Webster defines the yo-yo as being a spool-like toy with a string attached to the pin holding its two halves together, and in the twenty-five hundred years that it has been around, it hasn’t changed much. The first yo-yos were originated in ancient China. In ancient Greece, they were more than likely a children’s toy, and made of wood, metal, and terra cotta. The two halves of the yo-yo were decorated with pictures of gods. Upon reaching adolescence, young Greeks would offer up ceramic discs, exact replics of their real childhood toy, to their favorite gods. On a vase dated back to 500 B.C., a child is seen using a yo-yo.
In 1790, the yo-yo was introduced to Europe from the Orient. It was very popular among the aristocratic societies of Britain and France. The British often called the yo-yo a bandalore, quiz, or the Prince of Wales toy. The French also had there own names for the yo-yo including the incroyable and l’emigrette. Although many of the aristocratic European children were good at the yo-yo, the art was perfected in the Philippines.
During the 1500s, Filipino jungle fighters used crude yo-yos with thick twenty foot ropes, as weapons to stun their prey and enemies. As the yo-yos evolved as toys, the Filipino natives became experts at making and using them. In 1929, the yo-yo was introduced to the United States from the Philippines.
Now i like to think I am decent at playing with my Yo-Yo but check this guy out:
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In 1996, I asked for a yo-yo for Christmas. I was in my 30s at the time.