|
Forks
As a piece of cutlery or kitchenware, a fork is a tool consisting of a handle with several narrow tines (usually two, three or four) on one end. The fork as an eating utensil was a feature primarily of the West, whereas in East Asia chopsticks were more prevalent. more...
Home
Airsoft
Archery
Backyard Games
Baseball & Softball
Basketball
Bowling
Camping & Hiking
Cheerleading
Climbing & Caving
Cricket
Curling
Cycling
Accessories
Bicycle Parts
BMX Bike Parts
Brakes
Cranksets & Bottom Brackets
Forks
Handlebar Pads, Pad Sets
Handlebars & Grips
Headsets, Stems
Other
Pedals
Pegs
Rims & Hubs
Seats & Seat Posts
Sprockets, Chain Rings
Tubes & Tires
Wheelsets
BMX-Old School Bike Parts
Mountain Bike Parts
Brakes
Cassettes & Freewheels
Cranksets & Bottom Brackets
Derailleurs
Forks
Handlebars & Grips
Other
Pedals
Rims & Hubs
Seats & Seat Posts
Shifters
Shocks
Stems
Tubes & Tires
Wheelsets
Parts for Other Bike Types
Road Bike Parts
Brakes
Cassettes & Freewheels
Chain Rings
Cranksets & Bottom Brackets
Derailleurs
Forks
Handlebars
Other
Pedals
Rims & Hubs
Seats & Seat Posts
Shifters
Stems
Tubes & Tires
Wheelsets
Universal Bike Parts
Cables
Chains
Other
Seat Posts
Seats
Bicycles & Frames
Books & Video
Clothing, Shoes &...
Other
Vintage
Disc Golf
Equestrian
Fencing
Field Hockey
Fishing
Football
Geocaching
Go-Karts (Recreational)
Golf
Gymnastics
Hang Gliding & Paragliding
Hunting
Ice & Roller Hockey
Inline & Roller Skating
Lacrosse
Other
Paintball
Paragliding
Rugby
Scooters
Skateboarding
Sky Diving
Soccer
Track & Field
Triathlon
Volleyball
Wrestling
Today, however, forks are increasingly available throughout East Asia as well.
The utensil (usually metal) is used to lift food to the mouth or to hold food in place while cooking or cutting it. Food can be lifted either by spearing it on the tines, or by collecting it on top of the tines, and holding it atop the tines horizontally. To allow for this spoon-like use, the tines are often curved slightly upward.
History
The word fork is derived from the Latin furca, meaning \"pitchfork\". Although the Greeks used the fork as an apparent serving utensil, it is also mentioned in the Hebrew Bible, in the Book of I Samuel 2:13 (\"The custom of the priests with the people was that when any man offered sacrifice, the priest’s servant came, while the flesh was boiling, with a fork of three teeth in his hand...\"), it wasnt commonly used in Western Europe until the 10th century.
Before the fork was introduced, Westerners were reliant on the spoon and knife as the only eating utensils. Thus, people would largely eat food with their hands, calling for a common spoon when required. Members of the aristocracy would sometimes be accustomed to manners considered more proper and hold two knives at meals and use them both to cut and transfer food to the mouth, using the spoon for soups and broth.
The earliest forks usually had only two tines, but those with numerous tines caught on quickly. The tines on these implements were straight, meaning the fork could only be used for spearing food and not for scooping it. The fork allowed meat to be easily held in place while being cut. The fork also allowed one to spike a piece of meat and shake off any undesired excess of sauce or liquid before consuming it. First introduced to Western Europe in the 10th century by Theophanu, Byzantine wife of Emperor Otto II, the table fork had, by the 11th century, made its way to Italy. In Italy, it became quite popular by the 14th century, being commonly used for eating by merchant and upper classes by 1600. It was proper for a guest to arrive with his own fork and spoon enclosed in a box called a cadena; this usage was introduced to the French court with Catherine de' Medici's entourage. Long after the personal table fork had become commonplace in France, at the supper celebrating the marriage of the duc de Chartres to Louis XIV's natural daughter in 1692, the seating was described in the court memoirs of Saint-Simon:\"King James having his Queen on his right hand and the King on his left, and each with their cadenas.\" In Perrault's contemporaneous fairy tale of La Belle au bois dormant (1697), each of the fairies invited for the christening is presented with a splendid \"Fork Holder\"
Read more at Wikipedia.org
|
|