Ecstasy redirects here. For other uses see Ecstasy MDMA (3,4-methylenedioxy-N-methylamphetamine), most commonly known today by the street name ecstasy (often abbreviated to E, X, or XTC), is a semisynthetic empathogen-entactogen of the phenethylamine family. It has greater stimulant effects and fewer visual effects than other common "trip" producing drugs. It is considered mainly a recreational drug, though is often used as an entheogen and as a tool to supplement various practices for transcendence, including in meditation, psychonautics, and illegal psychedelic psychotherapy, whether self-administered or not. MDMA is illegal in most countries, and its possession, manufacture or sale may result in criminal prosecution. History MDMA is often rumored to have been first synthesized by the famous German chemist Fritz Haber in 1891; however, this