Aang's character was created by Bryan Konietzko. The sketch showed a middle-aged man with an arrow on his head. Konietzko changed the character into a picture of a child with a flying bison. At the same time, Michael Dante DiMartino was interested in a documentary about explorers trapped in the South Pole. The idea caused the pair to think:
ɑ ŋ z WORD_BOUNDARY k æ ɹ ɪ k t ə ɹ WORD_BOUNDARY w ʌ z WORD_BOUNDARY k ɹ iː eɪ t ɪ d WORD_BOUNDARY b aɪ WORD_BOUNDARY b ɹ aɪ ə n WORD_BOUNDARY k oʊ n aɪ ə t s k oʊ WORD_BOUNDARY ð ə WORD_BOUNDARY s k ɛ t̠ʃ WORD_BOUNDARY ʃ oʊ d WORD_BOUNDARY ʌ WORD_BOUNDARY m ɪ d ə l eɪ d̠ʒ d WORD_BOUNDARY m æ n WORD_BOUNDARY w ɪ ð WORD_BOUNDARY ʌ n WORD_BOUNDARY æ ɹ oʊ WORD_BOUNDARY ɔ n WORD_BOUNDARY h ɪ z WORD_BOUNDARY h ɛ d WORD_BOUNDARY k oʊ n aɪ ə t s k oʊ WORD_BOUNDARY t̠ʃ eɪ n d̠ʒ d WORD_BOUNDARY ð ə WORD_BOUNDARY k æ ɹ ɪ k t ə ɹ ɹ WORD_BOUNDARY ɪ n t ʊ WORD_BOUNDARY ʌ WORD_BOUNDARY p ɪ k t̠ʃ ə ɹ ɹ WORD_BOUNDARY ə v ə WORD_BOUNDARY t̠ʃ aɪ l d WORD_BOUNDARY w ɪ ð WORD_BOUNDARY ʌ WORD_BOUNDARY f l aɪ ɪ ŋ WORD_BOUNDARY b aɪ s ə n WORD_BOUNDARY æ t WORD_BOUNDARY ð ə WORD_BOUNDARY s eɪ m WORD_BOUNDARY t aɪ m WORD_BOUNDARY m aɪ k ə l WORD_BOUNDARY d ɑ n t eɪ WORD_BOUNDARY d aɪ WORD_BOUNDARY m ɑ ɹ t iː n oʊ WORD_BOUNDARY w ʌ z WORD_BOUNDARY ɪ n t ɹ ɛ s t ɪ d WORD_BOUNDARY ɪ n WORD_BOUNDARY ʌ WORD_BOUNDARY d ɑ k j uː m ɛ n t ə ɹ ɹ i WORD_BOUNDARY ʌ b aʊ t WORD_BOUNDARY ɛ k s p l ɔ ɹ ə ɹ z WORD_BOUNDARY t ɹ æ p t WORD_BOUNDARY ɪ n ð ə WORD_BOUNDARY s aʊ θ WORD_BOUNDARY p oʊ l WORD_BOUNDARY ð ɪ WORD_BOUNDARY aɪ d iə WORD_BOUNDARY k ɔ z d WORD_BOUNDARY ð ə WORD_BOUNDARY p ɛ ɹ WORD_BOUNDARY t ə WORD_BOUNDARY θ ɪ ŋ k WORD_BOUNDARY