How did kites originate? What kind of legends are there?

China is the hometown of kites. The south is called "kite" and the north is called "kite". The word "kite" first appeared in the Five Dynasties. In the Ming Dynasty, Chen Yi recorded in "Inquiring about Grass": "In the early Five Dynasties, Ye Li made a kite in the palace, leading the way and riding the wind for a play. Behind the bow of a kite, bamboo is a flute, which makes the wind sound like a kite. According to historical records, the inventor of kites was Han Xin of the Han Dynasty. Legend has it that in BC 190, Chu and Han contended, and Han and Han Xin attacked Weiyang Palace and used kites to measure the distance under the tunnel of Weiyang Palace. In the Battle of Gaixia, Xiang Yu's army was besieged by Liu Bang's army. Han Xin sent people to make kites out of cowhide and put bamboo flutes, and the wind sounded. The Han army played flute and sang Chu songs, which dispersed the morale of the Chu army. This is the story of the idiom "Embattled".

The early kites in China were mostly related to military affairs, communication and meteorology. About the Tang and Five Dynasties, kites entered the folk and became toys for people's entertainment and games. At the same time, it is also a good physical exercise. Yuan Zhen, a poet in the Tang Dynasty, once wrote a poem: "There are birds flying kites, which are led by the boy because of the false wind", vividly describing the scene of children flying kites. The poem "Paper Flowers Fly Like Snow" written by Zheng Banqiao Huai wei county in Qing Dynasty truly recorded the grand occasion of flying kites at that time. During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, flying kites in Tomb-Sweeping Day has become a seasonal folk activity. When spring returns to the earth, people fly kites and dream.

About 500 years ago in the Ming Dynasty, kites had spread to North Korea, and then to Japan, Southeast Asia, Europe and America. In the southeast and northwest of China, kites with unique local characteristics are everywhere. They are handed down from generation to generation, with different styles, rough and bold, lively and exquisite, colorful and elegant. Famous kite producing areas such as Beijing, Tianjin, Weifang, Shandong, Nantong and Jiangsu all have masterpieces handed down from important schools. (Source: People's Daily Overseas Reporter Zhang Dongwei)

The origin of kites

China kites have a long history. It is said that Han Xin, a general of the Han Dynasty, used kites to make measurements. Liang Wudi used kites to send messages, but failed. In the Northern and Southern Dynasties, someone jumped from a height with a kite on his back and didn't die. When Zhang Pi was besieged in the Tang Dynasty, he used a kite to send a message for help, which succeeded. These show that the history of kites in China is at least 2,000 years.

China Since the Tang Dynasty, kites have gradually become toys. By the late Tang Dynasty, kites had been made of silk strips or bamboo flutes, and the wind blew, hence the name "kite". Some people say that the name "kite" originated in the Five Dynasties, when Ye Li pasted a kite with paper and installed a bamboo flute on it.

By the Song Dynasty in China, kites had developed greatly, and the variety and performance of kites increased, which was closely related to people's lives. Such as Wulin; It is recorded in "Japanese Affairs" that young people seduce each other and kill each other, and the one who loses the line loses. /There are also kite-flying scenes in Zhang Zeduan's The Riverside Scene at Qingming Festival and Su Hanchen's Poems of Hundred Schools in the Northern Song Dynasty. Xu Wei, a painter in the Ming Dynasty, wrote many poems related to kites, such as "wicker rubbing thread and wadding cotton, rubbing feet and putting paper. "How much energy the spring breeze consumes, taking the children to spring." Another example: "I used to be very happy, but I am not as old as I am this year. I can stay in Chunma and watch the children disconnect." Flying kites became more popular in the Qing Dynasty. Legend has it that Cixi asked the inspector to run to Tianjin to find a kite and Wei tied it to him as a "longevity old riding crane". There are three big kites that Fu Yi played in the Forbidden City.

China Cao Xueqin vividly described the scenes of flying crabs, beauties, big fish, weaving bats, phoenixes, sand swallows and other kites in the Grand View Garden in the seventy chapters of A Dream of Red Mansions. It can be said that at this time, the toy kites in China developed to a very high level.

Since the Tang and Song Dynasties in China, China kites have spread all over the world, first in Southeast Asian countries such as Korea, Japan and Malaya, and then in Europe and America. Under the influence of industrial revolution in europe, China's toy kites developed into flying machines there, passing through Kelly in Britain, Hargrave in Australia and Lindauer in Germany. Finally, the Wright brothers succeeded in manufacturing the earliest aircraft capable of carrying people in the United States.

China Therefore, a China kite hangs in the lobby of the Washington Air and Space Museum. It says next to it: "The earliest flying machines of mankind were kites and rockets from China." (Source: China Weifang Network)

Three legends about the origin of kites

There are three legends about the origin of kites. First, the hat and the leaves say; Second, sailing boats and tents; Third, said the bird. However, the conclusion that kites originated in China is generally recognized by the kite industry in the world.

Hat and leaf theory

Hat is an ancient instrument for preventing rain and heatstroke, which was used by people when they changed from fishing and hunting to farming, especially in tropical and subtropical areas. At that time, the hat was very simple to make, and the tether was also made from local materials, using soft bark fibers. It is said that a farmer was plowing the field when a strong wind suddenly rolled up his hat. The farmer ran after him and grabbed the tether. It happened that the tether was very long and the hat flew in the air like a kite. The farmer thought it was very interesting. He often put hats on the villagers in the future, and later he turned into flying kites. It is said that these leaves come from the south of China. It is said that ancient people worshipped the phenomenon of leaves flying all over the sky, so they tied the leaves with hemp and other things to play, which gradually evolved into a kite-flying activity. Gaoshan nationality in Taiwan Province province of China and Li nationality in Hainan island made kites from leaves of bread trees earlier.

Sailing boat and tent theory

Humans have a long history of using wooden boats, which were used in production as early as 2000 BC. Then the sailboat. Legend has it that there are sails on the boat when you are there. Sailing is a machine with the help of wind power, so people set kites and fly them according to the principle of sailing. It is also said that kites originated from tents in the north. The earliest kites were made by people imitating the phenomenon of strong winds blowing tents in the air, and later gradually evolved into an entertainment activity.

Fenio said

Judging from the current historical records and the ancient kites that have been discovered, a prominent symbol of its structure, modeling and painting technology is the bird shape. So it is concluded that the first kites were inspired by birds, imitated by birds and named after them. Advocating, loving and imitating birds to make kites is people's pursuit of a better life. It is natural that kites are born of it.

Kite originated in China, which is a recognized conclusion in the world kite industry. The earliest kite in China was made by Mo Zhai, an ancient scientist. According to China's historical material "Han Feizi's theory of hiding outside", in Julushan, Mo Zhai (now Qingzhou, Shandong Province), "the ash tree is a kite, which was made in three years and lost in one day." Mozi studied for three years, and finally made a wooden bird out of wood, but it broke after only one day's flight. This "Muharrier" made by Mozi is the earliest kite in China.

Antiques from Zheng Feng.

Kites originated in the Warring States Period. A loser is what later generations called Lu Ban, a seven-skilled craftsman, or "Lord Lu Ban". The raw material of his "magpie" or "kite" is extremely thin sawdust or bamboo chips. After the Han Dynasty, due to the invention and application of paper, paper gradually replaced wood when making kites. It's called a kite. In the Five Dynasties, a bamboo whistle was tied to a paper kite, which sounded like A Zheng, so it was later called a kite. Flying kites was very common in Weifang during the Tang and Song Dynasties. During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, kites in Weifang reached a peak. Every year around Tomb-Sweeping Day, the weather is fine, and every family helps the old and takes care of the young, taking a walk on the spot, and actually sending their proud works into the blue sky. Zheng Banqiao, a poet in Qing Dynasty, said in Poems: The poem says: "Paper flowers fly like snow all over the sky, and charming girls swing around." The five-color Luo skirt shakes with the wind, bringing butterflies back to spring. " Vividly described the scene of flying kites in Weifang during the Qingming Festival. This spring-like folk activity is not only an opportunity to observe and evaluate each other, but also a good opportunity to breathe the early spring air, enjoy the gift of nature and exercise. Weifang kite has exquisite craftsmanship, unique painter, novel shape and reasonable composition. It also absorbs some characteristics of woodblock New Year pictures and the techniques of Beijing-Tianjin paintings, with beautiful lines, bright colors, being good at exaggeration and highlighting the theme. Unique style and lifelike. The most representative large centipede kite is 100 feet long. When flying, the tail fragrance and body fragrance are gradually lifted upwards, and the first part is lifted to the sky by the lift generated by dozens of "waists". The waist is tied according to the principle of mechanics, and there should be a strict angle and distance between the tethers. The "leading centipede" expands the blue sky with a thousand miles, which is spectacular. Won universal praise at home and abroad. Since the first Weifang International Kite Fair 1984. Every year in mid-April, the annual International Kite Festival is held. 1988 Weifang was designated as the "Kite Capital of the World" by the 5th International Kite Fair. Now the19th Kite Festival has been successfully held, attracting tourists from dozens of countries and regions around the world every year. It has also made outstanding contributions to Weifang's economic development.