The concept of the blockchain was first introduced in 2008 in a white paper published by a person or group of people using the pseudonym "Satoshi Nakamoto". This white paper described a distributed ledger system using blocks of transactions linked together by cryptography, creating a chain of blocks.
The true identity of Satoshi Nakamoto is still unknown to this day. He/She/They communicated with other developers through online forums and email, but never in person or over the phone, contributing to their anonymity. Satoshi Nakamoto has also been credited with creating the initial software that enabled the functioning of the Bitcoin blockchain.
Although the true identity of Satoshi Nakamoto remains a mystery, the blockchain is now used in many different areas and has been adapted for many different use cases.