Hula hoop
Encyclopedia
A hula hoop is a toy
hoop
that is twirled around the waist, limbs or neck.
Although the exact origins of hula
hoops are unknown, children and adults around the world have played with hoops, twirling, rolling and throwing them throughout history. Hula hoops for children generally measure approximately 71 centimetres (28 in) in diameter, and those for adults around 1.02 metres (40 in). Traditional materials for hoops include willow
, rattan
(a flexible and strong vine), grape
vines and stiff grass
es. Today, they are usually made of plastic
tubing.
In the 14th century in England, hoops were later extended to adult audiences and were popular for recreation and religious ceremonies. According to their medical records from that era, doctors treated and encouraged patients with dislocated backs and heart attack victims to use this winding exercise. Then in the early 19th century, the term “hula” was added to the toy name due to the experiences of some British soldiers who travelled to the Hawaiian Islands. During their stay, the soldiers noticed and realized the resemblance of the movement of the hips with the traditional hula dances to the movements of people that go hooping.
toy company. In 1957, Richard Knerr
and Arthur "Spud" Melin, starting with the idea of Australian bamboo "exercise hoops", manufactured 1.06 metre (42 in) hoops with Marlex
plastic. With give-aways and national marketing and retailing, a fad was started in July, 1958; twenty-five million plastic hoops were sold in less than four months, and in two years sales reached more than 100 million units. Carlon Products Corporation was one of the first manufacturers of the hula hoop. During 1950s when the hula hoop craze swept the country, Carlon was producing more than 50,000 hula hoops per day. The hoop was inducted into the National Toy Hall of Fame
at The Strong
in Rochester, New York
, in 1999.
" to distinguish it from the children's playform. An International Holiday World Hoop Day
has become the hula hoop holiday celebrating the circle around the world. Every year, in numerical sequence starting from 2007-07-07 and continuing through 2012-12-12 hoopers dance in every city and country to raise money and donate hoops to others who can't afford them. Modern hula hoopers can be found among fans of jambands like The String Cheese Incident, Disco Biscuits
, Phish
and participants of Burning Man
and more recently at other music festivals like Camp Bisco, The Gathering of the Vibes, All Good, Coachella, etc.
Many modern hoopers make their own hoops out of polyvinyl chloride
, polyethylene
, high-density polypropylene, or polypropylene
tubing. The polyethylene
hoops, and especially the polyvinyl chloride
hoops, are much larger and heavier than hoops of the 1950s. The size and the weight of the hoop affects style of the hooper. Heavier, larger hoops are more often used for slow hooping and body tricks while lighter, thinner tubing is used for quick hand tricks. These hoops may be covered in a fabric or plastic tape to ease the amount of work in keeping a hoop twirling around the dancer, and can be very colourful. Some use glow-in-the dark, patterned, or sparkling tape, and others are produced with clear tubing and filled with plastic balls, glitter, or even water to produce visual or audio effects when used. The water also has an effect on the inertia
of the hoop while in movement, creating what hoopers refer to as a "flow". LED
technology has also been introduced in the past few years, allowing hoops to light up at the flick of a switch.
During the recent revitalization of the hula hoop, its uses have been extended to serve as an implement for fitness. A multitude of websites have been created as a result of this revival, many of which provide links to hooping clubs, online retailers from which to buy specialized hula hoops, and information on workout routines. Hula hooping, in recent years has become a more social activity than it may have been in the fifties.
Within the past few years, some hoopers have taken up fire hooping, in which spokes are set into the outside of the hoop and tipped with kevlar
wicks, which are soaked in fuel and lit on fire
.
Some companies produce collapsible hula hoops for easy transport and versatility: each hoop breaks down into four or more pieces to later be reassembled. Other collapsible hoops are simply twisted down, and folded in half for easy travel.
lasting 11 hours and 34 minutes (August, 1960). The event was sponsored by radio station WOKJ. 8-year-old Mary Jane Freeze, won a hooping endurance contest on 19 August 1976, by lasting 10 hours and 47 minutes. The current record is held by Bric Sorenson of the United States, who went 90 hours between April 2, and April 6, 1987.
The longest verified record holder is Aaron Hibbs from Columbus, Ohio
who broke the record at 74 hours and 54 minutes between October 22, through 25, 2009..
, on June 15, 2009.
of the United States in September, 2005. The record for simultaneous hula hooping (minimum time: 2 minutes) is for 2,290 participants at Chung Cheng Stadium in Kaohsiung
, Taiwan
on 28 October 2000.
In 2000, Roman Schedler spun a 53-pound tractor tire for 71 seconds at the 5th Saxonia Record Festival in Bregenz
, Austria
.
In April 2010, 70 hoopers on Team Hooprama hula hooped the Music City
Half-Marathon (21.0975 kilometres (13.1 mi)) to raise awareness and funds for Hooping for Hope.
Toy
A toy is any object that can be used for play. Toys are associated commonly with children and pets. Playing with toys is often thought to be an enjoyable means of training the young for life in human society. Different materials are used to make toys enjoyable and cuddly to both young and old...
hoop
Hoop (rhythmic gymnastics)
A hoop is an apparatus in rhythmic gymnastics and may be made of plastic or wood, provided that it retains its shape during the routine. The interior diameter is from 51 to 90 cm, and the hoop must weigh a minimum of 300g...
that is twirled around the waist, limbs or neck.
Although the exact origins of hula
Hula
Hula is a dance form accompanied by chant or song . It was developed in the Hawaiian Islands by the Polynesians who originally settled there. The hula dramatizes or portrays the words of the oli or mele in a visual dance form....
hoops are unknown, children and adults around the world have played with hoops, twirling, rolling and throwing them throughout history. Hula hoops for children generally measure approximately 71 centimetres (28 in) in diameter, and those for adults around 1.02 metres (40 in). Traditional materials for hoops include willow
Willow
Willows, sallows, and osiers form the genus Salix, around 400 species of deciduous trees and shrubs, found primarily on moist soils in cold and temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere...
, rattan
Rattan
Rattan is the name for the roughly 600 species of palms in the tribe Calameae, native to tropical regions of Africa, Asia and Australasia.- Structure :...
(a flexible and strong vine), grape
Grape
A grape is a non-climacteric fruit, specifically a berry, that grows on the perennial and deciduous woody vines of the genus Vitis. Grapes can be eaten raw or they can be used for making jam, juice, jelly, vinegar, wine, grape seed extracts, raisins, molasses and grape seed oil. Grapes are also...
vines and stiff grass
Grass
Grasses, or more technically graminoids, are monocotyledonous, usually herbaceous plants with narrow leaves growing from the base. They include the "true grasses", of the Poaceae family, as well as the sedges and the rushes . The true grasses include cereals, bamboo and the grasses of lawns ...
es. Today, they are usually made of plastic
Plastic
A plastic material is any of a wide range of synthetic or semi-synthetic organic solids used in the manufacture of industrial products. Plastics are typically polymers of high molecular mass, and may contain other substances to improve performance and/or reduce production costs...
tubing.
Background Information
Hula hooping has been a type of exercise and play from as early as 500 B.C. to the 21st century. Before it was known and recognized as the common colourful plastic toy (sometimes with water inside the actual hoop), it used to be made of dried up willow, rattan, grapevines, or stiff grasses. Even though the toy has existed for thousands of years, it is often misunderstood as being invented in the 1950s.In the 14th century in England, hoops were later extended to adult audiences and were popular for recreation and religious ceremonies. According to their medical records from that era, doctors treated and encouraged patients with dislocated backs and heart attack victims to use this winding exercise. Then in the early 19th century, the term “hula” was added to the toy name due to the experiences of some British soldiers who travelled to the Hawaiian Islands. During their stay, the soldiers noticed and realized the resemblance of the movement of the hips with the traditional hula dances to the movements of people that go hooping.
Modern History
The hoop gained international popularity in the late 1950s when a plastic version was successfully marketed by California's Wham-OWham-O
Wham-O Inc. is a toy company currently located in California, USA. They are known for marketing many popular toys in the past 50 years, including the Hula Hoop, the Frisbee, Slip 'N Slide, Super Ball, Trac-Ball, Silly String, Hacky Sack and the Boogie board....
toy company. In 1957, Richard Knerr
Richard Knerr
Richard Knerr was an American inventor best known for marketing the Frisbee and Hula Hoop. In 1948 he cofounded the company Wham-O with Arthur Melin . In 1957, an Australian visiting California told them offhand that in his home country, children twirled bamboo hoops around their waists in gym class...
and Arthur "Spud" Melin, starting with the idea of Australian bamboo "exercise hoops", manufactured 1.06 metre (42 in) hoops with Marlex
Marlex
Marlex is a trademarked name for crystalline polypropylene and high-density polyethylene . These plastics were invented by J. Paul Hogan and Robert Banks, two research chemists at the Phillips Petroleum company....
plastic. With give-aways and national marketing and retailing, a fad was started in July, 1958; twenty-five million plastic hoops were sold in less than four months, and in two years sales reached more than 100 million units. Carlon Products Corporation was one of the first manufacturers of the hula hoop. During 1950s when the hula hoop craze swept the country, Carlon was producing more than 50,000 hula hoops per day. The hoop was inducted into the National Toy Hall of Fame
National Toy Hall of Fame
The National Toy Hall of Fame is an American hall of fame that recognizes the contributions of toys and games that have sustained their popularity for many years...
at The Strong
The Strong
The Strong is an interactive, collections-based educational institution in Rochester, New York, USA, devoted to the study and exploration of play...
in Rochester, New York
Rochester, New York
Rochester is a city in Monroe County, New York, south of Lake Ontario in the United States. Known as The World's Image Centre, it was also once known as The Flour City, and more recently as The Flower City...
, in 1999.
Modern hooping
The past few years have seen the re-emergence of hula hooping, generally referred to as either "hoopdance" or simply "hoopingHooping
Hooping generally refers to artistic movement and dancing with a hoop used as a prop or dance partner. Hoops can be made of metal, wood or plastic. Hooping combines technical moves and tricks with freestyle or technical dancing, and is typically accompanied by music...
" to distinguish it from the children's playform. An International Holiday World Hoop Day
World Hoop Day
World Hoop Day is a charity that gives hula hoops to children in need. They also celebrate the circle with an international holiday every year....
has become the hula hoop holiday celebrating the circle around the world. Every year, in numerical sequence starting from 2007-07-07 and continuing through 2012-12-12 hoopers dance in every city and country to raise money and donate hoops to others who can't afford them. Modern hula hoopers can be found among fans of jambands like The String Cheese Incident, Disco Biscuits
Disco Biscuits
The Disco Biscuits are a band from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania known for their live performances and light shows. The band consists of Allen Aucoin , Marc Brownstein , Jon Gutwillig , and Aron Magner ....
, Phish
Phish
Phish is an American rock band noted for its musical improvisation, extended jams, and exploration of music across genres. Formed at the University of Vermont in 1983 , the band's four members – Trey Anastasio , Mike Gordon , Jon Fishman , and Page McConnell Phish is an American rock band...
and participants of Burning Man
Burning Man
Burning Man is a week-long annual event held in the Black Rock Desert in northern Nevada, in the United States. The event starts on the Monday before the American Labor Day holiday, and ends on the holiday itself. It takes its name from the ritual burning of a large wooden effigy on Saturday evening...
and more recently at other music festivals like Camp Bisco, The Gathering of the Vibes, All Good, Coachella, etc.
Many modern hoopers make their own hoops out of polyvinyl chloride
Polyvinyl chloride
Polyvinyl chloride, commonly abbreviated PVC, is a thermoplastic polymer. It is a vinyl polymer constructed of repeating vinyl groups having one hydrogen replaced by chloride. Polyvinyl chloride is the third most widely produced plastic, after polyethylene and polypropylene. PVC is widely used in...
, polyethylene
Polyethylene
Polyethylene or polythene is the most widely used plastic, with an annual production of approximately 80 million metric tons...
, high-density polypropylene, or polypropylene
Polypropylene
Polypropylene , also known as polypropene, is a thermoplastic polymer used in a wide variety of applications including packaging, textiles , stationery, plastic parts and reusable containers of various types, laboratory equipment, loudspeakers, automotive components, and polymer banknotes...
tubing. The polyethylene
Polyethylene
Polyethylene or polythene is the most widely used plastic, with an annual production of approximately 80 million metric tons...
hoops, and especially the polyvinyl chloride
Polyvinyl chloride
Polyvinyl chloride, commonly abbreviated PVC, is a thermoplastic polymer. It is a vinyl polymer constructed of repeating vinyl groups having one hydrogen replaced by chloride. Polyvinyl chloride is the third most widely produced plastic, after polyethylene and polypropylene. PVC is widely used in...
hoops, are much larger and heavier than hoops of the 1950s. The size and the weight of the hoop affects style of the hooper. Heavier, larger hoops are more often used for slow hooping and body tricks while lighter, thinner tubing is used for quick hand tricks. These hoops may be covered in a fabric or plastic tape to ease the amount of work in keeping a hoop twirling around the dancer, and can be very colourful. Some use glow-in-the dark, patterned, or sparkling tape, and others are produced with clear tubing and filled with plastic balls, glitter, or even water to produce visual or audio effects when used. The water also has an effect on the inertia
Inertia
Inertia is the resistance of any physical object to a change in its state of motion or rest, or the tendency of an object to resist any change in its motion. It is proportional to an object's mass. The principle of inertia is one of the fundamental principles of classical physics which are used to...
of the hoop while in movement, creating what hoopers refer to as a "flow". LED
LEd
LEd is a TeX/LaTeX editing software working under Microsoft Windows. It is a freeware product....
technology has also been introduced in the past few years, allowing hoops to light up at the flick of a switch.
During the recent revitalization of the hula hoop, its uses have been extended to serve as an implement for fitness. A multitude of websites have been created as a result of this revival, many of which provide links to hooping clubs, online retailers from which to buy specialized hula hoops, and information on workout routines. Hula hooping, in recent years has become a more social activity than it may have been in the fifties.
Within the past few years, some hoopers have taken up fire hooping, in which spokes are set into the outside of the hoop and tipped with kevlar
Kevlar
Kevlar is the registered trademark for a para-aramid synthetic fiber, related to other aramids such as Nomex and Technora. Developed at DuPont in 1965, this high strength material was first commercially used in the early 1970s as a replacement for steel in racing tires...
wicks, which are soaked in fuel and lit on fire
Fire
Fire is the rapid oxidation of a material in the chemical process of combustion, releasing heat, light, and various reaction products. Slower oxidative processes like rusting or digestion are not included by this definition....
.
Some companies produce collapsible hula hoops for easy transport and versatility: each hoop breaks down into four or more pieces to later be reassembled. Other collapsible hoops are simply twisted down, and folded in half for easy travel.
Duration
An early duration record for the hula hoop was set by 11-year-olds Paulette Robinson, Charles Beard and Patsy Jo Grigby in Jackson, MississippiJackson, Mississippi
Jackson is the capital and the most populous city of the US state of Mississippi. It is one of two county seats of Hinds County ,. The population of the city declined from 184,256 at the 2000 census to 173,514 at the 2010 census...
lasting 11 hours and 34 minutes (August, 1960). The event was sponsored by radio station WOKJ. 8-year-old Mary Jane Freeze, won a hooping endurance contest on 19 August 1976, by lasting 10 hours and 47 minutes. The current record is held by Bric Sorenson of the United States, who went 90 hours between April 2, and April 6, 1987.
The longest verified record holder is Aaron Hibbs from Columbus, Ohio
Columbus, Ohio
Columbus is the capital of and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. The broader metropolitan area encompasses several counties and is the third largest in Ohio behind those of Cleveland and Cincinnati. Columbus is the third largest city in the American Midwest, and the fifteenth largest city...
who broke the record at 74 hours and 54 minutes between October 22, through 25, 2009..
Most hula hoops twirled at once
The record for the most hoops twirled simultaneously is 132, set by Paul "Dizzy Hips" Blair on November 11, 2009. The previous record was 107, set by Alesya Gulevich of BelarusBelarus
Belarus , officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered clockwise by Russia to the northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Its capital is Minsk; other major cities include Brest, Grodno , Gomel ,...
, on June 15, 2009.
Hoop running
Records for running while twirling a hula hoop around the waist are:- 100 m: 13.84 seconds, by Roman Schedler of AustriaAustriaAustria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
on 16 July 1994 - 1 mile: 6:40, by Kris Slomin of United StatesUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
on 20 October 2008 - 10 km, men: 1:06:35, by Paul "Dizzy Hips" Blair, date unknown
- 10 km, women: 1:27:25, by Boo Crystal Chan of AustraliaAustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, 12 March 2009
Other records
The largest hoop successfully twirled was 13.88 metres (45.55 ft) in circumference, by Ashrita FurmanAshrita Furman
Ashrita Furman has set more than 300 Guinness records since 1979 and currently holds131 Guinness records. He has set records on all seven continents and in more than 30 different countries...
of the United States in September, 2005. The record for simultaneous hula hooping (minimum time: 2 minutes) is for 2,290 participants at Chung Cheng Stadium in Kaohsiung
Kaohsiung
Kaohsiung is a city located in southwestern Taiwan, facing the Taiwan Strait on the west. Kaohsiung, officially named Kaohsiung City, is divided into thirty-eight districts. The city is one of five special municipalities of the Republic of China...
, Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
on 28 October 2000.
In 2000, Roman Schedler spun a 53-pound tractor tire for 71 seconds at the 5th Saxonia Record Festival in Bregenz
Bregenz
-Culture:The annual summer music festival Bregenzer Festspiele is a world-famous festival which takes place on and around a stage on Lake Constance, where a different opera is performed every second year.-Sport:* A1 Bregenz HB is a handball team....
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
.
In April 2010, 70 hoopers on Team Hooprama hula hooped the Music City
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
Half-Marathon (21.0975 kilometres (13.1 mi)) to raise awareness and funds for Hooping for Hope.
In popular culture
- On September 6, 1958, singer Georgia GibbsGeorgia GibbsGeorgia Gibbs was an American popular singer and vocal entertainer rooted in jazz. Already singing publicly in her early teens, Gibbs first achieved acclaim in the mid-1950s interpreting songs originating with the black rhythm and blues community and later as a featured vocalist on a long list of...
appeared on US TV's The Ed Sullivan ShowThe Ed Sullivan ShowThe Ed Sullivan Show is an American TV variety show that originally ran on CBS from Sunday June 20, 1948 to Sunday June 6, 1971, and was hosted by New York entertainment columnist Ed Sullivan....
to sing The Hula Hoop Song. Her last (US top-40) hit, it competed with four other songs created in the wake of the huge fad. - The hoop emerged in the world of circus in the 1960s, with Russian and Chinese artists taking it to extremes. These influenced contemporary circusContemporary circusContemporary circus, or nouveau cirque , is a genre of performing art developed in the later 20th century in which a story or a theme is conveyed through traditional circus skills. Animals are rarely used in this type of circus, and traditional circus skills are blended with a more character-driven...
artists like Australian circus comedian and hula hoop historian Judith Lanigan, who performs the Dying Swan — "a tragedy with hula hoops" — using 30 hula hoops. The Cirque du SoleilCirque du SoleilCirque du Soleil , is a Canadian entertainment company, self-described as a "dramatic mix of circus arts and street entertainment." Based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, and located in the inner-city area of Saint-Michel, it was founded in Baie-Saint-Paul in 1984 by two former street performers, Guy...
shows Alegría, QuidamQuidamQuidam is the ninth stage show produced by Cirque du Soleil. It premiered in April 1996 and has now been watched by millions of spectators around the world...
and Wintuk have presented hula hoop acts featuring contortionist and former rhythmic gymnast Elena LevElena LevElena Lev, born in Moscow, Russia in 1981, began her training to become a rhythmic gymnast at an early age, assisted and coached by her mother, Elena Lev Sr. She developed a signature hula hoop act incorporating gymnastics and contortion...
. The Cirque show ZumanityZumanityZumanity is a resident cabaret-style show by Cirque du Soleil at the New York-New York Hotel & Casino on the Las Vegas Strip. The production was unveiled on September 20, 2003. It is the first "adult-themed" Cirque du Soleil show, billed as "the sensual side of Cirque du Soleil" or "another side...
features hoop performer and aerialistAerialistAn aerialist is an acrobat who performs in the air, on a suspended apparatus such as a trapeze, rope, cloud swing, aerial cradle, aerial silk or aerial hoop....
Julia Kolosova. - Hula hoops are referred to in the 1958 Alvin and the ChipmunksAlvin and the ChipmunksAlvin and the Chipmunks is an American animated music group created by Ross Bagdasarian, Sr. in 1958. The group consists of three singing animated anthropomorphic chipmunks: Alvin, the mischievous troublemaker, who quickly became the star of the group; Simon, the tall, bespectacled intellectual;...
song, "Christmas Don't Be Late". Wayout Toys, under licence to Emson, introduced the Alvin Hula Hoop Doll, which dances with his hula hoop and sings the song based on wanting his hula hoop. - Mat Plendl, an actor and skilled hula hooper, appeared three times on The Tonight ShowThe Tonight ShowThe Tonight Show is an American late-night talk show that has aired on NBC since 1954. It is the longest currently running regularly scheduled entertainment program in the United States, and the third longest-running show on NBC, after Meet the Press and Today.The Tonight Show has been hosted by...
starring Johnny CarsonJohnny CarsonJohn William "Johnny" Carson was an American television host and comedian, known as host of The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson for 30 years . Carson received six Emmy Awards including the Governor Award and a 1985 Peabody Award; he was inducted into the Television Academy Hall of Fame in 1987...
. He has become a regular performer at the halftime shows of National Basketball AssociationNational Basketball AssociationThe National Basketball Association is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in North America. It consists of thirty franchised member clubs, of which twenty-nine are located in the United States and one in Canada...
games and is a regular cast member with Teatro ZinZanniTeatro ZinZanniTeatro ZinZanni is a circus dinner theater that began in the neighborhood of Lower Queen Anne in Seattle, Washington. It has since expanded to a site on the waterfront at Pier 29 on the San Francisco, California The Embarcadero....
. - Dan Rodick, director of sports promotion at Wham-OWham-OWham-O Inc. is a toy company currently located in California, USA. They are known for marketing many popular toys in the past 50 years, including the Hula Hoop, the Frisbee, Slip 'N Slide, Super Ball, Trac-Ball, Silly String, Hacky Sack and the Boogie board....
, has said, "There is no other product that gives me as much fear and respect for the power of mass culture as the hula hoop." - TV personality Art LinkletterArt LinkletterArthur Gordon "Art" Linkletter was a Canadian-born American radio and television personality. He was the host of House Party, which ran on CBS radio and television for 25 years, and People Are Funny, on NBC radio-TV for 19 years...
was one of the original major investors in the hula hoop in the 1950s. - The Coen brothers' comedy film The Hudsucker ProxyThe Hudsucker ProxyThe Hudsucker Proxy is a 1994 screwball comedy film written, produced, and directed by Joel and Ethan Coen. Sam Raimi co-wrote the script and served as second unit director....
tells the story of a mail room clerk who is installed as president of a manufacturing company and invents the hula hoop.
External links
- Hula hoop on the Open Directory ProjectOpen Directory ProjectThe Open Directory Project , also known as Dmoz , is a multilingual open content directory of World Wide Web links. It is owned by Netscape but it is constructed and maintained by a community of volunteer editors.ODP uses a hierarchical ontology scheme for organizing site listings...