Chopsticks have been around thousands of years while the fork and spoon were not introduced .Before then people would eat with their hands or drink from their bowls.It is believed that these unique eating tools were developed about 3000 to 5000 years ago in China although the exact date of their creation is currently uncertain. It is also thought that the Chinese philosopher Confucius had a major influence on their development with his nonviolent teachings. His philosophy was that instruments such as knives, with the connection people make with them for war and violence, were not to be used at the dinner table.
The first chopsticks were probably used for cooking, stirring the fire, serving or grabbing bits of food, and not as eating utensils.
Using chopsticks involves over 30 joints and 50 muscles in the fingers, wrist, arm, shoulder as well as thousands of nerves
The Chinese use 45 billion chopsticks annually.
Almost one third of the world uses chopsticks every day, about as many as use a knife and fork.
Silver chopsticks were used to test toxicity in food in ancient China. Poison will make silver chopsticks turn black so the royal family uses silver chopsticks to tip them off on the plans of assassins and prevent assassination.
80 percent of chopsticks made in Japan are made in the little city of Obama, named like President Obama, population about 32,000.
The fear of chopsticks is called “Consecotaleophobia.”
There are four main styles:
1 The Chinese use a longer style than other countries, wood sets that come to a rounded or blunt end.
2 The Japanese use short, wooden sticks that come to a sharper pointy end.
3 The Koreans use shorter, metallic, wood or plastic sticks that are often blunt at the end.
4 The Vietnamese also use longer sticks that also come to a blunted end as in China; often wooden, but can be made of plastic as well.
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