The History of Chopsticks

Have you ever wondered by which quirks of history you should have ended up with such a curious set of utensils as the chopsticks at our Bellevue Korean restaurant? Indeed, the sticks that are so popular throughout much of Asia are an enigma to many Westerners; how did this most singular method of dining come to be, and what brought about its propagation across the East?

The genesis of chopsticks is traced back about five thousand years to ancient China. It is likely that the early people cooked much of their food in large pots, using sticks to safely remove cooked items. As civilization progressed, people discovered that food could be cooked more efficiently if it were first cut up into smaller pieces, and thusly it became practical to eat a meal entirely without the use of a knife.

It is thought that chopsticks started to take off as a utensil with the rise of Confucianism. Confucius was a vegetarian, and encouraged people to separate themselves as much as they could from the slaughterhouse by removing any knives from the dining table. The chopstick therefore spread along with his teachings, and found its way to Japan, Vietnam, and Korea.

Tags: ,