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Kite was originally
called Zhiyuan in north China, and Yaozi in south China. Early
in the Five dynasties, a man named Li Ye used to make and fly
kite in the imperial court. He once attached a whistle made of
bamboo to the kite, sound was let out when the kite was flying,
the kite was named after Zheng, a kind of Chinese music instrument.
Then it was named Fengzheng till today.
The earliest
kite in the world was made by Mo-tse, a famous Chinese philosopher
lived 2300 years ago, for military purpose. He spent three years
making an eagle and managed to fly it. The eagle later was regarded
as the first kite in the world. Kite flying became a recreation
probably from the Tang dynasty when the royal family and aristocrats
were addicted to it. It was said that the Emperor Xuanzong in
the Tang dynasty once was deeply attracted by a kite named Eight
Immortals Crossing the Sea flying in the air. The invention of
paper made kites cost less and quick spread among the common people.
As time went on, kites flew to various counties in the world.
The well-known British scientist, Dr. Needham, once described
kites as an important scientific invention spread to Europe from
China in his book, A History of China's Science and Technology.
The invention of kite aroused the dream of mankind to fly and
led to invention of airplane.
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