A headspin is an athletic move in which a person balances on their

head A head is the part of an organism which usually includes the ears, brain, forehead, cheeks, chin, eyes, nose, and mouth, each of which aid in various sensory functions such as sight, hearing, smell, and taste. Some very simple ani ...

while

rotating Rotation or rotational/rotary motion is the circular movement of an object around a central line, known as an ''axis of rotation''. A plane figure can rotate in either a clockwise or counterclockwise sense around a perpendicular axis intersec ...

along the vertical

axis An axis (: axes) may refer to: Mathematics *A specific line (often a directed line) that plays an important role in some contexts. In particular: ** Coordinate axis of a coordinate system *** ''x''-axis, ''y''-axis, ''z''-axis, common names ...

of their body, usually without any other form of support. The move is commonly employed in the

Afro-Brazilian Afro-Brazilians (; ), also known as Black Brazilians (), are Brazilians of total or predominantly Sub-Saharan African ancestry. Most multiracial Brazilians also have a range of degree of African ancestry. Brazilians whose African features are mo ...

martial art Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defence; military and law enforcement applications; competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; and the pres ...

Capoeira Capoeira () is an Afro-Brazilian martial art and game that includes elements of dance, acrobatics, capoeira music, music, and spirituality. It likely originated from enslaved Mbundu people, of the Kingdom of Ndongo, in present-day Angola. The ...

and in

breakdancing Breakdancing or breaking, also called b-boying (when performed by men) or b-girling (women), is a style of street dance originated by African Americans and Nuyorican, Puerto Ricans in The Bronx borough of New York City. Breakdancing consist ...

. Though

b-boy A b-boy is a person devoted to breaking or break dancing. B Boy may also refer to: Music * "B-Boy", a song by Tech N9ne featuring Big Scoob, Bumpy Knuckles, Kutt Calhoun, and Skatterman from the album '' K.O.D.'', 2009 * "B Boy" (song) by Meek ...

Kid Freeze is sometimes credited with having invented the headspin, the first known footage of the move is seen in the 1933 film, ''Wild Boys of the Road''. One of the film's protagonists Edward 'Eddie' Smith, played by Frankie Darro, performs a Headspin at the 67 minute mark. There is also an older video featuring a headspin "A Street Arab" Thomas A. Edison, INC April 21, 1898 in which a preadolescent boy, dressed like a street urchin, performs acrobatic stunts for the camera. The dancer, Olav Thorshaug, performed Norwegian

hallingdans The Halling (''hallingdansen'') is a folk dance ('' bygdedans'') traditionally performed in rural Norway, although versions of the halling can also be found in parts of Sweden. The dance is traditionally performed by young men at weddings and pa ...

shows in the United States of America around 1910–1920, incorporating the headspin in his dance. The first part of a frozen headspin is known as a ''hatstand''.

References

External links

* *https://web.archive.org/web/20090719124230/http://vodpod.com/watch/1723104-inventor-of-the-continuous-headspin-kid-freeze-on-vimeo *http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/h?ammem/papr:@field(NUMBER+@band(lcmp002+m2a32868)) Breakdance moves {{dance-stub de:Breakdance#Elemente des B-Boying