Did surfing start in China 1,000 years ago? Ancient poems and art show surfers riding Hangzhou’s bore as ‘children of the tide’
- A small sculpture of a surfer riding a giant fish leads to discovery of surfing competitions in Hangzhou during the Song dynasty
- Though China may have been one of the first countries to ride waves, surfing belongs to no nation, says ‘Children of the Tide’ author
Surfing may have started in China, long before anyone elsewhere picked up a board to ride a wave.
The origin of surfing is usually traced to Polynesia, but research by Italian surfing historian, writer and coach Nicola “Nik” Zanella, points at a wave-riding culture in China that existed at least since the Song dynasty (960AD to 1279). Zanella, who graduated in Chinese studies and learned Mandarin in China, came across descriptions of wave riding in classical Chinese literature, and then told the story in a self-published book Children of the Tide.
The birthplace of Chinese wave riding was not a tropical coast, but the fierce waters of the world’s largest tidal bore on the Qiantang River in Hangzhou, where the tide drives waves up to 5m high far up the river. Now an extreme surfing event – Battle at the Silver Dragon – is held there, but the surfers taking part may not know that the Chinese Emperor once watched locals ride these same waves, and poets wrote verses about their skill and courage.
In 2006, in a Buddhist temple in Kunming, Zanella saw a bas-relief made at the end of the 19th century. It depicted a group of arhats, beings who gained an insight into enlightenment, among the waves. One arhat stood out.
“The guy was standing up, his pose was exactly what we teach – back foot flat, front foot at a 45-degree angle, looking 5m in front of the board. And his face – he looked stoked,” said Zanella, adding he was riding a giant fish.
