Chinlingo Podcast: China’s chopsticks

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Duì yì xiē wài guó rén lái shuō, shǐ yòng kuài zi shì tā men zài Zhōng guó bì xū xué xí de shì qíng zhī yī.

对一些外国人来说，使用筷子是他们在中国必须学习的事情之一。

For some foreigners, using chopsticks is one of the things they must learn in China.

Kuài zi zuì zǎo qǐ yuán yú Zhōng guó, yǐ jīng yǒu sān qiān duō nián de lì shǐ le. Jù shuō, yīn wèi shí wù tài tàng, gǔ dài rén jiù yòng liǎng gēn shù zhī qù jiá shí wù, zhè jiù shì zuì zǎo de kuài zi.

筷子最早起源于中国，已经有三千多年的历史了。据说，因为食物太烫，古代人就用两根树枝去夹食物，这就是最早的筷子。

Chopsticks first originated in China over 3,000 years ago. It's said that the ancient people used two branches which became the earliest chopsticks to pick up hot food.

Wèi shén me jiào tā "kuài zi" ne? Nà shì yīn wèi yòng tā chī fàn sù dù gèng "kuài", ér qiě dà bù fèn zhōng guó rén shǐ yòng de kuài zi dōu shì yòng zhú zi zuò de, suó yǐ, rén men zài "kuài" zì shàng miàn jiā le yí gè zhú zì tóu, jiù chéng le "kuài".

为什么叫它"筷子"呢？那是因为用它吃饭速度更"快"，而且大部分中国人使用的筷子都是用竹子做的，所以，人们在"快"字上面加了一个竹字头，就成了"筷"。

The reason why we call them "筷子 (kuài zi)" because it is quicker (快, kuài) to finish meals with chopsticks. Moreover, most chopsticks Chinese people use are generally made of bamboo, so they put "⺮" (a Chinese radical that means "bamboo") over "(快, kuài)" to make the character "筷 (kuài)".

Shǐ yòng kuài zi de shí hòu hái yào zhù yì yì xiē lǐ yí. Bǐ rú, zài cān zhuō shàng, bú yào yòng kuài zi zhǐ zhe bié rén, yě bú yào yòng kuài zi qiāo wǎn huò zhě pán zi, hái yǒu, bú yào bǎ kuài zi chā jìn mǐ fàn lǐ, yīn wèi nà yàng kàn qǐ lái xiàng yí gè fén mù!

使用筷子的时候还要注意一些礼仪。比如，在餐桌上，不要用筷子指着别人，也不要用筷子敲碗或者盘子，还有，不要把筷子插进米饭里，因为那样看起来像一个坟墓！

Using chopsticks requires some etiquette in China. For example, you can't point at others with your chopsticks at the table; you should not strike the bowl and plate with chopsticks; and never insert your chopsticks into a bowl of rice, because it looks just like a tomb!

Nǐ huì yòng kuài zi chī zhōng cān ma? Rú guǒ bú huì, jiù gēn zhe zhōng guó péng you liàn yi liàn ba.

你会用筷子吃中餐吗？如果不会，就跟着中国朋友练一练吧。

Are you able to use chopsticks for eating Chinese food? If not, just start practicing with your Chinese friends!

You might know more about China's chopsticks from this video:

[Key Words]

筷子 (kuài zi), chopsticks

夹 (jiá), pick up/nip

吃饭 (chī fàn), eat‍‍‍‍

The article is translated and editted by Chinlingo. Please indicate the source for any use, reproduction or transfer. 

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