We can conservatively estimate that ancient people across the globe were surfing on wooden boards since the beginning of time including the peoples from Hawaii, Japan, Papa New Guinea, Peru, Australia, Tahiti, America, Indonesia, Africa, Malaysia, Samoa and other ancient cultures.  

The origins of surfing and bodyboarding can be found here in it's purest form; sliding on waves from pieces of wood. Some surfcraft were homemade from knowledge from their ancestors and some were just random planks from a fishing vessel.
Our past  is our only future.