Chopsticks are a pair of small even-length tapered sticks, which are generally believed to have originated in ancient China, and are the traditional eating utensils of China, Japan, Korea, Taiwan, and Vietnam. Binomial name Taxus cuspidata Siebold & Zucc. ... A pair of chopsticks made from yew on a wooden chopstick rest A typical Japanese meal: chopsticks on a chopstick rest at the front side of the dishes pointing the left A chopstick rest ) is tableware similar to a spoon rest, used to keep chopsticks away from the table and... Map of eastern China and Taiwan, showing the historic distribution of Mandarin Chinese in light brown. ... Pinyin, more formally called Hanyu Pinyin (Simplified Chinese: ; Traditional Chinese: ; Pinyin: ), is the most common variant of Standard Mandarin romanization system in use. ... This article is about all of the Cantonese (Yue) dialects. ... Jyutping (sometimes spelled Jyutpin) is a romanization system for Standard Cantonese developed by the Linguistic Society of Hong Kong (LSHK) in 1993. ... Min (Chinese: ; pinyin: ; POJ: Bân hong-giân; BUC: Mìng huŏng-ngiòng) is a general term for a group of dialects of the Chinese language spoken in the southeastern Chinese province of Fujian as well as by migrants from this province in Guangdong (around Chaozhou-Swatou... Mǐn N n (Chinese: 閩南語), also spelt as Minnan or Min-nan; native name B ; literally means Southern Min or Southern Fujian and refers to the local language/dialect of southern Fujian province, China. ... Technical note: Due to technical limitations, some web browsers may not display some special characters in this article. ... Min Dong Language (or Eastern Min Language, Chinese: 閩東語, SLC: Mỉng Tòyng ngỹ) is the language mainly spoken in the eastern part of Fujian Province (Chinese: 福建, SLC: Huk Kyŏng). ... (Chinese characters: 平話字), also known as Foochow Romanized, is a romanized orthography for the Fuzhou dialect adopted in the middle of 19th century by Western missionaries. ... Japanese writing Kanji Kana Hiragana Katakana Hentaigana Manyōgana Uses Furigana Okurigana Rōmaji   ) are the Chinese characters that are used in the modern Japanese logographic writing system along with hiragana (平仮名), katakana (片仮名), and the Arabic numerals. ... Japanese writing Kanji 漢字 Kana 仮名 Hiragana 平仮名 Katakana 片仮名 Uses Furigana 振り仮名 Okurigana 送り仮名 Romaji ローマ字 The title given to this article lacks diacritics because of certain technical limitations. ... Jamo redirects here. ... Korean writing systems Hangul Hanja Hyangchal Gugyeol Idu Mixed script Korean romanization Revised Romanization of Korean McCune-Reischauer Yale Romanization The Revised Romanization of Korean is the official Korean language romanization system in South Korea. ... McCune-Reischauer romanization is one of the two most widely used Korean language romanization systems, along with the Revised Romanization of Korean, which replaced (a modified) McCune-Reischauer as the official romanization system in South Korea in 2000. ... Note: This page contains IPA phonetic symbols in Unicode. ... The Vietnamese alphabet has the following 29 letters, in collating order: Vietnamese also uses the 10 digraphs and 1 trigraph below. ... Hán tá»± (漢字, lit. ... Eat redirects here. ... This article is about the Korean civilization. ...

Chopsticks are commonly used with their associated cuisine. Chopsticks can also now be found in some areas of Tibet and Nepal that are close to Han Chinese populations, due to cross-cultural influences. Chopsticks are commonly used in Xinjiang by Uyghurs and other nationalities to eat laghman. In much of Southeast Asia chopsticks are usually used when eating noodles. Chopsticks are commonly made of wood, bamboo, metal, bone, ivory, and in modern times, plastic as well. The pair of sticks is maneuvered in one hand – between the thumb and fingers – and used to pick up pieces of food. Cuisine (from French cuisine, cooking; culinary art; kitchen; ultimately from Latin coquere, to cook) is a specific set of cooking traditions and practices, often associated with a specific culture. ... This article is about historical/cultural Tibet. ... For the county in Shanxi province, see Xinjiang County. ... Uyghurs (also called Uighurs, Uygurs, or Uigurs) (Chinese:维吾尔 or 維吾爾 ; in pinyin: wéiwúěr) are a Turkic ethnic group of people living in northwestern China (mainly in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, where they are the dominant ethnic group together with Han people), Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan. ... Lanzhou-style Beef Lamian Lamian (SC: 拉面, TC: 拉麵, PY: lāmiàn) is a Chinese dish of hand-made noodles, usually served in a beef or mutton-flavored soup (湯麵 tāngmiàn), but sometimes stir-fried (炒麵 chÇŽomiàn) and served with a tomato-based sauce. ... For other uses, see Wood (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Bamboo (disambiguation). ... This article is about metallic materials. ... This article is about the skeletal organs. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... For other uses, see Plastic (disambiguation). ...

History

Chopsticks originated in ancient China as early as the Shang dynasty (1600-1100 BC) ^[1] and were widely used throughout East Asia. Tools resembling chopsticks were also unearthed in the archaeological site Megiddo in Israel. This discovery may reveal the existence of a trade relationship between the Middle East and Asia in early antiquity or may be an independent parallel development. Chopsticks were also common household items of civilized Uyghurs on the Mongolian steppes during the 6th–8th centuries.[1] Remnants of advanced, stratified societies dating back to the Shang period have been found in the Yellow River Valley. ... This article is about the geographical region. ... Megiddo (Hebrew: ) is a hill in Israel near the modern settlement of Megiddo, known for theological, historical and geographical reasons. ... For the language spoken by this ethnic group, see Uyghur language. ... The steppe of Western Kazakhstan in early spring In physical geography, steppe (from Slavic step) is a plain without trees (apart from those near rivers and lakes); it is similar to a prairie, although a prairie is generally reckoned as being dominated by tall grasses, while short grasses are said...

Etymology

Chinese Western Han Dynasty lacquerwares and chopsticks, from the 2nd century BC tombs at Mawangdui.

The English word "chopstick" seems to have been derived from Chinese Pidgin English, a pidgin where "chop chop" meant quickly.^[2][3] Image File history File links Size of this preview: 800 × 491 pixelsFull resolution (1428 × 876 pixels, file size: 190 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File historyClick on a date/time to view the file as it appeared at that time. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 800 × 491 pixelsFull resolution (1428 × 876 pixels, file size: 190 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File historyClick on a date/time to view the file as it appeared at that time. ... Han Dynasty in 87 BC Capital Changan (206 BC–9 AD) Luoyang (25 AD–220 AD) Language(s) Chinese Religion Buddhism, Taoism, Confucianism, Chinese folk religion Government Monarchy History  - Establishment 206 BC  - Battle of Gaixia; Han rule of China begins 202 BC  - Interruption of Han rule 9 - 24  - Abdication... Chinese lacquerware box from the Qing Dynasty, Museum für angewandte Kunst, Frankfurt, Germany. ... Mawangdui (馬王堆) is an archaeological site located in Changsha, China. ... Chinese Pidgin English is a Pidgin language of Nauru and other countries in Asia and Oceania. ... This article is about simplified languages. ...

The Mandarin Chinese word for chopsticks is kuàizi 筷子. 筷 is a semantic-phonetic (xíngshēng) compound with a phonetic part of "快", which means quick, and a semantic part, 竹, meaning bamboo. In Chinese, the old word for "chopsticks", and also in some varieties of modern Chinese such as Hokkien, was zhù (MC: d̪jwo-) (箸 Pinyin:zhù, Minnan: tī). However, zhù became a taboo on ships because it sounded the same as another word meaning "to stop" (住). Consequently, it was replaced by a word of opposite meaning, kuài (fast, quick). This gradually spread until it became the word for "chopsticks" in most varieties of modern Chinese. The character for this new meaning of "chopsticks" (筷) for kuài has the semantic element of bamboo added to the character meaning "fast" kuài (快).^[4] Map of eastern China and Taiwan, showing the historic distribution of Mandarin Chinese in light brown. ... There are several kinds of Chinese characters, including a handful of pictograms (象形 pinyin: xiàngxíng) and a number of indicatives (指事 zhǐshì), but the vast majority are phono-semantic compounds (形聲 xíngshÄ“ng). ... Mǐn N n (Chinese: 閩南語), also spelt as Minnan or Min-nan; native name B ; literally means Southern Min or Southern Fujian and refers to the local language/dialect of southern Fujian province, China. ... Middle Chinese (traditional Chinese: ; pinyin: zhōnggÇ” HànyÇ”), or Ancient Chinese as used by linguist Bernhard Karlgren, refers to the Chinese language spoken during Southern and Northern Dynasties and the Sui, Tang, and Song dynasties (6th century - 10th century). ... Pinyin, more formally called Hanyu Pinyin (Simplified Chinese: ; Traditional Chinese: ; Pinyin: ), is the most common variant of Standard Mandarin romanization system in use. ... The left part of mā, a Chinese character meaning mother, is a radical that means woman A radical (from Latin radix, meaning root) is a basic identifiable component of every Chinese character. ...

In Japanese, chopsticks are called hashi, written 箸. They are also known as otemoto (おてもと, otemoto^?), a phrase commonly printed on the wrappers of disposable chopsticks.

In Korean, 箸 (jeo) is used in the compound jeotgarak (젓가락) which is composed of jeo (chopsticks) and garak (stick). Jeo cannot be used alone.

In Vietnamese, chopsticks are called "đũa," also from 箸.

Spread to other Asian countries

While China, Japan, Korea and Vietnam had long included chopsticks as part of their traditional eating utensils, the use of chopsticks in a limited sense spread to other Asian countries in recent centuries with the influx of Chinese immigrants in Southeast Asia. Location of Southeast Asia Southeast Asia is a subregion of Asia. ...

Many countries in Southeast Asia had traditionally eaten with their hands (through the influence of Indian culture), but through the influence of Chinese immigrants, countries such as Thailand began to use chopsticks, almost exclusively in noodle dishes. However, the eating of rice and other foods is generally eaten with a western spoon and fork rather than chopsticks. Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ... For other uses, see Spoon (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Fork (disambiguation). ...

Usage

Many rules of etiquette govern the proper conduct of the use of chopsticks. Held between the thumb and fingers of one hand, chopsticks are used tong-like to pick up portions of food, which are prepared and brought to the table in small and convenient pieces. Chopsticks may also be used (except in Korea) as means for sweeping rice and other nominal morsels into the mouth directly from the bowl.-1... Tong could refer to :- Tong, a village in Shropshire, England Tong, a village in West Yorkshire, England Tong, pronunciation of several Chinese characters The Chinese surnames Tang (唐 and 湯/汤) transliterated based on Cantonese This is a disambiguation page: a list of articles associated with the same title. ... For other uses, see Rice (disambiguation). ...

Only the smaller ends of chopsticks contact the food. Here chopsticks are being used to eat a Japanese dish known as Natto, made from fermented soybeans.

Chopsticks are traditionally held in the right hand only, even by left-handed people. Although chopsticks may now be found in either hand, a few still consider left-handed chopstick use as improper etiquette. Some historians believe this rule of etiquette originated from a Chinese legend.^{[citation needed]} Mixed Natto from Wikipedia Japanese edition. ... Mixed Natto from Wikipedia Japanese edition. ... Natto eaten on top of rice is commonly stirred before consumption Nattō ) is a traditional Japanese food made from fermented soybeans, popular especially at breakfast. ... People who are left-handed are more dextrous with their left hand than with their right hand: they will probably also use their left hand for tasks such as personal care, cooking, and so on. ...

In chopstick-using cultures, food is generally made into small pieces; however, some chopstick designs have carved rings encircling the tips to aid in grasping larger pieces of food. Rice, which would usually be nearly impossible to eat with chopsticks if prepared using Western methods, is usually prepared in East Asia with less water, which leads to "clumping" of the rice conducive to eating with chopsticks. The sticky characteristics of the rice also depend on the cultivar of rice; the cultivar used in East Asian countries is usually japonica, which is a more naturally clumping kind of rice than indica, the rice used in most Western and South Asian countries. For other uses, see Rice (disambiguation). ... Occident redirects here. ... This Osteospermum Pink Whirls is a successful cultivar. ... East Asia is a subregion of Asia. ... Japanese rice is a variety called Japonica which is characterized by stickiness. ... Indica (or indicum) means of India, or Indian, in Latin and is applied to things connected with India or South Asia: The specific epithets indica and indicum are used in binomial nomenclature to indicate species (or subspecies) of plants, animals etc thought to originate in, or associated with, India. ... Occident redirects here. ... Map of South Asia South Asia is a subregion of Asia comprising the modern states of Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka, . It covers about 4,480,000 km², or 10 percent of the continent, and is also known as the Indian subcontinent. ...

Types

Wood and plastic chopsticks

There are several styles of chopsticks that vary in respect to: Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ...

• Length: Very long chopsticks, usually about 30 or 40 centimeters, tend to be used for cooking, especially for deep frying foods. In Japan they are called saibashi (菜箸). Shorter chopsticks are generally used as eating utensils but are also used for cooking.
• Tapering: The end of the chopsticks for picking up food are tapered to a blunt or a pointed end. Blunt tapered chopsticks provide more surface area for holding food and for pushing rice into the mouth. Pointed tapered chopsticks allow for easier manipulation of food and for picking out bones from whole cooked fish.
• Material: Chopsticks can be made from a variety of materials: bamboo, plastic, wood, bone, metal, jade, and ivory.

• Bamboo and wood chopsticks are cheap, low in temperature conduction and provide good grip for holding food due to their matte surfaces. They can warp and deteriorate with continued use. Almost all cooking and disposable chopsticks are made of either bamboo or wood. Disposable unlacquered chopsticks are used especially in restaurants. These often come as a piece of wood which is partially cut and must be broken into two chopsticks by the user (demonstrating that they have not been previously used). In Japanese, these are known as waribashi (割り箸). Natural wood chopsticks, like natural wood food preparation surfaces, have an innate antibacterial property absent from other materials. Lacquering or applying oil or paint to the wood surface reduces the antibacterial effectiveness. ^[5]
• Plastic chopsticks are cheap and low in temperature conduction and are resistant to wear. However, due to their composition, plastic chopsticks are not as effective as wood and bamboo chopsticks for picking up food. Also, plastic chopsticks cannot be used for cooking since high temperatures may damage the chopsticks and produce toxic compounds.
• Metal chopsticks are durable and are easy to clean. Like plastic chopsticks, metal chopsticks do not hold food as well as wood, or bone chopsticks. They also tend to be more expensive. Their higher heat conduction also means that they are not as comfortable to use in cooking.
• Materials such as ivory, jade, gold, and silver are typically chosen for luxury reasons.

• Embellishments: Wooden or bamboo chopsticks can be painted or lacquered to decorate them and make them waterproof. Metal chopsticks are sometimes roughened or scribed on the tapered end to make them less slippery when picking up foods. High-end metal chopstick pairs are sometimes connected by a short chain at the untapered end to prevent their separation.

For other uses, see Bamboo (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Plastic (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Wood (disambiguation). ... This article is about the skeletal organs. ... This article is about metallic materials. ... A selection of antique, hand-crafted Chinese jade (jadeite) buttons Unworked Jade Jade is used as an ornamental stone, the term jade is applied to two different rocks that are made up of different silicate minerals. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... For other uses, see Bamboo (disambiguation). ...

Styles of chopstick used in different cultures

From top to bottom: plastic chopsticks from Taiwan, porcelain chopsticks from mainland China, bamboo chopsticks from Tibet, palmwood chopsticks from Indonesia (Vietnamese style), stainless flat chopsticks from Korea (plus a matching spoon), a Japanese couple's set (two pairs), Japanese child's chopsticks, and disposable "hashi" (in wrapper)

• Chinese: longer sticks that are square in cross section at one end (where they are held) and round in cross section at the other (where they contact the food), ending in a blunt tip.
• Japanese: short to medium length sticks that taper to a pointed end. This may be attributed to the fact that the Japanese diet includes large amounts of whole bony fish. Japanese chopsticks are traditionally made of wood and are lacquered. Some chopstick sets include two lengths of chopsticks: shorter ones for women and longer ones for men. Child-sized chopsticks are widely sold.
• Korean: medium-length stainless-steel tapered rods, with a flat rectangular cross section. (Traditionally, they were made of brass or silver.) Many Korean metal chopsticks are ornately decorated at the grip.
• Vietnamese: long sticks that taper to a blunt point; traditionally wooden, but now made of plastic as well. A đũa cả is a large pair of flat chopsticks that is used to serve rice from a pot.

Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ...

Use

Cleanup of Image:Baguettesalamain. ...

1. Put one chopstick between the palm and the base of the thumb, using the ring finger (the fourth finger) to support the lower part of the stick. With the thumb, squeeze the stick down while the ring finger pushes it up. The stick should be stationary and very stable.
2. Use the tips of the thumb, index and middle fingers to hold the other stick like a pen. Make sure the tips of the two sticks line up.
3. Pivot the upper stick up and down towards the stationary lower stick. With this motion one can pick up food of surprising size.
4. With enough practice, the two sticks function like a pair of pincers.

Tip: Chopsticks generally should be held at the thicker end about a third along their length for balance and efficiency. For greater reach to pick up food further away, hold the chopsticks at the upper ends.

If the tips fail to line up, it will be difficult to hold things. Hold the chopsticks upright with one of the tips lightly touching the table, and gently push the chopsticks down or gently loosen your grip for a moment to let both tips become equal in length. You can also adjust your grip or holding position this way.

With practice, it is possible to perform step one and two simultaneously, on picking up the chopsticks with one hand, with a single fluid and seamless motion. Adjust your grip if necessary.

NOTE: Although the alternative described here might be more comfortable, traditionally, the top stick is controlled using the thumb and forefinger, with the bottom chopstick resting on the middle finger.

Etiquette

Faux pas in Chinese culture

It is important to note that the chopsticks are used in a large area. While principles of etiquette are similar, the finer points may differ from region to region, and there is no single standard for the use of chopsticks. Generally, chopsticks etiquette is similar to general Western etiquette regarding eating utensils. Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (1706x1706, 337 KB) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Chopsticks Metadata This file contains additional information, probably added from the digital camera or scanner used to create... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (1706x1706, 337 KB) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Chopsticks Metadata This file contains additional information, probably added from the digital camera or scanner used to create... Faux Pas redirects here. ... -1...

Universal etiquette

• Chopsticks are not used to make noise, to draw attention, or to gesticulate. Playing with chopsticks is considered bad mannered and vulgar (just as playing with cutlery in a Western environment would be deemed crass).
• Chopsticks are not used to move bowls or plates.
• Chopsticks are not used to toy with one's food or with dishes in common.
• Chopsticks are not used to pierce food, save in rare instances. Exceptions include tearing larger items apart such as vegetables and kimchi. In informal use, small, difficult-to-pick-up items such as cherry tomatoes or fishballs may be stabbed, but this use is frowned upon by traditionalists.
• Chopsticks can be rested horizontally on one's plate or bowl to keep them off the table entirely. A chopstick rest can be used to keep the points off the table.
• Chopsticks should not be left standing vertically in a bowl of rice or other food. Any stick-like object pointed upward resembles the incense sticks that some Asians use as offerings to deceased family members; certain funerary rites designate offerings of food to the dead using standing chopsticks.

Cutlery refers to any hand implement used in preparing, serving, and especially eating food in the Western world. ... Kimchi, also spelled gimchi or kimchee, is a traditional Korean fermented dish made of some select vegetables with varied seasonings, most commonly referring to the spicy baechu variety. ... A pair of chopsticks made from yew on a wooden chopstick rest A typical Japanese meal: chopsticks on a chopstick rest at the front side of the dishes pointing the left A chopstick rest ) is tableware similar to a spoon rest, used to keep chopsticks away from the table and...

Chinese etiquette

• In Chinese culture, it is normal to hold the rice bowl up to one's mouth and use chopsticks to push rice directly into the mouth. If rice is served on a plate, as is more common in the West, it is acceptable and more practical to eat it with a fork, spoon or spork.
• The blunt end is sometimes used to transfer food from a common dish to a diner's plate or bowl.
• It is acceptable to transfer food to closely related people (e.g. grandparents, parents, spouse, children, or significant others) if they are having difficulty picking up the food. Also it is a sign of respect to pass food to the elderly first before the dinner starts.
• It is impolite to spear food with a chopstick and/or play with the chopsticks.

Chinese culture has roots going back over five thousand years. ... For other uses, see Fork (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Spoon (disambiguation). ... A titanium spork. ...

Japanese etiquette

• Food should not be transferred from one's own chopsticks to someone else's chopsticks. Japanese people will always offer their plate to transfer it directly, or pass a person's plate along if the distance is great. Transferring directly is how bones are passed as part of Japanese funeral rites.
• The pointed ends of the chopsticks should be placed on a chopstick rest when the chopsticks are not being used.
• Reversing chopsticks to use the opposite clean end is commonly used to move food from a communal plate, although it is not considered to be proper manners.^{[citation needed]} Rather, the group should ask for extra chopsticks to transfer food from a communal plate.
• Chopsticks should not be crossed on a table or vertically stuck in the rice, as this symbolizes death.
• It is rude to rub wooden chopsticks together after breaking them apart, as this communicates to the host that the user thinks the chopsticks are cheap.

This article cites very few or no references or sources. ... A pair of chopsticks made from yew on a wooden chopstick rest A typical Japanese meal: chopsticks on a chopstick rest at the front side of the dishes pointing the left A chopstick rest ) is tableware similar to a spoon rest, used to keep chopsticks away from the table and... // In sociology, manners are the unenforced standards of conduct which show the actor to be cultured, polite, and refined. ...

Korean etiquette

• Koreans consider it rude to pick up the rice bowl from the table to eat from it.
• Unlike other chopstick cultures, Koreans use a spoon for their rice and soup, and chopsticks for most other things at the table. (Traditionally, Korean spoons have a relatively flat, circular head with a straight handle, unlike Chinese or Japanese soup spoons.)
• Unlike the rice eaten in many parts of China, cooked Korean rice can be easily picked up with chopsticks, although eating rice with a spoon is more acceptable.
• When laying chopsticks down on the table next to a spoon, one must never put the chopsticks to the left of the spoon. Chopsticks are only laid to the left for deceased family members.
• The blunt handle ends of chopsticks are not used to transfer food from common dishes.
• When no communal chopsticks are available, it is perfectly acceptable to pick up banchan and eat it without putting it down on one's bowl first.
• Also, there is an old saying suggesting that the closer one's hand is to the tips of the chopsticks, the longer they stay unmarried.

For other uses, see Spoon (disambiguation). ... Banchan, sometimes spelled panchan, refers to small side-dish plates in Korean cuisine. ...

Vietnamese etiquette

• As with Chinese etiquette, the rice bowl is raised to the mouth and the rice is pushed into the mouth using the chopsticks.
• Unlike with Chinese dishes, it is also practical to use chopsticks to pick up rice in plates, such as fried rice, because Vietnamese rice is typically sticky.
• It is proper to always use two chopsticks at once, even when using them for stirring.
• One should not pick up food from the table and place it directly in the mouth. Food must be placed in your own bowl first.
• Chopsticks should not be placed in the mouth while choosing food.
• Chopsticks should never be placed in a "V" shape when done eating; it is interpreted as a bad omen.

Fried rice is a popular component of Chinese cuisine and other forms of Asian cuisine. ...

Environmental impact

In China alone, an estimated 45 billion pairs of disposable chopsticks are used and thrown away annually. This adds up to 1.7 million cubic metres of timber or 25 million fully grown trees every year. To encourage that people use and throw away less, in April 2006 a 5% tax was added to the price of chopsticks in China. This measure is part of the first tax package in 12 years. 2006 is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Medical problems

A 2003 study found that regular use of chopsticks may slightly increase the risk of osteoarthritis in the hand, a condition where cartilage gets worn off, leading to pain in the hand joints, particularly among the elderly.[2] There have also been concerns regarding the use of certain disposable chopsticks made from dark wood bleached white that may pose a health risk, causing coughing or even leading to asthma. ^[6] Osteoarthritis (OA, also known as degenerative arthritis, degenerative joint disease), is a condition in which low-grade inflammation results in pain in the joints, caused by abnormal wearing of the cartilage that covers and acts as a cushion inside joints and destruction or decrease of synovial fluid that lubricates those...

A 2006 Hong Kong Department of Health survey has found that the proportion of people using serving chopsticks, spoons or other serving utensils has increased from 46% to 65% since the SARS outbreak in 2003.^[7] Sars may refer to any of the following: Severe acute respiratory syndrome, commonly abbreviated as SARS Michael Sars, a Norwegian biologist, father of Georg Sars Georg Sars, a Norwegian biologist, son of Michael Sars Special Administrative Regions, commonly abbreviated as SARs Sars, Perm Krai, an urban settlement in Perm Krai...

See also

• List of eating utensils
• Chopstick rest

This is a list of eating and serving utensils. ... A pair of chopsticks made from yew on a wooden chopstick rest A typical Japanese meal: chopsticks on a chopstick rest at the front side of the dishes pointing the left A chopstick rest ) is tableware similar to a spoon rest, used to keep chopsticks away from the table and...

References

1. ^ Chinese Chopsticks (HTML). Retrieved on 2007-11-01.
2. ^ Merriam-Webster Online. Definition of chopstick.
3. ^ Norman, Jerry (1988) Chinese, Cambridge University Press, p267.
4. ^ Norman, Jerry (1988) Chinese, Cambridge University Press, p76.
5. ^ Study on Antibacterial Properties of Wood
6. ^ Xinhuanet News Article
7. ^ Hong Kong Department of Health survey

Year 2007 (MMVII) was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. ... is the 305th day of the year (306th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Merriam-Webster, originally known as the G. & C. Merriam Company of Springfield, Massachusetts, is a United States company that publishes reference books, especially dictionaries that are descendants of Noah Websters An American Dictionary of the English Language (1828). ...

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Chopsticks

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• Non-disposable chopsticks to save the forests -- Greenpeace China