Roots: Maori Poi Dance

"Poi is a form of juggling, or object manipulation with balls on ropes, held in the hands and swung in various circular patterns, comparable to club-twirling. It originated with the Māori people of New Zealand (the word poi means "ball" in Māori). Women and men used it to increase flexibility, strength, and coordination and in particular the dexterity of the wrist. This was because the movements were circular and central to the use of hand weapons including patu, mere and kotiate.
In Maori culture, the discipline of Poi developed into a traditional performance art practiced mostly by women. This art includes story-telling and singing, choreographed to poi routines. Therefore, Poi developed in conjunction with others disciplines including waiata a ringa, haka and titi torea, make up the performance of kapa haka (Māori culture groups).
Contemporary poi has built upon the Māori discipline and is now more a combination of spinning arts from around the world"

info from wikipedia
video de Nick Woolsey