Have you ever marvel what’s that image emblazoned on the tail of all Malaysian airplanes flown by painting malaysia Airways System (MAS)? Although for most people, it’s nothing greater than just an emblem, it has a huge significance for each and every Malaysian that makes them proud. Often called ‘wau’, it is among the oldest traditional games within the Malay culture. Dancing within the azure sky, a wau or kite is accompanied by a hummer, which produces various buzzing and purring sounds when soaring upon the wind. There are one thing mystical about the way in which this kite defies gravity by swaying and climbing slowly up the sky.
Kites are flown after the rice harvesting season is over. Persons are glad and free to pursue pastimes. A Malay kite combines the most effective of skilled workmanship, dazzling colors and decoration. It displays the creativity of the Malays and their proficient craftsmanship in fashioning a novel art type that has the very best doable level of aesthetics. A Malay kite just isn’t a schoolboy’s toy as it usually measures 1.5 metres by 1.7 metres. It’s called wau because the form of its wing is much like an Arabic letter that’s pronounced as “wow”. It has also been postulated that the phrase “wau” originated from the Dutch phrase “wauw” that refers to a big predator fowl found in South-east Asia. When Melaka fell to the Dutch in 1641, the phrase was introduced to the native populace.
Wau can appear in all kind of shapes however the three most important one are the famous Wau Bulan or moon kite, named for its crescent like tail form, the Wau Jala Budi or girls kite, which takes on the curves of a ladies, and the Wau Burung Puyuh, the barred busted quail kite. Regardless of their completely different names, these kites all share the identical primary, chook-like form, with slight variations in their wings and tail.
The history and legends associated with the Malay kite are as vibrant as its designs. In ancient occasions, coastal inhabitants of the Malay peninsula used kites fitted with lines and hooks to fish. Kites were also flown to behave as flying scarecrows whereas the farmers have been busy within the paddy fields. In an episode of the Makyong dance, a love story culminates in a contented ending when two lovers are re-united by an unusual mean of transport. By clinging to a giant kite rendered sky-borne by monsoon winds, a Malay prince flew to his lover and landed on her enchanted fort amidst the clouds. The wau has had an even more dramatic position in battle in opposition to a foreign army. Legend has it that a Malay army was surrounded and about to surrender on account of lack of food and water. One blustery night time, the top warrior ordered his troops to fly a large number of kites fitted with bows. The loud droning that was created frightened the enemy forces away, which didn’t want to fight towards what they perceived as demonic forces from the sky!
It takes about 2 days to 2 weeks of skill and persistence to make a wau. The body is made out of bamboo stems, which are cut up into skinny strips. The most effective species of bamboo for making kites is the thorn bamboo, which is powerful yet flexible. Every body of a kite will need to have a ‘head’, a ‘backbone’, a ‘waist’, a ‘wing’ and a ‘tail’. After the body is constructed, designs are traced on a tinted and glossy glazed paper and then carefully lower out and pasted on paper which is glued to the bamboo frame. The humming bow is connected to the head of the kite, which is lastly decorated with tassels on the tail to produce the ‘tune’ of the kite.
