Chinaisthebirthplaceofkites,andWeifangisoneofthechiefplaceswhereChinesekitesoriginated.Kite-flyingbecameprevalentinWeifangintheSongDynasty(960-1279),andbytheMingDynasty(1368-1644)kite-flyinghadbecomeevenmorepopular,andtherehadappearedfairsonkitesonaratherlargescale.KitesweresoldnnotonlyacrossShandong,butalsotoJiangsu,Fujian,Anhuiandotherplaces.KitesconstructedatWeiafnghavehadagoodimpactontheworld,andthenotedEnglishscholarJosephNeedhamlistedkitesinhisbookHistoryofChineseScienceandTechnologyasoneoftheimportantcontributionsinscienceandtechnologythatChineseinttroducedtoEurope. 　　Intheseyearswhenpoliciesofreformsandopeningtotheoutsideworldarebeingcarriedout,kiteconstructionandkite-flyingastime–honouredtraditionalfolkartshaveattainedsplendorandservedasameansforculturalandeconomicexchangesbetweenracesofdifferentskincolourwhospeakdifferentlanguanges,andasagood-willenvoythatpromotemutualunderstandingamongthem.Toenhanceexchangeswiththeoutsideworld,Weifanghas,onmanyoccasions,sentkite-flyingdelegationsandgroupstomanypartsoftheworldtodemonstratekiteconstructionandkiteflyingandparticipateinkite-flyingcontests.In1984Weifangopenedanewchapterinkiteflyingbyholdinganannaulinternationalkite-flyingfestival.In1988Weifangwasrecognizedastheworld’skitemetroplis,and1989sawfoudingtheIKFandsettingupitsheadquarterinWeifang.ThatWeifangholdsitsannualinternationalkite-flyingfestivalhasmadeWeifangbetterknowninChinaandelsewhereintheworld,promoteditseconomictake-offandcultualandothersocialundertakeingsandpushedWeifangontotheworldarena.