Hula hoop

Hula hoop
“A girl twirling a Hula hoop, 1958”
Typetoy
Companyvarious
Countryvarious
AvailabilityAncient times–present
Materialsvarious
Video of a woman hula hooping in Times Square, New York
A Hoop busker balancing a guitar & hula hoop at the Pike Place Market in Seattle
A new circus hula hoop performer using glow stick and LED technologies
A boy hula hooping using his neck in Lusaka

A hula hoop is a toy hoop that is twirled around the waist, limbs or neck. It can also be wheeled along the ground like a wheel with careful execution and practice. They have been used by children and adults since at least 500 BC. The modern hula hoop was inspired by Australian bamboo hoops.[1] Common lore[2] posits the creators of the plastic hoop witnessed Australian children playing with bamboo hoops while driving past in an automobile. The new plastic version was popularized in 1958 by the Wham-O toy company and became a fad.

Hula hoops for children generally measure approximately 70 centimetres (28 in) in diameter, while those for adults measure around 100 centimetres (39 in). Traditional materials for hula hoops include willow, rattan (a flexible and strong vine), grapevines and stiff grasses. Commercial hoops are usually made of plastic tubing.[3]

  1. ^ Walsh, Tim (October 2005). Timeless Toys: Classic Toys and the Playmakers Who Created Them. Andrews McMeel Publishing. p. 142. ISBN 9780740755712.
  2. ^ Buder, Emily. "Who Invented the Hula Hoop? Joan Anderson Did. - The Atlantic". www.theatlantic.com. Retrieved 2024-09-18.
  3. ^ "Background, history, raw materials, design, and the manufacturing process of hula hoops". Madehow.com. Retrieved 2011-05-23.