The Origin and Evolution of Chinese Chopsticks

Chopsticks is another traditional cultural heritage of China, and its invention is another development history of China. Human first ate by hand; because there were almost none heated food. As the discovering and the usage of the fire, eating food by hand is not such suitable because the food is usually too hot to get by hand, also, it is not healthy eating by hand. Gradually, people found that getting food by two pieces of sticks was easier and safer. That was the origin of chopsticks. As human got more and more from the nature, both the food and other things which were necessary to daily life, so did the development of the chopsticks. There were more raw materials for making it, and more mature carving skills, the chopsticks became not only a means of eating food, but also an artwork. It was popular in East Asia due to the culture communication. That is a simple introduction of the origin of Chinese chopsticks.

Chopsticks is a kind of sticks, which can be made from bamboo, teeth, bone or metal, to get food from the container by putting them between the fingers. It has different shapes, either in angle or in circle. The origin of the chopsticks in China can be dated back to Shang Dynasty (about 1600BC to 1046BC), and gradually becomes one of the cultural heritage of China, to be called “civilization of the East” by Europeans. It seems simple, just two pieces of sticks, but it bears the functions of picking, poking, clipping and stirring, and most importantly, it is cheap and convenient to use.

With the development and maturity of the drawing and carving skills, the appearance of the chopsticks has become more and more beautiful with higher value, and the function of the chopsticks has changed from practical use to appreciate value. That stimulates the chopsticks-making industry, from choosing materials, picturing and carving, polishing and coloring. Nowadays, there are handmade chopsticks and machine-made chopsticks through the different making instruments. Different kinds could be made even with the same material, for instance, for the material bamboo; there are 210mm bamboo chopsticks, bamboo disposable chopsticks and the reusable bamboo chopsticks, etc.

With the development of the society, various demands are put into the chopsticks. More people prefer to travel, while keeping the chopsticks is inconvenient, therefore, the disposable chopsticks come to our life. To be responsible to the society and protect the environment, the reusable chopsticks are made, that’s why the chopsticks-making industry can survive.

With the above introduction about the origin and its development of Chinese chopsticks, compared with the status quo, keeping with the society developing pace is the key to the evolution of the chopsticks.