Walking down the trail at Vitruvian Park is a man with a beautiful, colorful butterfly-shaped kite. I never had a kite like it as a child. All the ones I had were cheaply made of balsa wood and very thin colored paper. They didn’t last very long. You would think that Oklahoma would be the perfect place to fly a kite because there are very few trees and the wind roars across the prairie. Maybe other children flew kites more than I did. But I do remember the fierce wind. As a college student wearing a mini-skirt and go-go boots, the skin below the hem of the skirt and above the boots always turned bright red in blustery winters when I walked across campus. I did go to a kite festival in Austin once. The variety and colors of the kites was spectacular. There was everything from a box kite made with wooden stakes and black garbage bags to a multicolored Asian kite that looked like the giant lion dancing at Chinese New Year parades. Kites are a bright spot in people’s lives that makes them feel happy. There is nothing like watching a colorful kite dance in the air. Let’s learn more about them.
According to Wikipedia, a kite is a tethered heavier-than-air or lighter-than-air craft with wing surfaces that react against the air to create lift and drag forces. A kite consists of wings, tethers and anchors. Kites often have a bridle and tail to guide the face of the kite, so the wind can lift it. Some kite designs don’t need a bridle; box kites can have a single attachment point. A kite may have fixed or moving anchors that can balance the kite. One technical definition is that a kite is “a collection of tether-coupled wing sets.” The name derives from its resemblance to a hovering bird.
The lift that sustains the kite in flight is generated when air moves around the kite's surface, producing low pressure above and high pressure below the wings. The interaction with the wind also generates horizontal drag along the direction of the wind. The resultant force vector from the lift and drag force components is opposed by the tension of one or more of the lines or tethers to which the kite is attached. The anchor point of the kite line may be static or moving e.g., the towing of a kite by a running person, boat, free-falling anchors as in paragliders and fugitive parakites or vehicle.
The same principles of fluid flow apply in liquids, so kites can be used in underwater currents, but there are no everyday uses as yet.
Man-lifting kites were made for reconnaissance, entertainment and during development of the first practical aircraft, the biplane.
Kites have a long and varied history, and many different types are flown individually and at festivals worldwide. Kites may be flown for recreation, art or other practical uses. Sport kites can be flown in aerial ballet, sometimes as part of a competition. Power kites are multi-line steerable kites designed to generate large forces which can be used to power activities such as kite surfing, kite landboarding, kite buggying and snow kiting.
History
Kites were invented in Asia, though their exact origin can only be speculated. The oldest depiction of a kite is from a mesolithic period cave painting in Muna Island, southeast Sulawesi, Indonesia, which has been dated from 9500–9000 years B.C. It depicts a type of kite called kaghati, which are still used by modern Muna people. The kite is made from kolope or forest tuber leaf for the mainsail, bamboo skin as the frame and twisted forest pineapple fiber as rope, though modern kites use string. According to the June 2, 2018 article “Oldest kite in the world comes from Southeast Sulawesi: Museum” in the Jakarta Post, Asep Irawan, a staff member at the Layang (kite) Museum in South Jakarta, said, “It is said that people wanted to reach the gods by flying kites." The search for the gods using kites is depicted in drawings on cave walls, which was drawn using blood, as well as brownish-red plant sap. The ancient drawings can still be seen in the Sugi Patani cave in Liang Kabori village, Muna Island.
In China, the kite has been claimed as the invention of the 5th-century BC Chinese philosophers Mozi (also Mo Di, or Mo Ti) and Lu Ban (also Gongshu Ban, or Kungshu Phan). Materials ideal for kite-building were readily available including silk fabric for sail material; fine, high-tensile-strength silk for flying line; and resilient bamboo for a strong, lightweight framework. By 549 AD paper kites were certainly being flown, as it was recorded that in that year a paper kite was used as a message for a rescue mission. Ancient and medieval Chinese sources describe kites being used for measuring distances, testing the wind, lifting men, signaling and communication for military operations. The earliest known Chinese kites were flat —not bowed — and often rectangular. Later, tailless kites incorporated a stabilizing bowline. Kites were decorated with mythological motifs and legendary figures; some were fitted with strings and whistles to make musical sounds while flying.
According to Wikipedia, after its introduction into India, the kite further evolved into the fighter kite, known as the patang in India, where thousands are flown every year on festivals such as Makar Sankranti. Fighter kites are small, unstable single-line flat kites where line tension alone is used for control, at least part of which is manja — typically glass-coated cotton strands — to cut down the line of others.
Kites were known throughout Polynesia, as far as New Zealand, with the assumption being that the knowledge diffused from China along with the people. Anthropomorphic kites made from cloth and wood were used in religious ceremonies to send prayers to the gods. Polynesian kite traditions are used by anthropologists to get an idea of early "primitive" Asian traditions that are believed to have at one time existed in Asia.
According to the article “Māori Kites: Ancient Ritual, Modern Pastime” at my-best-kite.com, Māori kites often displayed flowing patterning, carving and decoration. Frames were made from light wooden rods and tree twigs lashed together. Some ancient Māori designs were actually triangular in shape like modern deltas.
Many of the kites were covered in aute bark, which originated from the islands to the north of New Zealand. The common name for this bark is paper mulberry. Other kites had long “raupo” or bullrush leaves tied to the frame. All sorts of materials were added to the kite to decorate it including dog hair, feathers, leaves, shells and carved horns and points. Also, cockle shells were sometimes fastened to the kites to produce a rattling noise. Another accessory of the ancient Māori kites was a “karere” or messenger, which was made of bark or other light materials. This was sent up along the flying line towards the kite, its purpose being to communicate with the gods.
Kites were late to arrive in Europe, although windsock-like banners were known and used by the Romans. Stories of kites were first brought to Europe by Marco Polo towards the end of the 13th century, and kites were brought back by sailors from Japan and Malaysia in the 16th and 17th centuries. Konrad Kyeser described dragon kites in “Bellifortis,” a book on military technology, about 1400 AD. Although kites were initially regarded as mere curiosities, by the 18th and 19th centuries they were being used as vehicles for scientific research.
In 1752, Benjamin Franklin published an account of a kite experiment to prove that lightning was caused by electricity.
Kites were also instrumental in the research of the Wright brothers and others, as they developed the first airplane in the late 1800s. Several different designs of man-lifting kites were developed. The period from 1860 to about 1910 became the European "golden age of kiting."
In the 20th century, many new kite designs were developed. These included William Eddy's tailless diamond, tetrahedral kite, Rogallo wing, sled kite, parafoil and power kites. Kites were used for scientific purposes, especially in meteorology, aeronautics, wireless communications and photography. The Rogallo wing was adapted for stunt kites and hang gliding, and the parafoil was adapted for parachuting and paragliding.
The rapid development of mechanically powered aircraft diminished interest in kites. World War II saw a limited use of kites for military purposes: survival radio, Focke Achgelis FA 330 — a type of rotary-wing kite towed behind German U-boats during World War II to allow a lookout to see further and military radio antenna kites.
Kites are now mostly used for recreation. Lightweight synthetic materials such as ripstop nylon, plastic film and carbon fiber tube and rod are used for kite making. Synthetic rope and cord such as nylon, polyethylene, Kevlar and dyneema are used as bridle and kite line.
Cultural uses in Asia
Afghanistan
Kite flying is a popular game and is known in Dari as Gudiparan Bazi. Some kite fighters pass their strings through a mixture of ground glass powder and glue, which is legal. The resulting strings are very abrasive and can sever the competitor's strings more easily. The abrasive strings can also injure people. During the Taliban rule in Afghanistan, kite flying was banned, among various other recreations.
Pakistan
In Pakistan, kite flying is often known as Gudi-Bazi or Patang-bazi. Although kite flying is a popular ritual for the celebration of spring festival known as Jashn-e-Baharaan — literally Spring Festival — or Basant, kites are flown throughout the year. Kite fighting is a very popular pastime all around Pakistan, but mostly in urban centers across the country, especially Lahore. The kite fights are at their highest during the spring celebrations, and the fighters enjoy competing with rivals to cut loose the string of the other’s kite, popularly known as "Paecha." During the spring festival, kite flying competitions are held across the country, and the skies are colored with kites. When a competitor succeeds in cutting another's kite loose, shouts of “wo kata” ring through the air. Cut kites are reclaimed by chasing after them. This is a popular ritual, especially among the country's youth, and is depicted in the 2007 film “The Kite Runner,” although that story is based in neighboring Afghanistan. Kites and strings are a big business in the country and several different types of string are used, including glass-coated, metal and tandi. Kite flying was banned in Punjab, India due to more than one motorcyclist death caused by glass-coated or metal kite strings. Kup, Patang, Guda and Nakhlaoo are some of the popular kite brands; they vary in balance, weight and speed.
Indonesia
In Indonesia kites are flown as both sport and recreation. One of the most popular kite variants is from Bali. Balinese kites are unique, and they have different designs and forms — birds, butterflies, dragons, ships, etc. In Vietnam, kites are flown without tails. Instead, small flutes are attached allowing the wind to "hum" a musical tune. There are other forms of sound-making kites. In Bali, large bows are attached to the front of the kites to make a deep throbbing vibration, and in Malaysia, a row of gourds with sound-slots are used to create a whistle as the kite flies. Malaysia is also home to the Kite Museum in Malacca.
Kites are also popular in Nepal, especially in hilly areas and among the Pahadi and Newar communities, although people also fly kites in Terai areas. Unlike India, people in Nepal fly kites in August – September period and is more popular during the Dashain festival.
Cultural uses in Europe
In Greece and Cyprus, flying kites is a tradition for Clean Monday, the first day of Lent. In the British overseas territory of Bermuda, traditional Bermuda kites are made and flown at Easter, to symbolize Christ's ascent. In Fuerteventura a kite festival is usually held on the weekend nearest to November 8 lasting for 3 days.
Polynesia
Polynesian traditional kites are sometimes used at ceremonies and variants of traditional kites for amusement. Older pieces are kept in museums. These are treasured by the people of Polynesia.
Guyana
In Guyana, kites are flown at Easter, an activity in which all ethnic and religious groups participate. Kites are generally not flown at any other time of year. Kites start appearing in the sky in the weeks leading up to Easter and school children are taken to parks for the activity. It all culminates in a massive airborne celebration on Easter Monday especially in Georgetown, the capital, and other coastal areas. The history of the practice is not entirely clear but given that Easter is a Christian festival, it is said that kite flying is symbolic of the Risen Lord. Moore describes the phenomenon in the 19th century as follows:
A very popular Creole pastime was the flying of kites. Easter Monday, a public holiday, was the great kite-flying day on the sea wall in Georgetown and on open lands in villages. Young and old alike, male and female, appeared to be seized by kite-flying mania. Easter 1885 serves as a good example. "The appearance of the sky all over Georgetown, but especially towards the Sea Wall, was very striking, the air being thick with kites of all shapes and sizes, covered with gaily colored paper, all riding bravely on the strong wind.
— His quotation is from a letter to The Creole newspaper of December 29, 1858.
The exact origins of the practice of kite-flying exclusively at Easter are unclear. Brereton and Yelvington speculate that kite-flying was introduced by Chinese indentured immigrants to the then colony of British Guiana in the mid-19th century. The author of an article in the Guyana Chronicle newspaper of May 6, 2007 is more certain:
Kite-flying originated as a Chinese tradition to mark the beginning of spring. However, because the plantation owners were suspicious of the planter class or "plantation workers," the Chinese claimed that it represented the resurrection of Jesus Christ. It was a clever argument, as at that time, Christians celebrated Easter to the glory of the risen Christ. The Chinese came to Guyana from 1853–1879.
World record
The world record for the largest kite flown for at least 20 minutes is "The Flag of Kuwait." It is a kite in the shape of the flag of Kuwait. The size when flat is 138 feet × 82 feet, 11,300 square feet. While flying, it becomes a little smaller —about 9,700 square feet — due to curvature of the edges when inflated.
In popular culture
- “The Kite Runner,” a 2005 novel by Khalid Hosseini dramatizes the role of kite fighting in pre-war Kabul.
- The “Peanuts” cartoon character Charlie Brown was often depicted having flown his kite into a tree as a metaphor for life's adversities.
- "Let’s Go Fly a Kite" is a song from the Mary Poppins film and musical.
- In the Disney animated film “Mulan,” kites are flown in the parade.
- In the film “Shooter,” a kite is used to show the wind direction and wind velocity.
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