Paper Darts Predated Powered Flight

Before powered human flight, toys recognizable as modern paper airplanes were commonly called paper darts, paper gliders, or paper kites. An 1864 children's book included instructions for a familiar folded design 39 years before the Wright brothers' first powered flight. The term "paper aeroplane" appeared during the 1890s, but "plane" did not fully replace "dart" until the 1950s and 1960s.

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