https://www.cheggindia.com/general-knowledge/who-invented-paper/
"Introduction: Invention and Paper-Making Process
Over the years, the paper has changed the way people communicate and keep records of history. Before the invention of paper, people used materials like papyrus, clay tablets, parchment, and more. However, these materials used to be quite difficult because they can become too thick and heavy. It was also more difficult to take care of them.
To better convey their ideas, the Chinese who invented paper over 2,000 years ago sewed together fabric sheets on which they could write their sketches and writings. And modern papermaking began.
Paper has become a part of human life in so many different ways. It has helped develop written texts and artwork and even helped develop packaging. The history of paper shows the history of humanity in an easy form. Despite the increasingly digital culture, people still commonly use paper. Nothing can replace the feel of paper between your fingers while you read and the smell of ink. Let’s find out who invented paper and the entire process.
Invention of Paper: Origins and Inventor
Ancient civilizations, looking for better ways to keep records, pioneered the papermaking process. Before paper even existed, people used paper-like materials. These materials were most popularly papyrus and parchment.
Ancient Chinese characters were written using bamboo. Before the invention of paper, people in China popularly used long strips of bamboo. However, this used to take a long time, and the books used to be quite hefty.
People often wonder who invented paper. Cai Lun is credited as the inventor of paper. He invented it in 105 AD. It was invented to make writing and keeping track of material easier. He was a member of the Chinese royal court who often utilized bamboo as a writing and reading implement. He made the paper by mashing mulberry bark, rags with water, and hemp into a pulp.
Until the advent of the Industrial Revolution in Europe, when new machinery, chemistry, and basic materials made it possible to create much cheaper, stronger, more durable, and more adaptable paper, the fundamentals of Cai Lun’s paper-making process remained in use.
By the 7th and 8th centuries, paper also made its way to what is now the Middle East and Central Asia. After 500 years, it was brought into Europe. Baghdad in 794-795 is where we can trace the origins of the very first paper mill. The Moors built the first paper mill in Europe in 1120 in Spain. This Chinese innovation then made its way to Europe via Italy, Germany, and other countries. "