The kite originated in the Spring and Autumn Period of the Eastern Zhou Dynasty in China, and has been in existence for more than 2000 years.

According to legend, Mo Di spent three years making wooden bird out of wood, which was the origin of the earliest kite. Later, his student Lu Ban improved the material of kite with bamboo. It was until Eastern Han Dynasty after Cai Lun improved paper-making technology, people began to make kites with paper, known as "Zhi Yuan".

Since Sui and Tang Dynasties, with the development of paper making, people began to use paper to paste kites. In the late Tang Dynasty, someone added strings to the kite. When wind blew, it sounded like a Chinese zither, hence it was called Feng Zheng. In the 13th century, since the Italian Marco Polo returned back to Europe from China, the kite began to spread all over the world.