Chairs were invented by Ancient Egypt and have been widespread in the Western world from the Greeks and Romans onwards. They were in common use in China from the 12th century. In Sub-Saharan Africa, chairs were not in use before introduced by Europeans. During the Renaissance, chairs came into more common use. Distinctive designs developed in France and England.
The 20th century saw an increasing use of technology in chair construction with such things as all-metal folding chairs, metal-legged chairs, moulded plastic chairs, recliner chairs (easy chair), plywood and laminate wood chairs, massage chairs and mane more.