There are many different stories and myths surrounding the topic of yoyos; the most popular one being when they were invented. “The first historical mention of the yoyo, however, was from Greece in the year 500 B.C.”(Oliver) These yoyos were made out of many different types of materials. Some were made out of metal, wood, or terra cotta. Some of the terra cotta yoyos also had paintings on them; some of which were merely aesthetic, while others has intricate paintings on them which told stories. But Greece was not the only country to have been seen using yoyos. Countries like China and the Philippines also used yoyos long ago. That brings us to a very interesting question about yoyoing: Were yoyos used as weapons? Many historians suggest that back in the 16th century Filipinos used yoyo like weapons to take out their prey. “They threw a contraption made of a stone on a 20-foot long rope or string at an animal’s legs. Because of the weight of the stone, the rope would get entangled in the animal’s legs which would allow the hunter to close in for a kill.”(Factly) That is not the only thing that the Filipinos have done with the yoyo, but they also created the name: yoyo. “Records claim that the word ‘yoyo’ came from the word ‘come-come’ in the ancient version of Tagalog, a Filipino language.”(Sprange) Over time the yoyo started evolve into a much greater skill toy than it once was. New features like ball bearings and different types of metal, were added to the yoyo, but I will be covering that in another blog post. Until then, keep your eyes peeled for my next blog post next month!
Works Cited
Oliver, Valerie. “Museum of Yo-Yo History.” Museum of Yo-Yo History. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Sept. 2016.
“Ancient Filipinos Used the Yoyo As a Weapon!” IP Factly. N.p., 17 June 2015. Web.
“History of the Yo-yo.” YoYo Wiki. N.p., n.d. Web
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