Cured or cooked ham is made in many regions around the world. In fact, the technique behind curing food dates back to ancient times. According to Food Processing History, Mesopotamians began using salt to cure and dehydrate fish and meat as early as 3000 B.C., with the Greeks adopting the practice around 900 B.C.

Seven hundred years later, Romans began using salt to cure pork — an early precursor to today's prosciutto. As the Roman empire expanded across Europe, soldiers and settlers populated regions in Portugal, Spain, France, England, Germany, and Belgium (via Britannica).