The earliest chopsticks found so far are six bronze examples from the Ruins of Yin near Anyang, dated to around 1200 BCE in the Shang dynasty, and they were probably used for cooking. The first chopsticks were for stirring, serving and lifting food, not for eating, because millet porridge was eaten with spoons. Chopsticks began to be used as eating utensils during the Han dynasty, as rice consumption grew, and they became the only eating tool at the table only in the Ming dynasty. The Chinese word kuaizi reflects a later sound change, with the character for quick replacing the older word. Chopsticks then spread across East and Southeast Asia, forming a 'chopsticks cultural sphere' that includes China, Japan, Korea and Vietnam.

Hampi is a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Karnataka, India, with more than 1,600 surviving remains spread over 4,100 hectares. It was the capital of the Vijayanagara Empire from 1336 to 1565. Travellers from Persia and Portugal described it as a prosperous, wealthy and grand city with temples, markets and farms along the Tungabhadra River. By 1500 it was estimated to be the world's second-largest city after Beijing, and probably India's richest at the time. In 1565 a coalition of Muslim sultanates defeated the Vijayanagara Empire, its capital was conquered and destroyed, and the city was left in ruins. Hampi remains a religious centre, with the active Virupaksha Temple at its heart.