Purple Haze is a cultivar with uncertain origins. Its name first appeared around the time that purple LSD caps — also called Purple Haze — were sold in the 1960s and 70s. The potent flower earned the name thanks to its vividly violet buds and trichome density.

According to Sam the Skunkman, the strain originated in Colombia, a phenotype of the standardized Haze cultivar he bred during that time frame.

Purple Haze is one of several Original Haze phenotypes to descend from stabilized Columbian seeds that were cultivated by the Haze Brothers, according to Royal Queen Seeds. Purple Haze became the most popular of these phenotypes, leading to several hybrids and variations over the following decades.