A buzzer is an ancient mechanical device used for ceremonial purposes and as a toy. It is constructed by centring an object at the midpoint of a cord or thong and winding the cord while holding the ends stationary. The object is whirled by alternately pulling and releasing the tension on the cord. The whirling object makes a buzzing or humming sound, giving the device its common name.

A buzzer is often constructed by running string through two of the holes on a large button and is a common and easily made toy.

American Indians

Indigenous peoples of the Americas

The indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...

 used the buzzer as a toy and, also ceremonially, as to call up the wind. Early Indian buzzers were constructed of wood, bone, or stone, and date from at least the Fourche Maline Culture, c. 500 B.C.

North American Buzzers, Buzzes, etc.
Eastern Cree 1912 "A Buzzer of Bone"	Eskimo 1892 "Buzz Toy"	American Girl 1916 "Whirligig Made from a Large Button"