It is believed that it was first bred in the United States from birds imported from the Chinese port of Shanghai,[4]: 78  and was the principal American meat breed from the 1850s until about 1930.

[4]: 78  The distinctive head shape and pea comb of the Brahma probably result from cross-breeding with Grey Chittagong birds of Malay type, imported from Chittagong in eastern Bengal (now Bangladesh); these characteristics distinguish the Brahma from the Cochin, which also derives from "Shanghai" birds.

[4]: 78 Brahmas were first exported to England in December 1852, when George Burnham sent nine "Gray Shanghaes" to Queen Victoria as a gift.

[5] Both the light and the dark (pencilled) Brahma were included in the first Standard of Excellence, published by the original Poultry Club of Great Britain in 1865.

[7] The Australian Poultry Association has accepted black, blue, partridge, crele and barred varieties of Brahma in addition to the standard light, dark, and buff.