Kite flying as a Thai sport is thought to have been in

existence in the Sukhothai Period during the time of

King Ramkhamhaeng some seven hundred years ago.

And historical records show that it was definitely prac-

ticed during the Ayudhaya Period; one of the Palace

Regulations or 'Gormontienban' stipulated that kites were

century in the reign of King Petraja, a rebellion in

Nakorn Ratchasima (Korat) in the northeast is sa'd to

have been put down by flying a large kite of the 'chida'

type used in sport today, from which explosives were

dropped onto the city, setting it on fire.

There is also evidence of kite-fighting being enjoyed

as a sport more or less in its present-day form by King

Rama II of the present Chakri or Rattanakosin Period;

the King matched his "male" kite or 'chida' against a

courtier's "female" kite or 'pakpao', and the matches were

played in the same area as they are today —on the

Phramane Ground or Sanam Luang, the large open

space near the Grand Palace in Bangkok.

easterly wind from the Gulf of Thailand sweeps freely

across it during the kite season from February to April.

This wind is known as '!om tapao', which literally means

trade winds, and also as 'lam woo', "the kite wind".

Today kite-fighting is a highly sophisticated sport

demanding great skill, officially recognized by the Thai

Sports Association under the Patronage of His Majesty

the King. It is standardized, has its own rules and regula-

tions like other sports, and is played on weekdays as the

ground is occupied by the Weekend Market on Satur-

days and Sundays.

Basically the team controlling the great seven-foot-

long 'chula' or male kite aim to fly it over their opponents'

territory, entangle one of the little one-foot-long female

 kites, and drag it hack and down onto the 'chula'

territory for victory. The 'pakpaos for their part try to

bring the 'chula' down on their side of the line by jerking

it off-balance and so putting it into a nose-dive, and also

by screening it from the wind, again causing it to fall.

The 'chula' kite is shaped like a five-pointed star. The

number five has a special significance for Thais: all of us

was sacred to Buddhists the world over; and so on.

A well-proportioned 'chula' kite should also resem-

ble a human being, with the topmost section as the head,

the two side sections the arms, and the two lower ones,

the legs. The "arms" and "legs" must be in the correct

proportion, long "arms" and short "legs" would make the

kite look like a monkey and it therefore would be con-

sidered ugly.

For a good-looking, well-made 'chula', it's also im-

portant that the paper should not cover the carefully

rounded and smoothed bamboo framework, which con-

sists of nine pieces, three straight and six curved. 'Sa'

paper is used and glued onto the front of the framework

so that the bamboo can be seen at the back. A square

criss-cross pattern of threads is tied onto the framework

to hold it rigidly together; the squares of the pattern must

be uniform throughout, and at every point where two

threads cross, small round discs of gold-colored paper are

When the huge 'ckida' kite takes off, it sways and

lurches from side to side in a rather ungainly manner and

climbs slowly until it is fully airborne, when its large sur-

face gives it great power. This is where the skill of the

team handling it comes in.

The much smaller female 'Jakpao' is shaped like a

conventional western kite — a diamond with one end

shorter than the other. But unlike the 'chula', it has a

long tail attached to the bottom end of the diamond.

This provides more refined techniques and the oppor-

tunity to gain experience in maneuvering it skillfully

from side to side. Such maneuvering is considered a sign

of courage and daring on the part of the players. But its

long tail also reduces the 'pakpao's swiftness. So its dia-

mond shape has also been adapted by giving it two short

tails, one on either side. This type is called 'ee-loom'.

Making good kites for the big contests obviously

calls for much skill and experience to ensure that each

kite flies properly. The bamboo stems used for the frame-

work must be carefully whittled down to smooth, uni-

formly slender dimensions to obtain the correct balance.

It's a skill each kite-maker has to learn for himself 

There are not many of these killed kite-makers left

nowadays, although they can be seen in small numbers

all over Thailand. In the Bangkok area, most of them live

in Klong Toey near the port, and across the river in

Thonburi. Trade in the big professional 'chula', 'pakpao'

and 'ee-loom' kites is nowhere near enough to earn a

steady living, so in Bangkok these craftsmen also make

toy kites for children which are sold at the Weekend

Market and in Lumpini Park during the hot, windy kite-