Spork
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A spork, or a foon, is a hybrid form of cutlery. It is based upon a spoon, with the addition of the tines of a fork (usually three or four). A similar utensil, the splade, also has the serrated edge of a knife. Spork-like utensils have been manufactured since at least the late 1800s; patents for spork-like designs date back to at least 1874 and the word "spork" was registered as a trademark both in the U.S. and the UK decades later. Sporks are offered in both re-usable and disposable form and are quite versatile. They are commonly used by fast food restaurants, prisons, school cafeterias, and backpackers.
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[edit] Etymology
The word spork is a portmanteau word combining the words spoon and fork. The word "spork" appeared in the 1909 supplement to the Century Dictionary, where it was described as a trade name and "a 'portmanteau-word' applied to a long, slender spoon having at the end of the bowl projections resembling the tines of a fork." A variation of the spork is the splade, which in addition to the overall spoon shape and fork tines, has a somewhat sharp edge or blade on one or both sides.
[edit] History of the spork
Originally, the spork was used in Medieval times. It was not then called the 'spork', though, and looked very different from the spork used today. Instead, it was merely an odd combination of a spoon and a fork, a utensil somewhere in-between, where it was commonly used in thick soups. However, the spork was very unpopular in the Medieval ages and was not used popularly until the later Victorian ages.[citation needed]
Sporks have been mass-manufactured since at least the late 1800s. The Folgate Silver Plate Company of England manufactured one sometime between 1875 and 1900.
In the United States, various patents for sporks and proto-sporks have been issued over the years. A combined spoon, fork, and knife closely resembling the modern spork was invented by Peter S. Gallucci and issued U.S. Patent 147,119 in February, 1874. Other early patents predating the modern spork include U.S. Patent 904,553, for a "Cutting spoon", granted on November 24, 1908 and U.S. Patent 1,044,869, for a spoon with a tined edge, granted to F. Emmenegger in November of 1912. Many of these inventions predated the use of the term "spork" and thus may be considered proto-sporks. Given this significant prior art, the basic concept of combining aspects of a spoon and fork is well established; more modern patents have limited themselves to the specific implementation and appearance of the spork. These design patents do not prevent anyone from designing and manufacturing their own version of a spork. Examples of modern U.S. design patents for sporks include patent number D247,153 issued in February of 1978 and patent D388,664 issued in January of 1998.
The word spork originated in the early 1900s to describe such devices. According to a December 20, 1952 New York Times article, Hyde W. Ballard of Westtown, Pennsylvania filed an application to register "Spork" as a trademark for a combination spoon and fork made of stainless steel, although there is no longer any record of this application at the United States Patent and Trademark Office. The Van Brode Milling Company subsequently registered SPORK for a combination plastic spoon, fork and knife at the USPTO on October 27, 1970, but abandoned the registration several years later. The word Spork accompanied by a stylised design is currently registered in the U.S. in relation to hand tools, in the name of a UK based individual (reg. no. 2514381).
In the United Kingdom, Plastico Limited originally registered Spork as a trademark in relation to cutlery with effect from September 18, 1975 (reg. no. 1052291). The registration is now in the name of another company and remains in force. The trademark is also registered in the UK in relation to gardening tools in the name of the same UK based individual who owns U.S. trademark registration no. 2514381.
In an unsuccessful lawsuit in 1999 where the company Regalzone sought to invalidate Plastico Limited's UK registration for Spork, Justice Neuberger wrote: "I accept that the word Spork involves a clever idea of making a single word by eliding the end of the word spoon and beginning of the word fork. The fact that it is clever and the fact that the meaning of Spork could be said to be obvious once it is explained does not mean that it is obvious what it is. Indeed, I would have thought that if one asked a person in 1975 what a Spork was, he or she would not know. If one then explained what it was and how the word came about, one might then be told that it was obvious or that it was clever."
It is believed that the modern spork, made of disposable plastic, was introduced by the fast-food chain KFC, then known as Kentucky Fried Chicken, for its popular coleslaw side dish, at some point in the early 1970s.
[edit] Rumors
There are many false rumors about the origin of the spork and the word spork. According to a rumor circulated in the "Spork FAQ", the spork was invented in the 1940s by the United States Army, which introduced them to occupied Japan. This rumor has all the hallmarks of an urban legend. Virtually every reference to the occupied Japan theory misspells General Douglas MacArthur's name as McArthur, lending credence to the notion that all these references have a common origin. Furthermore, in real life the United States Army M-1926 mess kit, which served from 1926 until the 1980s, included a separate knife, fork and spoon. [1] The "Spork FAQ" does have a small amount of truth, though, as sporks became widely known in Japan after the 1940s in the aftermath of World War II.
The Straight Dope reports that a "patent" was issued by the United States Patent and Trademark Office for a "combination spoon, fork, and knife" to the Van Brode Milling Company of Clinton, Massachusetts on August 11, 1970. In this case the report should have referred to the publication of a trademark application in the name of this company on this date, rather than the issuing of a patent (see History above).
Another popular Internet rumor describes the spork as the creation of a nameless resource-pressed and inventive German scientist near the end of World War II. Supposedly, the spork was designed for use with field ration kits issued to front line troops. No known historical documents validate this urban legend, but it is clearly wrong. Both the word spork and the utensil predate the war.
Supposedly, the spork existed in the medieval era (despite not being patented until the late 1800's); this story claims widespread use among peasants, for it was fairly easy to craft.
[edit] Materials and uses
Sporks can be made from plastic, metal, or wood. Plastic sporks are often disposable, but metal and wood sporks are meant to be cleaned and reused. Metals such as stainless steel, silver, lightweight aluminum and even the very lightweight (but costly) titanium, as well as "unbreakable" Polycarbonate plastic have been used in spork manufacture. The more ornate varieties are often sold as ice cream forks. Metal sporks are also sometimes called grapefruit spoons, and used on that fruit, whose successful total consumption is aided by a combination scooping-and-stabbing tool. Others prefer to reserve the name "grapefruit spoon" to a spoon that has been given a serrated edge like a knife around part of its lip.
The spork is used in a number of fast food restaurants, such as El Pollo Loco, and the Yum! Brands franchises, Kentucky Fried Chicken and Taco Bell. Sporks have been spotted at many other restaurants and in school cafeterias. Sporks are also available for consumer purchase, and are often found at picnics and similar occasions. Plastic sporks are also common in prisons in the United States, because they are difficult to form into weapons.
Sporks, especially the lighter types, are popular amongst backpackers, as they are smaller and lighter than a fork and a spoon.
The pastry fork has a similar design: it combines a fork and a knife, for one handed cutting-and-spearing.
On Internet forums, there is a time-honored tradition of announcing that a fellow poster is being poked, prodded or otherwise attacked with a spork. This has given rise to the verb, 'to spork,' meaning to poke someone, in a playful manner, with the utensil.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- The Century Dictionary
- "Small Fry attempting to get peek at yule gifts may be caught in act" (December 20, 1952). New York Times.
- Gazette, U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, August 11, 1970.
- D. Green & Co. (Stoke Newington) Ltd and Plastico Ltd v Regalzone Ltd [2002] ETMR 241 (CA).
