses caused by iron deficiency) in Yorkshire. This 'resort' was known as Harrogate, until 1596 when Dr Timothy Bright called the resort The English Spaw, coining 'Spa' as a generic description rather than as reference to the Belgian town of Spa. Although the term first referred to resorts where the water was for injestion and not bathing, the term was gradually used for spas offering external treatments as well.