The historical record of rooibos uses in precolonial and early colonial times is mostly a record of absence. Colonial-era settlers could have learnt about some properties of the "Aspalathus linearis" from pastoralists and hunter-gatherers of the Cederberg region. The nature of that knowledge was not documented. Given the available data, the origin of rooibos tea can be viewed in the context of the global expansion of tea trade and the colonial habit of drinking Chinese and later Ceylon tea. In this case, the rooibos infusion or decoction served as a local replacement for the expensive Asian product.