The concept of hydrogen as an element can be traced back to the 16th century when Paracelsus, a Swiss physician, and alchemist, described a mysterious gas produced by the reaction of metals with acids. However, it was not until the late 18th century that hydrogen was recognized as a distinct element.

Several scientists contributed to the discovery and understanding of hydrogen. In 1766, Henry Cavendish, a British chemist, conducted a series of experiments involving the reaction of metals with acids and identified the presence of a "flammable air" that he named "inflammable air." Cavendish carefully studied the properties of this gas and its combustion process, but he initially misidentified it as phlogiston, a hypothetical substance at the time believed to be responsible for combustion.

Later, in 1783, Antoine Lavoisier, a French chemist, repeated Cavendish's experiments and correctly identified the mysterious gas as a new element. Lavoisier also coined the name "hydrogène" (meaning "water-former") based on its property of forming water when combined with oxygen. He demonstrated that water consists of two parts hydrogen and one part oxygen.