What is the origin of the word Omocha (toy)?

In Japanese おもちゃ(Omocha)means toy but where does word come from and why is it called おもちゃ(Omocha)? The word omocha comes from 「もてあそびもの」(moteasobimono),「もちあそびもの」(mochiasobimono) used during the Nara period. “An object that is held in the hand and played with” = もてあそびもの (moteasobimono). It seems that at that time people played with things that are close to nature such as nuts, seashells, stones. Later during the Edo period the word changed to an Edo period specific word もちゃそび(Mochasobi), もちゃすび(Mochasubi). It wasn’t until the mid Edo period when the honorificお (o) was attached to the beginning of the word and the そび・すび(sobi/subi) was dropped to become おもちゃ(Omocha).During this period, there were many different kinds of toys such as drums, spinning tops, kites, sugoroku(similar to backgammon) board games. During the late Edo period, toy was written お持遊 and read as “omocha”. The kanji used for toy today玩具 started being used during the Meiji period. It seems as though お持遊 came from the meaning of “something played with while held in the hand”. However, omocha also has the meaning of “not genuine, cheap” if it is not “something to play with”. There are many ways in Japanese to modestly say something such as: “ステキな指輪ね！いえいえ、おもちゃみたいな物ですよ”(“what a beautiful ring you have! Oh no it’s just toy”). There are even idiomatic expressions. Expressions such as 「食べ物をおもちゃにする」(playing with one’s food);「人の気持ちをおもちゃにする」(playing with someone’s feelings) have the meaning of don’t treat food and people poorly and comes from もてあそぶ(moteasobu). There is also the expression 「おもちゃ箱をひっくり返したよう」(like a toy boxed flipped over), which is an idiom that means  “state of things becoming disorderly” but today it seems that it is used as a positive/fun way – a busy/lively place is preferred such as 「おもちゃ箱をひっくり返したような街」(a street that is flipped over like a toy box).