When my brother-in-law and his family vacationed in Japan earlier this fall they brought us back some fun souvenirs. Besides KitKats with unusual flavours, black sesame crackers, matcha candies, and other edible treats, they gave us five sets of chopsticks that excited the kids. Of course they were more difficult to use than they anticipated, but a fun challenge nonetheless. We’ll see how long it takes for the novelty to wear off!
I’m sure everyone knows that forks are a Western utensil while chopsticks are Asian, and you probably also know that forks are a much more recent invention. However I just learned that both chopsticks and forks have some surprises in their history.
From “A Brief History of Chopsticks” on History.com I learned that the rise of chopsticks can be attributed both to a population boom and to the philosophy of Confucius. The population boom around AD 400 led to cost-saving measures such as chopping raw food into small pieces so it would cook faster, using less fuel. The small pieces were ideal for eating with chopsticks and knives became unnecessary at the table. Confucius also promoted the removal of knives. He thought they reminded people of slaughterhouses and warfare and had no place at a peaceful meal.
From “Origins of the Common Fork” on Leite’s Culinaria I learned that in the 11th century forks were considered by some to be offensive to God! When the Greek niece of Byzantine Emperor Basil II married the son of the Doge of Venice in AD 1004 she brought with her a case of golden forks. The local clergy were not impressed and one even said, “God in his wisdom has provided man with natural forks—his fingers. Therefore it is an insult to him to substitute artificial metal forks for them when eating.” It gets worse. When the bride died two years later Saint Peter Damian stated, “Nor did she deign to touch her food with her fingers, but would command her eunuchs to cut it up into small pieces, which she would impale on a certain golden instrument with two prongs and thus carry to her mouth. . . . this woman’s vanity was hateful to Almighty God; and so, unmistakably, did He take his revenge. For He raised over her the sword of His divine justice, so that her whole body did putrefy and all her limbs began to wither.” (Forks did eventually catch on, but it took a few centuries.)