Which country actually invented dumplings? You’d probably think it’s China but historians have traced dumplings to Central Asia and the migration of Turkic people. It’s said that Turkic and Mongol tradesmen and horsemen traveled across Asia in cold winters carrying ‘mantu’, which we now call dumplings. That’s because 1600’s England called this delicious dough pocket ‘dumpling’, a sophisticated derivative of ‘lump’.
In fact, when it comes to the origins of mantu, historians encourage us to look at language. Most Asian cultures call the dumpling how the Turks originally did–Koreans call it mandu, Greek people call it manti, Afghans call it mantu, and Chinese people call it mantou too. But the origins aren’t the only debatable part of the convo–who has the best dumplings?
Host and Producer Yelda Ali
Producer Stephanie Tangkilisan Joy Jihyun Jeong
Associate Producer Manal Ahmed
Researcher and Writer Yelda Ali
Additional Researcher Manal Ahmed
Director of Photography Alison Boya Sun
Editor Rendy Abi Editor-in-Chief Keshia Hannam
Head of Production Stephanie Tangkilisan
Animator Fajar Alkan
Graphic Design Samuel Kang Fitra Pratama Annie Zhao
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