Juggling
Juggling is a skill and performing art in which objects are repeatedly thrown and caught, often in patterns that keep several aloft at once.
Siteswap: A symbolic notation that represents juggling patterns with sequences of integers encoding throw timing and height. It describes the timing structure underlying many toss-juggling patterns.
Toss juggling: Juggling in which objects are thrown into the air and caught, rather than continuously manipulated by contact. It is the most familiar form described by juggling's repeated throws and catches.
Beni Hasan: An ancient Egyptian archaeological site whose tomb paintings include a depiction of women throwing balls. Its Middle Kingdom artwork is among the earliest known visual evidence of juggling.
Circus arts: Performance disciplines such as acrobatics, aerial acts, clowning, and juggling, often presented in circus settings. Juggling is one of the circus arts, combining technical skill with staged performance.
Cascade (juggling): A juggling pattern in which each object crosses to the opposite hand in alternating throws. It is the foundational pattern for juggling an odd number of objects.
Contact juggling: A manipulation art in which objects roll across the body or hands while remaining in contact with them. It shares object control with juggling but replaces airborne throws with continuous contact.
Chinese acrobatics: A performance tradition encompassing balance, contortion, tumbling, and object manipulation in China. Historical accounts describe object manipulation as part of Chinese acrobatic performance.
Street performance: Live entertainment presented in public spaces, often by performers who solicit voluntary audience payments. Juggling's portable props and visible skill make it well suited to public performance.
Shower (juggling): A pattern in which objects follow a circular route, usually with high throws in one direction and quick passes in the other. Its asymmetric paths show how one pattern can redistribute throws between hands.
Passing (juggling): A form of juggling in which two or more performers exchange objects as part of coordinated patterns. It extends the basic throw-and-catch cycle across multiple performers.