aka:  narghile, narghila, nargile, nargila, sheesha, shisha, water-pipe, or hubbly-bubbly

Technically speaking, a hookah is an indirect smoking system; because the smoke travels through water (or other liquid) before reaching your palate.  The hookah has changed very little since the 1600’s: the modern hookah is composed of four [major] parts:  bowl, stem, body, mouthpiece.  With the help of water, these components work together to provide a cool, filtered, and smooth smoking experience.   As seen below, hookahs use a hose to attach the mouthpiece to the pipe.  A traditional hookah can have anywhere from one to four  hoses/mouthpieces.  This multi-hose system facilitates communal/social smoking with multiple participants.

Credit is given to the Turkish for refining the design of the hookah: they integrated it thoroughly into their culture and helped spread its popularity.  But long before the Turkish adopted the hookah, it was  invented and used by the people of India.  Indians and Persians were smoking hashish and opium in their hookahs long before tobacco was even introduced to them.  However, by the 1600’s, smoking tobacco from a hookah had become common throughout most of Europe.  Perhaps ironically, the hookah was now being used for a purpose for which it was not intended.  Consequently, the tobacco had to be uniquely concocted to suit the hookah “system”.  Hookah tobacco, also known as shisha, is typically moistened with honey or molasses as well as flavored with fruits and/or spices.  The tobacco is kept lit by using hot coals to apply a consistent heat. 

When smoking a hookah, tobacco is placed in the bowl and a hot coal is placed on top to facilitate combustion.  As you draw air through the mouthpiece, smoke travels through the stem and into the body, where the water is stored.  The smoke then filters upward through the water and travels toward your mouth.  Drawing the smoke through the hookah is a slow and deep breathing technique, because the smoke must travel and filter a long distance through so many parts.