{"id":"b3f7998c-711b-4ae8-a9cb-e3a62b31bf03","type":"art_form","slug":"aati-kalenja","title":"Aati kalenja","summary":"Aati Kalenja is an ancient traditional folk art form practiced by Tulu people from the region of Tulu Nadu, India, which is believed to bring prosperity during Aati which is one of the months in Tulu calendar.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7kxf9ypd3q","content":[{"text":"Aati Kalenja is an ancient traditional folk art form practiced by Tulu people from the region of Tulu Nadu, India, which is believed to bring prosperity during Aati which is one of the months in Tulu calendar. It normally comes in the months of July and August.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"97dd5f06-5db1-43d7-ba4f-93a7885ee634"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Background","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ad6waaaxb5","content":[{"text":"Tulu Nadu is known for its rich traditions. Especially in villages of Tulu Nadu where agriculture has a significant role in the life of Tuluvas' socio-economic fabric is the people belonging to Nalike community visit houses of people in a colorful attire masquerading as Kalinja. In return, people would offer rice, vegetables and money to artistes. It is believed that during the month of Aati, nature's spirit Kalenja descends on Earth to bless the land and its people. The performance begins on poove - the day before the full moon, and continues till the end of the month.\nIt is believed that Aati Kalenja brings the positive energy which would ward off evil spirits and diseases. Aati is when there is a heavy rain fall which would destroy the crops. During this season heavy rain causes not only disasters but also diseases as the season is conducive to the insects and pests to breed. So man is more prone to sickness in this season and poverty due to lack of work for the people who are solely depending on the agriculture. This is the reason for Aati being considered as month of disasters. This is when the man starts pleading and pleasing the nature to be merciful towards him.  This could well be called the origin of the Aati Kalenja culture in Tulu Nadu.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"97dd5f06-5db1-43d7-ba4f-93a7885ee634"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"The Costume","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4cq35xq5k0","content":[{"text":"Headgear and painted faces are the main attractions of kalenja's eco-friendly costume which is made of leaves and flowers. The person who masquerades as Kalenja makes the headgear using stems of Ixora coccinea (kepula in Tulu language). They adorn themselves with costumes made of tender palms of the coconut tree, anklets, colourful clothes and a long cap made up of Areca spate etc. The headgear, also called the mudi, is then decorated with flowers. They paint their face with different colours and designs.\nThe ‘skirt’ which flows down his waist is another piece of art. It is made of tender fronds of coconut and are interlaced with banana sheath strands. Later, he paints his face and hands in various colours and designs and gets ready for house visits. The image of Aati Kalenja, holding an umbrella of dry palm leaves, makes for a spectacular viewing.\nThe costume differs by region, In Sullia, Aati Kalenja dancer wears a face mask which is made from the spathe of an areca nut branch.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"97dd5f06-5db1-43d7-ba4f-93a7885ee634"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"The Ritual","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"536rkbbh8w","content":[{"text":"Aati Kalenja visits houses and carries out a ritual of sprinkling water mixed with Charcoal, Turmeric powder and Tamarind to do away with any misfortune that might have befallen on the family and the cattle. He dances to the beats of the drum called tembere which is of very significance in culture of Tulu Nadu.\nAccompanist beats the drum and recites the song, \"Aateek Baththe Aati Kalenja\", narrating the story of the spirit. As a reward for expunging the evil that surrounds, household members give him rice. Aati Kalenja is also considered as a traditional healer who at times dispenses medicinal herbs to overcome illness.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"97dd5f06-5db1-43d7-ba4f-93a7885ee634"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Food","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hf207d1tsf","content":[{"text":"Ambade (Hog plum), Kanile (Bamboo shoot), Paagile (wild bitter gourd), Thojank (Cassia tora), Thimare (both wild greens), wild Jackfruit, drumstick leaves and Colocasia leaves are some of the locally available vegetables that are used in the season.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"97dd5f06-5db1-43d7-ba4f-93a7885ee634"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"In modern days","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2face5wrqy","content":[{"text":"With changing times it is very different situation now: development, education, technology and increased employment opportunity has led to the disappearance of this ancient ritualistic folk dance. Reduction in paddy cultivation too contributed to the disappearance of the tradition. This decade old ritual is on the verge of extinction.\nKarnataka Tulu Sahitya Academy former president Vaman Nandavara said that Nalike community members in the city are not keen on continuing with the tradition as they get more job opportunities due to reservation and urbanization. \"Parents of Nalike community members dress their children as Aati Kalenja and make them dance to the tunes of paddana (traditional Tulu songs) in front of houses. Nowadays, children too are hesitant as they concentrate on education\".\nIn spite of it, Aati Kalenja remains an integral part of the folk culture of the Tulu Nadu region and one can witness this folk dance only in the interior pockets of Tulu Nadu, during Aati days.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"97dd5f06-5db1-43d7-ba4f-93a7885ee634"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7p3jrehbbv","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Aati kalenja”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"97dd5f06-5db1-43d7-ba4f-93a7885ee634"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qsppph203z","content":[{"text":"Aati kalenja is folk dance performed during the monsoon in the coastal area of Karnataka and Kasaragod district of Kerala, India, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d7b6636d-be17-422e-9fc7-d3dd2044285a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zs5tntvd7a","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d7b6636d-be17-422e-9fc7-d3dd2044285a"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Aati Kalenja, a folk performance from coastal Karnataka","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/12/Aati_Kalenja_01.JPG?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Vishwanatha Badikana","height":857,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Aati Kalenja, a folk performance from coastal Karnataka","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/12/Aati_Kalenja_01.JPG/960px-Aati_Kalenja_01.JPG?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Aati_Kalenja_01.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/12/Aati_Kalenja_01.JPG/1280px-Aati_Kalenja_01.JPG?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:22.655Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/aati-kalenja"}
{"id":"af9a139b-bc4d-4b52-9e21-e5ce683a2ca8","type":"art_form","slug":"abbots-bromley-horn-dance","title":"Abbots Bromley Horn Dance","summary":"The Abbots Bromley Horn Dance is a folk dance which takes place each September in the village of Abbots Bromley in Staffordshire, England.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"es206bb5jp","content":[{"text":"The Abbots Bromley Horn Dance is a folk dance which takes place each September in the village of Abbots Bromley in Staffordshire, England. It is performed by ten dancers, accompanied by a musician playing an accordion and a youth with a triangle. Six of the dancers carry reindeer horns; the remaining four take the roles of a hobby horse, Maid Marian, a fool, and a youth with a bow and arrow. On Wakes Monday the performers dance around the parish all day, beginning early in the morning at the parish church where the horns are stored.\nThe origin of the dance is unknown. The earliest written record of a hobby-horse performance at Abbots Bromley dates to 1532, and the first mention of the reindeer horns is from 1686. Radiocarbon dating has shown that at least one of the horns dates to the eleventh century, though it is unknown how or when they came to Staffordshire or became associated with the dance. Many explanations of the meaning of the dance have been proposed, and it is commonly interpreted as a pagan ritual, but there is no evidence for any of them.\nSince Cecil Sharp published the dance in The Sword Dances of Northern England, it has been performed outside Abbots Bromley both by the Abbots Bromley dancers themselves and members of the English Folk Dance and Song Society. It has been depicted in both visual and performance art, and featured in exhibitions about British folk traditions.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bae792ce-7ed5-41b4-9556-a9737b9a9f21"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dmre75vpnm","content":[{"text":"The earliest written mention of the Abbots Bromley Horn Dance is in Robert Plot's Natural History of Staffordshire, published in 1686. Plot does not seem to have seen the dance himself, but gives a detailed description of the custom. According to an annotation by Sir Simon Degge in his copy of Plot's book, he had seen the dance being performed before the English Civil War (1642–1651). An earlier mention of the hobby horse at Abbots Bromley from 1532 describes it as an ancient custom, but does not mention the horns.  In 1976, one of the reindeer horns was radiocarbon dated to 1065 ± 80 years. It is unknown when the horns were brought to Abbots Bromley and when they began to be used in the dance. Though many sources claim that the dance was first performed at the St Bartholomew's Day fair in 1226, there is no evidence for this supposition.\nMany explanations for the origin of the dance have been proposed, though there is no concrete evidence for any of them.  According to E. C. Cawte, it \"differs in so many ways from the other ritual dances in this country that it is difficult to understand how it developed its present form\". It has often been interpreted as the remnant of a pagan ritual.  Violet Alford believed that the dance was originally a winter solstice fertility rite.  Alternatively it has been suggested that it originally was connected to hunting, either as a ritual to encourage or celebrate a successful hunt, or to celebrate the villagers' hunting rights.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bae792ce-7ed5-41b4-9556-a9737b9a9f21"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Schedule","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0eas3by383","content":[{"text":"The Horn Dance takes place on Wakes Monday, the day following the first Sunday after 4 September. It previously took place at the beginning of January, on New Year and Twelfth Night.\nThe dance starts at 8 a.m. at St Nicholas's Church in Abbots Bromley and travels around the parish before returning to the village at the end of the day. The first dance is outside the vicarage; the dancers subsequently perform in the marketplace and various houses and farms around the parish.  About midday they dance at Blithfield Hall and have lunch there.  Afterwards, the dancers return to the village, with the final dance around 8 p.m. In the Victorian period, the dancers went out for several days, visiting nearby towns and villages such as Colton and Rugeley.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bae792ce-7ed5-41b4-9556-a9737b9a9f21"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dancers","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tmj5v5yq52","content":[{"text":"Twelve people perform in the dance: six dancers carrying reindeer horns, a fool, Maid Marian (played by a man wearing women's clothes), a hobby horse, a child with a bow and arrow, a musician, and a child with a triangle.  Of these, the two musicians do not dance; their role is only to accompany the dancers.  The dancers use the hobby horse's jaw and the bow and arrow as percussion instruments to keep time with the music.  The Maid Marian carries a ladle used to collect money; the fool has a bladder on a stick.\nPlot's account of the dance suggests there may have been only eight or nine performers in his day. He does not mention either the fool or the Maid Marian.  The triangle player is a relatively recent addition to the side, only having been introduced at the beginning of the twentieth century; the remainder of the team seems not to have changed significantly at least since the beginning of the nineteenth century. According to Plot's account, in his day the dancer with the hobby horse also held the bow and arrow; Violet Alford doubts that it was possible for one person to do both. Wilkes mentions a sword in his description of the dance; though no other source records a sword at Abbots Bromley other morris teams included a sword in their regalia in the nineteenth century.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bae792ce-7ed5-41b4-9556-a9737b9a9f21"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Costume","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wgfzpzgczn","content":[{"text":"Until the 1880s, dancers wore their ordinary clothes decorated with ribbons. At that time, the vicar's wife designed costumes for the dancers in a mock-medieval style, originally made from old curtains and perhaps inspired by the sixteenth-century painted Betley window, or by illustrations in an edition of Shakespeare's plays; these costumes were replaced in 1904 and again in 1951. \nThe original costumes for the horn-carriers were green tunics and blue trousers, both with brown spots or flowers; the dancers now wear either green or red jackets, with green breeches with an oak leaf pattern. In the 1880s the fool wore a furry cap; the 1904 version of the costume introduced jester's motley.  The hobby horse is of the tourney style, in which a horse's head and tail are fixed to the performer's body by a frame, which is then covered by a cloth, giving the appearance of a person riding a horse. Plot's description of the horse, as being made of thin boards carried between the dancer's legs, is more like a stick horse; he does not seem to have actually seen the performance and this is probably an error.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bae792ce-7ed5-41b4-9556-a9737b9a9f21"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Antlers","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2fg6ppta8m","content":[{"text":"The antlers used in the dance are from reindeer, and date to the 11th century. As there were no reindeer in Britain at this point, they must have been imported, most likely from Scandinavia.  The largest measures 101 cm (40 in) across and weighs 25.5 lb (11.6 kg); the smallest measures 77 cm (30 in) across and the lightest weighs 16.25 lb (7.37 kg). Three of the sets of antlers are painted white with brown tips and three are painted brown with gold tips; historically the brown antlers have instead been painted blue and red at different times. In the 17th century they had the coats of arms of important local families painted on them, but these are no longer visible. The antlers are set into wooden heads, thought to date from the 16th century, which are mounted on wooden poles.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bae792ce-7ed5-41b4-9556-a9737b9a9f21"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"n6h0y8zdjw","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Abbots Bromley Horn Dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bae792ce-7ed5-41b4-9556-a9737b9a9f21"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qfaxck0r8b","content":[{"text":"Abbots Bromley Horn Dance is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aa25e7dd-bfd6-4098-9496-9414ce63d7ce"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9qahrna5nj","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aa25e7dd-bfd6-4098-9496-9414ce63d7ce"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Said to be the oldest folk dance in England it is held in Abbots Bromley, Staffordshire, England. The dance involves reindeer antlers, a hobby horse, Maid Marian, and a Fool. Reminiscent of the film 'The Wickerman'. The reindeer antlers were carbon dated to imply that they must…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cf/Abbots_Bromley_Horn_Dance_Outside_the_Bagots_Arms.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Mariegriffiths","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Said to be the oldest folk dance in England it is held in Abbots Bromley, Staffordshire, England. The dance involves reindeer antlers, a hobby horse, Maid Marian, and a Fool. Reminiscent of the film 'The Wickerman'. The reindeer antlers were carbon dated to imply that they must…","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cf/Abbots_Bromley_Horn_Dance_Outside_the_Bagots_Arms.jpg/960px-Abbots_Bromley_Horn_Dance_Outside_the_Bagots_Arms.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Abbots_Bromley_Horn_Dance_Outside_the_Bagots_Arms.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cf/Abbots_Bromley_Horn_Dance_Outside_the_Bagots_Arms.jpg/1280px-Abbots_Bromley_Horn_Dance_Outside_the_Bagots_Arms.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Abbots Bromley Horn Dance in Abbots Bromley","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/91/Abbots_Bromley_Horn_Dance_-_2006-09-11.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Voice of Clam","height":1707,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Abbots Bromley Horn Dance in Abbots Bromley","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/91/Abbots_Bromley_Horn_Dance_-_2006-09-11.jpg/960px-Abbots_Bromley_Horn_Dance_-_2006-09-11.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Abbots_Bromley_Horn_Dance_-_2006-09-11.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/91/Abbots_Bromley_Horn_Dance_-_2006-09-11.jpg/1280px-Abbots_Bromley_Horn_Dance_-_2006-09-11.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"The players in the Abbots Bromley Horn Dance .","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/43/Abbots_Bromley_Horn_Dance_c1900_Stone.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"John Benjamin Stone","height":950,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"The players in the Abbots Bromley Horn Dance .","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/43/Abbots_Bromley_Horn_Dance_c1900_Stone.jpg/960px-Abbots_Bromley_Horn_Dance_c1900_Stone.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Abbots_Bromley_Horn_Dance_c1900_Stone.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/43/Abbots_Bromley_Horn_Dance_c1900_Stone.jpg/1280px-Abbots_Bromley_Horn_Dance_c1900_Stone.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:28.765Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/abbots-bromley-horn-dance"}
{"id":"e3a20758-9ae5-436e-a80d-d49319fedec9","type":"art_form","slug":"acro-dance","title":"acro dance","summary":"Acro dance is a style of dance that combines classical dance technique with acrobatic elements.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2kax95x8pn","content":[{"text":"Acro dance is a style of dance that combines classical dance technique with acrobatic elements. It is defined by its athletic character, its unique choreography, which blends dance and acrobatics, and its use of acrobatics in a dance context. It is a popular dance style in amateur competitive dance as well as in professional dance theater and in contemporary circus productions such as those by Cirque du Soleil. This is in contrast to acrobatic, artistic and rhythmic gymnastics, which are sports that employ dance elements in a gymnastics context under the auspices of a governing gymnastics organization (such as FIG) and subject to a Code of Points. Acro dance is known by various other names including acrobatic dance and gymnastic dance, though it is most commonly referred to simply as acro by dancers and dance professionals.\nAcro is an especially challenging dance style for dancers as it requires them to be trained in both dance and acrobatic skills.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"18061f3e-0489-4bfa-8f9c-0a33df5ec303"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bskdjnk55y","content":[{"text":"Acrobatic dance emerged in the United States and Canada in the early 1900s, as one of the types of acts performed in vaudeville. Although individual dance and acrobatic acts had been performed in vaudeville for several decades prior to 1900, it was not until the early 1900s that it became popular to perform acts that combined dance and acrobatic movements.\nAcrobatic dance did not suddenly appear in vaudeville; rather, it appeared gradually over time in a variety of forms, and consequently no individual performer has been cited as its originator. Sherman Coates (1872–1912), who performed with the Watermelon Trust from 1900 to 1914, was recalled by fellow dancers as the first acrobatic dancer they had ever seen. Another of the earliest documented acrobatic dance performers was Tommy Woods, who became well known for his slow-motion acrobatic dance in Shuffle Along, in which he would execute acrobatic movements precisely in time with the music. In 1914, acrobat Lulu Coates formed the Crackerjacks, a popular vaudeville troupe that included acrobatic dance in their performance repertoire up until the group disbanded in 1952. Many other popular vaudeville companies combined acrobatics and dance in their shows, including the Gaines Brothers, and Miriam (The acrobatic Tapper) who performed with the Wells & The Four Fays \"Tumbling Acrobats\" on The Ed Sullivan Show on February 9, 1964,\nSince the decline of the vaudeville era, acrobatic dance has undergone a multi-faceted evolution to arrive at its present-day form. The most significant aspect of this evolution is the integration of ballet technique as the foundation for dance movements, thus bringing into acro dance a precision of form and movement that was absent in vaudeville acrobatic dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"18061f3e-0489-4bfa-8f9c-0a33df5ec303"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Characteristics","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zvyafcbr1n","content":[{"text":"A defining characteristic of acro is the smooth, graceful transitions between dance and acrobatic movements. Also, a dance must have a significant percentage of dance movement, with respect to its acrobatic content, in order for it to be categorized as acro. For example, a gymnastics floor exercise is not considered to be Acro Dance because it has little or no technical dance movement, compared to its acrobatic content. It also lacks smooth transitions between dance and gymnastic movements. Also, Acro Dance does not employ supporting apparatus such as those used in acrobatic gymnastics.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"18061f3e-0489-4bfa-8f9c-0a33df5ec303"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance technique","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5erp1jbk8t","content":[{"text":"The dance movements in Acro Dance are founded in ballet, jazz, lyrical, contemporary and modern dance styles. Acro dance movements are not restricted to these dance styles, but the complete absence of these styles will typically cause a dance to be categorized as something other than acro (e.g., breakdance).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"18061f3e-0489-4bfa-8f9c-0a33df5ec303"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Acrobatic elements","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ztv3c59tfd","content":[{"text":"The acrobatic movements and acts of balance performed in an acro dance are referred to as tricks. A variety of tricks are commonly performed in acro dance, varying widely in complexity and the skills required to perform them. Aside from the obvious requirement that dancers possess the requisite skills to perform tricks, the types of tricks that can be performed in an acro dance depends on the number of dancers.\nSolo tricks can be performed by independent dancers in solo or group dances. Examples of this are:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"18061f3e-0489-4bfa-8f9c-0a33df5ec303"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"90kwdqe5t0","content":[{"text":"\"Strength, flexibility and balance are also major pillars of Acro Dance, and postures often inspired by those of contortion are used throughout Acro Dance along side agility (tricks) and dance technique.\" - says BethanyRose Boutwell (Salt Lake City's Acrobatic Dance Teacher since 2012)\nAn Example of strength needed could be for example: a press up handstand.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"18061f3e-0489-4bfa-8f9c-0a33df5ec303"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dc79qv6wba","content":[{"text":"Double tricks—also known as partnering tricks—Is inspired by partner dance(ballroom and Latin styles), circus acrobatics (adagio) and can only be performed by a pair of dancers. An example of this is the pitch tuck, in which one dancer forms a \"saddle\" with his hands. The second dancer steps onto the saddle and then the first dancer thrusts the saddle upward. The second dancer, who is propelled upward with back rotation, lands on her feet after a complete revolution in the air. Acro partners will sometimes execute lifts and adagio in addition to single and double tricks.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"18061f3e-0489-4bfa-8f9c-0a33df5ec303"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"44txwgq8am","content":[{"text":"Group tricks generally require three or more dancers, but again moving in transitions is important to make it Acro Dance. Examples of these group tricks are:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"18061f3e-0489-4bfa-8f9c-0a33df5ec303"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5vn1fzg8xf","content":[{"text":"Bridge pyramid\nTriple cartwheel","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"18061f3e-0489-4bfa-8f9c-0a33df5ec303"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Footwear","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"695v0xw43b","content":[{"text":"Acro dances are typically performed on hard stages with widely varying surfaces. Such floors differ substantially from a gymnastics floor, which is constructed by layering a standard surface over cushioning foam and spring floor. Whereas gymnasts perform barefoot and rely on the standard gymnastics floor for traction and cushioning, acro dancers seldom dance barefoot, instead depending on footwear such as acro shoes or foot thongs to provide the necessary traction and cushioning.\nAll of the most common types of acro footwear provide both traction and cushioning. In addition, acro performance surfaces are frequently rough, so acro footwear must protect the bottom of the foot from skin abrasion. Abrasion protection is particularly important on the ball of the foot, which is subjected to a great deal of friction during dance turns and leaps. Traction is essential to prevent lateral slipping that could result in dangerous falls to the hard floor. Cushioning serves to soften the impact when performing tricks such as tucks and layouts, in which a dancer's feet may strike the floor at high velocity. Cushioning is especially important when a Marley floor is unavailable, because uncovered performance surfaces have no cushioning whatsoever and thus may be extremely hard and unyielding.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"18061f3e-0489-4bfa-8f9c-0a33df5ec303"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nk03471c5q","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Acro dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"18061f3e-0489-4bfa-8f9c-0a33df5ec303"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hrqk3473ye","content":[{"text":"acro dance is style of dance that combines classical dance technique with precision acrobatic elements, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2f936d1b-d530-4bd5-8c1b-59d478976364"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"takz30ntjv","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 4 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2f936d1b-d530-4bd5-8c1b-59d478976364"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"An elbow stand performed by an acro dancer .","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a6/ElbowStand.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Lambtron","height":1616,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"An elbow stand performed by an acro dancer .","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a6/ElbowStand.jpg/960px-ElbowStand.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:ElbowStand.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a6/ElbowStand.jpg/1280px-ElbowStand.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:14.021Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/acro-dance"}
{"id":"93e7980d-9937-4700-86e5-871a754c19b6","type":"art_form","slug":"acrobatic-rock-n-roll","title":"acrobatic rock'n'roll","summary":"Acrobatic rock and roll (spelled rock'n'roll by its organizing body, the World Rock'N'Roll Confederation) is a fast, athletic, physically demanding form of partner dance that originated from Lindy Hop but has evolved to a choreographed spor…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f5w766w3z8","content":[{"text":"Acrobatic rock and roll (spelled rock'n'roll by its organizing body, the World Rock'N'Roll Confederation) is a fast, athletic, physically demanding form of partner dance that originated from Lindy Hop but has evolved to a choreographed sport, often done in formal competition. It is danced by both couples (usually of mixed gender) and groups, either all-female or four to eight couples together.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee4c46fb-05c9-464f-bf81-de8376039a13"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"857fz174r2","content":[{"text":"From swing dance, which had come into being around 1920, there emerged Lindy Hop, the first partner dance ever to feature acrobatic elements, which was later modified to suit faster music, spawning dance steps to accompany rock 'n' roll as that genre developed. Today's rock and roll dance has gone far beyond these origins, especially in its gymnastic moves.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee4c46fb-05c9-464f-bf81-de8376039a13"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Technique and basics","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b33y3pb1ba","content":[{"text":"The Rock and Roll form's specifics vary across the world, but its kick-step footwork style starts with the 6-basic step:\nLeader starts with left foot kick ball change, kick step (left), kick step (right).\nFollower starts with right foot kick ball change, kick step (right), kick step (left).\nAnother simple form of basic footwork uses a tap step:\nLeader starts with their left foot and does a back step, then a tap step (left), tap step (right).\nFollower starts with the right foot and does a back step, then a tap step (right), tap step (left).\nThe most obvious acrobatic feature of this dance sport are its kicks (into thin air) and its gymnastic elements like lifts, jumps, throws and flips. Today's rock and roll dance is focused on show and competition dance and, with the exception of its name, has nearly nothing in common with earlier dance steps done to rock music. It is danced in pairs or in formation and can even be danced with one male and two females simultaneously, a form called \"triples\".\nOver the years rock and roll dancing has experienced several important changes: the former 6-basic step was converted into the modern tournament's 9-basic step with its typical kick ball change. Other characteristics are techniques such as the man's body wave movement, which he uses to fling his partner from a sitting position upwards, and the throwing basic movement, where she steps onto his hands and is catapulted upwards into breakneck jumps. Because of its demanding technique, high speed, and acrobatics, rock and roll is a straining high-performance dance and is most often performed by young dancers.\nThe name of the basic step comes from the number of separate actions.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee4c46fb-05c9-464f-bf81-de8376039a13"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance categories","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wdsc73bcaq","content":[{"text":"The World Rock'N'Roll Confederation (WRRC) recognizes the following dance categories for international competitions:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee4c46fb-05c9-464f-bf81-de8376039a13"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xp6qjxjkq9","content":[{"text":"Youth: No acrobatics allowed. Couples are 14 years old or younger.\nJuniors: A maximum of four acrobatic moves are allowed under the category's safety regulations. Couples are between 12 and 17 years of age.\nMain Class Contact Style: Two dances per couple and round. One is a dance program with no acrobatics allowed (footwork, or foot technique), the other an acrobatic program (acrobatic) requiring six acrobatic moves. The male may throw the female into the air, but no flips are allowed. Minimum age is 14 years.\nMain Class Free Style: Two dances, as in B-Class. Only difference to B-Class is that almost all acrobatics (e.g. lifts, jumps, throws and flips) are allowed. Minimum age is 15 years.\nNational associations usually have additional classes (e.g., a C class for beginning competitive dancers). However, all have the four classes listed above (though some rules may differ).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee4c46fb-05c9-464f-bf81-de8376039a13"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Rhythm and music","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4e0maj0jqm","content":[{"text":"Rock and roll dance works on the 4/4 measure, one basic step comprising six beats and therefore one and a half measures. Unlike much rock 'n' roll music, the dance puts stress on the first and third beats of each measure. Because of its non-off beat stressing and speed, the dance has now replaced traditional rock 'n' roll music with modern disco and pop music, played very fast, between 176 and 208 bpm.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee4c46fb-05c9-464f-bf81-de8376039a13"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Clothes","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ek6n9z9k9t","content":[{"text":"Current advanced tournament rock and roll dancers wear neither petticoats nor jeans, as the dancers originally did, but rather multicoloured costumes made of elastic artificial fibre, made individually by special tailors. One reason is that their acrobatic maneuvers have grown more and more dangerous, requiring rugged apparel that still provides freedom of movement.\nThe shoes they wear are especially important, as their soles must both grip and slip properly. The most common footwear is light jazz shoes for the dance programs and, especially for women, usually aerobics sneakers for the acrobatic programs.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee4c46fb-05c9-464f-bf81-de8376039a13"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wns6fddxta","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Rock and Roll (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee4c46fb-05c9-464f-bf81-de8376039a13"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sghb99p0s1","content":[{"text":"acrobatic rock'n'roll is type of sport; athletic, competitive form of partner dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1801e1ec-8225-4a1d-9057-059a93a785df"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wtg8y7c510","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 5 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1801e1ec-8225-4a1d-9057-059a93a785df"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:12.398Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/acrobatic-rock-n-roll"}
{"id":"f4699d2c-d658-482b-8035-b1c05fa1554a","type":"art_form","slug":"aerial-dance","title":"Aerial dance","summary":"Aerial modern dance is a subgenre of modern dance first recognized in the United States in the 1970s.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vt04f7rgzy","content":[{"text":"Aerial modern dance is a subgenre of modern dance first recognized in the United States in the 1970s. The choreography incorporates an apparatus that is often attached to the ceiling, allowing performers to explore space in three dimensions. The ability to incorporate vertical, as well as horizontal movement paths, allows for innovations in choreography and movement.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"24a3d809-16b7-488e-aa7c-1c9a74b3dc04"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Overview","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"56b26xe1ef","content":[{"text":"There are two types of aerial dance. In vertical dance a dancer is suspended in a harness from a rope or cable and explores the difference in gravity, weightlessness and varied movement possibilities offered by the suspended state. In the second type a dancer or acrobat intertwines the use of the floor or a wall with their aerial apparatus. The first utilizes the strength and expression of dance with an altered state to communicate contemporary ideas. In the second, the dancer uses dance as a way to indicate that their work is less trick-based than circus arts, and in some cases hopes that disassociating with the circus makes their work appear more contemporary and artistic.\nOne of the first choreographers to utilize an aerial dance was Trisha Brown. She called her dances (1968–1971) \"equipment pieces\". These were not \"dancey\" pieces, by placing the pedestrians on the side wall, Brown illustrated the choreography of everyday movement.\nIn the late '90s an Argentinian aerial dance troupe named De La Guarda gained notoriety in London for their show combining performance art with aerial dance. The troupe is no longer touring, but some previous members have started a new company called Cuerda Producciones that continues to create aerial dance theater pieces.\nWanda Moretti of Italy is creating a vertical dance network aimed at collecting knowledge for artists and professionals in the field. Moretti says, \"From its beginning 30 years ago, vertical dance evolved from the multiple practices and influences of its initial instigators. It was born from the desire to explore space, environment and become a place where everything was possible.\"\nAerial modern pieces, whether solo or ensemble, often involve partnering.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"24a3d809-16b7-488e-aa7c-1c9a74b3dc04"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Workshops","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"g1rd2nb579","content":[{"text":"In Boulder, Frequent Flyers Productions produces the Aerial Dance Festival which been held every year since its inception in July 1999. Here workshops, performances, and discussions bring together dancers, gymnasts, circus artin Brighton, England every summer.\nPortland, Oregon is a unique aerial hub of the United States. Studios such as Afterglow Aerial Arts host Youth Professional Programs that help children and teens prepare aerial dance skills for future work in Cirque du Soleil and circus troupe of the like.\nIn Italy, an emerging aerial dance company, brought the contemporary dance discipline to a vertical stage. The performance of the company is distinguished from others by the details of the choreography and the harmony of the movement, typical elements of classic dance. Aerial dance is an art form that is incredibly demanding and requires a high degree of strength, power, flexibility, courage, and grace to practice.\nOnline educational resources and YouTube channels have also emerged as significant platforms for aerial dance training, with some channels reaching tens of thousands of subscribers globally.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"24a3d809-16b7-488e-aa7c-1c9a74b3dc04"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Site dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ffrfgxshd7","content":[{"text":"Other examples of aerial modern dance are the site-specific works of Joanna Haigood of the Zaccho Dance Theatre, Amelia Rudolph of \"Project Bandaloop,\" and Sally Jacques' Blue Lapis Light. Haigood's work is based on careful research of the history, architecture and societal impact of found spaces, and the translation of these memories into the movements performed in that space. Project Bandaloop combines rock-climbing with dance in performances that scale and/or descend canyons, rock walls, and tall buildings across the world. Video of their outdoor work is sometimes integrated into indoor performances, projected onto screens or trampolines behind the dancers on stage. Blue Lapis Light uses multiple apparatuses, such as aerial silks, harnesses, and bungees to create dances on bridges, office buildings, hotels, and other outdoor spaces.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"24a3d809-16b7-488e-aa7c-1c9a74b3dc04"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"d8n0hccjcz","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Aerial dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"24a3d809-16b7-488e-aa7c-1c9a74b3dc04"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ffcaa92zzm","content":[{"text":"Aerial dance is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9afe00ef-dc9c-4277-b6ff-0dea523d52fb"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jjgxbh0jtt","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9afe00ef-dc9c-4277-b6ff-0dea523d52fb"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Flying show, aerial wall dance performance with art projections. Acrobatics, art, theater and dance to defy gravity. Moscow, Russia.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/79/Vertical_wall_dance_show%2C_Aerial_dance_performance%2C_Acrobatics%2C_art%2C_theater_and_dance%2C_Moscow%2C_Russia.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Vyacheslav Argenberg","height":851,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Flying show, aerial wall dance performance with art projections. Acrobatics, art, theater and dance to defy gravity. Moscow, Russia.","licence":"CC BY 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/79/Vertical_wall_dance_show%2C_Aerial_dance_performance%2C_Acrobatics%2C_art%2C_theater_and_dance%2C_Moscow%2C_Russia.jpg/960px-Vertical_wall_dance_show%2C_Aerial_dance_performance%2C_Acrobatics%2C_art%2C_theater_and_dance%2C_Moscow%2C_Russia.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Vertical_wall_dance_show,_Aerial_dance_performance,_Acrobatics,_art,_theater_and_dance,_Moscow,_Russia.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/79/Vertical_wall_dance_show%2C_Aerial_dance_performance%2C_Acrobatics%2C_art%2C_theater_and_dance%2C_Moscow%2C_Russia.jpg/1280px-Vertical_wall_dance_show%2C_Aerial_dance_performance%2C_Acrobatics%2C_art%2C_theater_and_dance%2C_Moscow%2C_Russia.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0"},{"alt":"Flying show, aerial wall dance performance with art projections. Acrobatics, art, theater and dance to defy gravity. Moscow, Russia.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e4/Vertical_wall_dance_show%2C_Aerial_dance_performance%2C_Flying_show%2C_Moscow%2C_Russia.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Vyacheslav Argenberg","height":851,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Flying show, aerial wall dance performance with art projections. Acrobatics, art, theater and dance to defy gravity. Moscow, Russia.","licence":"CC BY 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e4/Vertical_wall_dance_show%2C_Aerial_dance_performance%2C_Flying_show%2C_Moscow%2C_Russia.jpg/960px-Vertical_wall_dance_show%2C_Aerial_dance_performance%2C_Flying_show%2C_Moscow%2C_Russia.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Vertical_wall_dance_show,_Aerial_dance_performance,_Flying_show,_Moscow,_Russia.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e4/Vertical_wall_dance_show%2C_Aerial_dance_performance%2C_Flying_show%2C_Moscow%2C_Russia.jpg/1280px-Vertical_wall_dance_show%2C_Aerial_dance_performance%2C_Flying_show%2C_Moscow%2C_Russia.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0"},{"alt":"Flying show, aerial wall dance performance with art projections. Acrobatics, art, theater and dance to defy gravity. Moscow, Russia.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3c/Vertical_wall_dance_show%2C_Aerial_dance_performance%2C_Moscow%2C_Russia.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Vyacheslav Argenberg","height":851,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Flying show, aerial wall dance performance with art projections. Acrobatics, art, theater and dance to defy gravity. Moscow, Russia.","licence":"CC BY 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3c/Vertical_wall_dance_show%2C_Aerial_dance_performance%2C_Moscow%2C_Russia.jpg/960px-Vertical_wall_dance_show%2C_Aerial_dance_performance%2C_Moscow%2C_Russia.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Vertical_wall_dance_show,_Aerial_dance_performance,_Moscow,_Russia.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3c/Vertical_wall_dance_show%2C_Aerial_dance_performance%2C_Moscow%2C_Russia.jpg/1280px-Vertical_wall_dance_show%2C_Aerial_dance_performance%2C_Moscow%2C_Russia.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:29.035Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/aerial-dance"}
{"id":"00d87e4a-e726-45c2-a1c1-270327535d36","type":"art_form","slug":"african-american-dance","title":"African-American dance","summary":"African-American dance is a form of dance that was created by Africans in the Diaspora, specifically the United States.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ge49q3ba2n","content":[{"text":"African-American dance is a form of dance that was created by Africans in the Diaspora, specifically the United States. It has developed within various spaces throughout African-American communities in the United States, rather than studios, schools, or companies. These dances are usually centered on folk and social dance practice, though performance dance often supplies complementary aspects to this. Placing great value on improvisation, these dances are characterized by ongoing change and development. There are a number of notable African-American modern dance companies using African-American cultural dance as an inspiration, among these are the Whitey's Lindy Hoppers, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Dance Theatre of Harlem, and Katherine Dunham Company. Hollywood and Broadway have also provided opportunities for African-American artists to share their work and for the public to support them.\nAfrican American dance has had many waves of ingenuity, especially in the 20th century. The Harlem Renaissance was an especially important time for this artform and greatly influenced modern dance.\nAfrican American dance has been an important part of competition, tradition, and cultural expression, and plays an integral role in African American culture. Many of these dance moves have also been co-opted by White dancers and entered mainstream media.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"280a4bcf-1bbf-4af0-a301-e78b132ddf87"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"029hs5td0t","content":[{"text":"After the start of the slave trade in the 1500s, Africans brought their dances to North, Central, and South America, along with the Caribbean islands. Slaves would often dance to entertain their white slave masters.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"280a4bcf-1bbf-4af0-a301-e78b132ddf87"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Development during slavery","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1zs3cg2kp0","content":[{"text":"The Greater Chesapeake area encompassing Virginia, Maryland, and much of North Carolina was the earliest and perhaps most influential location of the black-white cultural interchange that produced \"African-American\" dance. Given their cultural differences, particularly with music and dance, they most likely learned to dance together by creating brand-new dances to draw on their traditions without replicating them precisely. Throughout the America, slaves blended tribal rhythms from their roots in Africa with ballroom rhythms of the US to create a distinctive African-American form of dance. The tribal rhythms frequently originated from East and West Africa. The call and response dance forms that are popular among modern African-American dancers can trace their roots back to these locations. Elements of European dances were also absorbed into these creolized dances, and by the late 18th century, the area had developed a recognizable dance style.\nDance and music were a big part of African society, and that tradition carried on in the diaspora. African American slaves also used dance and music as part of their religious ceremonies and other social events in their community. Other times, dance was forced on slaves as a way to entertain slave masters, but this was reclaimed as a way for slaves to entertain themselves and pass the time while working, or at night when spending time with each other.\nThe limited pictorial record indicates that the original African movements, which emphasized bending at the waist and hips, eventually faded away in favor of a more upright style, similar to European dances.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"280a4bcf-1bbf-4af0-a301-e78b132ddf87"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Black Vaudeville","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s4790wjwch","content":[{"text":"(main article: Black Vaudeville)\nEarly performances of African American dances in mainstream spaces were not done by Black performers, but rather White dancers in black face. These dance performances were interpreted more as a satirical comedy or \"slapstick burlesque\" as opposed to genuine artistry.\nBut at the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th, all-Black Vaudeville shows with chorus line dancers started popping up, including The Creole Show and Isham's Octaroons. Black entrepreneurs like Sherman Dudley, Pat Chapelle, and the Griffin Sisters developed Vaudeville touring companies and theater circuits to showcase African-American talent, paving the way for African-American Musical Theater.  Notable entertainers included dancer/choreographer Aida Overton Walker, \"The Queen of Cakewalk\", and The Whitman Sisters, who ran a touring company considered 'an incubator for Black Talent,' especially dancers. Tap dance, a fusion of Irish and African American movements, was made popular at this time by Black dancers, including Bill Bojangles Robinson, John Bubbles, and the Nicholas Brothers.  Shows from this era introduced dances like the Cakewalk, Juba, Pigeon Wing, and Possum Walk to more audiences. This era also included a large migration of Black performers from the US to Europe to escape the intense racism that was prevalent, not just in the performance scene, but everywhere.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"280a4bcf-1bbf-4af0-a301-e78b132ddf87"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"New York City and the Harlem Renaissance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ztcjdre7vv","content":[{"text":"Just as the Harlem Renaissance saw the development of art, poetry, literature and theater in Harlem during the early 20th century, it also saw the development of a rich musical and dance life: clubs (Cotton Club), ballrooms (Savoy Ballroom), the home rent party and other black spaces as the birthplaces of new dances, theaters and the shift from vaudeville to local \"shows\" written and choreographed by African-American artists; theaters as public forums for popularizing African-American cultural dances. The Harlem Renaissance was the first time that an all-black production found itself on Broadway, with Shuffle Along debuting in 1921. Florence Mills was the first Black woman to headline a Broadway venue, and her work helped to eradicate racial stereotypes of black people, both in the performance industry and in society.\nFollowing the release of The Great Gatsby in 1925, African American dance terms began to enter mainstream American slang. Terms like \"jazzin' it\", \"goose bumps\", \"in the groove\", and \"swing\" began to be used not just by the African American performance community, but average Whites too. With the move of these terms to the mainstream, the people that originated them soon followed suite. The first professional African American dance company, Hampton Institute Creative Dance Group, was created in 1928. Soon after in 1931, Katherine Dunham created Ballet Negre, later renamed Chicago Dance Group. Dunham also choreographed a show entitled Rites de Passage in 1943, which detailed the story of her life in Haiti. This performance was one of the first of its kind that told a specifically Black story that detailed an experience White audiences would not be able to relate to.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"280a4bcf-1bbf-4af0-a301-e78b132ddf87"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"The Bay Area","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"d05zrw5k65","content":[{"text":"San Francisco's Bay Area was also a big contributor to the art of Hip-Hop, both in the music and the dance aesthetics. As Hip-Hop grew in popularity in New York, the West Coast funk movement was also thriving, and the two had influences on the style of the other. KMEL was a radio station in San Francisco that was very popular throughout the different neighborhoods in the Bay Area, and they played music that was not super mainstream. The station was one of the first to play Hip-Hop music, and helped it get the outreach it needed to become popular throughout the large city.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"280a4bcf-1bbf-4af0-a301-e78b132ddf87"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6wm7j7yzka","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “African-American dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"280a4bcf-1bbf-4af0-a301-e78b132ddf87"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ay39ef2etj","content":[{"text":"African-American dance is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c4bf0619-0fbf-4306-94f5-b8f0ccbf6075"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tyhpd8mr6z","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 6 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c4bf0619-0fbf-4306-94f5-b8f0ccbf6075"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Our right culture is what defines us.","src":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1660675133902-acd1b057f75d?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8QWZyaWNhbi1BbWVyaWNhbiUyMGRhbmNlfGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgwODI2OTl8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1080","kind":"photo","width":4320,"credit":"Emmanuel Yeboah Okine","height":2880,"source":"unsplash","depicts":"Our right culture is what defines us.","licence":"Unsplash License","thumb640":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1660675133902-acd1b057f75d?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8QWZyaWNhbi1BbWVyaWNhbiUyMGRhbmNlfGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgwODI2OTl8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=640","sourceUrl":"https://unsplash.com/photos/a-group-of-people-in-traditional-dress-RCAUud6Wcmo?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral","thumb1280":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1660675133902-acd1b057f75d?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8QWZyaWNhbi1BbWVyaWNhbiUyMGRhbmNlfGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgwODI2OTl8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1280","attributionUrl":"https://unsplash.com/@emmanuel_okine?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-02T05:47:41.481Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/african-american-dance"}
{"id":"13cc02d7-3ca8-4180-9259-f2c8d26b0a13","type":"art_form","slug":"african-dance","title":"African dance","summary":"African dance (also Afro dance, Afrodance and Afro-dance) refers to the various dance styles of sub-Saharan Africa. These dances are closely connected with the traditional rhythms and music traditions of the region.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"btektyefej","content":[{"text":"African dance (also Afro dance, Afrodance and Afro-dance) refers to the various dance styles of sub-Saharan Africa. These dances are closely connected with the traditional rhythms and music traditions of the region. Music and dancing is an integral part of many traditional African societies. Songs and dances facilitate teaching and promoting social values, the celebration of special events and major life milestones, the performance of oral history and other recitations, and spiritual experiences. African dance uses the concepts of polyrhythm and total body articulation.  African dances are often a collective activity performed in large groups, with significant interaction between dancers and onlookers.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"44a3eafa-412b-4bf5-8bdc-2ec64de71351"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1k3d2frnnq","content":[{"text":"African dance refers mainly to the dance styles of Sub-Saharan Africa, of which many are based on traditional rhythms and music traditions of the region. Modern African dance styles are deeply rooted in culture and tradition. Many tribes have a role solely for the purpose of passing on the tribe's dance traditions; dances which have been passed down through the centuries, often unchanged, with little to no room for improvisation. Each tribe developed its own unique style of dance, falling into three categories based on purpose.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"44a3eafa-412b-4bf5-8bdc-2ec64de71351"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"451m1372ym","content":[{"text":"The first is religious dancing, which many tribes purport enhances peace, health, and prosperity. Religious dances often involved masqueraders, performing as both the spirits and those who placated them. Religion and spirituality infused every part of traditional African life, and continues to affect African dance today.\nThe second is griotic, and was a type of dance that told a story. It is named after a griot, which is a term for a traditional storyteller in West Africa. Certain griotic dances were only danced by the tribe's griot; today, troupes perform the same dances that were once exclusive to the griot.\nThe third type is ceremonial. These dances are performed at ceremonies such as weddings, anniversaries, and rites of passage.\nHowever, many dances did not have only one purpose. Rather, there was often one primary purpose, that blended into many secondary purposes. Dance was often very important to the maintenance of a ruler's status in the tribal society. Colonialism and globalization have resulted in the eradication of certain styles of African dance. Other styles have been blended together, or mixed with dance styles outside of Africa.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"44a3eafa-412b-4bf5-8bdc-2ec64de71351"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"African dance in the context of slavery","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"g4vvf0djaj","content":[{"text":"As people were taken from Africa to be sold as slaves, especially starting in the 1500s, they brought their dance styles with them. Entire cultures were imported into the New World, especially those areas where slaves were given more flexibility to continue their cultures and where there were more African slaves than Europeans or indigenous Americans, such as Brazil. African dance styles were merged with new cultural experiences to form new styles of dance. For example, slaves responded to the fears of their masters about high-energy styles of dance with changing stepping to shuffling. However, in North America, slaves did not have as much freedom to continue their culture and dance. In many cases, these dances have evolved into modern dance styles, such as African-American dance and Brazilian dance. For example, the Calenda evolved in Brazil from tribal dance. The Calenda then evolved into the Cakewalk, which was danced originally to mock plantation owners; it then evolved into the Charleston. Capoeira was a martial art practiced originally in Africa which the enslaved Africans masked as a form of dance in order to not arouse the suspicion of plantation owners.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"44a3eafa-412b-4bf5-8bdc-2ec64de71351"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Characteristics","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dmcvqn189g","content":[{"text":"Traditional dance in Africa occurs collectively, expressing the values and desires of the community more than that of individuals or couples. Although dances may appear spontaneous, they are usually strictly choreographed, limiting improvisation as it places the focus on the individual over the group. Early outsider commentaries noted the absence of the partner dancing style that was popular in Europe and North America: such dancing was thought to be immoral or in poor taste in many traditional African societies. An example of touching being a taboo in African dance can be seen in the Yoruba tribe. When watching the Yoruba dance, you will rarely see them touching one another or dancing with a partner except under some special circumstances. The only African country whose traditional dances involve partners is Cameroon.\nDances are usually segregated by sex, where gender roles in children and other community structures such as kinship, age, and political status are often reinforced. Many dances are divided by gender, as a result of associations with gender-divided labor, as well as cultural beliefs about gender roles and gender expressions. Dances celebrate the passage from childhood to adulthood or spiritual worship. Among the Lunda people of Zambia, for example, young girls remain in seclusion for months to practice the dance for their coming of age ritual.\nIn traditional African societies, children begin to learn their traditional songs, rhythms, and dances from the moment of birth, starting with the lullabies sung by their mothers. While carried on their mother's backs during day-to-day work and social events, they are exposed to the music that their mothers are singing or listening to.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"44a3eafa-412b-4bf5-8bdc-2ec64de71351"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Notable dances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2ft6kzdcza","content":[{"text":"Specific notable African dances, divided by region, include:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"44a3eafa-412b-4bf5-8bdc-2ec64de71351"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Eastern Africa","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4ertk264nc","content":[{"text":"Adumu: a Maasai jumping dance performed during the warriors' coming of age ceremony. A circle is formed by the warriors, and one or two at a time will enter the center to begin jumping. Members of the group may raise the pitch of their voices based on the height of the jump.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"44a3eafa-412b-4bf5-8bdc-2ec64de71351"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ttqsf0b9d0","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “African dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"44a3eafa-412b-4bf5-8bdc-2ec64de71351"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kmj638tcnn","content":[{"text":"African dance is dances of the African continent, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b9e6a3b1-dfd3-4a22-ad8e-3c6bc2a372a7"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kwsc576a17","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 4 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b9e6a3b1-dfd3-4a22-ad8e-3c6bc2a372a7"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"This is an image with the theme \" Health and Wellness in Africa \" from:","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f0/African_dance_1.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Kayspecta","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"This is an image with the theme \" Health and Wellness in Africa \" from:","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f0/African_dance_1.jpg/960px-African_dance_1.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:African_dance_1.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f0/African_dance_1.jpg/1280px-African_dance_1.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"This is an image with the theme \" Health and Wellness in Africa \" from:","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/24/African_dance_2.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Kayspecta","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"This is an image with the theme \" Health and Wellness in Africa \" from:","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/24/African_dance_2.jpg/960px-African_dance_2.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:African_dance_2.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/24/African_dance_2.jpg/1280px-African_dance_2.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"South African Dance Performer","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2e/South_African_Dance_Performer_3.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Tadekint73","height":1933,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"South African Dance Performer","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2e/South_African_Dance_Performer_3.jpg/960px-South_African_Dance_Performer_3.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:South_African_Dance_Performer_3.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2e/South_African_Dance_Performer_3.jpg/1280px-South_African_Dance_Performer_3.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-08-31T05:47:10.451Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/african-dance"}
{"id":"219703bf-5212-45bb-9a0a-c0fbd5475c9d","type":"art_form","slug":"ai-georgis","title":"Ai Georgis","summary":"Ai Georgis (Greek: Άη Γιώργης) is a dance from the village of Nestani in Arkadia, a region of Greece in the Peloponnesus which takes its name from the mythological character Arcas.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mahg40jyjf","content":[{"text":"Ai Georgis (Greek: Άη Γιώργης) is a dance from the village of Nestani in Arkadia, a region of Greece in the Peloponnesus which takes its name from the mythological character Arcas. The dance is performed and danced on the feast day of St George usually after Easter Sunday.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f2ec334a-ec8a-44e6-bbc5-15ad10d061f0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fkrvm2e6tz","content":[{"text":"The dance is accompanied only by song.  The men lead the dance and the women follow. Each of the male dancers holds a shepherds crook which has been entwined with green leaves and wildflowers. The hand holding the crook is bent at the elbows. The rhythm of the song is in 7/8 and in 2/4. \nThe dance is  made up of ten basic steps broken into four parts. The lyrics are about St George protecting the villagers from the hands of the Ottomans and about Hagia Sophia.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f2ec334a-ec8a-44e6-bbc5-15ad10d061f0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ery3x6cww1","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Ai Georgis”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f2ec334a-ec8a-44e6-bbc5-15ad10d061f0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bjf6x7x9mw","content":[{"text":"Ai Georgis is dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9caaef47-53b0-4f42-9642-40b934b716b1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"v2yj2wvh6a","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9caaef47-53b0-4f42-9642-40b934b716b1"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Futuristic 3D Render My Art: https://stevejohnsonart.us","src":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1677442135751-15e514d909f3?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8QWklMjBHZW9yZ2lzfGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgwODI3MDF8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1080","kind":"photo","width":5120,"credit":"Steve A Johnson","height":2880,"source":"unsplash","depicts":"Futuristic 3D Render My Art: https://stevejohnsonart.us","licence":"Unsplash License","thumb640":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1677442135751-15e514d909f3?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8QWklMjBHZW9yZ2lzfGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgwODI3MDF8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=640","sourceUrl":"https://unsplash.com/photos/repeating-blue-and-silver-ai-letters-1FD-E7Ioblw?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral","thumb1280":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1677442135751-15e514d909f3?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8QWklMjBHZW9yZ2lzfGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgwODI3MDF8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1280","attributionUrl":"https://unsplash.com/@steve_j?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:14.762Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/ai-georgis"}
{"id":"68c46a43-6afb-48a0-b1b8-7366a53ae480","type":"art_form","slug":"air-guitar","title":"air guitar","summary":"Air guitar is a form of movement in which the performer pretends to play an imaginary rock or heavy metal-style electric guitar, including riffs and solos.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8sww96t3q5","content":[{"text":"Air guitar is a form of movement in which the performer pretends to play an imaginary rock or heavy metal-style electric guitar, including riffs and solos. Playing an air guitar usually consists of exaggerated strumming and picking motions, and is often coupled with loud singing or lip-synching. Air guitar is generally used in the imaginary simulation of loud electric or acoustic guitar music.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8e9b6c8d-3204-4456-8740-e8235b030cc6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3743jmndyn","content":[{"text":"Before the existence of air guitar, the popularity of the phonograph in the 1930s led to the phenomenon of \"shadow conducting\", in which listeners would pretend to conduct an orchestra.\nAir guitar had a seminal moment at the Woodstock music festival in 1969, when singer Joe Cocker mimicked the playing of the keyboard and guitar during his performance of \"With a Little Help From My Friends\". Cocker's elaborate signature moves helped introduce the concept of air guitar to the public.\nNeal Kay, founder of the Soundhouse heavy metal club in Kingsbury, London, recalls one night in 1976 a club regular named Rob \"Loonhouse\" Yeatman arrived at the club carrying a piece of hardboard cut into the shape of a Flying V guitar, with no frets or strings. \"Suddenly Rob appears in front of everyone and he starts playing it along with the solo and he's absolutely perfect.\"\nOne of the first air guitar contests was held at Florida State University in 1978. The term \"air guitar\" subsequently gained popularity in the 1980s as more contests were held in Sweden and the United States. Since 1996, the annual Air Guitar World Championships have been organized in Oulu, Finland. The first competitions were arranged as part of Oulu Music Video Festival. Since 2011, it has been produced by Airnest Productions Ltd, which also administers the official Air Guitar World Championships Network of licensed national championships. The idea of the contest originated as a joke that was intended to be a side attraction for the music video festival but has since become a major draw in its own right.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8e9b6c8d-3204-4456-8740-e8235b030cc6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Contests","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k61492gzjw","content":[{"text":"Air guitar contests have much in common with the figure skating scoring system, especially using 6.0 score system. The most common set of rules are as following:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8e9b6c8d-3204-4456-8740-e8235b030cc6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1ydv39eqxm","content":[{"text":"Each participant has to play air guitar on stage in two rounds, each lasting for one minute.\nRound 1: participant plays a selection of his or her choice. Typically the song has been edited (or a medley has been created) to fit the 60-second format.\nRound 2: participant plays a section of the song chosen by an organizer or competitor; usually the song is not announced beforehand and kept secret until the round begins so the participant has to improvise.\nParticipant plays alone; backing bands, either with real or air instruments are not allowed; roadies and groupies are allowed to make up some image but they must leave the stage before performance.\nParticipant has to play air guitar (i.e. air drums, piano and other instruments are not allowed). Air guitar can be acoustic, electric or both.\nGenerally, there is no dress code and participant is encouraged to use any clothing and props that would add character and make the performance more interesting. Any real musical equipment or crew (instruments, amplifiers, effect pedals, and backing band members) are strictly forbidden.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8e9b6c8d-3204-4456-8740-e8235b030cc6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"World","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"daj9hn32k6","content":[{"text":"Annual Air Guitar World Championships were first held in 1996 as part of the Oulu Music Video Festival in Oulu, Finland, and now held there each August. According to the competition ideology, \"wars will end, climate change will stop and all bad things will vanish when all the people in the world play the air guitar\".\nParticipants from all over the world compete in skills of playing air guitar. The judges represent professionals of performing arts and culture, the guitarist Juha Torvinen among others. The winner gets a custom-made guitar, 'Flying Finn', by Matti and Saara Nevalainen. One year, Brian May, the lead guitarist of Queen, donated a VOX BM Special amplifier for the winner.\nDue to the COVID-19 Pandemic, the Air Guitar World Championships were not held in 2020 and 2021. In lieu of a 2021 championship, the Air Guitar World Championships organized a virtual Champion of Champions Championships on August 27, 2021, won by Justin \"Nordic Thunder\" Howard.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8e9b6c8d-3204-4456-8740-e8235b030cc6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"United States","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yfn2qgs2w6","content":[{"text":"In 2003, Cedric Devitt and Kriston Rucker founded US Air Guitar, the official governing body of air guitar in the US.\nThe 2004 US Air Guitar Championships featured regional competitions in five cities. MiRi \"Sonyk-Rok\" Park, winner of the New York City regional, took the national crown by defeating Fatima \"The Rockness Monster\" Hoang from Los Angeles. She went to Finland, where she tied for first place, becoming the 2004 World Air Guitar Co-Champion.\nBy 2008, US Air Guitar had expanded to include regional competitions in 24 cities. The 2006 US Air Guitar Champion, Craig \"Hot Lixx Hulahan\" Billmeier, went on to defeat 2005 Champion Fatima \"The Rockness Monster\" Hoang and 2007 Champion Andrew \"William Ocean\" Litz en route to his second national title. In Finland, Hulahan won, securing the United States' third world title and becoming the 2008 World Air Guitar Champion.\nWilliam Ocean won his second national title in 2009, earning him a spot in Finland at the 2009 World Air Guitar Championships. Ocean and defending World Air Guitar Champion Hulahan tied for second place, behind Sylvain \"Gunther Love\" Quimene of France.\nIn 2020 and 2021, US Air Guitar moved to online competitions, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The 2021 US Air Guitar season ended with a live, in-person finals in Chicago, Illinois.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8e9b6c8d-3204-4456-8740-e8235b030cc6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"List of United States Championships","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"stwqevejb3","content":[{"text":"List of United States Championships","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8e9b6c8d-3204-4456-8740-e8235b030cc6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1jzdvp2h0v","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Air guitar”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8e9b6c8d-3204-4456-8740-e8235b030cc6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cx9g5n8hqn","content":[{"text":"air guitar is form of dance and movement, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b0b6091d-4e04-4b0a-8ebd-c995aaac2c9f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dv6823s707","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 11 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b0b6091d-4e04-4b0a-8ebd-c995aaac2c9f"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-02T05:48:45.771Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/air-guitar"}
{"id":"cfc9ee2a-69a2-40b6-98bc-78c3eca0a553","type":"art_form","slug":"al-bar-ah","title":"Al-Bar'ah","summary":"Al-Bar'ah is type of dance. This page is a machine-generated stub awaiting review by someone who knows the tradition.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6yzjcvywys","content":[{"text":"Al-Bar'ah is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c897c5d1-7846-49c3-b9ae-508835a167db"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ywtksc4pyn","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c897c5d1-7846-49c3-b9ae-508835a167db"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-05T02:44:02.899Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/al-bar-ah"}
{"id":"90a302d5-0524-47da-8536-0615baccd2a9","type":"art_form","slug":"albanian-iso-polyphony","title":"Albanian iso-polyphony","summary":"Iso-Polyphony (Albanian: Iso-polifonia) is a traditional form of Albanian folk music in which multi-line singing is accompanied by choral drone parts, and which has many regional and formal variations.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0dd089cd7b","content":[{"text":"Iso-Polyphony (Albanian: Iso-polifonia) is a traditional form of Albanian folk music in which multi-line singing is accompanied by choral drone parts, and which has many regional and formal variations. It is included in UNESCO's intangible cultural heritage list. Albanian Iso-Polyphony is considered to have its roots in the many-voiced vajtim, the southern Albanian traditional lamentation of the dead. The instrumental expression of the Albanian Iso-Polyphony evolved into the Albanian kaba.\nAll four regions of southern Albania—Lalëria (Myzeqe), Toskëria, Çamëria, and Labëria—have polyphonic song as part of their culture. A related form of polyphonic singing is found in northern Albania, in the area of Peshkopi; Polog, Tetovo, Kičevo and Gostivar in North Macedonia; and Malësia in northern Albania and southern Montenegro.\nLabëria is particular well known for multipart singing; songs can have two, three, or four parts. Two-part songs are sung only by women. Three-part songs can be sung by men and women. Four part songs are a Labërian specialty.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8fd194de-b5a8-45d8-8758-69b434ef225f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Name","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b8edyvj5b3","content":[{"text":"The term iso (sometimes yso or ysa) is related to the Greek word ίσον (ison) which is a drone in Byzantine church music. Polyphony refers to multiple lines of melody.\nThe name \"iso-polyphony\" may have spread from scholastic influence in the later 20th century, while folk singers amongst themselves may use various terms for drone singing including: e mbajnë zë (\"they hold the voice\"), bëjnë zë (\"they make voice\"), këngë me iso (\"songs with a drone\"), zjejnë (\"to boil\"), mbajnë kaba (\"they hold kaba\") (where the word kaba is adapted from Turkish and often means a melody in a low register or something heavy), and me të rënkuar meaning \"with a moan\" or groan.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8fd194de-b5a8-45d8-8758-69b434ef225f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Geographic distribution","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c8jv2r402t","content":[{"text":"The Albanian polyphonic traditional music is performed in two dialects of Albanian: Tosk and Lab. The Tosk musical dialect comprises the Albanian ethnographic regions of Toskëria, Myzeqeja, and Chamëria, while the Lab musical dialect comprises Labëria.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8fd194de-b5a8-45d8-8758-69b434ef225f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origin","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6829c2523v","content":[{"text":"Albanian Iso-Polyphony is considered to have its roots in the many-voiced vajtim, the southern Albanian traditional lamentation of the dead.\nMany scholars who have studied the Albanian iso-polyphony and in general the polyphonic music of the Balkans consider it an old tradition that dates back to the Thraco-Illyrian era. There is a lack of historical documentation of the Albanian polyphonic traditional music. However, since it is considered the product of oral transmission down many generations, scholars came to their conclusions by analyzing this musical tradition that continues to be performed in modern days. There are found many specific features of the Albanian polyphonic tradition that indicate its ancient origin: the pentatonic modal/tonal structure, which is widely thought by scholars to represent an early beginning to the musical culture of a people; the presence of recitative vocals, because when the melody of the vocals is not developed, the tradition is thought to be in a more primitive phase; the presence of calls and shouts, which indicates a primitive phase of development in the musical culture of a people; the a cappella singing style, which suggests an old age of a musical tradition since it lacks of instrumental accompaniment.\nAlthough the region was under the dominion of the Byzantine Empire for many centuries, the Balkan polyphonic traditional music had a different development than medieval Byzantine music. The Balkan tradition was non-institutionalized and has been continually collectively formed, while the Byzantine music was created by individual composers and was institutionalized.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8fd194de-b5a8-45d8-8758-69b434ef225f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Evolution","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wsrxg4av19","content":[{"text":"Albanian polyphonic traditional music is thought to have been composed in its beginnings of only two melodic lines: the taker (Albanian: marrës – 1st voice) and the turner (Albanian: kthyes or pritës – 2nd voice). The turner likely played initially a non-specific melodic role, a style that can still be found in the two-voiced polyphonic singing of the women in Gjirokastër. It is thought that over time the turner have gradually become more precisely defined melodically; the tradition of two-voiced (taker and turner) in which the turner plays a clearly defined melodic role is found today among the men of Dukat. Although it is typical in Gjirokastër and Dukat, two voice iso-polyphony can be found in many Albania areas, such as in  Korcë, Librazhd, Pogradec, Kolonjë, Fier, Shpat i Sipërm of Elbasan, Myzeqe, Vlorë, Berat, Mallakastër, Gjirokastër, Lunxhëri, as well as in Albanian speaking areas of Zajas, Kičevo and Tetovo. The two voice iso-polyphony can also be found in the Arbëreshë of Calabria. According to scholar Vasil Tole thinking about the two voice polyphony as a first stage of the development of the iso-polyphony is incorrect, because the two voices actually play three voices, so the two voice iso-polyphony is a \"hidden\" way of a three voice iso-polyphony.\nThe next melodic line to evolve into Albanian traditional polyphony is thought to have been the drone (Albanian: iso), which seems to have adapted naturally to the two previous melodic lines, giving rise to the three-voiced polyphony. The introduction of the drone was a significant artistic achievement because it brought the diversification and the enrichment of the harmonic interplay between melodic lines.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8fd194de-b5a8-45d8-8758-69b434ef225f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Pleqërishte","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2yfpm33f0z","content":[{"text":"Pleqërishte is a genre of Albanian folk iso-polyphony sung by men in Labëria and is principally identified with the city of Gjirokastër and its environs. The genre is characterized by a slow tempo, low pitch and small range.\nPleqërishte means both \"of old men\" and \"of the old time\" in reference to the mode of singing and the lyrical themes of part of their songs respectively. In relation to these subjects pleqërishte songs are also called lashtërishte (\"of the ancient time\"), a term used exclusively in Gjirokastër. These specific topics have largely fallen into public disuse over the years but remain thematically notable.\nSongs of the genre adhere to a slow tempo and low pitch with little vocal variation as opposed to genres such as djemurishte (\"of young men\") in particular. \nAs all fourth-part genres they feature a third soloist (hedhës). While in other four-part genres the hedhës mainly assumes the role of secondary drone a minor third above the keynote, in pleqërishte the hedhës relieves the first soloist (marrës) and allows him to take a breathing break. Each rendition begins with the singing of the first lines by the marrës and the introduction of the second soloist (kthyes) and finally the hedhës. After the hedhës, the marrës's lyrics are repeated by the drone group in various forms and manners.\nPleqërishte songs are exemplified in the repertory of the folk group Pleqtë e Gjirokastrës sometimes regarded as the \"last representative\" of the genre.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8fd194de-b5a8-45d8-8758-69b434ef225f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"an290yc0pw","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Albanian iso-polyphony”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8fd194de-b5a8-45d8-8758-69b434ef225f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4a8j1qsj56","content":[{"text":"Albanian iso-polyphony is Albanian iso-polyphony is a traditional part of Albanian folk music and a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage., according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e7123b19-69f5-4d9c-b3a9-da6851c76e5e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"v9ep6n4ktm","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 4 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e7123b19-69f5-4d9c-b3a9-da6851c76e5e"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"close up, bokeh, macro, blur, blurred background, close focus, bible, old testament, hebrew bible, christian, judaism, history, text, reading, bible study, devotions, text, NIV, New International Version, type, typography, canon, christianity, holy scripture, holy bible, scripture, chronicles, 2 chronicles, דִּבְרֵי־הַיָּמִים, Diḇrê Hayyāmîm, hebrew bible, final book, ketuvim, tanakh, septuagint, Paralipoménōn, Books of Paralipomenon, second chronicles, historical, ancient near east texts, anet,","src":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1634542943403-bd68cf2b10ef?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8QWxiYW5pYW4lMjBpc28tcG9seXBob255fGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgxMDE0MDR8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1080","kind":"photo","width":5184,"credit":"Brett Jordan","height":3888,"source":"unsplash","depicts":"close up, bokeh, macro, blur, blurred background, close focus, bible, old testament, hebrew bible, christian, judaism, history, text, reading, bible study, devotions, text, NIV, New International Version, type, typography, canon, christianity, holy scripture, holy bible, scripture, chronicles, 2 chronicles, דִּבְרֵי־הַיָּמִים, Diḇrê Hayyāmîm, hebrew bible, final book, ketuvim, tanakh, septuagint, Paralipoménōn, Books of Paralipomenon, second chronicles, historical, ancient near east texts, anet,","licence":"Unsplash License","thumb640":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1634542943403-bd68cf2b10ef?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8QWxiYW5pYW4lMjBpc28tcG9seXBob255fGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgxMDE0MDR8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=640","sourceUrl":"https://unsplash.com/photos/a-close-up-of-an-open-book-on-a-table-xMLJGHRY1Mo?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral","thumb1280":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1634542943403-bd68cf2b10ef?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8QWxiYW5pYW4lMjBpc28tcG9seXBob255fGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgxMDE0MDR8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1280","attributionUrl":"https://unsplash.com/@brett_jordan?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:19.008Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/albanian-iso-polyphony"}
{"id":"6e86caf9-bfda-4eea-81de-987a34f63f83","type":"art_form","slug":"alborea","title":"Alboreá","summary":"Alboreá is a singing style whose name comes from alboradas singing which refers to albor ('dawn').","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"65v0kzp848","content":[{"text":"Alboreá is a singing style whose name comes from alboradas singing which refers to albor ('dawn'). This singing has a Castilian origin.\nAlboreá is rarely part of flamenco recitals because there is superstition of bad luck should it be sung for anything that is not a gypsy wedding. It is usually sung in gypsy marriage rites and their lyrics are linked to this topic. For gypsy singers, this style should be kept for weddings and not be sung outside of these ceremonies.\nIts lyrics should be accompanied by 4 seven-syllable verses and a refrain. It is often sung with a libre (no beat structure) beginning followed by a 12 count measure, which can also sound like an abandolao rhythm in a 6 count measure, similar to bulerías.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3120eaa1-7e4c-41d4-8a36-63b2ce5c8c52"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Discography","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4p2cb14g5p","content":[{"text":"Magna antología del cante flamenco, vol. III, CD Edition, compiled by José Blas Vega, Hispavox, 1992","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3120eaa1-7e4c-41d4-8a36-63b2ce5c8c52"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5e03jbw84f","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Alboreá”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3120eaa1-7e4c-41d4-8a36-63b2ce5c8c52"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1g0r2c588d","content":[{"text":"Alboreá is music genre, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ebb31c73-9b2c-4756-93ed-272f62c1c856"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rg45q4vms4","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ebb31c73-9b2c-4756-93ed-272f62c1c856"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Alborea, vista panorámica desde el sur de la población","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c7/Alborea%2C_vista_panor%C3%A1mica_desde_el_sur_de_la_poblaci%C3%B3n.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Malopez 21","height":536,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Alborea, vista panorámica desde el sur de la población","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c7/Alborea%2C_vista_panor%C3%A1mica_desde_el_sur_de_la_poblaci%C3%B3n.jpg/960px-Alborea%2C_vista_panor%C3%A1mica_desde_el_sur_de_la_poblaci%C3%B3n.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Alborea,_vista_panor%C3%A1mica_desde_el_sur_de_la_poblaci%C3%B3n.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c7/Alborea%2C_vista_panor%C3%A1mica_desde_el_sur_de_la_poblaci%C3%B3n.jpg/1280px-Alborea%2C_vista_panor%C3%A1mica_desde_el_sur_de_la_poblaci%C3%B3n.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Alborea, Cuco de Hoya de Mizarrán","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c1/Alborea%2C_Cuco_de_Hoya_de_Mizarr%C3%A1n.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Malopez 21","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Alborea, Cuco de Hoya de Mizarrán","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c1/Alborea%2C_Cuco_de_Hoya_de_Mizarr%C3%A1n.jpg/960px-Alborea%2C_Cuco_de_Hoya_de_Mizarr%C3%A1n.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Alborea,_Cuco_de_Hoya_de_Mizarr%C3%A1n.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c1/Alborea%2C_Cuco_de_Hoya_de_Mizarr%C3%A1n.jpg/1280px-Alborea%2C_Cuco_de_Hoya_de_Mizarr%C3%A1n.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Alborea, vista desde el sur de la población","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c0/Alborea%2C_vista_desde_el_sur_de_la_poblaci%C3%B3n.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Malopez 21","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Alborea, vista desde el sur de la población","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c0/Alborea%2C_vista_desde_el_sur_de_la_poblaci%C3%B3n.jpg/960px-Alborea%2C_vista_desde_el_sur_de_la_poblaci%C3%B3n.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Alborea,_vista_desde_el_sur_de_la_poblaci%C3%B3n.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c0/Alborea%2C_vista_desde_el_sur_de_la_poblaci%C3%B3n.jpg/1280px-Alborea%2C_vista_desde_el_sur_de_la_poblaci%C3%B3n.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:04.158Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/alborea"}
{"id":"c6a4a536-766c-48da-938c-a5da2194e9fb","type":"art_form","slug":"allemande","title":"allemande","summary":"An allemande (French pronunciation: [almɑ̃d] , \"German (dance)\"; also allemanda, almain(e), or alman(d)) is a Renaissance and Baroque dance, and one of the most common instrumental dance styles in Baroque music, with examples by Couperin, P…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kvxstm3x9j","content":[{"text":"An allemande (French pronunciation: [almɑ̃d] , \"German (dance)\"; also allemanda, almain(e), or alman(d)) is a Renaissance and Baroque dance, and one of the most common instrumental dance styles in Baroque music, with examples by Couperin, Purcell, Bach and Handel. It is often the first movement of a Baroque suite of dances, paired with a subsequent courante, though it is sometimes preceded by an introduction or prelude.  Along with the waltz and ländler, the allemande was sometimes referred to by the generic term German Dance in publications during the late 18th and early 19th centuries.\nA quite different, later, Allemande, named as such in the time of Mozart and Beethoven, still survives in Germany and Switzerland and is a lively triple-time social dance related to the waltz and the Ländler.\nThe name \"Allemande\" comes from the name of Germany in French.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c5c98b5c-e31a-49c7-967c-dc8c1c428675"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qgmgz4wzwr","content":[{"text":"The allemande originated in the 16th century as a duple metre dance of moderate tempo, already considered very old, with a characteristic \"double-knocking\" upbeat of two or occasionally three sixteenth notes. It appears to have derived from a German dance but no identifiable dance and no German dance instructions from this era survive.\nThe 16th-century French dancing master Thoinot Arbeau and the British Inns of Court therefore preserve the first records of the allemande, in which dancers formed a line of couples who took hands and walked the length of the room, walking three steps then balancing on one foot. A livelier version, the allemande courante, used three springing steps and a hop. Elizabethan British composers wrote many \"Almans\" as separate pieces.\nFrench composers of the 17th century experimented with the allemande, shifting to quadruple meter and ranging more widely in tempo. This slower allemande, like the pavane, was adapted to the tombeau or memorial composition. The German composers Froberger and Bach followed suit in their allemandes for keyboard instruments, although ensemble allemandes kept a more traditional style. Italian and English composers were more free with the allemande, writing in counterpoint and using a variety of tempi (Corelli wrote allemandes ranging from largo to presto).\nIn his Musikalisches Lexicon (Leipzig, 1732), Johann Gottfried Walther wrote that the allemande \"must be composed and likewise danced in a grave and ceremonious manner.\" Likewise in Der Vollkommene Capellmeister (Hamburg, 1739) Johann Mattheson described the allemande as \"a serious and well-composed harmoniousness in arpeggiated style, expressing satisfaction or amusement, and delighting in order and calm\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c5c98b5c-e31a-49c7-967c-dc8c1c428675"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Triple meter dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"q2d3f64w8s","content":[{"text":"Late in the 18th century, \"allemande\" or \"German Dance\" came to be used for another type of dance in triple meter. Weber's Douze allemandes op. 4 of 1801 anticipate the waltz. Mozart and Beethoven both produced sets of German Dances in this style. A different version went on to become the Ländler.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c5c98b5c-e31a-49c7-967c-dc8c1c428675"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8c914db6qz","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Allemande”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c5c98b5c-e31a-49c7-967c-dc8c1c428675"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"n7jnwmnmp4","content":[{"text":"allemande is Renaissance and Baroque dance, and one of the most popular instrumental dance styles in Baroque music, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"39c8f85b-926c-4795-adea-279c49ce2840"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"v20r8skg2q","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 21 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"39c8f85b-926c-4795-adea-279c49ce2840"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:07.104Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/allemande"}
{"id":"006a5270-1d3b-4c35-8e96-f86fc170de21","type":"art_form","slug":"american-tribal-style-belly-dance","title":"American Tribal Style Belly Dance","summary":"American Tribal Style Belly Dance or Tribal Style Belly Dance (also known as ATS or Tribal) is a modern style of bellydance created by FatChanceBellyDance director, Carolena Nericcio.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"anp22mkm2r","content":[{"text":"American Tribal Style Belly Dance or Tribal Style Belly Dance (also known as ATS or Tribal) is a modern style of bellydance created by FatChanceBellyDance director, Carolena Nericcio. American Tribal Style Belly Dance is clearly defined and documented with the primary characteristic being that of group improvisation. Tribal is generally performed in a group, often at community events such as festivals and parades, with tribal dancers typically favoring a look provided by wide-legged pants gathered at the ankles (aka pantaloons), tops known as cholis and full skirts.\nThere are several American Tribal Style Belly Dance troupes in the United States and throughout the world. FatChanceBellyDance is one of the largest ATS dance troupe companies, providing lessons, videos, music, costumes and more.  The company was formed in 1987 by Carolena Nericcio.  Their website provides another perspective on the history of American Tribal Style.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a035e538-dfd8-436c-9826-944cd4b63e13"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Tribal style","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tag6rm47ck","content":[{"text":"The general category Tribal Style is accredited to Jamila Salimpour who fostered a fusion of costumes and folkloric dances styles from the Banjara gypsies of Rajasthan and began teaching what she knew and performing all over California and the West Coast. Using traditional folkloric dance elements and costumes inspired by traditional and ethnographic traditions, she presented on stage through Bal Anat a colorful dance company which included musicians, singers and dancers to create a \"souk\" or almost circus feel. Taking what she herself had learned from native dancers from Morocco, Algeria, Turkey, Egypt, Syria and Lebanon who were dancing in the United States, she began to catalogue \"belly dance movement\" and began creating a basic repertoire terminology which is still the basis for Tribal Style and American Tribal Style repertoire. \nTribal Style today represents everything from Folkloric inspired dances to a fusion of ancient dance techniques from North India, the Middle East, Spain and Africa. As a general category, Tribal Style covers many flavors of American Belly Dance both the folkloric inspired like Dalia Carella and fusion and cross over styles which explore modern, jazz, dance theatre, and hip hop with belly dance, as well as fusion with traditional classical ethnic dance forms like Bhangra, Bharata Natyam, Flamenco and now even Polynesian and West African Dance. \nAccording to Moria Chappell, a well-known Tribal dancer, Tribal differs from ballet, jazz and modern in its extreme emphasis of core muscle isolation (especially in the abdomen, pelvic girdle, and thoracic spine) and lack of hard impact moves.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a035e538-dfd8-436c-9826-944cd4b63e13"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Improvisational choreography","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"drqrq6mmyv","content":[{"text":"American Tribal Style belly dance's movements are inspired by folkloric dances of the Middle East, North Africa, Spain and India. ATS is a method of improvisational choreography, using a vocabulary of movements and cues allowing the dancers to communicate while dancing. The standardized vocabulary and cueing system allows dancers who have learned ATS to improvise together without having rehearsed a fixed choreography. Though it is a modern dance, the feeling is ancient and connected, with its vibrant costuming, music, use of zils (finger cymbals), movements and interaction between the tribe of dancers.\nAmerican Tribal Style belly dance commonly incorporates finger cymbals, or zils, while emphasizing group improvisation and interaction rather than solo performance.  \nThere are two families of movements: slow movements and fast movements.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a035e538-dfd8-436c-9826-944cd4b63e13"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4g7tx2bb1c","content":[{"text":"Zils are worn but not usually played while performing \"slow movements.\" (However, for example, if the featured duet trio or quartet are dancing to a Moroccan 6 rhythm, members of the chorus may choose to accompany them through playing their zils.)\nDuring \"fast movements\" the zils are meant to be played. The most common rhythm played on the dancer's zils is the right-left-right pattern. Certain \"fast\" movements require the dancers and chorus to play the military zil pattern. The “military” zil pattern, is also known as the 3-3-7 pattern. Its name is of uncertain origin; one proposed explanation is its resemblance to rhythms played by military marching bands. Other, less frequently played patterns, include the Moroccan 6; some troupes experiment with 9/8 Turkish rhythm.\nAmerican Tribal Style features call-and-answer performance with other dancers or as a whole group as well as, more uncommonly, solos.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a035e538-dfd8-436c-9826-944cd4b63e13"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Costuming","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cm2prk9aq7","content":[{"text":"The style is also characterized by costumes derived from many \"folkloric\" and various traditional tribal costuming resources and is often composed of layers of large tiered skirts or 10–25 meter/yard skirts, a short choli often with a plunging neckline, over which a bra decorated with coins and textiles sits, a headdress or hair decorations, one or more hip scarves with yarn, tassels or fringe, and a heavy layering of oxidized silver jewelry.  Camel tassels/ornamented camel ropes are a specifically U.S. Tribal/ATS-era costume innovation, inspired by Bedouin/nomadic camel saddle ornaments .  \nThe jewelry commonly originates from Central Asia, from any number of nomadic tribes or empires (e.g., Kuchi, Turkoman, Rajasthan) and is often large and set with semi-precious stones or, when mass-produced, with glass.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a035e538-dfd8-436c-9826-944cd4b63e13"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ay98nq8yd7","content":[{"text":"I can only speak for my troupe in terms of the evolution of costuming style. My teacher, Masha, encouraged us to wear a choli and pantaloons, a fringe shawl, lots of big chunky jewelry and a headdress or some sort of embellished hair worn up. The coin bra was optional. When FCBD first started we used that format, but the dancers started finding other pieces, like the full skirts and tassel belts. It was a bit of a mish-mash at first, but we eventually standardized our look to be choli, bra, pantaloons, skirt, shawl and/or tassel belt, headdress mandatory and of course lots of jewelry.Dancers frequently \"tattoo\" their faces with kohl or kajal.  Make-up is usually eye focused with heavy use of kajal.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a035e538-dfd8-436c-9826-944cd4b63e13"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"eh9asaj8qt","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “American Tribal Style Belly Dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a035e538-dfd8-436c-9826-944cd4b63e13"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"q6826syz7t","content":[{"text":"American Tribal Style Belly Dance is dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"961ccc5e-a501-45f5-9a25-df2c2a691c97"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gqrpbgrtrd","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"961ccc5e-a501-45f5-9a25-df2c2a691c97"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:15.089Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/american-tribal-style-belly-dance"}
{"id":"942e9c29-06cf-466c-a967-88f5509ad5db","type":"art_form","slug":"an-dro","title":"an dro","summary":"An dro, or en dro (Breton: \"the turn\"), is a Breton folk dance in 44. It is a form of a circle dance.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b3zmcn12gd","content":[{"text":"An dro, or en dro (Breton: \"the turn\"), is a Breton folk dance in 44. It is a form of a circle dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"529cf9e4-d17a-485c-82ab-bc9525220f4c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Technique","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7wkcxn0q1v","content":[{"text":"The dance is performed in a line, with the dancers joined by hooking their little fingers. They swing their arms, and take a short step to the right, a longer step to the left, so they drift steadily leftwards.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"529cf9e4-d17a-485c-82ab-bc9525220f4c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Recordings","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wv7rg5746s","content":[{"text":"An dro songs are part of the repertoire of almost any Breton singer or group, from traditional music such as that of Alan Stivell and Tri Yann's Portraits, to rock music such as the 1998 album La Ouache by Matmatah. \nNon-Breton singers have included an dro songs on albums including Imeall by Mairéad Ní Mhaonaigh (Altan's vocalist).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"529cf9e4-d17a-485c-82ab-bc9525220f4c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"j9v4crxykg","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “An dro”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"529cf9e4-d17a-485c-82ab-bc9525220f4c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mtx9wjd4yg","content":[{"text":"an dro is Breton dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"712422d8-fae3-4782-a2eb-825d168424c3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"v1zd93346z","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"712422d8-fae3-4782-a2eb-825d168424c3"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-05T01:44:04.073Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/an-dro"}
{"id":"41247ddc-118e-4934-b7e1-2bdb9579831f","type":"art_form","slug":"andhra-natyam","title":"Andhra Natyam","summary":"Andhranatyam is a dance in the Nattuva Mela tradition, one of the two ancient dance traditions in India.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m8hc218asp","content":[{"text":"Andhranatyam is a dance in the Nattuva Mela tradition, one of the two ancient dance traditions in India. Natya Mela which is performed by men, and Nattuva Mela which women perform.\nAndhranatyam, the ancient classical temple dance of Andhra which has been in vogue for the past 2000 years. It was performed in the Buddhist Aramas, temples, and royal courts by the cultured and dedicated female artists. Andhranatyam is formerly known with different names like Aradhana, Kacheri, Darbar,  Kelika, Chinna Melam, Mejuvani, and Dasi Ata, etc.\nUnlike other female dances like Bharatanatyam, temple, and court dances, Andhranatyam had become inert at one point in time. It was later revived in 1970 and is being propagated for the last 50 years at national and international platforms, particularly in the Telugu-speaking regions","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e2701c76-30dd-405e-b223-72b31afeb2c5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"The Repertoire","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4pp5yw6f7x","content":[{"text":"Andhranatyam includes beautiful, delicate body movements with graceful gestures and slenderness of the Kaisiki Vritti, performed by the female artists. It has Agama, Asthana, and Prabandha styles in it. It is performed in Marga tradition in temples as prescribed in Agama sastras. With a tinge of the Desi tradition, it is performed in the classical style in temple asthanas and courts of kings called Kacheri, Darbar ata, etc. The Prabandha style is famous for its classical regional rendition with lokadharmi.\nAndhranatyam is a combination of Agama, Asthana, and Prabandha traditions, which a female artiste can showcase on the same stage and in the same performance. It is an Eka Patra Kelika, i.e. a solo performance by a female artist. It has been designed and is being depicted as one of the earliest female-oriented dance traditions, with a well-knit repertoire to suit the modern theatre.\nThe distinct feature of Andhranatyam is the process that depicts the ancient tradition to suit the current stage. The repertoire contains the three traditions: Agama nartanam, Asthana nartanam, and Prabandha nartanam.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e2701c76-30dd-405e-b223-72b31afeb2c5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Agama Nartanam","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"32p0wb56dd","content":[{"text":"Agama Nartanam, also called as Temple Dance. This form of repertoire is dedicated to the temple deities and performed in the temples.  The usage of traditional Kumbha Harathi as a part of the worship to the God is done.\nIn addition to the items in the image to the right, the following items are also performed:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e2701c76-30dd-405e-b223-72b31afeb2c5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vyr4qaq419","content":[{"text":"Kauthams\nKaivarams\nAshtadikpalaka Aaradhana\nNavasandhi\nAdhyatma Ramayana Keerthanas, etc.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e2701c76-30dd-405e-b223-72b31afeb2c5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Asthana Nartanam","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2mbtg93kfw","content":[{"text":"This form of the repertoire is performed in King's courts\nIn the Asthana sampradaya, selected items like Sabda, Swara, Sahithya Pallavis, Sabdam or salam jatis, Padavarnams, Padams, Javalis, Slokas, etc. are performed. Asthana kelika in a temple is different from a kelika in the court of a king. According to the king's taste, the former leads the audience towards spiritualism, whereas the latter is for entertainment for kings, scholars, intellectuals, and others. Saatvikabhinayam predominates in the depiction of Padam. Slokabhinayam is unique to the version of \"Anvayam.\" Padyams are also performed as part of the repertoire.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e2701c76-30dd-405e-b223-72b31afeb2c5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Prabandha Nartanam","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"d7rby3k2c5","content":[{"text":"This form of repertoire is performed in public places used as a method for story telling.\nKalapams are performed as part of the Prabandha nartanam. The Kalapams are Bhamakalapam, Gollakalapam, Radhamadhavam, etc. In Nattuva Mela tradition, the Bhamakalapam was performed for nine nights outside the temple and called Navajanardhana Parijatham. Earlier it was performed for nine consecutive nights at Kunti Madhava Temple by Late Pendyala Satyabhama and artists from the same family of Pithapuram.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e2701c76-30dd-405e-b223-72b31afeb2c5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"v2tfd0xbfa","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Andhra Natyam”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e2701c76-30dd-405e-b223-72b31afeb2c5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dxq3k1aj7v","content":[{"text":"Andhra Natyam is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"def08048-b8da-43f1-9cd3-938c645cfaa5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gek1gks3hq","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"def08048-b8da-43f1-9cd3-938c645cfaa5"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Andhra Natyam depicts a lady holding kumbha harathi to worship God","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2f/Andhra_Natyam_depicted.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"రహ్మానుద్దీన్","height":2347,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Andhra Natyam depicts a lady holding kumbha harathi to worship God","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2f/Andhra_Natyam_depicted.jpg/960px-Andhra_Natyam_depicted.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Andhra_Natyam_depicted.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2f/Andhra_Natyam_depicted.jpg/1280px-Andhra_Natyam_depicted.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"},{"alt":"Andhra Natyam","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2c/Sanjay_Vadapalli_.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Sanjay Vadapalli","height":1707,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Andhra Natyam","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2c/Sanjay_Vadapalli_.jpg/960px-Sanjay_Vadapalli_.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sanjay_Vadapalli_.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2c/Sanjay_Vadapalli_.jpg/1280px-Sanjay_Vadapalli_.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:04.851Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/andhra-natyam"}
{"id":"8dc2962b-37ec-4433-9d25-547a5d27c6a3","type":"art_form","slug":"angama","title":"angama","summary":"Angama (アンガマ) or angama odori (angama dance) is a style of dancing that is performed in many communities of Japan's Yaeyama Islands during the Bon Festival, which is known as sōrin (< shōryō (精霊)) in Yaeyama.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"byh975cpq9","content":[{"text":"Angama (アンガマ) or angama odori (angama dance) is a style of dancing that is performed in many communities of Japan's Yaeyama Islands during the Bon Festival, which is known as sōrin (< shōryō (精霊)) in Yaeyama. A related performance is known as mushāma in Hateruma. In Kohama Island, the northern community performs a dance named jiruku while the southern community performs Minma buduri.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f23697de-8e59-4d4b-b715-432cb2786e1f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5nj7p908p1","content":[{"text":"There is no consensus on the etymology of angama. One theory decomposes angama into *an (possibly meaning mother) and *gama (possibly a diminutive suffix). Another theory relates angama to \"elder sister\" (angwā in Okinawan). Some argue that it might mean \"disguise of a mask\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f23697de-8e59-4d4b-b715-432cb2786e1f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Nenbutsu practice","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8v5gc1d0f2","content":[{"text":"Angama shares its mainland Japanese origin with Okinawa's Eisā. The songs to which people dance are called nenbutsu songs. According to the genealogy of the San'yō lineage, nenbutsu practice was brought from Ryūkyū in 1657 when Yaeyama's samurai leader Miyara Chōjū traveled to Okinawa to pay tribute. It is known from other sources that by that time nenbutsu practice had spread to the capital Shuri–Naha region of Okinawa Island. There were at least two traditions of nenbutsu practice. One was started in the 1600s by Taichū (1552–1639), a Jōdo sect monk from Mutsu Province, and was carried on by his followers in Kakinohana, Naha. The other was performed by the Chondarā, a Shuri-based group of puppeteers, who also had mainland Japanese roots. Folklorist Shinjō Toshio argued that what Miyara Chōjū learned must have been Taichū's one. Sakai Masako, a researcher on folk music, questioned Shinjō's theory. Pointing out that Yaeyama has a larger repository of nenbutsu songs than Okinawa, she presumed multiple origins of nenbutsu songs. It was considered taboo to sing nenbutsu songs out of season.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f23697de-8e59-4d4b-b715-432cb2786e1f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Performances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rhdsm3gcfd","content":[{"text":"According to the local historian Kishaba Eijun, angama traditions can be divided into two groups: one is performed by the four samurai communities of Ishigaki Island and the other is of commoners in rural communities and remote islands. He argued that the latter had better preserved its traditional way. In the samurai communities of Ishigaki, a group of people with drums (taiko) and sanshin parades around houses of each village. They enter a house that is surrounded by a larger number of spectators. Once everyone sits, Uya nu Ugun (親の御恩, or Nzō Nenbutsu 無蔵念仏) was sung to mark the beginning, and dancers clap with the beat. Dances and songs alternate with question and answer, in which two masked character Ushumai (old man) and Nmi (old woman) represent ancestral spirits and answer in a humorous way to questions about the afterlife asked by villagers. Kishaba noted that what distinguished samurai's angama from the rural one was that the former was an indoor performance.\nIn rural communities, angama dances are performed in the garden. A group of people forms a circle. In the center people sing and play drums, flutes, gongs and sanshin, depending on regional variants, and they are surrounded by male and female dancers. \"Shichigwachi Nenbutsu\" (七月念仏), \"KōKō Nenbutsu\"  (孝行念仏) and \"Chonjon Nenbutsu\" (仲順念仏) were mainly sung.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f23697de-8e59-4d4b-b715-432cb2786e1f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"paqy57a2qh","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Angama (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f23697de-8e59-4d4b-b715-432cb2786e1f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bssxvg013c","content":[{"text":"angama is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8d0c1906-70c3-4c13-9a19-bc4132d6e378"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kk40bh6ngj","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8d0c1906-70c3-4c13-9a19-bc4132d6e378"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"アンガマ（沖縄県石垣市石垣やいま村）","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/16/Ishigaki_yaimamura_angama.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Paipateroma","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"アンガマ（沖縄県石垣市石垣やいま村）","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/16/Ishigaki_yaimamura_angama.jpg/960px-Ishigaki_yaimamura_angama.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ishigaki_yaimamura_angama.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/16/Ishigaki_yaimamura_angama.jpg/1280px-Ishigaki_yaimamura_angama.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:11.949Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/angama"}
{"id":"cea45505-830b-4aff-bc38-4769c00462c5","type":"art_form","slug":"apache","title":"Apache","summary":"Apache (French: [a.paʃ]), or La Danse Apache, Bowery Waltz, Apache Turn, Apache Dance and  Tough Dance  is a highly dramatic dance associated in popular culture with Parisian street culture at the beginning of the 20th century.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0dx3nfdkpp","content":[{"text":"Apache (French: [a.paʃ]), or La Danse Apache, Bowery Waltz, Apache Turn, Apache Dance and  Tough Dance  is a highly dramatic dance associated in popular culture with Parisian street culture at the beginning of the 20th century. The name of the dance is pronounced ah-PAHSH, not uh-PATCH-ee. In fin de siècle Paris young members of street gangs were labelled Apaches by the press because of the ferocity of their savagery towards one another, a name taken from the North American Indian tribe, Apache.\nThe dance is sometimes said to reenact a violent \"discussion\" between a pimp and a prostitute. It includes mock slaps and punches, the man picking up and throwing the woman to the ground, or lifting and carrying her while she struggles or feigns unconsciousness. Thus, the dance shares many features with the theatrical discipline of stage combat.  In some examples, the woman may fight back.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"41fbca26-866f-4fc2-ae68-bcd32489d349"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origin","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0z36ba8p2c","content":[{"text":"In 1908, dancers Maurice Mouvet and Max Dearly began to visit the low bars frequented by Apaches in a search for inspiration for new dances.  They formulated the new dance from moves seen there and gave to it the name Apache.  Max Dearly first performed it in 1908 in Paris at the Café des Ambassadeurs and Maurice in Ostend at the Kursaal. A short while later, in the summer of 1908, Maurice and his partner Leona performed the dance at Maxim's, and Max Dearly made an even bigger impact with it, partnered with Mistinguett, in the Moulin Rouge show, La Revue du Moulin. Mistinguett described the dance as, \"an alternation between caresses and struggles, brutality and sensual tenderness.\"","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"41fbca26-866f-4fc2-ae68-bcd32489d349"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Music","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zqw8692012","content":[{"text":"The music most associated with the Apache dance is the \"Valse des Rayons\" from the ballet Le Papillon, composed by Jacques Offenbach in 1861. An arrangement by Charles Dubourg, titled \"Valse Chaloupée\" was used by Mistinguett and Max Dearly when performing the dance at the Moulin Rouge in 1908. Other arrangements of the same waltz soon followed, including \"L'Amour de L'Apache\" in 1909, arranged by Augustus C. Ely. An early example of original music composed for the Apache dance is \"Valse Apache,\" composed by Fernand Le Borne for the 1908 silent film L'Empreinte ou la main rouge in which Mistinguett and Max Dearly performed the dance. The sheet music for L'Empreinte contains several cues to the movements in the Apache dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"41fbca26-866f-4fc2-ae68-bcd32489d349"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Depictions","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qpmr0tskar","content":[{"text":"A 1902 Edison movie of two Bowery dancers, Kid Foley and Sailor Lil doing a Tough dance which is similar in style, survives.\nThe 1904 Pathé film Danse des Apaches directed by Gaston Velle contains an early Apache dance performed by acrobatic dancers from La Scala, Paris.\nIn The Mothering Heart,  a 1913 short drama film directed by D. W. Griffith, an Apache dance is shown in a restaurant cabaret.\nThe famous French 10-part 7-hour silent film Les Vampires (1915, re-released on DVD in 2005) about an Apache gang \"Les Vampires\" contains a number of Apache dance scenes performed by real street Apache dancers, rather than actors.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"41fbca26-866f-4fc2-ae68-bcd32489d349"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0sbsr0zctd","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Apache (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"41fbca26-866f-4fc2-ae68-bcd32489d349"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"723mvsaemq","content":[{"text":"Apache is Parisian dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2852a6e9-2309-4285-9a0f-db334dee66f7"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5pvj97a2w7","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2852a6e9-2309-4285-9a0f-db334dee66f7"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"The Athabascans, Apache Intruders from the North diorama in the Land of Sun: The Southwest exhibit at the Milwaukee Public Museum in Milwaukee , Wisconsin ( United States ).","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/66/Milwaukee_Public_Museum_April_2023_034_%28Land_of_Sun-_The_Southwest--The_Athabascans%2C_Apache_Intruders_from_the_North%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Michael Barera","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"The Athabascans, Apache Intruders from the North diorama in the Land of Sun: The Southwest exhibit at the Milwaukee Public Museum in Milwaukee , Wisconsin ( United States ).","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/66/Milwaukee_Public_Museum_April_2023_034_%28Land_of_Sun-_The_Southwest--The_Athabascans%2C_Apache_Intruders_from_the_North%29.jpg/960px-Milwaukee_Public_Museum_April_2023_034_%28Land_of_Sun-_The_Southwest--The_Athabascans%2C_Apache_Intruders_from_the_North%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Milwaukee_Public_Museum_April_2023_034_(Land_of_Sun-_The_Southwest--The_Athabascans,_Apache_Intruders_from_the_North).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/66/Milwaukee_Public_Museum_April_2023_034_%28Land_of_Sun-_The_Southwest--The_Athabascans%2C_Apache_Intruders_from_the_North%29.jpg/1280px-Milwaukee_Public_Museum_April_2023_034_%28Land_of_Sun-_The_Southwest--The_Athabascans%2C_Apache_Intruders_from_the_North%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"The Athabascans, Apache Intruders from the North diorama in the Land of Sun: The Southwest exhibit at the Milwaukee Public Museum in Milwaukee , Wisconsin ( United States ).","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/42/Milwaukee_Public_Museum_April_2023_032_%28Land_of_Sun-_The_Southwest--The_Athabascans%2C_Apache_Intruders_from_the_North%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Michael Barera","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"The Athabascans, Apache Intruders from the North diorama in the Land of Sun: The Southwest exhibit at the Milwaukee Public Museum in Milwaukee , Wisconsin ( United States ).","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/42/Milwaukee_Public_Museum_April_2023_032_%28Land_of_Sun-_The_Southwest--The_Athabascans%2C_Apache_Intruders_from_the_North%29.jpg/960px-Milwaukee_Public_Museum_April_2023_032_%28Land_of_Sun-_The_Southwest--The_Athabascans%2C_Apache_Intruders_from_the_North%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Milwaukee_Public_Museum_April_2023_032_(Land_of_Sun-_The_Southwest--The_Athabascans,_Apache_Intruders_from_the_North).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/42/Milwaukee_Public_Museum_April_2023_032_%28Land_of_Sun-_The_Southwest--The_Athabascans%2C_Apache_Intruders_from_the_North%29.jpg/1280px-Milwaukee_Public_Museum_April_2023_032_%28Land_of_Sun-_The_Southwest--The_Athabascans%2C_Apache_Intruders_from_the_North%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"The Athabascans, Apache Intruders from the North diorama in the Land of Sun: The Southwest exhibit at the Milwaukee Public Museum in Milwaukee , Wisconsin ( United States ).","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/59/Milwaukee_Public_Museum_April_2023_031_%28Land_of_Sun-_The_Southwest--The_Athabascans%2C_Apache_Intruders_from_the_North%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Michael Barera","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"The Athabascans, Apache Intruders from the North diorama in the Land of Sun: The Southwest exhibit at the Milwaukee Public Museum in Milwaukee , Wisconsin ( United States ).","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/59/Milwaukee_Public_Museum_April_2023_031_%28Land_of_Sun-_The_Southwest--The_Athabascans%2C_Apache_Intruders_from_the_North%29.jpg/960px-Milwaukee_Public_Museum_April_2023_031_%28Land_of_Sun-_The_Southwest--The_Athabascans%2C_Apache_Intruders_from_the_North%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Milwaukee_Public_Museum_April_2023_031_(Land_of_Sun-_The_Southwest--The_Athabascans,_Apache_Intruders_from_the_North).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/59/Milwaukee_Public_Museum_April_2023_031_%28Land_of_Sun-_The_Southwest--The_Athabascans%2C_Apache_Intruders_from_the_North%29.jpg/1280px-Milwaukee_Public_Museum_April_2023_031_%28Land_of_Sun-_The_Southwest--The_Athabascans%2C_Apache_Intruders_from_the_North%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:05.194Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/apache"}
{"id":"f2cb4105-8ba7-43ed-972b-c147851f567c","type":"art_form","slug":"apsara-dance","title":"Apsara Dance","summary":"Robam Tep Apsara (Khmer: របាំទេពអប្សរា) is one of the traditional dances of the Royal Ballet of Cambodia repertoire.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hx02rwnfj3","content":[{"text":"Robam Tep Apsara (Khmer: របាំទេពអប្សរា) is one of the traditional dances of the Royal Ballet of Cambodia repertoire. It is performed by women, sewn into tight-fitting traditional dress, whose graceful, sinuous gestures are codified to narrate classical myths or religious stories. It is one of the national symbols of Cambodia.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8e2b78c6-6ed3-4f50-9235-d9b81b7d3310"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"re025byg69","content":[{"text":"Apsara represent an important motif in the stone bas-reliefs of the Angkorian temples in Cambodia (8th–13th centuries AD), however all female images are not considered to be apsara. In harmony with the Indian association of dance with apsaras, Khmer female figures that are dancing or are poised to dance are considered apsara; Female figures, depicted individually or in groups, who are standing still and facing forward in the manner of temple guardians or custodians are called devatas.\nIn the 1950s, Queen Sisowath Kossamak, the wife of King Norodom Suramarit, was sent an invitation to visit the Sothearath primary school. While there, she saw the school mistress prepare an Angkor apsara dance performed by young school children in the paper apsara costume. This included a crown, sampot, and flower, all referencing apsaras represented at Angkor. The Queen was inspired to re-create the Apsara dance from the Phuong Neary dance (Khmer: របាំភួងនារី), and uses music from the pinpeat orchestra, a song titled 'Deum Chheung' (Khmer: ដើមឈិង). This led her first granddaughter, Princess Norodom Buppha Devi, a daughter of Norodom Sihanouk, to become the first professional apsara dancer of the modern era. The Princess started practicing the dance at five years old and danced Apsara for first time during King Norodom Sihanouk's tenure.\nIn 1967, the fine–boned young princess, clad in silk and glittering jewels, performed beneath the stars on the open pavilion within the palace walls, accompanied by the royal dance troupe and the pinpeat orchestra. Selected by her grandmother, Queen Sisowath Kossomak, to become a dancer when she was only a baby. She toured the world as the principal dancer of the apsara role.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8e2b78c6-6ed3-4f50-9235-d9b81b7d3310"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Costume","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gxvf9d1269","content":[{"text":"The costumes of the apsara role is based on the devatas as depicted on the bas-relief of Angkor Wat. They wear a sampot sarabap, a type of silk brocade skirt-cloth. The sampot, worn samloy-style and also called samloy robab, is intricately pleated in the front like the Angkorean devata. The lead's sampot is generally white.\nOn top, a silk bodice is worn, generally skin-color, to suggest nudity.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8e2b78c6-6ed3-4f50-9235-d9b81b7d3310"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Headdress","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xmsezp8z56","content":[{"text":"The headdress of the lead apsara has three points or tips, with two rows of spherical decorations like the apsara pictured at Angkor. Headdress worn by the subordinate dancers commonly have three points and only one row of sphere decoration. These crowns often include garlands of artificial hair with ornate adornments. The five-points crowns are frequently absent in modern dance routines.\nA flower tassel is worn on the left side of her mokot and a champei on the right side of her head. Champeis are sometimes worn in a cascade in her hair.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8e2b78c6-6ed3-4f50-9235-d9b81b7d3310"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Accessories","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f1vwg0ks90","content":[{"text":"The round decorative collar just below the neck, called srang kar or samrong kar, is embellished with detailed gold-colored copper ornaments and beaded designs. The elaborate decorations is usually found gracefully decorated on two separate rows.  Additional copper ornaments are found hanging below these rows, in the shape of difficult-to-describe warped spear tips, the largest of which is centralized.\nKravat khim khat, an Apsara dancer's belt, resembles her samrong kar/srang kar.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8e2b78c6-6ed3-4f50-9235-d9b81b7d3310"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gyfzt9wb7w","content":[{"text":"Dangling earrings, which are bound in bunches, traditionally stretch almost to the shoulder. These dangling earrings are mainly duplicated from the design of the krorsang flower (a large spiny tree with sour fruit) and are preferred to the 'mete' (chili) flowers.\nThere are a total of four types of wrist jewelry: kong rak, a diamond-like studded bracelet decorated in a tree branch-like fashion;\npatrum, a spring-like coiled gold colored thick copper; kong ngor, bracelets (two sets are worn) of small, round beaded orb/sphere bunches connected to one another, and sanlek, an intricate and well decorated thickly rounded jewel. Additionally, an Apsara dancer may wear a garland of jasmine. The apsara wears an armlet, called snab dei or baing phap, on both arms.\nTwo types of gold ankle jewelry are usually worn by the Apsara dancer, the first being kong tong chhuk, and the second kong ngor (or kong kravel).\nThe sangvar is a loosely decorated band of beads worn crosswise. The golden flower is considered a body-decorating element, either worn on the waist or carried during the performance. It too is gold in color, and made of thin flexible copper.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8e2b78c6-6ed3-4f50-9235-d9b81b7d3310"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Prima Ballerinas","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"z174hvj1js","content":[{"text":"In the Royal Ballet, a prima ballerina for the apsara role is considered. Starting with Princess Norodom Buppha Devi there have been many others since the dance's conception. Sin Sakkada is the current prima ballerina for the apsara role.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8e2b78c6-6ed3-4f50-9235-d9b81b7d3310"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c81j4pbzaa","content":[{"text":"Mrs. Seng Sreymom (អ្នកស្រី សេង ស្រីមុំ)\nMrs.  Voan Savay (អ្នកស្រី វ័ន សាវៃ)\nMrs. Douch Thach (អ្នកស្រី ឌុក ថាច)\nMrs. Voan Savong (អ្នកស្រី វ័ន សាវង្ស)\nMrs. Yim Devi (អ្នកស្រី យឹម ទេវី)\nMrs. Mom Kanika (អ្នកស្រី ម៉ម កណិការ)\nMrs. Ouk Phalla (អ្នកស្រី អ៊ុក ផល្លា)\nMrs. Sok Sokhoeun (អ្នកស្រី សុខ សុខឿន)\nMrs. Chap Chamroeunmina (អ្នកស្រី ចាប ចំរើនមិនា)\nMrs. Chen Chansoda (អ្នកស្រី ចិន្ត ចន្ទសុដា)\nMs. Sin Sakkada (កញ្ញា សុិន សក្កដា)","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8e2b78c6-6ed3-4f50-9235-d9b81b7d3310"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"h72tftd34x","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Apsara Dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8e2b78c6-6ed3-4f50-9235-d9b81b7d3310"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"y823s7wv5w","content":[{"text":"Apsara Dance is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"61c9d822-fdba-4c6c-9f27-3afec23baa2d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3wbsnj4qmp","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"61c9d822-fdba-4c6c-9f27-3afec23baa2d"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Dancers performing Apsara dance, Siem Reap, Cambodia, Oct. 2008","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/98/Apsara_Dance%2C_Siem_Reap%2C_Cambodia%2C_Oct._2008.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"shankar s., https://www.flickr.com/photos/shankaronline/","height":1707,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Dancers performing Apsara dance, Siem Reap, Cambodia, Oct. 2008","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/98/Apsara_Dance%2C_Siem_Reap%2C_Cambodia%2C_Oct._2008.jpg/960px-Apsara_Dance%2C_Siem_Reap%2C_Cambodia%2C_Oct._2008.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Apsara_Dance,_Siem_Reap,_Cambodia,_Oct._2008.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/98/Apsara_Dance%2C_Siem_Reap%2C_Cambodia%2C_Oct._2008.jpg/1280px-Apsara_Dance%2C_Siem_Reap%2C_Cambodia%2C_Oct._2008.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"},{"alt":"Mỹ Sơn , apsara dance","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2f/M%E1%BB%B9_S%C6%A1n%2C_apsara_dance_%286224375894%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Arian Zwegers","height":1707,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Mỹ Sơn , apsara dance","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2f/M%E1%BB%B9_S%C6%A1n%2C_apsara_dance_%286224375894%29.jpg/960px-M%E1%BB%B9_S%C6%A1n%2C_apsara_dance_%286224375894%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:M%E1%BB%B9_S%C6%A1n,_apsara_dance_(6224375894).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2f/M%E1%BB%B9_S%C6%A1n%2C_apsara_dance_%286224375894%29.jpg/1280px-M%E1%BB%B9_S%C6%A1n%2C_apsara_dance_%286224375894%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"},{"alt":"Khmer ballet dancer performing Apsara","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5a/Rabam_Apsara_dance_Khmer.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"MoonsMoon","height":2844,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Khmer ballet dancer performing Apsara","licence":"CC BY 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Rabam_Apsara_dance_Khmer.jpg/960px-Rabam_Apsara_dance_Khmer.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Rabam_Apsara_dance_Khmer.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Rabam_Apsara_dance_Khmer.jpg/1280px-Rabam_Apsara_dance_Khmer.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:05.553Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/apsara-dance"}
{"id":"1528b2b6-946b-4dda-88d2-e5393ca3da8b","type":"art_form","slug":"arcan","title":"Arcan","summary":"The Arcan is the name of a custom, and of the associated popular dance and melody, of Romania. It is sometimes also called laţ or pripon, meaning \"lasso\"/\"tether\" or \"aiguillette\".","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tkaeevwf8c","content":[{"text":"The Arcan is the name of a custom, and of the associated popular dance and melody, of Romania. It is sometimes also called laţ or pripon, meaning \"lasso\"/\"tether\" or \"aiguillette\". There is a version called Arcanul bătrânesc, which is a slow arcan danced in the Moldavian region of Romania. Bătrân means both \"ancient or \"old\" and it is commonly used as an attribute of dances from all over Romania.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a2b00540-ce10-4ecd-bf12-8842adcdb5ce"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Ritual","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"besqxq6kdc","content":[{"text":"The dance, performed by amateurs, professional ensembles, as well as other performers of folk dances, is traditionally performed by men, and takes place around a burning bonfire. The word arcan also refers to the step that the men perform while dancing around the fire: the right foot steps to the side (or double stamps as the dance builds momentum), the left foot crosses behind, the right foot steps to the side again, and the left foot is hopped in front of the dancer with a bent knee; the dance is performed with the men's arms upon one another's shoulders, and is part of the larger group of circle dances called hora.\nThe \"custom\" label is given to the arcan by the fact that it has a rite of passage character: like the căluşari, it is to be danced only by boys old enough to marry (dressed in traditional Romanian costumes). Taking part in the dance is sometimes also called \"a lua cu forţa\" (\"to forcefully summon\" or \"to grab\"), or a arcăni (\"to lasso\") - it has an etymological parallel in the favored method of conscription in the defense forces of Early Modern Wallachia and Moldavia, a lua cu arcanul (\"to lasso with the arkan\"), whereby boys were selectively kiddnapped by the authorities. The reason for this apparent \"violent\" character of the dance is its initiating value, of entering into the next step of the social pyramid, by which boys become marriageable young men. It refers to the strategy adopted by the \"established\" men, led by an authority figure, forcibly (with a ritualistic force) taking the boys (at that time still considered children) to the hora, and dancing this particular variation of the hora.\nThe arcan ritual dance was a necessary condition for a young men to be allowed to participate later on in a căluşari ritual dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a2b00540-ce10-4ecd-bf12-8842adcdb5ce"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Verses","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m3va99hfhw","content":[{"text":"The dance is accompanied by specific verses. For example:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a2b00540-ce10-4ecd-bf12-8842adcdb5ce"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dq5mynmak0","content":[{"text":"Arcaneaua, brâul verde,\nVai, că bine i se şede,\nI se şede cui se şede,\nCodrului cu frunza verde.\nApproximate translation: \"Arkan, green belt, / Oh, it suits him well, / It suits whom it suits, / [It suits] the green-leafed forest\". The \"green belt\" is a kind of belt used by men to identify themselves as having emerged from adolescence and having become eligible. A man who has danced the arcan is sometimes called arcănit (\"arkaned\"), bun de oi (\"good for sheep\", i.e. good to be a shepherd), bun de însurat (\"good to be married\").\nAs the dance progresses, some repetitive recitations are to be shouted. These are meant to give choreographic directions and codify the dance description:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a2b00540-ce10-4ecd-bf12-8842adcdb5ce"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kezrxh61zb","content":[{"text":"Trii bătute, trii,\nTrii să le punem,\nTrii să le bătem,\nTrii şi pentru mine,\nTrii şi pentru tine;\nÎncă trii că n-o fost bune,\nAlte trii pe loc le-om pune;\nTrii bătute, trii gătite, \nUn genunche şi-nainte.\nor","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a2b00540-ce10-4ecd-bf12-8842adcdb5ce"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"h6zwk6ac1c","content":[{"text":"Tot acelea trii,\nTrii pentru Ilii.\nOnce the boy had danced the Arcan, he is acknowledged by the whole community as belonging to the eligible group of men - this is conditioned by precision in performing the dance. Hence, there is yet another group of verses, cautioning the participants:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a2b00540-ce10-4ecd-bf12-8842adcdb5ce"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"aek7htxfxv","content":[{"text":"Foaie verde papanaş,\nCâte-un pinten, fecioraş.\nLuaţi sama, feciori, bine,\nSă nu păţim vreo ruşine,\nCă ne văd cele copile.\nTranslation (approximation): \"Green leaf harefoot, / A spur at a time, virgin boy, / Take good care, virgin boys, / Not to disgrace ourselves, / Because the girls are watching us\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a2b00540-ce10-4ecd-bf12-8842adcdb5ce"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Influence","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4n2z97hep9","content":[{"text":"In 1908, a Romanian dance group danced the arcan in Vienna, and in 1937 in London, both times having won prizes from the organisers for their performance. At Humor Monastery (see Painted churches of northern Moldavia) built in 1530, there is a fresco which shows arcan dancers accompanied by a lăutar.\nThe dance was also brought to southwestern Ukraine by the Hutsuls, a Ukrainian ethnic subgroup. In Ukraine, the dance is called Arkan, but also Arcan. The Ukrainian Eurovision Song Contest 2004 winner Ruslana Lyzhichko, who is of Hutsul origin, successfully used traditional Hutsul sounds and moves on her \"Wild Dances\" album, which included a so-called arkan song.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a2b00540-ce10-4ecd-bf12-8842adcdb5ce"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m2w8w3j4ke","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Arcan (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a2b00540-ce10-4ecd-bf12-8842adcdb5ce"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"26ch0j5wg3","content":[{"text":"Arcan is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3179e88e-8040-4625-8631-f865095e6f70"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"e2djfk52hr","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3179e88e-8040-4625-8631-f865095e6f70"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Atilla Arcan grave","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/ca/Atilla_Arcan_grave.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Tarih","height":607,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Atilla Arcan grave","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/ca/Atilla_Arcan_grave.jpg/960px-Atilla_Arcan_grave.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Atilla_Arcan_grave.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/ca/Atilla_Arcan_grave.jpg/1280px-Atilla_Arcan_grave.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"},{"alt":"Atilla Arcan grave1","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/da/Atilla_Arcan_grave1.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Tarih","height":607,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Atilla Arcan grave1","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/da/Atilla_Arcan_grave1.jpg/960px-Atilla_Arcan_grave1.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Atilla_Arcan_grave1.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/da/Atilla_Arcan_grave1.jpg/1280px-Atilla_Arcan_grave1.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"},{"alt":"Arcan Isenkul photo shoot in front of alte oper in Frankfurt for professional work.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/38/Arcan_isenkul_Alte_Oper.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Ali Isenkul","height":1920,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Arcan Isenkul photo shoot in front of alte oper in Frankfurt for professional work.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/38/Arcan_isenkul_Alte_Oper.jpg/960px-Arcan_isenkul_Alte_Oper.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Arcan_isenkul_Alte_Oper.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/38/Arcan_isenkul_Alte_Oper.jpg/1280px-Arcan_isenkul_Alte_Oper.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:05.858Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/arcan"}
{"id":"9abc8d95-ebe5-4a75-9001-a85a4b76cf1c","type":"art_form","slug":"ardah","title":"Ardah","summary":"Ardah (Arabic: العرضة / ALA-LC: al-‘arḍah) is a type of folkloric group dance in the Arabian Peninsula, in most countries located in the Gulf Cooperation Council.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1gr8n4kekb","content":[{"text":"Ardah (Arabic: العرضة / ALA-LC: al-‘arḍah) is a type of folkloric group dance in the Arabian Peninsula, in most countries located in the Gulf Cooperation Council. The dance is performed with two rows of men opposite of one another, each of whom may or may not be wielding a sword or cane, and is accompanied by drums and spoken poetry.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a0301177-fb74-4251-b4db-12a3aefb9e54"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gbpmgah8z1","content":[{"text":"Originally, the ardah was performed only by males of tribes of the Arabian Peninsula before going to war, but nowadays it is done at celebrations, weddings, and national and cultural events by males of all tribes. There currently exists various types of ardah  across the Arabian Peninsula.\nIt was inscribed on UNESCO's Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2015 as Alardah Alnajdiyah.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a0301177-fb74-4251-b4db-12a3aefb9e54"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Variations","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wgt7rs9np6","content":[{"text":"The term ardah (عَرْضَة) is thought to derive from the Arabic verb ard (عَرَضَ) meaning 'to show' or 'to parade'. It was so named because its purpose was to publicly display the fighting strength of a tribe and boost morale before an armed engagement. Although there are regional variations of the particular rendition of ardah, the purpose it serves is nearly identical throughout the Arabian Peninsula.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a0301177-fb74-4251-b4db-12a3aefb9e54"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Nejdi ardah","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9de2yy7dn3","content":[{"text":"Najdi ardah is the most common variant of ardah in Saudi Arabia. It is also the most practiced and highly televised male folkloric dance in the entire country. The Saudi government changed its name to 'Saudi ardah' in the 21st century. However, there are numerous variations of ardah distinct from Najdi ardah throughout the country, notably in the regions of Najran, Asir and Jizan.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a0301177-fb74-4251-b4db-12a3aefb9e54"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"reqjhrjbqn","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Ardah”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a0301177-fb74-4251-b4db-12a3aefb9e54"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9e5e7nktd2","content":[{"text":"Ardah is type of folkloric group dance in Saudi Arabia, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b80f039f-d015-48b9-b9a8-107a963c2257"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"v9ct4t2p2t","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b80f039f-d015-48b9-b9a8-107a963c2257"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Ardah in Jenadriyah 27","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ab/Jenadriyah_27_%2812%29.JPG?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Abodi009","height":956,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Ardah in Jenadriyah 27","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/ab/Jenadriyah_27_%2812%29.JPG/960px-Jenadriyah_27_%2812%29.JPG?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Jenadriyah_27_(12).JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/ab/Jenadriyah_27_%2812%29.JPG/1280px-Jenadriyah_27_%2812%29.JPG?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:17.556Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/ardah"}
{"id":"af13bf66-c83c-4fa2-8a55-be94f38c9e91","type":"art_form","slug":"arkan","title":"Arkan","summary":"Arkan (Ukrainian: Aркан, Aрґан) is a popular circle dance of the Ukrainian Hutsul people (from Hutsulshchyna, southwestern Ukraine).","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nvw7wvctvs","content":[{"text":"Arkan (Ukrainian: Aркан, Aрґан) is a popular circle dance of the Ukrainian Hutsul people (from Hutsulshchyna, southwestern Ukraine). The word literally means lasso, borrowed from the Romanian language, derived from the Turkic word arkan, meaning 'rope', 'lasso'.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a848e060-fcf9-4227-850f-894b130876d4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ekrzb6n9fz","content":[{"text":"The Arkan is traditionally performed around a burning bonfire by the men. \nThe word Arkan also refers to the step that the men perform while dancing around the fire. The step begins with the right foot stepping to the side (or double stamping as the dance builds momentum), the left foot crosses behind, the right footsteps to the side again, and the left foot is hopped in front of the dancer with a bent knee. The dance is performed with the men's arms upon one another's shoulders. In professional Ukrainian dances, however, many variations may accompany this root step. The rhythm of Arkan is 2/4.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a848e060-fcf9-4227-850f-894b130876d4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Ritual use","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tb17b7fn5t","content":[{"text":"The Arkan is an element of the rite of passage of a 20-year-old Hutsul from a youth into a lehin (\"young man\"). After passing the rite, he was given the right to dance, carry a shepherd's axe, kill enemies and gird himself with a wide belt, i.e., he became a potential opryshok (Carpathian bands of 'noble highwaymen', similar to the Robin Hood archetype).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a848e060-fcf9-4227-850f-894b130876d4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Related dances and recordings","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dq6r78mqgk","content":[{"text":"There is also a Romanian dance called Arcan.\nSeveral artists have recorded versions of the tune traditionally associated with the Arkan, such as The Ukrainians, Ruslana, and Lemon Bucket Orkestra.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a848e060-fcf9-4227-850f-894b130876d4"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6zenszfb6k","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Arkan (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a848e060-fcf9-4227-850f-894b130876d4"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vv124zszsj","content":[{"text":"Arkan is Ukrainian folk men's dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7e5e9d9f-aa56-4f3f-be9e-bf9530f12e07"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gzhwsyh4e8","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7e5e9d9f-aa56-4f3f-be9e-bf9530f12e07"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Mural of Željko Ražnatović Arkan, wall of the FK Obilić stadium in Gospodara Vučića Street, Belgrade. Contains the Serbian phrase \"Жељко живи\" (\"Željko lives\").","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f4/Mural_of_%C5%BDeljko_Ra%C5%BEnatovi%C4%87_Arkan%2C_wall_of_the_FK_Obili%C4%87_stadium_in_Gospodara_Vu%C4%8Di%C4%87a_Street%2C_Belgrade.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Aleksamil","height":1714,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Mural of Željko Ražnatović Arkan, wall of the FK Obilić stadium in Gospodara Vučića Street, Belgrade. Contains the Serbian phrase \"Жељко живи\" (\"Željko lives\").","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f4/Mural_of_%C5%BDeljko_Ra%C5%BEnatovi%C4%87_Arkan%2C_wall_of_the_FK_Obili%C4%87_stadium_in_Gospodara_Vu%C4%8Di%C4%87a_Street%2C_Belgrade.jpg/960px-Mural_of_%C5%BDeljko_Ra%C5%BEnatovi%C4%87_Arkan%2C_wall_of_the_FK_Obili%C4%87_stadium_in_Gospodara_Vu%C4%8Di%C4%87a_Street%2C_Belgrade.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mural_of_%C5%BDeljko_Ra%C5%BEnatovi%C4%87_Arkan,_wall_of_the_FK_Obili%C4%87_stadium_in_Gospodara_Vu%C4%8Di%C4%87a_Street,_Belgrade.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f4/Mural_of_%C5%BDeljko_Ra%C5%BEnatovi%C4%87_Arkan%2C_wall_of_the_FK_Obili%C4%87_stadium_in_Gospodara_Vu%C4%8Di%C4%87a_Street%2C_Belgrade.jpg/1280px-Mural_of_%C5%BDeljko_Ra%C5%BEnatovi%C4%87_Arkan%2C_wall_of_the_FK_Obili%C4%87_stadium_in_Gospodara_Vu%C4%8Di%C4%87a_Street%2C_Belgrade.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"},{"alt":"Arkan Asaad at Göteborg Book Fair 2011.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c9/Arkan_Asaad_G%C3%B6teborg_Book_Fair_2011.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Arild Vågen","height":1912,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Arkan Asaad at Göteborg Book Fair 2011.","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c9/Arkan_Asaad_G%C3%B6teborg_Book_Fair_2011.jpg/960px-Arkan_Asaad_G%C3%B6teborg_Book_Fair_2011.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Arkan_Asaad_G%C3%B6teborg_Book_Fair_2011.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c9/Arkan_Asaad_G%C3%B6teborg_Book_Fair_2011.jpg/1280px-Arkan_Asaad_G%C3%B6teborg_Book_Fair_2011.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"},{"alt":"Arkan Asaad at the Gothenburg Book Fair 2014.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4a/Arkan_Asaad_2014.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Averater","height":1925,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Arkan Asaad at the Gothenburg Book Fair 2014.","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4a/Arkan_Asaad_2014.JPG/960px-Arkan_Asaad_2014.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Arkan_Asaad_2014.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4a/Arkan_Asaad_2014.JPG/1280px-Arkan_Asaad_2014.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:06.170Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/arkan"}
{"id":"692b7aa7-aed7-45e6-9c4c-1b3e4226fa00","type":"art_form","slug":"armenian-dance","title":"Armenian dance","summary":"The Armenian dance (Armenian: Հայկական պար) heritage has been considered the oldest and most varied in its respective region.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"70dtqtephb","content":[{"text":"The Armenian dance (Armenian: Հայկական պար) heritage has been considered the oldest and most varied in its respective region. From the fifth to the third millennia B.C., in the higher regions of Armenia, the land of Ararat, there are rock paintings of scenes of country dancing. These dances were most likely accompanied by certain kinds of songs or musical instruments. In the fifth century, Moses of Khoren (Movsés Khorenats'i) himself had heard of how the old descendants of Aram (that is Armenians) make mention of these things (epic tales) in the ballads for the lyre and their songs and dances.\nTraditional dancing is still popular among expatriate Armenians, and has also been very successfully exported to international folk dance groups and circle dance groups all over the world. All dancers wear the traditional costume to embody the history of their culture and to tell their ancestors stories. The design of these costumes are influenced by many factors, such as religious traditions, family methods, and practicality. The traditional coloring and exquisite beading of the costumes tie the dance and the tradition together. The beautiful movements of the Armenian cultural dance are adored by audiences around the world.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a90c49bd-af82-4b78-88fb-18707e94a8f8"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Religious dancing","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qpex2kr5cs","content":[{"text":"The origin of religious dancing is ancient, an expression of the inner feelings of those who participated in such performances. It is of interest to note that dance never occurred alone, but was always accompanied with song, clapping of hands, and musical instruments. As with music, so too the dance expressed a person's internal spiritual emotions and personal disposition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a90c49bd-af82-4b78-88fb-18707e94a8f8"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Soviet Union","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m1j4wkx1p1","content":[{"text":"During the 1920s and 30s, three Armenian dance teachers moved to Iran from the Soviet Union and opened dance schools. Their names were Madame Yelena, Madame Coronelli, and Sarkis Djanbazian. They taught ballet and character dance. Most of their students were members of the Armenian community in Tehran, but their classes were also attended by students from diverse backgrounds including Muslims, Jews, Baha'is and Zoroastrians.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a90c49bd-af82-4b78-88fb-18707e94a8f8"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"National dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vjwn2nsqx5","content":[{"text":"Armenian dance form \"Hov Arek\", along with the Manipuri classical dance of India, are collectively referred to as the \"National Dances\" (of Armenia and India respectively) during the Armenia-India joint issue of postage stamps, as a part of the Armenia-India international diplomatic relations.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a90c49bd-af82-4b78-88fb-18707e94a8f8"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Folk dances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"z604bxabjr","content":[{"text":"Kochari (Քոչարի) - Kochari is one of the most popular dances of Armenians. Kochari is danced in a group of men and women and is known for its tune played on the zurna.\nShalakho (Շալախօ) - A dance for men from Ancient Armenia. It is performed in dance studios by men, but danced at public gatherings by women as well.\nTamzara (Թամզարա) - A dance originating in the Armenian Highlands.\nYarkhushta (Յարխուշտա) - Yarkhushta is a martial dance from the Taron and Aghdznik regions of Western Armenia.\nBerd (Բերդապար) - Berd is a dance famous for having a circle of men stand on the shoulders of another circle and rotate. Berd means \"fortress\" in Armenian and is named accordingly because of the shape the dancers make.\nShirkhani (Շիրխանի)\nHarsnapar (Հարսնապար) - from the Armenian hars which means bride, and par which translates to dance. The bride is shown dancing a solo and may possibly feature the bridesmaids.\nGorani (Գորանի)\nGyond (Գյոնդ or Գյովնդ)\nMenapar (Մենապար) - Menapar translates to \"solo.\" It may feature a man or woman. Normally, if a man is the one dancing, the music will be fast-paced and in the case of a woman, a slower, more elegant music will play.\nNazpar (Նազպար)\nShurjpar (Շուրջպար)\nSouserapar (Սուսերապար)\nPapuri (Փափուռի)\nZuykpar (Զույգապար) - Zuykpar is a duet done by a man and woman.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a90c49bd-af82-4b78-88fb-18707e94a8f8"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Regional dances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w5pj09v5sz","content":[{"text":"Arabkir (Արաբկիրի Պար) - A dance from the Armenian city of Arabkir.\nKesabian (Քեսապական) - The Kesabian dance came from the city of Kesab, Syria.\nLaz bar - originated among the fishermen of the Black Sea.\nMoosh (or Muş, or Mus, Մշո Պար) - a mixed dance from the district of Moush/Taron, west of Lake Van.\nSasnapar (Սասնապար) - a popular dance common at weddings and other cultural gatherings. It originated in the city of Sasun.\nVagharshapatian (Վաղարշապատյան)- originated in Vagharshapat now known as Ejmiatsin.\nZeytouni (Զեյթունի պար) - originated in Zeytun.\nVaraka Lerneri Bar.\nZangezuri (Զանգեզուրի) - a female solo dance.\nŁarabałi (Ղարաբաղի) - 1) a female solo dance; 2) mournful memorial dance from Nagorno-Karabakh.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a90c49bd-af82-4b78-88fb-18707e94a8f8"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dwwwhywsvh","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Armenian dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a90c49bd-af82-4b78-88fb-18707e94a8f8"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vgag34y5r5","content":[{"text":"Armenian dance is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3f48b441-e0c3-4a9a-a702-3dc3a4bf5b41"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k1986k7z75","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3f48b441-e0c3-4a9a-a702-3dc3a4bf5b41"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Armenian dance in taraz during Dolma Festival in Armenia","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0d/Armenian_dance_in_taraz_%282%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Armineaghayan","height":857,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Armenian dance in taraz during Dolma Festival in Armenia","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0d/Armenian_dance_in_taraz_%282%29.jpg/960px-Armenian_dance_in_taraz_%282%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Armenian_dance_in_taraz_(2).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0d/Armenian_dance_in_taraz_%282%29.jpg/1280px-Armenian_dance_in_taraz_%282%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Armenian dance in taraz during Dolma Festival in Armenia","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ac/Armenian_dance_in_taraz_%281%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Armineaghayan","height":857,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Armenian dance in taraz during Dolma Festival in Armenia","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/ac/Armenian_dance_in_taraz_%281%29.jpg/960px-Armenian_dance_in_taraz_%281%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Armenian_dance_in_taraz_(1).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/ac/Armenian_dance_in_taraz_%281%29.jpg/1280px-Armenian_dance_in_taraz_%281%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:06.458Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/armenian-dance"}
{"id":"dca11993-d968-4b2d-bc2f-0260b880440b","type":"art_form","slug":"asma-kasma","title":"Asma kasma","summary":"Azerbaijani dances (Azerbaijani: Azərbaycan Rəqsləri) are traditional dances developed and performed in the Republic of Azerbaijan. These dances are known for their quick tempo and the dancers' traditional clothing.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hrzs7z8xak","content":[{"text":"Azerbaijani dances (Azerbaijani: Azərbaycan Rəqsləri) are traditional dances developed and performed in the Republic of Azerbaijan. These dances are known for their quick tempo and the dancers' traditional clothing.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5ba64627-7596-4400-b82e-d040dff34a3e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Examples of dances in Azerbaijan","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4wjxr4t9be","content":[{"text":"Abayi (Azerbaijani: Abayı) is an Azerbaijani dance with its origins in the Shaki and Zaqatala regions of Azerbaijan. The name of the dance refers to the middle-aged people who typically perform this dance with exaggerated movements for comedic effect. The dance's slow-tempo song was written by Shaki composers. This dance is traditionally performed as a group but has evolved into a solo dance.\nAgir Karadagi (Azerbaijani: Ağır Qaradağı, meaning \"heavy Karadakhi\") is a dance song that originated in Karadakh. This slow dance is popular in Shaki and Zaqatala.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5ba64627-7596-4400-b82e-d040dff34a3e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9q1h1544r9","content":[{"text":"Anzali (Azerbaijani: Ənzəli) is a traditional dance that was created approximately in 1880–1890 in Baku. This slow dance is typically performed by older people at the beginning of wedding ceremonies.\nAsma Kasma (Azerbaijani: Asma Kəsmə, meaning \"hanging cutting\") is one of the oldest Azerbaijani wedding dances. The song \"Asma-Kasma\" accompanies the procession of the bride to the bridegroom's home as women dance alongside the bride. This slow, slightly exaggerated dance features several jumps.\nAsta Karabagi (Azerbaijani: Asta Qarabağı, meaning \"slow Karabakhi\") is a dance from Karabakh. This slow dance has fixed movements.\nAvari (Azerbaijani: Avarı) originates from the Avari people who live in Azerbaijan. Throughout the dance's three parts, the dancers' movements gradually accelerate until they reach the quick rhythm of the Lezginka music.\nBanovsha (Azerbaijani: Bənövşə, meaning \"Viola flower\") represents how a violet grows from the ground, blooms, and fades. This dance is performed at Nowruz spring festivals in Azerbaijan.\nBahar (Bahar rəqsi or Gülbaxçalar or Bahar gəldi or Bahar olsun): this dance is performed in Nowruz spring festivals in Azerbaijan by women. The dance consisted of 3 parts.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5ba64627-7596-4400-b82e-d040dff34a3e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"During Nowruz","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2e7v2mhkmv","content":[{"text":"Nowruz (meaning \"a new day\" in Persian, spelled as Novruz in Azerbaijani) is an ancient celebration of the Iranian New Year and spring and the renewal and fertility to come. Nowruz is observed on the day of vernal equinox in Iran and as far east as Tajikistan and as far west as the Kurdish regions of Turkey. Novruz in Azerbaijan is a family holiday that ends with festive public dancing and other entertainment of folk bands.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5ba64627-7596-4400-b82e-d040dff34a3e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Musical archaeology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"v4zkgt2gyt","content":[{"text":"Archaeological research connects the musical culture of modern-day Azerbaijan with Mesolithic rock carvings depicting dancing people at the archaeological sites in Qobustan and Nakhchivan.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5ba64627-7596-4400-b82e-d040dff34a3e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t8yq7vw4h1","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Azerbaijani dances”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5ba64627-7596-4400-b82e-d040dff34a3e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gkk6d7hfb8","content":[{"text":"Asma kasma is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"24fdcf03-0363-4dcb-8b4a-f1284e0bb54d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"br4jkxnazb","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"24fdcf03-0363-4dcb-8b4a-f1284e0bb54d"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"A smiling woman in a pink hijab","src":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1772625717721-3422757d3ff0?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8QXNtYSUyMGthc21hfGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgwODI3MDl8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1080","kind":"photo","width":5795,"credit":"Fajar Herlambang STUDIO","height":3999,"source":"unsplash","depicts":"A smiling woman in a pink hijab","licence":"Unsplash License","thumb640":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1772625717721-3422757d3ff0?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8QXNtYSUyMGthc21hfGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgwODI3MDl8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=640","sourceUrl":"https://unsplash.com/photos/a-smiling-woman-in-a-pink-hijab-7quXTigAsF8?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral","thumb1280":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1772625717721-3422757d3ff0?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8QXNtYSUyMGthc21hfGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgwODI3MDl8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1280","attributionUrl":"https://unsplash.com/@hng21?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:15.413Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/asma-kasma"}
{"id":"84581bec-a620-4860-937c-9ad9a543ddaa","type":"art_form","slug":"assyrian-folk-dance","title":"Assyrian folk dance","summary":"Assyrian folk dances are sets of dances that are performed throughout the world by Assyrians, mostly on occasions such as weddings, community parties and other jubilant events.\nAssyrian folk dances are mainly made up of circle dances like b…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"q8wkv5nx7e","content":[{"text":"Assyrian folk dances are sets of dances that are performed throughout the world by Assyrians, mostly on occasions such as weddings, community parties and other jubilant events.\nAssyrian folk dances are mainly made up of circle dances like ballet that are performed in a line, which may be straight, curved, or both. Most of the dances allow unlimited number of participants, with the exception of the Sabre Dance, which require three at most. Assyrian dances would vary from weak to strong, depending on the mood and tempo of a song.\nAssyrian folk dances belong to five metric groups: 24 (10 dances), 44 (6 dances), 68 (13 dances), 98 (1 dance), 108 (1 dance). The tempo would usually range from slow (70 beats per minute) to very fast (140 beats).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0358713d-2489-42e1-bed6-f7b9ec0c707c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dkpfchwejj","content":[{"text":"Lily Oraham Taimoorazy, sometimes considered to be the mother of Assyrian folk dancing, founded a dance group called the Shamiram Folkloric Group in Tehran in 1957. The group performed at several different events in Iran and Europe, including the coronation of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, until its disbandment in 1980. In the years leading up to her leaving Iran, she allowed American folk dance researcher Rickey Holden to publish booklets and phonographic records detailing Assyrian folk dances. The research done by Holden through his collaboration with the Shamiram Folkloric Group was the publication of two books, carefully noting the steps of the dances, as well as LPs and an article for Viltis translating and transliterating two Assyrian folk songs.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0358713d-2489-42e1-bed6-f7b9ec0c707c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Technique","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zcnr6vdt8h","content":[{"text":"All Assyrian dances, with the exception of the Sabre Dance, are done in a connected circle. Most Assyrian circle dances are lateral, vining and open-ended, where more and more participants can join the dance. In an open floor space, the lines assume open circular shapes where they tend to curve and acquire spiral shapes as determined by floor space availability.\nThere are only five ways of moving the body; Step, leap, run, hop and jump. The legs are also used to stamp, stomp and kick. The arms are used predominantly and they'd usually move independently of the legs. Arm gestures include bouncing, swinging forward and back, moving side-to-side, lifting above the head and clapping.\nIn many dances, the torso, along with the shoulders and arms, bounce up and down rhythmically. Stomps and stamps are also executed in Assyrian folk dances. Knee bends, deep squats and leg extensions are a regular occurrence in Assyrian dance.\nThe connections include, hand-to-hand, hand to shoulder, and hand to hip, with hand-to-hand being the most popular. The hand-to-hand type has three connections; The \"W\", the \"V\" and the \"T\". The \"W\" arm hold is the most common where the arms are raised into the \"W\" position (or, at least, it appears to look like the letter W). The \"T\" dance is where hands are placed on other participants's shoulders. This is the least common dance of the three.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0358713d-2489-42e1-bed6-f7b9ec0c707c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Fast pace","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"882ykk6xxs","content":[{"text":"Siskany: The Siskany dance involves the participants briskly shaking their shoulders where they move their limbs energetically, with an emphasis on their feet in a zippy manner. It is usually classified as a form of khigga, but due to its fast performance and style, it is also considered its own dance. Sometimes the khigga beat is geared up to this to indicate a climactic end. The pulsating tempo is consanguineous to the electronic dance music and dance-pop found in western music. The dance technique is virtually like the khigga one, albeit it is in a faster fashion and with more emphasis placed on the feet. Alternatively, a simpler form involves the dancers plainly going forwards and backwards to the beat with stomps, as if they are rocking or swinging. The dance goes by the time signature of 44 and the tempo is around 120-135bpm.\nGubbare: Mostly danced at the end of a party. The music is fast, lively and upbeat, akin to a jig. The music accompanying the dance is typically in the major key. Pinkies interlock, dancers repeatedly go forward and back in motion in the circle. People start by taking one step with their right, than one step to the left, and one step right again. During these steps, the arms are lifted and swung side to side in the same motion as the steps. Afterwards, dancers take their left foot and kick it into the air, than the right foot, than the left foot again before moving to the left while crossing their legs and swinging their arms down. The process than repeats all over again until the end of the song. Gubareh is in 44 and its tempo is around 125-135bpm.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0358713d-2489-42e1-bed6-f7b9ec0c707c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4ve5w35qm6","content":[{"text":"Bablaka: Fervently danced, with pinkies interlocking, where they (hands and arms too) move up and down energetically and perennially.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0358713d-2489-42e1-bed6-f7b9ec0c707c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Moderate pace","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yvzfctdmwe","content":[{"text":"Khigga: The simplest and most common dance beat in Assyrian music. Individuals hold hands with the line or circle following around the dance floor where they gently move one leg forward, backward and repeat with the next leg while shifting to the right. Its music is the first beat that is played when welcoming the bride and groom to the reception hall. A notable song with this beat is Moralon by Evin Agassi. Furthermore, the term khigga is also occasionally used to denote all the Assyrian folk circle dances, i.e. \"Khigga'd belaty\" (\"khigga of belaty\"), \"khigga'd gubareh\", etc. It is generally danced from right to left by Iraqi and Iranian Assyrians. Khigga goes by the time signature of 44 with moderate tempo between 105-115bpm. Rhythm is similar to that of a shuffle beat.\nHeavy Khigga (Khigga Yaqoora): Virtually the same dance as above, except the tempo is 'heavier' where the participants would make more ardent and exaggerated moves, as its name suggests, namely knee bending. It is not to be confused with Siskani, as that dance beat is faster and has distinguishing techniques. It is danced from right to left by Assyrians from Iraq and Iran, and left to right by Assyrians from Syria. Connection is always made by hands. Examples of songs having this beat is Zayno Mala by David Simon. Heavy khigga goes by the time signature of 44 with tempo between 115-120bpm.\nKhigga'd Suria (Syrian Khigga) or Beriyeh: Danced by Assyrians from Syria, it is a standard khigga that is generally accompanied by a faster beat, usually at around 110-120bpm. Dancers connect by pinkies, where they repeatedly wave their connected pinkies whilst taking a few steps forwards and one step backwards. It is generally danced from left to right.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0358713d-2489-42e1-bed6-f7b9ec0c707c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Slow pace","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"q17593yg0z","content":[{"text":"Sheikhani: One of the older dances, Sheikhani is laid-back, albeit bouncy, and slightly slower than khigga. The main movement is two-step. The two-step begins with the right foot (right-left-right) and is then repeated with the left foot (left-right-left). Hands are interlocked, left arm is bent at the elbow and pressed against the back, right arm held forward against the back of the dancer in front. The dancers go forward a couple steps in, with their arms at their sides and at the same time, kick into the center. After that, they immediately step back out. A notable song with a sheikhani beat is Wye Wye Minakh by Sargon Gabriel.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0358713d-2489-42e1-bed6-f7b9ec0c707c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"q5pn1qt7xz","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Assyrian folk dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0358713d-2489-42e1-bed6-f7b9ec0c707c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9k1k7r55a0","content":[{"text":"Assyrian folk dance is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e42f58a7-60ec-4b98-84b0-ad041392397f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8rq9dba9j7","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e42f58a7-60ec-4b98-84b0-ad041392397f"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"An overhead photo of Assyrian folk dance at the 92nd Assyrian National Convention in Anaheim, California","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e4/Overhead_view_of_Assyrian_folk_dance%2C_2025.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Surayeproject3","height":1707,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"An overhead photo of Assyrian folk dance at the 92nd Assyrian National Convention in Anaheim, California","licence":"CC BY 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e4/Overhead_view_of_Assyrian_folk_dance%2C_2025.jpg/960px-Overhead_view_of_Assyrian_folk_dance%2C_2025.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Overhead_view_of_Assyrian_folk_dance,_2025.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e4/Overhead_view_of_Assyrian_folk_dance%2C_2025.jpg/1280px-Overhead_view_of_Assyrian_folk_dance%2C_2025.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0"},{"alt":"A picture of Assyrians forming a Khigga dance line while wearing traditional Khomala","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a6/Shlama_Foundation_Khomala_Khigga.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Noor Matti","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"A picture of Assyrians forming a Khigga dance line while wearing traditional Khomala","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a6/Shlama_Foundation_Khomala_Khigga.jpg/960px-Shlama_Foundation_Khomala_Khigga.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Shlama_Foundation_Khomala_Khigga.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a6/Shlama_Foundation_Khomala_Khigga.jpg/1280px-Shlama_Foundation_Khomala_Khigga.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"},{"alt":"A performance of the traditional Assyrian dance Sheikhany Yaqoora, also known as Bagiye","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b3/Sheikhany_Yaqoora_Performance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Surayeproject3","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"A performance of the traditional Assyrian dance Sheikhany Yaqoora, also known as Bagiye","licence":"CC BY 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b3/Sheikhany_Yaqoora_Performance.jpg/960px-Sheikhany_Yaqoora_Performance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sheikhany_Yaqoora_Performance.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b3/Sheikhany_Yaqoora_Performance.jpg/1280px-Sheikhany_Yaqoora_Performance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:06.738Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/assyrian-folk-dance"}
{"id":"990fa146-fdc7-4b72-89b5-80620134e7af","type":"art_form","slug":"attan","title":"Attan","summary":"Attan (Pashto: اتڼ [aˈt̪aɳ] ) is a Pashtun dance. It is performed during weddings or other celebrations (engagements, weddings and informal gatherings).","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vxk44y9e58","content":[{"text":"Attan (Pashto: اتڼ [aˈt̪aɳ] ) is a Pashtun dance. It is performed during weddings or other celebrations (engagements, weddings and informal gatherings). The Attan was conducted by Pashtuns in times of war such as the British occupation and the Pashtun resistance movement, when Pashtuns used the dance to instil confidence and energy among warriors readying to battle the colonisers. It is now considered the national dance of Afghanistan, popularly carried by other ethnic groups in Afghanistan as well as by the Pashtuns of Pakistan.\nAttan is usually performed with a Dohol, which is a double-headed barrel drum. The dance can be anywhere from 5 to 30 minutes long. There are many different regional and tribal variations and styles of Attan, the most famous being Kabuli, Wardaki, Logari, Paktia, Khosti, Kandahari, and Herati\nDepending on the region and tribe, there are different methods and styles of the Pashtun attan, for example Paktia attan and styles. Attan is performed traditionally segregated although in modern times, Afghans have performed the dance with both men and women.\nClosely related circle dances can be found in the Khorasan and Sistan and Baluchestan provinces of Iran, commonly known as Chapi or Torbati there (\"رقص خراسانی\"or \"رقص سیستانی\").","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8db1184a-3afa-41cb-a309-9722d404f0a2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origin","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1cng7mq83b","content":[{"text":"Most scholars believe the Attan has Zoroastrian roots, identifying the dance as a religious ceremony of early Zoroastrianism. The dance dates back nearly 3,000 years and was performed during Zoroastrian religious ceremonies. According to Zoroastrian folklore, King Yama, a figure in Iranic mythology, celebrated Nawroz by performing an Attan with his warriors. During King Yama's time, Attan was performed before going to war because it used to give the army the confidence that they could win the battle. As well as being the national dance of Afghanistan, attan is also a very popular part of festivals, weddings, and other forms of celebrations.\nSome believe the dance is connected to Ancient Greece and the time of Alexander, connecting the Attan to the ancient Pyrrhic war dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8db1184a-3afa-41cb-a309-9722d404f0a2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Movement","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vv1eyafdv1","content":[{"text":"To the accompaniment of drums and pipes the dancers form a circle, taking each other by the hand or preparing to revolve in circles of their own. The dance starts with slow steps that gradually get faster and faster until it seems the performers must drop from exhaustion. However, the dance continues, sometimes for two or three hours at a stretch, with no breaks except a lowering of tempo or changes in the tunes and songs.\nWhat the Attan Dance consists of:\nThe dancers gather in a circle, and then is followed by music which starts slow at first, and then gradually speeds up. There is a consistent beat and rhythm, and during that specific beat is when they clap inside the circle, so the movement of the hands is outside prior to the beat. It is then followed by the dancers bringing their hands out and then clapping inside the circle, and it is the same routine and pattern of movement, which then get faster. As the movements and routine get faster, the one clap turns into two claps, and the dancers who are more advanced, at times will add turns into the movements. All in all, they must keep the circular path with the clap on the beat, every other move added is up to the individuals who originate and add their own personal style to the dance. Common dance moves involve the extending of arms into air and the stretch and extension of legs. When extending arms into air, there are times when the hands are free or there is the waving of the regalia and extension of the attire to show the detail and color.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8db1184a-3afa-41cb-a309-9722d404f0a2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Attire","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xchhymbg2e","content":[{"text":"Performers often wear traditional regalia when participating in the lively dance. Usually during the celebratory occasions, men can also be seen wearing suits and ties for a more formal look. The women can be found wearing bright, colorful dresses. These dresses can be accompanied with tiny mirrors on them which are said to symbolize light. The tiny mirrors add great detail and shine under the lights as the women move and dance.\nIn some versions of Attan, Pashtun men would flick their jet black hair in a circular motion. Men would also wear traditional turbans referred to as Lungee or Patkya which signifies what tribes they’re from and holds great importance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8db1184a-3afa-41cb-a309-9722d404f0a2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Styles and types","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"91nerzsrx0","content":[{"text":"The Attan is performed differently in many of the different parts of Afghanistan and also Pakistan. Some styles of Attan portray themes of war while others portray celebration, especially for events such as marriage, engagements, family gatherings and also as a prelude to the arrival of spring.\nAll different kinds of Attan are danced with the beats of the drums. However they all differ in style. The beater of the drum known as \"Dum\", who instantaneously change the rhythm, is circled by the performers.\nBelow is a list of common Attan styles.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8db1184a-3afa-41cb-a309-9722d404f0a2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"h4c3kyz73t","content":[{"text":"Kochai/ Kochyano - Pashtun nomadic style done in Afghanistan. Kochyano Attan literally means Attan of the Kuchi. Women usually perform this Attan during their own occasions, such as childbirth or new years (nou rooz) and coming of spring. The men usually perform with long hair, almost to shoulder length and cut straight across the back, and some may sport a very wild mustache or beard. It is usually performed with handkerchiefs, and involves many spotting movements, with multiple twists and squatting. This dance can be up to ten steps, and also involve men walking with their knees or standing erect and snapping their head in random directions to the beat of the Dhol. The depth and complexity of their Attan may be because of the wide range of valleys they trek, and many other forms may have influenced it. This dance is performed with the musician tuning the beat to the technique of the performers.\nLogarai - From the Afghan province of Logar Logari dancers have always been known for their shyness and also for their rhythmic interruptions and spins during their local dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8db1184a-3afa-41cb-a309-9722d404f0a2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Gender roles","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b2346ha90v","content":[{"text":"The women, colourfully clad in traditional (Firaq partug) dress, join in the dance. Often, women change into an Attan dress while the men remain in their original clothes at a wedding or gathering. In the past, musicians and singers were mostly men. Dancing by men and women together increasingly gained momentum among the educated and upper- and middle-class urban families in the 1970s and afterward. The Daoud Khan and the Communist regimes encouraged young men and women to defy traditional values and participate in these public activities.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8db1184a-3afa-41cb-a309-9722d404f0a2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"99vjnkvyz4","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Attan”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8db1184a-3afa-41cb-a309-9722d404f0a2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ceajyyv43q","content":[{"text":"Attan is dance native to the Pashtun ethnic group, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9081ce64-ca5c-4ce3-a551-f0e72507f490"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vb9rjvb369","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9081ce64-ca5c-4ce3-a551-f0e72507f490"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Smoke rises during an air strike on an army weapons depot on a mountain overlooking Yemen's capital Sanaa, April 20, 2015","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/79/Bombing_of_Mount_Attan_2015.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"مريم محمد الروادي","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Smoke rises during an air strike on an army weapons depot on a mountain overlooking Yemen's capital Sanaa, April 20, 2015","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/79/Bombing_of_Mount_Attan_2015.jpg/960px-Bombing_of_Mount_Attan_2015.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bombing_of_Mount_Attan_2015.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/79/Bombing_of_Mount_Attan_2015.jpg/1280px-Bombing_of_Mount_Attan_2015.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"},{"alt":"A group of local Afghan citizens perform a traditional dance, called attan, at the New Year's Eve Talent Show held at Forward Operating Base Salerno, Khowst province, Dec. 31, 2008.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1c/Afghan_attan_dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Pfc. Christina Sinders","height":876,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"A group of local Afghan citizens perform a traditional dance, called attan, at the New Year's Eve Talent Show held at Forward Operating Base Salerno, Khowst province, Dec. 31, 2008.","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1c/Afghan_attan_dance.jpg/960px-Afghan_attan_dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Afghan_attan_dance.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1c/Afghan_attan_dance.jpg/1280px-Afghan_attan_dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"Soroti East Division Soroti City (FDC)","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d8/Attan_Okia_Moses.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Ssemmanda will","height":1450,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Soroti East Division Soroti City (FDC)","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d8/Attan_Okia_Moses.jpg/960px-Attan_Okia_Moses.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Attan_Okia_Moses.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d8/Attan_Okia_Moses.jpg/1280px-Attan_Okia_Moses.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:07.031Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/attan"}
{"id":"65245c89-1728-4532-b3d6-43304b5726d8","type":"art_form","slug":"australian-dance","title":"Australian dance","summary":"Dance in Australia spans a wide range of traditions and styles. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander dance dates back thousands of years, and serves as an important form of storytelling and cultural ritual.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b2t7tpm43p","content":[{"text":"Dance in Australia spans a wide range of traditions and styles. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander dance dates back thousands of years, and serves as an important form of storytelling and cultural ritual. Following European settlement, folk traditions from England, Ireland, and Scotland evolved into a distinctly Australian style known as bush dance. More recently, classical performance has risen in prominence through institutions such as the Australian Ballet.\nAustralia has also given rise to unique styles like the Melbourne Shuffle, a rave dance from the late 1980s, and New Vogue, a sequence-based form of ballroom dancing.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"08432ac9-2e83-4c19-be90-741b21ea35c5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Indigenous Australian dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s47mezhfq9","content":[{"text":"Traditional Aboriginal Australian dance dates back thousands of years, and was closely associated with song and was understood and experienced as making present the reality of the Dreamtime. In some instances, they would imitate the actions of a particular animal as part of telling a story. For the people in their own country it defined roles, responsibilities and the place itself. These ritual performances gave them an understanding of themselves in the interplay of social, geographical and environmental forces. The performances were associated with specific places and dance grounds were often sacred places. The body decoration and specific gestures related to kin and other relationships, such as to Dreamtime beings. Some groups hold their dances secret or sacred. Gender is an important factor in some ceremonies with men and women having separate ceremonial traditions, such as the Crane Dance.\nThe term \"corroboree\" is sometimes used by non-Indigenous Australians to refer to any Aboriginal dance, although this term has its origins among the people of the Sydney region.\nFor Torres Strait Islander people, singing and dancing is their \"literature\" – \"the most important aspect of Torres Strait lifestyle. The Torres Strait Islanders preserve and present their oral history through songs and dances;...the dances act as illustrative material and, of course, the dancer himself [sic] is the storyteller\". There are many songs about the weather; others about the myths and legends; life in the sea and totemic gods; and about important events. \"The dancing and its movements express the songs and acts as the illustrative material\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"08432ac9-2e83-4c19-be90-741b21ea35c5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"20th–21st centuries","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w7tcayhvem","content":[{"text":"In the latter part of the 20th century, the influence of Indigenous Australian dance traditions was seen with the development of concert dance, particularly in contemporary dance with the National Aboriginal and Islander Skills Development Association (established 1975) and the Aboriginal Centre for the Performing Arts (ACPA, founded 1997) providing training to Indigenous Australians in dance, and the Bangarra Dance Theatre (founded 1989). With a new sense of pride emerging in a number of Aboriginal organisations in Redfern, Sydney, the Aboriginal Dance Theatre Redfern (ADTR) was established in 1979.\nThe National Aboriginal Dance Council Australia (NADCA, also referred to as National Aboriginal Dance Council of Australia) was established in 1995. With support from Ausdance, NADCA and ADRT founder Christine Donnelly convened three three major Indigenous dance conferences. The first conference was held in Sydney in 1995. The second was held in Adelaide in 1997; it included discussion of cultural and intellectual property rights and copyright issues for Australian Indigenous dancers. The third conference took place in Sydney in 1999, and was funded by the Australia Council.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"08432ac9-2e83-4c19-be90-741b21ea35c5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Bush dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"eztysfdyxv","content":[{"text":"Bush dance has developed in Australia as a form of folk dance, drawing on traditions from English, Irish, Scottish and other European dance. Favourite dances in the community include dances of European descent such as the Irish Céilidh \"Pride of Erin\" and the quadrille \"The Lancers\".\nOne of the most well-known Australian bush dances is the Nutbush, a line dance typically performed to the American song Nutbush City Limits by Ike & Tina Turner. The Nutbush was developed around 1975 as part of an effort to modernize physical education and creative arts curricula for state primary and secondary schools. It was subsequently popularised and has seen sustained success to this day, including gaining viral popularity internationally through TikTok.\nIn 1980 the Bushwackers Band published The Bushwackers Band Dance Book and a companion LP containing a number of Australian bush dances. These were largely existing folk dances that had republished with more Australian names. For example,  Waves of Tory became Waves of Bondi, the Ninepin quadrille became the Drongo and the Virginia Reel became Strip the Willow.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"08432ac9-2e83-4c19-be90-741b21ea35c5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Ballet companies","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yphfbwqmpq","content":[{"text":"The Australian Ballet was founded in 1962. It is the foremost classical ballet company in Australia, and is recognised as one of the world's major international ballet companies. It is based in Melbourne and performs works from the classical repertoire as well as contemporary works by major Australian and international choreographers. As of 2010, the Australian Ballet presented approximately 200 performances in cities and regional areas around Australia each year as well as on international tours. Regular venues include the Arts Centre Melbourne, Sydney Opera House, Sydney Theatre, Adelaide Festival Centre and Queensland Performing Arts Centre.\nOther prominent Australian classical ballet companies include the Queensland Ballet and West Australian Ballet.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"08432ac9-2e83-4c19-be90-741b21ea35c5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Ballet Dancers","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f75mgye11y","content":[{"text":"Dame Peggy van Praagh was the founding artistic director of The Australian Ballet. Robert Helpmann was appointed co-artistic director along side van Praagh in 1965. \nLi Cunxin, acclaimed ballerino and author of the best-selling autobiography Mao's Last Dancer, moved to Melbourne in 1995 where he became a principal dancer with the Australian Ballet. He subsequently served as the artistic director of Queensland Ballet from 2013 to 2023.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"08432ac9-2e83-4c19-be90-741b21ea35c5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"64pwzp212e","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Dance in Australia”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"08432ac9-2e83-4c19-be90-741b21ea35c5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jteeb3mhag","content":[{"text":"Australian dance is aspect of Australian culture, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"80c550f2-c14d-4605-8232-9c5bf4e99099"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fxj6bwp9bj","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"80c550f2-c14d-4605-8232-9c5bf4e99099"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Australian Dance Theatre","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/28/Australian_Dance_Theatre_%2825433725943%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Michael Coghlan from Adelaide, Australia","height":1037,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Australian Dance Theatre","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/28/Australian_Dance_Theatre_%2825433725943%29.jpg/960px-Australian_Dance_Theatre_%2825433725943%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Australian_Dance_Theatre_(25433725943).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/28/Australian_Dance_Theatre_%2825433725943%29.jpg/1280px-Australian_Dance_Theatre_%2825433725943%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:07.332Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/australian-dance"}
{"id":"57070e85-e79e-43d6-848c-4faf04ea4b80","type":"art_form","slug":"austrian-folk-dance","title":"Austrian folk dance","summary":"Austrian folk dancing is mostly associated with Schuhplattler, Ländler, polka and waltz. However, there are other dances such as Zwiefacher, Kontratänze and Sprachinseltänze.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"89sy0wxw1r","content":[{"text":"Austrian folk dancing is mostly associated with Schuhplattler, Ländler, polka and waltz. However, there are other dances such as Zwiefacher, Kontratänze and Sprachinseltänze.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"52179297-2868-4080-aafa-2638d5110510"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Types of dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ew5d6xq787","content":[{"text":"In Austria, folk dances in general are known as Folkloretänze, i.e. \"folklore dances\", whereas the Austrian type of folk dance is known as Volkstanz (literally \"folk dance\").\nFigure dancing is a type of dance where different figures are put together with a certain tune and given a name. Round dancing, which includes the waltz, the polka, Zwiefacher etc., involves basic steps which can be danced to different tunes. In folk dancing, the waltz and the polka are in a different form to standard ballroom dancing.\nSprachinseltänze (literally \"language island dances\") are those dances which are actually by German-speaking minorities (see German as a Minority Language) living outside Austria, but which originate in Austria, e.g. those of Transylvania. One example of this type of dance is the Rediwaire.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"52179297-2868-4080-aafa-2638d5110510"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Misconceptions","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m00p089pjg","content":[{"text":"There are some misconceptions about Austrian folk tradition:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"52179297-2868-4080-aafa-2638d5110510"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7ecg58b3ab","content":[{"text":"The \"Ländler\", as performed in the film The Sound of Music, is not a traditional Ländler, but a choreographed derivative of this Austrian form of folk dance.\nThe \"Chicken Dance\" is not an Austrian folk dance, nor is it from Austria.\nThe song \"Edelweiss\" is not an Austrian folk song, and it is not the national anthem of Austria. The national anthem of Austria is \"Land der Berge, Land am Strome\". \"Edelweiss\" was created specifically for The Sound of Music.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"52179297-2868-4080-aafa-2638d5110510"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Festivals","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pf60b0fkyf","content":[{"text":"Austrian folk dance festivals follow a common sequence:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"52179297-2868-4080-aafa-2638d5110510"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kp7yf6mqn1","content":[{"text":"everybody gets onto the dance floor and dances the opening round\na welcoming speech is made\nwaltzes are danced in blocks, with breaks in between.\nfinally a special dance, often with a goodbye song.\nViennese festivals usually have four long sets of dances, with long breaks and figure dancing in between. Other parts of Austria have a larger number of shorter blocks (three to five dances each) with shorter breaks between them, and more figure dancing.\nThough attended only by a tradition-minded minority, Vienna folk dance events are carefully organized events often taking place at extraordinary locations, such as, the Alpenverein, the Autumn Dance at baroque Belvedere (palace), the Ländler dances (the traditional music of which bears the rhythm from which in the 19th century the Vienna waltz music was developed), and the summer dances which take place twice each week during summer holiday season (July and August).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"52179297-2868-4080-aafa-2638d5110510"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Musical instruments","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mbtwbwzdvx","content":[{"text":"Typical instruments for Austrian folk dance are the Styrian harmonica (a type of accordion), the fiddle, the clarinet, the harp, the flute and brass bands. Dances are often accompanied by the contrabass or the guitar. Unlike modern Austrian folk-pop music, drums are not used.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"52179297-2868-4080-aafa-2638d5110510"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qjbt5f2dny","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Austrian folk dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"52179297-2868-4080-aafa-2638d5110510"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c4r6xk1y4p","content":[{"text":"Austrian folk dance is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8c790865-c7e5-4494-9df6-b639bfb7fa0d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s9pw8q7snj","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8c790865-c7e5-4494-9df6-b639bfb7fa0d"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Folk dance of Styria","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c3/Volkstanz_Folk_dance_of_Austria_Styria_01.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Zeitblick","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Folk dance of Styria","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c3/Volkstanz_Folk_dance_of_Austria_Styria_01.jpg/960px-Volkstanz_Folk_dance_of_Austria_Styria_01.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Volkstanz_Folk_dance_of_Austria_Styria_01.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c3/Volkstanz_Folk_dance_of_Austria_Styria_01.jpg/1280px-Volkstanz_Folk_dance_of_Austria_Styria_01.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:18.271Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/austrian-folk-dance"}
{"id":"92cd28e0-0cc7-41fa-bf16-ee0e9ec82f13","type":"art_form","slug":"avari","title":"Avari","summary":"The culture of Azerbaijan (Azerbaijani: Azərbaycan mədəniyyəti) combines a diverse and heterogeneous set of elements which developed under the influence of Iranic, Turkic and Caucasian cultures.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5h8824f4pd","content":[{"text":"The culture of Azerbaijan (Azerbaijani: Azərbaycan mədəniyyəti) combines a diverse and heterogeneous set of elements which developed under the influence of Iranic, Turkic and Caucasian cultures. Azerbaijani culture includes its cuisine, literature, folk art, architecture and music.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9e3874e4-a283-4562-bb91-ee2d25141b5f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ky0z2yze9k","content":[{"text":"Azerbaijan is the modern name of a historic, geographic region on the border of Eastern Europe and Western Asia, formerly known as Aran (or Ardan) by Persian empires and Albania by the Greeks. It is bounded by the Caspian Sea on the east, Dagestan on the north, Georgia on the northwest, Armenia and Turkey on the southwest, and Iran on the south. Although Azerbaijan is home to a number of ethnic groups, ten million people are Azerbaijanis.\nThe heritage, culture, and civilization of Azerbaijan have ancient and modern roots. Its people are believed to be descendants of ancient peoples who include indigenous Caucasian Albanian tribes, such as the Scythians and Alans, and the later Oghuz Turks.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9e3874e4-a283-4562-bb91-ee2d25141b5f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Caucasian Albania","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bcpga2m3tj","content":[{"text":"Caucasian Albanians are believed to be the earliest inhabitants of the land, north of the Aras, which is present-day Azerbaijan. Early arrivals included the Iranian Scythians during the 9th century BC. The South Caucasus was conquered by the Persian Achaemenid Empire around 550 BC. Zoroastrianism was already prevalent among the Medes in the lands surrounding the Aras. The Achaemenids were defeated by Alexander the Great in 330 BC. After the fall of the Seleucid Empire in Persia in 247 BC and its succession by the Parthian Empire, the Caucasian Albanians established a kingdom in the 1st century BC and remained largely independent under Parthian rule until the Sasanian Empire made the kingdom a province in 252 AD. The Arsacid king Urnayr adopted Christianity as the state religion in the fourth century, and Caucasian Albania was a Christian state until the eighth century. Sasanid control ended with their defeat by Muslim Arabs in 642.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9e3874e4-a283-4562-bb91-ee2d25141b5f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Islamic period","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hajaxan162","content":[{"text":"For centuries before Islam arrived in present-day Azerbaijan, Armenia and Georgia, the region was under Sassanid Iranian rule; before that, it was ruled by Parthian Iranians. Muslim Arabs defeated the Sassanids and the Byzantine Empire as they marched into the Caucasus. They made Caucasian Albania a vassal state after Christian resistance, led by Prince Javanshir, surrendered in 667. Between the ninth and 10th centuries, Arab authors referred to the region between the Kura and Aras as Arran. Arabs from Basra and Kufa came to Aran, seized lands abandoned by the indigenous peoples, and became a land-owning elite. Despite pockets of continued resistance, most inhabitants of Azerbaijan converted to Islam. During the 10th and 11th centuries, the Kurdish Shaddadid and Rawadid dynasties ruled portions of Aran.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9e3874e4-a283-4562-bb91-ee2d25141b5f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Seljuks and successor states","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gjbaqxdwfn","content":[{"text":"After the decline of the Abbasid Caliphate, Azerbaijan was ruled by the Iranian Sallarid, Sajid, and Shaddadid dynasties. At the beginning of the 11th century, waves of Oghuz Turks arrived from Central Asia. The first ruling Turkic dynasty was the Ghaznavids, from present-day northern Afghanistan, who took over part of Azerbaijan by 1030. They were followed by the Seljuks, a western branch of the Oghuz, who conquered Iran and the Caucasus pressing on to Iraq and overthrowing the Buyid dynasty in Baghdad in 1055.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9e3874e4-a283-4562-bb91-ee2d25141b5f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Shirvanshahs","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"j3z4kbjyzt","content":[{"text":"Shīrwān Shāh, or Sharwān Shāh, was the title in medieval Islamic Azerbaijan for the ruler of the Shirvan region. The Shirvanshahs established a dynasty which ruled Aran and parts of Dagestan, in addition to Shirvan, and was one of the Islamic world's longest-lasting dynasties.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9e3874e4-a283-4562-bb91-ee2d25141b5f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"g70zw707ej","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Culture of Azerbaijan”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9e3874e4-a283-4562-bb91-ee2d25141b5f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t5gb834kvf","content":[{"text":"Avari is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"df540023-f64a-464f-8334-0490fbdac8b5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"q3gtrfs0mc","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"df540023-f64a-464f-8334-0490fbdac8b5"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Erick Avari [6]","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b1/Erick_Avari_-6-_%2834718790435%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Jeff Hitchcock from Seattle, WA, USA","height":2121,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Erick Avari [6]","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b1/Erick_Avari_-6-_%2834718790435%29.jpg/960px-Erick_Avari_-6-_%2834718790435%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Erick_Avari_-6-_(34718790435).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b1/Erick_Avari_-6-_%2834718790435%29.jpg/1280px-Erick_Avari_-6-_%2834718790435%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"},{"alt":"Erick Avari at GateCon 2006","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4a/Avari%2C_Erick_1.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Jeff Hitchcock from Vancouver, BC, Canada","height":933,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Erick Avari at GateCon 2006","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4a/Avari%2C_Erick_1.jpg/960px-Avari%2C_Erick_1.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Avari,_Erick_1.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4a/Avari%2C_Erick_1.jpg/1280px-Avari%2C_Erick_1.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"},{"alt":"Erick Avari [3]","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c8/Erick_Avari_-3-_%2834718801295%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Jeff Hitchcock from Seattle, WA, USA","height":1933,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Erick Avari [3]","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c8/Erick_Avari_-3-_%2834718801295%29.jpg/960px-Erick_Avari_-3-_%2834718801295%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Erick_Avari_-3-_(34718801295).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c8/Erick_Avari_-3-_%2834718801295%29.jpg/1280px-Erick_Avari_-3-_%2834718801295%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:07.823Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/avari"}
{"id":"32af44ae-70f6-49de-8686-dbf96a29193d","type":"art_form","slug":"awa-dance-festival","title":"Awa Dance Festival","summary":"The Awa Dance Festival (阿波踊り, Awa Odori) is held from 12 to 15 August as part of the Obon festival in Tokushima Prefecture on Shikoku in Japan.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"csrfmrbvzn","content":[{"text":"The Awa Dance Festival (阿波踊り, Awa Odori) is held from 12 to 15 August as part of the Obon festival in Tokushima Prefecture on Shikoku in Japan. Awa Odori is the largest dance festival in Japan, attracting over 540 thousand tourists every year.\nGroups of choreographed dancers and musicians known as ren (連) dance through the streets, typically accompanied by the shamisen lute, taiko drums, shinobue flute and the kane bell. Performers wear traditional obon dance costumes, and chant and sing as they parade through the streets.\nAwa is the old feudal administration name for Tokushima Prefecture, and odori means \"dance\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"263e66a3-f1e6-480c-bd5d-70f0bbb88949"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sey07tzc4j","content":[{"text":"The earliest origins of the dance style are found in the Japanese Buddhist priestly dances of Nembutsu-odori and hiji-odori of the Kamakura period (1185–1333), and also in kumi-odori, a lively harvest dance that was known to last for several days.\nThe Awa Odori festival grew out of the tradition of the Bon Odori which is danced as part of the Bon \"Festival of the Dead\", a Japanese Buddhist celebration where the spirits of deceased ancestors are said to visit their living relatives for a few days of the year. The term \"Awa Odori\" was not used until the 20th century, but Bon festivities in Tokushima have been famous for their size, exuberance and anarchy since the 16th century.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"263e66a3-f1e6-480c-bd5d-70f0bbb88949"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rtj3shypd5","content":[{"text":"Awa Odori's independent existence as a huge, citywide dance party is popularly believed to have begun in 1586 when Lord Hachisuka Iemasa, the daimyō of Awa Province hosted a drunken celebration of the opening of Tokushima Castle.  The locals, having consumed a great amount of sake, began to drunkenly weave and stumble back and forth.  Others picked up commonly available musical instruments and began to play a simple, rhythmic song, to which the revelers invented lyrics. The lyrics are given in the 'Song' section of this article.\nThis version of events is supported by the lyrics of the first verse of \"Awa Yoshikono Bushi\", a local version of a popular folk song which praises Hachisuka Iemasa for giving the people Awa Odori and is quoted in the majority of tourist brochures and websites. However, according to local historian Miyoshi Shoichiro, this story first appeared in a Mainichi Shimbun newspaper article in 1908 and is unsupported by any concrete evidence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"263e66a3-f1e6-480c-bd5d-70f0bbb88949"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Song","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6s7xkjc8at","content":[{"text":"The song associated with Awa Odori is called Awa Yoshikono and is a localised version of the Edo period popular song Yoshikono Bushi.  Parts of it are sung, and others are chanted.  The origins of the melodic part have been traced to Kumamoto, Kyūshū, but the Awa version came from Ibaraki Prefecture, from where it spread back down to Nagoya and Kansai. The lyrics of the first verse are:\nAwa no tono sama Hachisuka-sama ga ima ni nokoseshi Awa OdoriWhat Awa's Lord Hachisuka left us to the present day is Awa Odori\nThe song is usually sung at a point in the parade where the dancers can stop and perform a stationary dance — for example a street intersection or in front of the ticketed, amplified stands which are set up at points around the city.  Not every group has a singer, but dancers and musicians will frequently break out into the Awa Yoshikono chant as they parade through the streets:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"263e66a3-f1e6-480c-bd5d-70f0bbb88949"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f0s0eawws8","content":[{"text":"The dancers also chant hayashi kotoba call and response patterns such as \"Ayattosa, Ayattosa\", \"Hayaccha yaccha\", \"Erai yaccha, erai yaccha\", and \"Yoi, yoi, yoi, yoi\".  These calls have no semantic meaning but help to encourage the dancers.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"263e66a3-f1e6-480c-bd5d-70f0bbb88949"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6k6n8a8vpf","content":[{"text":"During the daytime a restrained dance called Nagashi is performed, but at night the dancers switch to a frenzied dance called Zomeki. As suggested by the lyrics of the chant, spectators are often encouraged to join the dance.\nMen and women dance in different styles. For the men’s dance: right foot and right arm forward, touch the ground with toes, then step with right foot crossing over left leg. This is then repeated with the left leg and arm. Whilst doing this, the hands draw triangles in the air with a flick of the wrists, starting at different points.  Men dance in a low crouch with knees pointing outwards and arms held above the shoulders.\nThe women's dance uses the same basic steps, although the posture is quite different. The restrictive kimono allows only the smallest of steps forward but a crisp kick behind, and the hand gestures are more restrained and graceful, reaching up towards the sky. Women usually dance in tight formation, poised on the ends of their geta sandals.\nChildren and adolescents of both sexes usually dance the men's dance. In recent years, it has become more common to see adult women, especially those in their 20s, dancing the men's style of dance.\nSome of the larger ren (dance groups) also have a yakko odori, or kite dance. This usually involves one brightly dressed, acrobatic dancer, darting backwards and forwards, turning cartwheels and somersaults, with freestyle choreography. In some versions, other male dancers crouch down forming a sinuous line representing the string, and a man at the other end mimes controlling the kite.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"263e66a3-f1e6-480c-bd5d-70f0bbb88949"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Awa Dance Festivals elsewhere","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gbct4t1rp4","content":[{"text":"Kōenji, an area of Tokyo, also has an Awa Dance Festival, modeled on Tokushima's, which was started in 1956 by urban migrants from Tokushima Prefecture. It is the second largest Awa Dance Festival in Japan, with an average of 188 groups composed of 12,000 dancers, attracting 1.2 million visitors.\nThe Japanese production company Tokyo Story produced a version of Awa Odori in 2015 in Paris by bringing dancers from Japan in order to promote Awa Odori and the Japanese \"matsuri\" culture abroad.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"263e66a3-f1e6-480c-bd5d-70f0bbb88949"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"In popular culture","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7n40scbvep","content":[{"text":"Awa dance is a 2007 Japanese movie starring Nana Eikura. The festival is also prominently featured in the 2007 movie Bizan starring Matsushima Nanako. The novel series and anime Golden Time prominently features lead cast members along with their friends in their college club, the Japanese Festival Culture Research Society, performing the Awa dance multiple times during the story. Posters representing popular anime characters practicing the Awa dance are also printed every year for the festival. They featured \"Fate/stay night\", for example, in 2014.\nIn the 1994 Studio Ghibli film Heisei Tanuki Gassen Ponpoko (released as Pom Poko in English-speaking countries), during the scene where the film's tanuki use their transformation magic to put on a parade of yokai, part of their display includes a procession of tiny Awa dancers.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"263e66a3-f1e6-480c-bd5d-70f0bbb88949"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8f4qfx5798","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Awa Dance Festival”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"263e66a3-f1e6-480c-bd5d-70f0bbb88949"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"frc88jm24j","content":[{"text":"Awa Dance Festival is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"52c29be9-ddad-47fd-af26-08f004b69c02"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xs3bgdvd73","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 8 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"52c29be9-ddad-47fd-af26-08f004b69c02"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"​徳島市の阿波おどりに参加するスギちゃん。2016年8月13日。徳島市役所前演舞場。","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9e/Sugichan_to_dance_in_the_Tokushima_Awa_dance_festival._Aug._13%2C_2016.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"さかおり","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"​徳島市の阿波おどりに参加するスギちゃん。2016年8月13日。徳島市役所前演舞場。","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9e/Sugichan_to_dance_in_the_Tokushima_Awa_dance_festival._Aug._13%2C_2016.jpg/960px-Sugichan_to_dance_in_the_Tokushima_Awa_dance_festival._Aug._13%2C_2016.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sugichan_to_dance_in_the_Tokushima_Awa_dance_festival._Aug._13,_2016.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9e/Sugichan_to_dance_in_the_Tokushima_Awa_dance_festival._Aug._13%2C_2016.jpg/1280px-Sugichan_to_dance_in_the_Tokushima_Awa_dance_festival._Aug._13%2C_2016.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Awa Odori (Awa Dance Festival) in Tokushima, Japan, 2012.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/39/Tokushima_20120815_190251.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Ka23 13","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Awa Odori (Awa Dance Festival) in Tokushima, Japan, 2012.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/39/Tokushima_20120815_190251.jpg/960px-Tokushima_20120815_190251.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tokushima_20120815_190251.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/39/Tokushima_20120815_190251.jpg/1280px-Tokushima_20120815_190251.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:09.181Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/awa-dance-festival"}
{"id":"3d3802dc-98e7-43ab-968d-02d3a52e138b","type":"art_form","slug":"azerbaijani-folk-dance","title":"Azerbaijani folk dance","summary":"Azerbaijani dances (Azerbaijani: Azərbaycan Rəqsləri) are traditional dances developed and performed in the Republic of Azerbaijan. These dances are known for their quick tempo and the dancers' traditional clothing.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fc97g23e0y","content":[{"text":"Azerbaijani dances (Azerbaijani: Azərbaycan Rəqsləri) are traditional dances developed and performed in the Republic of Azerbaijan. These dances are known for their quick tempo and the dancers' traditional clothing.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5ba64627-7596-4400-b82e-d040dff34a3e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Examples of dances in Azerbaijan","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"e6nmfs3fh7","content":[{"text":"Abayi (Azerbaijani: Abayı) is an Azerbaijani dance with its origins in the Shaki and Zaqatala regions of Azerbaijan. The name of the dance refers to the middle-aged people who typically perform this dance with exaggerated movements for comedic effect. The dance's slow-tempo song was written by Shaki composers. This dance is traditionally performed as a group but has evolved into a solo dance.\nAgir Karadagi (Azerbaijani: Ağır Qaradağı, meaning \"heavy Karadakhi\") is a dance song that originated in Karadakh. This slow dance is popular in Shaki and Zaqatala.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5ba64627-7596-4400-b82e-d040dff34a3e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ntpe6wmstt","content":[{"text":"Anzali (Azerbaijani: Ənzəli) is a traditional dance that was created approximately in 1880–1890 in Baku. This slow dance is typically performed by older people at the beginning of wedding ceremonies.\nAsma Kasma (Azerbaijani: Asma Kəsmə, meaning \"hanging cutting\") is one of the oldest Azerbaijani wedding dances. The song \"Asma-Kasma\" accompanies the procession of the bride to the bridegroom's home as women dance alongside the bride. This slow, slightly exaggerated dance features several jumps.\nAsta Karabagi (Azerbaijani: Asta Qarabağı, meaning \"slow Karabakhi\") is a dance from Karabakh. This slow dance has fixed movements.\nAvari (Azerbaijani: Avarı) originates from the Avari people who live in Azerbaijan. Throughout the dance's three parts, the dancers' movements gradually accelerate until they reach the quick rhythm of the Lezginka music.\nBanovsha (Azerbaijani: Bənövşə, meaning \"Viola flower\") represents how a violet grows from the ground, blooms, and fades. This dance is performed at Nowruz spring festivals in Azerbaijan.\nBahar (Bahar rəqsi or Gülbaxçalar or Bahar gəldi or Bahar olsun): this dance is performed in Nowruz spring festivals in Azerbaijan by women. The dance consisted of 3 parts.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5ba64627-7596-4400-b82e-d040dff34a3e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"During Nowruz","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wbrw9e8wg0","content":[{"text":"Nowruz (meaning \"a new day\" in Persian, spelled as Novruz in Azerbaijani) is an ancient celebration of the Iranian New Year and spring and the renewal and fertility to come. Nowruz is observed on the day of vernal equinox in Iran and as far east as Tajikistan and as far west as the Kurdish regions of Turkey. Novruz in Azerbaijan is a family holiday that ends with festive public dancing and other entertainment of folk bands.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5ba64627-7596-4400-b82e-d040dff34a3e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Musical archaeology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"99cfm2nk06","content":[{"text":"Archaeological research connects the musical culture of modern-day Azerbaijan with Mesolithic rock carvings depicting dancing people at the archaeological sites in Qobustan and Nakhchivan.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5ba64627-7596-4400-b82e-d040dff34a3e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k8zdcpdztk","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Azerbaijani dances”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5ba64627-7596-4400-b82e-d040dff34a3e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6bxfkz5ya6","content":[{"text":"Azerbaijani folk dance is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dcf68f02-c622-4649-a2fc-f95859fcb40b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fgqns5wdfm","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dcf68f02-c622-4649-a2fc-f95859fcb40b"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Men in white robes spin in a dark room","src":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1763747554376-74d21bad7dbd?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8QXplcmJhaWphbmklMjBmb2xrJTIwZGFuY2V8ZW58MXwwfHx8MTc4ODA4MjcxMXww&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1080","kind":"photo","width":6000,"credit":"Zülfiye Altın","height":4000,"source":"unsplash","depicts":"Men in white robes spin in a dark room","licence":"Unsplash License","thumb640":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1763747554376-74d21bad7dbd?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8QXplcmJhaWphbmklMjBmb2xrJTIwZGFuY2V8ZW58MXwwfHx8MTc4ODA4MjcxMXww&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=640","sourceUrl":"https://unsplash.com/photos/men-in-white-robes-spin-in-a-dark-room-v6gfZmFMpt4?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral","thumb1280":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1763747554376-74d21bad7dbd?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8QXplcmJhaWphbmklMjBmb2xrJTIwZGFuY2V8ZW58MXwwfHx8MTc4ODA4MjcxMXww&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1280","attributionUrl":"https://unsplash.com/@zlfy?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:15.746Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/azerbaijani-folk-dance"}
{"id":"998ebb30-5fae-44b6-b4bd-55821eb2a6ac","type":"art_form","slug":"baagh-naach","title":"Baagh Naach","summary":"Bagha Nacha or Tiger Dance is performed in Binka, Sonepur of Subarnapur district and Behrampur, and in some parts of the Ganjam district in Odisha, India. It is performed in the month of chaitra.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"j2ya2c84fm","content":[{"text":"Bagha Nacha or Tiger Dance is performed in Binka, Sonepur of Subarnapur district and Behrampur, and in some parts of the Ganjam district in Odisha, India. It is performed in the month of chaitra. Male dancers paint themselves like a tiger and perform the bagha nacha.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"56f70e3a-c3d1-4272-a589-0c5f78587120"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Performance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wnbmctg0yj","content":[{"text":"Dancers spend about three to four hours getting painted in bagha vesh (attire of the tiger) and it takes at least two people per dancer to get the painting right. The bagha nacha dancers need not be a professional dancer. Interested performers undergo two to four weeks of training under a mentor before the actual performance.\nThe bagha nacha performance has a permanent place in the state's Thakurani Jatra where the dance is performed as a homage to the goddess of wisdom. The dance is performed to appease the goddess Maa Budhi Thakurani and receive her blessings.\nFour changus, which is a traditional musical instrument, are required. The instruments need constant warming, which is why a vehicle filled with haystacks follows the bagha nacha performers. Garlands made of katha champa flowers are put on the performers to keep them cool through the intense performances. Each performer is accompanied with four to six dhampa drum beaters, with periodic breaks, to keep the momentum going.\nA similar bagha nacha dance form exists in the states of West Bengal and Andhra Pradesh, but the form of performance is unique in each. The dhampa drumbeats and costumes do not resemble any classical dance form.\nIn January 2025, a cohort of more than 40 male dancers participated in the Jayati Jai Mamah Bharatam dance ensemble organised by the Ministry of Culture during the Republic Day parade. The dancers, dressed as tigers, performed to the tunes of mohuri and nishan.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"56f70e3a-c3d1-4272-a589-0c5f78587120"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Films","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pvsfz567gg","content":[{"text":"In 1989, bagha nacha from Ganjam was captured on-screen by director Buddhadev Dasgupta in the Bengali film, Bagh Bahadur. The film won the Best National Film Award the same year.\nIn January 2025, an Odia film about the struggle of a father and daughter to preserve the tradition and legacy of bagha nacha hit the theatres. The title of the film is Rangashoor and it is directed by Pratap Rout.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"56f70e3a-c3d1-4272-a589-0c5f78587120"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w0ce1j79k9","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Bagha Nacha”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"56f70e3a-c3d1-4272-a589-0c5f78587120"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"abkjsmz806","content":[{"text":"Baagh Naach is Dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0afdbf1c-f750-436c-9ccd-c75d335fdc40"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xdef5weqay","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0afdbf1c-f750-436c-9ccd-c75d335fdc40"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"a group of women standing next to each other","src":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1708026479184-9624cfd1fdf1?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8QmFhZ2glMjBOYWFjaHxlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MDgyNzEyfDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1080","kind":"photo","width":5456,"credit":"Rosario Fernandes","height":3632,"source":"unsplash","depicts":"a group of women standing next to each other","licence":"Unsplash License","thumb640":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1708026479184-9624cfd1fdf1?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8QmFhZ2glMjBOYWFjaHxlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MDgyNzEyfDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=640","sourceUrl":"https://unsplash.com/photos/a-group-of-women-standing-next-to-each-other-eIObURQzU4Y?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral","thumb1280":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1708026479184-9624cfd1fdf1?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8QmFhZ2glMjBOYWFjaHxlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MDgyNzEyfDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1280","attributionUrl":"https://unsplash.com/@rioferns62?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:16.063Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/baagh-naach"}
{"id":"733a9d02-5339-4f22-9430-892519b06ba4","type":"art_form","slug":"bacchu-ber","title":"Bacchu-ber","summary":"The bacchu-ber (French: [ba.ky.bɛʁ]), derived from Occitan bau cubèrt (Occitan: [baw ky'bɛʁ], covered dance or indoor ball), is a traditional folk dance performed with swords.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nvw7tpgjva","content":[{"text":"The bacchu-ber (French: [ba.ky.bɛʁ]), derived from Occitan bau cubèrt (Occitan: [baw ky'bɛʁ], covered dance or indoor ball), is a traditional folk dance performed with swords. This dance takes place in the district of Pont-de-Cervières, city of Briançon (Hautes-Alpes, France). Its origin dates back to many centuries ago (first written confirmation in 1730). This folk dance is unique in France and is one of the rare sword dances that have stood the test of time. \nIt is performed once a year on 16 August, day of Saint Roch (1340–1379), patron of the Pont-de-Cervières district.\nSimilar shows are performed on the Italian side of the Cottian Alps, notably in San Giorio, Fenestrelle and Giaglione villages.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"62857052-e6fb-48b5-95de-af8f4f578b42"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origins","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mw5f3bhgvf","content":[{"text":"The origin of the dance is almost impossible to determine: it might be a dance of Celtic, Roman, Greek, Flemish, etc. origin. One could argue that the name of this dance evokes the god Bacchus but this remains unproven.\nAs the dance is performed on the feast-day of Saint Roch, who is traditionally invoked in times of plague, some experts argue that survivors of the plague in Pont-de-Cervières would have chosen this Saint as patron of their district. However, there has never been any mention of a vow being made to perform a special dance on this particular saint's day.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"62857052-e6fb-48b5-95de-af8f4f578b42"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Description","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xev287pnxv","content":[{"text":"The dance is performed by 9 male dancers who are dressed in white with a small bow tie, a large red cummerbund around the waist and black dancing pumps. The men form a circle, nod to each other and move and interlock their swords in geometrical patterns.\nEach man holds the point of the sword of another dancer and the hilt of his own. All dance at a sliding rhythmic pace (a series of 3 small steps). Raising the swords, and passing under them, they form various shapes such as 3 triangles, a rectangle and a star, 2 rectangles, a star and a triangle, etc.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"62857052-e6fb-48b5-95de-af8f4f578b42"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pp4hxbkhjq","content":[{"text":"The final form, called « la lève », is composed of a circle of dancers, one of them being at the centre, with the swords interlocked around his neck. All dancers kneel down simultaneously and all rise together several times. \nIn the summer of 1936 Albert Lebrun, President of the French Republic, attended a performance of the dance.\nDuring both world wars the Bacchu-ber was not performed.\nIn 2003, for a commemoration, the Bacchu-ber was exceptionally performed by 2 circles of dancers (usually only one).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"62857052-e6fb-48b5-95de-af8f4f578b42"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Song of the dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m8q25dxbfh","content":[{"text":"The performance is accompanied by a repetitive song consisting of meaningless \"scat\" syllables commonly called the \"Dratanla\".\nIt is sung by about 10 women wearing the traditional clothing of Pont-de-Cervières. Women usually sing seated on a bench but have been known to sing standing up.\nThe traditional clothing is composed of a white cotton bonnet with a knot under the chin, a shawl worn over a blouse and a dark grey skirt (with small Provence patterns) with an elastic around the waist. An apron is tied over the skirt and holds the shawl in place.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"62857052-e6fb-48b5-95de-af8f4f578b42"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rfn9bjrhpe","content":[{"text":"Approximate current words of the song:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"62857052-e6fb-48b5-95de-af8f4f578b42"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"txk28nw1yt","content":[{"text":"La dratanla la dra, la dratanla, la\nLa dratanla, la dra, la dratanla,\nEt dralala, la dratanla, la dra la,\nLa dratanla, la dratata la dra,\nLa dratanla, la dra,\nLa dratanla, la dratanla, la dra, la la dra.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"62857052-e6fb-48b5-95de-af8f4f578b42"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dancing venue","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jn4z76ef2j","content":[{"text":"The dance is usually performed twice on a lower wooden stage and lasts about 20 minutes. The first performance is given at the top of the Pont-de-Cervières village, on the Church Square (where stands the Church Saint Roch & Saint Marcellus). Then dancers, singers and audience walk down the Bacchu-ber Street to reach the Jean Jaurès Square where the dance is performed a second time.\nIn older times, the dance was performed three times.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"62857052-e6fb-48b5-95de-af8f4f578b42"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Associations","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8mkbvz13n3","content":[{"text":"Founded in 1935, the Society of the Bacchu-ber Admirers manages the organisation of the event. The current President is Frédéric Arnaud.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"62857052-e6fb-48b5-95de-af8f4f578b42"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ecv494w4vt","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Bacchu-ber”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"62857052-e6fb-48b5-95de-af8f4f578b42"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"32mf27sr4r","content":[{"text":"Bacchu-ber is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"de4e4912-10dd-43bf-b92e-b8cfb1de0fc8"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"72qatwz77r","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"de4e4912-10dd-43bf-b92e-b8cfb1de0fc8"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Transcription of the Bacchu-bert song, the Dratanla, by Raphaël Blanchard, 1895, published in 1914, l'art populaire dans le Briançonnais, le Ba'cubert, ed. Honoré Champion, Paris","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/38/Song_bacchu_ber_1895_raphael_blanchard.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Raphaêl Blanchard","height":376,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Transcription of the Bacchu-bert song, the Dratanla, by Raphaël Blanchard, 1895, published in 1914, l'art populaire dans le Briançonnais, le Ba'cubert, ed. Honoré Champion, Paris","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/38/Song_bacchu_ber_1895_raphael_blanchard.jpg/960px-Song_bacchu_ber_1895_raphael_blanchard.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Song_bacchu_ber_1895_raphael_blanchard.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/38/Song_bacchu_ber_1895_raphael_blanchard.jpg/1280px-Song_bacchu_ber_1895_raphael_blanchard.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"Identificatie Titel(s): Fotoreproductie van een tekening van dansers die de volksdans Bacchu-ber doen. Dabse du Bacchu-Ber. -Figure des Carrés (titel op object) Objecttype: foto reproductie bladzijde Objectnummer: RP-F-2001-7-317-3 Vervaardiging Vervaardiger: fotograaf: Marais…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/61/Fotoreproductie_van_een_tekening_van_dansers_die_de_volksdans_Bacchu-ber_doen_Dabse_du_Bacchu-Ber._-Figure_des_Carr%C3%A9s_%28titel_op_object%29%2C_RP-F-2001-7-317-3.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Rijksmuseum","height":802,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Identificatie Titel(s): Fotoreproductie van een tekening van dansers die de volksdans Bacchu-ber doen. Dabse du Bacchu-Ber. -Figure des Carrés (titel op object) Objecttype: foto reproductie bladzijde Objectnummer: RP-F-2001-7-317-3 Vervaardiging Vervaardiger: fotograaf: Marais…","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/61/Fotoreproductie_van_een_tekening_van_dansers_die_de_volksdans_Bacchu-ber_doen_Dabse_du_Bacchu-Ber._-Figure_des_Carr%C3%A9s_%28titel_op_object%29%2C_RP-F-2001-7-317-3.jpg/960px-Fotoreproductie_van_een_tekening_van_dansers_die_de_volksdans_Bacchu-ber_doen_Dabse_du_Bacchu-Ber._-Figure_des_Carr%C3%A9s_%28titel_op_object%29%2C_RP-F-2001-7-317-3.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Fotoreproductie_van_een_tekening_van_dansers_die_de_volksdans_Bacchu-ber_doen_Dabse_du_Bacchu-Ber._-Figure_des_Carr%C3%A9s_(titel_op_object),_RP-F-2001-7-317-3.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/61/Fotoreproductie_van_een_tekening_van_dansers_die_de_volksdans_Bacchu-ber_doen_Dabse_du_Bacchu-Ber._-Figure_des_Carr%C3%A9s_%28titel_op_object%29%2C_RP-F-2001-7-317-3.jpg/1280px-Fotoreproductie_van_een_tekening_van_dansers_die_de_volksdans_Bacchu-ber_doen_Dabse_du_Bacchu-Ber._-Figure_des_Carr%C3%A9s_%28titel_op_object%29%2C_RP-F-2001-7-317-3.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:09.494Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/bacchu-ber"}
{"id":"534acaba-51e3-44f4-b78d-1675292c8dec","type":"art_form","slug":"bagurumba","title":"Bagurumba","summary":"The Bagurumba is a traditional dance of the indigenous Boro people living in the State of Assam and North East India. It is also called '''butterfly dance''' because it's personification of movements of butterflies and birds.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4egjg9f00n","content":[{"text":"The Bagurumba is a traditional dance of the indigenous Boro people living in the State of Assam and North East India. It is also called '''butterfly dance''' because it's personification of movements of butterflies and birds. In this occasion, only the Boro women perform the dance, wearing their colourful traditional attire dokhna, jwmgra (fasra) and aronai.  The dance is accompanied by handmade percussion instruments such as 'kham' (a long cylindrical drum, made of wood and goat skin or other animal’s skin), sifung (flute, carved out of bamboo), jota (made of iron/tama), serja (a bowed instrument, made of wood and animals skin), and gongwna (made of bamboo), tharkha (a piece of split bamboo). \nThe Boro music may lack the sophistication of established schools and forms of music, however, the khams (a long cylindrical drum) provide the beats and the rhythm for the Bagurumba dance ensemble, while sifung (flute) and Serja provide melody, together used to 'invite' young people to the festivities or celebration. The Bagurumba dance resembles the gentle and poetic movements of the butterflies, is believed to be influenced/transpired by elements of the nature. The practice of this dance by the Boro people is over thousand years old. Usually, the Boro people live in peace and harmony with the green vegetation and the environment, and worship beauty of the nature. Boro people live and farm along the foothills of the eastern and southern Himalayas, which are evergreen forest.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e4483dfc-de95-449d-aebf-cbda4203ec60"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Musical instruments","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dgpqzt59gm","content":[{"text":"Among many different musical instruments, the Bodos use for Bagurumba Dance:\nSifung: This is a long bamboo flute having five holes rather than six as the north Indian Bansuri would have and is also much longer than it, producing a much lower tone.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e4483dfc-de95-449d-aebf-cbda4203ec60"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3t2g89f9sa","content":[{"text":"Serja: a violin-like instrument. It has a round body and the scroll is bent forward.\nkham : a long drum made of wood and goat skin.\nJota: made of iron/tama.\nGongwna: made of bamboo.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e4483dfc-de95-449d-aebf-cbda4203ec60"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Composition","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pt96bb463p","content":[{"text":"Bagurumba uses F Major Pentatonic Scale, exactly similar to Chinese Traditional Music, an indication of the ancient Chinese influence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e4483dfc-de95-449d-aebf-cbda4203ec60"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"a6p2j60jj5","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Bagurumba”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e4483dfc-de95-449d-aebf-cbda4203ec60"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"331jzmpte9","content":[{"text":"Bagurumba is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c58ef799-0bda-4608-971d-3ed1f7f43fd0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cta7nc5r0s","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c58ef799-0bda-4608-971d-3ed1f7f43fd0"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Bodo girls dancing","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/36/Bodo_dance.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Bodoland Territorial Council","height":789,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Bodo girls dancing","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/36/Bodo_dance.jpg/960px-Bodo_dance.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bodo_dance.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/36/Bodo_dance.jpg/1280px-Bodo_dance.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:22.951Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/bagurumba"}
{"id":"f4ae5fdf-4773-4c57-8b36-1fdaec9c897f","type":"art_form","slug":"baile-de-la-conquista","title":"Baile de la Conquista","summary":"The Baile de la Conquista or Dance of the Conquest is a traditional folkloric dance from Guatemala.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dnqd2gct2b","content":[{"text":"The Baile de la Conquista or Dance of the Conquest is a traditional folkloric dance from Guatemala. The dance reenacts the invasion led by Spanish conquistador Pedro de Alvarado and his confrontation with Tecun Uman, ruler of K'iche' kingdom of Q'umarkaj. Although the dance is more closely associated with Guatemalan traditions, it has been performed in early colonial regions of Latin America at the urging of Catholic friars and priests, as a method of converting various native populations and African slaves to the Catholic Church.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"95e7d142-75d1-4c2a-80e9-737d91b0ee16"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origins","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tvzyfjx090","content":[{"text":"The dance is based upon the Spanish Baile de los Moros (\"Dance of the Moors\") which recounts and commemorates the expulsion of the Moorish rule from Spain. The Baile de la Conquista borrows its structure directly from the Baile de los Moros.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"95e7d142-75d1-4c2a-80e9-737d91b0ee16"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Baile de la Conquista in Guatemala","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"g86p9a9z31","content":[{"text":"The dance begins in Q'umarkaj (also known by its Nahuatl translation, Utatlán), the capital of the kingdom, where the Rey K'iche' (\"King K'iche'\") receives word of the Spaniards' approach from Aztec ruler Moctezuma II in Tenochtitlan. The king then sends his sons and daughters to Xelajuj Noj (now Quetzaltenango) to recruit Tecun Uman to lead the army against the approaching foes. Following scenes depict the K'iche' chieftains and then the Spanish officers swearing allegiance to their respective leaders. Soon after, a battle ensues between the Spanish and native troops, culminating with the battle between Alvarado and Tecún Umán. The K'iche' army is soon defeated, and echoing the Baile de los Moros, the dance concludes as the K'iche' warriors submit peaceably to Spanish rule and embrace Christianity.\nThe confrontation between Tecun Uman and Pedro de Alvarado is the central theme of the Guatemalan version of the Baile de la Conquista.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"95e7d142-75d1-4c2a-80e9-737d91b0ee16"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Tecun Uman","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"x3xe042bs0","content":[{"text":"The true existence of a historical Tecun Uman is subject of ongoing debate. One piece of evidence to suggest he lived comes from a letter written by Alvarado to Hernán Cortés. However, the letter is quite sparing in details, with Alvarado only mentioning of the battle that ensued: \"in this affair one of the four chiefs of the city of Utatlán was killed, who was the captain general of all this country.\" Alvarado did not provide a name for the K'iche' general, nor did he mention how or by whose hand the man was killed.\nSeveral other indigenous documents describe the arrival of Alvarado in what would become Guatemala, including the Título C'oyoi which describes the battle in terms similar to the modern legend. This document also contains the earliest known reference to the K'iche' leader as Tecum Umam.\nThe Popol Vuh confirms the observations of Bartolomé de las Casas and the Título de Totonicapán, which record that four lords ruled the K'iche' at the time of the Spanish conquest. The first-born son of the Keeper of the Mat (the most powerful of the lords) was expected to prove himself by leading the K'iche' army and was given the title \"nima rajpop achij\", the same title given to Tecun Uman in the Título K'oyoi. This is all tied together by the genealogy of the K'iche' lords that is given near the end of the Popul Vuh and a section of the Título de Totonicapan, which both refer to the son of the Keeper of the Mat as \"Tecum\" at the time of Alvarado's arrival.\nA second explanation for the absence of greater detail in Alvarado's letter is that Tecun Uman actually did battle with one of Alvarado's subordinates by the name of Argueta.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"95e7d142-75d1-4c2a-80e9-737d91b0ee16"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Variations","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jb67rzxt9j","content":[{"text":"The Baile de la Conquista is not unique to Guatemala; variations of the dance have been performed throughout Latin America with differences based on local folklore. The one constant in all forms of the dance is the resolution, a religious conversion of the native or \"pagan\" population. Surviving dances outside of Guatemala are usually performed to honor a town’s patron saint.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"95e7d142-75d1-4c2a-80e9-737d91b0ee16"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nxnqmjs448","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Baile de la Conquista”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"95e7d142-75d1-4c2a-80e9-737d91b0ee16"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tddh4menkm","content":[{"text":"Baile de la Conquista is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f4c893f4-d594-4b31-ac58-e0a9c0505905"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"erbfg5s4a5","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f4c893f4-d594-4b31-ac58-e0a9c0505905"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"These characters represent the Guatemalan mayans and the conquistadors that tried to conquer them. The mayans believe they won and could not be conquered and say that later they became friends with the conquistadors.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e2/Baile_de_la_Conquista_3.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"RosaMaria Birdfeather","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"These characters represent the Guatemalan mayans and the conquistadors that tried to conquer them. The mayans believe they won and could not be conquered and say that later they became friends with the conquistadors.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e2/Baile_de_la_Conquista_3.jpg/960px-Baile_de_la_Conquista_3.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Baile_de_la_Conquista_3.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e2/Baile_de_la_Conquista_3.jpg/1280px-Baile_de_la_Conquista_3.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"The folk dances of Guatemala are an expressive means of cultural and religious syncretism. The popular representations of scenes of the Conquest or the Colony, are part of the most important festivities of the whole country.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/dd/Ni%C3%B1os_danzantes_del_tradicional_Baile_de_la_Conquista%2C_Guatemala.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Bernal Rodríguez Ramírez","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"The folk dances of Guatemala are an expressive means of cultural and religious syncretism. The popular representations of scenes of the Conquest or the Colony, are part of the most important festivities of the whole country.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/dd/Ni%C3%B1os_danzantes_del_tradicional_Baile_de_la_Conquista%2C_Guatemala.jpg/960px-Ni%C3%B1os_danzantes_del_tradicional_Baile_de_la_Conquista%2C_Guatemala.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ni%C3%B1os_danzantes_del_tradicional_Baile_de_la_Conquista,_Guatemala.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/dd/Ni%C3%B1os_danzantes_del_tradicional_Baile_de_la_Conquista%2C_Guatemala.jpg/1280px-Ni%C3%B1os_danzantes_del_tradicional_Baile_de_la_Conquista%2C_Guatemala.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"These characters represent the Guatemalan mayans and the conquistadors that tried to conquer them. The mayans believe they won and could not be conquered and say that later they became friends with the conquistadors.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/51/Baile_de_la_Conquista.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"RosaMaria Birdfeather","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"These characters represent the Guatemalan mayans and the conquistadors that tried to conquer them. The mayans believe they won and could not be conquered and say that later they became friends with the conquistadors.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/51/Baile_de_la_Conquista.jpg/960px-Baile_de_la_Conquista.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Baile_de_la_Conquista.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/51/Baile_de_la_Conquista.jpg/1280px-Baile_de_la_Conquista.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:12.796Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/baile-de-la-conquista"}
{"id":"42f87ed6-1de1-40aa-807f-dbab63982ad6","type":"art_form","slug":"baile-folklorico","title":"baile folklorico","summary":"Baile folklórico, \"folkloric dance\" in Spanish, also known as ballet folklórico, is a collective term for traditional cultural dances that emphasize local folk culture with ballet characteristics – pointed toes, exaggerated movements, highl…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pte9w236p6","content":[{"text":"Baile folklórico, \"folkloric dance\" in Spanish, also known as ballet folklórico, is a collective term for traditional cultural dances that emphasize local folk culture with ballet characteristics – pointed toes, exaggerated movements, highly choreographed. Baile folklórico differs from danzas and regional bailes. Although it has some association from \"danzas nationalists\". Folk dances\", that is, \"dances that you will find in the villages, not on stage\" were researched and disseminated by Alura Angeles de Flores. Each region in Mexico, the Southwestern United States and Central American countries is known for a handful of locally characteristic dances.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7373d7a4-3179-445d-9885-3368cedd51ce"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yxmrytd4r2","content":[{"text":"In the state of Jalisco, its Jarabe Tapatio, or \"hat dance\", while the son and El baile de los sonajeros are famous dances which accompany the mariachi; one of the most popular songs is \"El Son de la Negra\" (1940). The state of Guerrero is known for its sintesis and tixtla. Michoacán is known for its huetamo and Historia del Traje de la Mujer Michoacana (lit. \"Story of the Michoacán Woman's Dress\"), a dance which depicts a local folktale, Alegria (1995). Though the dances differ from region-to-region, the basic steps and style of dance are similar. Traditional bailes in the majority of regions of Mexico are characterized by a basic set of steps called zapateados, which involve percussive heel-stomping. The influences from flamenco hardshoe dancing can be clearly seen here. At some events, people dancing zapateado will simply dance on a wooden board, table, or plank, if no hard floor is available, not unlike the Irish sean-nós (or \"old style\") dance, another possible influence on the dances of both Spain and Mexico.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7373d7a4-3179-445d-9885-3368cedd51ce"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Costumes","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qda29ptcfk","content":[{"text":"Costumes in the southwest United States are characterized by denim and western shirts while costumes of the Federal District of Mexico reflect a stronger traditional Spanish influence and those of the Yucatán reflect indigenous traditions.\nIn the folk dances of Northern Mexico, men generally wear black pants with galas on each side of the leg, accented with a red tie and belt and a black wide-brimmed hat.\nThe women wear tighter fitting and shorter skirts and either white or black boots. The costumes from Jalisco require the women to wear brightly colored ruffled skirts trimmed with ribbons whose colors are local signifiers, shoes with heavy clog-like heels and ornate hair pieces. Shoes vary in color but usually they are either black, white, or red, depending on the song and region. For the region of Veracruz, the women wear white dresses that are full of lace. They use white shoes, and a small apron with a bandana that hangs off the side of the dress.\nWhether the woman is married or not determines what side the bandana will hang and which side the floral head piece will lie. Married women wear it the bandana on the left side and, single women it hang on the right.\nSinaloan women, from the coastal region, wear lighter and more colorful dresses. The people of the Americas typically wear darker colors as a show of mourning for the dead. When dancing ballet folklórico there is a different outfit that goes with each different state of Mexico.\nSome dancing includes dancing with partners while others require using a bandana or fan, like the state of Guerrero and Veracruz. Oaxaca is most recognized for the detail in the embroidery of their dresses and the empowerment their costumes give woman from the attention to detail and extravagance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7373d7a4-3179-445d-9885-3368cedd51ce"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"States of Mexico with Baile Folklórico","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k9kgfvdsat","content":[{"text":"Aguascalientes\nBaja California\nCampeche\nChiapas\nChihuahua\nCoahuila\nColima\nDurango\nGuanajuato\nGuerrero\nHidalgo\nJalisco\nMichoacán\nNayarit\nNuevo León\nOaxaca\nPuebla\nQuerétaro\nQuintana Roo\nSan Luis Potosí\nSinaloa\nSonora\nTabasco\nTamaulipas\nTlaxcala\nVeracruz\nYucatán\nZacatecas","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7373d7a4-3179-445d-9885-3368cedd51ce"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Popularity","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"j0xesr984b","content":[{"text":"Amalia Hernandez pioneered baile folklorico in the 1950s with her establishment and leadership of the Ballet Folklórico de México.  Additionally, she founded a school in Mexico City for the study and practice of classical and folkloric dance techniques.\nPrior to its rise in popularity among student and community groups, bailes folklóricos were (and currently are) performed as a part of large parties or community events. The mariachi musicians generally stand in a line at the back of the performance space and perform without written musical notation, while the dancers perform in couples in front of the mariachis. Nowadays there are both private and public Folklorico groups that get together and compete, for example the USA Ballet Folklorico Nationals.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7373d7a4-3179-445d-9885-3368cedd51ce"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Amalia Hernandez, mestizaje and national identity","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2ed1g2ckqv","content":[{"text":"Mestizaje refers to the process of racial and cultural mixing between Europeans, Indigenous peoples, and enslaved individuals that began during the colonization of the Americas by Spanish and Portuguese colonizers. In Mexico, there have been attempts at using Mestizaje to create a national identity through art, music, and dance. Ballet Folklorico has also become a symbol of Mestizaje and the mixing of Spanish and Indigenous Mexican music and dance forms. This can be seen in its history and its formal elements such body movements, gestures, and dress.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7373d7a4-3179-445d-9885-3368cedd51ce"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"a079gxrq3e","content":[{"text":"One example of this is in Ballet Folklorico of Mexico (founded by Amalia Hernandez, a self-identified Mestiza). In one program, they noted: \"It is in the mestizaje of the indigenous and the Spanish where one will find one of the essential traits of the mexican people: A whole series of expressions are colored by their own vigorous style.\"  The company, like many other folkloric Mexican dance companies draw on indigenous dances and \"remodel\"  them with their own style and for stage performance. In the case of Ballet Folklorico, that involves western techniques brought in through Amalia Hernandez, whose own upbringing and dance education was multicultural and international. She learned ballet from Russian and French teachers and \"studied indigenous and regional Mexican dance, tap, modern\" and other dance forms. She was sent to the United States to learn English, and finished her formal dance education at Mexico's National School of Dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7373d7a4-3179-445d-9885-3368cedd51ce"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"g81qbh33k8","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Baile folklórico”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7373d7a4-3179-445d-9885-3368cedd51ce"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"g2vw16yn11","content":[{"text":"baile folklorico is collective term for traditional Mexican dances, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"af5cc4c9-e451-4968-aa9b-319826a2d714"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gatdyb2az7","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"af5cc4c9-e451-4968-aa9b-319826a2d714"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"El Rancho de Las Golondrinas","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/58/Baile_Folklorico_Dancers_%287634230310%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Larry Lamsa","height":1024,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"El Rancho de Las Golondrinas","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/58/Baile_Folklorico_Dancers_%287634230310%29.jpg/960px-Baile_Folklorico_Dancers_%287634230310%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Baile_Folklorico_Dancers_(7634230310).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/58/Baile_Folklorico_Dancers_%287634230310%29.jpg/1280px-Baile_Folklorico_Dancers_%287634230310%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"},{"alt":"Grupo juvenil realizando un baile folklorico en las calles frente al Teatro de la Paz, San Luis Potosí","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/25/Baile_folklorico_en_las_calles_del_Teatro_de_la_Paz.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"ErickBasM","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Grupo juvenil realizando un baile folklorico en las calles frente al Teatro de la Paz, San Luis Potosí","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/25/Baile_folklorico_en_las_calles_del_Teatro_de_la_Paz.jpg/960px-Baile_folklorico_en_las_calles_del_Teatro_de_la_Paz.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Baile_folklorico_en_las_calles_del_Teatro_de_la_Paz.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/25/Baile_folklorico_en_las_calles_del_Teatro_de_la_Paz.jpg/1280px-Baile_folklorico_en_las_calles_del_Teatro_de_la_Paz.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"A group of young dancers performing Mexican baile folklórico outdoors at Yale University Camera location 41° 18′ 41.26″ N, 72° 55′ 36.54″ W View this and other nearby images on: OpenStreetMap 41.311461; -72.926817","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/de/Baile_folkl%C3%B3rico_dancers_at_Yale_2%2C_October_17%2C_2008.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Sage Ross","height":854,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"A group of young dancers performing Mexican baile folklórico outdoors at Yale University Camera location 41° 18′ 41.26″ N, 72° 55′ 36.54″ W View this and other nearby images on: OpenStreetMap 41.311461; -72.926817","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/de/Baile_folkl%C3%B3rico_dancers_at_Yale_2%2C_October_17%2C_2008.jpg/960px-Baile_folkl%C3%B3rico_dancers_at_Yale_2%2C_October_17%2C_2008.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Baile_folkl%C3%B3rico_dancers_at_Yale_2,_October_17,_2008.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/de/Baile_folkl%C3%B3rico_dancers_at_Yale_2%2C_October_17%2C_2008.jpg/1280px-Baile_folkl%C3%B3rico_dancers_at_Yale_2%2C_October_17%2C_2008.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:09.827Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/baile-folklorico"}
{"id":"ac10b901-59f0-46ae-9013-6fbc8883c07c","type":"art_form","slug":"baishou-dance","title":"Baishou Dance","summary":"The Baishou Dance or baishouwu (摆手舞, literally 'hand-waving dance') is a 500-year-old historic group dance of the Tujia, one of 55 ethnic minorities in China.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7jzr0tbp76","content":[{"text":"The Baishou Dance or baishouwu (摆手舞, literally 'hand-waving dance') is a 500-year-old historic group dance of the Tujia, one of 55 ethnic minorities in China. The dance uses 70 ritual gestures to represent war, farming, hunting, courtship and other aspects of traditional life.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"da637a8e-bd4b-4a4a-bd65-6d5b18ccc5dd"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Literature","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7wjwv27h6t","content":[{"text":"The Tujia nationality Baishou dance in Xiangxi, Hunan province best reflects the ethnic flavor and ancient customs of the Tujia nationality. It is popular in Longshan county, Baojing county and Yongshun county, Xiangxi Tujia-Miao Autonomous Prefecture, Hunan province. The dance is usually performed from the third to the fifteenth day of the first lunar month. It originates from an ancestor worship ceremony and dates back nearly 1,000 years ago, according to the broken stele in the Temple of Eight Clan Leaders (Qing Dynasty) and the county annals. \nThe Tujia nationality baishou dance integrates singing, dancing, music and opera elements. It presents numerous topics concerning history and human existence, including the creation of the world, human reproduction, migration, hunting & fishing, sericulture & weaving, slash-and-burn cultivation, ancient stories, myths, legends and daily life. The dance uses ritual gestures. Dancers' movements and postures are powerful and aesthetic. They wave one hand, wave two hands, wave hand(s) when circling around, or wave hand(s) with foot movements. The dance, usually performed on level ground, can be classified into grand baishou and small-scale baishou. The grand baishou is performed by over 1,000 dancers when offering sacrifices to Tujia ancestors and is watched by over 10,000 spectators; the small-scale baishou is performed on a small scale when offering sacrifices to ancestors with the same family name.\nThe music of the dance incorporates vocal accompaniment (starting song and baishou song) and musical accompaniment (drum and gong). The song changes flexibly according to the content and movements of the dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"da637a8e-bd4b-4a4a-bd65-6d5b18ccc5dd"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"n91xk9qkst","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Baishou Dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"da637a8e-bd4b-4a4a-bd65-6d5b18ccc5dd"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"p3120ga40f","content":[{"text":"Baishou Dance is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"537af290-5643-499f-b6f2-deb11ce04568"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c9mpcwafkg","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"537af290-5643-499f-b6f2-deb11ce04568"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Sri Lanka tradition","src":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1663471984093-5925e87e72d5?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8QmFpc2hvdSUyMERhbmNlfGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgwODI3MTV8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1080","kind":"photo","width":6001,"credit":"Dinuka De Silva","height":4001,"source":"unsplash","depicts":"Sri Lanka tradition","licence":"Unsplash License","thumb640":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1663471984093-5925e87e72d5?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8QmFpc2hvdSUyMERhbmNlfGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgwODI3MTV8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=640","sourceUrl":"https://unsplash.com/photos/a-group-of-people-dancing-zWGVVOsg0eA?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral","thumb1280":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1663471984093-5925e87e72d5?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8QmFpc2hvdSUyMERhbmNlfGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgwODI3MTV8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1280","attributionUrl":"https://unsplash.com/@dinukade?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:28.748Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/baishou-dance"}
{"id":"aa48e16a-3ca2-4dd1-8592-e9e36397486d","type":"art_form","slug":"balboa","title":"Balboa","summary":"The Balboa, also known as \"Bal\", is a swing dance that emerged in Southern California during the early 1930s as a response to swing music. The earliest recorded reference to Balboa is 1932.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"n2c2myff8x","content":[{"text":"The Balboa, also known as \"Bal\", is a swing dance that emerged in Southern California during the early 1930s as a response to swing music. The earliest recorded reference to Balboa is 1932. This date coincides with what is generally accepted to be the beginning of swing. The dance enjoyed huge popularity in California during the 1930s and 1940s, and was still being danced by original dancers into the 21st century.\nBalboa is a social partner dance that distinctively relies on closed position. The earliest form of the dance emerged in the high schools and dance venues of southern California. Spaces were often limited, the floor was waxed and there was traditionally a line of dance around the room. Balboa is danced into the floor and drifts without a prescribed line of dance. Although it is not clear when, strict codes of conduct could be enforced in some venues with signs stating 'no breaks'. These dance halls were usually addressing wild kicks of other dances, specifically So Cal Swing, or simply unruly dancers. Ballrooms famous as Balboa venues displayed 'no-break' signs, with bouncers monitoring the dancers.  \n'Pure' Balboa is characterized by an upright posture with forward intent, and partners closely connecting (in numerous ways) at the lead's right side. The dance generates shared movement, creating many different rhythmic variations most noticeable in the feet.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d2d22b7a-6da3-4519-9193-5988234d1ab9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4tf3hk9yaj","content":[{"text":"Balboa emerged in Southern California during the early 1930s. Balboa is named after the Balboa Peninsula in Newport Beach, California, where the method of dancing was first recognised as a distinctive new dancing style known to be danced consistently by large numbers of dancers. But like any dance style it may have also emerged in other SoCal communities for the same reasons as part of a general change in popular dancing amongst young people caused by a change in popular music.  In later years, a newspaper article connected to the redevelopment of the Balboa Pavillion ( which had been completely refitted with historic woodwork) made claim to the Pavillion as the home of Balboa. Other recollections of original dancers and Balboa residents attribute the origins to the Rendezvous Ballroom, and  unnamed individuals. Yet more reports record different explanations. All of which indicate that there may have been no specific moment of invention, rather an evolution. \nAn earlier dance, of no similarity, was also named 'The Balboa'. It was created for the Panama Californian Exhibition, Balboa Park, 1915-17, with illustrated instructions published in newspapers.  \nBalboa dancing continued in California throughout the twentieth century and developed a number of variations which differ from the original style specifically when newer dancers and dance teachers tried to learn the dance in various ways without the benefit of the kind of recorded instructions that exist for ballroom dances.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d2d22b7a-6da3-4519-9193-5988234d1ab9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Versions","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gzhc1p73qr","content":[{"text":"Bal-Rueda\nBal-Sham\nBal-Trot\nSlow Bal","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d2d22b7a-6da3-4519-9193-5988234d1ab9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4d4tqqm1n4","content":[{"text":"Balboa & Bal-Swing History - Peter Loggins - Part 1\nBalboa & Bal-Swing History - Peter Loggins - Part 2\nBalboa & Bal-Swing History - Peter Loggins - Part 3\nBalboa & Bal-Swing History - Peter Loggins - Part 4\nBalboa & Bal-Swing History - Peter Loggins - Part 5","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d2d22b7a-6da3-4519-9193-5988234d1ab9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Events and contests","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2k5gejygcb","content":[{"text":"All Balboa Weekend\nBalboa Rendezvous Event\nEastern Balboa Championships\nTwin Cities Balboa Festival\nIncubalboa: Balboa Festival in the Catalan Pyrenees\nKorea Balboa Weekend\nCalifornia Balboa Classic","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d2d22b7a-6da3-4519-9193-5988234d1ab9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Tutorials","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"abqp687m1w","content":[{"text":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jBqu54eGoOs Balboa basic course (1 hour)\nhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ziV-oj6IO5g Balboa workshop (2 hours, Andreas Olsson and Olga Marina)\nhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=apTeRSXj8UE&list=PLaqWBnDFi0mUbV75ApSAxVhz79SmbhdcW - 8 basic moves of Balboa\nhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LLWwVkfPODo Balboa basic course, Mary & Christoffer (1 hour)","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d2d22b7a-6da3-4519-9193-5988234d1ab9"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mzhaj5dvh0","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Balboa (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d2d22b7a-6da3-4519-9193-5988234d1ab9"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rcgm9qx2ch","content":[{"text":"Balboa is type of swing dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4d11a6f1-a32e-4960-b8f6-7a3170c86d4c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9yzbya6ja4","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4d11a6f1-a32e-4960-b8f6-7a3170c86d4c"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"The Open Classic competition finals all-skate at the 2025 California Balboa Classic.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a9/CalBal_2025_open_classic_finals_all-skate_%28still%29.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Sdkb","height":720,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"The Open Classic competition finals all-skate at the 2025 California Balboa Classic.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a9/CalBal_2025_open_classic_finals_all-skate_%28still%29.jpg/960px-CalBal_2025_open_classic_finals_all-skate_%28still%29.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:CalBal_2025_open_classic_finals_all-skate_(still).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a9/CalBal_2025_open_classic_finals_all-skate_%28still%29.jpg/1280px-CalBal_2025_open_classic_finals_all-skate_%28still%29.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:24.407Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/balboa"}
{"id":"526f121d-c2ab-4c1f-8306-ba92b56fe973","type":"art_form","slug":"balinese-dance","title":"Balinese dance","summary":"Balinese dance (Indonesian: tarian Bali; Balinese: ᬇᬕᭂᬮᬦ᭄ᬩᬮᬶ (igélan Bali)) is an ancient dance tradition that is part of the religious and artistic expression among the Balinese people of Bali island, Indonesia.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ahthh3h3r2","content":[{"text":"Balinese dance (Indonesian: tarian Bali; Balinese: ᬇᬕᭂᬮᬦ᭄ᬩᬮᬶ (igélan Bali)) is an ancient dance tradition that is part of the religious and artistic expression among the Balinese people of Bali island, Indonesia. Balinese dance is dynamic, angular, and intensely expressive. Balinese dancers express the stories of dance-drama through bodily gestures including gestures of fingers, hands, head, and eyes.\nThere is a great richness of dance forms and styles in Bali; and particularly notable are those ritualistic dance dramas which involve Rangda, the witch, and the great beast Barong. Most of the dances in Bali are connected to Balinese Hindu or traditional animist and folk rituals, such as the Sanghyang Dedari sacred dance that invokes benevolent hyang spirits, believed to possess the dancers in a trance state during the performance. Other Balinese dances are not linked to religious rituals and are created for certain occasions or purposes, such as the Baris or Pendet welcoming dances and Joged dance, which is a social dance for entertainment.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5b54b379-388c-4cfb-b543-78d9afab86e8"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Recognition and conservation","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"15rnj47kfp","content":[{"text":"During the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage convention from 29 November to 4 December 2015 in Windhoek, Namibia, UNESCO recognized three genres of traditional dance in Bali, Indonesia, as Intangible cultural heritage. The three genres include Wali (sacred dances), Bebali (semi-sacred dances), and Balih-balihan (dances for entertainment purposes). Balinese dance has been proposed since 2011, and was officially recognized in 2015.\nThe three genres are represented by nine dances, which describe their function and living tradition in the Balinese community, they are:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5b54b379-388c-4cfb-b543-78d9afab86e8"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ptmdae2jgr","content":[{"text":"Wali Sacred Dances\nRejang (Klungkung District). Sacred ceremonial dance by young women in traditional ceremonial dress,\nSanghyang Dedari (Karangasem District). Sacred trance dance to counteract negative supernatural forces. Performed by two young girls.\nBaris Upacara (Bangli District) religious dances convey a heroic spirit danced by even numbers of male dancers.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5b54b379-388c-4cfb-b543-78d9afab86e8"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rgskm1wjj3","content":[{"text":"Bebali Semi Sacred Dances\nTopeng Sidhakarya/Topeng Pajegan (Tabanan District). Performed by masked dancers to neutralize the evil spirits.\nGambuh dance drama (Gianyar District). Formerly royal theatrical performance,  now accompaniment to ceremonies, by 25-40 dancers.\nWayang Wong Dance Drama (Buleleng District). Combines dance, epic drama, and music.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5b54b379-388c-4cfb-b543-78d9afab86e8"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"y3t0ss589m","content":[{"text":"Balih-balihan Entertainment Dances\nLegong Kraton (Denpasar City). Dance by 2 or 3 girls.  Developed from Sanghyang Dedari, and Gambuh.\nJoged Bumbung (Buleleng District). A popular social dance by couples, during harvest season or on important days.\nBarong Ket \"Kuntisraya\" (Badung District). Represents a fight between two mythological characters, Barong in the form of a lion symbolizing goodness, and Rangda, an evil witch.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5b54b379-388c-4cfb-b543-78d9afab86e8"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Significance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wc0m0v58nh","content":[{"text":"In Hinduism, dance is an accompaniment to the perpetual dissolving and reforming of the world. The creative and reproductive balance is often personified as Shiva's wife, Durga, sometimes called Uma, Parvati, or Kali. This has significance in Balinese Hinduism since the common figure of Rangda is similar in many ways to Durga.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5b54b379-388c-4cfb-b543-78d9afab86e8"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Variants","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"99qzmsqqxc","content":[{"text":"In Bali there are various categories of dance, including epic performances such as the omnipresent Mahabharata and Ramayana.\nCertain ceremonies at village temples feature a special performance of a dance-drama, a battle between the mythical characters Rangda, the witch representing evil, and Barong, the lion or dragon, representing good. This type of performance was traditionally featured during outbreaks of epidemic diseases which were believed by the people to be a result of a disturbance in the balance of the 'good and bad forces', which were represented by the Rangda and the Barong. The battle usually reconciles in harmony or balance of the Rangda and the Barong, instead of a defeat of the evil.\nAmong the dance traditions in Bali are:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5b54b379-388c-4cfb-b543-78d9afab86e8"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rh145qc57y","content":[{"text":"Barong, king of the spirits\nBaris war dances\nCendrawasih, the bird of paradise\nCondong, a basic dance, preface to Legong\nLegong, a refined dance\nKecak, the Ramayana monkey chant dance\nJanger, a sitting dance with swaying movements\nPendet, a simple dance performed before making an offering at a temple\nTenun, a dance that describes women weaving the cloth\nTopeng, a mask dance\nTraditionally, sacred dances can only be performed in temples. However, new choreographies have been created due to the demand from tourists. One example, Tari Sekar Jagat (Tari means dance in the Balinese language), is a relatively new choreography that has become popular. In the newer creations, choreographers have more freedom over the moves. They used new moves that were considered 'improper' for the sacred dances. For example, in Tari Sekar Jagat, there is a movement when the dancers hold the Dulang below their shoulders. This ceremonial pedestal, which may be wooden or ceramic, is normally held high following its sacredness.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5b54b379-388c-4cfb-b543-78d9afab86e8"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Technique","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s6nxeahegn","content":[{"text":"Bali dancers learn the craft as children, they play Balinese music. They are taught to dance with their hands before they can walk. Official training as a Bali dancer starts as young as 7. In Balinese dance, the movement is closely associated with the rhythms produced by the gamelan, a musical ensemble specific to Java and Bali. Multiple levels of articulations in the face, eyes, hands, arms, hips, and feet are coordinated to reflect layers of percussive sounds.\nThe number of codified hand positions and gestures, the mudras, is higher in India than in Java or Bali. It has been speculated that they have been forgotten as the dance was transmitted from India to Java. Hand positions and gestures are nonetheless as important in Javanese and Balinese dance as in India. Whether in India, Indonesia, or Cambodia, hands have a typically ornamental role and emphasize the dance's delicate intricacy.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5b54b379-388c-4cfb-b543-78d9afab86e8"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"q8emm5g5zm","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Balinese dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5b54b379-388c-4cfb-b543-78d9afab86e8"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7rdx5p5hkd","content":[{"text":"Balinese dance is Indonesian ancient performance and dance tradition that is part of the religious and artistic expression among the Balinese people of Bali island, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aa9da823-715f-4074-af64-b866e25dc3d1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"z3vnsarz8h","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 5 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aa9da823-715f-4074-af64-b866e25dc3d1"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"I'm in charge and I'll treat you like a child. Cultural performance, a Balinese traditional dance with elements of Ramayana and Baris. Ubud, Bali, Indonesia.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/df/Ubud%2C_Balinese_dance%2C_Dancer%2C_Bali%2C_Indonesia.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Vyacheslav Argenberg","height":1049,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"I'm in charge and I'll treat you like a child. Cultural performance, a Balinese traditional dance with elements of Ramayana and Baris. Ubud, Bali, Indonesia.","licence":"CC BY 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/df/Ubud%2C_Balinese_dance%2C_Dancer%2C_Bali%2C_Indonesia.jpg/960px-Ubud%2C_Balinese_dance%2C_Dancer%2C_Bali%2C_Indonesia.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ubud,_Balinese_dance,_Dancer,_Bali,_Indonesia.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/df/Ubud%2C_Balinese_dance%2C_Dancer%2C_Bali%2C_Indonesia.jpg/1280px-Ubud%2C_Balinese_dance%2C_Dancer%2C_Bali%2C_Indonesia.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0"},{"alt":"Cultural performance, a Balinese traditional dance with elements of Ramayana and Baris. Dancers are believed to invoke spirits to possess them in a trance state during the performance. Ubud, Bali, Indonesia.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/16/Ubud%2C_Balinese_dance%2C_Barong%2C_Bali%2C_Indonesia.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Vyacheslav Argenberg","height":1046,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Cultural performance, a Balinese traditional dance with elements of Ramayana and Baris. Dancers are believed to invoke spirits to possess them in a trance state during the performance. Ubud, Bali, Indonesia.","licence":"CC BY 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/16/Ubud%2C_Balinese_dance%2C_Barong%2C_Bali%2C_Indonesia.jpg/960px-Ubud%2C_Balinese_dance%2C_Barong%2C_Bali%2C_Indonesia.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ubud,_Balinese_dance,_Barong,_Bali,_Indonesia.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/16/Ubud%2C_Balinese_dance%2C_Barong%2C_Bali%2C_Indonesia.jpg/1280px-Ubud%2C_Balinese_dance%2C_Barong%2C_Bali%2C_Indonesia.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0"},{"alt":"Cultural performance, a Balinese traditional dance with elements of Ramayana and Baris. Ubud, Bali, Indonesia.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fd/Ubud%2C_Balinese_dance%2C_Swirl%2C_Bali%2C_Indonesia.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Vyacheslav Argenberg","height":949,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Cultural performance, a Balinese traditional dance with elements of Ramayana and Baris. Ubud, Bali, Indonesia.","licence":"CC BY 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fd/Ubud%2C_Balinese_dance%2C_Swirl%2C_Bali%2C_Indonesia.jpg/960px-Ubud%2C_Balinese_dance%2C_Swirl%2C_Bali%2C_Indonesia.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ubud,_Balinese_dance,_Swirl,_Bali,_Indonesia.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fd/Ubud%2C_Balinese_dance%2C_Swirl%2C_Bali%2C_Indonesia.jpg/1280px-Ubud%2C_Balinese_dance%2C_Swirl%2C_Bali%2C_Indonesia.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:13.126Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/balinese-dance"}
{"id":"afc7aab7-196d-4b13-9d2f-157ae3c3f368","type":"art_form","slug":"ballet","title":"ballet","summary":"Ballet (French: [balɛ]) is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jpane0a2xn","content":[{"text":"Ballet (French: [balɛ]) is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia. It has since become a widespread and highly technical form of dance with its own vocabulary. Ballet has been influential globally and has defined the foundational techniques which are used in many other dance genres and cultures. Various schools around the world have incorporated their own cultures. As a result, ballet has evolved in distinct ways.\nA ballet as a unified work comprises the choreography and music for a ballet production. Ballets are choreographed and performed by trained ballet dancers. Traditional classical ballets are usually performed with classical music accompaniment and use elaborate costumes and staging, whereas modern ballets are often performed in simple costumes and without elaborate sets or scenery.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"824d4b45-ea3b-446b-a032-baf320a324a7"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3sy9nf0f0s","content":[{"text":"Ballet is a French word which had its origin in Italian balletto, a diminutive of ballo (dance) which comes from Latin ballo, ballare, meaning \"to dance\", which in turn comes from the Greek \"βαλλίζω\" (ballizo), \"to dance, to jump about\". The word came into English usage from the French around 1630.\nIn French, the word refers to a ballet performance, a ballet work, and possibly to the dance genre itself, although the expression danse classique also exists for the latter meaning, is less equivocal and is more commonly used when referring to the learning of this dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"824d4b45-ea3b-446b-a032-baf320a324a7"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c42b6cvxbq","content":[{"text":"Ballet originated in the Italian Renaissance courts of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. Under Catherine de' Medici's influence as Queen, it spread to France, where it developed even further. The dancers in these early court ballets were mostly noble amateurs.  Ornamented costumes were meant to impress viewers, but they restricted performers' freedom of movement.\nThe ballets were performed in large chambers with viewers on three sides.  The implementation of the proscenium arch from 1618 on distanced performers from audience members, who could then better view and appreciate the technical feats of the professional dancers in the productions.\nFrench court ballet reached its height under the reign of King Louis XIV. Louis founded the Académie Royale de Danse (Royal Dance Academy) in 1661 to establish standards and certify dance instructors. In 1672, Louis XIV made Jean-Baptiste Lully the director of the Académie Royale de Musique (Paris Opera) from which the first professional ballet company, the Paris Opera Ballet, arose. Pierre Beauchamp served as Lully's ballet-master. Together their partnership would drastically influence the development of ballet, as evidenced by the credit given to them for the creation of the five major positions of the feet.  By 1681, the first \"ballerinas\" took the stage following years of training at the Académie.\nBallet started to decline in France after 1830, but it continued to develop in Denmark, Italy, and Russia.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"824d4b45-ea3b-446b-a032-baf320a324a7"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Styles","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gpgne5pe5y","content":[{"text":"Stylistic variations and subgenres have evolved over time. Early, classical variations are primarily associated with geographic origin. Examples of this are Russian ballet, French ballet, and Italian ballet. Later variations, such as contemporary ballet and neoclassical ballet, incorporate both classical ballet and non-traditional technique and movement. Perhaps the most widely known and performed ballet style is late Romantic ballet (or Ballet blanc).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"824d4b45-ea3b-446b-a032-baf320a324a7"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Classical ballet","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fffbmb4qz7","content":[{"text":"Classical ballet is based on traditional ballet technique and vocabulary. Different styles have emerged in different countries, such as French ballet, Italian ballet, English ballet, and Russian ballet. Several of the classical ballet styles are associated with specific training methods, typically named after their creators (see below).  The Royal Academy of Dance method is a ballet technique and training system that was founded by a diverse group of ballet dancers. They merged their respective dance methods (Italian, French, Danish and Russian) to create a new style of ballet that is unique to the organization and is recognized internationally as the English style of ballet. Some examples of classical ballet productions are: Swan Lake, The Sleeping Beauty and The Nutcracker.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"824d4b45-ea3b-446b-a032-baf320a324a7"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Romantic ballet","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hq5n8vk15r","content":[{"text":"Romantic ballet was an artistic movement of classical ballet and several productions remain in the classical repertoire today. The Romantic era was marked by the emergence of pointe work, the dominance of female dancers, and longer, flowy tutus that attempt to exemplify softness and a delicate aura. This movement occurred during the early to mid-nineteenth century (the Romantic era) and featured themes that emphasized intense emotion as a source of aesthetic experience. The plots of many romantic ballets revolved around spirit women (sylphs, wilis, and ghosts) who enslaved the hearts and senses of mortal men. The 1827 ballet La Sylphide is widely considered to be the first, and the 1870 ballet Coppélia is considered to be the last. Famous ballet dancers of the Romantic era include Marie Taglioni, Fanny Elssler, and Jules Perrot. Jules Perrot is also known for his choreography, especially that of Giselle, often considered to be the most widely celebrated romantic ballet.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"824d4b45-ea3b-446b-a032-baf320a324a7"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8pq6jtzsqt","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Ballet”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"824d4b45-ea3b-446b-a032-baf320a324a7"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"r3qk6c10a2","content":[{"text":"ballet is type of performance dance; performing arts genre; theatrical genre, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"efc00f26-fd25-46f5-948e-8e051e4edc96"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wbj0rv9zrn","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 66 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"efc00f26-fd25-46f5-948e-8e051e4edc96"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-02T05:48:46.877Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/ballet"}
{"id":"790340d6-e2e6-44d0-83ad-6402ee9acea4","type":"art_form","slug":"ballet-de-cour","title":"ballet de cour","summary":"Ballet de cour (\"court ballet\") is the name given to ballets performed in the 16th and 17th centuries at courts.\nThe court ballet was a gathering of noblemen and women, as the cast and audience were largely supplied by the ruling class.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4b181x1t4x","content":[{"text":"Ballet de cour (\"court ballet\") is the name given to ballets performed in the 16th and 17th centuries at courts.\nThe court ballet was a gathering of noblemen and women, as the cast and audience were largely supplied by the ruling class. The festivities, which were descendants of festivals, processions and mummeries dating back to the Middle Ages, looked more like a modern-day parade, than what people today would identify as a ballet performance. Where early court ballet differed from its predecessors, is that it was a secular, not religious happening. It was a carefully crafted mixture of art, socializing, and politics, with its primary objective being to exalt the State.\nBecause these celebrations occurred long before the proscenium stage had been invented, and were instead executed in large halls with audience members stacked up on three sides of the performance,  early court ballet's choreography was constructed as a series of patterns and geometric shapes that were intended to be viewed from overhead. Once the performance was through, the audience was encouraged to join the dancers on the floor to participate in a \"ball\" which was designed to bring everyone in the hall into unanimity with the ideas expressed by the piece.  As they developed through time, court ballets began to introduce comedy, went through a phase where they poked fun at manners and affectations of the time, and they moved into a phase where they became enamoured with pantomime.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3e2e47f4-5335-42ff-9cb3-b39ef88366c1"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Notable works","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c9vt9z1sfa","content":[{"text":"Ballet des Polonais was one of the first works to be recognized as a true court ballet. The spectacle was commissioned by Catherine de’ Medici in 1573 to celebrate the election of her second son, Henry of Anjou, as King of Poland. Performed at the Tuileries Palace and organized by the Italian dancing master, Balthasar de Beaujoyeulx, the hour-long ballet consisted of sixteen amateur French ladies representing the sixteen provinces of France. Describing it as the most beautiful ballet ever made on earth, the court observer Brantôme recounted that they \"danced their ballet so curiously designed, with so many turns, swerves, and sinuosities, interlacings and minglings, confrontations and withdrawals, that [it was surprising that] no lady ever failed to be at her appointed turn or place.\" Although its combination of verse, song and dance had been used before, the intricate figure dancing involved in the Ballet des Polonais marked the beginning of the French style that would become the dominant continental school over the next century.\nThe first ballet de cour to fuse dance, poetry, music and design into a coherent dramatic statement was the Ballet Comique de la Reine, performed in 1581. As part of the wedding celebration for the queen's sister, Marguerite of Lorraine and the Duc de Joyeuse, the plot based on Ulysses’ encounter with Circe was symbolic of the country's desire to heal old wounds and restore peace after religious civil wars. Reaching new heights in scale and diversity, the lavish five-hour production included a three tiered fountain, palace, garden, townscape, and chariot-floats.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3e2e47f4-5335-42ff-9cb3-b39ef88366c1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pascfex04n","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Ballet de cour”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3e2e47f4-5335-42ff-9cb3-b39ef88366c1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8n020b0285","content":[{"text":"ballet de cour is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ca9ee179-2655-4516-84ee-af01100a501d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"63m9r8a0ek","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 9 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ca9ee179-2655-4516-84ee-af01100a501d"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Titre uniforme : Pierné, Gabriel (1863-1937). Compositeur. [Ballet de cour] Comprend : I. - Rigaudon - II - Passe pied - III - la Canarie - IV - Pavane et Saltarello - V. - Menuet du roy - VI - Passa mezzo Ensemble instrumental, Musique d' -- +* 1900......- 1999......+:20e…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d0/Ballet_de_cour%2C_6_airs_%C3%A0_danser%2C_dans_le_style_ancien%2C_pour_petit_orchestre_-_btv1b100713384_%2832_of_35%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Pierné, Gabriel (1863-1937). Compositeur","height":918,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Titre uniforme : Pierné, Gabriel (1863-1937). Compositeur. [Ballet de cour] Comprend : I. - Rigaudon - II - Passe pied - III - la Canarie - IV - Pavane et Saltarello - V. - Menuet du roy - VI - Passa mezzo Ensemble instrumental, Musique d' -- +* 1900......- 1999......+:20e…","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d0/Ballet_de_cour%2C_6_airs_%C3%A0_danser%2C_dans_le_style_ancien%2C_pour_petit_orchestre_-_btv1b100713384_%2832_of_35%29.jpg/960px-Ballet_de_cour%2C_6_airs_%C3%A0_danser%2C_dans_le_style_ancien%2C_pour_petit_orchestre_-_btv1b100713384_%2832_of_35%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ballet_de_cour,_6_airs_%C3%A0_danser,_dans_le_style_ancien,_pour_petit_orchestre_-_btv1b100713384_(32_of_35).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d0/Ballet_de_cour%2C_6_airs_%C3%A0_danser%2C_dans_le_style_ancien%2C_pour_petit_orchestre_-_btv1b100713384_%2832_of_35%29.jpg/1280px-Ballet_de_cour%2C_6_airs_%C3%A0_danser%2C_dans_le_style_ancien%2C_pour_petit_orchestre_-_btv1b100713384_%2832_of_35%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"Titre uniforme : Pierné, Gabriel (1863-1937). Compositeur. [Ballet de cour] Comprend : I. - Rigaudon - II - Passe pied - III - la Canarie - IV - Pavane et Saltarello - V. - Menuet du roy - VI - Passa mezzo Ensemble instrumental, Musique d' -- +* 1900......- 1999......+:20e…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/20/Ballet_de_cour%2C_6_airs_%C3%A0_danser%2C_dans_le_style_ancien%2C_pour_petit_orchestre_-_btv1b100713384_%2820_of_35%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Pierné, Gabriel (1863-1937). Compositeur","height":918,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Titre uniforme : Pierné, Gabriel (1863-1937). Compositeur. [Ballet de cour] Comprend : I. - Rigaudon - II - Passe pied - III - la Canarie - IV - Pavane et Saltarello - V. - Menuet du roy - VI - Passa mezzo Ensemble instrumental, Musique d' -- +* 1900......- 1999......+:20e…","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/20/Ballet_de_cour%2C_6_airs_%C3%A0_danser%2C_dans_le_style_ancien%2C_pour_petit_orchestre_-_btv1b100713384_%2820_of_35%29.jpg/960px-Ballet_de_cour%2C_6_airs_%C3%A0_danser%2C_dans_le_style_ancien%2C_pour_petit_orchestre_-_btv1b100713384_%2820_of_35%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ballet_de_cour,_6_airs_%C3%A0_danser,_dans_le_style_ancien,_pour_petit_orchestre_-_btv1b100713384_(20_of_35).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/20/Ballet_de_cour%2C_6_airs_%C3%A0_danser%2C_dans_le_style_ancien%2C_pour_petit_orchestre_-_btv1b100713384_%2820_of_35%29.jpg/1280px-Ballet_de_cour%2C_6_airs_%C3%A0_danser%2C_dans_le_style_ancien%2C_pour_petit_orchestre_-_btv1b100713384_%2820_of_35%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"Titre uniforme : Pierné, Gabriel (1863-1937). Compositeur. [Ballet de cour] Comprend : I. - Rigaudon - II - Passe pied - III - la Canarie - IV - Pavane et Saltarello - V. - Menuet du roy - VI - Passa mezzo Ensemble instrumental, Musique d' -- +* 1900......- 1999......+:20e…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e5/Ballet_de_cour%2C_6_airs_%C3%A0_danser%2C_dans_le_style_ancien%2C_pour_petit_orchestre_-_btv1b100713384_%2803_of_35%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Pierné, Gabriel (1863-1937). Compositeur","height":918,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Titre uniforme : Pierné, Gabriel (1863-1937). Compositeur. [Ballet de cour] Comprend : I. - Rigaudon - II - Passe pied - III - la Canarie - IV - Pavane et Saltarello - V. - Menuet du roy - VI - Passa mezzo Ensemble instrumental, Musique d' -- +* 1900......- 1999......+:20e…","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e5/Ballet_de_cour%2C_6_airs_%C3%A0_danser%2C_dans_le_style_ancien%2C_pour_petit_orchestre_-_btv1b100713384_%2803_of_35%29.jpg/960px-Ballet_de_cour%2C_6_airs_%C3%A0_danser%2C_dans_le_style_ancien%2C_pour_petit_orchestre_-_btv1b100713384_%2803_of_35%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ballet_de_cour,_6_airs_%C3%A0_danser,_dans_le_style_ancien,_pour_petit_orchestre_-_btv1b100713384_(03_of_35).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e5/Ballet_de_cour%2C_6_airs_%C3%A0_danser%2C_dans_le_style_ancien%2C_pour_petit_orchestre_-_btv1b100713384_%2803_of_35%29.jpg/1280px-Ballet_de_cour%2C_6_airs_%C3%A0_danser%2C_dans_le_style_ancien%2C_pour_petit_orchestre_-_btv1b100713384_%2803_of_35%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:16.409Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/ballet-de-cour"}
{"id":"009f5eb6-520c-458c-9187-b66aa0117abd","type":"art_form","slug":"ballroom-dance","title":"ballroom dance","summary":"Ballroom dance is a set of European partner dances, which are enjoyed both socially and competitively around the world, mostly because of its performance and entertainment aspects.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cwaqs3ev6e","content":[{"text":"Ballroom dance is a set of European partner dances, which are enjoyed both socially and competitively around the world, mostly because of its performance and entertainment aspects. Ballroom dancing is also widely enjoyed on stage, film, and television.\nBallroom dance may refer, at its widest definition, to almost any recreational dance with a partner. However, with the emergence of dance competition (now known as Dancesport), two principal schools have emerged and the term is used more narrowly to refer to the dances recognized by those schools.\nThe International School, originally developed in England and now regulated by the World Dance Council (WDC) and the World DanceSport Federation (WDSF), is prevalent everywhere except the United States. It encompasses two categories, Standard and Latin, each of which consist of five dances—International Waltz, International Tango, International Viennese Waltz, International Slow Foxtrot, and International Quickstep in the Standard category; and International Samba, International Cha Cha, International Rumba, International Paso Doble, and International Jive in the Latin category. A \"Standard\" or \"Latin\" competition encompasses all five dances in the respective category, and a \"Ten Dance\" competition encompasses all ten dances.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"453d6707-4dc0-4246-a8d1-c047d9c35231"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Definitions and history","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bbdmy4vea1","content":[{"text":"The term 'ballroom dancing' is derived from the word ball which in turn originates from the Latin word ballare which means 'to dance' (a ball-room being a large room specially designed for such dances). In times past, ballroom dancing was social dancing for the privileged, leaving folk dancing for the lower classes. These boundaries have since become blurred. The definition of ballroom dance also depends on the era: balls have featured popular dances of the day such as the Minuet, Quadrille, Polonaise, Polka, Mazurka, and others, which are now considered to be historical dances.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"453d6707-4dc0-4246-a8d1-c047d9c35231"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Early modern period","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7ye4170twg","content":[{"text":"The first authoritative knowledge of the earliest ballroom dances was recorded toward the end of the 16th century, when Jehan Tabourot, under the pen name \"Thoinot-Arbeau\", published in 1588 his Orchésographie, a study of late 16th-century French renaissance social dance. Among the dances described were the solemn basse danse, the livelier branle, pavane, and the galliarde which Shakespeare called the \"cinq pace\" as it was made of five steps.\nIn 1650, the Minuet, originally a peasant dance of Poitou, was introduced into Paris and set to music by Jean-Baptiste Lully and danced by the King Louis XIV in public. The Minuet dominated the ballroom from that time until the close of the 18th century.\nToward the later half of the 17th century, Louis XIV founded his 'Académie Royale de Musique et de Danse', where specific rules for the execution of every dance and the \"five positions\" of the feet were formulated for the first time by members of the Académie. Eventually, the first definite cleavage between ballet and ballroom came when professional dancers appeared in the ballets, and the ballets left the Court and went to the stage. Ballet technique such as the turned out positions of the feet, however, lingered for over two centuries and past the end of the Victoria era.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"453d6707-4dc0-4246-a8d1-c047d9c35231"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"19th century","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"p9f44bbffn","content":[{"text":"The waltz with its modern hold took root in England in about 1812; in 1819 Carl Maria von Weber wrote Invitation to the Dance, which marked the adoption of the waltz form into the sphere of absolute music. The dance was initially met with tremendous opposition due to the semblance of impropriety associated with the closed hold, though the stance gradually softened. In the 1840s several new dances made their appearance in the ballroom, including the polka, mazurka, and the Schottische. In the meantime a strong tendency emerged to drop all 'decorative' steps such as entrechats and ronds de jambes that had found a place in the Quadrilles and other dances.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"453d6707-4dc0-4246-a8d1-c047d9c35231"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Early 20th century","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nsahbd2y40","content":[{"text":"Modern ballroom dance has its roots early in the 20th century, when several different things happened more or less at the same time. The first was a movement away from the sequence dances towards dances where the couples moved independently. This had been pre-figured by the waltz, which had already made this transition. The second was a wave of popular music, such as jazz. Since dance is to a large extent tied to music, this led to a burst of newly invented dances. There were many dance crazes in the period 1910–1930.\nThe third event was a concerted effort to transform some of the dance crazes into dances which could be taught to a wider dance public in the U.S. and Europe. Here Vernon and Irene Castle were important, and so was a generation of English dancers in the 1920s, including Josephine Bradley and Victor Silvester. These professionals analysed, codified, published, and taught a number of standard dances. It was essential, if popular dance was to flourish, for dancers to have some basic movements they could confidently perform with any partner they might meet. Here the huge Arthur Murray organisation in America, and the dance societies in England, such as the Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing, were highly influential. Finally, much of this happened during and after a period of World War, and the effect of such a conflict in dissolving older social customs was considerable.\nLater, in the 1930s, the on-screen dance pairing of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers influenced all forms of dance in the U.S. and elsewhere. Although both actors had separate careers, their filmed dance sequences together, which included portrayals of the Castles, have reached iconic status.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"453d6707-4dc0-4246-a8d1-c047d9c35231"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Competitive dancing","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9kpf6swpz1","content":[{"text":"Competitions, sometimes referred to as dancesport, range from world championships, regulated by the World Dance Council (WDC), to less advanced dancers at various proficiency levels. Most competitions are divided into professional and amateur, though in the USA pro-am competitions typically accompany professional competitions. The International Olympic Committee now recognizes competitive ballroom dance. It has recognized another body, the World DanceSport Federation (WDSF), as the sole representative body for dancesport in the Olympic Games.\nBallroom dance competitions are regulated by each country in its own way. There are about 30 countries which compete regularly in international competitions. There are another 20 or so countries which have membership of the WDC and/or the WDSF, but whose dancers rarely appear in international competitions. In Britain there is the British Dance Council, which grants national and regional championship titles, such as the British Ballroom Championships, the British Sequence Championships and the United Kingdom Championships. In the United States, the member branches of the WDC (National Dance Council of America) and the WDSF (USA Dance) both grant national and regional championship titles.\nBallroom dancing competitions in the former USSR also included the Soviet Ballroom dances, or Soviet Programme. Australian New Vogue is danced both competitively and socially.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"453d6707-4dc0-4246-a8d1-c047d9c35231"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0ks7p29xy9","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Ballroom dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"453d6707-4dc0-4246-a8d1-c047d9c35231"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qxqcnnd5p9","content":[{"text":"ballroom dance is set of partner dances, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"077acee1-8a8a-48de-afd6-e67a70c1996d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"n5emqnjpyd","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 26 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"077acee1-8a8a-48de-afd6-e67a70c1996d"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Classical dance exhibition on a ball in the Prague Congress Center. A ballroom tango .","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d9/Ballroom_dance_exhibition.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"che","height":1995,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Classical dance exhibition on a ball in the Prague Congress Center. A ballroom tango .","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.5","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d9/Ballroom_dance_exhibition.jpg/960px-Ballroom_dance_exhibition.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ballroom_dance_exhibition.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d9/Ballroom_dance_exhibition.jpg/1280px-Ballroom_dance_exhibition.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5"},{"alt":"Ballroom dance in Somerville, Massachusetts, 2008.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/88/Ballroom_dance_in_Somerville%2C_Massachusetts%2C_2008.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Liza","height":904,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Ballroom dance in Somerville, Massachusetts, 2008.","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/88/Ballroom_dance_in_Somerville%2C_Massachusetts%2C_2008.jpg/960px-Ballroom_dance_in_Somerville%2C_Massachusetts%2C_2008.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ballroom_dance_in_Somerville,_Massachusetts,_2008.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/88/Ballroom_dance_in_Somerville%2C_Massachusetts%2C_2008.jpg/1280px-Ballroom_dance_in_Somerville%2C_Massachusetts%2C_2008.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"},{"alt":"Парад надій - 2021. 2-й день, 8-е відділення, категорія \"Молодь\", стандарт","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/ce/%D0%9F%D0%B0%D1%80%D0%B0%D0%B4_%D0%BD%D0%B0%D0%B4%D1%96%D0%B9_-_2021.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Viktoriyasechkar","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Парад надій - 2021. 2-й день, 8-е відділення, категорія \"Молодь\", стандарт","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/ce/%D0%9F%D0%B0%D1%80%D0%B0%D0%B4_%D0%BD%D0%B0%D0%B4%D1%96%D0%B9_-_2021.jpg/960px-%D0%9F%D0%B0%D1%80%D0%B0%D0%B4_%D0%BD%D0%B0%D0%B4%D1%96%D0%B9_-_2021.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:%D0%9F%D0%B0%D1%80%D0%B0%D0%B4_%D0%BD%D0%B0%D0%B4%D1%96%D0%B9_-_2021.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/ce/%D0%9F%D0%B0%D1%80%D0%B0%D0%B4_%D0%BD%D0%B0%D0%B4%D1%96%D0%B9_-_2021.jpg/1280px-%D0%9F%D0%B0%D1%80%D0%B0%D0%B4_%D0%BD%D0%B0%D0%B4%D1%96%D0%B9_-_2021.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-04T05:47:18.627Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/ballroom-dance"}
{"id":"787ae99f-e031-4561-9a96-c5ca4e5bb58c","type":"art_form","slug":"ballroom-tango","title":"ballroom tango","summary":"Ballroom tango is a ballroom dance that branched away from its original Argentine and Uruguayan roots by allowing European, American, Hollywood, and competitive influences into the style and execution of the dance.\nThe present day ballroom …","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nwnv2jcdt0","content":[{"text":"Ballroom tango is a ballroom dance that branched away from its original Argentine and Uruguayan roots by allowing European, American, Hollywood, and competitive influences into the style and execution of the dance.\nThe present day ballroom tango is divided into two disciplines: American Style and International Style.  Both styles may be found in social and competitive dances, but the International version is more globally accepted as a competitive style.  Both styles share a closed dance position, but the American style allows its practitioners to separate from closed position to execute open moves, like underarm turns, alternate hand holds, dancing apart, and side-by-side choreography.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a7bf23a1-ffdf-461c-9ba6-4732440c9ec4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"American style tango","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vqx6jer9mj","content":[{"text":"American style tango's evolutionary path is derived from Argentina to the United States, when it was popularized by silent film star Rudolph Valentino in 1921, who demonstrated a highly stylized form of Argentine tango in The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse.  As a result, the Hollywood style steps mixed in with other social dance steps of the times began this branch away from the Argentine style.  Meanwhile, the tango was also making its own inroads into Europe.\nFollowing the English standardization of their version of tango, Arthur Murray, a ballroom dance instructor in the U.S., tried his own hand at standardizing the ballroom dances for instruction in his chain of social dance schools. This looser social style was referred to as American style by the English.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a7bf23a1-ffdf-461c-9ba6-4732440c9ec4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"International style tango","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hmab2y9nae","content":[{"text":"In 1912 tango was introduced to British audiences, showcased in the successful musical comedy The Sunshine Girl. Concurrently, the dance became popular elsewhere in Europe, particularly in Paris, and Europeans began to inject their own culture, style and technique into the dance.\nIn an effort to teach a standardized version of the tango, the English eventually codified their own version of tango for instruction in dance schools and for performance in competitions in 1922.  The resulting style was referred to as English style, but eventually took on the name International style, as this became the competitive ballroom version practiced around the world.\nEventually, championships in the international style tango were organized all over Europe with numerous participating countries.  Adjudicators were able to judge against a standardized syllabus and book of techniques, thereby creating a more objective means of picking the champions, even though artistic interpretation remains an important element of competition.\nInitially, the English dominated the International style tango, but eventually, technicians from other backgrounds, most notably the Italians, have chipped away at the English standard and created a dynamic style that continues to raise the competitive bar.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a7bf23a1-ffdf-461c-9ba6-4732440c9ec4"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"y5n584243j","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Ballroom tango”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a7bf23a1-ffdf-461c-9ba6-4732440c9ec4"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f1rgmw4x2a","content":[{"text":"ballroom tango is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d64c3a3f-88d7-4a82-a668-871514ce66bc"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wwg8mbec3t","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d64c3a3f-88d7-4a82-a668-871514ce66bc"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Classical dance exhibition on a ball in the Prague Congress Center. A ballroom tango .","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d9/Ballroom_dance_exhibition.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"che","height":1995,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Classical dance exhibition on a ball in the Prague Congress Center. A ballroom tango .","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.5","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d9/Ballroom_dance_exhibition.jpg/960px-Ballroom_dance_exhibition.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ballroom_dance_exhibition.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d9/Ballroom_dance_exhibition.jpg/1280px-Ballroom_dance_exhibition.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:29.616Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/ballroom-tango"}
{"id":"4bb2a7e2-ff2b-43cd-94de-a5ee6ad67050","type":"art_form","slug":"bamboula","title":"Bamboula","summary":"A bamboula is a West African-derived rhythm, dance, and percussion instrument or type of drum made from a rum barrel with skin stretched over one end. It is also a dance accompanied by music from these drums.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gjxkmdsdn2","content":[{"text":"A bamboula is a West African-derived rhythm, dance, and percussion instrument or type of drum made from a rum barrel with skin stretched over one end. It is also a dance accompanied by music from these drums.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"451f89de-4ad6-4072-acad-cd47f79e098b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4s6sv0073e","content":[{"text":"The term is derived from 2 languages spoken in Portuguese Guinea:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"451f89de-4ad6-4072-acad-cd47f79e098b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"j4y76hjne1","content":[{"text":"the Sarar or Sadal, ka-mombuloñ;(probably Serer language)\nBola (Bwlama, Juan or Jual) word, kam-bumbulu (probably Jola-Fonyi)\nBoth of which mean drum.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"451f89de-4ad6-4072-acad-cd47f79e098b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"As a dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0sxtx5xrg5","content":[{"text":"Originating in Africa, the bamboula form appears in a Haitian song in 1757 and bamboula became a dance syncopation performed to the rhythm of the drum during festivals and ceremonies in Haiti (then Saint-Domingue). It was then exported to the United States (notably Mobile, Alabama, and the Virgin Islands) through Louisiana, by the slaves who were deported to New Orleans during the 18th century with the arrival of the displaced French settlers of the island of San Domingo especially after the Haitian Revolution. The slaves congregated on the Congo Square to the edge of the area of the French Quarter of New Orleans to dance the bamboula. From the fear of inciting insurrection, on Aug. 8, 1672, Gov. Jorgen Iversen banned bamboula dancing on the island of St. Thomas","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"451f89de-4ad6-4072-acad-cd47f79e098b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"As a rhythm","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c8r9xrqanj","content":[{"text":"The \"bamboula rhythm\" is foundational to New Orleans music, including jazz and second line. It is characterized by a 3+3+2 polyrhythmic pattern. Stanton Moore referred to it as the Haitian cinquillo.\n\"Moore wrote that this Mardi Gras Indian rhythm (the bamboula \"Haitian bell rhythm\") can be traced back to the Indians' Haitian roots. Similarly, Moore referred to the 3+3+2 pattern (the bass drum rhythm in Figure 2) as the Haitian tresillo.\" -Robert J. Damm","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"451f89de-4ad6-4072-acad-cd47f79e098b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4g38ybsvb4","content":[{"text":"In 1848, the American composer Louis Moreau Gottschalk, born in New Orleans, Louisiana, and whose maternal grandmother was a native of Saint-Domingue, composed a piece entitled Bamboula, the first of four Creole inspired piano works known as his Louisiana Quartet.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"451f89de-4ad6-4072-acad-cd47f79e098b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"As an ethnic slur","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1nta63tgqm","content":[{"text":"In the present-day French language, the word bamboula has become an ethnic slur, directed at black people.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"451f89de-4ad6-4072-acad-cd47f79e098b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"n3803czrqc","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Bamboula”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"451f89de-4ad6-4072-acad-cd47f79e098b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3ar964j3s1","content":[{"text":"Bamboula is kind of drum, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"33ef001a-d687-4a4d-940d-f8cf076757bf"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"x6etfgq7j4","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"33ef001a-d687-4a4d-940d-f8cf076757bf"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:13.502Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/bamboula"}
{"id":"d1d67d56-a383-48d8-894b-f49e454f4c7f","type":"art_form","slug":"baris","title":"Baris","summary":"Baris dance (Balinese: ᬩᬭᬶᬲ᭄, igélan baris) is a family of traditional war dances in Bali, Indonesia, accompanied by gamelan, in which dancers depict the feelings of a young warrior prior to battle, glorify the manhood of the triumphant Bal…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rvc5rz6fs7","content":[{"text":"Baris dance (Balinese: ᬩᬭᬶᬲ᭄, igélan baris) is a family of traditional war dances in Bali, Indonesia, accompanied by gamelan, in which dancers depict the feelings of a young warrior prior to battle, glorify the manhood of the triumphant Balinese warrior, and display the sublimity of his commanding presence. Baris derives its name from the word bebarisan, which literally means \"line\" or \"file formation\", referring to the soldiers who served the ancient rajas of Bali.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cd871a6d-138f-4c65-aefd-f09af6e75327"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Performance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"h9xq1nzwnm","content":[{"text":"There are two main types of baris dance which can be found throughout the island of Bali. The non-ritual dance is performed by a solo male dancer and is often the first dance that a budding dancer learns. However, there are over thirty different types of ritual baris dances, each of which is performed by a group of people, still imitating the movements of the warrior.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cd871a6d-138f-4c65-aefd-f09af6e75327"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Baris tunggal","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nx3gtbm9m0","content":[{"text":"A baris tunggal dancer, namely a baris dancer who performs on his own, is dressed in white leggings, known as celana. Around his ankles are coverings, known as setewel, which reach halfway up his calves. The dancer wears a belt (setagen), reaching up on his body; inside this belt, a keris is tucked near the shoulder. Around the dancer's torso is a collection of fabric panels, known as awiran, which hang from his body. Another panel, larger, is fixed to his chest. Around his neck he wears a circular collar known as a badong; this collar may or may not be decorated with beads. The costume is completed with a triangular headdress made of shells on springs, which shake during the performance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cd871a6d-138f-4c65-aefd-f09af6e75327"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Group dances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jpzxaw1cwt","content":[{"text":"There are a variety of group formats for the baris dance, including baris gde, baris keris, baris omang, baris perisi, and baris dadap. These dances are accompanied by different types of music and involve different movements. Dancers may carry a variety of weapons, including a kris, a spear, a bow, or other weapons; often dances are named after the weapons carried. The performances may or may not attempt to convey a story. All, however, are considered sacral, and used for religious ceremonies and events.\nAmong these dances is the baris demang, which dates back to the 19th century (a drawing of a performance was acquired by Herman Neubronner van der Tuuk while in Bali). In such a dance, dancers wear costumes similar to those worn by the demang in gambuh performances and carry wooden knives. This dance is usually performed during the Pemayun ritual.\nIn baris biasa, dancers are armed with spears. Such dances are generally brief, and involve a form of playfighting known as masesraman, in which the wooden spears are knocked against each other. Dancers (who can be either male or, when they are fulfilling priestly roles, female) do not wear special costumes; they are only garbed in normal headgear and cloth. The baris biasa dance is generally performed in the morning, following temple activities.\nOther versions include baris panah (in which the dancers are armed with arrows), baris presi (in which the dancers are armed with round shields), and baris dadap (in which dancers are armed with elongated, oblong shields). Baris presi is common throughout northern and southern Bali. Baris dadap, however, was limited in range by the 1980s. Dancers","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cd871a6d-138f-4c65-aefd-f09af6e75327"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"e7k6y5r5y4","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Baris dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cd871a6d-138f-4c65-aefd-f09af6e75327"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hkna7wqrzt","content":[{"text":"Baris is Indonesian traditional dance, family of traditional war dances of Bali, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fac1b91a-19d9-4c9e-b04e-d4c243e7dc9d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"seawx96p6d","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fac1b91a-19d9-4c9e-b04e-d4c243e7dc9d"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Baris is a traditional war dance in Bali, Indonesia. The dancer depicts the feelings of a young warrior before the battle.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2d/Baris_Dance_Indonesia.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Philip Nalangan","height":1790,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Baris is a traditional war dance in Bali, Indonesia. The dancer depicts the feelings of a young warrior before the battle.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2d/Baris_Dance_Indonesia.jpg/960px-Baris_Dance_Indonesia.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Baris_Dance_Indonesia.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2d/Baris_Dance_Indonesia.jpg/1280px-Baris_Dance_Indonesia.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Family: Curculionidae Size: 3,1 mm (2,0-3,5 mm) Origin: Europe Ecology: probably lives on Inula dysenterica Location: England, Dorset, East Ebb Cove leg.det. J.Cooter, 13.V.1991 Coll. Oxford University Museum of Natural History Photo: U.Schmidt, 2014","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/39/Baris_analis_%28Olivier%2C_1790%29_%2813354179214%29.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Udo Schmidt from Deutschland","height":680,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Family: Curculionidae Size: 3,1 mm (2,0-3,5 mm) Origin: Europe Ecology: probably lives on Inula dysenterica Location: England, Dorset, East Ebb Cove leg.det. J.Cooter, 13.V.1991 Coll. Oxford University Museum of Natural History Photo: U.Schmidt, 2014","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/39/Baris_analis_%28Olivier%2C_1790%29_%2813354179214%29.png/960px-Baris_analis_%28Olivier%2C_1790%29_%2813354179214%29.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Baris_analis_(Olivier,_1790)_(13354179214).png","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/39/Baris_analis_%28Olivier%2C_1790%29_%2813354179214%29.png/1280px-Baris_analis_%28Olivier%2C_1790%29_%2813354179214%29.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"},{"alt":"Sanata Dharma University's Sekar Jepun, a Balinese dance troupe, celebrates its 17th anniversary. Here the Baris dance is being performed.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3e/17_Years_of_Sekar_Jepun_2014-11-01_13.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Crisco 1492","height":981,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Sanata Dharma University's Sekar Jepun, a Balinese dance troupe, celebrates its 17th anniversary. Here the Baris dance is being performed.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3e/17_Years_of_Sekar_Jepun_2014-11-01_13.jpg/960px-17_Years_of_Sekar_Jepun_2014-11-01_13.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:17_Years_of_Sekar_Jepun_2014-11-01_13.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3e/17_Years_of_Sekar_Jepun_2014-11-01_13.jpg/1280px-17_Years_of_Sekar_Jepun_2014-11-01_13.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:13.928Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/baris"}
{"id":"b2cb9d08-1a4f-4b0d-8d08-50c5389448ff","type":"art_form","slug":"barn-dance","title":"barn dance","summary":"A barn dance is any kind of dance involving traditional or folk music with traditional dancing, occasionally held in a barn, but, these days, much more likely to be in any suitable building.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0p87pp1fek","content":[{"text":"A barn dance is any kind of dance involving traditional or folk music with traditional dancing, occasionally held in a barn, but, these days, much more likely to be in any suitable building.  \nThe term \"barn dance\" is usually associated with family-oriented or community-oriented events, usually for people who do not normally dance.  The caller will, therefore, generally use easy dances so that everyone can join in.\nA barn dance can be a ceilidh, with traditional Irish or Scottish dancing, and people unfamiliar with either format often confuse the two terms. However, a barn dance can also feature square dancing, contra dancing, English country dance, dancing to country and western music, or any other kind of dancing, often with a live band and a caller. Modern western square dance is often confused with barn dancing in Britain.\nBarn dances, as social dances, were popular in Ireland until the 1950s, and were typically danced to tunes with 44 rhythms.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5ad7849f-690b-4ab8-8669-21c1b563b3c5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Radio adaptations","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k4340s5h21","content":[{"text":"WLS in Chicago is credited with developing the \"barn dance\" radio format, which was in large part responsible for the advent of country music in the United States. The National Barn Dance began as a program of old-time fiddling on April 19, 1924, with George D. Hay as the show's host and announcer.  A year-and-a-half later, Hay moved to Nashville, Tennessee and brought in an old-time fiddler to launch the  WSM Barn Dance; this show is now known as the Grand Ole Opry and remains on the air to this day. Dozens of similar programs cropped up on AM radio stations all across the United States, from New England to Los Angeles, including the WWVA Jamboree in Wheeling, West Virginia (1933), the Renfro Valley Barn Dance in Kentucky (1939), the Louisiana Hayride (1948), the Tennessee Jamboree (1953) and Ozark Jubilee (1954). Television adaptations (often under the guise of early variety shows) were popular in the 1950s and early 1960s but eventually faded out of style.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5ad7849f-690b-4ab8-8669-21c1b563b3c5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zq9wbqa7f8","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Barn dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5ad7849f-690b-4ab8-8669-21c1b563b3c5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9mzfzyv43c","content":[{"text":"barn dance is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ca605dd2-3758-41e9-be60-6a69227a072b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zqr4ypxhma","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 5 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ca605dd2-3758-41e9-be60-6a69227a072b"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Dancing in the shadow","src":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1504609813442-a8924e83f76e?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8YmFybiUyMGRhbmNlfGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgxMTI1NDZ8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1080","kind":"photo","width":6000,"credit":"Ardian Lumi","height":4000,"source":"unsplash","depicts":"Dancing in the shadow","licence":"Unsplash License","thumb640":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1504609813442-a8924e83f76e?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8YmFybiUyMGRhbmNlfGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgxMTI1NDZ8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=640","sourceUrl":"https://unsplash.com/photos/group-of-people-dancing-6Woj_wozqmA?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral","thumb1280":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1504609813442-a8924e83f76e?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8YmFybiUyMGRhbmNlfGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgxMTI1NDZ8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1280","attributionUrl":"https://unsplash.com/@ardianlumi?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:21.686Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/barn-dance"}
{"id":"60644113-eb6c-4ef8-86e7-1b6ff6766c36","type":"art_form","slug":"baroque-dance","title":"Baroque dance","summary":"Baroque dance is dance of the Baroque era (roughly 1600–1750), closely linked with Baroque music, theatre, and opera.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"99wc211810","content":[{"text":"Baroque dance is dance of the Baroque era (roughly 1600–1750), closely linked with Baroque music, theatre, and opera.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ecc4ab47-cd47-4cd6-95bb-416b5069ea38"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"English country dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pqpw991szt","content":[{"text":"The majority of surviving choreographies from the period are English country dances, such as those in the many editions of Playford's The Dancing Master. The descriptions in these various publications give the music, the formation, the number of dancers, and textual descriptions of the figures to be danced in relation to the musical bars, i.e. the floor patterns of the dances. There is only occasional indication of the steps used, presumably because they were well known. However, other sources of the period, such as the writings of the French dancing-masters Feuillet and Lorin, indicate that steps more complicated than simple walking were used, at least some of the time.\nEnglish country dance survived well beyond the Baroque era and eventually spread in various forms across Europe and its colonies, and to all levels of society.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ecc4ab47-cd47-4cd6-95bb-416b5069ea38"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"The French Noble style","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pc769a1dx4","content":[{"text":"The great innovations in dance in the 17th century originated at the French court under Louis XIV, and it is here that we see the first clear stylistic ancestor of classical ballet.  The same basic technique was used both at social events, and as theatrical dance in court ballets and at public theaters.  The style of dance is commonly known to modern scholars as the French noble style or belle danse (French, literally \"beautiful dance\"), however it is often referred to casually as baroque dance in spite of the existence of other theatrical and social dance styles during the baroque era.\nPrimary sources include more than three hundred choreographies in Beauchamp–Feuillet notation, as well as manuals by Raoul Auger Feuillet and Pierre Rameau in France, Kellom Tomlinson, P. Siris, and John Weaver in England, and Gottfried Taubert in Germany (i.e. Leipzig, Saxony).  This wealth of evidence has allowed modern scholars and dancers to recreate the style, although areas of controversy still exist.  The standard modern introduction is Hilton.\nFrench dance types include:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ecc4ab47-cd47-4cd6-95bb-416b5069ea38"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sct4mesegt","content":[{"text":"The English, working in the French style, added their own hornpipe to this list.\nMany of these dance types are familiar from baroque music, perhaps most spectacularly in the stylized suites of J. S. Bach. Note, however, that the allemandes, that occur in these suites do not correspond to a French dance from the same period.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ecc4ab47-cd47-4cd6-95bb-416b5069ea38"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Theatrical dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9dq61yyfcd","content":[{"text":"The French noble style was danced both at social events and by professional dancers in theatrical productions such as opera-ballets and court entertainments. However, 18th-century theatrical dance had at least two other styles: comic or grotesque, and semi-serious.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ecc4ab47-cd47-4cd6-95bb-416b5069ea38"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Other social dance styles","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c0bhb1zz3m","content":[{"text":"Other dance styles, such as the Italian and Spanish dances of the period, are much less well studied than either English country dance or the French style.  The general picture seems to be that during most of the 17th century, a style of late Renaissance dance was widespread, but as time progressed, French ballroom dances such as the minuet were widely adopted at fashionable courts. Beyond this, the evolution and cross-fertilisation of dance styles is an area of ongoing research.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ecc4ab47-cd47-4cd6-95bb-416b5069ea38"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Modern reconstructions","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5k35qvf2pc","content":[{"text":"The revival of baroque music in the 1960s and '70s sparked renewed interest in 17th and 18th century dance styles. While more than 300 of these dances had been preserved in Beauchamp–Feuillet notation, it wasn't until the mid-20th century that serious scholarship commenced in deciphering the notation and reconstructing the dances.\nPerhaps best known among these pioneers was Britain's Melusine Wood, who published several books on historical dancing in the 1950s. Wood passed her research on to her student Belinda Quirey, and also to Pavlova Company ballerina and choreographer Mary Skeaping (1902–1984). The latter became well known for her reconstructions of baroque ballets for London's \"Ballet for All\" company in the 1960s.\nThe leading figures of the second generation of historical dance research include Shirley Wynne and her Baroque Dance Ensemble which was founded at Ohio State University in the early 1970s and Wendy Hilton (1931–2002), a student of Belinda Quirey  who supplemented the work of Melusine Wood with her own research into original sources.\nA native of Britain, Hilton arrived in the U.S. in 1969 joining the faculty of the Juilliard School in 1972 and establishing her own baroque dance workshop at Stanford University in 1974 which endured for more than 25 years.\nCatherine Turocy (b. circa 1950) began her studies in Baroque dance in 1971 as a student of dance historian Shirley Wynne. She founded The New York Baroque Dance Company in 1976 with Ann Jacoby, and the company has since toured internationally. In 1982–83, as part of the French national celebration of Jean Philippe Rameau's 300th birthday, Turocy choreographed the first production of Jean-Philippe Rameau's Les Boréades - it was never performed during the composer's lifetime.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ecc4ab47-cd47-4cd6-95bb-416b5069ea38"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rmwgz8kx7a","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Baroque dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ecc4ab47-cd47-4cd6-95bb-416b5069ea38"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ffavf42c1n","content":[{"text":"Baroque dance is dance of the Baroque era, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1a094704-fb1b-4402-a1e3-ffb4a0a98606"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cze5hjc0r5","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1a094704-fb1b-4402-a1e3-ffb4a0a98606"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Danse baroque","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/55/Antique_Moriones_Concert_2013_1.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"PiRGoif","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Danse baroque","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/55/Antique_Moriones_Concert_2013_1.jpg/960px-Antique_Moriones_Concert_2013_1.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Antique_Moriones_Concert_2013_1.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/55/Antique_Moriones_Concert_2013_1.jpg/1280px-Antique_Moriones_Concert_2013_1.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Book; Books","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/39/Festa_Fatta_in_Roma_Alli_25_Febraio_MDCXXXIV_MET_DP822647.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"François Collignon / Andrea Sacchi / Giovanni Giacomo de Rossi","height":878,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Book; Books","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/39/Festa_Fatta_in_Roma_Alli_25_Febraio_MDCXXXIV_MET_DP822647.jpg/960px-Festa_Fatta_in_Roma_Alli_25_Febraio_MDCXXXIV_MET_DP822647.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Festa_Fatta_in_Roma_Alli_25_Febraio_MDCXXXIV_MET_DP822647.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/39/Festa_Fatta_in_Roma_Alli_25_Febraio_MDCXXXIV_MET_DP822647.jpg/1280px-Festa_Fatta_in_Roma_Alli_25_Febraio_MDCXXXIV_MET_DP822647.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"},{"alt":"Book; Books","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d6/Libro_De_Catafalchi%2C_Tabernacoli%2C_con_varij_designi_di_Porte_fenestre_et_altri_ornamenti_di_Architettura_MET_MM79974.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"François Collignon","height":895,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Book; Books","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d6/Libro_De_Catafalchi%2C_Tabernacoli%2C_con_varij_designi_di_Porte_fenestre_et_altri_ornamenti_di_Architettura_MET_MM79974.jpg/960px-Libro_De_Catafalchi%2C_Tabernacoli%2C_con_varij_designi_di_Porte_fenestre_et_altri_ornamenti_di_Architettura_MET_MM79974.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Libro_De_Catafalchi,_Tabernacoli,_con_varij_designi_di_Porte_fenestre_et_altri_ornamenti_di_Architettura_MET_MM79974.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d6/Libro_De_Catafalchi%2C_Tabernacoli%2C_con_varij_designi_di_Porte_fenestre_et_altri_ornamenti_di_Architettura_MET_MM79974.jpg/1280px-Libro_De_Catafalchi%2C_Tabernacoli%2C_con_varij_designi_di_Porte_fenestre_et_altri_ornamenti_di_Architettura_MET_MM79974.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-02T05:47:39.439Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/baroque-dance"}
{"id":"c579a04e-d982-4742-ba3b-787a9672fe11","type":"art_form","slug":"basque-folk-dance","title":"Basque folk dance","summary":"Basque dance is the folk dance by the Basque people of the Basque Country.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"g5rptnze1c","content":[{"text":"Basque dance is the folk dance by the Basque people of the Basque Country.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"58b3238d-3e0b-4f9c-975b-ef84e233f9a4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vqngnw95q3","content":[{"text":"From one part of the Basque country to another the music, steps and costumes change, but the collective reveals the Basques' deep love of dance. There are approximately 400 distinct Basque folk dances, each with its own story and significance.\nSome, the more ancient ritual dances, are performed only for particular events or circumstances and initially were performed by male dancers only. Many include the use of sticks and swords that the dancers strike together as they progress through the movements of the dance. The more recent social dances derive from early celebratory dances but are today devoid of any sacred function. They are characterized by differences in style and function, and allow for dual-gender participation. Some are more complex, while others are simpler. Some are ritual while others are entertaining. Some sacred and other profane. Some are open group dances and others closed.\nGenerally the space in which they are carried out is open, although a few were originally danced in closed quarters. The vast majority are danced only by men, some only by women and others by both sexes. The basic characteristics of Basque dance are seen in the choreography, historical and festive elements, and the universal traits of tradition, entertainment, tourism and especially religious-festive events. You can tell a good dancer by how high they jump, their double clicks, how high they kick, and their gracefulness.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"58b3238d-3e0b-4f9c-975b-ef84e233f9a4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Early observations","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5m6wf5488y","content":[{"text":"Voltaire noted in his observations","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"58b3238d-3e0b-4f9c-975b-ef84e233f9a4"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"46sentaygc","content":[{"text":"\"The basque, this people who sings and dances on his mountains\"\nStrabo's observation in the first century B.C.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"58b3238d-3e0b-4f9c-975b-ef84e233f9a4"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6dp8nqyr70","content":[{"text":"\"(Basques) danced after drinking, alone or in groups, competing...as to who should leap the highest and fall on his knees with the most grace\"","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"58b3238d-3e0b-4f9c-975b-ef84e233f9a4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Types of dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xjmzzw959p","content":[{"text":"Dantzari Dantza from Durangaldea (Biscay) is a well known cycle of dances where on the eve of the local feast day, it is the custom to set up the traditional San Juan or Donianeatxa oak tree (now usually a poplar). The trunk is peeled and the branches limbed, and flowers and a sometime a flag or two are placed at the top. All of the festive activities take place around this symbol, which is set up in the middle of the town square. The nine dances that make up the cycle have remained unchanged since at least the 19th century; the choreography consists of two parallel rows of dancers standing face to face. The dancers, in a show of virility, very skillfully manoeuvre fighting weapons as part of the dance.\nSorgin Dantza from Oria (Gipuzkoa) is a comical or a burlesque dance that reach their peak in the Sorgin Dantza, or dance of the witches. These dances, a combination of wild and sometimes a bit obscene body movements, have managed to remain alive over time in certain towns.  The best known of these dances can be seen in the town of Lasarte-Oria. As the story goes, this dance simulates a group of workers who moved here from the town of Bergara.  Today this dance is also danced in the town of Antzuola during Carnival, although here, along with the dantzaris and musicians, there are also people dressed up as bears and monkeys.\nMutxikoak is a popular dance of Basque Ancestors, which comes back stronger these days, as if the tradition could never be forgotten. Mutxikoak which in Basque means that at first \"a young boy's dance\", although women dance it more now than young boys.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"58b3238d-3e0b-4f9c-975b-ef84e233f9a4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Weapon dances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"g4fw59rvme","content":[{"text":"Some of the Basque dances feature weapons.\nThe ezpatadantza (\"sword dance\") comes from the Durango area and is danced for authorities and in the feast of Corpus Christi. \nAfter the dance, both opposing rows of dancers raise their weapons and form a corridor for the authorities.\nThe ezpatadantza and the makildantza (\"stick dance\") ends with the dancers raising one of them, lying as a fallen warrior, over their heads.\nIn the Basque province of Gipuzkoa in Spain, the Okrabario Dantza is performed in Legazpi—a sword dance in which a participant dances atop a grid of crossed swords held aloft. In Tolosa, on Midsummer Day, the Bordon-Dantza (\"walking stick dance\") is performed with the figures of the ezpatadantza; some point its origins to the border fights in the Middle Ages, when the Castilian troops from Gipuzkoa won an important victory over the troops from Navarre at the Battle of Beotibar. Sticks simulate some weapons, and halberds—a combination of a spear and a battle-axe—are also used.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"58b3238d-3e0b-4f9c-975b-ef84e233f9a4"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8ytgw6hvt8","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Basque dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"58b3238d-3e0b-4f9c-975b-ef84e233f9a4"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3dpgf12j10","content":[{"text":"Basque folk dance is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bc6925f5-9e01-4acd-ac4d-17fb0bbbae08"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"h6c063813m","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bc6925f5-9e01-4acd-ac4d-17fb0bbbae08"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Tradition in Croatia, Buševec","src":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1692870613822-6f92e3a32016?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8QmFzcXVlJTIwZm9sayUyMGRhbmNlfGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgwODI3MTl8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1080","kind":"photo","width":6000,"credit":"Kat von Wood","height":4000,"source":"unsplash","depicts":"Tradition in Croatia, Buševec","licence":"Unsplash License","thumb640":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1692870613822-6f92e3a32016?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8QmFzcXVlJTIwZm9sayUyMGRhbmNlfGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgwODI3MTl8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=640","sourceUrl":"https://unsplash.com/photos/a-group-of-women-standing-next-to-each-other-6mvIKFX0OIQ?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral","thumb1280":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1692870613822-6f92e3a32016?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8QmFzcXVlJTIwZm9sayUyMGRhbmNlfGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgwODI3MTl8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1280","attributionUrl":"https://unsplash.com/@kat_von_wood?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:29.071Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/basque-folk-dance"}
{"id":"8004d129-7537-4f63-8a6c-83842af8be56","type":"art_form","slug":"bedhaya","title":"bedhaya","summary":"The bedhaya (also written as bedoyo, beḍaya and various other transliterations) (Javanese: ꦧꦼꦝꦪ, romanized: Bedhaya) is a sacred, ritualised Javanese dance of Java, Indonesia, associated with the royal palaces of Yogyakarta and Surakarta.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0pvxmhw8f7","content":[{"text":"The bedhaya (also written as bedoyo, beḍaya and various other transliterations) (Javanese: ꦧꦼꦝꦪ, romanized: Bedhaya) is a sacred, ritualised Javanese dance of Java, Indonesia, associated with the royal palaces of Yogyakarta and Surakarta. Along with the srimpi, the bedhaya epitomized the elegant (Javanese: ꦲꦭꦸꦱ꧀, romanized: alus) character of the royal court and became an important symbol of the ruler's power.\nThe bedhaya has different forms in the two court cities, the bedhaya Ketawang in Surakarta (Solo) and the bedhaya Semang in Yogyakarta, the latter of which has not been performed for more than 20 years. The Solonese dance continues to be performed once per year on the second day of the Javanese month of Ruwah (May), to commemorate the ascension of the current Susuhunan (prince) of Surakarta. Nine females, relatives or wives of the Susuhunan, dance with a private audience. An invitation to anyone outside of the inner circle of the court is a considerable honor.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6d420984-1be4-434f-a19b-16ff42ef0ab2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"q8zw6xqtpm","content":[{"text":"Some kind of female dance known as bedhaya existed on Java at least as early as the Majapahit Empire. Indeed, some of the steps of the modern dance are said to be as old as the third century. However, the modern form is traditionally dated to the court of Sultan Agung of Mataram (reigned 1613–1645). Unfortunately, there is almost no historical evidence to back up the claims made about the advances in the arts in Sultan Agung's courts, and the existence of the dance was not clearly documented until the late 18th century.\nThere are many myths which explain the origin of the dance, which generally have either an account of a meeting with an Hindu deity (Shiva, Brahma, Vishnu, Indra, or Lord Buddha), or the meeting of Kangjeng Ratu Kidul, the Goddess of the South Sea, with a founder of the Mataram dynasty, either Sultan Ageng or his grandfather, Senapati. In the former, the nine dancers were the creation of a deity who was brought to life and offered the dance to their maker in gratitude. In the latter, the dance was created when Kangjeng Ratu Kidul fell in love with the sultan and danced the bedhaya for him; the nine dancers in the modern dance represent the spirit of the goddess.\nSince the decline in the power of the royal courts, other, more accessible forms of bedhaya have become popular, not as religious ritual, but as artistic performance. These do not require the royal presence and may be performed on stage for an admission fee. They frequently recount stories used in wayang.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6d420984-1be4-434f-a19b-16ff42ef0ab2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mss33599ve","content":[{"text":"The dance is held in a pendhapa, a pillared audience hall with a peaked roof, with the Susuhunan on a throne in the middle of the room. The dance is performed in three large sections. In each section, the dancers emerge from a room behind the audience hall, approach the throne single file, dance in front of the throne, and then retreat, again single file. They approach and retreat on opposite sides of the throne, thus circumambulating the throne in a clockwise direction, the appropriate direction for veneration in Buddhist and Shaivist traditions.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6d420984-1be4-434f-a19b-16ff42ef0ab2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2hbard75w4","content":[{"text":"A name and number is given to each of the nine dancers, which designates a specific position in the changing choreographic pattern. There are slight variations between different sources in the names and numbers of the dancers, but there is consensus on the general forms. They are: a human being, representing taṇhā (the word for desire or craving in Buddhism), four chakras (the top three of which are used as note names; see slendro), and the four limbs:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6d420984-1be4-434f-a19b-16ff42ef0ab2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mdc5qma7bf","content":[{"text":"èndhèl/èndhèl ajeg, \"desire\", \"constant/fixed desire\", \"attachment\"\npembatak/batak, \"head\", \"mind\"\ngulu/jangga, \"neck\"\ndhadha, \"chest\"\nbuncit/bunthil, \"tail\", \"genitals\", \"lower end of spinal column\"\napit ngajeng/apit ngarep, \"right arm\", \"right flank\", \"front flank\"\napit wingking/apit mburi, \"left arm\", \"rear flank\"\nèndhèl weton/èndhèl wedalan ngajeng/èndhèl jawi, \"right leg\", \"emergent desire\", \"front emergent desire\", \"outside desire\"\napit meneng/èndhèl wedalan wingking, \"left leg\", \"quiet flank\", \"rear emergent desire\"\nThe first two sections of the dance each have three positions, with slight variations, while the last adds a final, fourth position.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6d420984-1be4-434f-a19b-16ff42ef0ab2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Music and text","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nwqt22r82f","content":[{"text":"The dance is accompanied by the singing of men and women together. The style is known as sindhenan lampah sekar. Formerly, only women sang; however, since at least the 1940s, men have also sung these parts. In Surakarta, instead of a full gamelan, the only instruments used are the colotomic instruments (kethuk, kenong, and gong), the kemanak, and drums (kendhang ketipung and gendhing); there are no balungan instruments and only sometimes other melodic instruments (such as gambang and gendér). In the Yogyakarta kraton, where the dance is no longer performed as ritual, the complete gamelan was used as accompaniment, sometimes even featuring cornets.\nThe pieces used to accompany the dances are traditionally gendhing with long structures (originally designated at least kethuk 4 arang; see gendhing for an explanation); however, shorter gendhings were also used later (such as kethuk 4 kerep or kethuk 2). The most ancient and sacred song is the Bedhaya Ketawang. When the bedhaya dancers appear on stage, in Yogyakarta, it is accompanied by an ayak-ayakan; in Surakarta, it is only accompanied by a pathetan known as pathetan bedhaya, which has lost much of the rhythmic freedom associated with pathetans to fit better the stride of the dancers.\nThe literary renaissance of Java in the 18th and 19th centuries, which greatly changed Javanese music, had as one of its first effects the creation of genres of gendhing to accompany bedhaya and serimpi, known as gendhing kemanak and gendhing bedhaya-serimpi. The former were based on a newly composed choral melody, while the latter fitted a new choral part into a pre-existing gendhing melody played by the gamelan. Hundreds of stanzas of text were written for these parts, and a particular gendhing uses at least a dozen.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6d420984-1be4-434f-a19b-16ff42ef0ab2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Taboos","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4jfh19xee6","content":[{"text":"There are many taboos regarding the performance and rehearsal of the Bedhaya ketawang, both the song and the dance associated with it. It is only allowed to be rehearsed every 35 days (when Thursday of the seven-day week coincides with Kliwon, the fifth day of the five-day week of the Javanese calendar), and performed on the anniversaries of the Susuhunan's accession to the throne. All rehearsals, and especially the performance, must be accompanied by offerings (many of which correspond to those specified in the Gandavyuha Sutra). The dancers must fast and undergo ritual purification; they must be in bridal dress and cover the upper part of their bodies in turmeric (borèh). When the text is copied, a few intentional mistakes are inserted to avoid copying a sacred text literally. This is all because during any performance or rehearsal, the deputies of Ratu Kidul are said to be present.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6d420984-1be4-434f-a19b-16ff42ef0ab2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Interpretation","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ramj4exvh3","content":[{"text":"The dance can be interpreted in a number of ways, including as an abstract sequence of positions, and a reenactment of the love between the goddess and a royal ancestor.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6d420984-1be4-434f-a19b-16ff42ef0ab2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bv58d4bbmj","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Bedhaya”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6d420984-1be4-434f-a19b-16ff42ef0ab2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"djh0zcw63t","content":[{"text":"bedhaya is Indonesian traditional dance of Javanese people, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0f350d64-66f5-45c9-a998-c96009542227"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"afrghj0yv7","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0f350d64-66f5-45c9-a998-c96009542227"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Tari Bedaya Srigati adalah sebuah tarian yang biasa dipentaskan dalam satu upacara adat di daerah Paron, Ngawi, yaitu ketika penggantian langse di objek spiritual Palereman Alas Ketangga Srigati. Hal inilah yang menyebabkan tarian ini sakral. Tarian tersebut dilakukan oleh para…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5d/Bedhaya_Srigati_%281%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Perpustakaan Digital Budaya Indonesia","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Tari Bedaya Srigati adalah sebuah tarian yang biasa dipentaskan dalam satu upacara adat di daerah Paron, Ngawi, yaitu ketika penggantian langse di objek spiritual Palereman Alas Ketangga Srigati. Hal inilah yang menyebabkan tarian ini sakral. Tarian tersebut dilakukan oleh para…","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5d/Bedhaya_Srigati_%281%29.jpg/960px-Bedhaya_Srigati_%281%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bedhaya_Srigati_(1).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5d/Bedhaya_Srigati_%281%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail_unscaled"},{"alt":"BEDHOYO Ballet du kraton de Surakarta Indonésie Sous la direction de Son Altesse Royale G.R.Ay Koes Moertiyah Wandansari Direction musicale Rahayu Supanggah Gamelan Garasi Seni Benawa Production : Maison des cultures du monde Spectacle à l'Opéra Bastille…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/70/Flickr_-_dalbera_-_Bedhoyo%2C_musique_et_danse_traditionnelle_d%27Indon%C3%A9sie_%28festival_de_l%27imaginaire%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Jean-Pierre Dalbéra from Paris, France","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"BEDHOYO Ballet du kraton de Surakarta Indonésie Sous la direction de Son Altesse Royale G.R.Ay Koes Moertiyah Wandansari Direction musicale Rahayu Supanggah Gamelan Garasi Seni Benawa Production : Maison des cultures du monde Spectacle à l'Opéra Bastille…","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/70/Flickr_-_dalbera_-_Bedhoyo%2C_musique_et_danse_traditionnelle_d%27Indon%C3%A9sie_%28festival_de_l%27imaginaire%29.jpg/960px-Flickr_-_dalbera_-_Bedhoyo%2C_musique_et_danse_traditionnelle_d%27Indon%C3%A9sie_%28festival_de_l%27imaginaire%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Flickr_-_dalbera_-_Bedhoyo,_musique_et_danse_traditionnelle_d%27Indon%C3%A9sie_(festival_de_l%27imaginaire).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/70/Flickr_-_dalbera_-_Bedhoyo%2C_musique_et_danse_traditionnelle_d%27Indon%C3%A9sie_%28festival_de_l%27imaginaire%29.jpg/1280px-Flickr_-_dalbera_-_Bedhoyo%2C_musique_et_danse_traditionnelle_d%27Indon%C3%A9sie_%28festival_de_l%27imaginaire%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"},{"alt":"BEDHOYO Ballet du kraton de Surakarta Indonésie Sous la direction de Son Altesse Royale G.R.Ay Koes Moertiyah Wandansari Direction musicale Rahayu Supanggah Gamelan Garasi Seni Benawa Production : Maison des cultures du monde Spectacle à l'Opéra Bastille…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/85/Festival_dancers_in_batik%2C_Surakarta.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Jean-Pierre Dalbéra from Paris, France","height":570,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"BEDHOYO Ballet du kraton de Surakarta Indonésie Sous la direction de Son Altesse Royale G.R.Ay Koes Moertiyah Wandansari Direction musicale Rahayu Supanggah Gamelan Garasi Seni Benawa Production : Maison des cultures du monde Spectacle à l'Opéra Bastille…","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/85/Festival_dancers_in_batik%2C_Surakarta.jpg/960px-Festival_dancers_in_batik%2C_Surakarta.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Festival_dancers_in_batik,_Surakarta.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/85/Festival_dancers_in_batik%2C_Surakarta.jpg/1280px-Festival_dancers_in_batik%2C_Surakarta.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:09.066Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/bedhaya"}
{"id":"cce621fb-5219-40a6-8ec3-ef601b1f191a","type":"art_form","slug":"belarusian-folk-dance","title":"Belarusian folk dance","summary":"Belarusian folk dance (Belarusian: Беларускі народны танец) is a Belarusian folk dance art, presented in the form of folk domestic or staged scenic dance.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8f9aa91hx9","content":[{"text":"Belarusian folk dance (Belarusian: Беларускі народны танец) is a Belarusian folk dance art, presented in the form of folk domestic or staged scenic dance. The history of Belarus and efforts to preserve Belarusian traditions have shaped the dances in use today, which have many ancient and archaic elements. These dances started to form in the 14th century, and originated in East Slavic rites. In the middle of the 19th century, traditional folk dancing began to merge with quadrilles and polkas from Western Europe.\nThe Belarusian folk dances are divided into three groups: illustrative, playful, and ornamental. Belarusian choreographer Larisa Aleksyutovich further subdivides Belarusian dances into the following genres:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"32a6d2fe-ceea-4c58-9f49-016533d90801"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"q1jkw603dz","content":[{"text":"\"actual\" dances (traditional dances, quadrilles, polkas)\nfolk dances\ncircle dances\ngames in the form of a dance\nThe concept of a \"Belarusian folk dance\" includes three components:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"32a6d2fe-ceea-4c58-9f49-016533d90801"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1gf19tb3v8","content":[{"text":"authentic dance performed in everyday life\nstaged folk dance\nethnic dance","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"32a6d2fe-ceea-4c58-9f49-016533d90801"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pmqtsngp2x","content":[{"text":"The main characteristics of Belarusian dance emerged concurrently with the shaping of Belarus and its culture in the fourteenth through sixteenth centuries, with its roots dating back to ancient Russian culture. These dances have manifested the emotions, sentiments, and personality of the Belarusian people.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"32a6d2fe-ceea-4c58-9f49-016533d90801"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"985ehnm24e","content":[{"text":"For a long time, Belarusian dance was little known, even in Belarus, and was rarely seen outside of small villages. Ihnat Bujnicki (Belarusian: Ігнат Буйніцкі, also sometimes spelled Ignatius Buinitsky) popularized Belarusian folk dances on both Belarusian and foreign stages with the creation of the Belarusian National Theatre in 1907. Bujnicki worked there as a director, actor, and dancer. The concerts featured folk songs, works of Belarusian poets, and dances accompanied by the traditional triple music of violins, cymbals, and bagpipes. Bujnicki's stage interpretations of folk dances closely followed their folklore basis.\nBelarusian national choreography has preserved the rich artistic heritage of the past. The most popular Belarusian folk dances include \"Lyavonikha\", \"Kryzhachok\", \"Yurachka\", \"Polka-Yanka\", \"Charot\", \"Taukachyki\", \"Chobaty\", \"Lyanok\", \"Kola\", \"Ruchniki\", \"Mlynok\", \"Kastsy\", \"Kozachka\", \"Myatselitsa\", \"Mikita\", \"Dudaryki\", \"Bychok\", and \"Kazyry\".\nThe main characteristics of Belarusian dance are dynamism, cheerfulness, emotion, and group performance. Today, Belarusian folk dance is performed by numerous professional dance groups. The most famous troupes are the State Dance Company of Belarus, Khoroshki, and Lyavonikha.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"32a6d2fe-ceea-4c58-9f49-016533d90801"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Classification","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"30jy37hfrh","content":[{"text":"Traditionally, Belarusian dances are divided into three groups: illustrative dances, game dances, and ornamental dances.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"32a6d2fe-ceea-4c58-9f49-016533d90801"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t6p5majqvs","content":[{"text":"Illustrative dances (such as Metelitsa, Vorobei, Koza, Lenok, and Tolkachyki) feature salient performances by the lead dances; gestures and facial expressions play a prominent role.\nIn game dances (such as Dzhigun, Magera, Repka, Pannochka, and Tsep), dancers try to achieve certain goals, which often requires chasing each other.\nIn ornamental dances (such as Kryzhachok, Kola, Troyan, and Krutukha), certain geometric figures, which can often be identified from the title of the song, form the basis of the choreography.\nBecause the dances can have regional and stage variations, it is often difficult to determine which group a particular dance belongs to. Also, sometimes a dance can contain elements of more than one of these groups.\nThe various Belarusian folk dances can alternatively be classified as follows: circle dances, traditional dances, quadrilles, polkas, and urban folk dances.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"32a6d2fe-ceea-4c58-9f49-016533d90801"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Circle dances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c0f82t0sk5","content":[{"text":"The circle dance is one of the most ancient types of dance. Presumed to have appeared towards the end of the first millennium AD, these dances have diverse themes such as work, family life, love, and relationships.\nCircle dances can have three components: song, playful ritual, and dance choreography. Depending on which component is most dominant, circle dances are divided into three main groups: the song dance, the playful dance, and the \"regular\" circle dance:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"32a6d2fe-ceea-4c58-9f49-016533d90801"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"txfwfp3bv5","content":[{"text":"The song dance has a simple choreographic structure, where the main figures are circles, lines, snakes, gates, and columns. The steps are usually simple, often without any link between the lyrics and the movements.\nThe playful dance includes all three components but with a more complicated choreographic structure. There is often a change of rhythm from slow to fast and the lead dancers enrich the performance with jumps and whirling. Both facial expressions and gestures play a very important role.\nIn the circle dance, as in the song dance, the connection between the lyrics and the movement is quite weak. The dance is the primary focus of this art, with lyrics as a mere musical accompaniment. Most often, these aren't accompanied by instrumental music.\nBelarusian circle dances differ from each other in their choices of movements, images, and tempos.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"32a6d2fe-ceea-4c58-9f49-016533d90801"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Quadrille","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"txvyxmdqs2","content":[{"text":"The quadrilles represent a large group of Belarusian dances; these exist in various local versions such as Lusterka, Sher, Najnitsy, Lanskaya, and Smorgonskaya. The quadrille is of foreign origin, coming to Belarus in the middle of the nineteenth century. Many types of quadrilles have been recorded in different regions of Belarus: thick quadrilles (with a large number of dance couples), thin quadrilles (with only a few dance couples), and even some quadrilles that have as many as 40 couples.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"32a6d2fe-ceea-4c58-9f49-016533d90801"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Polka","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"trjaq12mw5","content":[{"text":"Another group of Belarusian dances is the polkas, which are also characterized by a multitude of regional variations such as Trasukha, Yanka, Vyazanka, Shmorgalka, Drabney maku, and Usya-syusya. The polka is a dance of Czech origin. Although the polka is a borrowed dance, the Belarusian polka has had a great impact on the world's polka choreography. Many native Belarusian dances, such as the Trasukha, are derived from the polka.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"32a6d2fe-ceea-4c58-9f49-016533d90801"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b9564t9f3z","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Belarusian folk dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"32a6d2fe-ceea-4c58-9f49-016533d90801"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ycafj2rzt0","content":[{"text":"Belarusian folk dance is ethnic dance of the Belarusian people, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b5ba81f2-0dba-4a93-92f0-02fbe9c802a3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"y8trhprdhn","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b5ba81f2-0dba-4a93-92f0-02fbe9c802a3"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Tradition in Croatia, Buševec","src":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1692870613822-6f92e3a32016?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8QmVsYXJ1c2lhbiUyMGZvbGslMjBkYW5jZXxlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MDg2NjE5fDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1080","kind":"photo","width":6000,"credit":"Kat von Wood","height":4000,"source":"unsplash","depicts":"Tradition in Croatia, Buševec","licence":"Unsplash License","thumb640":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1692870613822-6f92e3a32016?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8QmVsYXJ1c2lhbiUyMGZvbGslMjBkYW5jZXxlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MDg2NjE5fDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=640","sourceUrl":"https://unsplash.com/photos/a-group-of-women-standing-next-to-each-other-6mvIKFX0OIQ?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral","thumb1280":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1692870613822-6f92e3a32016?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8QmVsYXJ1c2lhbiUyMGZvbGslMjBkYW5jZXxlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MDg2NjE5fDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1280","attributionUrl":"https://unsplash.com/@kat_von_wood?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:32.733Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/belarusian-folk-dance"}
{"id":"575a128a-6010-41fa-8106-b344cbca32fa","type":"art_form","slug":"belly-dance","title":"belly dance","summary":"Belly dance (Arabic: رقص شرقي, romanized: Raqs sharqi, lit. 'oriental dance') is a Middle Eastern dance. It features movements of the hips and torso.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"h7waffa3gs","content":[{"text":"Belly dance (Arabic: رقص شرقي, romanized: Raqs sharqi, lit. 'oriental dance') is a Middle Eastern dance. It features movements of the hips and torso. A Western-coined exonym, it is also referred to as Middle Eastern dance or Arabic dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dd755f23-0042-4c1d-8028-38a9c6583a7b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9nn08pjqn5","content":[{"text":"It has evolved to take many different forms depending on the country and region, both in costume and dance style, with the styles and costumes of Egypt being the most recognized worldwide due to Egyptian cinema.  Belly dance, in its various forms and styles ,  is popular around the world and is learned through formal instruction in dance schools, studios, workshops, and private lessons , as well as through family and community traditions in its countries of origin.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dd755f23-0042-4c1d-8028-38a9c6583a7b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Names and terminology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bz4pjhe1yq","content":[{"text":"\"Belly dance\" is a translation of the French term danse du ventre. The name first appeared in 1864 in a review of the Orientalist painting Dance of the Almeh by Jean-Léon Gérôme. \nThe first known use of the term \"belly dance\" in English is found in the writing of Charles James Wills in 1883.\nRaqs sharqi ('Eastern Dance' or 'Dance of the Orient') is a broad category of professional forms of the dance, including forms of belly dance popularly known today, such as Raqs Baladi, Sa'idi, Ghawazee, and Awalim. The informal, social form of the dance is known as Raqs Baladi ('Dance of the Country' or 'Folk Dance') in Egyptian Arabic and is considered an indigenous dance.\nBelly dance is primarily a torso-driven dance, with an emphasis on articulations of the hips. Unlike many Western dance forms, the focus of the dance is on isolations of the torso muscles, rather than on movements of the limbs through space. Although some of these isolations appear similar to the isolations used in jazz ballet, they are sometimes driven differently and have a different feeling or emphasis.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dd755f23-0042-4c1d-8028-38a9c6583a7b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Movements found in belly dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6n8r24jw98","content":[{"text":"In common with most folk dances, there is no universal naming scheme for belly dance movements. Many dancers and dance schools have developed their own naming schemes, but none of these is universally recognized. The following attempt at categorization reflects the most common naming conventions:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dd755f23-0042-4c1d-8028-38a9c6583a7b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m6arnp500v","content":[{"text":"Percussive: Staccato movements, most commonly of the hips, used to punctuate the music or accent a beat. Lifts or drops of the hips, chest or rib cage, shoulder accents, hip rocks, hits, and twists.\nFluid: Flowing, sinuous movements in which the body is in continuous motion, used to interpret melodic lines and lyrical sections in the music, or modulated to express complex instrumental improvisations. These movements require a great deal of abdominal muscle control. Typical movements include horizontal and vertical figures of 8 or infinity loops with the hips, horizontal or tilting hip circles, and undulations of the hips and abdomen. These basic shapes may be varied, combined, and embellished to create an infinite variety of complex, textured movements.\n Shimmies, shivers and vibrations: Small, fast, continuous movements of the hips or ribcage, which create an impression of texture and depth of movement. Shimmies are commonly layered over other movements, and are often used to interpret rolls on the tablah or riq or fast strumming of the oud or qanun. There are many types of shimmy, varying in size and method of generation. Some common shimmies include relaxed, up and down hip shimmies, straight-legged knee-driven shimmies, fast, tiny hip vibrations, twisting hip shimmies, bouncing 'earthquake' shimmies, and relaxed shoulder or rib cage shimmies.\nIn addition to these torso movements, dancers in many styles will use level changes, traveling steps, turns, and spins.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dd755f23-0042-4c1d-8028-38a9c6583a7b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origins and history","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vq1vkd7jqm","content":[{"text":"Belly dancing is believed to have had a long history in the Middle East. Several Greek and Roman sources including Juvenal and Martial describe dancers from Asia Minor and Spain using undulating movements, playing castanets, and sinking to the floor with \"quivering thighs\", descriptions that are certainly suggestive of the movements that are today associated with belly dance. Later, particularly in the 18th and 19th centuries, European travellers in the Middle East such as Edward Lane and Flaubert wrote extensively of the dancers they saw there, including the Awalim and Ghawazi of Egypt.\nIn his book, Andrew Hammond notes that practitioners of the art form agree that belly dance is lodged especially in Egyptian culture, he states: \"the Greek historian Herodotus related the remarkable ability of Egyptians to create for themselves spontaneous fun, singing, clapping, and dancing in boats on the Nile during numerous religious festivals. It's from somewhere in this great, ancient tradition of gaiety that the belly dance emerged.\"\nThe courtly pleasures of the Umayyad, Abbasid and Fatimid caliphs included belly dancing, soirée and singing. Belly dancing was viewed as a normal courtship dance where the woman would seduce the man she wanted with suggestive movements, but it was always done in private since no free woman could perform in public, such dance deemed indecent in the Islamic moral code of law. The belly dancers and singers sent from all parts of the vast empire to entertain the wealthy and powerful were as such almost always slaves or prostitutes.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dd755f23-0042-4c1d-8028-38a9c6583a7b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Modern social context","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zt0w9a5ajw","content":[{"text":"Despite belly dance commonly being known in the West as Arabic dance or Middle Eastern dance, much of the modern Arab world and Islamic Middle East considers it a highly disreputable art-form; in certain regions it is even outlawed.\nBelly dance remains common in Egypt, where it has two distinct social contexts: as a folk or social dance. As a social dance, belly dance (also called Raqs Baladi or Raqs Shaabi in this context) is performed at celebrations and social gatherings by ordinary people (male and female, young and old), in their ordinary clothes. In more conservative or traditional societies, these events may be gender segregated, with separate parties where men and women dance separately.\nHistorically, professional dance performers were the Awalim (primarily musicians and poets) and the Ghawazi. The Maazin sisters may have been the last authentic performers of Ghawazi dance in Egypt, with Khayreyya Maazin still teaching and performing as of 2020.\nBelly dancing is part of Egyptian culture, and is part of Arabic culture as a whole. \nThroughout the Middle East and the Arab diaspora, belly dancing is closely associated with Arabic music that is modern classical (known as \"al-jadid\").","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dd755f23-0042-4c1d-8028-38a9c6583a7b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"In Egypt","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5cy64608pf","content":[{"text":"The modern Egyptian belly dance style and the modern belly dance costumes of the 19th century were featured by the Awalim.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dd755f23-0042-4c1d-8028-38a9c6583a7b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"y2vvshjabw","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Belly dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dd755f23-0042-4c1d-8028-38a9c6583a7b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"01xhzc46h8","content":[{"text":"belly dance is Arabic dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"543f9951-9fe7-4f55-8397-11c9a11fb61a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"a8d5phw7fj","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 26 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"543f9951-9fe7-4f55-8397-11c9a11fb61a"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-03T05:47:26.981Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/belly-dance"}
{"id":"a1e4d85f-5a35-4270-8d78-0fab1a25b2a1","type":"art_form","slug":"berd","title":"Berd","summary":"Berd (Armenian: Բերդ, բերդապար (Berd, berdapar), \"Fortress\") is an Armenian dance which originates from the ancient Armenian province of Vaspurakan of the ancient kingdom of Armenia.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"43f64mdfex","content":[{"text":"Berd (Armenian: Բերդ, բերդապար (Berd, berdapar), \"Fortress\") is an Armenian dance which originates from the ancient Armenian province of Vaspurakan of the ancient kingdom of Armenia. The dance was part of the old Armenian game \"Գմբեթախաղ (Gmbetakhagh)\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aec73ee2-7329-43d7-9153-3304cc894019"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"About","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4w3amrd9dt","content":[{"text":"During the dance dancers wear only traditional Armenian dress (Armenian: տարազ, taraz). The central objective of the dance is to create a fortress, which is a 2-storey human wall. In order to achieve this, dancers stand on top of each other's shoulders.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aec73ee2-7329-43d7-9153-3304cc894019"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Structure of the Dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dzmah8zgss","content":[{"text":"Formation: Two circles of dancers, one standing on the shoulders of the other, linked tightly by arms.\nMovement: The double circle rotates steadily, giving the impression of a moving fortress.\nMusic: Typically performed to zurna and dhol (traditional reed and drum), with a strong, martial rhythm.\nGender roles: Traditionally male; contemporary stage versions sometimes include mixed groups for visual effect.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aec73ee2-7329-43d7-9153-3304cc894019"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Transmission and Performance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hhnj7vm588","content":[{"text":"In village contexts, Berd was performed at festivals and weddings, often as a demonstration of collective strength.\nBecause of the risk involved, the dance was not done casually — it was reserved for occasions requiring a show of stamina and unity.\nStage adaptation began in the Soviet era, when folk ensembles started presenting regional dances in theaters. Safety adaptations (training, reinforced grips) made repeated performance possible.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aec73ee2-7329-43d7-9153-3304cc894019"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Ensembles and Modern Context","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8g6rvnbw1p","content":[{"text":"The Berd Dance Ensemble(founded 1963 in Yerevan by Boris Gevorgyan) made the Berd dance its signature stage piece, and the ensemble itself was named after it.\nArmenian State Dance Ensemble, and other ensembles as well have staged Berd, often closing concerts with it as a dramatic highlight.\nIn the diaspora, groups in the United States, Lebanon, and France regularly present Berd in cultural festivals, usually in adapted or shortened versions.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aec73ee2-7329-43d7-9153-3304cc894019"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kbb8489j4r","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Berd (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aec73ee2-7329-43d7-9153-3304cc894019"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ckknex0pmv","content":[{"text":"Berd is Armenian dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"143d79a4-3815-4cff-9568-e5d8a7b421b5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gctvnz2qvf","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"143d79a4-3815-4cff-9568-e5d8a7b421b5"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Ruined Armenian church inside Lori Berd (Lori Fortress), an 11th-century fortress located in the Lori Province , Armenia . The fortress was built by David Anhoghin to become the capital of Kingdom of Tashir-Dzoraget in 1065.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/12/Lori_Berd%2C_Armenia%2C_2016-09-30%2C_DD_69.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Diego Delso","height":886,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Ruined Armenian church inside Lori Berd (Lori Fortress), an 11th-century fortress located in the Lori Province , Armenia . The fortress was built by David Anhoghin to become the capital of Kingdom of Tashir-Dzoraget in 1065.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/12/Lori_Berd%2C_Armenia%2C_2016-09-30%2C_DD_69.jpg/960px-Lori_Berd%2C_Armenia%2C_2016-09-30%2C_DD_69.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lori_Berd,_Armenia,_2016-09-30,_DD_69.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/12/Lori_Berd%2C_Armenia%2C_2016-09-30%2C_DD_69.jpg/1280px-Lori_Berd%2C_Armenia%2C_2016-09-30%2C_DD_69.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Berd River","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e3/Berd_River_-_panoramio.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"rival.nsk","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Berd River","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e3/Berd_River_-_panoramio.jpg/960px-Berd_River_-_panoramio.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Berd_River_-_panoramio.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e3/Berd_River_-_panoramio.jpg/1280px-Berd_River_-_panoramio.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"},{"alt":"Ruined Armenian church inside Lori Berd (Lori Fortress), an 11th-century fortress located in the Lori Province , Armenia . The fortress was built by David Anhoghin to become the capital of Kingdom of Tashir-Dzoraget in 1065.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/77/Lori_Berd%2C_Armenia%2C_2016-09-30%2C_DD_63-65_HDR.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Diego Delso","height":782,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Ruined Armenian church inside Lori Berd (Lori Fortress), an 11th-century fortress located in the Lori Province , Armenia . The fortress was built by David Anhoghin to become the capital of Kingdom of Tashir-Dzoraget in 1065.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/77/Lori_Berd%2C_Armenia%2C_2016-09-30%2C_DD_63-65_HDR.jpg/960px-Lori_Berd%2C_Armenia%2C_2016-09-30%2C_DD_63-65_HDR.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lori_Berd,_Armenia,_2016-09-30,_DD_63-65_HDR.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/77/Lori_Berd%2C_Armenia%2C_2016-09-30%2C_DD_63-65_HDR.jpg/1280px-Lori_Berd%2C_Armenia%2C_2016-09-30%2C_DD_63-65_HDR.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:14.358Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/berd"}
{"id":"e7ba6e57-86ba-4c2f-aaac-6e6d7b62d655","type":"art_form","slug":"bhairab-naach","title":"Bhairab Naach","summary":"Bhaila Pyankhan, or \"Bhairava's Dance\" is a traditional masked dance performed by Newar community in the Pokhara Valley of Nepal as part of the Bhairab Jatra festival and named after Bhairab, an aspect of Shiva.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"00ysc573tz","content":[{"text":"Bhaila Pyankhan, or \"Bhairava's Dance\" is a traditional masked dance performed by Newar community in the Pokhara Valley of Nepal as part of the Bhairab Jatra festival and named after Bhairab, an aspect of Shiva.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"46c78e63-8c7b-41fd-8e13-12c6954cd735"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8b9mf4dr9k","content":[{"text":"The Bhairab Naach originated in Bhaktapur and was brought to Pokhara by migrating Newars. Although it was performed every 12 years in Bhaktapur, it is performed every 6 years in Pokhara Valley to maintain its cultural significance.\nIt was brought more than 236 years ago by Jitaram from Bhaktapur according to the guru Late Mr. Sarbagyaman Pradhananga . The rag (song) in this dance indicates that it was started at the time of last Malla King of Bhaktapur, Ranajit Malla.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"46c78e63-8c7b-41fd-8e13-12c6954cd735"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dancers","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s3v908nhz0","content":[{"text":"There are 12 deities in this dance, namely Dagini (Dakini), Kwancha, Bhuccha, Bhairab, Kali (Budi Bhairab), Indrayani, Varahi, Kumari, Bishnuvi (Vaishnavi), Bramhayani (Brahmani), Maheswori (Gauri) and Ganesh (Ganesha). Bhairab leads and conducts the dance. Before the dance, all performers bathe and wear ceremonial clothes and masks (Khwapa). After wearing the mask, no performer can speak until it is taken off.\nThe dance is started at the Bhairab Temple in the evening and after a couple of rounds and puja it is taken to the hosting place where it is performed for around six hours including puja.\nAt first all 12 gods dance. After the puja is complete then individual dance starts. First is Bhairab with Kwancha and Bhuccha which is like a child and adult play. It is called a . After that Bhairab, Kali, Indrayani and Barah come. It lasts almost one hour and called a Char Bhairab. It is an energetic dance and most people love to watch this part of the dance. Then come Kumari, Bishnuvi, Bramhayani and Ganga. Then Ganesh dances solo. Then come Kwancha and Bhuchha, again with their like childlike playing. At the end comes Dagini. In the closing act all 12 Bhairabs participate.  Then the ending puja is performed and they return to the Bhairab Temple.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"46c78e63-8c7b-41fd-8e13-12c6954cd735"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Other similar dances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fsa14q3bjm","content":[{"text":"Comparable dances include the Pachali Bhairab Naach of Pachali; the Naradevi Jatra of Naradevi Tole; the Bhadrakali Khadga Siddi Nach of Kathmandu and the Layaku Bhaila (Royal Bhairab) of Madhyapur Thimi.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"46c78e63-8c7b-41fd-8e13-12c6954cd735"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k2vpz4phwq","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Bhairab Naach”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"46c78e63-8c7b-41fd-8e13-12c6954cd735"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9px4h0tvby","content":[{"text":"Bhairab Naach is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"af0394dc-e5f9-4d5a-85e9-20b93d4f88e2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wbrc4g4gn2","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"af0394dc-e5f9-4d5a-85e9-20b93d4f88e2"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"A man and woman dressed up in costumes","src":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1729350229542-858933662110?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8QmhhaXJhYiUyME5hYWNofGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgxMDM4NDJ8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1080","kind":"photo","width":6000,"credit":"litoon dev","height":3376,"source":"unsplash","depicts":"A man and woman dressed up in costumes","licence":"Unsplash License","thumb640":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1729350229542-858933662110?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8QmhhaXJhYiUyME5hYWNofGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgxMDM4NDJ8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=640","sourceUrl":"https://unsplash.com/photos/a-man-and-woman-dressed-up-in-costumes-n1GN3STWWAs?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral","thumb1280":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1729350229542-858933662110?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8QmhhaXJhYiUyME5hYWNofGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgxMDM4NDJ8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1280","attributionUrl":"https://unsplash.com/@litoondev?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:33.645Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/bhairab-naach"}
{"id":"065297c0-5365-42ed-bd50-0b69ae361912","type":"art_form","slug":"bharatanatyam","title":"Bharatanatyam","summary":"Bharatanatyam is an Indian classical dance form that comes from Tamil Nadu, India.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9n50d6t7dt","content":[{"text":"Bharatanatyam is an Indian classical dance form that comes from Tamil Nadu, India. It is a classical dance form recognized by the Sangeet Natak Akademi, and expresses South Indian religious themes and spiritual ideas, particularly of Shaivism and in general of Hinduism.\nA description of the precursors of Bharatanatyam from the Natya Shastra dates from around 500 BCE to 500 CE, while those in the ancient Tamil epic Silappatikaram date to around 171 CE. Temple sculptures of the 6th to 9th centuries CE suggest dance was a refined performance art by the mid-1st millennium CE. Sadiraattam, which was renamed Bharatanatyam in 1932, is the oldest classical dance tradition in India.\nBharatanatyam contains different types of bani. Bani, or \"tradition\", is a term used to describe the dance technique and style specific to a guru or school, often named after the village of the guru. The Bharatanatyam style is noted for its fixed upper torso, bent legs, and flexed knees (aramandi) combined with footwork, and a vocabulary of sign language based on gestures of hands, eyes, and facial muscles. The dance is accompanied by music and a singer, and typically the dancer's guru is present as the nattuvanar, or director-conductor of the performance and art. The performance repertoire of Bharatanatyam, like that of other classical dances, includes nrita (pure dance), nritya (conveys a meaning to the audience through hand gestures) and natya (consists of the elements of drama).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee4601e5-3598-41a5-98c8-c6ee45c01984"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"snk2wcmxb9","content":[{"text":"The word Bharatam is seen as a backronym, with bha standing for bhavam (feelings, emotions), ra for ragam (melody, framework for musical notes), and tam for talam (rhythm). The term Natyam is a Sanskrit word (Sanskrit: नाट्यम्) for \"dance\". The compound word Bharatanatyam, therefore, is understood to connote a dance that harmoniously expresses bhavam, ragam and talam. Other interpretations suggest that the name literally translates to \"the dance of Bharata\", from Bharata, who is reputed to be the author of the Natya Shastra, a Sanskrit text of performance arts.\nIn 1932, E Krishna Iyer and Rukmini Devi Arundale proposed renaming Sadiraattam (Tamil: சதிராட்டம்), also known as Parathaiyar Aattam or Thevarattam, as Bharatanatyam to give the dance form a measure of respect, at a meeting of the Madras Music Academy. They also were instrumental in modifying mainly the Pandanallur style of dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee4601e5-3598-41a5-98c8-c6ee45c01984"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"e3xpq4b4p9","content":[{"text":"The theoretical foundations of the dance Bharatanatyam are found first in the Natya Shastra and later in a Tamil text called Kootha nool taken from the Tholkappiyam (250 BCE).\nThe first complete compilation of the Natya Shastra is dated to between 500 BCE and 200 CE, though estimates vary between 500 BCE and 500 CE. Richmond et al. estimate the Natasutras to have been composed around 600 BCE. The most studied version of the Natya Shastra text consists of about 6,000 verses structured into 36 chapters. The text, states Natalia Lidova, describes the theory of Tāṇḍava dance (Shiva), the theory of rasa, of bhāva, expression, gestures, acting techniques, basic steps, and standing postures—all of which are part of Indian classical dances. Dance and performance arts, states this text, are a form of expression for spiritual ideas, virtues, and the essence of scriptures.\nHistorical references to dance are found in the Tamil epics Silappatikaram (c. 2nd century CE) and Manimegalai (c. 6th century CE). The ancient text Silappatikaram includes a story of a dancing girl named Madhavi; it describes the Madhavi's dance training regimen, called Arangatrau Kathai, in verses 113 through 159. The carvings in Kanchipuram's Shiva temple that have been dated to the 6th to 9th centuries CE suggest dance was a well-developed performance art by about the mid-1st millennium CE.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee4601e5-3598-41a5-98c8-c6ee45c01984"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dsqe153ge5","content":[{"text":"A famous example of illustrative sculpture is in the southern gateway of the Chidambaram temple (c. 12th century) dedicated to the Hindu god Shiva, where 108 poses, described as karanas in the Natya Shastra, are carved in stone.\nBharatanatyam shares the dance poses of many ancient Shiva sculptures in Hindu temples.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee4601e5-3598-41a5-98c8-c6ee45c01984"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Devadasis, anti-dance movement, colonial ban, and the decline","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rkptbxgrd2","content":[{"text":"Some colonial Indologists and modern authors have argued that Bharatanatyam is a descendant of an ancient Devadasi (lit. 'servant girls of Devas') culture, suggesting a historical origin dating back to between 300 BCE and 300 CE. Modern scholars have questioned this theory due to a lack of any direct textual or archaeological evidence. Historical sculptures and texts do describe and project dancing girls, as well as temple quarters dedicated to women, but they do not describe them to as courtesans and prostitutes, as alleged by early colonial Indologists. According to Davesh Soneji, a critical examination of evidence suggests that courtesan dancing is a phenomenon of the modern era, beginning in the late 16th or the 17th century during the Nayaka period of Tamil Nadu. According to James Lochtefeld, classical dance remained exclusive to Hindu temples through the 19th century, appearing on stage outside temples only in the 20th century. Further, the Thanjavur Maratha kingdom patronized classical dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee4601e5-3598-41a5-98c8-c6ee45c01984"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bpn6q9kj4z","content":[{"text":"With the arrival of the East India Company in the 18th century, and British colonial rule in the 19th, classical Indian dance forms were ridiculed and discouraged, and these performance arts declined. Christian missionaries and British officials presented \"nautch girls\" of north India (Kathak) and \"devadasis\" of south India (Bharatanatyam) as evidence of a \"harlots, debased erotic culture, slavery to idols and priests\" tradition. The Christian missionaries demanded that this be stopped, launching the \"anti-dance movement\" in 1892.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee4601e5-3598-41a5-98c8-c6ee45c01984"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Post-colonial revival","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jbb5bgckb7","content":[{"text":"The 1910 ban triggered protests against the stereotyping and dehumanization of temple dancers. The Tamil people were concerned that a historical and rich dance tradition was being victimized under the guise of social reform. Classical art revivalists such as E. Krishna Iyer, a lawyer who had learned from traditional practitioners of Sadir, questioned the cultural discrimination and the assumed connection, asking why prostitution would require years of training in the performance arts, and how killing performance arts could end any evils in society. Iyer, who was arrested and sentenced to prison on charges of nationalism, persuaded his fellow political prisoners to support Bharatanatyam while serving his prison term.\nWhile the British colonial government enforced laws to suppress Hindu temple dances, some from the West, such as the American dancer Esther Sherman, who moved to India in 1930, learned Indian classical dances, and changed her name to Ragini Devi, joined the movement to revive Bharatanatyam and other ancient dance arts.\nThe Indian independence movement in the early 20th century, already in progress, became a period of cultural ferment and initiated an effort by the people to reclaim their culture and rediscover their history.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee4601e5-3598-41a5-98c8-c6ee45c01984"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Elements","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mpa45d4yf4","content":[{"text":"Bharatanatyam is traditionally a team performance art that consists of a solo dancer, accompanied by musicians and one or more…","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee4601e5-3598-41a5-98c8-c6ee45c01984"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rqac00mt27","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Bharatanatyam”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee4601e5-3598-41a5-98c8-c6ee45c01984"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3t9nary73w","content":[{"text":"Bharatanatyam is Indian classical dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"80e086e0-16ac-45b8-946f-9e3759f1531e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sg4phrm59h","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 19 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"80e086e0-16ac-45b8-946f-9e3759f1531e"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-02T05:48:10.261Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/bharatanatyam"}
{"id":"1d5d55c0-fa9c-4430-a7d2-f1f6e8375700","type":"art_form","slug":"bhavai-dance","title":"Bhavai dance","summary":"Bhavai is a genre of folk dance popular in Rajasthan state in northern India which is performed solo.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vddhnnfvqp","content":[{"text":"Bhavai is a genre of folk dance popular in Rajasthan state in northern India which is performed solo. The male or female performers balance a number of earthen pots or brass/metal pitchers as they dance nimbly, pirouetting and then swaying with the soles of their feet perched on the top of a glass bottles, on the edge of the sword, on the rim of a brass/metal thali (plate) and on the broken glass during the performance.\nThe first Bhavai Dancer of India was  Mrs. Krishna Vyas Chhangani, who was born in Jodhpur (Rajasthan).\nThe Dance form consists of veiled women dancers balancing up to 22 brass/metal pitchers on their head as they dance nimbly, pirouetting and then swaying, while their feet are perched on top of a glass or on the edge of the sword. There is a sense of cutting-edge suspense and nail-biting acts in the dance.\nThe accompaniment to the dance is provided by the male performers singing melodious songs and playing a number of musical instruments, which include pakhawaj, dholak, jhanjhar, sarangi, and harmonium.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"20191d4c-2c6c-4edc-b4e5-d6024037480a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"r7knx83bke","content":[{"text":"Traditionally, this genre of dance was performed by the female performers belonging to the Jat, Bhil, Raigar, Meena, Kumhar, and Kalbelia communities of Rajasthan. It is assumed that this genre of dance was evolved from the exceptional balancing skills of the females of these communities developed to carry a number of pots of water on head over a long distance in the desert.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"20191d4c-2c6c-4edc-b4e5-d6024037480a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5yqs7xemm5","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Bhavai dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"20191d4c-2c6c-4edc-b4e5-d6024037480a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"q1ygdjxjen","content":[{"text":"Bhavai dance is a tradition recorded in open cultural data, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e5fd9cf9-cf88-43f4-9277-ff903272cee9"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tn2a4y8y1p","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e5fd9cf9-cf88-43f4-9277-ff903272cee9"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"The dance involves men/women balancing eight to nine brass pitchers or earthen pots on their head as they dance and twirl with their feet on the perimeter of a brass plate or on the top of a glass. Because of its high level of difficulty and complexity, it takes years for the…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/72/MadhuJagdhish_Bhavai_Dance_5.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Jmadhu","height":898,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"The dance involves men/women balancing eight to nine brass pitchers or earthen pots on their head as they dance and twirl with their feet on the perimeter of a brass plate or on the top of a glass. Because of its high level of difficulty and complexity, it takes years for the…","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/72/MadhuJagdhish_Bhavai_Dance_5.jpg/960px-MadhuJagdhish_Bhavai_Dance_5.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:MadhuJagdhish_Bhavai_Dance_5.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/72/MadhuJagdhish_Bhavai_Dance_5.jpg/1280px-MadhuJagdhish_Bhavai_Dance_5.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"The dance involves men/women balancing eight to nine brass pitchers or earthen pots on their head as they dance and twirl with their feet on the perimeter of a brass plate or on the top of a glass. Because of its high level of difficulty and complexity, it takes years for the…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d1/MadhuJagdhish_Bhavai_Dance_3.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Jmadhu","height":866,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"The dance involves men/women balancing eight to nine brass pitchers or earthen pots on their head as they dance and twirl with their feet on the perimeter of a brass plate or on the top of a glass. Because of its high level of difficulty and complexity, it takes years for the…","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d1/MadhuJagdhish_Bhavai_Dance_3.jpg/960px-MadhuJagdhish_Bhavai_Dance_3.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:MadhuJagdhish_Bhavai_Dance_3.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d1/MadhuJagdhish_Bhavai_Dance_3.jpg/1280px-MadhuJagdhish_Bhavai_Dance_3.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"The dance involves men/women balancing eight to nine brass pitchers or earthen pots on their head as they dance and twirl with their feet on the perimeter of a brass plate or on the top of a glass. Because of its high level of difficulty and complexity, it takes years for the…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9e/MadhuJagdhish_Bhavai_Dance_4.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Jmadhu","height":839,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"The dance involves men/women balancing eight to nine brass pitchers or earthen pots on their head as they dance and twirl with their feet on the perimeter of a brass plate or on the top of a glass. Because of its high level of difficulty and complexity, it takes years for the…","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9e/MadhuJagdhish_Bhavai_Dance_4.jpg/960px-MadhuJagdhish_Bhavai_Dance_4.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:MadhuJagdhish_Bhavai_Dance_4.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9e/MadhuJagdhish_Bhavai_Dance_4.jpg/1280px-MadhuJagdhish_Bhavai_Dance_4.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:30.299Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/bhavai-dance"}
{"id":"cc0fafe6-759c-4dc5-bee9-c33fb48499bc","type":"art_form","slug":"bhuta-kola","title":"Bhuta Kola","summary":"Būta Kōlā (Tulu: Bhūta Kōla), also referred to as Bhūta Kolam, Daiva Kōlā or Daiva Nēmā, is a Hindu folk dance performance practised, believed and protected by the Tuluvas of Tulu Nadu and parts of Malenadu of Karnataka and Kasargod in nort…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tkw2f56eht","content":[{"text":"Būta Kōlā (Tulu: Bhūta Kōla), also referred to as Bhūta Kolam, Daiva Kōlā or Daiva Nēmā, is a Hindu folk dance performance practised, believed and protected by the Tuluvas of Tulu Nadu and parts of Malenadu of Karnataka and Kasargod in northern Kerala, India. The dance is highly stylised and performed as part of \"Bhootaradhane\" or \"Daivaaradhane\" or worship of the local deities of the Tulu-speaking population in South India. It has influenced Yakshagana folk theatre. Būta kōlā is closely related to Theyyam of North Malabar region and some parts of Karnataka. Theyyam is an evolved form of Būta Kōla. Theyyam, in turn, shares similarities with a similar Hindu folk dance called Thirayattam.\nIt involves extended chanting of Tulu Ballards and ceremonial preparations that typically span 8 to 10 hours. The ritual culminates with the placement of the mudi (sacred headgear) on the performer, a moment believed to mark the entry of the deity into the performer's body. As part of the process, the performer consumes madhyam or Kali (toddy), which is believed to suppress the person's consciousness, allowing the divine consciousness of the daiva to manifest. This practice aligns with philosophical concepts found in Hindu texts such as the Yoga Vasistha, which describe how divine entities (devatas) can enter the human body, parakāya praveśanam at a Paramanu level.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1c696f65-e305-4364-8a99-5f9a91a973ef"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Bobbarya","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dzccea27c3","content":[{"text":"This God of the seas is worshipped mostly by members of the fishing community.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1c696f65-e305-4364-8a99-5f9a91a973ef"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Guliga","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5w0jkg1ev6","content":[{"text":"Guliga or 'Guligan', also known as 'Gulige', is the most commonly worshipped Daiva, particularly by the Tuluvas. As per legend, Guliga is a goblin born out of a stone. Goddess Parvati discovered this stone in a pile of ash. Guliga was created when Shiva flung this ash into the water and was sent to Vishnu after his birth so that he may serve him. Guliga has extreme hunger which never ends; he even has the power to swallow the Earth.\nHowever, Guliga was extremely aggressive, and this greatly annoyed Vishnu. Vishnu exiled Guliga to Earth as a result and tasked him with protecting the people on Earth.\nEven on Earth, his ferocity and hunger caused disturbance. Lord Vishnu appeared once more and understood that only divine energy could calm him. He offered the tip of his little finger to Guliga. When Guliga bit it, divine peace flowed through him for the first time. His anger calmed, and he agreed to be the protector god of the humans. It has been foretold by Panjurli that anyone who persecutes humans and spreads evil will be killed by Guliga.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1c696f65-e305-4364-8a99-5f9a91a973ef"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Jumadi","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"04tqwttxc1","content":[{"text":"Jumadi is an androgynous spirit with an insatiable thirst. The legend of Jumadi describes a man-eating asura named Dhumasura, with a boon that neither a man nor a woman could kill him. Shiva and Parvati were invoked by their adherents, who then descended from Kailasha to slay the asura. On their way, Parvati felt hungry, and Shiva tried to satisfy her through various means, but she remained unsatiated. At last, Shiva offered himself and ordered Parvati to swallow him. As Parvati swallowed him, Shiva's head did not pass beyond his consort's throat. Their bodies fused, in which the face of Shiva appeared with a moustache, below which was the neck and the body of Parvati. The deity's throat featured the lingam and wore a crown of nagas (snakes). This androgynous form of Shiva and Parvati slew Dhumasura in battle, thus receiving the epithet Dhumavati (not to be confused with the Mahavidya goddess Dhumavati).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1c696f65-e305-4364-8a99-5f9a91a973ef"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Kalkuda and Kallurti","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"v0zwbsdrpv","content":[{"text":"They are Daivas who are brother and sister. According to legend, Kalkuda was a great sculptor who built the Gommateshwara (Bahubali) Statue in Karkala. After he completed building beautiful temples and monumental statues, the ruler of Karkala cut off his left arm and right leg so that he could not create such beautiful sculptures for any other king. On seeing her brother's state, Kallurti vowed to take revenge and requested Shiva to turn them into deities. Shiva agreed and the pair then took violent revenge on the king, his family, and his kingdom. Their destruction was only stopped when a master magician promised them that they would be worshipped as and how they wanted.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1c696f65-e305-4364-8a99-5f9a91a973ef"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Koragajja","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gby0s1yjxe","content":[{"text":"Koragajja is invoked for help in solving any problem, to get back something lost, or to get any work done on time.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1c696f65-e305-4364-8a99-5f9a91a973ef"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dry2xvn94n","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Buta Kola”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1c696f65-e305-4364-8a99-5f9a91a973ef"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"47pssvec94","content":[{"text":"Bhuta Kola is Ritual folk dance from India, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dfafa3d1-49a1-42cd-95a1-a483464fc862"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"h3q3kr2dcw","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dfafa3d1-49a1-42cd-95a1-a483464fc862"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Pandal used for Bhuta Kola","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/47/BhutaKolaPandal.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Nharipra","height":1920,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Pandal used for Bhuta Kola","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/47/BhutaKolaPandal.jpg/960px-BhutaKolaPandal.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:BhutaKolaPandal.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/47/BhutaKolaPandal.jpg/1280px-BhutaKolaPandal.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"Jumadi is a divine spirit worshipped in Bhuta kola. Jumadi is usually represented in an androgynous form with a face of man and a body of a woman.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/61/Jumadi_Mask_in_Buta_Kola.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"BHARATHESHA ALASANDEMAJALU","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Jumadi is a divine spirit worshipped in Bhuta kola. Jumadi is usually represented in an androgynous form with a face of man and a body of a woman.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/61/Jumadi_Mask_in_Buta_Kola.jpg/960px-Jumadi_Mask_in_Buta_Kola.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Jumadi_Mask_in_Buta_Kola.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/61/Jumadi_Mask_in_Buta_Kola.jpg/1280px-Jumadi_Mask_in_Buta_Kola.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:30.873Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/bhuta-kola"}
{"id":"877b3715-35c4-46d4-9e63-08287d6486a0","type":"art_form","slug":"big-apple","title":"Big Apple","summary":"The Big Apple is both a partner dance and a circle dance that originated in the Afro-American community of the United States in the beginning of the 20th century.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vqjc7tcq5c","content":[{"text":"The Big Apple is both a partner dance and a circle dance that originated in the Afro-American community of the United States in the beginning of the 20th century.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fa1605fa-246f-4d8f-8d0f-3227e84aa8b6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origin (1860–1936)","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mt5p19cnqs","content":[{"text":"The exact origin of the Big Apple is unclear but one author suggests that the dance originated from the \"ring shout\", a group dance associated with religious observances that was founded before 1860 by African Americans on plantations in South Carolina and Georgia.  The ring shout is described as a dance with \"counterclockwise circling and high arm gestures\" that resembled the Big Apple.  It is still practiced today in small populations of the southern United States. \nThe dance that eventually became known as the Big Apple is speculated to have been created in the early 1930s by African-American youth dancing at the Big Apple Club, which was at the former House of Peace Synagogue on Park Street in Columbia, South Carolina.  The synagogue was converted into a black juke joint called the \"Big Apple Night Club\".\nIn 1936, three white students from the University of South Carolina – Billy Spivey, Donald Davis, and Harold \"Goo-Goo\" Wiles – heard the music coming from the juke joint as they were driving by.  Even though it was very unusual for whites to go into a black club, the three asked the club's owner, Frank \"Fat Sam\" Boyd, if they could enter.  Skip Davis, the son of Donald Davis, said that \"Fat Sam made two conditions. They had to pay twenty five cents each and they had to sit in the balcony.\"  During the next few months, the white students brought more friends to the night club to watch the black dancers.  The white students became so fascinated with the dance that, in order to prevent the music from stopping, they would toss coins down to the black dancers below them when the dancers ran out of money. \"We had a lot of nickels with us because it took a nickel to play a song.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fa1605fa-246f-4d8f-8d0f-3227e84aa8b6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Rise in popularity (1937–38)","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"p70x172de8","content":[{"text":"During the summer of 1937, the students from the University of South Carolina started dancing the Big Apple at the Pavilion in Myrtle Beach.  Betty Wood (née Henderson), a dancer who helped revive the Big Apple in the 1990s, first saw the dance there, and six months later she won a dance contest and become nicknamed \"Big Apple Betty.\"  The news of the new dance craze spread to New York, and a New York talent agent, Gae Foster, traveled to the Carolinas to audition dancers for a show at the Roxy Theater, the world's second-largest theater at that time.  Eight couples were chosen for the show, including Wood, Spivey, and Davis, to perform the Big Apple during a three-week engagement that began on September 3, 1937.  They performed six shows a day to sold-out audiences and greatly contributed to the dance's popularity.  After the engagement at the Roxy, the group became known as \"Billy Spivey's Big Apple Dancers\" and toured the country for six months.\nArthur Murray, a dance instructor and entrepreneur who had 128 dance studios occupying three floors in New York in 1936  saw the Big Apple dancers at the Roxy in September 1937 and incorporated the Big Apple into his swing dance syllabus.  Due to the popularity of the Big Apple and other popular dances such as the Conga, Murray began offering franchises in 1937.  By 1938, there were franchises in several major cities, including Detroit, Cleveland, Atlanta, Louisville, and Minneapolis.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fa1605fa-246f-4d8f-8d0f-3227e84aa8b6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"References in popular culture","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"74qqk87xb9","content":[{"text":"The dance is mentioned in the Frank Capra film You Can't Take It with You (1938). In the film Jimmy Stewart and his fiancée, played by Jean Arthur, are enticed to learn the dance by some youngsters for the payment of a dime. The children have a sign \"Learn the 'Big Apple' 10 cents.\" The lesson is broken up by the arrival of a policeman on foot. The children and the adults all leave. In the scene that follows, Mr. Stewart and Ms. Arthur show up at a swanky party not realizing that the sign has become attached to the back of Ms. Arthur's dress.\nIn the movie Vivacious Lady (1938) Ginger Rogers and James Ellison teach some moves from the dance to Beulah Bondi. These include Suzie Q and Praise Allah. \nIn the 1938 variety show anthology film The Big Broadcast of 1938, Bob Hope tells a joke about \"a little schoolboy that used to take a big apple to the teacher, and now he takes the teacher to the Big Apple.\" When the audience groans, he laughs lamely and says, \"The Big Apple's a dance.\"\nA notorious December 1937 radio broadcast by Mae West, condemned as \"vulgar and indecent\" by the Federal Communications Commission, featured an Adam and Eve sketch in which Eve (played by West) asks the Snake in the Garden of Eden to fetch her some forbidden fruit: \"Now, get me a big one -- I feel like doin' a Big Apple!\" The studio audience laughed, briefly applauding the reference.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fa1605fa-246f-4d8f-8d0f-3227e84aa8b6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Popularity continues","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"a0ys963h3n","content":[{"text":"In the spring of 1938, Whitey's Lindy Hoppers performed the Big Apple at the Roxy Theater during a three-week engagement.  A theatrical producer, Harry Howard, saw their show and hired the group to perform for Hollywood Hotel Revue, a production that would tour New Zealand and Australia.  The group was billed as \"The 8 Big Apple Dancers\" or similar variations, and consisted of four couples that included Frankie Manning.  They were the only black performers in the production that lasted from August 1938 until spring 1939.\nSome claim that New York City's nickname, the Big Apple, came from the dance. However, that theory has been discredited (see The Nickname of New York).\nThere are also accounts that a new variation developed called the \"Little Apple.\" This form involved fewer dancers and people would take it in turns to grab a partner and move to the center of the circle and dance for a while in styles similar to the Lindy Hop, Shag, or other dances of the era.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fa1605fa-246f-4d8f-8d0f-3227e84aa8b6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Decline in popularity (1939–41)","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f4bbam0t1b","content":[{"text":"The dance reached international popularity by 1939.  Jeff Wilkinson claims that \"even British Prime Minister Winston Churchill was doing the dance.\"  However, this may have been the dance's undoing.  Wilkinson speculates that the dance decreased in popularity when \"it was adopted by the old folks.\"  Jitterbugging was also increasing in popularity, and by 1941 the Big Apple was a past fad that had been replaced by the Jitterbug","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fa1605fa-246f-4d8f-8d0f-3227e84aa8b6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sbtkg90fsj","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Big Apple (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fa1605fa-246f-4d8f-8d0f-3227e84aa8b6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ba71hcra8z","content":[{"text":"Big Apple is both a partner dance and a circle dance originating in the Afro-American community of the United States in the beginning of the 20th century, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b60ce73c-6bba-4c9f-9453-2deecc5b0374"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3mtfq7dc0c","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b60ce73c-6bba-4c9f-9453-2deecc5b0374"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"The Big Apple, Thulimbah with Vicenzo's \"at The Big Apple\" behind","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/08/BigApple_Thulimbah.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Stuart Edwards","height":1470,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"The Big Apple, Thulimbah with Vicenzo's \"at The Big Apple\" behind","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/08/BigApple_Thulimbah.jpg/960px-BigApple_Thulimbah.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:BigApple_Thulimbah.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/08/BigApple_Thulimbah.jpg/1280px-BigApple_Thulimbah.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"The Big Apple at Thulimbah, Queensland","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2d/The_Big_Apple_at_Thulimbah%2C_Queensland.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Kgbo","height":1823,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"The Big Apple at Thulimbah, Queensland","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2d/The_Big_Apple_at_Thulimbah%2C_Queensland.jpg/960px-The_Big_Apple_at_Thulimbah%2C_Queensland.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:The_Big_Apple_at_Thulimbah,_Queensland.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2d/The_Big_Apple_at_Thulimbah%2C_Queensland.jpg/1280px-The_Big_Apple_at_Thulimbah%2C_Queensland.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"The Big Apple in 2022, from the front","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/08/The_Big_Apple_in_2022.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"QuantumWasp","height":1614,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"The Big Apple in 2022, from the front","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/08/The_Big_Apple_in_2022.jpg/960px-The_Big_Apple_in_2022.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:The_Big_Apple_in_2022.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/08/The_Big_Apple_in_2022.jpg/1280px-The_Big_Apple_in_2022.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-02T05:48:11.424Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/big-apple"}
{"id":"41466eca-c8ce-4c52-bb3c-ff1635a96b65","type":"art_form","slug":"bihu-dance","title":"Bihu dance","summary":"The Bihu dance is an indigenous folk dance from the Indian state of Assam related to the Bihu festival and an important part of Assamese culture.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"48aqqspthc","content":[{"text":"The Bihu dance is an indigenous folk dance from the Indian state of Assam related to the Bihu festival and an important part of Assamese culture. Performed in a group, the Bihu dancers are usually young men and women, and the dancing style is characterized by brisk steps and rapid hand movements. The traditional costume of dancers is centered around the red color theme, signifying joy and vigour.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e1483221-b3c4-4352-881f-ef3fce54d42c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"053438tban","content":[{"text":"The origins of the dance form are unknown; however, the folk dance tradition has always been very significant in the culture of Assam's diverse ethnic groups, such as Deoris, Sonowal Kacharis, Chutias, Boros, Misings, Rabhas, Moran and Borahis, among others. According to scholars, the Bihu dance has its origins in ancient fertility cults that were associated with increasing the fertility of the population as well as the land. Traditionally, local farming communities performed the dance outdoors, in fields, groves, forests or on the banks of rivers, especially under the fig tree.\nThe earliest depiction of Bihu dance is found in the 9th-century sculptures found in the Tezpur and Darrang districts of Assam. Bihu is mentioned in the inscriptions of the 14th-century Chutia King Lakshminaryan as well.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e1483221-b3c4-4352-881f-ef3fce54d42c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Description","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rzg87ftj20","content":[{"text":"The dance begins with the performers, young men and women, slowly walking into the performance space. The men then start playing musical instruments, like drums (particularly the double-headed dhol), horn-pipes and flutes, while the women place their hands above their hips with their palms facing outwards, forming an inverted triangular shape. The women then start to slowly move in tune with the music by swaying, while bending slightly forward from the waist. Gradually, they open up their shoulders and place their legs slightly apart, adopting the main posture used in the Bihu dance. Meanwhile, the music played by the men picks up in temp, leading women to thrust forward their breasts and pelvis, alternatively, to the tune.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e1483221-b3c4-4352-881f-ef3fce54d42c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Culture and social","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yxakda9mx3","content":[{"text":"The Bihu dance takes its name from the Bohag Bihu festival (also called Rangali Bihu), the national festival of Assam, which celebrates the Assamese New Year. The festival takes place in mid-April, and the Bihu dance is meant to celebrate and emulate the seasonal spirit, celebrating fertility and passion.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e1483221-b3c4-4352-881f-ef3fce54d42c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k9brc16sft","content":[{"text":"Bihu is performed by groups of young men and women, and in earlier times, it served principally as a courtship dance. The Bihu dance's association with fertility refers to both human fertility, through the erotic nature of the dance, as well as the fertility of nature, meaning the celebration of spring and the welcoming of the life-giving spring rain. The use of instruments such as drums and hornpipes is believed to replicate the sound of rain and thunder as a way of invoking actual precipitation.\nHistorically, there is evidence that the Bihu dance was looked down upon in Assamese society, especially during colonial times, because of the sexually charged nature of the performance, which clashed with the Victorian views that were dominant at the time among British colonists.\nPresently, the Bihu dance is a cultural emblem in modern-day Assamese society, becoming a symbol of the Assamese cultural identity. The first time that the Bihu dance was performed on a stage was in 1962, as part of a cultural event that took place in Guwahati.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e1483221-b3c4-4352-881f-ef3fce54d42c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Mega Bihu Event","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zp06qybgh3","content":[{"text":"Assam state has made a Guinness world record for performing the largest Bihu dance in one single venue on April 14, 2023. The event took place at Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium, Guwahati Assam. A group of 11,000 Bihu dancers and drummers participated.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e1483221-b3c4-4352-881f-ef3fce54d42c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6g5sxa7njy","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Bihu dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e1483221-b3c4-4352-881f-ef3fce54d42c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w2zr167g77","content":[{"text":"Bihu dance is indigenous folk dance from Assam, India, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"edb1b6cd-ab86-43b0-9c71-f809e5b13e11"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f0p6wr0zmw","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"edb1b6cd-ab86-43b0-9c71-f809e5b13e11"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Youths perform the Bihu dance on the occasion of Rongali Bihu festival","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/ce/Bihu_dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Diganta Talukdar","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Youths perform the Bihu dance on the occasion of Rongali Bihu festival","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/ce/Bihu_dance.jpg/960px-Bihu_dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bihu_dance.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/ce/Bihu_dance.jpg/1280px-Bihu_dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Young kids go home to home to perform bihu dance during Rongali Bihu","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b7/Young_kid_Bihu_Dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"NabaJyoti","height":721,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Young kids go home to home to perform bihu dance during Rongali Bihu","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b7/Young_kid_Bihu_Dance.jpg/960px-Young_kid_Bihu_Dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Young_kid_Bihu_Dance.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b7/Young_kid_Bihu_Dance.jpg/1280px-Young_kid_Bihu_Dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"ৰঙালী বিহুৰ সময়ত হুঁচৰি গোৱা শিশুৰ দল। স্থান: জামুগুৰি হাট","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c7/Bihu_dance_%E0%A6%B9%E0%A7%81%E0%A6%81%E0%A6%9A%E0%A7%B0%E0%A6%BF.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"নয়ন জ্যোতি নাথ","height":1038,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"ৰঙালী বিহুৰ সময়ত হুঁচৰি গোৱা শিশুৰ দল। স্থান: জামুগুৰি হাট","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c7/Bihu_dance_%E0%A6%B9%E0%A7%81%E0%A6%81%E0%A6%9A%E0%A7%B0%E0%A6%BF.jpg/960px-Bihu_dance_%E0%A6%B9%E0%A7%81%E0%A6%81%E0%A6%9A%E0%A7%B0%E0%A6%BF.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bihu_dance_%E0%A6%B9%E0%A7%81%E0%A6%81%E0%A6%9A%E0%A7%B0%E0%A6%BF.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c7/Bihu_dance_%E0%A6%B9%E0%A7%81%E0%A6%81%E0%A6%9A%E0%A7%B0%E0%A6%BF.jpg/1280px-Bihu_dance_%E0%A6%B9%E0%A7%81%E0%A6%81%E0%A6%9A%E0%A7%B0%E0%A6%BF.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:31.175Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/bihu-dance"}
{"id":"56f70ba6-4e7f-4876-a414-bc90a9ed42c4","type":"art_form","slug":"biyelgee","title":"Biyelgee","summary":"Biyelgee (Mongolian Cyrillic: Биелгээ) or Bii (Mongolian Cyrillic: Бий), is a traditional dance from Mongolia. Most of the country's regions have their own forms.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6ny66gkt0b","content":[{"text":"Biyelgee (Mongolian Cyrillic: Биелгээ) or Bii (Mongolian Cyrillic: Бий), is a traditional dance from Mongolia. Most of the country's regions have their own forms. The Western Mongols (Oirats) are particularly famous for their Biyelgee dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e5f79d88-ca26-4219-92d2-802f0c2f3628"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origin","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cdb8x7yp5p","content":[{"text":"Biyelgee is performed while half-sitting or cross-legged. Hand, shoulder and leg movements express aspects of Mongol herders' everyday lifestyle such as milking cows, cooking, hunting, household labor, customs and traditions, etc. as well as spiritual characteristics tied to different ethnic groups.\nMongolian dance developed very early, as evidenced by a reference in The Secret History of the Mongols: \"The Mongqols celebrated by dancing and feasting. ... they danced around the Many-Leaved Tree of Qorqonaq until they stood in furrows up to their ribs and made wounds up to their knees.\"","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e5f79d88-ca26-4219-92d2-802f0c2f3628"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Musical instruments","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ndkwwd9qg3","content":[{"text":"Music is important in Biyelgee. The most common instruments used for accompaniment are the tovshuur, morin khuur (Horse-headed fiddle), and ikhel, sometimes in combination with other instruments.\nThere are also dances which are performed exclusively to the accompaniment of the human voice, for example, the Buryat dance Yohor.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e5f79d88-ca26-4219-92d2-802f0c2f3628"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Choreography","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xp2jvpnrvx","content":[{"text":"Biyelgee is traditionally performed on the rather limited space before the hearth, so the dancers make practically no use of their feet. Instead, the dancers principally use only the upper part of their bodies, and through their rhythmic movements express various aspects of their identities, such as sex, tribe, and ethnic group.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e5f79d88-ca26-4219-92d2-802f0c2f3628"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Styles","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4896vx1db6","content":[{"text":"Each Mongolian ethnic group has its own particular form of expression. For example:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e5f79d88-ca26-4219-92d2-802f0c2f3628"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3xv5v2372d","content":[{"text":"The Dörvöd and the Torguud accompany their dances with songs;\nThe Bayid dance with their knees bent outwards, balancing on them mugs filled with sour mare-milk (airag);\nThe Dörvöd balance mugs filled with airag on their heads and hands;\nThe Zakhchin dancers squat as they dance, with the body inclined forward;\nThe Buryat dance in a circle, always moving in the direction of the sun; a solo singer improvises pairs of verses followed by the chorus singing the refrain.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e5f79d88-ca26-4219-92d2-802f0c2f3628"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"709sw6chf7","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Biyelgee”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e5f79d88-ca26-4219-92d2-802f0c2f3628"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3qebfpqhjm","content":[{"text":"Biyelgee is traditional Mongolian folk dance performed by dancers from ethnic groups in the Khovd and Uvs provinces of Mongolia – inscribed in the List of Intangible Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding in 2009, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"729d2d49-ece2-47aa-b891-f5dfaedbc74d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"07ehpmrcb3","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 4 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"729d2d49-ece2-47aa-b891-f5dfaedbc74d"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Mongol Biyelgee, Mongolian traditional folk dance","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/22/0K8A9857.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"J bayarmagnai","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Mongol Biyelgee, Mongolian traditional folk dance","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/22/0K8A9857.jpg/960px-0K8A9857.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:0K8A9857.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/22/0K8A9857.jpg/1280px-0K8A9857.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:06.567Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/biyelgee"}
{"id":"4c35f5f8-37c4-4009-81c8-69d5f2b814f7","type":"art_form","slug":"black-bottom","title":"Black Bottom","summary":"The Black Bottom is a dance which became popular during the 1920s amid the Jazz Age. It was danced solo or by couples.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8nqekzbfx4","content":[{"text":"The Black Bottom is a dance which became popular during the 1920s amid the Jazz Age. It was danced solo or by couples. Originating among African Americans in the rural South, the black bottom eventually spread to mainstream American culture and became a national craze in the 1920s. The dance was most famously performed by Ann Pennington, a star of the Ziegfeld Follies, who performed it in a Broadway revue staged by Ziegfeld's rival George White in 1926.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8200dd1b-11ed-4071-8b03-84b35d157fb6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origins","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5b7vb7mcr1","content":[{"text":"The dance originated in New Orleans in the first decade of the 20th century. Jazz pianist and composer Jelly Roll Morton wrote the tune \"Black Bottom Stomp\".\nThe black bottom was well known among semirural blacks across the South. A similar dance with many variations was commonly performed in tent shows, and \"Bradford and Jeanette\" had used it as a finale.\nSongwriters Gus Horsley and Perry Bradford published their composition \"Original Black Bottom Dance\" in 1926, first registering the U.S. copyright for the composition on Aug. 5, 1926. The sheet music publication was prefaced with a \"note to the dancing public\" claiming that \"This dance started in Atlanta Georgia, 1923 in a Negro settlement called 'Darktown'...\" The sheet music's cover photograph features dancer Stella Doyle, who performed primarily in cabarets.\nThe \"Original Black Bottom Dance\" sheet music stated on the cover that the music and dance were introduced by the African-American dancer and choreographer Billy Pierce in the Broadway Gaities musical revue.  Pierce was an associate of the African-American choreographer Buddy Bradley, and Bradley, working out of Pierce's dance studio in New York City, devised dance routines for Tom Pericola and other Broadway performers. The dance was featured in the 1924 Harlem revue Dinah. \nIn 1926, the Broadway musical comedy revue George White's Scandals of 1926 featured the dance accompanied by an entirely new song, also titled \"Black Bottom\", written by the songwriting team of Ray Henderson, Buddy DeSylva and Lew Brown and published by Harms Inc. of New York. The Henderson, Brown & DeSylva song itself was successful outside of Broadway, and had at least 9 commercial recordings during the year after the song was published.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8200dd1b-11ed-4071-8b03-84b35d157fb6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance steps","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rjx82pwdye","content":[{"text":"The rhythm of the black bottom is based on the Charleston. Bradford's version, printed with the sheet music, gave these instructions:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8200dd1b-11ed-4071-8b03-84b35d157fb6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vdxtqqhdjq","content":[{"text":"Hop down front then doodle back [doodle means \"slide\"]\nMooch to your left then mooch to the right\nHands on your hips and do the mess around,\nBreak a leg until you're near the ground [break a leg is a hobbling step]","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8200dd1b-11ed-4071-8b03-84b35d157fb6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"g7zctbs6vx","content":[{"text":"Now that's the old black bottom dance\nInstructions for the mooch are \"Shuffle forward with both feet. Hips go first, then feet.\"\nBroadway historians Kantor and Maslon describe it as a 'fairly simple step punctuated by a slap on the rear end' with the hobbling step akin to pulling your feet out of the deep muddy waters of the Swanee. The Alexander recreation expanded this into having his dance partners cheekily bump their posteriors together; although there is no evidence to suggest that was part of the original dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8200dd1b-11ed-4071-8b03-84b35d157fb6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Legacy","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"z16g93e7b4","content":[{"text":"\"Ma Rainey's Black Bottom\", a 1920s blues song by Ma Rainey, makes obvious allusions to the dance but is not itself dance music. Ma Rainey's Black Bottom is also the title of a 1982 play by August Wilson, set around recording of the song. Wilson's play was adapted into a 2020 movie of the same name starring Viola Davis as Ma Rainey.\nThe comedy musician Spike Jones, who became popular in the 1940s, recorded the Henderson, Brown and De Sylva song \"Black Bottom.\" His version, released on 78-RPM records, repeated a single measure of a piano solo in the middle of the song several times, each time continuing with a loud \"crack!\" as a joke to make the record sound broken.\nThe dance was featured in the 1927 Austrian silent film, Café Elektric.\nJudy Garland repeats vocal refrains from the song while dancing in some chorus girl lines in a montage sequence from A Star Is Born (1954).\nThe Troggs released a single and album about the dance in the early 1980s.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8200dd1b-11ed-4071-8b03-84b35d157fb6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Historical recordings","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"53br8cm58p","content":[{"text":"Crazy Words--Crazy Tune (Vo-do-de-o) - This 1926 song uses \"Black Bottom\" as a theme.\nWalter Nelson on \"The Black Bottom\" (featuring clips of the dance)\nhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OFTIfk6U3vo","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8200dd1b-11ed-4071-8b03-84b35d157fb6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Tutorials","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tq8xm1t025","content":[{"text":"Black Bottom dance routine","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8200dd1b-11ed-4071-8b03-84b35d157fb6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5jv5kcjdcw","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Black Bottom (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8200dd1b-11ed-4071-8b03-84b35d157fb6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sjx9h8wfkf","content":[{"text":"Black Bottom is dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"650e7229-c4d9-4cc8-b6e3-bb51237d9229"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cdxxdenjg6","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"650e7229-c4d9-4cc8-b6e3-bb51237d9229"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:31.487Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/black-bottom"}
{"id":"012fc5c9-a547-467f-a005-079271ee2e59","type":"art_form","slug":"blues-dance","title":"blues dance","summary":"Blues dancing is a family of historical dances that developed alongside and were danced to blues music, or the contemporary dances that are danced in that aesthetic.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5t94hsh35x","content":[{"text":"Blues dancing is a family of historical dances that developed alongside and were danced to blues music, or the contemporary dances that are danced in that aesthetic. It has its roots in African-American dance, which itself is rooted in sub-Saharan African music traditions and the historical dances brought to the United States by European immigrants.\nMura Dehn used the term \"The Blues\" in her documentary The Spirit Moves, Part 1, as the sub-section title of Chapter II, referencing different dance styles. African-American essayist and novelist Albert Murray used the term \"blues-idiom dance\" and \"blues-idiom dance movement\" in his book Stomping the Blues.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fadd996f-4d06-4c7b-98e5-1d6c82dd0ece"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Background","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"q42pexzejb","content":[{"text":"Blues dancing originated in the dances brought to America by enslaved Africans, who followed sub-Saharan African music traditions. There is no documented evidence across the history of pre-colonial sub-Saharan African dance for sustained one-on-one mixed-gender partnered dancing; African cultures apparently considered this type of dancing to be inappropriate. \nSlavery in the United States had a great deal of influence on African-American dance, as people from widely disparate African cultures were thrown together during enslavement. As a result of this, their specific cultural traditions, including dances, were often lost or blended into a creolized African-American dance style. This dance style was also influenced by elements of British-European dances brought to the United States by European immigrants. Dance moves were passed down through generations of African Americans, revised and reworked, ultimately resulting in a specific African-American dance vocabulary. Over time, African-American dance became more formal than its African predecessors, but more energetic and dynamic than European dances. \nDuring the post-Reconstruction period of approximately 1875–1900, as Jim Crow Laws were passed in the American South, dance steps began to lose their association with religion and spirituality and became thought of as purely secular. The dances of working-class and lower-class black people relinquished some of their Euro-American characteristics. Dances in this era became associated with the expression of pleasure and sexuality with one's partner, and the importance of communal group dancing was de-emphasized. The African style of dancing while bent over moved towards a more upright stance less tied to agrarian references and to facilitate partner connection.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fadd996f-4d06-4c7b-98e5-1d6c82dd0ece"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Development of blues music","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xhpas9ntxb","content":[{"text":"W. C. Handy, who wrote some of the first published blues songs, documented an early experience he had with blues music at a dance that took place in Cleveland, Mississippi, around 1905. A local band consisting of three Black men with battered string instruments played a \"haunting\" song: \"The dancers went wild.\" Later, Handy described a crowd's enthusiastic response to his own band playing blues music in 1909: \"In the office buildings about, white folks pricked up their ears. Stenographers danced with their bosses. Everybody shouted for more.\" Later, he incorporated elements of habanera music into his blues music, because he had observed that Black people danced even more enthusiastically when these elements were present. In 1914, he played the song \"Saint Louis Blues\" for the first time. At the time, the tango was fashionable, so he used a tango-style introduction before transitioning suddenly into a blues style. As Handy recalled, after a moment's hesitation, the audience threw themselves into the dance with abandon.\nAt this point, blues began to come into its own as a genre. A tune called \"Slow Drag Blues\", composed by Snowden, was recorded c. 1915–19 by Dabney's Band. According to Albert Murray, blues-idiom dance movement has nothing to do with sensual abandonment. \"Being always a matter of elegance [it] is necessarily a matter of getting oneself together. Practitioners of this style do not throw their bodies around; they do not cut completely loose. A loss of coolness and control places one squarely outside the tradition.\"\nDancing to blues music was sometimes called \"slow dragging\", a term that was used by Black dancers in Chicago through the 1940s. By the 1960s, the term \"belly-rubbing\" had gained acceptance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fadd996f-4d06-4c7b-98e5-1d6c82dd0ece"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Blues dancing style","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"g6rnfe85fm","content":[{"text":"Blues dances as a genre have been said to share a certain aesthetic:\nAn athletic and grounded body posture and movement, characterized by the weight being held on the balls of the feet, the knees bent, the hips pushed back, and the chest forward.\nAn asymmetry and polyphonic look/feel to the body, characterized by an equality of body parts. No limb or part has precedence, but they all work together both in a simultaneous and serialized fashion. The focus and weight shifting moves through various parts of the body; poly-centric.\nRhythmic movement. Not just a single rhythm being used in/with the body, multiple meters or rhythms are used. Articulated movement in the torso (chest, rib cage, pelvis, buttocks) identifying and emphasizing different rhythms.\nImprovisation between dancers and on their own movements. Based on the rhythm section of the band.\nA drawing of the beats, dancing in the space between the beats, pushing and pulling creating a sense of tension both in the body and the body moving through space, while remaining loose and relaxed.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fadd996f-4d06-4c7b-98e5-1d6c82dd0ece"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Specific moves or dances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b6wqv9xyss","content":[{"text":"The Ballroom, referenced by documentary filmmaker Mura Dehn, was a slow dance done by Lindy Hoppers at the Savoy Ballroom to Blues music and ballads. It is a slower, fluid, but highly rhythmic dance, involving lots of spins, lifts, and dips. Famous Lindy Hopper Sugar Sullivan described it as romantic.\nIn the Fish Tail, the movement of the buttocks forms a variety of figure eights, an element that originated in African dance. African dance generally discourages close bodily contact, so the use of this move in partner dances in the United States was considered obscene when it was first introduced. The Funky Butt was a similar move that involved \"grinding\" the rear end around. The Squat and Mooche were also performed with hip movements. Similar dances were popular in New York City by 1913.\nThe Slow Drag in its various forms was first documented during, and danced to the music of, the ragtime era.\nSnake Hips is a movement in which the knees are moved forward and back one by one, while keeping the feet together, resulting in movement of the hips. As in Ball the Jack, a similar move in which the knees are held together, this results in a rotation of the hips.\nThe Strut is extremely similar to dances seen in South Africa, Ghana, and Nigeria. The Strut was often associated with cakewalking, another historical African-American dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fadd996f-4d06-4c7b-98e5-1d6c82dd0ece"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6nd53y6gkt","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Blues dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fadd996f-4d06-4c7b-98e5-1d6c82dd0ece"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mpjes7cw7g","content":[{"text":"blues dance is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"83e39343-2065-44ba-97ee-661da2a34467"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gbcvv1h4z9","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"83e39343-2065-44ba-97ee-661da2a34467"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"The 2024 Denver Jazz Festival kickoff dance, held by Shimmy Shakin' Blues at the Mercury Cafe in Denver, Colorado, U.S., with the band MJ and the Side Gig.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a4/Blues_dance_in_Denver.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Sdkb","height":964,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"The 2024 Denver Jazz Festival kickoff dance, held by Shimmy Shakin' Blues at the Mercury Cafe in Denver, Colorado, U.S., with the band MJ and the Side Gig.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a4/Blues_dance_in_Denver.jpg/960px-Blues_dance_in_Denver.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Blues_dance_in_Denver.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a4/Blues_dance_in_Denver.jpg/1280px-Blues_dance_in_Denver.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:26.185Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/blues-dance"}
{"id":"7c359413-45b2-4608-9ef6-314e9d5e85c1","type":"art_form","slug":"bogle-dance","title":"Bogle dance","summary":"The Bogle is a dance move originating from Kingston, Jamaica.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"adn6syfe1a","content":[{"text":"The Bogle is a dance move originating from Kingston, Jamaica. The dance gets its name from a dancer named Bogle who danced as part of Kingston's Black Roses crew, who was in turn inspired by Barrington Levy.\nThe Bogle dance is a Jamaican-born dance move invented in the 1990s which involves the moving of one's body in a longitudinal, ocean-wave motion while at the same time raising and lowering one's arms, aiding the wave motion.\nThe dance move was engineered and created by Gerald Levy, a reggae dancehall legend.  Levy and his dance move are associated with the genres of reggae, dancehall, or Jamaican music involving the soft playing of instruments such as guitars, keyboards, bass percussion, and horns, which developed in the 1960s, but did not become popular until the 1980s.\nThe Bogle dance move became popular along with the acceptance of reggae and then dancehall music and is now referred to as an “Old School” dance move, implying that the move was invented some time ago, or used by older people. The bogle dance move is more prevalent in reggae dance halls, a popular gathering place for dancing such as a club or ballroom. The dance move has now developed and branched off into other dances, which continue to be used in music videos such as Rihanna's hit song “Rude Boy\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"13a71b61-e197-4f7a-a96a-aa9e85b7d9df"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Music","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k2hh061nxb","content":[{"text":"The Bogle dance move is associated with music in the reggae genre, specifically dancehall music. Original reggae music developed from rocksteady music in the 1960s by the organ shuffle.  The revolution in rocksteady music was brought forth by Bunny Lee and was characterized by fast-paced and rock-like songs. Songs that came from rocksteady include: \"Say What You're Saying\" (1967) by Clancy Eccles, \"People Funny Boy\" (1968) by Lee Scratch Perry, and The Pioneers' 1967 hit single, \"Long Shot Bus' Me Bet.\"\nOther genres that influenced Reggae's new sound were R&B, Dub, Toasting, and Ska:  all of which contribute their own instruments, rhythm, or sound to the new dancehall reggae genre. With the popularity of Bob Marley and Peter Tosh’s works, people started listening to Reggae. Because of songs such as “I Shot the Sheriff,” and “One Love.”  Marley's songs continue to be played on the radio today.\nThe turn from casually listening to reggae style music to dancing to reggae was brought forth in 1980 through Gerald Levy. Mr. Levy would create moves on the dance floor and then teach others how to do them. Dancehall moves are notable for characteristically suggestive and sensual movements of the hips and rolling of the body. Even though these dance styles quickly became popular in Jamaica, not until the 1990s was the new dancehall style of reggae music welcomed worldwide.\nLevy helped the crossover to dancing by making up the exotic moves that he was later known for. This dancehall music grew to incorporate new beats and sounds like electronic music and sampling. This new style of reggae often included a DJ rapping and singing to up-tempo rhythms. This combination of music and dance quickly became a popular weekend hobby for the young people of Jamaica and, later, the world.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"13a71b61-e197-4f7a-a96a-aa9e85b7d9df"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Gerald Levy","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ht6jqrjm08","content":[{"text":"Gerald Levy (22 August 1964 – 20 January 2005), also known as Mr. Bogle, Father Bogle, and Mr. Wacky, was the mastermind behind dance moves that he invented while enjoying himself at Jamaican dancehalls. Many friends and artists attest that Levy could effortlessly create interesting and memorable dance moves. Little did Mr. Levy know that his dances would later become popular and help fuel a new and different Jamaican lifestyle. Mr. Levy invented moves such as the Willie Bounce (named after his  Black Roses Crew member Willie Haggart), Wacky Dip, Urkle Dance, Sesame Street, Bogle Dance, Pelper, LOY, Jerry Springer, Zip It Up, Hotti Hotti Bogle, World Dance, Pop Yuh Collar, Row di Boat, Out and Bad, Sweeper, and Stuckie.\nLevy was murdered on January 20, 2005, at a gas station in Kingston, Jamaica. As he sat in a Ford F-150 with four other people, two men on motorcycles rode by and shot the car multiple times, sending all occupants to the hospital; only Levy and one other died of their wounds. Former creative rival over the previous year, John Hype, was suspected of the murder after his house had been fire-bombed and burnt down later that evening. People of Jamaica still consider Mr. Levy the greatest dancehall dancer of all time.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"13a71b61-e197-4f7a-a96a-aa9e85b7d9df"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Artists who Bogle","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ehj0y2bfvt","content":[{"text":"Artists who continue to perpetuate Levy's legacy of grace and creativity by giving him shout-outs in their songs include: DJ Bounty Killer, the trio Voice Mail, Elephant Man, and Beenie Man. In his song “L.O.Y.” Beenie Man sings, “Check Mr. Bogle and the Roses Crew, have a new dance they want everybody to do.” At the time of Levy's death, Beenie Man offered a million dollar bounty for Levy's murderers and said he would raise the bounty to two million dollars after a week. Beenie Man and Levy were very close friends during the time they both spent in dance-halls in the 90's.\nPop-star Rihanna has acknowledged Gerald Levy's legacy in her song and video, “Rude Boy,” in which she is seen doing the Bogle and other Jamaican dance-hall moves. In an interview Rihanna said, \"We used a lot of color, but also the costumes were very Jamaican dance-hall queen type.\"","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"13a71b61-e197-4f7a-a96a-aa9e85b7d9df"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"apcbsreete","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Bogle dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"13a71b61-e197-4f7a-a96a-aa9e85b7d9df"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k76n5p9kzf","content":[{"text":"Bogle dance is Jamaican dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9f0e4fa3-9826-4148-8f72-7343a36bdd19"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zxtffrdwx1","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9f0e4fa3-9826-4148-8f72-7343a36bdd19"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"This is in Ramallah Contemporary Dance Festival 2018","src":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1529229504105-4ea795dcbf59?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8Qm9nbGUlMjBkYW5jZXxlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MTAzODQ3fDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1080","kind":"photo","width":5760,"credit":"Ahmad Odeh","height":3840,"source":"unsplash","depicts":"This is in Ramallah Contemporary Dance Festival 2018","licence":"Unsplash License","thumb640":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1529229504105-4ea795dcbf59?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8Qm9nbGUlMjBkYW5jZXxlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MTAzODQ3fDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=640","sourceUrl":"https://unsplash.com/photos/dancer-performing-with-motion-blur-KHipnBn7sdY?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral","thumb1280":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1529229504105-4ea795dcbf59?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8Qm9nbGUlMjBkYW5jZXxlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MTAzODQ3fDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1280","attributionUrl":"https://unsplash.com/@aoddeh?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:33.922Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/bogle-dance"}
{"id":"b91798cf-b9dd-4779-8f8a-6410876a22ba","type":"art_form","slug":"boogie-woogie","title":"boogie-woogie","summary":"Boogie-woogie dance is a European variation of swing dance often done competitively that developed in the 1940s. Although its name derives from  the boogie-woogie genre of music, it is most often danced to rock music.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"va502pvsr8","content":[{"text":"Boogie-woogie dance is a European variation of swing dance often done competitively that developed in the 1940s. Although its name derives from  the boogie-woogie genre of music, it is most often danced to rock music. The form is cited in Madonna's hit single \"Music\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b2f86719-3403-4e40-9652-228d74f6a45b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Description","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f8nw9sy1ce","content":[{"text":"Boogie-woogie in competition is a led, partnered dance, not choreographed. It falls under the umbrella of swing dance, but is distinct from Lindy Hop. It follows a six-beat dance pattern, usually cued as \"step-step, triple step, triple step\", each word taking one beat but the second syllable of \"triple\" delayed to match the music's syncopation.\nIn some parts of Europe, boogie-woogie is mostly done as a social dance, while, in others, it is mostly a competition form. The competitions are regulated by the World Rock'n'Roll Confederation. The competition forms of boogie woogie consist of main and junior classes.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b2f86719-3403-4e40-9652-228d74f6a45b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"y5dqkm51th","content":[{"text":"History of the BW music\nBW development in the US\nA playlist with Andrews Sisters video clips","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b2f86719-3403-4e40-9652-228d74f6a45b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Tutorial videos","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ath87c6d4a","content":[{"text":"BWC the Thunderbirds:\nA brief BW course for beginners\nAn intermediate BW course\nA tutorial in Polish with English subtitles (Iwona Cherubinska)","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b2f86719-3403-4e40-9652-228d74f6a45b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c9hhpn9mex","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Boogie-woogie (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b2f86719-3403-4e40-9652-228d74f6a45b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xjknq4pgfd","content":[{"text":"boogie-woogie is dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"841be64d-0184-449b-b684-29210af91834"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t1ax3sj7x2","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"841be64d-0184-449b-b684-29210af91834"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Jitterbugging in Negro juke joint, Saturday evening, outside Clarksdale, Mississippi","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/38/Jitterbug_Wolcott_FSA.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Marion Post Wolcott","height":973,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Jitterbugging in Negro juke joint, Saturday evening, outside Clarksdale, Mississippi","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/38/Jitterbug_Wolcott_FSA.jpg/960px-Jitterbug_Wolcott_FSA.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Jitterbug_Wolcott_FSA.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/38/Jitterbug_Wolcott_FSA.jpg/1280px-Jitterbug_Wolcott_FSA.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:26.452Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/boogie-woogie"}
{"id":"5e731b16-fc07-49dc-940a-8ac4e316154a","type":"art_form","slug":"borborbor","title":"Borborbor","summary":"Borborbor (also known as Akpese) is a Ghanaian and Togolese traditional dance performed by the Ewe people from the Volta region of Ghana and Southern Togo , including Kpalime and Lomé.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fsw7ax7n6g","content":[{"text":"Borborbor (also known as Akpese) is a Ghanaian and Togolese traditional dance performed by the Ewe people from the Volta region of Ghana and Southern Togo , including Kpalime and Lomé. The dance is performed especially during the festival of the chiefs and people of communities. This dance is believed to have originated with Mr. Francis Kudzo Nuatro in the 1950s. It's a cultural and social recreational dance performed by the Ewe people in the Volta Region of Ghana, an area north of the Anlo Ewe of southeastern Ghana and some Togolese.\nThe borborbor music has been internationally recognized for the past half a century by Nketia, Jones, and Amu before spreading to the ends of Chernoff, Agawu, Avorgbedor, Burns, Fiagbedzi, Dor, Pantaleoni, Locke, and many others.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"61558afe-1556-4c03-b64c-7094fefce28a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Costumes","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pff3fj9ygv","content":[{"text":"The dance is mainly female-based, and they wear colorful long garments with two white handkerchiefs","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"61558afe-1556-4c03-b64c-7094fefce28a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"na6gp7rz04","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Borborbor”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"61558afe-1556-4c03-b64c-7094fefce28a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2k2tad102g","content":[{"text":"Borborbor is Ghanaian and Togolese traditional dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"015eafb2-c8e3-4865-bc8a-ac1731af188f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3gm2getsys","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"015eafb2-c8e3-4865-bc8a-ac1731af188f"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"This is an image with the theme \" Play \" from: Ghana","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/be/A_group_of_people_dancing_borborbor.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Noahalorwu","height":848,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"This is an image with the theme \" Play \" from: Ghana","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/be/A_group_of_people_dancing_borborbor.jpg/960px-A_group_of_people_dancing_borborbor.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:A_group_of_people_dancing_borborbor.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/be/A_group_of_people_dancing_borborbor.jpg/1280px-A_group_of_people_dancing_borborbor.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:23.223Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/borborbor"}
{"id":"4748d9e1-75b7-4edf-882b-78980b77e06a","type":"art_form","slug":"border-morris","title":"Border Morris","summary":"Border Morris is a collection of individual local dances from villages along the English side of the Wales–England border in the counties of Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Shropshire. They are part of the Morris dance tradition.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0ns0q5skgr","content":[{"text":"Border Morris is a collection of individual local dances from villages along the English side of the Wales–England border in the counties of Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Shropshire. They are part of the Morris dance tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"237a553e-7737-4e36-93ed-996ff275dc30"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tmsjcnam24","content":[{"text":"Border morris dances are village dances performed for enjoyment and fundraising, often during winter. They usually include three to twelve dancers.\nSome of the earliest accounts of a border morris tradition are provided by E. C. Cawte.  There is reference to questions about \"any disguised persons, as morice dancers, maskers, or mum'ers\" to St. Mary's Parish Church in Shrewsbury in 1584 and an amazing account of morris dancers at Hereford races in 1609, describing \"two musicians, four whifflers, and twelve dancers, including hobby horse and maid marian\", all from villages within 14 miles (23 km) of Hereford.  The account claimed, \"Hereford-shire for a morris-daunce puts downe, not onely all Kent, but verie neare (if one had line enough to measure it) three quarters of Christendome\".\nCawte quotes further accounts describing complaints to the local magistrates about disruptive morris dancers in Longdon, Worcestershire, disrupting the Sabbath day from 1614 to 1617 and another account of dancers in Much Wenlock in 1652, causing a disturbance in an ale house at Nordley.  Later records from Shrewsbury mention payment to the \"Bedlam Morris\" in 1688 and 1689.\nThe dance depends on the numbers available, as at Brimfield. The dances collected from a particular place sometimes differ quite markedly between informants, as at White Ladies Aston, reflecting the flexibility from year to year. Sometimes a gang would only have one dance, sometimes two, or as at Malvern and Pershore an indeterminate set of figures.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"237a553e-7737-4e36-93ed-996ff275dc30"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"phawhssg5x","content":[{"text":"The common features are the rather short sticks and sometimes a stick and handkerchief version of the same dance, also usually a high single step akin to the local country dance step.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"237a553e-7737-4e36-93ed-996ff275dc30"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Revival","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s6ds8aj1x2","content":[{"text":"In the 1960s, E.C. Cawte, the folklorist, proposed that these dances from the English side of the Welsh borders – Herefordshire, Shropshire and Worcestershire – constituted a Welsh border tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"237a553e-7737-4e36-93ed-996ff275dc30"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kp4qj9szva","content":[{"text":"Since the 1960s and with further collecting in the 1970s by people such as Dave Jones (late of Silurian Morris, founded 1969, and later the Not For Joes) and Keith Francis (of Silurian Morris) a distinctive border morris style has grown. The tradition is characterised by black faces, tattered shirts or coats, much stick-clashing and a big band traditionally comprising melodeons, fiddles, concertinas, triangles and tambourines, although they now often also feature a tuba or sousaphone, and flute or oboe.\nUnder the guidance of Dave Jones and Keith Francis, Silurian Border Morris sought to interpret the collected dance material, preserving as much of the traditional styles and features as can be deduced. By contrast, in 1975, John Kirkpatrick created a new border tradition with the Shropshire Bedlams, which seeks to capture the spirit of the border sides, but not recreate any specific tradition or dance. Their dances feature much \"whooping\" and this has become characteristic amongst many other border sides. The Ironmen ( est 1976 ) were another side heavily involved in the 70s revival, their look and style has a more industrial feel and they are one of only two border sides know to dance in clogs. Gordon Ashman and other founder members carried out research around the county of Shropshire, along with several trips to London to visit Cecil Sharp collection. Their style is based on the quarry men, miners and Iron workers that lived and worked in the villages and towns of Shropshire such as Ironbridge, Broseley, Much Wenlock.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"237a553e-7737-4e36-93ed-996ff275dc30"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Border Morris Sides","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jmyq6f89vg","content":[{"text":"Anderida Border Morris: Mixed group based in the South East region.\nAnoymous Morris. A large, high-energy, Border Morris team based in Poole.\nBeltane Border Morris: Mixed side performing in the West and South West, based in Devon.\nBlack Pig Border Morris: Mixed team located in the East Midlands.\nBlackpowder Morris: Mixed side from the South East.\nBocastle Border Morris\nBollin Morris: Mixed side performing in Wales and the North West.\nBrixton Tatterjacks: Mixed side active in the South East.\nErstwhile Border Morris: Mixed team based in the West Midlands.\nFishbone Ash: Mixed side located in the South East.\nGrimspound Border Morris. Formed around a pub table in Combeinteignhead in 1994\nHappenstance Border Morris: Mixed group in the West/South West performing border and mummers traditions.\nMotley Morris: Men's side based in the South East.\nMucky Mountains Morris: Mixed side operating in Wales and the North West.\nOtter Border Morris: Energetic mixed side based in East Devon.\nThe Shropshire Bedlams: The historic side credited with kick-starting the modern Border Morris revival in the 1970s\nSteampunk Border Morris. A mixed Morris side based in Rochester, Kent. The first specifically Steampunk themed side. \nWolf's Head & Vixen Gothic Morris. A mixed Gothic Morris side based in the Medway and Maidstone areas of Kent. Formed in 1993\nWreckers Border Morris\nA mixed Border side based in St Dominick, Cornwall. We dance traditional and many original dances inspired by Cornwall's rich heritage","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"237a553e-7737-4e36-93ed-996ff275dc30"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sjx9tvzxac","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Border Morris”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"237a553e-7737-4e36-93ed-996ff275dc30"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qy0enfb5q1","content":[{"text":"Border Morris is collection of individual local dances, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8578ef12-c1ed-429e-b4d1-8b763a983a4b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t79n78bxkn","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8578ef12-c1ed-429e-b4d1-8b763a983a4b"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Silurian Border Morris Men dancing a traditional border morris dance from the village of White Ladies Aston in Worcestershire, UK, entitled Black Ladies Aston. The other recorded dance from this village is known as ... White Ladies Aston.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/04/Silurian_Border_Morris_Men_dancing_Black_Ladies_Aston%2C_August_2013.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"PEHowland","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Silurian Border Morris Men dancing a traditional border morris dance from the village of White Ladies Aston in Worcestershire, UK, entitled Black Ladies Aston. The other recorded dance from this village is known as ... White Ladies Aston.","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/04/Silurian_Border_Morris_Men_dancing_Black_Ladies_Aston%2C_August_2013.jpg/960px-Silurian_Border_Morris_Men_dancing_Black_Ladies_Aston%2C_August_2013.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Silurian_Border_Morris_Men_dancing_Black_Ladies_Aston,_August_2013.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/04/Silurian_Border_Morris_Men_dancing_Black_Ladies_Aston%2C_August_2013.jpg/1280px-Silurian_Border_Morris_Men_dancing_Black_Ladies_Aston%2C_August_2013.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-01T05:47:09.140Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/border-morris"}
{"id":"de1cbca1-6c42-4f2f-b9e0-8b7bf8385f04","type":"art_form","slug":"bossa-nova","title":"bossa nova","summary":"Bossa nova (Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈbɔsɐ ˈnɔvɐ] ) is a relaxed style of samba developed in the late 1950s and early 1960s in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ycnsqzfynj","content":[{"text":"Bossa nova (Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈbɔsɐ ˈnɔvɐ] ) is a relaxed style of samba developed in the late 1950s and early 1960s in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It is mainly characterized by a calm syncopated rhythm with chords and fingerstyle mimicking the beat of a samba groove, as if it were a simplification and stylization on the guitar of the rhythm produced by a samba school band. Another defining characteristic of the style is the use of unconventional chords in some cases with complex progressions and \"ambiguous\" harmonies. A common misconception is that these complex chords and harmonies were derived from jazz, but samba guitar players have been using similar arrangement structures since the early 1920s, indicating a case of parallel evolution of styles rather than a simple transference from jazz to bossa nova. Nevertheless, bossa nova was influenced by jazz, both in the harmonies used and also by the instrumentation of songs, and today many bossa nova songs are considered jazz standards. The popularity of bossa nova has helped to renew samba and contributed to the modernization of Brazilian music in general.\nOne of the major innovations of bossa nova was the way to synthesize the rhythm of samba on the classical guitar. According to musicologist Gilberto Mendes, the bossa nova was one of the \"three rhythmic phases of samba\", in which the \"bossa beat\" had been extracted by João Gilberto from the traditional samba.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"192317a6-b1ce-4b90-8aa9-44ee84d7a30d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ayhcx50n9c","content":[{"text":"In Brazil, the word bossa is old-fashioned slang for something done with particular charm, natural flair or innate ability. As early as 1932, Noel Rosa used the word in a samba:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"192317a6-b1ce-4b90-8aa9-44ee84d7a30d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"61aw309f4x","content":[{"text":"O samba, a prontidão e outras bossas são nossas coisas, são coisas nossas.\n(Samba, readiness and other bossas are our things, are things from us.)","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"192317a6-b1ce-4b90-8aa9-44ee84d7a30d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9wkb80kgkm","content":[{"text":"The phrase bossa nova, translated literally, means \"new trend\" or \"new wave\" in Portuguese. The exact origin of the term bossa nova remained unclear for many decades, according to some authors. Within the artistic beach culture of the late 1950s in Rio de Janeiro, the term bossa was used to refer to any new \"trend\" or \"fashionable wave\". In his book Bossa Nova, Brazilian author Ruy Castro asserts that bossa was already in use in the 1950s by musicians as a word to characterize someone's knack for playing or singing idiosyncratically.\nCastro claims that the term bossa nova might have first been used in public for a concert given in 1957 by the Grupo Universitário Hebraico do Brasil ('Hebrew University Group of Brazil'). The authorship of the term bossa nova is attributed to the young journalist Moyses Fuks, who was promoting the event. That group consisted of Sylvia Telles, Carlos Lyra, Nara Leão, Luiz Eça, Roberto Menescal, and others. Mr Fuks's description, fully supported by most of the bossa nova members, simply read Hoje. Sylvia Telles e um grupo bossa nova (\"Today. Sylvia Telles and a 'Bossa Nova' group\"), since Sylvia Telles was the most famous musician in the group at that time.\nIn 1959, Nara Leão also participated in more than one embryonic display of bossa nova. These include the 1st Festival de Samba Session, conducted by the student union of Pontifícia Universidade Católica.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"192317a6-b1ce-4b90-8aa9-44ee84d7a30d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2tvnry8xhs","content":[{"text":"The nightclubs of Beco das Garrafas (Alley of the Bottles), a small dead-end alley in Copacabana, is considered a historical cradle of bossa nova.\nIn 1959, the soundtrack to the film Black Orpheus (Orfeu Negro) was released, which included the future Manhã de Carnaval, \"The Morning of the Carnival\". The style emerged at the time when samba-canção was the dominant rhythm in the Brazilian music scene. Its first appearance was on the album Canção do Amor Demais, in which the singer Elizeth Cardoso recorded two compositions by the duo Antônio Carlos \"Tom\" Jobim and Vinicius de Moraes, \"Outra Vez\" and \"Chega de Saudade\", which were accompanied by João Gilberto's guitar. It was the first time that the Bahian musician presented the beat of his guitar that would become characteristic of the style. By accompanying Cardoso's voice, Gilberto innovated in the way of pacing the rhythm, accentuating the weak times, to carry out a synthesis of the beat of samba to guitar.\nIn 1959, João Gilberto's bossa album was released, containing the tracks \"Chega de Saudade\", \"Bim Bom\" and \"Desafinado\" which entered the jazz repertory. Considered the landmark of the birth of bossa nova, it also featured Gilberto's innovative way of singing samba, which was inspired by Dorival Caymmi. With the LP Chega de Saudade, released in 1959, Gilberto consolidated the bossa nova as a new style of playing samba. His innovative way of playing and singing samba, combined with the harmonies of Tom Jobim and the lyrics of Vinicius de Moraes, found immediate resonance among musicians who were looking for new approaches to samba in Rio de Janeiro, many of whom were influenced by American jazz.\nOn 21 November 1962, the Consulate-General of Brazil presented Bossa Nova at Carnegie Hall.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"192317a6-b1ce-4b90-8aa9-44ee84d7a30d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Japanese Bossa Nova","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"a6r754zv87","content":[{"text":"Outside of Brazil, Japan is arguably the country with the highest popularity of bossa nova. Bossa nova was introduced to Japan in the early 1960s, similar to the United States, and gained many fans along with the rise of jazz. Later, the release of Sadao Watanabe's 1967 album \"Jazz & Bossa\" after his return from the United States ignited a bossa nova boom in Japan. The success of Brazilian artists in Japan, such as Sonia Rosa, Vilma de Oliveira and Lisa Ono also boosted its popularity. Separately, with the café boom that began around 1990, bossa nova was often featured alongside jazz as music played in cafés. As a result, older bossa nova recordings are frequently reissued on CD in Japan, and Brazil also releases CDs for export with the Japanese and European markets in mind, making it easier to obtain bossa nova recordings in Japan than in Brazil itself.\nBrazilian music critic Mamoru Oshima has described the rise and fall of bossa nova by saying, \"Bossa nova was born in Rio, grew up in São Paulo, died in Bahia, and was reborn in Japan.\" Carlos Lyra, an early Brazilian bossa nova artist, said of the popularity of bossa nova in Japan, \"I think the reason why bossa nova is most loved in Japan is because of the people's educational background. In Brazil there is a huge gap between rich and poor, but that is not the case in Japan, there is a large middle class, and generally people are highly educated and cultured. Bossa nova was originally music made for such middle-class listeners, so I think it is a perfect fit for the Japanese taste.\"","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"192317a6-b1ce-4b90-8aa9-44ee84d7a30d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Classical guitar","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"p3c23vn5my","content":[{"text":"Bossa nova is most commonly performed on the nylon-string classical guitar, played with the fingers rather than with a pick. Its purest form could be considered unaccompanied guitar with vocals, as created, pioneered, and exemplified by João Gilberto. Even in larger, jazz-influenced ensemble arrangements, a guitar is typically present to provide the foundational rhythm.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"192317a6-b1ce-4b90-8aa9-44ee84d7a30d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Drums and percussion","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8fzf5mrxq5","content":[{"text":"As in samba, the surdo plays an ostinato figure on the downbeat of beat one, the \"ah\" of beat one, the downbeat of beat two and the \"…","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"192317a6-b1ce-4b90-8aa9-44ee84d7a30d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dcb4max7vw","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Bossa nova”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"192317a6-b1ce-4b90-8aa9-44ee84d7a30d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0atsv6ftej","content":[{"text":"bossa nova is Fad dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"205a8836-d06a-4f0e-834a-33c9a70a255a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w6gpkfvscn","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"205a8836-d06a-4f0e-834a-33c9a70a255a"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Hotel Bossa Nova live in Der Speicher, Bad Homburg 2018","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2e/Hotel_Bossa_Nova.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Quintadomingodacosta2","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Hotel Bossa Nova live in Der Speicher, Bad Homburg 2018","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2e/Hotel_Bossa_Nova.jpg/960px-Hotel_Bossa_Nova.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hotel_Bossa_Nova.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2e/Hotel_Bossa_Nova.jpg/1280px-Hotel_Bossa_Nova.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Rosa 'Bossa Nova' (McGredy, 1964), Rosarium Sangerhausen.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a2/Rosa_%27Bossa_Nova%27_kz02.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Krzysztof Ziarnek, Kenraiz","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Rosa 'Bossa Nova' (McGredy, 1964), Rosarium Sangerhausen.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a2/Rosa_%27Bossa_Nova%27_kz02.jpg/960px-Rosa_%27Bossa_Nova%27_kz02.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Rosa_%27Bossa_Nova%27_kz02.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a2/Rosa_%27Bossa_Nova%27_kz02.jpg/1280px-Rosa_%27Bossa_Nova%27_kz02.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Rosa 'Bossa Nova' (McGredy, 1964), Rosarium Sangerhausen.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4c/Rosa_%27Bossa_Nova%27_kz01.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Krzysztof Ziarnek, Kenraiz","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Rosa 'Bossa Nova' (McGredy, 1964), Rosarium Sangerhausen.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4c/Rosa_%27Bossa_Nova%27_kz01.jpg/960px-Rosa_%27Bossa_Nova%27_kz01.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Rosa_%27Bossa_Nova%27_kz01.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4c/Rosa_%27Bossa_Nova%27_kz01.jpg/1280px-Rosa_%27Bossa_Nova%27_kz01.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:17.218Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/bossa-nova"}
{"id":"97bcb735-a493-4e19-bf67-304d03eeb9de","type":"art_form","slug":"branle","title":"branle","summary":"A branle ( BRAN-əl, BRAHL, French: [bʁɑ̃l] ), also bransle, brangle, brawl(e), brall(e), braul(e), brando (in Italy), bran (in Spain), or brantle (in Scotland), is a type of French dance popular from the early 16th century to the present, d…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zrkymncn61","content":[{"text":"A branle ( BRAN-əl, BRAHL, French: [bʁɑ̃l] ), also bransle, brangle, brawl(e), brall(e), braul(e), brando (in Italy), bran (in Spain), or brantle (in Scotland), is a type of French dance popular from the early 16th century to the present, danced by couples in either a line or a circle. The term also refers to the music and the characteristic step of the dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"04cfb07b-7009-4891-9037-923931a96230"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Beginnings and courtly adoption","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xerr26r2n0","content":[{"text":"The name branle derives from the French verb branler (to shake, wave, sway, wag, wobble), referring to the side-to-side movement of a circle or chain of dancers holding hands or linking arms. Dances of this name are encountered from about 1500 and the term is used for dances still danced in France today. Before 1500, the only dance-related use of this word is the \"swaying\" step of the basse danse.\nThe branle was danced by a chain of dancers, usually in couples, with linked arms or holding hands. The dance alternated a number of larger sideways steps to the left (often four) with the same number of smaller steps to the right so that the chain moved gradually to the left.\nAlthough originally French dances of rustic provenance, danced to the dancers' singing, the branle was adopted, like other folk-dances, into aristocratic use by the time that printed books allow us to reconstruct the dances. A variety of branles, attributed to different regions, were danced in sequence, so that the suite of branle music gives one of the earliest examples of the classical suite of dances. Such suites generally ended with a gavotte, which seems then to have been regarded as a species of branle.\nSome aristocratic branles included pantomime elements, such the branle de Poitou, the possible ancestor of the minuet, which acts out gestures of courtship. Some of these dances were reserved for specific age groups - the branle de Bourgogne, for instance, for the youngest dancers. Branle music is generally in common time somewhat like the gavotte, though some variants, like that of Poitou, are in triple time. Branles were danced walking, running, gliding, or skipping depending on the speed of the music.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"04cfb07b-7009-4891-9037-923931a96230"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"The branle in Arbeau","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5s0jmmmejw","content":[{"text":"The first detailed sources for the dance's steps are found in Arbeau's famous text-book Orchesography. Antonius de Arena briefly describes the steps for the double and single branle, and John Marston's The Malcontent (1604) sketches the choreography of one type. According to Arbeau, every ball began with the same four branles: the double, the single, the gay and the Burgundian branle. The double branle had a simple form involving two phrases of two bars each.\nArbeau gives choreographies for eight branles associated with specific regions; the Burgundian (see above) or Champagne, the Haut Barrois, the Montardon, the Poitou, the Maltese, the Scottish and the Trihory of Brittany; he also mentions four others without describing their steps; the branles of Camp, Hainaut, Avignon, and Lyon. Most of these dances seem to have a genuine connection to the region: the Trihory of Brittany, Arbeau says, was seldom if ever performed around Langres where his book was published, but \"I learned it long ago from a young Breton who was a fellow student of mine at Poitiers\".\nOn the other hand, Arbeau identifies some branles as adapted to ballet and mime. When his student Capriol asks whether the Maltese branle is native to Malta, rather than just \"a fanciful invention for a ballet\", Arbeau replies that he \"cannot believe it to be other than a ballet\". He also describes a \"Hermit\" branle based upon mime.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"04cfb07b-7009-4891-9037-923931a96230"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"The suite of branles","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"x6mxdtk60h","content":[{"text":"There were several well-established branle suites of up to ten dances; the Branles de Champagne, the Branles de Camp, the Branles de Hainaut and the Branles d'Avignon. Arbeau named these suites branles coupés, which literally means \"cut\" or \"intersected\" branles but is usually translated as \"mixed branles\". Antonius de Arena mentions mixed branles (branlos decopatos) in his macaronic treatise Ad suos compagnones.\nBy 1623 such suites had been standardized into a set of six dances: premier branle, branle gay, branle de Poictou (also called branle à mener), branle double de Poictou, cinquiesme branle (by 1636 named branle de Montirandé), and a concluding gavotte. A variant is found in the Tablature de mandore (Paris, 1629) by François, Sieur de Chancy. A suite of seven dances collectively titled Branles de Boccan begins with a branle du Baucane, composed by the dancing master and violinist Jacques Cordier, known as \"Bocan\", followed by a second, untitled branle then the branle gay, branle de Poictu, branle double de Poictu, branle de Montirandé and la gavotte.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"04cfb07b-7009-4891-9037-923931a96230"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"The fame of the branle","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4qkwnc9gbc","content":[{"text":"In the late 16th century in England the branle was mentioned by Shakespeare (Love's Labour's Lost, 3. 1. 7: \"Will you win your love with a French brawl?\").  In the 17th century it was danced at the courts of Louis XIV of France and Charles II of England, where it became \"even more common than in France\". There are even a few late examples in Beauchamp–Feuillet notation (invented in 1691), such as Danses nouvelles presentees au Roy (c. 1715) by Louis-Guillaume Pécour.\nIn Italy the branle became the brando, and in Spain the bran. The Branle seems to have travelled to Scotland and survived for some time as the brail. Emmanuel Adriaenssen includes a piece called Branle Englese in his book of lute music, Pratum Musicum (1584) and Thomas Tomkins' Worster Braules is included in the Fitzwilliam Virginal Book. But of thousands of lute pieces from England only 18 were called branle, though one called \"courant\" is known from continental sources as a branle.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"04cfb07b-7009-4891-9037-923931a96230"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Branles not choreographed by Arbeau","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qp6rtj5veb","content":[{"text":"The Branle de Montirandé appears to be related to the Haut Barrois branle, which Arbeau says was \"arranged to the tune of a branle of Montierandal\" (probably Montier-en-Der, near Chaumont in the Haute Marne). This is danced in duple time, and as described by Arbeau has a similar structure to the double branle. Settings for this appear in the lute anthology Le trésor d'Orphée by Anthoine Francisque (1600) and the ensemble collection Terpsichore by Michael Praetorius (1612).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"04cfb07b-7009-4891-9037-923931a96230"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ga4kb3y6vx","content":[{"text":"In John Marston's The Malcontent (1604), act 4, scene 2, the character Guerrino describes the steps of a dance called Beanchaes brawl (Bianca's branle): t'is but two singles on the left, two on the right, three doubles forward, a trauerse of six round: do this twice, three singles side, galliard tricke of twentie, curranto pace; a figure of eight, three singles broken downe, come vp, meete two doubles, fall backe, and then honour. The opening is the same as the Maltese branle described by Arbeau, but starting with \"three singles side\", there is an interpolation of \"something presumably more athletic\". The male dancer moves away from his partner before performing a \"galliard trick of twenty\"—apparently a number of capers or leaps in the manner of the galliard—before returning to the conventional ending.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"04cfb07b-7009-4891-9037-923931a96230"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"a8ab90w8a3","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Branle”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"04cfb07b-7009-4891-9037-923931a96230"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vmrgkg95hq","content":[{"text":"branle is medieval dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5b185869-6ca3-4109-a3a7-3dd5326614a6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rgq8pas7ht","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 11 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5b185869-6ca3-4109-a3a7-3dd5326614a6"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Le branle de Bouzonnet-Stella, Claudine, 1641-1697 Technique : taille-douce ; eau-forte ; burin","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e1/Le_branle.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Claudine Bouzonnet-Stella","height":1014,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Le branle de Bouzonnet-Stella, Claudine, 1641-1697 Technique : taille-douce ; eau-forte ; burin","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e1/Le_branle.jpg/960px-Le_branle.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Le_branle.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e1/Le_branle.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail_unscaled"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-04T05:47:04.961Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/branle"}
{"id":"73ae07ac-5576-4309-b188-dab18bf9241d","type":"art_form","slug":"breakdance","title":"breakdance","summary":"Breakdancing or breaking, also called b-boying (when performed by men) or b-girling (when performed by women), is a style of street dance developed by African Americans and Puerto Ricans in the Bronx borough of New York City.\nBreakdancing c…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"va3x6sa7ek","content":[{"text":"Breakdancing or breaking, also called b-boying (when performed by men) or b-girling (when performed by women), is a style of street dance developed by African Americans and Puerto Ricans in the Bronx borough of New York City.\nBreakdancing consists mainly of four kinds of movement—toprock, footwork, power moves, and freezes—and is typically set to songs containing drum breaks, especially in funk, soul, and hip-hop. Its modern dance elements originated among the poor youth of New York during the 1970s and early 1980s. It is tied to the birth of hip-hop, whose DJs played songs featuring rhythmic breaks for dancers.\nThe dance form has expanded globally, with an array of organizations and independent competitions supporting its growth. Breaking became an Olympic sport at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, as per a December 7, 2020 decision by the International Olympic Committee, after a proposal by the World DanceSport Federation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4d16a305-b68f-4fa9-b37d-9890b7bee2f1"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Terminology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"csw1smnste","content":[{"text":"Breaking has interchangeably been called \"breaking\", \"b-boying\", \"b-girling\", and \"breakdancing\", but many in the culture prefer not to use \"breakdancing.\" They argue that the original practitioners of the dance used breaking, and that breakdancing was used by the media to commercialize the dance.\nHowever, many still use \"breakdancing\" due to its popularity. Breakdancing is also inaccurately used as an umbrella term to describe other funk styles like popping or locking. Major competitions like The Olympics, Red Bull BC One, and World Breaking Classic use the term \"breaking\".\nThere are several contradictory explanations of where the term \"breaking\" came from. One of the most common is that it refers to the drum \"breaks\" in songs that are commonly looped in breaking music. However, early practitioners say that 'breaking' came from a slang term used by African Americans in the late 1960s and early 1970s. In The Freshest Kids, DJ Kool Herc says:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4d16a305-b68f-4fa9-b37d-9890b7bee2f1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7d2hygt1qb","content":[{"text":"\"It didn't come from 'breaks' on the record. It came from, this man 'broke'. He went to ... the breaking point. You understand? So, we just used that exaggeration of that term to the dancing.\" Several other original breakers support this origin of the term.\nThe terms \"b-boy\" and \"b-girl\" were coined by DJ Kool Herc to describe dancers who came to his parties. These terms that would later spread to describe breakers in general and eventually to describe people influenced by hip hop culture.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4d16a305-b68f-4fa9-b37d-9890b7bee2f1"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Influences","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ecnm26dx3d","content":[{"text":"Many elements developed into breaking long before the 1970s. Michael Holman writes that West African dances performed by slaves, such as Juba, introduced the cipher — a circle of dancers where each dancer takes a turn to dance — and an enduring element of competition into early African American dance. After Irish immigrants started arriving in the United States in the 1850s, African Americans combined Juba dance with the Irish Jig to develop Tap Dance. According to Holman, Tap dance has \"connections with all the other dances that eventually did evolve into breaking.\"\nAccording to dance researcher Harri Heinilä, \"It has been clear that the 'Breakdance' and other Hip Hop-related dances at the very least resemble or even were inherited from earlier African American dances, which have been collectively called jazz dance\" The jazz/tap connection is corroborated by The Legendary Twins, early breakers who directly cite jazz dance figures like the Nicholas Brothers as inspiration for their developments and popularized jazz movements like the sweep.\nWhen many of the early Bronx breakers were asked to name the first bboy, they responded with \"James Brown\" Brown's music and dance were the embodiment of black pride, self-expression, and individuality which stood out to pioneers like Kool Herc. In interviews, Herc said \"I was listening to American music in Jamaica and my favorite artist was James Brown, \"\nCapoeira and breaking share several moves. Some claim that capoeira and breaking share a common African origin, while others claim a direct connection. However, several early breakers deny the possibility of direct influence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4d16a305-b68f-4fa9-b37d-9890b7bee2f1"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Kool Herc and Early Breaking","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"z4mpmtrcsx","content":[{"text":"Clive \"Kool Herc\" Campbell is often credited as the founder of hip hop, and while people were breaking before his parties, he was a central figure in the early development of the dance, and he is credited with taking breaking out of the underground and into public spaces.\nBefore Kool Herc was a DJ he regularly went dancing at local clubs, house parties, and community centers in the Bronx that were predominantly attended by African American teens. One of the most popular of these clubs was the Plaza Tunnel, in the basement of the Concourse Plaza Hotel. Young dancers would dance irreverently at parties like these in ways that were called \"freestyling\", \"going off\", \"burning\", or \"breaking\".\nThese parties also introduced key breaking moves like the \"pin drop\" or \"knee drop\", and emphasized core values of uniqueness and individuality that are still prized in breaking. They included burning, a competitive dance that both males and females would take part in where they acted out insults or attacks towards each other. This part of the dance would later be known as battling.\nHerc's approach to DJing was based in his background as a dancer at these parties. He wanted to improve upon the mixes other DJ's would play in ways that would make people more excited to dance. This commitment to playing music for breakers spawned innovations in music choice and turntable techniques that would make his events popular.\nOn August 11, 1973 Cindy Campbell threw a back to school party to raise money to buy schoolclothes. She asked Kool Herc, her older brother, to DJ.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4d16a305-b68f-4fa9-b37d-9890b7bee2f1"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Cultural Expansion, Rock Steady Crew, and Mainstream Adoption","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0f855tj5j5","content":[{"text":"In the late 1970s, DJs like Grandmaster Flash had begun looping just the breaks in the songs, spurring a new style of breaking where dancers emphasized more acrobatic moves and extended floor work as top rocking became less important and receded into the background.\nIt was around this time when Latinos, especially Puerto Ricans, started learning the dance from its African American practitioners after breaking parties started being held outside. At this time, a lot of the original African American practitioners were ageing out of the dance or moving onto other dances. The formation of Rock Steady Crew was a good example of the racial integration and generational changes of this era. It formed when Jimmy Dee, an African American bboy, and Jimmy Lee, a Latino bboy formed a crew to keep the Rock (the dance) steady (alive).\nRock Steady Crew was soon passed down to Richard \"Crazy Legs\" Colon, who moved to Manhattan and expanded the crew by battling others in the area. Rock Steady Crew met photographer Henry Chalfant, who was interested in breaking through its connections to graffiti.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4d16a305-b68f-4fa9-b37d-9890b7bee2f1"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Return to the Underground and International Resurgence","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f2j6z2vjk5","content":[{"text":"Breaking was considered a fad and by 1986, breaking had largely faded from public consciousness as many dancers quit or moved on. However the dance spread internationally to countries like Japan, Germany, France and Canada through movies featuring breaking and breakers from New York touring internationally.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4d16a305-b68f-4fa9-b37d-9890b7bee2f1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kxrx9t6ym6","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Breakdancing”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4d16a305-b68f-4fa9-b37d-9890b7bee2f1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5v9a04q241","content":[{"text":"breakdance is style of street dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3f405fcc-54f9-4c6d-9f5e-8da34d117062"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k9k1m4jajg","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 29 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3f405fcc-54f9-4c6d-9f5e-8da34d117062"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-03T05:47:26.300Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/breakdance"}
{"id":"afc94a5f-8d03-4e6b-9db6-69dbda837d52","type":"art_form","slug":"breton-dance","title":"Breton dance","summary":"Breton dance is a group of traditional dance forms originating in Brittany, the Celtic region of France.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2rq25gc80q","content":[{"text":"Breton dance is a group of traditional dance forms originating in Brittany, the Celtic region of France. The dance has experienced a reappropriation in the late 1950s, with the development of the Celtic Circles (cultural groups) and Fest Noz (night festival).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ffa5e76d-be00-4404-a8d4-7a58e7f7cdb0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Overview","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xp1mcwhz56","content":[{"text":"In the agricultural society of the 19th century, the most common occasion on which dancing took place was a wedding. Other opportunities for dancing were:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ffa5e76d-be00-4404-a8d4-7a58e7f7cdb0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"43zsak7xv9","content":[{"text":"beating the earth floor of a new house or repairing a damaged beaten earth floor\npreparing a threshing floor\ncelebrations following agricultural work (such as a harvest festival)\nsecular celebrations accompanying a religious festival (such as a pardon)\nMore recently, throughout the second half of the 20th century, a revival of traditional Breton dancing has taken place, to such an extent that it can now be considered to be at the forefront of contemporary Breton cultural expression, along with the music which accompanies it.\nTwo main opportunities exist to experience Breton dance: fest-noz (night festival) and fest-deiz (day festival). The former reunites both young and old in a celebration of their cultural heritage, whereas the latter tends to be frequented by a somewhat older collection of people. Moreover, the range of dances found at a fest-noz is likely to be smaller; at a fest-deiz the full variety of Breton dance can often be seen, including dances in fours and eights which rarely get an outing at a fest-noz.\nBreton dance is accompanied by musicians and singers playing and singing in duos, trios, quartets and, sometimes, even larger groups. Traditional acoustic instruments are often the mainstay of these occasions, though some groups have also taken up electric instruments as well.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ffa5e76d-be00-4404-a8d4-7a58e7f7cdb0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Lower Brittany","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ytca1wz8gb","content":[{"text":"Jean-Michel Guilcher distinguishes between five fundamental dances in the region of Lower Brittany. These are described as the \"mother-forms\" from whose ancient roots numerous variants have been developed, to such an extent sometimes that the original can hardly be recognised. These five forms are:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ffa5e76d-be00-4404-a8d4-7a58e7f7cdb0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7fxnqe74z7","content":[{"text":"the Gavotte\nthe En Dro\nthe Dañs Treger\nthe Dañs Leon\nthe Dañs tro Plinn\nThe Gavotte (also known as dañs tro) is a dance in four time. It is the dance with the most variants and can be considered to include kost ar c'hoad and suite fisel. It is associated with a large geographical region, which includes Cornouaille and the north-west of the Pays de Léon. The gavotte is the most widespread of all Breton dances. Originally, the dancers formed a closed circle, and this is still largely true today. Alternatively, particularly at festoù-noz, it is also danced in long, circling lines throughout the hall.\nThe En Dro (or An Dro) was originally a dance of the area around the city of Vannes, in the south of Lower Brittany. It is a dance in four time. To it can be added its sister dance - the Hanter Dro. These two dances are sometimes combined to form a third, known as Dañs tricot.\nThe Dañs Treger is a dance from the Trégor region and fell into disuse at the end of the 19th century. Research into the dance has nevertheless enabled a reconstruction of its main features, which are similar to those of dances found in the Pays Gallo (Penthièvre, Mené, Loudéac).\nThe Dañs Leon is a dance from the North of Finistère which features two lines of men and women, face to face, progressing in parallel.\nThe Dañs tro plinn is a dance whose origin is uncertain.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ffa5e76d-be00-4404-a8d4-7a58e7f7cdb0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Upper Brittany","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t9y7d25sxr","content":[{"text":"The study of the dances of Upper Brittany was not made until more recent times and there is thus no fundamental study of these dances comparable to that of Guilcher's research into Lower Brittany. There is consequently little certitude about the practice of these dances before the start of the 20th century.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ffa5e76d-be00-4404-a8d4-7a58e7f7cdb0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dances in the fashion of the En Dro","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4b898py7gs","content":[{"text":"These can be found to the south-west of Lower Brittany in the elongation of the Pays Vannetais. They include:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ffa5e76d-be00-4404-a8d4-7a58e7f7cdb0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"a0gmv4bw2g","content":[{"text":"rond\ntour\npilé-menu\nThe structure of these dances suggests a similarity with the en dro of Lower Brittany, with variations in movements or arm holds.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ffa5e76d-be00-4404-a8d4-7a58e7f7cdb0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"The ronds or rondes","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2fc93kqkrs","content":[{"text":"Different pays in the region have given birth to different dances:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ffa5e76d-be00-4404-a8d4-7a58e7f7cdb0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ebn5dz0a63","content":[{"text":"the ronds du Penthièvre, de l'Oust, du Lié, du Mené\nthe ronds du type Guérandais\nthe rond de Saint-Vincent\nthe ronds \"isolés\"\nThe Ronds du Penthièvre, de l'Oust, du Lié, du Mené: one of the most well-known dances from this group is the rond de Loudéac. Strictly speaking, the rond de Loudéac is a suite, usually of four dances: rond-bal-rond-riquegnée. The fourth of these is a kind of passepied.\nThe Ronds du type Guérandais are to be found in the districts situated between the estuary of the river Vilaine and the Loire. They often feature two distinct parts, one more sedate and the other more vigorous, within the same dance.\nThe Rond de Saint-Vincent is a popular dance comprising only one part.\nThe Ronds isolés: a category which includes dances such as the \"rond de Sautron\", \"rond d'Erquy\", \"ronds de Châteaubriant\"...","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ffa5e76d-be00-4404-a8d4-7a58e7f7cdb0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vwhgzgxw7m","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Breton dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ffa5e76d-be00-4404-a8d4-7a58e7f7cdb0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0kefrjq0d1","content":[{"text":"Breton dance is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"30f4c3a7-9532-4c3d-9305-42f6317f496e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"43k4761zr5","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"30f4c3a7-9532-4c3d-9305-42f6317f496e"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Bagad Adarre de Plougastel","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/17/Brest2012_Bagad_Adarre-_Plougastel_%286%29.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Philippe Chagniot","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Bagad Adarre de Plougastel","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/17/Brest2012_Bagad_Adarre-_Plougastel_%286%29.JPG/960px-Brest2012_Bagad_Adarre-_Plougastel_%286%29.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Brest2012_Bagad_Adarre-_Plougastel_(6).JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/17/Brest2012_Bagad_Adarre-_Plougastel_%286%29.JPG/1280px-Brest2012_Bagad_Adarre-_Plougastel_%286%29.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:20.820Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/breton-dance"}
{"id":"86726a38-1287-4928-b841-552f98c99394","type":"art_form","slug":"bubble-dance","title":"Bubble dance","summary":"The bubble dance is an erotic dance made famous by Sally Rand in the 1930s. The dancer, often being fully naked, dances with a huge bubble shaped like a balloon or ball placed between her body and the audience to make poses.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bhr97m8j0n","content":[{"text":"The bubble dance is an erotic dance made famous by Sally Rand in the 1930s. The dancer, often being fully naked, dances with a huge bubble shaped like a balloon or ball placed between her body and the audience to make poses.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"81e8d958-56ed-44d6-aa56-1270d2ff8497"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"In popular culture","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t47sbr1nyq","content":[{"text":"In Tex Avery's cartoon Hollywood Steps Out (1941) which depicted various Hollywood celebrities, a rotoscoped Rand performs her famous bubble dance onstage to an appreciative crowd. A grinning Peter Lorre caricature in the front row comments, \"I haven't seen such a beautiful bubble since I was a child.\" The routine continues until the bubble is suddenly popped by Harpo Marx with his slingshot, with a surprised Rand (her nudity covered by a well-placed wooden barrel) reacting with shock. Rand is referred to as \"Sally Strand\" here.\nSally Rand's bubble dance is featured in a short clip in the film Sunset Murder Case (1938).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"81e8d958-56ed-44d6-aa56-1270d2ff8497"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qmwbb0cc4h","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Bubble dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"81e8d958-56ed-44d6-aa56-1270d2ff8497"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8nk7xg757y","content":[{"text":"Bubble dance is type of erotic dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7b46de8f-2e92-4ec0-b836-896b6cb67ef3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s4jrcppytb","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7b46de8f-2e92-4ec0-b836-896b6cb67ef3"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Desha in The Bubble Dance.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cf/Desha_in_The_Bubble_Dance._-_Theatre_Magazine_1922.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Maurice Goldberg","height":1694,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Desha in The Bubble Dance.","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cf/Desha_in_The_Bubble_Dance._-_Theatre_Magazine_1922.jpg/960px-Desha_in_The_Bubble_Dance._-_Theatre_Magazine_1922.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Desha_in_The_Bubble_Dance._-_Theatre_Magazine_1922.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cf/Desha_in_The_Bubble_Dance._-_Theatre_Magazine_1922.jpg/1280px-Desha_in_The_Bubble_Dance._-_Theatre_Magazine_1922.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"Noel Toy's famous Bubble Dance sparked the popularity of Forbidden City.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e6/Bubble_dance.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Anonymous Unknown author","height":1853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Noel Toy's famous Bubble Dance sparked the popularity of Forbidden City.","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e6/Bubble_dance.png/960px-Bubble_dance.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bubble_dance.png","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e6/Bubble_dance.png/1280px-Bubble_dance.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"Marjorie Leet, photographie parue dans Minneapolis Morning Tribune","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/00/Marjorie_Leet%2C_1922-01-13.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"John de Mirjian","height":1769,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Marjorie Leet, photographie parue dans Minneapolis Morning Tribune","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/00/Marjorie_Leet%2C_1922-01-13.jpg/960px-Marjorie_Leet%2C_1922-01-13.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Marjorie_Leet,_1922-01-13.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/00/Marjorie_Leet%2C_1922-01-13.jpg/1280px-Marjorie_Leet%2C_1922-01-13.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:33.017Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/bubble-dance"}
{"id":"b8b992ce-8f39-4bc9-ab17-cf1dbbdc3a35","type":"art_form","slug":"buchaechum","title":"Buchaechum","summary":"Buchaechum (Korean: 부채춤; lit. 'fan dance') is a Korean fan dance originating from various traditional and religious Korean dances. It is usually performed by groups of female dancers.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jpn9mwspyt","content":[{"text":"Buchaechum (Korean: 부채춤; lit. 'fan dance') is a Korean fan dance originating from various traditional and religious Korean dances. It is usually performed by groups of female dancers.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c994d136-8622-4bca-b05e-f6c49c817f16"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"evvbmsv79k","content":[{"text":"Buchaechum was created in 1954 by dancer Kim Baek-bong, who drew influences from both Korean shamanic ritual dances and traditional Joseon court and folk dances.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c994d136-8622-4bca-b05e-f6c49c817f16"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Performances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9jwfa6t8j2","content":[{"text":"This dance is performed at many celebrations and events in Korea, and has become popular worldwide. Dancers use large fans painted with pink peony blossoms to create various formations that represent images such as birds, flowers, butterflies, dragons and waves. The dancers wear brightly coloured hanbok, the Korean traditional dress. Buchaechum is usually performed with minyo (folk song) or sanjo (instrumental solo) accompaniment, though court and ritual music is often used as well.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c994d136-8622-4bca-b05e-f6c49c817f16"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3k5vbcgkcc","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Buchaechum”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c994d136-8622-4bca-b05e-f6c49c817f16"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"705sg41k35","content":[{"text":"Buchaechum is Korean fan dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"649b8ed6-69fc-4a6c-b5df-41052768dcea"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f8gmr30t0g","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"649b8ed6-69fc-4a6c-b5df-41052768dcea"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Buchaechum, one of the Korean traditional dance for Royal court of Joseon Dynasty","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c0/Korean.Dance-Buchaechum-01.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"originally by photoren","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Buchaechum, one of the Korean traditional dance for Royal court of Joseon Dynasty","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c0/Korean.Dance-Buchaechum-01.jpg/960px-Korean.Dance-Buchaechum-01.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Korean.Dance-Buchaechum-01.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c0/Korean.Dance-Buchaechum-01.jpg/1280px-Korean.Dance-Buchaechum-01.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"},{"alt":"Asian fan dance","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4d/Asian_fan_dance2.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"user:AngMoKio","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Asian fan dance","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.5","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4d/Asian_fan_dance2.jpg/960px-Asian_fan_dance2.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Asian_fan_dance2.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4d/Asian_fan_dance2.jpg/1280px-Asian_fan_dance2.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5"},{"alt":"Korean Association of Central Florida Buchaechum Dancer in Central Florida Dragon Parade","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d6/Korean_Association_Central_Florida_Buchaechum_Dancer.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Pisanond01","height":2005,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Korean Association of Central Florida Buchaechum Dancer in Central Florida Dragon Parade","licence":"CC BY 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d6/Korean_Association_Central_Florida_Buchaechum_Dancer.jpg/960px-Korean_Association_Central_Florida_Buchaechum_Dancer.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Korean_Association_Central_Florida_Buchaechum_Dancer.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d6/Korean_Association_Central_Florida_Buchaechum_Dancer.jpg/1280px-Korean_Association_Central_Florida_Buchaechum_Dancer.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:33.346Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/buchaechum"}
{"id":"7bb2a7b4-8e38-46fe-b6b7-ec43b87bd3c0","type":"art_form","slug":"bugg","title":"bugg","summary":"Bugg is a common dance style in Sweden and is very popular on the dance floors when dansbands play. Bugg is a dance in 44 time and performed at different paces (120–180 beats per minute).","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"z0mxw51xzf","content":[{"text":"Bugg is a common dance style in Sweden and is very popular on the dance floors when dansbands play. Bugg is a dance in 44 time and performed at different paces (120–180 beats per minute). Bugg is a partner dance and follows certain basic rules, but is essentially improvised, with one partner following the other's lead. Acrobatic moves are not allowed on national or international dance competitions. Swedish bugg belongs to the swing dance family and closely resembles modern jive.\nBugg is both a very popular social dance as well as a competitive dance in Sweden. It also has the most competitors and practitioners within the Swedish Dancesport Federation.\nA variant called double bugg is performed by one leader and two followers.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b377df9e-6f28-475b-909f-517997d36288"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Short history","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k48z8pggrj","content":[{"text":"Bugg is a Swedish phenomenon whose popularity gradually expanded in the wider Nordic region. The Swedish dancer Nils-Håkan Carlzon has been listed as a pioneer of the dance, developing its movements during his time at the Nerikes Dance Institute. \nThe dance has been described as a variant of the early Lindy Hop (jitterbug), swing, and also rock 'n' roll, which came to Sweden in the mid-1940s. In films from a famous dance place called Nalen in Stockholm, one can see the Swedish style of Lindy Hop. This style has various dialects and variants, but .\nWhen bugg dance competitions began in Sweden during the mid-1970s, there was only one class for all participants: \"freestyle\". This was split in 1983 into two different styles, \"social bugg\" and freestyle. The following year, the styles were reorganized into freestyle and \"rock\".\nLater on, these two styles more or less merged into a single style, which is what is generally seen today. Variants are found throughout the country, but the basics are more or less the same. All versions lack acrobatic elements. Today, bugg is one of the most popular social dances in Swedish dance clubs.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b377df9e-6f28-475b-909f-517997d36288"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b4d05v7g2k","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Bugg”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b377df9e-6f28-475b-909f-517997d36288"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"p3pkh0f2qt","content":[{"text":"bugg is Swedish rock'n' swing partner dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9be90844-b816-4e70-a980-af4d2af47899"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vvbhpy0x2e","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9be90844-b816-4e70-a980-af4d2af47899"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"black and red moth perched on flower selective focus photography","src":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1553521305-a3f1f391b89a?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8YnVnZ3xlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MTEzMDI0fDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1080","kind":"photo","width":6000,"credit":"Lisette Verwoerd","height":4000,"source":"unsplash","depicts":"black and red moth perched on flower selective focus photography","licence":"Unsplash License","thumb640":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1553521305-a3f1f391b89a?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8YnVnZ3xlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MTEzMDI0fDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=640","sourceUrl":"https://unsplash.com/photos/black-and-red-moth-perched-on-flower-selective-focus-photography-jrl0JHG81AU?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral","thumb1280":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1553521305-a3f1f391b89a?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8YnVnZ3xlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MTEzMDI0fDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1280","attributionUrl":"https://unsplash.com/@lkverwoerd?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:29.150Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/bugg"}
{"id":"55e54b94-9583-484c-afc7-62ab1cc05de0","type":"art_form","slug":"bukcheong-sajanoreum","title":"Bukcheong sajanoreum","summary":"Bukcheong sajanoreum (Korean: 북청사자놀음) is a traditional play in Korea which was selected as the 15th Important Intangible Cultural Properties of Korea, next to Hansan mosijjagi.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9pqernbsvn","content":[{"text":"Bukcheong sajanoreum (Korean: 북청사자놀음) is a traditional play in Korea which was selected as the 15th Important Intangible Cultural Properties of Korea, next to Hansan mosijjagi. It was performed in Pukchong, South Hamgyong Province in Korea every the 15th day of the New Year according to the lunar calendar, and involves dancing with a lion mask. Its origins are rooted in a folk belief that lions have the power to turn away the evil ghosts and bring peace.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"abe0e138-03f9-42f6-a848-79f1049331f5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"p7dnbfvd0d","content":[{"text":"It was played in every region in Bukcheong province, but was particularly famous in three towns: Bukcheong-eup, Gaheomyun, Gutangcheon. In this province, people in small towns decorated their own lion masks and would then compete with other lion masks in the region. Competitions started in 1930, though poor and/or small teams have since disappeared. The winning team was awarded crops as a prize to be used as scholarships, relief for the poor, and for the elderly.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"abe0e138-03f9-42f6-a848-79f1049331f5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Procedures","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kegy6cqm29","content":[{"text":"Before the main event, the young men from small towns would compete with a torch in what was called torch fighting. The lion dance starts on the 14th night of the lunar calendar and continues until the next day at dawn.  The dancers would eventually visit a local wealthy family's house. If the lion mask team is invited in, they go to the garden to continue dancing, then into the main room for dancing and eating, and then to the kitchen, and back to the inner garden.  The room route would then repeat over and over.  Sometimes small children would grab onto them because it was believed that children would live longer lives if they take hold or get its hair.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"abe0e138-03f9-42f6-a848-79f1049331f5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Transmission","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"813xnnvpgw","content":[{"text":"In August 1960, people who defected to South Korea from Bukchung province organized a transmission committee. At that time, Yun Youn-chun, Kim Su-seok, Byun Young-ho, Dong Young-suk, Yeo Je-sung, Jeon Jung-sik and others were designated as holders.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"abe0e138-03f9-42f6-a848-79f1049331f5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cshey0fbav","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Bukcheong sajanoreum”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"abe0e138-03f9-42f6-a848-79f1049331f5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"x7yen398sy","content":[{"text":"Bukcheong sajanoreum is Korean lion mask dance of Bukcheong, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2a7fb2ef-20e2-453f-bb6a-99cb5b1ccdd1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8bs5k4c96c","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2a7fb2ef-20e2-453f-bb6a-99cb5b1ccdd1"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Bukcheong Lion Dance (Euljiro-dong, Seoul, South Korea)","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/13/Bukcheong_Lion_Dance_03.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"[1]","height":961,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Bukcheong Lion Dance (Euljiro-dong, Seoul, South Korea)","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/13/Bukcheong_Lion_Dance_03.jpg/960px-Bukcheong_Lion_Dance_03.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bukcheong_Lion_Dance_03.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/13/Bukcheong_Lion_Dance_03.jpg/1280px-Bukcheong_Lion_Dance_03.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:23.532Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/bukcheong-sajanoreum"}
{"id":"24f34eca-376c-4b00-96da-b8efb75426a7","type":"art_form","slug":"buleria","title":"bulería","summary":"Bulería (Spanish pronunciation: [buleˈɾia]; interchangeable with the plural, bulerías) is a fast flamenco rhythm made up of a 12 beat cycle with emphasis in two general forms as follows:\n\nThis may be thought of as a measure of 68 followed b…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cecrqfg1hk","content":[{"text":"Bulería (Spanish pronunciation: [buleˈɾia]; interchangeable with the plural, bulerías) is a fast flamenco rhythm made up of a 12 beat cycle with emphasis in two general forms as follows:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e68e0ba0-1a2c-445d-a69e-a3bcf1441886"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0qmvdt5858","content":[{"text":"This may be thought of as a measure of 68 followed by a measure of 34  (known as hemiola).\nFor dancers, it is commonly viewed with a compas or bar of 6 counts as opposed to 12.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e68e0ba0-1a2c-445d-a69e-a3bcf1441886"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ze5pnnkdn9","content":[{"text":"An interesting counting method has been used by Pepe Romero, in his book Classical Guitar Style and Technique, which is 2 measures of 34 time followed by 3 measures of 24 time. This puts the emphasis on the last beat of each measure:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e68e0ba0-1a2c-445d-a69e-a3bcf1441886"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ns0q4ax8ty","content":[{"text":"When performed, the bulería always starts on beat twelve of the compas, so the accented beat is heard first.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e68e0ba0-1a2c-445d-a69e-a3bcf1441886"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zkdrxwfm2b","content":[{"text":"It is normally played at 195-240 beats per minute, most commonly in an A-phrygian mode (por medio) with a sharpened third to make A major the root chord. A typical rasgueado pattern involves only the A and B♭ chords, were golpes are used to accent the chords as follows:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e68e0ba0-1a2c-445d-a69e-a3bcf1441886"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gwkxnz7b1x","content":[{"text":"Although professional players often intersperse other chords, in more traditional playing variations of chords from the Andalusian cadence are utilised and modern players, influenced by jazz may use a greater variety of chord patterns and variations.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e68e0ba0-1a2c-445d-a69e-a3bcf1441886"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"a0z9hztcp3","content":[{"text":"It originated among the Calé Romani people of Jerez during the 19th century, originally as a fast, upbeat ending to soleares or alegrias. It is among the most popular and dramatic of the flamenco forms and often ends any flamenco gathering.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e68e0ba0-1a2c-445d-a69e-a3bcf1441886"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Cante (singing)","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yzat947e0e","content":[{"text":"When sung, the bulería has three or four octosyllabic lines. It is sometimes subdivided into bulerías al golpe and bulerías ligadas.  The former is slower while the latter is frantic.\nThere are many styles of Buleria depending on the region of Spain from which it originated. For example: Buleria de Lebrija, Buleria de Jerez (possibly the most commonly used style), Buleria de Cadiz, Buleria de Utrera etc.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e68e0ba0-1a2c-445d-a69e-a3bcf1441886"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"n0t5a7fcw6","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Bulerías”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e68e0ba0-1a2c-445d-a69e-a3bcf1441886"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4aw1j182bf","content":[{"text":"bulería is fast flamenco rhythm in 12 beats, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e6324e3d-a8bb-4228-91ab-68a79accbb61"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"91hmr2a300","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e6324e3d-a8bb-4228-91ab-68a79accbb61"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Caseta de la Peña La Bulería. Feria del Caballo de Jerez de la Frontera 2018 (Andalucía, España)","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ea/Caseta_Pe%C3%B1a_La_Buler%C3%ADa_-Jerez-_IMG_20180505_144950_762.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"El Pantera","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Caseta de la Peña La Bulería. Feria del Caballo de Jerez de la Frontera 2018 (Andalucía, España)","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ea/Caseta_Pe%C3%B1a_La_Buler%C3%ADa_-Jerez-_IMG_20180505_144950_762.jpg/960px-Caseta_Pe%C3%B1a_La_Buler%C3%ADa_-Jerez-_IMG_20180505_144950_762.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Caseta_Pe%C3%B1a_La_Buler%C3%ADa_-Jerez-_IMG_20180505_144950_762.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ea/Caseta_Pe%C3%B1a_La_Buler%C3%ADa_-Jerez-_IMG_20180505_144950_762.jpg/1280px-Caseta_Pe%C3%B1a_La_Buler%C3%ADa_-Jerez-_IMG_20180505_144950_762.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Peña \"La Bulería\" en Jerez de la Frontera, con celebración del aniversario de Antonio Chacón .","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6c/Pe%C3%B1a_%22La_Buler%C3%ADa%22_-_Madrugada_Viernes_Santo_2019_Jerez-P1350886.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"El Pantera","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Peña \"La Bulería\" en Jerez de la Frontera, con celebración del aniversario de Antonio Chacón .","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6c/Pe%C3%B1a_%22La_Buler%C3%ADa%22_-_Madrugada_Viernes_Santo_2019_Jerez-P1350886.jpg/960px-Pe%C3%B1a_%22La_Buler%C3%ADa%22_-_Madrugada_Viernes_Santo_2019_Jerez-P1350886.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pe%C3%B1a_%22La_Buler%C3%ADa%22_-_Madrugada_Viernes_Santo_2019_Jerez-P1350886.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6c/Pe%C3%B1a_%22La_Buler%C3%ADa%22_-_Madrugada_Viernes_Santo_2019_Jerez-P1350886.jpg/1280px-Pe%C3%B1a_%22La_Buler%C3%ADa%22_-_Madrugada_Viernes_Santo_2019_Jerez-P1350886.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:03.417Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/buleria"}
{"id":"14536733-0adb-4dcf-b6bf-200f4f5785b3","type":"art_form","slug":"bulgarian-folk-dance","title":"Bulgarian folk dance","summary":"Bulgarian folk dances are intimately related to the music of Bulgaria. This distinctive feature of Balkan folk music is the asymmetrical meter, built up around various combinations of 'quick' and 'slow' beats.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fd72ah33d4","content":[{"text":"Bulgarian folk dances are intimately related to the music of Bulgaria. This distinctive feature of Balkan folk music is the asymmetrical meter, built up around various combinations of 'quick' and 'slow' beats. The music, in Western musical notation, is often described using compound meter notation, where the notational meter accents, i.e., the heard beats, can be of different lengths, usually 1, 2, 3, or 4.  Many Bulgarian dances are line dances, in which the dancers dance in a straight or curved line, holding hands.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f85496f3-64c0-4584-af3f-8dd013d7003a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Overview","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3zarp3n499","content":[{"text":"Many Bulgarian dances are line dances, with the dancers holding hands in a straight or curved line, facing in toward the center of the dance space. Originally men and women danced in separate lines, or in a gender-segregated line in which the last woman and first man held opposite ends of a handkerchief, to avoid gender contact but today men and women often dance in mixed lines. Several different handholds are used in the different dances:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f85496f3-64c0-4584-af3f-8dd013d7003a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"j0qawyp6kq","content":[{"text":"Holding hands down at waist level, the arms of adjacent dancers in the shape of a \"V\", right hand facing forward, left hand facing back\nHolding hands at shoulder level, with the arms of adjacent dancers in the shape of a \"W\", right hand palm up, left hand palm down\n\"Teacup hold\", in which each dancer places his left hand on his stomach making a \"handle\" with his left arm, and loops his right hand loosely through the arm of the right-hand dancer\nShoulder hold, with the arms held out straight horizontally to the sides, the hands resting on the near shoulders of the adjacent dancers. This was originally a men's hold, used only in the men's line.\nBelt hold (na lesa), with each dancer holding the front of the belt or sash of the two adjacent dancers, left arm over right\nBulgarian dances are distinctive for their subtle rhythms and intricate footwork. In some dances, the dancers repeat the same pattern of steps throughout the dance, while others are \"called\" dances with several different steps in which the leader calls out changes in the steps at his discretion. Still, others have a basic step which individual dancers may embellish at specific points with variations like stamps and foot slaps.\nIn dances in which the line moves to the right or left, the dancer at the head of the line is the \"leader\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f85496f3-64c0-4584-af3f-8dd013d7003a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Regional differences","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4jbpcgn685","content":[{"text":"Bulgaria is divided into seven ethnographic regions: Northern Bulgaria, Dobruja, Shopluk, Thrace, Strandzha, Macedonia and the Rhodopes. Each region has its own distinctive style of dance, to the extent that a knowledgeable observer can often tell which region a group of Bulgarians comes from by how they perform a popular dance like the pravo. In addition, due to the intricate ethnic mix in the Balkans, each locality and even each village may have its own variation of a dance, different enough that it amounts to a distinct dance. In Bulgarian folk dance literature, local variations are often differentiated by adding the geographical origin to the dance name: for example pravo plovdivsko horo means \"the pravo dance from the town of Plovdiv\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f85496f3-64c0-4584-af3f-8dd013d7003a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Rhythm and meter","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9wgawb70ye","content":[{"text":"The proportions of the beats do not follow any exact rational proportions. For example, the well-known tune \"Eleno Mome\" (Елено Моме) exists written in three forms: (1) 7 = 2+2+1+2, (2) 13 = 4+4+2+3, and (3) 12 = 3+4+2+3 times. Here, the latter two forms exist both as a musicologist's way to attempt to indicate the tendency of speeding up the last and first beats, as well as in the formal version, where the musician plays 3 or 4 about equal length notes on the beat. In music band playing, the meter 7 = 2+2+1+2 seems favored, thus skipping some of the time-bending subtleties. Given this fact, though, some meters are more common or popular, but there is a wide variation of less frequent combinations, as well.\nThere is also disagreement about whether one should use 18 or 116 as meter denominator, but this is just a notational convenience. In the list below, the denominator follows in part notational practice of the region, and in part the speed of the type of tune, giving the 14 note a reasonable number of beats per minute (as on a metronome).\nFolk dancers often speak in terms of \"quick\" and \"slow\" instead of a steady meter \"1, 2, 3,\" etc. These dance rhythms may not agree with the rhythms and meters performed by the musicians. For example, the 1116 rhythm of the dance kopanitsa is often described as quick-quick-slow-quick-quick, (2+2+3+2+2) whereas the tune may be played in what may be written as (2+2)+(2+1)+(2+2), i.e., an 11 time with primary accent at 1, secondary accents at 5 and 8, and tertiary accents at 3, 7, and 10.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f85496f3-64c0-4584-af3f-8dd013d7003a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"List of Bulgarian folk dances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"y0k7gmbd73","content":[{"text":"Below is a list of some Bulgarian folk dances, along with their commonly written rhythms and time signatures. The word horo means \"dance\" and is sometimes added to the name of the dance.\nSince the transliteration of Bulgarian is problematic, the official Bulgarian transliteration is used, which can be checked at Transliteration of proper names in Bulgaria, followed within parenthesizes by the Bulgarian name and, after a semicolon, (for searchability) alternative transliterations. Following a Bulgarian sheet music practice, more complex meters generally appear later in the list.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f85496f3-64c0-4584-af3f-8dd013d7003a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bjssay2k8s","content":[{"text":"Trite pati (Трите пъти; Trite puti, Trite pŭti) in 24: Line dance with rapid feet movement; step rhythm quick-quick-slow = 1+1+2.\nTropanka (Тропанка) in 24: Stampy Dobrudzha men's dance, V handhold, with swinging and pumping arm motions.\nOpas (Опас) in 24: A varied dance often done with hands across the chest of the person next to you with the next in line.\nPravo horo (Право хоро) in 24 or 68, counted as 3+3: Often in music for the Pravo, both 24 and 68 time signatures will be used where 24 is used for the singing and 68 is used for the slightly faster instrumental portions. In Bulgaria, the 68 portion is also transcribed in 24 using triplets.Pravo is characterised by left-over-right arms \"belt-hold\" (in lieu of hand hold), a beginning right foot diving step toward the center of from one to many concentric broken circles, traveling ultimately counterclockwise.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f85496f3-64c0-4584-af3f-8dd013d7003a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Details on Bulgarian dances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"j346fjsmhx","content":[{"text":"Yove male mome and sedi donka can be thought of as a compound of common 7 (chetvorno) and 11 (kopanitsa) meters, but it is more unclear what sandansko horo should be: possibilities are a compound 9+13, where 9 is the daychovo meter, and 13 the Krivo plovdivsko horo meter, or 9+9+4, where 9 is the daychovo meter.\nA ruchenitsa can, in slower tempo, have a distinctive 2+2+3 rhythm, but in a quicker pace, it may only be perceived as a 4+3. Thus, even though these are well-known rhythmic patterns, one may not arrive at an unambiguous meter interpretation, the way listeners of Western music are used to.\nMany of the dances are formed by each person holding the belt or sash of the dancer on either side. These belts are typically fit loosely around the waist so that each person can move easily within the belt, while the overall line can stay together.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f85496f3-64c0-4584-af3f-8dd013d7003a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tppfmrhtwf","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Bulgarian folk dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f85496f3-64c0-4584-af3f-8dd013d7003a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xfggv49qg4","content":[{"text":"Bulgarian folk dance is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"29b66607-1677-4b0a-b4b9-478afa022ddd"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"px6147nd84","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"29b66607-1677-4b0a-b4b9-478afa022ddd"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Bulgarian folk dance from the Thrace ethnographic region performed by Ensemble Zvezditza","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9d/Bulgarian_folk_dance_from_Thrace_ethnographic_region_performed_by_Ensemble_Zvezditza_05.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Zvezditza.dance","height":924,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Bulgarian folk dance from the Thrace ethnographic region performed by Ensemble Zvezditza","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9d/Bulgarian_folk_dance_from_Thrace_ethnographic_region_performed_by_Ensemble_Zvezditza_05.jpg/960px-Bulgarian_folk_dance_from_Thrace_ethnographic_region_performed_by_Ensemble_Zvezditza_05.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bulgarian_folk_dance_from_Thrace_ethnographic_region_performed_by_Ensemble_Zvezditza_05.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9d/Bulgarian_folk_dance_from_Thrace_ethnographic_region_performed_by_Ensemble_Zvezditza_05.jpg/1280px-Bulgarian_folk_dance_from_Thrace_ethnographic_region_performed_by_Ensemble_Zvezditza_05.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:20.406Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/bulgarian-folk-dance"}
{"id":"efe5d29b-eacc-453f-a97f-3ba89ebb6349","type":"art_form","slug":"bunny-hop","title":"bunny hop","summary":"The bunny hop is a novelty dance created at Balboa High School in San Francisco in 1952. Ray Anthony co-wrote and recorded an eponymous song in 1952 and an instrumental in 1953.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1sb9jvwfn7","content":[{"text":"The bunny hop is a novelty dance created at Balboa High School in San Francisco in 1952. Ray Anthony co-wrote and recorded an eponymous song in 1952 and an instrumental in 1953.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0c23844f-3f2a-4da6-9e92-7e3246c75b9f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"z9rxtn90r0","content":[{"text":"The dance has been generally done to Ray Anthony's big band recording of his eponymous composition in 1952. It was a vocal hit in 1952, reaching no. 13 on Billboard and no. 34 on Cash Box, and instrumentally re-recorded in 1953. The song has been re-recorded by others, including musical updates of the style, for example, a salsa version. Duke Ellington recorded \"Bunny Hop Mambo\" in 1954. Other popular music of the era is also used, such as \"The Glow-Worm\". The Applejacks and The Champs have also recorded the tune.\nIn 1979, several men were arrested for public lewdness during the Village Station police raid for dancing in a bunny hop.\nRay Anthony's single release of the \"Bunny Hop\" featured another novelty dance classic, the \"Hokey Pokey\" on the B side.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0c23844f-3f2a-4da6-9e92-7e3246c75b9f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Description","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nsg80367dp","content":[{"text":"The dance is a variation on a conga line. Participants dance in a line or a circle, holding on to the hips of the person in front of them. They tap the floor two times with their right foot, then with their left foot, then they hop forwards, backwards, and finally three hops forward to finish the sequence, which continues throughout the tune. The first person in the line or the open circle leads the group around the floor.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0c23844f-3f2a-4da6-9e92-7e3246c75b9f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Variations","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"x9d8kz83mv","content":[{"text":"The letkajenkka from Finland has essentially the same steps. \nIn 2014 in Saudi Arabia, the same dance set to slightly different music (referred to as \"raqsat al-batriq\", the \"penguin dance\") became a popular trend on online video-sharing sites and a staple at wedding dance parties.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0c23844f-3f2a-4da6-9e92-7e3246c75b9f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"In popular culture","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8jzk9j160q","content":[{"text":"The Merrie Melodies cartoon short Hare Brush ends with Elmer Fudd (who's under the delusion that he is a rabbit) performing the dance.\nAllan Sherman listed the bunny hop as \"a very nice dance\" at the coda of his parody \"Crazy Downtown\", along with older dances such as the tango and waltz (as opposed to modern dances such as the Frug).\nThe Ray Anthony version is heard in John Waters' film Cry-Baby with Baldwin and the Whiffles hopping.\nThe bunny hop is shown in the pilot episode of Family Ties when Alex attends a country club event and mentioned again in the episode \"Karen II, Alex 0\".\nIn The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air episode \"Fresh Prince After Dark\", Carlton is seen doing the bunny hop at the Playboy Mansion.\nIn the Everybody Loves Raymond episode \"The Walk to the Door\", Robert Barone dances to the bunny hop at a family wedding.\nIn the Newhart episode \"Jumpin' George\", George Utley dances the bunny hop in the lobby area, to keep from falling asleep and having a recurring dream.\nIn The Addams Family Musical, the living Addams clan joins with their newly-risen deceased ancestors in doing the bunny hop (along with line-dancing and The Twist).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0c23844f-3f2a-4da6-9e92-7e3246c75b9f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"by7wtm3yas","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Bunny hop (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0c23844f-3f2a-4da6-9e92-7e3246c75b9f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"x2ns3mq3b3","content":[{"text":"bunny hop is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ac9dc149-faf5-47b1-a051-a3f0a9e52999"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rbkpdecexm","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ac9dc149-faf5-47b1-a051-a3f0a9e52999"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"My Stevie was moving FAST! Not as good a capture as it could have been---But I love this shot of her butt !!!!!!!!","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a9/Bunny_Hop-----------feline_style_%283758511977%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Trish Hamme from Reno , Nevada, USA","height":1111,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"My Stevie was moving FAST! Not as good a capture as it could have been---But I love this shot of her butt !!!!!!!!","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a9/Bunny_Hop-----------feline_style_%283758511977%29.jpg/960px-Bunny_Hop-----------feline_style_%283758511977%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bunny_Hop-----------feline_style_(3758511977).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a9/Bunny_Hop-----------feline_style_%283758511977%29.jpg/1280px-Bunny_Hop-----------feline_style_%283758511977%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:10.131Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/bunny-hop"}
{"id":"291e404d-6945-4e21-8581-e69185a1ed60","type":"art_form","slug":"burmese-dance","title":"Burmese dance","summary":"Dance in Burma (since 1989 known as Myanmar) can be divided into dramatic, folk and village, and nat dances, each having distinct characteristics.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ja2afkyydr","content":[{"text":"Dance in Burma (since 1989 known as Myanmar) can be divided into dramatic, folk and village, and nat dances, each having distinct characteristics. Although Burmese dance resemble the traditional dancing style of its neighbors, in particular Thailand, it retains unique qualities that distinguish it from other regional styles, including angular, fast-paced and energetic movements and emphasis on pose, not movement.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4a8e5de2-5b15-4152-b127-84ae6fa557de"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m76zngwsj0","content":[{"text":"The origins of Burmese dance are traced to the Pyu, Halin, and Mon cultures in the central and lower Irrawaddy regions from at least two centuries before the Christian era. Archaeological evidence shows Indian influences already in this.  There were also influences from Thai and Khmer cultures during the many invasions and counter-invasions that occurred over the next two millennia. There was a particularly well documented infusion of dance forms, such as the Yama Zatdaw (the Burmese version of the Ramayana) in 1767, when the Burmese sacked Ayutthaya (ယိုးဒယား) and expropriated a large component of the Thai court.\nSome of the surviving forms (including the belu, nat gadaw and zawgyi dances) honour folklore characters that are quintessentially Burmese, some of these from pre-Buddhist times.  There is also a close relationship between the classical Burmese marionette and human dance art forms, with the former obviously imitating human dance, but also with human dance imitating the movements of the marionette.\nAfter independence from Britain in 1948, there was a period of strong Burmese cultural nationalism that resulted in the establishment of the State School of Music in Mandalay in 1953. A well-known dancer of the day, Oba Thaung, is credited with codifying the nearly completely undocumented Burmese dance repertory. Her syllabus at the school was condensed into five dance courses intended as a five-year term of study. Each of the five courses is broken into dance sequences comprising a total of 125 stages, with each stage being precisely ten minutes long.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4a8e5de2-5b15-4152-b127-84ae6fa557de"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Training","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"97xkypv7y4","content":[{"text":"The Inwa School of Performing Arts in Mandalay is a cultural high school in Mandalay that prepares young artists to perform Myanmar classical dance and music to professional standards.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4a8e5de2-5b15-4152-b127-84ae6fa557de"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Bagan dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"asefxxbvp1","content":[{"text":"This dance originates from the time of the Pyu kingdoms (5th-10th century). A small number of relatively simple musical instruments were used and the dance style is slow and sedate. The costumes of dancers, as depicted in wall paintings, were scanty and revealing.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4a8e5de2-5b15-4152-b127-84ae6fa557de"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Bilu dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yzh4n7w4ch","content":[{"text":"The bilus (demons or ogres) are ancient characters, thought to originate from a legendary race that roamed India and Burma circa 2000 BC. Buddhist literature describes them as primitive and feared by other races.\nIn literature, the Belus are described as having transmogrifying powers—an ability to take on different physical appearances. There are 24 different classical demon forms, each with its own name and role in stories and plays. One of the best known is Dasagiri, a demon in the Indian Ramayana epic.\nIn any of his forms, the Belus embodies the Devil.  He is terrifying, overbearing and diabolical by nature.  But he has a gentle side also.  In a typical dance, Dasa-Giri often offers a bouquet of flowers to a dainty damsel. The demure lady is unable to overlook the beastly side and declines his darling present. The demon then expresses his dejection at the refusal.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4a8e5de2-5b15-4152-b127-84ae6fa557de"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Kinnara and kinnari dances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dta5btz6a5","content":[{"text":"There are many references in the Pali and Sanskrit literature to the mythical birds with human head and torso, Kinnara (male) and Kinnari (female).  According to the literature, the birds originated in prehistoric India.  They appear in some of the discourses of the Buddha himself.\nIn Burma, images of the Bird's dancing styles are found painted and carved on the walls at Bagan and (even earlier) from the Pyu kingdoms.\nThe songs and dances describe the Bird's happy re-union after a separation of 700 nights due to a heavy rainstorm and floods.  The dance is a popular emblem of true love and has an ancient history that is kept alive by the Burma dance troupes.\nThe dancers are attired with flapping wings at their wrists, in contrast to wings at their armpits, as is characteristic of Thailand and other Asian countries. The dance of bird-like movements is very supple and fine, and intricately coordinated with the accompanying music.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4a8e5de2-5b15-4152-b127-84ae6fa557de"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"86z1zspkds","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Burmese dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4a8e5de2-5b15-4152-b127-84ae6fa557de"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w89emq89gd","content":[{"text":"Burmese dance is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1bae5cad-2986-478e-979a-6763cd279cc1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"09fq6afgnh","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1bae5cad-2986-478e-979a-6763cd279cc1"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Young students perform traditional Burmese Dance during opening ceremony of Thingyan Water Festival at Mandalay City Hall in Mandalay, Myanmar on 12 April 2012.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/48/Burma_Dance.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Htoo Tay Zar","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Young students perform traditional Burmese Dance during opening ceremony of Thingyan Water Festival at Mandalay City Hall in Mandalay, Myanmar on 12 April 2012.","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/48/Burma_Dance.JPG/960px-Burma_Dance.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Burma_Dance.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/48/Burma_Dance.JPG/1280px-Burma_Dance.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"},{"alt":"A Burmese dance, Djawa Baroe, Vol. 1, Iss. 8 (1943-04-15), p23","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/80/A_Burmese_dance%2C_Djawa_Baroe%2C_Vol._1%2C_Iss._8_%281943-04-15%29%2C_p23.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Unknown author Unknown author","height":2039,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"A Burmese dance, Djawa Baroe, Vol. 1, Iss. 8 (1943-04-15), p23","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/80/A_Burmese_dance%2C_Djawa_Baroe%2C_Vol._1%2C_Iss._8_%281943-04-15%29%2C_p23.jpg/960px-A_Burmese_dance%2C_Djawa_Baroe%2C_Vol._1%2C_Iss._8_%281943-04-15%29%2C_p23.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:A_Burmese_dance,_Djawa_Baroe,_Vol._1,_Iss._8_(1943-04-15),_p23.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/80/A_Burmese_dance%2C_Djawa_Baroe%2C_Vol._1%2C_Iss._8_%281943-04-15%29%2C_p23.jpg/1280px-A_Burmese_dance%2C_Djawa_Baroe%2C_Vol._1%2C_Iss._8_%281943-04-15%29%2C_p23.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:10.679Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/burmese-dance"}
{"id":"6a2b1222-39ad-4eab-b94b-f1e648338889","type":"art_form","slug":"bush-dance","title":"Bush dance","summary":"Bush dance is a style of dance from Australia, particularly where the music is provided by a bush band. The dances are mainly based on the traditional folk dances of the UK, Ireland and central Europe.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jf0fgknhbj","content":[{"text":"Bush dance is a style of dance from Australia, particularly where the music is provided by a bush band. The dances are mainly based on the traditional folk dances of the UK, Ireland and central Europe.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"99bb93c5-7222-4f2d-9b5c-68aa580fc99a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Eras of bush dance in Australia","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ehv7bhd4m8","content":[{"text":"Early European 1770–1850 settlers came with their local dance traditions.\nGold rush 1850–1860 miners brought dances from Europe some via the American gold rush.\nPastoral period 1860–1950 rural woolshed balls and dances in local halls.\nRevival 1950–1960 collectors and enthusiasts document and perform dances.\nRecent popularity 1970–1980 most areas and many social clubs have regular Bushy Balls.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"99bb93c5-7222-4f2d-9b5c-68aa580fc99a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance styles","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2fsdm2cnnt","content":[{"text":"Bush dance – in general less emphasis on complex foot work and more about people being in the right place. Dress codes are relaxed.\nColonial dance – more concern for correct foot work. Many of the dances are unique to Australia. Dress code usually period costume.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"99bb93c5-7222-4f2d-9b5c-68aa580fc99a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance formations","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"a4afk4m94k","content":[{"text":"Dances can be grouped by the formations of the dancers.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"99bb93c5-7222-4f2d-9b5c-68aa580fc99a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Big circle dances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s59sxstc0t","content":[{"text":"Alternate men and women in a circle or horse shoe (example Stockyards)","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"99bb93c5-7222-4f2d-9b5c-68aa580fc99a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Closed-couples dance .....","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"020s3e5twk","content":[{"text":"Men and women in a ballroom or similar hold arranged around the room (example Brown Jug Polka)","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"99bb93c5-7222-4f2d-9b5c-68aa580fc99a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"j0r27kmfn8","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Bush dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"99bb93c5-7222-4f2d-9b5c-68aa580fc99a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7jgkyvyttn","content":[{"text":"Bush dance is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"82d97bf7-703e-4164-94d7-e87f43b4acf6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bavejzdy5x","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"82d97bf7-703e-4164-94d7-e87f43b4acf6"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Gundillion Hall Bush Dance","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7a/Gundillion_Hall_Bush_Dance_-_panoramio.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"dnatheist","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Gundillion Hall Bush Dance","licence":"CC BY 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7a/Gundillion_Hall_Bush_Dance_-_panoramio.jpg/960px-Gundillion_Hall_Bush_Dance_-_panoramio.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Gundillion_Hall_Bush_Dance_-_panoramio.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7a/Gundillion_Hall_Bush_Dance_-_panoramio.jpg/1280px-Gundillion_Hall_Bush_Dance_-_panoramio.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:10.977Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/bush-dance"}
{"id":"97ec6086-87b6-4641-b418-7de70ca60f28","type":"art_form","slug":"buto","title":"buto","summary":"Butoh (舞踏, Butō) is a form of Japanese dance theatre that encompasses a diverse range of activities, techniques and motivations for dance, performance, or movement.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"z9104bkxq4","content":[{"text":"Butoh (舞踏, Butō) is a form of Japanese dance theatre that encompasses a diverse range of activities, techniques and motivations for dance, performance, or movement. Following World War II, butoh arose in 1959 through collaborations between its two key founders, Tatsumi Hijikata and Kazuo Ohno. The art form is known to \"resist fixity\" and is difficult to define; notably, founder Hijikata Tatsumi viewed the formalisation of butoh with \"distress\". Common features of the art form include playful and grotesque imagery, taboo topics, and extreme or absurd environments. It is traditionally performed in white body makeup with slow hyper-controlled motion. However, with time butoh groups are increasingly being formed around the world, with their various aesthetic ideals and intentions.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"669d8a1f-ca49-4408-a161-e6169a36b8e2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"n3brmzza4t","content":[{"text":"Butoh first appeared in post-World War II Japan in 1959, under the collaboration of Tatsumi Hijikata and Kazuo Ohno, \"in the protective shadow of the 1950s and 1960s avant-garde\". A key impetus of the art form was a reaction against the Japanese dance scene then, which Hijikata felt was overly based on imitating the West and following traditional styles like Noh. Thus, he sought to \"turn away from the Western styles of dance, ballet and modern\", and to create a new aesthetic that embraced the \"squat, earthbound physique... and the natural movements of the common folk\". This desire found form in the early movement of \"ankoku butō\" (暗黒舞踏). The term means \"dance of darkness\", and the form was built on a vocabulary of \"crude physical gestures and uncouth habits... a direct assault on the refinement (miyabi) and understatement (shibui) so valued in Japanese aesthetics.\"\nThe first butoh piece, Forbidden Colors (禁色, Kinjiki) by Tatsumi Hijikata, premiered at a dance festival in 1959. It was based on the novel of the same name by Yukio Mishima. It explored the taboo of homosexuality and ended with a live chicken being held between the legs of Kazuo Ohno's son Yoshito Ohno, after which Hijikata chased Yoshito off the stage in darkness. Mainly as a result of the audience outrage over this piece, Hijikata was banned from the festival, establishing him as an iconoclast.\nThe earliest butoh performances were called (in English) \"Dance Experience\". In the early 1960s, Hijikata used the term \"Ankoku-Buyou\" (暗黒舞踊; dance of darkness) to describe his dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"669d8a1f-ca49-4408-a161-e6169a36b8e2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Debate","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2cd10n2hy1","content":[{"text":"There is much discussion about who should receive the credit for creating butoh. As artists worked to create new art in all disciplines after World War II, Japanese artists and thinkers emerged from economic and social challenges that produced an energy and renewal of artists, dancers, painters, musicians, writers, and all other artists.\nA number of people with few formal connections to Hijikata began to call their own idiosyncratic dance \"butoh\". Among these are Iwana Masaki (岩名雅紀), and Teru Goi. Although all manner of systematic thinking about butoh dance can be found, perhaps Iwana Masaki most accurately sums up the variety of butoh styles:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"669d8a1f-ca49-4408-a161-e6169a36b8e2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"a6gn4wa34j","content":[{"text":"While 'Ankoku Butoh' can be said to have possessed a very precise method and philosophy (perhaps it could be called 'inherited butoh'), I regard present-day butoh as a 'tendency' that depends not only on Hijikata's philosophical legacy but also on the development of new and diverse modes of expression.\nThe 'tendency' that I speak of involved extricating the pure life which is dormant in our bodies.\nHijikata is often quoted saying what opposition he had to a codified dance: \"Since I believe neither in a dance teaching method nor in controlling movement, I do not teach in this manner.\" However, in the pursuit and development of his own work, it is only natural that a \"Hijikata\" style of working and, therefore, a \"method\" emerged. Both Mikami Kayo and Maro Akaji have stated that Hijikata exhorted his disciples not to imitate his own dance when they left to create their own butoh dance groups. If this is the case, then his words make sense: There are as many types of butoh as there are butoh choreographers.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"669d8a1f-ca49-4408-a161-e6169a36b8e2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"New Butoh","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"r4p3qt6vjx","content":[{"text":"In 2000 Sayoko Onishi established in Palermo, Italy where she founded the International Butoh Academy at the presence of master and butoh founder Yoshito Ohno. Sayoko Onishi and Yoshito Ohno are credited as being the first butoh choreographers to speak about New Butoh style. The academy name was changed to New Butoh School in 2007. In 2018 the New Butoh School established in Ruvo di Puglia, Italy.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"669d8a1f-ca49-4408-a161-e6169a36b8e2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Butoh exercises","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nq7xmx78tx","content":[{"text":"Most butoh exercises use image work to varying degrees: from the razorblades and insects of Ankoku Butoh, to Dairakudakan's threads and water jets, to Seiryukai's rod in the body. There is a general trend toward the body as \"being moved\", from an internal or external source, rather than consciously moving a body part. A certain element of \"control vs. uncontrol\" is present through many of the exercises.\nConventional butoh exercises sometimes cause great duress or pain but, as Kurihara points out, pain, starvation, and sleep deprivation were all part of life under Hijikata's method, which may have helped the dancers access a movement space where the movement cues had terrific power. It is also worth noting that Hijikata's movement cues are, in general, much more visceral and complicated than anything else since.\nMost exercises from Japan (with the exception of much of Ohno Kazuo's work) have specific body shapes or general postures assigned to them, while almost none of the exercises from Western butoh dancers have specific shapes. This seems to point to a general trend in the West that butoh is not seen as specific movement cues with shapes assigned to them such as Ankoku Butoh or Dairakudakan's technique work, but rather that butoh is a certain state of mind or feeling that influences the body directly or indirectly.\nHijikata did in fact stress feeling through form in his dance, saying, \"Life catches up with form,\" which in no way suggests that his dance was mere form.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"669d8a1f-ca49-4408-a161-e6169a36b8e2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Defining butoh","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9eexvm7g4n","content":[{"text":"Critic Mark Holborn has written that butoh is defined by its very evasion of definition; and the Kyoto Journal variably categorizes butoh as dance, theater, \"kitchen,\" or \"seditious act.\" The San Francisco Examiner describes butoh as \"unclassifiable\".  The SF Weekly article \"The Bizarre World of Butoh\" was about former sushi restaurant Country Station, in which Koichi Tamano was \"chef\" and Hiroko Tamano \"manager\". The article begins, \"There's a dirty corner of Mission Street, where a sushi restaurant called Country Station shares space with hoodlums and homeless drunks, a restaurant so camouflaged by dark and filth it easily escapes notice.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"669d8a1f-ca49-4408-a161-e6169a36b8e2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"02375f3vp4","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Butoh”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"669d8a1f-ca49-4408-a161-e6169a36b8e2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wzfk8bndc5","content":[{"text":"buto is post-WWII Japanese dance form, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fcf58dfa-e766-491e-a9ae-726d9519e722"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3td4jq4746","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 18 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fcf58dfa-e766-491e-a9ae-726d9519e722"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"a person's hand with white paint on it","src":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1646152155867-3ce0b253c9a3?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8YnV0b3xlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MTEzMDI2fDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1080","kind":"photo","width":5472,"credit":"Tapish","height":3648,"source":"unsplash","depicts":"a person's hand with white paint on it","licence":"Unsplash License","thumb640":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1646152155867-3ce0b253c9a3?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8YnV0b3xlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MTEzMDI2fDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=640","sourceUrl":"https://unsplash.com/photos/a-persons-hand-with-white-paint-on-it-cBLzubhMRlQ?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral","thumb1280":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1646152155867-3ce0b253c9a3?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8YnV0b3xlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MTEzMDI2fDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1280","attributionUrl":"https://unsplash.com/@bytapish?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:29.673Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/buto"}
{"id":"0de9f6b3-59af-4c32-99ac-9d8e7c668abb","type":"art_form","slug":"byzantine-dance","title":"Byzantine dance","summary":"Byzantine dance developed during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, was centered in the capital city of Byzantium, later renamed Constantinople.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hdr65mxh85","content":[{"text":"Byzantine dance developed during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, was centered in the capital city of Byzantium, later renamed Constantinople. Byzantine culture was oriented towards Greek culture and Christianity, rather than Roman paganism, in development of the arts. The Byzantine Empire existed for more than a thousand years, from the 4th century AD to 1453.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b485b284-d98e-4cc7-bf49-f65b5064482a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kttjt2ppwj","content":[{"text":"Ancient Greek dance in classical antiquity was originally held to have educational value, as Plato's dialogues on this point evidence in the Laws. However, as Greek culture gradually conquered Rome, dancing had less educational value and was more for entertainment purposes. At this time dancers were given a lower social status than other artists. \nThe influence of Christianity brought change too, first as the Eastern Roman Empire sought to ban dance and condemned it for its pagan origins. However, as the Eastern Orthodox Church gradually began to grant concessions to the vast number of Greeks who had converted to Christianity, rendering dance acceptable by refining and spiritualizing it. This was similar to Christian reinterpretations of pre-Christian holidays, legends, and symbols. \nThere are also similarities between Byzantine dance and modern Greek dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b485b284-d98e-4cc7-bf49-f65b5064482a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance types","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t5bq5tc33v","content":[{"text":"The dances that won the approval of the church were group dances, typically processions or circles in which men, separated from women, performed solemn decorous movements. However, the information on dancing at this period is very scarce. Actually, since the Byzantine art is mainly ecclesiastical, the references to dance are rare. Some images from the Byzantine and meta-Byzantine dances have been saved on sculptures, miniatures, and manuscripts – but mainly in church frescos amongst religious subjects.\nIn his book Life and Culture of the Byzantines, Phaidon Koukoules assembled all known references to dance in texts of that time. From his writings, we learn that there were women's dances on Easter, nocturnal satirical dances in disguise on the Kalends, dances by itinerant bands of young men on the Roussalia. There were dances at weddings, in taverns, and at banquets. The wealthy invited professional harpists and youths and maidens to dance, being especially appreciated for their bodily agility and deft footwork. Dance spectacles staged in the theater in the accompaniment of flute and guitar were also mentioned.\nThough we have so few descriptions of Byzantine dances, we know that they were often 'intertwined'. The leader of the dance was called the koryphaios (κορυφαίος) or chorolektes (χορολέκτης) and it was he who began the song and made sure that the circle was maintained. \nEfstathios of Thessaloniki mentions a dance which commenced in a circle and ended with the dancers facing one another. When not dancing in a circle the dancers held their hands high or waved them to left and right. They held cymbals (very like the zilia of today) or a kerchief in their hands and their movements were emphasized by their long sleeves.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b485b284-d98e-4cc7-bf49-f65b5064482a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Popular dances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1y6hdsc0g3","content":[{"text":"Byzantine dances in popular culture included:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b485b284-d98e-4cc7-bf49-f65b5064482a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"79am8rt9dq","content":[{"text":"Syrtos (Συρτός; literally \"dragged dance\")\nGeranos (Γερανός or Αγέρανος \"circle dance\")\nMantilia (Μαντίλια or Μαντήλια \"kerchiefs\")\nSaximos (Σάξιμος)\nPyrrichios (Πυρρίχιος or Πυρρίχη \"war dance\")","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b485b284-d98e-4cc7-bf49-f65b5064482a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Court dances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"afkdx8dhxd","content":[{"text":"At the height of the Empire, court life \"passed in a sort of ballet\", with precise ceremonies prescribed for every occasion, to show that \"Imperial power could be exercised in harmony and order\", and \"the Empire could thus reflect the motion of the Universe as it was made by the Creator\", according to the Emperor Constantine Porphyrogenitus, who wrote a Book of Ceremonies describing in enormous detail the annual round of the Court.  \nSpecial forms of dress for many classes of people on particular occasions are set down; at the name-day dinner for the Emperor or Empress various groups of officials performed ceremonial dances, one group wearing \"a blue and white garment, with short sleeves, and gold bands, and rings on their ankles. In their hands they hold what are called phengia\". The second group do just the same, but wearing \"a garment of green and red, split, with gold bands\". These colours were the marks of the old chariot-racing factions, the four now merged to just the Blues and the Greens, and incorporated into the official hierarchy.  \nSome dance historians imagine that these court dances by high officials were more like a restrained \"stylized walk\". However, enamel plaques on the Monomachus Crown, sent by the Byzantine Emperor to Hungary in about 1050, show courtly women dancing, with their hands over their head and one leg pulled back sharply behind them.  They are shown waving long strips of fabric above their heads, such as when 'skipping rope'.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b485b284-d98e-4cc7-bf49-f65b5064482a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Instruments","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7w421z15ap","content":[{"text":"Instruments in Byzantine music for dance included:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b485b284-d98e-4cc7-bf49-f65b5064482a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zv76g5qbc5","content":[{"text":"Organon\nSingle, double, or multiple flute\nSistrum (Σείστρον, \"tambourine, instrument with bells\")\nTimpani (Τυμπάνι, \"drum\")\nPsaltirio (Ψαλτήρι(ο)ν, \"psalter\")\nLyre (Λύρα)\nKeras (Κέρας, \"horn\")\nKanonaki (Κανονάκι)","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b485b284-d98e-4cc7-bf49-f65b5064482a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jaa3xpc99p","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Byzantine dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b485b284-d98e-4cc7-bf49-f65b5064482a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6x792bwaxv","content":[{"text":"Byzantine dance is Dance during Byzantine Empire, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7a3343cc-1f58-451e-a31a-78f6dedd4c2d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w41nb0bxbf","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7a3343cc-1f58-451e-a31a-78f6dedd4c2d"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Byzantine dance 1992","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/15/Byzantine_dance_1992.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"True1973","height":1834,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Byzantine dance 1992","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/15/Byzantine_dance_1992.jpg/960px-Byzantine_dance_1992.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Byzantine_dance_1992.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/15/Byzantine_dance_1992.jpg/1280px-Byzantine_dance_1992.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-07T05:47:13.243Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/byzantine-dance"}
{"id":"b8c8c864-5019-4c09-a073-4dead294bcef","type":"art_form","slug":"ca-tru","title":"ca trù","summary":"Ca trù (Vietnamese: [kaː ʈû], 歌籌, \"tally card songs\"), also known as hát ả đào, is a Vietnamese genre of musical storytelling performed by a featuring female vocalist, with origins in northern Vietnam.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pgxy2p9n06","content":[{"text":"Ca trù (Vietnamese: [kaː ʈû], 歌籌, \"tally card songs\"), also known as hát ả đào, is a Vietnamese genre of musical storytelling performed by a featuring female vocalist, with origins in northern Vietnam. For much of its history, it was associated with a pansori-like form of entertainment that encompassed entertaining the wealthy and the royal court, as well as with ceremonies involving the performance of religious songs.\nCa trù is inscribed on the list of Intangible Cultural Heritage in need of Urgent Safeguarding in 2009.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6eacc163-9bb0-45a4-8810-557361aaa80f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1fy24gw3f8","content":[{"text":"There are different myths and theories related to ca trù's conception. There is a theory points to a woman named Đào Thị, a talented musician who was beloved by the Lý Dynasty imperial court. This theory also claims that ever since the time of Đào Thị, in admiration of her, women who held a profession as singers (such as ca trù singers) were referred to as Đào nương (\"nương\" here refers roughly to \"maiden\" or \"lady\"). The latter is true although this term is no longer widely used in modern Vietnam.\nWhat is known for sure is that ca trù started off like many of Vietnam's arts as being a form of entertainment for the royal court. Officially ca tru count the age of their profession since the Later Le dynasty (Vietnamese: Nhà Hậu Lê, 1428–1789), which at that time musicians called Vietnamese: hát khuôn performed only on religious court ceremonies. It was only later on that it branched out into being performed at small inns. Indeed, it was mainly scholars and other members of the elite who enjoyed the genre.\nIn the 15th century, ca trù spread through Northern Vietnam. The artists might be called to celebrate a son's birth, or to celebrate the signing of a contract. Ca trù were outside of the caste system, so they could entertain the most noble clients.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6eacc163-9bb0-45a4-8810-557361aaa80f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"85tcxc8ycs","content":[{"text":"In the late 20th century, ca trù nearly died out. After the communists came to power following the 1945 August Revolution and the First Indochina War, ca trù was discouraged and even suppressed, being associated with prostitution,  feudal romanticism, colonial decadence, and superstition. Consequently, before 1976 there were only two ca trù professionals: the musician Nguyễn Xuân Khoát and the artisan Quách Thị Hồ. Later they both started to revive the tradition of ca trù.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6eacc163-9bb0-45a4-8810-557361aaa80f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Instruments","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yggjfcd7va","content":[{"text":"Ca trù, like many ancient and highly developed arts, has many forms.  However, the most widely known and widely performed type of ca trù involves only three performers: the female vocalist, lute player and a spectator (who also takes part in the performance). Sometimes dance is also performed at the same time.\nThe female singer provides the vocals whilst playing her phách (small wooden sticks beaten on a small bamboo bar to serve as percussion).\nShe is accompanied by a man who plays the đàn đáy, a long-necked, 3-string lute used almost exclusively for the ca trù genre.\nLast is the spectator (often a scholar or connoisseur of the art) who strikes a trống chầu (praise drum) in praise (or disapproval) of the singer's performance, usually with every passage of the song. The way in which he strikes the drum shows whether he likes or dislikes the performance, but he always does it according to the beat provided by the vocalists' phách percussion.\nThe number of ca tru melodies is 56, they are called Vietnamese: thể cách.\nNew observers to the art often comment on how strikingly odd the vocal technique sounds, but it is the vocals themselves that are essential in defining ca trù.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6eacc163-9bb0-45a4-8810-557361aaa80f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Ca trù inns","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c96vetr5dz","content":[{"text":"Ca trù literally translates as \"tally card songs.\" This refers to the bamboo cards men bought when they visited ca trù inns, where this music was most often performed in the past. Men would give the bamboo cards they purchased to the woman of choice after her performance, and she would collect money based upon how many cards she was given.\nScholar-bureaucrats and other members of the elite most enjoyed this genre. They often visited these inns to be entertained by the talented young women, who did not only sing, but with their knowledge of poetry and the arts could strike up a witty conversation along with serving food and drink.\nBesides these inns, ca trù was also commonly performed in communal houses or private homes.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6eacc163-9bb0-45a4-8810-557361aaa80f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"In modern Vietnamese media","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pentthd9qe","content":[{"text":"Along with efforts made to preserve the genre, ca trù has been appearing in much of recent Vietnamese pop culture, including movies such as the award-winning film Mê thảo: thời vang bóng, \"Trò đời\", \"Trăng tỏ thềm lan\", \"Thương nhớ ở ai\". The memory of anyone or in songs \"Một nét ca trù ngày xuân\", \"Mái đình làng biển\" by musician Nguyễn Cường, \"Trên đỉnh Phù Vân\", \"Không thể và có thể\", \"Chảy đi sông ơi! \", \"Một thoáng Tây Hồ\" by Phó Đức Phương, \"Chiều phủ Tây Hồ\" by Phú Quang, \"Chị tôi\" by Trọng Đài and poem by Đoàn Thị Tảo, \"Hà Nội linh thiêng hào hoa\" by Lê Mây, \"Đất nước lời ru\" by Phan Huỳnh Điểu\", \"Nắng có còn xuân\" by Đức Trí\", Giọt sương bay lên\" by Nguyễn Vĩnh Tiến, \"Đá trông chồng\" by Lê Minh Sơn, \"Vịnh xuân đất Tổ\" by Quang Vinh. In 1997, for the first time \"Trên đỉnh Phù Vân\" was made public by singer Mỹ Linh. Contemporary folk sound, with the up-and-down sounds never easy for a soft musician, so choosing this song to sing was a very brave decision by Mỹ Linh in the early days of her career. The way to deal with the color of ca trù is probably intended to bring out the magic in every song.\nBích Câu Đạo Quán Club, founded in low has 90 members, 30 or 40 of whom gather on a given Saturday evenings. The oldest artist is 88 years old. According to the director, 48 -year-old Nguyễn Vân Mai, who trains younger singers and introduces them to classical songs: \"It is very difficult to find young singers who wish to learn this art form. It is also difficult to find good teachers who can convey both the enthusiasm and the technical knowledge.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6eacc163-9bb0-45a4-8810-557361aaa80f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Tribute","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kcvszjqans","content":[{"text":"On February 23, 2020, Google celebrated the Ca Trù's Founder Commemoration Day with a Google Doodle.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6eacc163-9bb0-45a4-8810-557361aaa80f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"v782xpr1d3","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Ca trù”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6eacc163-9bb0-45a4-8810-557361aaa80f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ffhhdammvr","content":[{"text":"ca trù is Vietnamese musical storytelling genre, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"21fed731-4148-405b-a6f4-a87b7fea7b70"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ckqba5v0b5","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 13 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"21fed731-4148-405b-a6f4-a87b7fea7b70"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"A ca trù performance in Hà Nội. Left: a 'customer' playing the trống chầu drum Center: a ca trù singer playing phách Right: a đàn đáy player","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f3/Ca_tr%C3%B9_performance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Michael Coghlan","height":940,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"A ca trù performance in Hà Nội. Left: a 'customer' playing the trống chầu drum Center: a ca trù singer playing phách Right: a đàn đáy player","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f3/Ca_tr%C3%B9_performance.jpg/960px-Ca_tr%C3%B9_performance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ca_tr%C3%B9_performance.jpg","thumb1280":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f3/Ca_tr%C3%B9_performance.jpg/1280px-Ca_tr%C3%B9_performance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:25.527Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/ca-tru"}
{"id":"d45b8feb-eff8-4a31-84ea-45d128ee8e90","type":"art_form","slug":"cachucha","title":"Cachucha","summary":"Cachucha is a Spanish solo dance in 34 or 38 time, similar to the bolero. Cachucha is danced to an Andalusian national song with castanet accompaniment.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f3njz47w6z","content":[{"text":"Cachucha is a Spanish solo dance in 34 or 38 time, similar to the bolero. Cachucha is danced to an Andalusian national song with castanet accompaniment.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6ffd5627-9243-472b-85c8-bc2492e318c6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f2cemmdjkr","content":[{"text":"From Spanish cachucha, small boat. Possibly from diminutive of cacho, shard, saucepan, probably from vulgar Latin cacculus, alteration of Latin caccabus, pot, from Greek kakkabos, a small container.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6ffd5627-9243-472b-85c8-bc2492e318c6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"20j0xmdf3s","content":[{"text":"The Cachucha was created in Cuba though it is now considered a Spanish dance. Fanny Elssler (1810-1884, Vienna) popularized this dance when she introduced it to the public in the ballet from Rossini's opera La donna del lago in 1830s London, and cemented its fame in Jean Coralli's ballet Le Diable boiteux (1836, Vienna).\nGilbert and Sullivan set the dance for the entire company in Act 2 of the Savoy Opera The Gondoliers as the chorus sings Dance a Cachucha.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6ffd5627-9243-472b-85c8-bc2492e318c6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"p5y0ah6th4","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Cachucha”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6ffd5627-9243-472b-85c8-bc2492e318c6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bezvy9mj4j","content":[{"text":"Cachucha is Spanish solo dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"20dc9d47-44cc-4ca0-86ef-26b4426b2eed"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"phsdzyvjqq","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 5 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"20dc9d47-44cc-4ca0-86ef-26b4426b2eed"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:16.882Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/cachucha"}
{"id":"07195f20-8b2b-4609-bb4b-4b62b5302229","type":"art_form","slug":"calabrian-tarantella","title":"Calabrian tarantella","summary":"Calabrian tarantella, known in Italian as tarantella calabrese, is a generic term to include different musical-dancing expressions spread in Calabrian peninsula and different from other southern Italian dances called simply tarantella.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cmawwyr6y8","content":[{"text":"Calabrian tarantella, known in Italian as tarantella calabrese, is a generic term to include different musical-dancing expressions spread in Calabrian peninsula and different from other southern Italian dances called simply tarantella. It is played and danced during religious festivals and other social occasions. In recent times the tradition has been revived as new groups are taking an interest in instruments which had been falling into obscurity; they played \"ad usu anticu\" (in the old/traditional way) or they modernised the sound adding a bassline or new sounds.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7c1d1468-242a-4623-851f-5c1056676808"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Musical instruments","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pw3f8q2d64","content":[{"text":"Musical instruments of Calabrian Tarantella are zampogna, substituted often by organetto, with tamburello; in some areas was used zampogna with pipita, and fischiotta, while in Locride and Monte Poro was used Calabrian lira. Rhythm is based on terzine with time in 12/8 and sometimes in 6/8.\nAlthough there is homogeneity in tarantella played and danced in all Calabria, there are some geographical differences: there is libera in east catanzarese, sonu a ballu in Aspromonte, and zumparieddu in Sila and Viddanedda in Reggio Calabria and style differences: fimminina (female style), masculina (male style), libera.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7c1d1468-242a-4623-851f-5c1056676808"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4jkpmsyz6r","content":[{"text":"Calabrian tarantella is a man-women couple dance, but it could be also man-man and woman-woman, in a circular space made of moving people named rota ('wheel').\nU mastru i ballu ('Master of dance') decide the order of the dancers inside rota managed turns.\nPlayers  outside rota follow and feel dancers and change music rhythm.\nIn the past, during dancing, the people created a unique rota in the square where they danced.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7c1d1468-242a-4623-851f-5c1056676808"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Main Calabrian tarantella festivals","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"st3v86jfs9","content":[{"text":"Paleariza at Bova (RC), since 1997\nKaulonia Tarantella Festival at Caulonia (RC), since 2008\nTarantella Power at Caulonia, since 1998 to 2007 and since 2009 to Badolato (RC)\nRadici Sonore at Tiriolo (CZ), since 2006\nRadicazioni Festival at Alessandria del Carretto (CS), since 2003\nTamburello Festival at Zambrone (VV), since 2004\nSùanu 'e canna at Sant'Andrea Apostolo dello Ionio, since 2010\nSatrianella Festival at Satriano (CZ), since 2009","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7c1d1468-242a-4623-851f-5c1056676808"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"p8veqa2wjf","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Calabrian tarantella”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7c1d1468-242a-4623-851f-5c1056676808"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1kkp41pngk","content":[{"text":"Calabrian tarantella is musical-dancing expressions originating in Calabria, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"269c066b-7b8e-4e24-8de9-a1caff36b375"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"d8aysm5ty1","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"269c066b-7b8e-4e24-8de9-a1caff36b375"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:12.701Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/calabrian-tarantella"}
{"id":"3452e99f-3f10-4d93-9c52-e30cc4589081","type":"art_form","slug":"calusari","title":"Căluşari","summary":"The Călușari (Romanian: Călușarii, Romanian pronunciation: [kəluˈʃarʲ]; Bulgarian: Калушари; singular: Călușar) are the participants to an old traditional Romanian dance known as the căluș.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ej5cv9txwj","content":[{"text":"The Călușari (Romanian: Călușarii, Romanian pronunciation: [kəluˈʃarʲ]; Bulgarian: Калушари; singular: Călușar) are the participants to an old traditional Romanian dance known as the căluș. \"Căluș\" translates to horse, but in an endearing form. Originally Romanian, the practice later spread to North Bulgaria. From three weeks after Easter until Pentecost, called Rusalii in Romanian, for around two weeks they have traditionally travelled to all their local communities where they would dance, accompanied by a few fiddlers.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"81898e61-3233-4296-9a46-e2be51fe4644"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fmsb3nsghj","content":[{"text":"The origins of the Călușari are unknown, although the first written attestations are from the 17th-century musical notations of Ioan Căianu. \nRomanian historian of religion Mircea Eliade noted that \"Although the oath taken is made in the name of God, the mythico-ritual scenario enacted by the calusari has nothing in common with Christianity\" and that, in the 19th century at least, there was clerical opposition to the group, with its members being excluded from taking communion for three years in some regions.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"81898e61-3233-4296-9a46-e2be51fe4644"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zp7a8en6nb","content":[{"text":"The generally accepted derivation of Căluș is from the old Latin double form \"collusium, collusii\", meaning both \"a dance group\" and \"a secret society\", however other derivations have been proposed. The Romanian word căluș also means \"a small piece of wood placed in the mouth to prevent talking\", and derivation from this word has some support from the presence of the mute figure in some groups, and the ritual silence that used to be observed by the entire group. Others, such as Mircea Eliade, see căluș as a diminutive of cal \"horse\", in turn derived from the Latin caballus, and point to the horse's mythical associations with fertility and war, as well as the imitation of horses found in certain Căluș dances (although these dances do not currently play a principal role in the ritual).\nKligman (1977) remarks: \"Extensive scholarship has been devoted to proving 'at any price a pure Roman origin' of this beloved ritual. [T]he results are far from persuasive.\" One such theory is that it derives from \"Coli-Salii\" — that is, the Salii Collini mentioned by Livy — these being Roman priests dedicated to the worship of Mars.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"81898e61-3233-4296-9a46-e2be51fe4644"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Description","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t0y279emnm","content":[{"text":"Traditionally, the Călușari group is a secret, male-only society associated with a spring rite, possibly a remnant of tribal warrior societies. The group leader (usually an older man) recruits a number of acolytes, always young, single adults chosen for physical prowess. The group members take an oath of secrecy, whereupon they participate in an initiation rite and taught the forms of the dance. The groups of Călușari roam the country in spring-time, visiting villages by turns and taking part in the week-end dances – hora.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"81898e61-3233-4296-9a46-e2be51fe4644"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Căluș dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1wth87jahb","content":[{"text":"The căluș is a male group dance, although there are records of traditions from Oltenia region that included 1–2 young girls, now obsolete. A \"bride\" would be chosen by the group from each village they passed through, based on her dancing skills. The \"bride\" would be oath-bound to join in the ritual dance, for three years in a row.\nDancers wear white trousers and white tunics, with brightly coloured ribbons streaming from their hats. Bells are attached to their ankles, and dances include the use of ornate sticks held upright whilst dancing, or pointing at the ground as a prop. The dance itself is highly acrobatic, emphasizing extension and high jumps, much like the Ceili dance.\nLike many Morris dances, in many traditions Călușari dancers include a fool, known as the \"nebun\", or \"crazy\".\nThe dance includes the following elements:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"81898e61-3233-4296-9a46-e2be51fe4644"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k654yf68r3","content":[{"text":"The starting figure of walking (plimbări), or a basic step, in a circle moving counter clockwise.\nMore complex figures (mișcare) performed in place between walking steps.\nFigures are formed from combinations of elements, often have a beginning-middle-end structure.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"81898e61-3233-4296-9a46-e2be51fe4644"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Association with fairies","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wwrrn45nw4","content":[{"text":"According to the Romanian historian Mircea Eliade, the Călușari were known for \"their ability to create the impression of flying in the air\" which he believed represented both the galloping of a horse and the dancing of the fairies (zâne). Indeed, the group's patron was the \"Queen of the Fairies\" (Doamna Zânelor), who was also known as Irodiada and Arada, and who Eliade connected with the folkloric figure Diana. The Călușari were believed to be able to cure the victims of fairies.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"81898e61-3233-4296-9a46-e2be51fe4644"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"h99akpg6ww","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Călușari”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"81898e61-3233-4296-9a46-e2be51fe4644"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pqaezbtng0","content":[{"text":"Căluşari is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"807f84ed-20ba-496b-9f26-923c5b1f5c2f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w2v3qwfwrx","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"807f84ed-20ba-496b-9f26-923c5b1f5c2f"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Căluşari dance at the Saxon fortress church in Cristian, Sibiu, Romania, on the occasion of the visit of the Belgian King Albert II and his wife, Queen Paola.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/33/C%C4%83lu%C5%9Fari_Cristian%2C_Sibiu.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"El bes","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Căluşari dance at the Saxon fortress church in Cristian, Sibiu, Romania, on the occasion of the visit of the Belgian King Albert II and his wife, Queen Paola.","licence":"CC BY 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/33/C%C4%83lu%C5%9Fari_Cristian%2C_Sibiu.jpg/960px-C%C4%83lu%C5%9Fari_Cristian%2C_Sibiu.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:C%C4%83lu%C5%9Fari_Cristian,_Sibiu.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/33/C%C4%83lu%C5%9Fari_Cristian%2C_Sibiu.jpg/1280px-C%C4%83lu%C5%9Fari_Cristian%2C_Sibiu.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:21.014Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/calusari"}
{"id":"9b631d1a-fb85-4b12-9414-053372e38adb","type":"art_form","slug":"cambodian-dance","title":"Cambodian dance","summary":"Dance in Cambodia (Khmer: របាំ robam) consists of three main categories: classical dance of the royal court, folk dance which portrays cultural traditions, and social dances performed in social gatherings.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"x9h1bzqh7b","content":[{"text":"Dance in Cambodia (Khmer: របាំ robam) consists of three main categories: classical dance of the royal court, folk dance which portrays cultural traditions, and social dances performed in social gatherings.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8b7ab565-20d6-46bd-b420-6a2054b93e1d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Classical dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kem0myebhe","content":[{"text":"Cambodia's premier performing art form is Khmer classical dance, or Robam Preah Reach Trop, a highly stylized dance form originating from the royal courts. Originally performed and maintained by attendants of the royal palaces, Khmer classical dance was introduced to the general public in the mid-20th century and became widely celebrated as iconic of Cambodian culture, often performed during public events, holidays, and for tourists visiting Cambodia.\nPerformances feature elaborately costumed dancers performing slow and figurative gestures to the musical accompaniment of a pinpeat ensemble. The classical repertoire includes dances of tribute or invocation and the enactment of traditional stories and epic poems such as the Ramayana. Two of the most performed classical dances are the Robam Chuon Por (\"Wishing dance\") and the Robam Tep Apsara (\"Apsara dance\").\nOther names for Khmer classical dance include \"Cambodian court dance\" and \"the royal ballet of Cambodia\", although the latter term can also refer to the National Dance Company of Cambodia. In Khmer, it is formally known as Robam Preah Reach Trop (របាំព្រះរាជទ្រព្យ, lit. \"dances of royal wealth\") or Lakhon Preah Reach Trop (ល្ខោនព្រះរាជទ្រព្យ, lit. \"theatre of royal wealth\"). It is also sometimes called Lakhon Luong (ល្ខោនហ្លួង, lit. \"the king's theatre\"). During the Lon Nol regime of Cambodia, the dance tradition was referred to as Lakhon Kbach Boran Khmer (ល្ខោនក្បាច់បូរាណខ្មែរ, lit. \"Khmer theatre of the ancient style\"), a term that distanced it from its royal legacy.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8b7ab565-20d6-46bd-b420-6a2054b93e1d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Folk dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b7pv0fczh4","content":[{"text":"Created in the 20th century are folk dances that emphasize that various cultural traditions and ethnic groups of Cambodia. Cambodian folk dances are usually more fast-paced than classical dances. The movements and gestures are not as stylized as classical dance. Folk dancers wear clothes of the people they are portraying such as Chams people, highlands ethnic minorities, farmers, and peasants. Some folk dances are about love or folktales. Most of the music of folk dances is played by a mahori orchestra.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8b7ab565-20d6-46bd-b420-6a2054b93e1d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Selected list of folk dances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kt0r67a76n","content":[{"text":"Trot dance (Dance of the Stag) - a popular dance representing a tale of a hunter and a deer who spread several danger between giant to ogress and peacock. It is performed to ward off evil and bad luck.\nSneang Tosoang Dance (Dance of the Wild Oxen) - a dance around a tiger, a peacock, a deer, and other animals. The dance originates in Phnum Kravanh District, Pursat Province and depicts the Pear people.\nRobam Kom Araek - a dance mainly used two or three bamboo pole which hitting every second.  It is reported that the dance came from Kuy people but it is more believed that the birthplace is Philippines during the reign of King Norodom (1834–1904) when he was traveling in Philippines.\nRobam Neary Chea Chuor (Khmer: របាំនារីជាជួរ) - is a traditional Khmer dance of young Cambodian women wearing colorful and elegant costumes. The dance reminds the Khmer people of the rich culture that has been nourished through generations, and it is well known among the neighboring countries of South-East Asia\nRobam Kngaok Pailin (Pailin peacock dance) - a dance portraying the Kula people in Pailin and their amusement with a pair of peafowl.\nChhayam - a well known entertainment dance about pleasure, including several comedic roles and beautiful girls.  The dance is performed at holidays and is a pure Khmer dance.\nCambodian Coconut Dance - a dance performance involving coconuts with male and female dancers.  Men wear a yellow shirt and dark red \"Changkibin\".  Women wear a button up shirt and a green silk \"Chong Kben\".  The dance originated around 1960 from Romeas Haek District in Svay Rieng Province.\nCambodian Fishing Dance - a dance performance involving fishing that was composed in the 1960s at the Royal University of Fine Arts in Phnom Penh.  It involves male dancers and female dancers.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8b7ab565-20d6-46bd-b420-6a2054b93e1d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Social dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"a1ht9v099g","content":[{"text":"Social dances commonly danced at social gatherings in Cambodia include the romvong, rom kbach, saravann, chok krapeus and lam leav. Other social dances from around the world have influenced Cambodian social culture, including the cha-cha, the bolero, and the Madison. Such dances are often performed at Cambodian banquet parties.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8b7ab565-20d6-46bd-b420-6a2054b93e1d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f2kgp21kwz","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Dance in Cambodia”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8b7ab565-20d6-46bd-b420-6a2054b93e1d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c3kq9n6fj7","content":[{"text":"Cambodian dance is a tradition recorded in open cultural data, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"86a98c0c-c742-4263-b9b2-8375849df4a5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"x4c941rx89","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 4 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"86a98c0c-c742-4263-b9b2-8375849df4a5"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Khmer classical dance","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ad/Khmer_classical_dance_02.JPG?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Jadamta","height":850,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Khmer classical dance","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/ad/Khmer_classical_dance_02.JPG/960px-Khmer_classical_dance_02.JPG?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Khmer_classical_dance_02.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/ad/Khmer_classical_dance_02.JPG/1280px-Khmer_classical_dance_02.JPG?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:06.881Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/cambodian-dance"}
{"id":"6d79e63d-cfee-40c3-9ace-4678e4bc1e42","type":"art_form","slug":"can-can","title":"can can","summary":"The can-can (also spelled cancan as in the original French [kɑ̃kɑ̃]) is a high-energy, physically demanding dance that became a popular music-hall dance in the 1840s, continuing in popularity in French cabaret to modern days.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"97t1p4k6aj","content":[{"text":"The can-can (also spelled cancan as in the original French [kɑ̃kɑ̃]) is a high-energy, physically demanding dance that became a popular music-hall dance in the 1840s, continuing in popularity in French cabaret to modern days. Originally danced by couples, it is traditionally associated with a chorus line of female dancers. The main features of the dance are the vigorous manipulation of skirts and petticoats, along with high kicks, splits, and cartwheels.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5c57de08-920a-40af-939c-8fc12f39d924"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4qg24r1gny","content":[{"text":"The can-can is believed to have evolved from the final figure in the quadrille, a social dance for four or more couples. The exact origin of the dance is obscure, but the steps may have been inspired by a popular entertainer of the 1820s, Charles-François Mazurier (1798–1828), well known for his mime and acrobatic dance, including the grand écart or jump splits—both popular features of the can-can; his greatest success was in Jocko, or The Brazilian Ape (1825).\nThe dance was considered scandalous, and for a while there were attempts to suppress it. This may have been partly because in the 19th century, women wore pantalettes, which had an open crotch, and the high kicks were intentionally revealing. There is no evidence that can-can dancers wore special closed underwear, although it has been said that the Moulin Rouge management did not permit dancers to perform in \"revealing undergarments\". Occasionally, people dancing the can-can were arrested, but there is no record of its being banned, as some accounts claim. Throughout the 1830s, it was often groups of men, particularly students, who danced the can-can at public dance-halls.\nAs the dance became more popular, professional performers emerged, although it was still danced by individuals, not by a chorus line. A few men became can-can stars in the 1840s to 1861 and an all-male group known as the Quadrille des Clodoches performed in London in 1870. However, women performers were much more widely known.\nBy the 1890s, it was possible to earn a living as a full-time dancer and stars such as La Goulue and Jane Avril emerged, who were highly paid for their appearances at the Moulin Rouge and elsewhere.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5c57de08-920a-40af-939c-8fc12f39d924"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Outside France","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"enxtrjspqs","content":[{"text":"Outside France, the can-can achieved popularity in music halls, where it was danced by groups of women in choreographed routines. This style was imported back into France in the 1920s for the benefit of tourists, and the \"French Cancan\" was born—a highly choreographed routine lasting ten minutes or more, with the opportunity for individuals to display their \"specialities\". The main moves are the high kick or battement, the rond de jambe (quick rotary movement of lower leg with knee raised and skirt held up), the port d'armes (turning on one leg, while grasping the other leg by the ankle and holding it almost vertically), the cartwheel and the grand écart (the flying or jump splits). It has become common practice for dancers to scream and yelp while performing the can-can.\nThe can-can was introduced in America on 23 December 1867 by Giuseppina Morlacchi, dancing as a part of The Devil's Auction at the Theatre Comique in Boston. It was billed as \"Grand Gallop Can-Can, composed and danced by Mlles. Morlacchi, Blasina, Diani, Ricci, Baretta... accompanied with cymbals and triangles by the coryphees and corps de ballet.\" The new dance received an enthusiastic reception.\nBy the 1890s the can-can was out of style in New York dance halls, having been replaced by the hoochie coochie.\nThe can-can became popular in Alaska and Yukon, Canada, where theatrical performances feature can-can dancers to the present day.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5c57de08-920a-40af-939c-8fc12f39d924"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"In other arts","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s0ea72xvpp","content":[{"text":"Many composers have written music for the can-can. The most famous is French composer Jacques Offenbach's Galop Infernal in his operetta Orphée aux Enfers (Orpheus in the Underworld) (1858). However, the galop is actually another sort of dance. Other examples occur in Franz Lehár's operetta The Merry Widow (1905) and Cole Porter's musical play Can-Can (1954), which formed the basis for the 1960 musical film Can-Can starring Frank Sinatra and Shirley MacLaine. Some other songs that have become associated with the can-can include Aram Khachaturian's \"Sabre Dance\" from his ballet Gayane (1938) and the music hall standard \"Ta-ra-ra Boom-de-ay\". In 1955 Jean Renoir's film French Cancan, starring Jean Gabin as the director of a music hall which features the can-can, was released.\nThe can-can has often appeared in ballet, such as Léonide Massine's La Boutique fantasque (1919) and Gaîté Parisienne (1938), as well as The Merry Widow. Another example is the climax of Jean Renoir's film French Cancan. A well-known can-can occurs at the finale of the \"Dance of the Hours\" from the opera La Gioconda by Amilcare Ponchielli.\nFrench painter Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec produced several paintings and a large number of posters of can-can dancers. Other painters of the can-can included Georges Seurat, Georges Rouault, and Pablo Picasso.\nThe can-can has appeared in numerous film and TV productions, such as the dance being featured prominently in Baz Luhrmann's Moulin Rouge!. The 2009 anime series Fairy Tail featured the music as one of its themes, while a promotional advertisement for Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends featured one of its lead characters, Coco, performing the dance before destroying the set around her.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5c57de08-920a-40af-939c-8fc12f39d924"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"y3zyvfpqaq","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Can-can”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5c57de08-920a-40af-939c-8fc12f39d924"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m7scxewctg","content":[{"text":"can can is music hall dance presentation, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9b6a6548-9acd-4aba-bc38-ff2232cf13f2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"x2y98rb145","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 22 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9b6a6548-9acd-4aba-bc38-ff2232cf13f2"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:16.296Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/can-can"}
{"id":"1d406a04-6f5d-4f81-8739-ce21abc13733","type":"art_form","slug":"canary-dance","title":"canary dance","summary":"The Canary dance (known as Canario in Italian sources, Canarie in French ones) was a Renaissance dance inspired by an indigenous dance and song of the Canary Islands, Spain (probably the one known as Tajaraste) that became popular all over …","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rm01pttvjx","content":[{"text":"The Canary dance (known as Canario in Italian sources, Canarie in French ones) was a Renaissance dance inspired by an indigenous dance and song of the Canary Islands, Spain (probably the one known as Tajaraste) that became popular all over Europe in the late 16th and early 17th century. It is mentioned in dance manuals from France and Italy, and is mentioned in sources from Spain and England, as well, including in plays by William Shakespeare.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c323072f-8956-4d1f-800a-c0806e9c4e23"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Choreography","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"11ky7g190e","content":[{"text":"The dance, which is most often choreographed for a single couple, has been characterized as \"a fiery wooing dance\" with either Canary origins or at least a Canary flavor from its \"rapid heel-and-toe stamps\" and distinctive music. It was also called frogs legs, because it was an energetic dance that featured jumps, stamping of the feet and violent movement, accompanied by music with syncopated rhythms.\nWhile there are choreographies for the canario as a stand-alone dance in the dancing manuals of Fabritio Caroso, Cesare Negri, and Thoinot Arbeau,  it most frequently appears as a section of a larger dance or suite of dances. Several Baroque composers (notably J.S. Bach) used the distinctive rhythm of the canary in a few pieces, such as the gigue of the French Suite in C Minor, and it also appears in one of the Goldberg Variations (Variation 7).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c323072f-8956-4d1f-800a-c0806e9c4e23"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Literature","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2drpnjpyat","content":[{"text":"Arbeau, Thoinot. Orchesography. (Orchésographie, 1589.) Translated by Mary S. Evans and edited by Julia Sutton. New York: Dover, 1967.\nBrissenden, Alan. Shakespeare and the Dance. Atlantic Highlands, NJ: Humanities Press, 1981. ISBN 978-0391018105 (1st edition), ISBN 978-1852730833 (2nd edition).\nCaroso, Fabritio. Courtly Dance of the Renaissance: A New Translation and Edition of the “Nobiltà di Dame” (1600). Edited and translated by Julia Sutton. New York: Dover Publications, 1986, 1995.\nCohen, Selma Jeanne, ed. International Encyclopedia of Dance: A Project of Dance Perspectives Foundation, Inc. 6 vols. New York: Oxford University Press, 1998. ISBN 0-391-01810-8 (1st edition), ISBN 978-0195173697 (2nd edition).\nKendall, G. Yvonne. “Le Gratie d'Amore 1602 by Cesare Negri: Translation and Commentary.” PhD diss., Stanford University, 1985.\nNegri, Cesare. Le Gratie d'Amore. Milan, 1602.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c323072f-8956-4d1f-800a-c0806e9c4e23"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Canario choreographies and reconstructions","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"n64czp374y","content":[{"text":"Il Canario: The Canary of Cesare Negri with its Variations—reconstructed by Delbert von Straßburg\nCaroso's Il Canario (Il Ballarino)\nCanario Musical Arrangements","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c323072f-8956-4d1f-800a-c0806e9c4e23"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Reconstruction video clips","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ffk25js4hg","content":[{"text":"Il Canario from Ballare 2010, Bauska (uploaded Jan. 5, 2011)\nCanario for Three (uploaded May 16, 2010)\nCanario de J.H. Kapsberger (uploaded Mar. 13, 2008)\nCanario, performed by Saltatriculi early dance ensemble (uploaded Aug. 22, 2011)","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c323072f-8956-4d1f-800a-c0806e9c4e23"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"np6m6tzdcn","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Canary dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c323072f-8956-4d1f-800a-c0806e9c4e23"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"31tycvb0cf","content":[{"text":"canary dance is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"57944447-f7d6-4353-9eab-2c29211ba35f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xyf2k7629f","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 4 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"57944447-f7d6-4353-9eab-2c29211ba35f"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:14.086Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/canary-dance"}
{"id":"46f7db98-9562-4a13-95d8-f03264495363","type":"art_form","slug":"candombe","title":"candombe","summary":"Candombe is a style of music and dance that originated in Uruguay, among the descendants of liberated African slaves.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7ms20ahhgd","content":[{"text":"Candombe is a style of music and dance that originated in Uruguay, among the descendants of liberated African slaves. In 2009, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) inscribed candombe in its Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.\nTo a lesser extent, candombe is practiced in Argentina, Paraguay, and Brazil. In Argentina, it can be found in Buenos Aires, Santa Fe, Paraná, and Corrientes. In Paraguay, this tradition continues in Camba Cuá and in Fernando de la Mora near Asunción. In Brazil, candombe retains its religious character and can be found in the states of Minas Gerais and Rio Grande do Sul.\nThis Uruguayan music style is based on three different drums: chico, repique, and piano drums. It is usually played in February during carnival in Montevideo at dance parades called llamadas and desfile inaugural del carnaval.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d7323ba6-c7eb-49ce-bf6d-4830d9b8c802"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Common origins","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vh66n7r0hc","content":[{"text":"According to George Reid Andrews, a historian of black communities in Latin America, after the middle of the 19th century younger black people  began to abandon the candombe in favor of practicing European dances such as the waltz, schottische, and mazurka. Following this new twist, other Uruguayans began to imitate the steps and movements. Calling themselves Los Negros, upper class porteños in the 1860s and 1870s performed blackface  and formed one of the carnival processions each year.\nAfrican-Uruguayans organized candombe dances every Sunday and on special holidays such as New Year's Eve, Christmas, Saint Baltasar, Rosary Virgin and Saint Benito. They would set a fire to heat the drums and play candombe music, especially during the night in certain neighborhoods such as Barrio Sur and Palermo in Montevideo.\nThe typical characters on the parade represent the old white masters during slavery in old Montevideo city. It was a mockery to their lifestyle with a rebel spirit for freedom and a way to remember the African origins.\nIn 1913, an anonymous dance historian identified only as \"Viejo Tanguero\" (\"Old Tangoer\") wrote about the 1877 creation of a dance referred to as a tango but featuring ideas from the candombe. This dance, which later became known as \"soft tango,\" was created by African Argentines.\nWriting in 1883, dance scholar and folklorist Ventura Lynch described the influence of Afro-Argentine dancers on the compadritos (\"tough guys\") who apparently frequented Afro-Argentine dance venues. Lynch wrote, \"the milonga is danced only by the compadritos of the city, who have created it as a mockery of the dances the blacks hold in their own places\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d7323ba6-c7eb-49ce-bf6d-4830d9b8c802"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"In Argentina","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cq1g6jbq2z","content":[{"text":"The seeds of candombe originated in present-day Angola, where it was taken to South America during the 17th and 18th centuries by people who had been sold as slaves in the kingdom of Kongo, Anziqua, Nyong, Quang and others, mainly by Portuguese slave traders. The same cultural carriers of candombe colonized Brazil (especially in the area of Salvador de Bahia), Cuba, and the Río de la Plata with its capital Buenos Aires and Montevideo. The different histories and experiences in these regions branched out from the common origin, giving rise to different rhythms.\nThe African influence was not foreign to Argentina, where the candombe also has been developed with specific characteristics. A population of black African slaves had been present in Buenos Aires since around 1580. However, miscegenation with an increasingly white population (as Argentina received up to 6 million European immigrants) and structural racism (such as state-sponsored blanqueamiento policies) led to the progressive invisibilization of the Afro-Argentine population.\nIn Buenos Aires, during the two governments of Juan Manuel de Rosas, it was common for “afroporteños” (black people of Buenos Aires) to perform candombe in public, even encouraged and visited by Rosas and his daughter, Manuela. Rosas was defeated at the battle of Caseros in 1852, and Buenos Aires began a profound and rapid cultural shift which saw a bigger emphasis on European culture. In this context, afroporteños replicated their ancestral cultural patterns increasingly into their private life.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d7323ba6-c7eb-49ce-bf6d-4830d9b8c802"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"In Uruguay","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4kddnc7rn6","content":[{"text":"The word candombe comes from a Kikongo word meaning \"pertaining to blacks,\" and was originally used in Buenos Aires to refer to dancing societies formed by members of the African diaspora and their descendants. It came to refer to the dance style in general, and the term was adopted in Uruguay as well. In Uruguay, candombe fused multiple African dance traditions into a complex choreography. Movements are energetic, and steps are improvised to suit.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d7323ba6-c7eb-49ce-bf6d-4830d9b8c802"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Argentina","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nz7cfjh7jb","content":[{"text":"Lately, some artists have incorporated this genre to their compositions, and have also created groups and NGOs of Afro-descendants, as the Misibamba Association, Afro-Argentines of Buenos Aires Community. However, the Uruguayan Candombe is the most practiced in Argentina, both due to immigration from Uruguay and to  the seductiveness of the rhythm that captivates the Argentines. For this  reason they learn the music, dance and characters and  recreate something similar. Uruguayan Candombe  is played much in the neighborhoods of San Telmo, Montserrat and La Boca.\nWhile the Argentine variety had less local diffusion (compared with the diffusion that occurred in Uruguay), mainly by the decrease of population of black African origin, its mixing with white immigrants and the prohibition of the carnival during the last dictatorship. The Afroargentine Candombe is only played by the Afro-Argentines in the privacy of their homes, mainly located in the outskirts of Buenos Aires.\nRecently, due to a change in strategy by the Afro-Argentines to move from concealment to visibility, there are increased efforts to perform it in public places, onstage and in street parades. Among the groups who play Afroargentine Candombe are: “Tambores del Litoral” (union of “Balikumba” from Santa Fe, and “Candombes del Litoral” from Parana, Entre Ríos), “Bakongo” (these, have their own web page), the “Comparsa Negros Argentinos” and \"Grupo Bum Ke Bum (both from Asociación Misibamba). The latter two are in Gran Buenos Aires (Buenos Aires City and its surroundings).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d7323ba6-c7eb-49ce-bf6d-4830d9b8c802"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Uruguay","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4w9nt7041y","content":[{"text":"In the late 1960s and early 1970s candombe was mixed with elements from 60s pop music and bossa nova to create a new genre called candombe beat. The origin of this genre was largely said to be the work of Eduardo Mateo, a Uruguayan singer, songwriter and musician together with other musicians such as Jorge Galemire. This style was later adopted by Jaime Roos and also heavily influenced Jorge Drexler. Contemporary musicians like Diego Janssen and Miguel del Aguila are experimenting with fusing candombe with classical genres, jazz, blues and milonga.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d7323ba6-c7eb-49ce-bf6d-4830d9b8c802"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gsnewbmajw","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Candombe”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d7323ba6-c7eb-49ce-bf6d-4830d9b8c802"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pnd7g4mkpz","content":[{"text":"candombe is style of music and dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"73c57a2b-823a-4075-8c13-e35b1dd07d44"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zxty6mx5zg","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 9 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"73c57a2b-823a-4075-8c13-e35b1dd07d44"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Desfile de Llamadas 2020 - Barrio Sur - Montevideo - Uruguay History goes that during the days of the Spanish colony, many African men and women were brought to America as slaves in order to fulfill tasks at the houses of the most remarkable families in Montevideo. When slavery…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/47/Desfile_de_Llamadas_2020_-_Barrio_Sur_-_Montevideo_-_Uruguay_200214-1020898-jikatu_%2849538521121%29.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Jimmy Baikovicius from Montevideo, Uruguay","height":743,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Desfile de Llamadas 2020 - Barrio Sur - Montevideo - Uruguay History goes that during the days of the Spanish colony, many African men and women were brought to America as slaves in order to fulfill tasks at the houses of the most remarkable families in Montevideo. When slavery…","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/47/Desfile_de_Llamadas_2020_-_Barrio_Sur_-_Montevideo_-_Uruguay_200214-1020898-jikatu_%2849538521121%29.jpg/960px-Desfile_de_Llamadas_2020_-_Barrio_Sur_-_Montevideo_-_Uruguay_200214-1020898-jikatu_%2849538521121%29.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Desfile_de_Llamadas_2020_-_Barrio_Sur_-_Montevideo_-_Uruguay_200214-1020898-jikatu_(49538521121).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/47/Desfile_de_Llamadas_2020_-_Barrio_Sur_-_Montevideo_-_Uruguay_200214-1020898-jikatu_%2849538521121%29.jpg/1280px-Desfile_de_Llamadas_2020_-_Barrio_Sur_-_Montevideo_-_Uruguay_200214-1020898-jikatu_%2849538521121%29.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:20.972Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/candombe"}
{"id":"d1a5af37-231a-4fcd-9c75-d924718e3e99","type":"art_form","slug":"capoeira","title":"capoeira","summary":"Capoeira (Portuguese pronunciation: [kapuˈe(j)ɾɐ]) is an Afro-Brazilian martial art and game that includes elements of dance, acrobatics, music, and spirituality.\nCapoeira has been practiced among Black Brazilians for centuries; scholars ha…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8arzyx347g","content":[{"text":"Capoeira (Portuguese pronunciation: [kapuˈe(j)ɾɐ]) is an Afro-Brazilian martial art and game that includes elements of dance, acrobatics, music, and spirituality.\nCapoeira has been practiced among Black Brazilians for centuries; scholars have identified roots in engolo, a traditional Bantu martial art practiced in Angola. Capoeira is first mentioned in an official document in 1789, as a criminal activity. In the 19th century, a street fighting style called capoeira carioca appeared; it was also criminalized. In the early 1930s, Mestre Bimba reformed traditional capoeira and developed the capoeira regional style, which established standardized teaching sequences. The government came to see capoeira as a socially acceptable sport, legalizing it in 1937 and promoting it as part of national culture. In 1941, Mestre Pastinha founded his school where he cultivated the traditional capoeira Angola, distinguishing it from reformed capoeira and the \"national sport\" approach. Both of these influential teachers came from the Bahia region of Brazil. Beginning in the 1960s, the Grupo Senzala became increasingly influential, practicing a particularly athleticized version of capoeira.\nIn the mid-20th century, capoeira became increasingly recognized outside Brazil. Women, who were previously marginalized in capoeira, began to participate much more often in the culture.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2d999531-45c0-495f-988a-b98e76ce56ad"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0vjy5pkk70","content":[{"text":"In police documents, capoeira was known as capoeiragem, with a practitioner being called capoeira. Gradually, the art became known as capoeira, with a practitioner being called a capoeirista. In a narrower sense, capoeiragem meant a set of fighting skills. The term jogo de capoeira (capoeira game) is used to describe the art in the performative context. Although debated, the most widely accepted origin of the word capoeira comes from the Tupi words ka'a (\"forest\") paũ (\"round\"), referring to small forested areas in the Brazilian interior where fugitive slaves would hide.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2d999531-45c0-495f-988a-b98e76ce56ad"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"18th and 19th centuries: Origins in Angola and transmission to Brazil","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"15pz872b1d","content":[{"text":"Capoeira first appeared among Africans in Brazil during the early colonial period. According to oral traditions preserved by old capoeira mestres and within the capoeira community, the art has historical connections to Angola. Although the exact origins of capoeira remain uncertain, some studies have suggested that engolo was one of the African traditions that may have influenced its development, with the Cunene region identified as one of the areas associated with the practice. Some authors argue that other African and Brazilian practices also contributed to the formation of capoeira, rather than a single ancestral tradition; Assunção identifies moraingy, a fighting style from Madagascar, as a possible precursor. Similarities between engolo and capoeira have been noted in movements such as crescent kicks, push kicks, sweeps, handstands, cartwheels, evasions, and techniques such as meia lua de compasso, scorpion kick, and cartwheel kick, although the extent of a direct historical connection remains debated. Some commentators, practitioners and historians emphasize the African origins of capoeira, while others draw attention to its development in the unique Brazilian context; capoeira did not develop independently in any African diasporic community outside Brazil.\nCapoeira was first mentioned in a judicial document under the name Capoeiragem in 1789, as \"the gravest of crimes\". At that time, slavery was an institution in Brazil; it was not abolished until 1888.The street capoeira practiced in 19th-century Rio de Janeiro was often associated with violent confrontations. This street-fighting capoeiragem incorporated different fighting elements, including foot kicks, headbutts, hand blows, knife fighting and stick-fighting.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2d999531-45c0-495f-988a-b98e76ce56ad"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"1900s and 1910s","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0re34yhpjr","content":[{"text":"Main proponents of this fighting-oriented capoeira were Mestre Sinhozinho and Mestre Zuma. In this period, capoeiristas usually carried knives and bladed weapons with them, or hid blades in unusual places such as umbrellas or the berimbau (a traditional musical instrument). When street capoeira was illegal in Brazil, capoeiristas and other outlawed groups like female prostitutes, street vendors, and Candomblé priestesses would benefit each other by setting up their rodas (capoeira circles) and stands near each other. The capoeiristas would bring business by buying food from the street vendors, while the women would keep a lookout for police, concealing the weapons of capoeira fighters. Although very few women took part in capoeira in this period, there is documented evidence that a small number of women were trained in it.\nIn 1909, capoeirista Ciríaco Francisco da Silva defeated Japanese jujutsu fighter Sada Miyako in one of the first documented examples of vale tudo (early mixed martial arts). Besouro Mangangá was a legendary capoeira fighter of the early 20th century; while there is only one historical record of his existence, his exploits are recounted in various songs and tales, such as his ability to transform into a beetle.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2d999531-45c0-495f-988a-b98e76ce56ad"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"1920s and 1930s","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hg9f4enrx6","content":[{"text":"In the 1920s, capoeira in Bahia faced repression from the cavalry squadron of police chief Pedro de Azevedo Gordilho; this led to a more harmless dance version of the art form. Partly as a response to this domestication, capoeira regional began to take form in the 1920s, when Mestre Bimba met his future student, José Cisnando Lima. Both believed that capoeira was losing its martial side and concluded there was a need to re-strengthen and structure it. Bimba created his sequências de ensino (teaching combinations) and created capoeira's first teaching method. Advised by Cisnando, Bimba decided to call his style Luta Regional Baiana, as capoeira was still illegal at that time.\nAlmeida contends that modern-day capoeira begins with Mestre Bimba's practice in the early 1930s. State repression of capoeira decreased after the military coup of Gétulio Vargas, who advocated a strategy of cultural populism. Mestre Bimba established a formal school in 1932, when the Bahia local government agreed to allow it; he developed capoeira regional, a reformed style including aspects of batuque, which he learned from his father, and instituting training sequences. There is controversy regarding the question of whether Mestre Bimba also borrowed from non-Brazilian styles, such as jujutsu and boxing. Mestre Bimba took part in many street fights and public matches, sometimes to establish his skills and sometimes for practical reasons; a news report of 1936 recounts that Mestre Bimba applied capoeira to defend himself and a young boy from police. Capoeira regional has a formal means of instruction and emphasizes fighting skills. Training focuses mainly on attack, dodging and counter-attack, giving high importance to precision and discipline.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2d999531-45c0-495f-988a-b98e76ce56ad"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"1940s","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"x0mnsev0d8","content":[{"text":"Modern capoeira is strongly associated with Bahia; in this region, there emerged a distinction between two traditions of practice, in the 1940s. Mestre Pastinha established his capoeira Angola style in 1941, distinguishing it from the \"national sport\" approach.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2d999531-45c0-495f-988a-b98e76ce56ad"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sgdsfebfrz","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Capoeira”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2d999531-45c0-495f-988a-b98e76ce56ad"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hstjxm8wj8","content":[{"text":"capoeira is Brazilian martial art that combines elements of dance fists kicks and music, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ff8b01ae-5ff1-40ca-83d9-6fba9da6bb15"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mav7hd4cmn","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 29 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ff8b01ae-5ff1-40ca-83d9-6fba9da6bb15"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-03T05:47:25.125Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/capoeira"}
{"id":"dcf84a6d-b115-4b83-9f6b-9323d0c9a293","type":"art_form","slug":"capoeira-angola","title":"Capoeira Angola","summary":"Capoeira Angola (also known as angola or jogo de angola) is a traditional style of capoeira, the Afro-Brazilian martial art.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7tc928p278","content":[{"text":"Capoeira Angola (also known as angola or jogo de angola) is a traditional style of capoeira, the Afro-Brazilian martial art. A newer style, developed through a reform of capoeira, is known as regional.\nThe term capoeira Angola can refer to both earlier forms of capoeira practiced before its 20th-century organization and the contemporary style developed and organized by Mestre Pastinha, who drew on older capoeira traditions.\nAlthough Mestre Pastinha sought to preserve earlier capoeira practices, he also introduced significant changes, including restrictions on weapons and lethal techniques, the adoption of uniforms, the transition of training from streets to academias, and the inclusion of women. For Mestre Pastinha, Capoeira Angola remained \"above all, fighting and violent fighting\".\nThe practice of capoeira Angola combines martial techniques with chants, music, and cultural traditions, while emphasizing elements associated with older forms of capoeira developed within Afro-Brazilian communities.\nSome practitioners and researchers have proposed connections between capoeira and the Angolan art of engolo, although the nature and extent of this relationship remain debated among scholars.\nCapoeira Angola played an important role in the preservation and revival of traditional capoeira music, rituals, and practices within the broader capoeira community.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4951f2c8-3814-4a02-bdf8-ef8a28d47229"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Name","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ys90a11vwb","content":[{"text":"The name Capoeira Angola reflects the historical association of the term with Angola and with enslaved Africans and their descendants in Brazil who were involved in the development and transmission of capoeira traditions.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4951f2c8-3814-4a02-bdf8-ef8a28d47229"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ha2ahkx12p","content":[{"text":"From its formation to the present day, capoeira has developed into different styles, each shaped by its own interpretations, practices, and interactions with local cultures. Today, these different approaches are represented by major traditions such as capoeira Angola, associated with Mestre Pastinha, and Capoeira Regional, associated with Mestre Bimba. Other less widespread approaches also developed, including Capoeira Utilitária, created by Mestre Zuma and Sinhozinho.\nCapoeira Angola differs from Mestre Bimba's Regional by emphasizing connections with older capoeira traditions and by combining elements of fighting, play, dance, and expression. It places particular importance on mandinga (strategy, deception, and skill in the game) and is often characterized by a lower style of play, with movements performed closer to the ground and with coordinated use of different parts of the body.\nThe practice of Capoeira Angola emphasizes play, ritual, and the preservation of traditions, often featuring slower, more grounded, and more theatrical movements. In the roda de Angola, different groups maintain their own styles and interpretations while sharing common principles associated with the practice.\nCapoeira Angola does not have a clearly defined date of creation or a single individual who can be considered its founder. However, Mestre Pastinha (Vicente Ferreira Pastinha, 1889–1981) is widely recognized as one of its most important figures. He promoted, organized, and helped establish Capoeira Angola as a recognized tradition, contributing to its preservation and public recognition.\nMestre Pastinha sought to preserve the characteristics he considered fundamental to Capoeira Angola while adapting its teaching and organization.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4951f2c8-3814-4a02-bdf8-ef8a28d47229"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"First capoeira Angola center","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"svm34ztybc","content":[{"text":"During the 1920s, Mestre Noronha, his brother Livino, and other capoeira Angola mestres were involved in the organization of capoeira groups in Salvador, Bahia, including the Centro de Capoeira Angola at Ladeira de Pedra, in the Liberdade neighbourhood.\nAccording to the manuscripts of Mestre Noronha, several capoeira mestres were associated with this group, including Noronha, Livino, Maré, Amorzinho, Raimundo ABR, Percílio, Geraldo Chapeleiro, Juvenal Engraxate, Geraldo Pé de Abelha, Zehi, Feliciano Bigode de Seda, Bonome, Henrique Cara Queimada, Onça Preta, Cimento, Algemiro Grande Olho de Pombo, Antonio Galindo, Antonio Boca de Porco, Candido Pequeno Argolinha de Ouro, Lúcio Pequeno, and Paquete do Cabula.\nThe colours of this centre were green and yellow, the colours of the Brazilian flag, and they were represented in the clothing worn by its disciples.\nThe group also maintained specific rules for capoeira Angola demonstrations:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4951f2c8-3814-4a02-bdf8-ef8a28d47229"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"r0zpgbtx72","content":[{"text":"The capoeirista who is defeated by a rasteira, a rabo de arraia, a joelhada, a balão boca de calças, or an escoramento de coxa is considered defeated. The adversary is considered beaten if he acknowledges his defeat immediately outside the demonstration. These are rules of capoeira Angola. The combat ring is 4 meters by 4, and there will be a capoeira Angola judge to evaluate which player is superior in attack.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4951f2c8-3814-4a02-bdf8-ef8a28d47229"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Reform and legalization of capoeira","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jk2r8aytdy","content":[{"text":"Since the early 20th century, many teachers tried to bring capoeira back into the legal framework. After several attempts to codify the street version of capoeira from Rio, mestre Bimba from Salvador reformed Bahian capoeira and codified it into regional style.\nIn early 1930s, Mestre Bimba developed systematic training method for capoeira, including kicks from other martial arts. He called it Luta Regional Baiana (regional Bahian fight), because capoeira was still illegal. In 1937, Bimba founded Centro de Cultura Física e Luta Regional, with permission from Salvador's Secretary of Education. His work was very well received, and he taught capoeira to the cultural elite of the city.\nBy 1940, capoeira finally lost its criminal connotation and was legalized.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4951f2c8-3814-4a02-bdf8-ef8a28d47229"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Pastinha's capoeira Angola center","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2smmp9a9m1","content":[{"text":"In response to a series of reforms, which changed capoeira considerably, Mestre Pastinha  decided to preserve and popularize the traditional African style known as capoeira de Angola, from which the reformers distanced themselves.\nIn 1941, old capoeira Angola mestres who ran the first capoeira Angola center recognized a capable person in Pastinha and entrusted him with managing the center in Liberdade. That year, he legally registered Centro Esportivo de Capoeira Angola (CECA), in the Salvador neighborhood of Pelourinho, which attracted many traditional capoeiristas. He made his mission to clearly separate capoeira Angola from the violence. Pastinha adopted the colors of his favorite soccer club, Ypiranga, yellow and black, which became the hallmarks of the Angola style he taught.\nDespite their significant differences, both mestres introduced major innovations – they moved training and rodas away from the street, instituted the academia, prescribed uniforms, started to teach women and presented capoeira to a broader audiences.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4951f2c8-3814-4a02-bdf8-ef8a28d47229"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c6emaahpay","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Capoeira Angola”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4951f2c8-3814-4a02-bdf8-ef8a28d47229"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2e1yc748sg","content":[{"text":"Capoeira Angola is variation of Capoeira, the Brazilian martial art, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9f52c9d0-c1fa-4039-806c-f865ba4a9966"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"q3ykrngf3b","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9f52c9d0-c1fa-4039-806c-f865ba4a9966"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Capoeira Angola Palmares","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b4/Capoeira_Angola_Palmares.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"TheTurducken","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Capoeira Angola Palmares","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b4/Capoeira_Angola_Palmares.jpg/960px-Capoeira_Angola_Palmares.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Capoeira_Angola_Palmares.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b4/Capoeira_Angola_Palmares.jpg/1280px-Capoeira_Angola_Palmares.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"},{"alt":"Capoeira Angola Palmares, tesoura","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a0/Capoeira_Angola_Palmares%2C_tesoura.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"TheTurducken","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Capoeira Angola Palmares, tesoura","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a0/Capoeira_Angola_Palmares%2C_tesoura.jpg/960px-Capoeira_Angola_Palmares%2C_tesoura.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Capoeira_Angola_Palmares,_tesoura.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a0/Capoeira_Angola_Palmares%2C_tesoura.jpg/1280px-Capoeira_Angola_Palmares%2C_tesoura.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"},{"alt":"“No ritmo de capoeira Angola”. June, 19th, 2016.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/32/Capoeira_Angola_instruments.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"virtual comandante","height":852,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"“No ritmo de capoeira Angola”. June, 19th, 2016.","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/32/Capoeira_Angola_instruments.jpg/960px-Capoeira_Angola_instruments.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Capoeira_Angola_instruments.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/32/Capoeira_Angola_instruments.jpg/1280px-Capoeira_Angola_instruments.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:23.581Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/capoeira-angola"}
{"id":"dcb49acc-d07e-468d-8cb1-14cd33ea8d17","type":"art_form","slug":"capoeira-regional","title":"capoeira regional","summary":"Capoeira Regional is a style of capoeira created by Bimba's reform of traditional capoeira in the 1930s.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ct7a777a2c","content":[{"text":"Capoeira Regional is a style of capoeira created by Bimba's reform of traditional capoeira in the 1930s. Capoeira regional is presented as a Brazilian product and as a legitimate and effective martial art.\nThe base of capoeira regional is the traditional capoeira Angola without many of the aspects that were impractical in a real fight. Training focuses mainly on attack, dodging and counter-attack, giving high importance to precision and discipline. Bimba also added various moves from other arts, notably the batuque, an old street fight game played by his father. \nThe traditions of roda and capoeira game were kept, being used to put into practice what was learned during training.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"adb0e932-1aec-486c-b067-c6a8d77c8298"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"j3nqbmeby0","content":[{"text":"Capoeira Regional began to take form in the 1920s, when Mestre Bimba met his future student, José Cisnando Lima. Both believed that capoeira was losing its martial side and it was concluded that there was a need to re-strengthen and structure it. Bimba created his sequências de ensino (teaching combinations) and created capoeira's first teaching method. Advised by Cisnando, Bimba decided to call his style Luta Regional Baiana, as capoeira was still illegal at that time.\nThe Luta Regional Baiana soon became popular, finally changing capoeira's bad image. Mestre Bimba made many presentations of his new style, but the best known was the one made at 1953 to Brazilian president Getúlio Vargas, where the president would say: \"A Capoeira é o único esporte verdadeiramente nacional\" (Capoeira is the only truly national sport).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"adb0e932-1aec-486c-b067-c6a8d77c8298"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Characteristics","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zmetv1gs4v","content":[{"text":"Capoeira Regional showcases rapid, acrobatic kicks, often appealing to younger participants. Most regional capoeira games are brief, lasting a maximum of two minutes before participants switch out.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"adb0e932-1aec-486c-b067-c6a8d77c8298"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Ranking","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tayhpx2yzd","content":[{"text":"Capoeira Regional also introduced the first ranking method in capoeira. Regional had three levels: calouro (freshman), formado (graduated) and formado especializado (specialist). After 1964, when a student completed a course, a special celebration ceremony occurred, ending with the teacher tying a silk scarf around the capoeirista's neck.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"adb0e932-1aec-486c-b067-c6a8d77c8298"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Literature","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"88jhzz4a10","content":[{"text":"Talmon-Chvaicer, Maya (2008). The Hidden History of Capoeira: A Collision of Cultures in the Brazilian Battle Dance. University of Texas Press. ISBN 978-0-292-71723-7.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"adb0e932-1aec-486c-b067-c6a8d77c8298"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"q149cv6zmm","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Capoeira Regional”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"adb0e932-1aec-486c-b067-c6a8d77c8298"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4nq0vxnz1m","content":[{"text":"capoeira regional is style of capoeira, the Afro-Brazilian martial art, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"34a3d2c2-91e1-4a14-aaeb-d911f24b46be"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cypfax213w","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"34a3d2c2-91e1-4a14-aaeb-d911f24b46be"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Capoeira Regional Roda at Mestre Omar at Baden / Aargau /Switzerland in June 2007","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4e/CapoeiraRegionalRoda.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"David Moerike","height":1024,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Capoeira Regional Roda at Mestre Omar at Baden / Aargau /Switzerland in June 2007","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4e/CapoeiraRegionalRoda.JPG/960px-CapoeiraRegionalRoda.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:CapoeiraRegionalRoda.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4e/CapoeiraRegionalRoda.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail_unscaled"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-03T05:48:14.504Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/capoeira-regional"}
{"id":"7ca18f17-c34f-487e-ada6-5318ebce3b96","type":"art_form","slug":"carinosa","title":"Cariñosa","summary":"The cariñosa (Spanish pronunciation: [kaɾiˈɲosa], meaning loving or affectionate) is a Philippine dance of colonial-era origin from the Maria Clara suite of Philippine folk dances, where the fan or handkerchief plays an instrumental role as…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"p3r0mmf3e2","content":[{"text":"The cariñosa (Spanish pronunciation: [kaɾiˈɲosa], meaning loving or affectionate) is a Philippine dance of colonial-era origin from the Maria Clara suite of Philippine folk dances, where the fan or handkerchief plays an instrumental role as it places the couple in a romance scenario.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6c674256-be01-469e-ae73-2415e3ee1ccb"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wgegdh3d8k","content":[{"text":"The cariñosa originated in Panay Island and was introduced by the Spaniards during their colonization of the Philippines. It is related to some of the Spanish dances, like the bolero and the Mexican dance, jarabe tapatio, or the Mexican hat dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6c674256-be01-469e-ae73-2415e3ee1ccb"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Bicolano cariñosa","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3h0rmd3snq","content":[{"text":"According to a book by Francisca Reyes-Aquino, Philippine Folk Dances, Volume 2, a different version of the cariñosa exist in the Bicol Region. Reyes-Aquino is a Filipino folk dancer and cultural researcher who discovered and documented Philippine traditional dances, one of which is the Cariñosa. In the Bicol Region’s cariñosa, the hide and seek movement is done in a different way. In contrast with the original, where the dancer performs it with a fan and a handkerchief, this version uses two handkerchiefs omitting the fan. The dancer holds the handkerchiefs by its corner, pointing their foot forward as they raise their arms with handkerchiefs in hands. It is a complicated step however it is still used in the Bicol Region during festivals and social gatherings.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6c674256-be01-469e-ae73-2415e3ee1ccb"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Costume","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"g76e13bn9n","content":[{"text":"Originally, the cariñosa was performed with María Clara gown and barong tagalog due to its Spanish origin. However, the patadyong kimona and camisa de chino may also be worn to reveal nationalism. (a native dress of the Tagalog regions), camisa (a white sleeve) or patadyong kimona (a dress of the Visayan people) and for males, a barong Tagalog and colored pants.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6c674256-be01-469e-ae73-2415e3ee1ccb"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Status as a Philippine national dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kyd7bs3rvr","content":[{"text":"The cariñosa is not considered to be an official national dance of the Philippines, as no law has designated them as such. In 2014, House Representative Rene Relampagos introduced a bill in the House of Representatives to grant the cariñosa such a status, which did not become law.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6c674256-be01-469e-ae73-2415e3ee1ccb"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0q2q2b8hmj","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Cariñosa”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6c674256-be01-469e-ae73-2415e3ee1ccb"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kx16b0mgnc","content":[{"text":"Cariñosa is Philippine Traditional Folk Dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"05e5ee62-3dee-46fd-ad8b-782de7f6a852"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t82csvhnsb","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"05e5ee62-3dee-46fd-ad8b-782de7f6a852"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"(This photo was taken in the Philippine National Museum) MANUEL RODRIGUEZ, SR. (1912, Cebu City- 2017, Florida USA) Cariñosa (A/P) 1962, Manila Lithograph on paper National Fine Arts Collection","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/28/Cari%C3%B1osa_A._P._details.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"WishywizPH","height":1707,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"(This photo was taken in the Philippine National Museum) MANUEL RODRIGUEZ, SR. (1912, Cebu City- 2017, Florida USA) Cariñosa (A/P) 1962, Manila Lithograph on paper National Fine Arts Collection","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/28/Cari%C3%B1osa_A._P._details.jpg/960px-Cari%C3%B1osa_A._P._details.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cari%C3%B1osa_A._P._details.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/28/Cari%C3%B1osa_A._P._details.jpg/1280px-Cari%C3%B1osa_A._P._details.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-07T05:47:29.431Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/carinosa"}
{"id":"5f88b5a5-5854-468e-aaba-685598687827","type":"art_form","slug":"castle-walk","title":"Castle Walk","summary":"Castle Walk is a dance originated and made famous by Vernon and Irene Castle. The moniker was coined from the Castle's signature dance step styling, and their touring stage show of 1913 led with this as their signature.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"atfbb49act","content":[{"text":"Castle Walk is a dance originated and made famous by Vernon and Irene Castle. The moniker was coined from the Castle's signature dance step styling, and their touring stage show of 1913 led with this as their signature. The Castle Walk became popular through its introduction into the Tango. \"Castle Walk\" is also a popular American song composed for Vernon and Irene Castle by James Reese Europe (1880–1919) and Ford Thompson Dabney (1883–1958). It was first recorded in 1914, commissioned by the Castles to accompany and provide music for their social dancing programs, having been one of these resulting pieces. Though many dance accompaniments of the time are syncopated rhythms, Castle Walk in particular carries syncopation in half-measure.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ad6284f0-7a41-4119-8b38-bb6d5a10a4f2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"The dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"34gmae3rx6","content":[{"text":"In this dance, the man (the leader) continually goes forward and the lady (the follower) backward. In order that the lady may be properly guided about the room, the man's arm encircles her right under her arm, while her left hand rests on the man's right arm. The position of the lady's right arm and the man's left arm is high, with their hands clasped, as portrayed in the illustration.\nThe man starts forward with his left foot and the lady backward with her right, walking with gliding steps, keeping on the toes to one count of the music with each step. This is continued to the end of the room, where a large circle is begun, which is gradually made smaller and smaller, until it is ended by whirling completely around three times to corresponding counts of the music, ending with a dip. The three whirls must be done rapidly to accomplish a complete revolution to one beat of the music.\nThe Castle Walk may be varied by describing the figure eight or zig-zag instead of the large circle in the steps taken.\nTroy Kinney describes the Castle Walk as part of One-Step as follows:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ad6284f0-7a41-4119-8b38-bb6d5a10a4f2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yhvfr9mp3r","content":[{"text":"This is a walking step of direct advance and retreat, not used to move to the side. The couple are in closed position, the woman, therefore, stepping backward as the man steps forward, and vice versa. The advancing foot is planted in fourth position, the knee straight, the toe down so that the ball of the foot strikes the floor first. The walk presents an appearance of strutting, although the shoulders are held level, and the body firm; a sharp twist that punctuates each step is effected by means of pivoting on the supporting foot. The shoulder and hip movements that originally characterized the \"trot\" are no longer practiced in the dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ad6284f0-7a41-4119-8b38-bb6d5a10a4f2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"The song","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"66nx1hz8d5","content":[{"text":"\"The Castle Walk,\" trot and one-step, Jos. W. Stern & Co., publisher (Joseph W. Stern; 1870–1934) (©1914); OCLC 10728633","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ad6284f0-7a41-4119-8b38-bb6d5a10a4f2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Early discography","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qghkrzjq1v","content":[{"text":"\"Castle Walk,\" Europe's Society Orchestra, Victor, Matrix: B-14434, recorded February 10, 1914, New York\nMusicians:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ad6284f0-7a41-4119-8b38-bb6d5a10a4f2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"stpdwjp19t","content":[{"text":"\"Castle Walk,\" Prince's Band, Columbia, Matrix: 36930, catalog no. A5562, recorded April 15, 1914, New York","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ad6284f0-7a41-4119-8b38-bb6d5a10a4f2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qcwefcbby0","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Castle Walk”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ad6284f0-7a41-4119-8b38-bb6d5a10a4f2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0tdvgq0fma","content":[{"text":"Castle Walk is American dance and song written for Vernon and Irene Castle, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f89e6eff-8cf4-45be-a90e-b1d70b04fde3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m47xc7pd6k","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f89e6eff-8cf4-45be-a90e-b1d70b04fde3"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Wall, Castle Hill Walk","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/88/Wall%2C_Castle_Hill_Walk_-_geograph.org.uk_-_6769928.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Adrian Taylor","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Wall, Castle Hill Walk","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/88/Wall%2C_Castle_Hill_Walk_-_geograph.org.uk_-_6769928.jpg/960px-Wall%2C_Castle_Hill_Walk_-_geograph.org.uk_-_6769928.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Wall,_Castle_Hill_Walk_-_geograph.org.uk_-_6769928.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/88/Wall%2C_Castle_Hill_Walk_-_geograph.org.uk_-_6769928.jpg/1280px-Wall%2C_Castle_Hill_Walk_-_geograph.org.uk_-_6769928.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"},{"alt":"Castle Walk Bed & Breakfast","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a2/Castle_Walk_Bed_%26_Breakfast.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Kirsty S. Ross","height":590,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Castle Walk Bed & Breakfast","licence":"CC BY 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a2/Castle_Walk_Bed_%26_Breakfast.jpg/960px-Castle_Walk_Bed_%26_Breakfast.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Castle_Walk_Bed_%26_Breakfast.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a2/Castle_Walk_Bed_%26_Breakfast.jpg/1280px-Castle_Walk_Bed_%26_Breakfast.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0"},{"alt":"Castle Walk, Swale River and Richmond Bridge, Richmond, North Yorkshire","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/17/2014_Richmond_Castle_Walk_and_Swale.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Kreuzschnabel","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Castle Walk, Swale River and Richmond Bridge, Richmond, North Yorkshire","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/17/2014_Richmond_Castle_Walk_and_Swale.jpg/960px-2014_Richmond_Castle_Walk_and_Swale.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:2014_Richmond_Castle_Walk_and_Swale.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/17/2014_Richmond_Castle_Walk_and_Swale.jpg/1280px-2014_Richmond_Castle_Walk_and_Swale.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:11.268Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/castle-walk"}
{"id":"4a693712-b053-45fa-8041-b17bcd0c4145","type":"art_form","slug":"ceilidh","title":"céilidh","summary":"A cèilidh ( KAY-lee, anglicised to \"ceilidh\",  Scottish Gaelic: [ˈkʲʰeːlɪ]) or céilí (Irish: [ˈceːlʲiː]) is a traditional Scottish and Irish social gathering. In its most basic form, it simply means a social visit.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"se1pq7m3bg","content":[{"text":"A cèilidh ( KAY-lee, anglicised to \"ceilidh\",  Scottish Gaelic: [ˈkʲʰeːlɪ]) or céilí (Irish: [ˈceːlʲiː]) is a traditional Scottish and Irish social gathering. In its most basic form, it simply means a social visit. In contemporary usage, it usually involves dancing and playing Gaelic folk music, either at a home or a larger concert at a social hall or other community gathering place.\nCèilidhean (plural of cèilidh) and céilithe (plural of céilí) originated in the Gaelic areas of Scotland and Ireland and are consequently common in the Scottish and Irish diasporas. They are similar to the troyl traditions in Cornwall and twmpath and noson lawen events in Wales, merry neets in Cumbria and North East England, as well as English country dance throughout England which have in some areas undergone a fusion with céilithe.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7033e1cf-7747-499b-a896-1ca4fb782312"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hnwzv45q9w","content":[{"text":"The term is derived from the Old Irish céle (singular) meaning 'companion'. It later became céilidh and céilidhe, which means 'visit' in Gaelic. In Scottish Gaelic reformed spelling it is spelt cèilidh (plural cèilidhean) and in Irish reformed spelling as céilí (plural céilithe).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7033e1cf-7747-499b-a896-1ca4fb782312"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"379j6p6ck6","content":[{"text":"Originally, a cèilidh was a social gathering of any sort, and did not necessarily involve dancing:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7033e1cf-7747-499b-a896-1ca4fb782312"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"d68vx7kwew","content":[{"text":"The 'ceilidh' is a literary entertainment where stories and tales, poems and ballads, are rehearsed and recited, and songs are sung, conundrums are put, proverbs are quoted, and many other literary matters are related and discussed","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7033e1cf-7747-499b-a896-1ca4fb782312"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7c1zyefq1v","content":[{"text":"The ceilidh of the Western Hebrides corresponds to the veillée of Lower Brittany ... and to similar story-telling festivals which formerly flourished among all the Celtic peoples","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7033e1cf-7747-499b-a896-1ca4fb782312"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tynd0wqd18","content":[{"text":"On long, dark winter nights it is still the custom in small villages for friends to collect in a house and hold what they call a \"ceilidh\" (pronounced kay'lee). Young and old are entertained by the reciters of old poems and legendary stories which deal with ancient beliefs, the doings of traditional heroes and heroines, and so on. Some sing old and new songs set to old music or new music composed in the manner of the old.\nIn recent decades, the dancing portion of the event has usurped the older meanings of the term, though the tradition of guests performing music, songs, storytelling, and poetry still persists in some areas.\nCéilithe/Cèilidhean were originally hosted by a fear-an-tigh (or, in contemporary Scottish Gaelic orthography, fear-an-taighe), meaning 'man of the house'. The Scottish Gaelic feminine and gender-neutral equivalents are bean-an-taighe (woman of the house) and duine-an-taighe (person of the house), respectively. The use of these or similar terms is still the form in much of Ireland and Hebridean Scotland, and at gatherings elsewhere at which either Irish or Scottish Gaelic is the predominant social language. In modern events at which English predominates, the host is usually instead referred to as simply the \"host\" or \"master of ceremonies\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7033e1cf-7747-499b-a896-1ca4fb782312"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Modern cèilidhean","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gsvse3hnwp","content":[{"text":"The cèilidh facilitated courting and prospects of marriage for young people and, although discos and nightclubs have displaced the cèilidh to a considerable extent, such events are still an important and popular social outlet in rural parts of Scotland and Ireland, especially in the Gaelic-speaking regions. Cèilidhean are sometimes held on a smaller scale in private or public houses, for example in remote rural areas and during busy festivals.\nIt is common for some clubs and institutions such as sports clubs, schools and universities and even employers to arrange cèilidhs on a regular—or at least annual—basis. The formality of these can vary. Some mix modern pop music with a Scottish country dancing band and dress codes range from compulsory highland dress to informal. Knowledge and use of the basic dance steps is not always strictly necessary, and dances often alternate with songs, poetry recitals, storytelling and other types of \"party pieces\".\nCèilidh music may be provided by an assortment of instruments including fiddle, flute, tin whistle, accordion, bodhrán (frame-drum), hammered dulcimer, and in more recent times also drums, guitar, mandolin, bouzouki, Scottish smallpipes, and electric bass guitar. The music is cheerful and lively, consisting in Ireland mainly of jigs, reels, hornpipes, polkas, slip-jigs, and waltzes, with Scotland adding strathspeys, and England adding regional forms such as the northeastern rant. The basic steps can be learned easily; a short instructional session is often provided for new dancers before the start of the dance itself.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7033e1cf-7747-499b-a896-1ca4fb782312"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"In Scotland","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rvp2x472ch","content":[{"text":"Privately organised cèilidhean in the 2020s are extremely common in both rural and urban Scotland, where bands are hired, usually for evening entertainment for a wedding, birthday party, celebratory or fundraising event. These may be more or less formal, and very often omit all other traditional Gaelic activity beyond the actual music and dancing. Novices are usually among the participants, so a \"dance caller\" may teach the steps before music begins for each dance. The more versatile bands will demonstrate the dances too. Scottish primary schools frequently teach some Scottish country dancing, often around Christmas time. Bands vary in size but are commonly made up of between two and six players. The appeal of the Scottish cèilidh is by no means limited to the younger generation, and dances vary in speed and complexity to accommodate most age groups and levels of ability. Most private schools in Scotland will also hold cèilidhean on a fairly regular basis.\nPublic cèilidhean are also held, attracting paying participants, often held at dance clubs; and the annual Ceilidh Culture festival in Edinburgh.\nUniversities in Scotland hold regular cèilidhean, with the University of Edinburgh providing a number for students throughout each term, especially the long-running Highland Annual, the oldest cèilidh in Edinburgh and the largest in Scotland, organised by the Highland Society (An Comann Ceilteach). Glasgow University Union's annual debating competition, Glasgow Ancients, traditionally ends the night with a cèilidh. The union's Christmas event, Daft Friday, also involves a cèilidh.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7033e1cf-7747-499b-a896-1ca4fb782312"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"In Ireland","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2k9dv8gkyf","content":[{"text":"Céilí dances (, Irish: [ˈceːlʲiː]) or true céilí dances (fíor céilí) are a popular form of folk dancing in Ireland and are part of the broader Irish dances. The Irish céilí dances are based on heys (\"hedges\", or pairs of facing lines), round dances, long dances, and quadrilles, generally revived during the Gaelic revival in the first quarter of the twentieth century and codified by the Irish Dancing Commission. There are about thirty dances that form the basis for examination of céilí dance teachers. Irish céilí is a participatory social event attended by both men and women and accompanied by live Irish traditional music. The dance emerged within cultural nationalist consciousness as during the late 19th and early 20th century traditions promoting nationalist agendas, and national identities were regarded as not culturally unified.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7033e1cf-7747-499b-a896-1ca4fb782312"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"r20rdm1sc5","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Cèilidh”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7033e1cf-7747-499b-a896-1ca4fb782312"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"q470bn37fv","content":[{"text":"céilidh is traditional Scottish or Irish social gathering, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3c70601b-0824-4595-9038-dc2226975bc8"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ez4kqfhxst","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 4 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3c70601b-0824-4595-9038-dc2226975bc8"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Cafe du midi awning over colorful street scene","src":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1784386294594-268784873378?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8YyVDMyVBOWlsaWRofGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgxMTYzODF8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1080","kind":"photo","width":3259,"credit":"T","height":2185,"source":"unsplash","depicts":"Cafe du midi awning over colorful street scene","licence":"Unsplash License","thumb640":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1784386294594-268784873378?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8YyVDMyVBOWlsaWRofGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgxMTYzODF8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=640","sourceUrl":"https://unsplash.com/photos/cafe-du-midi-awning-over-colorful-street-scene-NxxmkFmDHjU?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral","thumb1280":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1784386294594-268784873378?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8YyVDMyVBOWlsaWRofGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgxMTYzODF8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1280","attributionUrl":"https://unsplash.com/@tanyabarrow?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-04T05:47:21.583Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/ceilidh"}
{"id":"2ae06168-3a7f-47a8-880b-2bc4a0fc8f65","type":"art_form","slug":"ceremonial-dance","title":"ceremonial dance","summary":"Sacred dance is the use of dance in religious ceremonies and rituals, present in most religions throughout history and prehistory.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7yky2w8yhx","content":[{"text":"Sacred dance is the use of dance in religious ceremonies and rituals, present in most religions throughout history and prehistory. Its connection with the human body and fertility has caused it to be forbidden by some religions; for example, some branches of Christianity and Islam have prohibited dancing. Dance has formed a major element of worship in Hindu temples, with strictly formalized styles such as Bharatanatyam, which require skilled dancers and temple musicians. In the 20th century, sacred dance has been revived by choreographers such as Bernhard Wosien as a means of developing community spirit.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9476e038-1b7d-4f5f-934c-0ae812881a08"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Purposes","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"txjsrqzj4b","content":[{"text":"The theologian W. O. E. Oesterley proposed in 1923 that sacred dance had several purposes, the most important being to honour supernatural powers; the other purposes were to \"show off\" before the powers; to unite the dancer with a supernatural power, as in the dances for the Greek goddesses Demeter and Persephone; making the body suitable as a temporary dwelling-place for the deity, by dancing ecstatically to unconsciousness; making crops grow, or helping or encouraging the deity to make them grow, as with Ariadne's Dance as described in the Iliad; consecrating a victim for sacrifice (as with the Israelites circling the altar, or the Sarawak Kayans circling a sacrificial pig); paying homage to the deity present for an initiation ceremony; helping warriors to victory in battle, and appeasing the spirits of the enemy killed in battle; averting the dangers associated with marriage, at a wedding ceremony; and at a funeral or mourning ceremony, purposes such as driving away the malevolent ghost of the dead person, or preventing the ghost from leaving the grave, or frightening off any evil spirits attracted by the corpse, or temporarily and invisibly bringing the dead person back to join in the dance, or simply honouring the dead person.\nThe dancer and scholar Harriet Lihs in 2009 divided religious dance into dances of imitation, such as of animals thought to be spirit messengers, or of battles; \"medicine dances\", i.e.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9476e038-1b7d-4f5f-934c-0ae812881a08"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"In ancient times","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fknk7kj7d3","content":[{"text":"Indigenous ceremonial dance rituals around the world appear to preserve forms that were widespread in ancient times. For example, processionals and circle dances seen in indigenous dance today were used in ancient Egypt and among the Hebrews. In ancient Egypt, dancers impersonated a deity such as the goddess Hathor, taking on the deity's attributes and interpreting the divine world for those watching.\nIn ancient Israel, the Hebrew Bible mentions dancing during religious worship. The prophet Miriam led dancing following the crossing of the Red Sea during the Exodus. During the return of the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem, King David danced \"before the Lord with all his might\". Dancing is mentioned as something familiar, implying it was a common practice. Sacred dance is described in the Bible by verbs meaning dancing, rotating, jumping, skipping, and whirling. The dance was accompanied by hand-drums (tambourines), cymbals, flutes, pipes, lyres, harps, and lutes.\nThe Hittites are shown in a sacred processional dance in a c. 1200 BCrock inscription at the sanctuary of Yazılıkaya, near their city of Hattusa, in Cappadocia.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9476e038-1b7d-4f5f-934c-0ae812881a08"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Judaism","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gffj6vf1db","content":[{"text":"Judaism observes the festival of Simchat Torah, which includes dancing in synagogues.\nThe Hasidic movement, which dates from the 18th century, practices dancing in a religious context.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9476e038-1b7d-4f5f-934c-0ae812881a08"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Christianity","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bh0t9w6szt","content":[{"text":"Some Christian traditions make use of liturgical or worship dance, but it has long been controversial within the church. It has been supported, sometimes fervently, by both priests and Christian scholars; and opposed, sometimes stridently, by others who for example wrote some 157 tracts against dance between 1685 and 1963. The early church was largely in favour of dance, with the eminent Church Father Augustine arguing that Christian dance ought to be orderly according to a reasoned rhythm, in harmony with the Jewish tradition, but in contrast to ecstatic Greco-Roman dance. A typical early Christian dance is the 2nd century AD circle dance in the Acts of John which states that \"Grace danceth. I would pipe: dance ye all. The whole world on high hath part in our dancing.\" Circle dance is used, in its more meditative form, in worship within religious traditions including the Church of England. In northern Greece and southern Bulgaria, in the annual celebrations for Saint Constantine and Saint Helen, dancers perform the Anastenaria, a fire-walking ritual, as the climax of three days of processions, music, dancing, and animal sacrifice.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9476e038-1b7d-4f5f-934c-0ae812881a08"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Hinduism","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fdnbbbzrzf","content":[{"text":"Indian classical dances such as Bharatanatyam, Kathak, Odissi, and Mohiniattam can be traced to the Sanskrit text Natya Shastra. They are a traditional drama-dance expression of religion, related to Vaishnavism, Shaivism, Shaktism, pan-Hindu epics and the Vedic literature. As a religious art, they are either performed inside the sanctum of a Hindu temple, or near it.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9476e038-1b7d-4f5f-934c-0ae812881a08"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"n6gkf492b5","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Sacred dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9476e038-1b7d-4f5f-934c-0ae812881a08"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8k2t0gg85r","content":[{"text":"ceremonial dance is major category or classification of dance forms or dance styles, where the purpose is ceremonial or ritualistic, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a3b7e2d6-f542-4cf2-a196-8944d4be4a67"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m1yang9r83","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 4 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a3b7e2d6-f542-4cf2-a196-8944d4be4a67"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"A pair of dancers in the Agwata, a traditional ceremonial dance from the Acholi tribe in Uganda","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/87/A_pair_of_dancers_in_the_Agwata%2C_a_traditional_ceremonial_dance_from_the_Acholi_tribe_in_Uganda.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Owobusingye","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"A pair of dancers in the Agwata, a traditional ceremonial dance from the Acholi tribe in Uganda","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/A_pair_of_dancers_in_the_Agwata%2C_a_traditional_ceremonial_dance_from_the_Acholi_tribe_in_Uganda.jpg/960px-A_pair_of_dancers_in_the_Agwata%2C_a_traditional_ceremonial_dance_from_the_Acholi_tribe_in_Uganda.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:A_pair_of_dancers_in_the_Agwata,_a_traditional_ceremonial_dance_from_the_Acholi_tribe_in_Uganda.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/A_pair_of_dancers_in_the_Agwata%2C_a_traditional_ceremonial_dance_from_the_Acholi_tribe_in_Uganda.jpg/1280px-A_pair_of_dancers_in_the_Agwata%2C_a_traditional_ceremonial_dance_from_the_Acholi_tribe_in_Uganda.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:04.434Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/ceremonial-dance"}
{"id":"42982cad-1007-4f78-95ae-052f9e6457fc","type":"art_form","slug":"cha-cha-cha","title":"cha-cha-cha","summary":"The cha-cha-chá (also called cha-cha) is a dance of Cuban origin. It is danced to cha-cha-chá music introduced by the Cuban composer and violinist Enrique Jorrin in the early 1950s. This rhythm was developed from the danzón-mambo.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mytx1c4sxz","content":[{"text":"The cha-cha-chá (also called cha-cha) is a dance of Cuban origin. It is danced to cha-cha-chá music introduced by the Cuban composer and violinist Enrique Jorrin in the early 1950s. This rhythm was developed from the danzón-mambo. The name of the dance is an onomatopoeia derived from the shuffling sound of the dancers' feet when they dance two consecutive quick steps that characterize the dance.\nIn the early 1950s, Enrique Jorrín worked as a violinist and composer with the charanga group Orquesta América. The group performed at dance halls in Havana where they played danzón, danzonete, and danzon-mambo for dance-oriented crowds. Jorrín noticed that many of the dancers at these gigs had difficulty with the syncopated rhythms of the danzón-mambo. To make his music more appealing to dancers, Jorrín began composing songs where the melody was marked strongly on the first downbeat and the rhythm was less syncopated. When Orquesta América performed these new compositions at the Silver Star Club in Havana, many dancers improvised a triple step in their footwork, which produced the sound \"cha-cha-chá\". This new style came to be known as \"cha-cha-chá\".\nThe basic footwork pattern of cha-cha-chá (one, two, three, cha-cha-one, two, three) is also found in several Afro-Cuban dances from the Santería religion. For example, one of the steps used in the dance practiced by the Orisha Ogun religion features an identical pattern of footwork.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e8445f6e-a306-4386-a1e2-a688e289ec3a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Description","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wt70bsh4t0","content":[{"text":"Cha-cha-cha is usually danced to authentic Cuban music, although in ballroom competitions it is also danced to modern day Latin pop or Latin rock, or even non-Latin popular music. The music for the international ballroom cha-cha-cha is energetic and with a steady beat. The music may involve complex polyrhythms.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e8445f6e-a306-4386-a1e2-a688e289ec3a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0fmepq9860","content":[{"text":"Styles of cha-cha-cha dance may differ in the place of the chassé in the rhythmical structure. The original Cuban and the ballroom cha-cha-cha count is \"one, two, three, cha-cha\", or \"one, two, three, four-and.\"  An incorrect \"street version\" comes about because many social dancers count \"one, two, cha-cha-cha\" and thus shift the timing of the dance by a full beat of music.  Note that the dance known as Salsa is the result of a similar timing shift of Mambo.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e8445f6e-a306-4386-a1e2-a688e289ec3a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Pattern","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bpcqs0h7yh","content":[{"text":"In the international style of ballroom dance, the basic pattern involves the lead taking a checked forward step with the left foot, retaining some weight on the right foot. The knee of the right leg must stay bent and close to the back of the left knee, the left leg having straightened just prior to receiving part weight. This step is taken on the second beat of the bar. Full weight is returned to the right leg on the second step (beat three).\nThe fourth beat is split in two so the count of the next three steps is 4-and-1. These three steps constitute the cha-cha chassé. A step to the side is taken with the left foot, the right foot is half closed towards the left foot (typically leaving both feet under the hips or perhaps closed together), and finally there is a last step to the left with the left foot. The length of the steps in the chassé depends very much on the effect the dancer is attempting to make.\nThe partner takes a step back on the right foot, the knee being straightened as full weight is taken. The other leg is allowed to remain straight. It is possible it will shoot slightly but no deliberate flexing of the free leg is attempted. This is quite different from technique associated with salsa, for instance. On the next beat (beat three) weight is returned to the left leg. Then a chassé is danced RLR.\nEach partner is now in a position to dance the bar their partner just danced. Hence the fundamental construction of cha-cha-cha extends over two bars.\nThe checked first step is a later development in the \"international cha-cha-cha\" style. Because of the action used during the forward step (the one taking only part weight) the basic pattern turns left, whereas in earlier times cha-cha-cha was danced without rotation of the alignment.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e8445f6e-a306-4386-a1e2-a688e289ec3a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Hip movement","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8s07y78hjm","content":[{"text":"In traditional American Rhythm style, Latin hip movement is achieved through the alternate bending and straightening action of the knees, though in modern competitive dancing, the technique is virtually identical to the \"international Latin\" style.\nIn the international Latin style, the weighted leg is almost always straight. The free leg will bend, allowing the hips to naturally settle into the direction of the weighted leg. As a step is taken, a free leg will straighten the instant before it receives weight. It should then remain straight until it is completely free of weight again.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e8445f6e-a306-4386-a1e2-a688e289ec3a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"International Latin style cha-cha-cha","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"v6nmffyfpk","content":[{"text":"Cha-cha-cha is one of the five dances of the \"Latin American\" program of international ballroom competitions.\nAs described above, the basis of the modern dance was laid down in the 1950s by Pierre and Lavelle and developed in the 1960s by Walter Laird and other top competitors of the time. The basic steps taught to learners today are based on these accounts.\nIn general, steps are kept compact and the dance is danced generally without any rise and fall; this is the modern ballroom technique of cha-cha-cha (and other Latin dances).\nFor international ballroom competitions, the World Dance Council requires the cha-cha-cha music to be played at a tempo of 30 bars per minute, the World DanceSport Federation requires 30-32 bars per minute.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e8445f6e-a306-4386-a1e2-a688e289ec3a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"227qn8dm9x","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Cha-cha-cha (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e8445f6e-a306-4386-a1e2-a688e289ec3a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"g2ej3ped21","content":[{"text":"cha-cha-cha is dance of Cuban origin, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3887a306-0881-45ab-bcb9-89d982178ad3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wqtnak66yg","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 23 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3887a306-0881-45ab-bcb9-89d982178ad3"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:06.845Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/cha-cha-cha"}
{"id":"f9140fbf-f043-42b8-a5ce-0c70a4cbd426","type":"art_form","slug":"chaconne","title":"chaconne","summary":"A chaconne ( shə-KON, French: [ʃakɔn]; Spanish: chacona [tʃaˈkona]; Italian: ciaccona [tʃakˈkoːna]; earlier English: chacony) is a type of musical composition often used as a vehicle for variation on a repeated short harmonic progression, o…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"990tqakwce","content":[{"text":"A chaconne ( shə-KON, French: [ʃakɔn]; Spanish: chacona [tʃaˈkona]; Italian: ciaccona [tʃakˈkoːna]; earlier English: chacony) is a type of musical composition often used as a vehicle for variation on a repeated short harmonic progression, often involving a fairly short repetitive bass-line (ground bass) which offers a compositional outline for variation, decoration, figuration and melodic invention. In this it closely resembles the passacaglia. It originates and was particularly popular in the Baroque era; a large number of Chaconnes exist from the 17th and 18th centuries.\nThe ground bass, if there is one, may typically descend stepwise from the tonic to the dominant pitch of the scale; the harmonies given to the upper parts may emphasize the circle of fifths or a derivative pattern thereof.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7b286624-304b-4da2-9fce-5798c7f3754d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qqd9rn0e8y","content":[{"text":"Though it originally emerged during the late sixteenth century in Spanish culture, having reputedly been introduced from the New World, as a quick dance-song characterized by suggestive movements and mocking texts,  the chaconne by the early eighteenth century had evolved into a slow triple meter instrumental form.\nAlex Ross describes the origins of the chacona as actually having been a sexily swirling dance that appeared in South America at the end of the sixteenth century and quickly spread to Europe. The dance became popular both in the elite courts and in the general population. \"Un sarao de la chacona\" is one of the earliest known examples of a \"chacona\", written down by Spanish musician Juan Arañés.\nOutstanding examples of early baroque chaconnes are Monteverdi's \"Zefiro torna\" and \"Es steh Gott auf\" by Heinrich Schütz.\nOne of the best known and most masterful and expressive examples of the chaconne is the final movement from the Violin Partita in D minor by Johann Sebastian Bach. This 256-measure chaconne takes a plaintive four-bar phrase through a continuous kaleidoscope of musical expression in both major and minor modes.  However, recently it has been proposed that Bach's \"Ciaccona\" (he used the Italian form of the name, rather than the French \"Chaconne\") is really cast in the form of a French theatrical dance known as the \"passacaille\", although it also incorporates Italian and German style features as well.\nAfter the Baroque period, the chaconne fell into decline during the 19th century, though Beethoven's 32 Variations in C minor suggest its continuing influence. However, the form saw a very substantial revival during the 20th century, with more than two dozen composers contributing examples (see below).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7b286624-304b-4da2-9fce-5798c7f3754d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Chaconne and passacaglia","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s1pgfsn5x9","content":[{"text":"The chaconne has been understood by some nineteenth and early twentieth-century theorists to be a set of variations on a harmonic progression, as opposed to a set of variations on a melodic bass pattern (to which is assigned the term passacaglia), while other theorists of the same period make the distinction the other way around. In actual usage in music history, the term \"chaconne\" has not been so clearly distinguished from passacaglia as regards the way the given piece of music is constructed, and \"modern attempts to arrive at a clear distinction are arbitrary and historically unfounded.\" In fact, the two genres were sometimes combined in a single composition, as in the Cento partite sopra passacagli, from Toccate d’intavolatura di cimbalo et organo, partite di diverse arie ... (1637), by Girolamo Frescobaldi, and the first suite of Les Nations (1726) as well as in the Pièces de Violes (1728) by François Couperin.\nFrescobaldi, who was probably the first composer to treat the chaconne and passacaglia comparatively, usually (but not always) sets the former in major key, with two compound triple-beat groups per variation, giving his chaconne a more propulsive forward motion than his passacaglia, which usually has four simple triple-beat groups per variation. Both are usually in triple meter, begin on the second beat of the bar, and have a theme of four measures (or a close multiple thereof). (In more recent times the chaconne, like the passacaglia, need not be in 34 time; see, for instance, Francesco Tristano Schlimé's Chaconne/Ground Bass, where every section is built on seven-beats patterns)","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7b286624-304b-4da2-9fce-5798c7f3754d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"17th century","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4frg6cpydj","content":[{"text":"Antonio Bertali (1605–1669): Ciaccona in C major for violin and continuo (undated)\nHeinrich Ignaz Franz Biber (1644–1704): Ciacona in D major for violin and basso continuo (undated); another in the Partita no. 3 in A major for seven string instruments, from Harmonia artificioso-ariosa (written 1696)\nDieterich Buxtehude (c. 1638–1707): Prelude, fugue, and chaconne in C Major (BuxWV 137), chaconne in C minor (BuxWV 159), and chaconne in E minor (BuxWV 160); all for organ (probably 1690s)\nFrancesca Caccini (1587 – c.1641): Ciaccona\nMaurizio Cazzati (1616–1678): Ciaccona a tre con il suo balletto for two violins and violone, from Correnti, balletti, galiarde a 3 è 4 (1659)\nMarc-Antoine Charpentier (1643–1704): Chaconne from the opera Les arts florissants (1685); another from the opera David et Jonathas (1688); another from the opera Médée (1694)\nArcangelo Corelli (1653–1713): Chaconne in G major in the Sonata op. 2, no. 12, from the Sonate da camera a tre: doi violini, e violone o cembalo (1685)\nGirolamo Frescobaldi (1583–1643): Four ciaccone (in F major, A minor, G major, A minor again) for harpsichord from Toccate d’intavolatura di cimbalo et organo, partite di diverse arie . . . (1637)\nJean-Nicolas Geoffroy (1633–1694):  Eighteen chaconnes for harpsichord, all unpublished in the composer's lifetime, perhaps the most chaconnes written by any known 17th-, 18th-, or 19th-century composer\nJean-Baptiste Lully (1632–1687): Chaconne from the opera Phaëton (1683); another from the opera Roland (1685); another from the opera Acis et Galatée (1686)\nMarin Marais (1656–1728): Chaconne in G major for two violas da gamba and continuo, no.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7b286624-304b-4da2-9fce-5798c7f3754d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"18th century","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dyje34rstn","content":[{"text":"Johann Sebastian Bach (1685–1750): Chaconne, fifth movement of Partita no. 2 in D minor for solo violin (1720)\nLuigi Boccherini (1743–1805): \"Chaconne that represents Hell . . . in imitation of the one by M. Gluck,\" finale to Symphony in D minor, op. 12, no.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7b286624-304b-4da2-9fce-5798c7f3754d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"19th century","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rt6wsaheaa","content":[{"text":"Johannes Brahms: Symphony No. 4 in E minor, Op. 98, finale\nFranz Liszt: Chaconne from Sarabande und Chaconne aus dem Singspiel Almira, S.181 (1879)\nHeinrich Reimann: Ciacona in F minor, op. 32, for organ","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7b286624-304b-4da2-9fce-5798c7f3754d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2s0qnbttjx","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Chaconne”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7b286624-304b-4da2-9fce-5798c7f3754d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"n5ndvh799v","content":[{"text":"chaconne is musical form; type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7d27ff4f-b8ae-4b1d-b951-8def69567687"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"q8fg9kp3zr","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 25 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7d27ff4f-b8ae-4b1d-b951-8def69567687"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"First page of the Chaconne in G minor for violin and continuo, attributed to Tomaso Antonio Vitali. Manuscript copied by Johann Jacob Lindner or Johann Gottfried Grundig.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/43/Chaconne_in_G_minor_manuscript.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Attributed to Tomaso Antonio Vitali","height":1923,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"First page of the Chaconne in G minor for violin and continuo, attributed to Tomaso Antonio Vitali. Manuscript copied by Johann Jacob Lindner or Johann Gottfried Grundig.","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/43/Chaconne_in_G_minor_manuscript.jpg/960px-Chaconne_in_G_minor_manuscript.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Chaconne_in_G_minor_manuscript.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/43/Chaconne_in_G_minor_manuscript.jpg/1280px-Chaconne_in_G_minor_manuscript.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"Handel, final Variation from Chaconne in G major, HWV 442","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/79/Handel_Chaconne_G228_Var_62.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Handel","height":504,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Handel, final Variation from Chaconne in G major, HWV 442","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/79/Handel_Chaconne_G228_Var_62.png/960px-Handel_Chaconne_G228_Var_62.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Handel_Chaconne_G228_Var_62.png","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/79/Handel_Chaconne_G228_Var_62.png/1280px-Handel_Chaconne_G228_Var_62.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"Titre uniforme : Berton, Pierre-Montan (1727-1780). Compositeur. [Chaconnes. Mi mineur] Chaconne écrite pour un arrangement de l'Iphigénie de Campra (1762). - Vl 2, vla 2, vlc, cb, ob 2, cl 2, fag 2, cor 2, tr, timp Présentation musicale : [Partition] Appartient à l’ensemble…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f4/Chaconne_-_btv1b10546895b_%2809_of_40%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Berton, Pierre-Montan (1727-1780). Compositeur","height":1694,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Titre uniforme : Berton, Pierre-Montan (1727-1780). Compositeur. [Chaconnes. Mi mineur] Chaconne écrite pour un arrangement de l'Iphigénie de Campra (1762). - Vl 2, vla 2, vlc, cb, ob 2, cl 2, fag 2, cor 2, tr, timp Présentation musicale : [Partition] Appartient à l’ensemble…","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f4/Chaconne_-_btv1b10546895b_%2809_of_40%29.jpg/960px-Chaconne_-_btv1b10546895b_%2809_of_40%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Chaconne_-_btv1b10546895b_(09_of_40).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f4/Chaconne_-_btv1b10546895b_%2809_of_40%29.jpg/1280px-Chaconne_-_btv1b10546895b_%2809_of_40%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-03T05:48:22.563Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/chaconne"}
{"id":"ddc5423f-da17-407e-a896-4128ccb6bfee","type":"art_form","slug":"chakkirako","title":"Chakkirako","summary":"Chakkirako (Japanese: チャッキラコ) is a dance performed at a festival in Miura, Japan, to celebrate the New Year and bring good fortune, especially in fishing.\nIn 1976, Japan's government recognized this dance as an intangible cultural heritage …","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"43spnazr33","content":[{"text":"Chakkirako (Japanese: チャッキラコ) is a dance performed at a festival in Miura, Japan, to celebrate the New Year and bring good fortune, especially in fishing.\nIn 1976, Japan's government recognized this dance as an intangible cultural heritage to be protected. In 2009, it has been inscribed in UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. In 2022, the inscription was revoked and the dance incorporated into the broader subject of Furyu-odori.\nThe dance originated in the Edo period with influences by the dances of visiting sailors. By the mid-eighteenth century, it had become a showcase for local girls. Every year in the middle of January, ten to twenty girls in colorful kimono between the ages of 5 and 12 perform the dance at a shrine or in front of houses. They are accompanied by five to ten older women singing a capella.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"13a00433-576a-4db2-afbd-f4c8fa917158"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3djhbhe7b2","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Chakkirako”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"13a00433-576a-4db2-afbd-f4c8fa917158"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8dz2qyr6ke","content":[{"text":"Chakkirako is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"572f6a21-1d11-4ad3-8697-6c453fd508a6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4yc2znwbpw","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"572f6a21-1d11-4ad3-8697-6c453fd508a6"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T07:23:08.664Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/chakkirako"}
{"id":"807feb7c-f567-4923-b6ff-61a9617bcebf","type":"art_form","slug":"cham-dance","title":"Cham dance","summary":"The cham dance (Tibetan: འཆམ་, Wylie: 'cham) is a lively masked and costumed dance associated with some sects of Tibetan Buddhism and Buddhist festivals.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wmszapqmdg","content":[{"text":"The cham dance (Tibetan: འཆམ་, Wylie: 'cham) is a lively masked and costumed dance associated with some sects of Tibetan Buddhism and Buddhist festivals. The dance is accompanied by music played by monks using traditional Tibetan musical instruments. The dances often offer moral instruction relating to karuṇā (compassion) for sentient beings and are held to bring merit to all who perceive them.\nChams are considered a form of meditation and an offering to the gods. The leader of the cham is typically a musician, keeping time with a percussion instrument like cymbals, the one exception being Dramyin Cham, where time is kept using dramyin.\nThe term \"devil dance\" was an early 20th century description of the performance, derived from Western perceptions of the costumes worn by performers.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7dbdd5ca-a7e8-48c4-b878-1fc7ad141150"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Content","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0cheyembt6","content":[{"text":"Chams often depict incidents from the life of Padmasambhava, the 9th century Nyingmapa teacher, and other saints.\nThe great debate of the Council of Lhasa between the two principal debators or dialecticians, Moheyan and Kamalaśīla is narrated and depicted in a specific cham dance held annually at Kumbum Monastery in Qinghai. One iteration of this dance is performed on the eve of Losar, the Tibetan new year, to commemorate the assassination of the cruel Tibetan king, Langdarma in 841 CE by a monk called Lhalung Pelgyi Dorje. The monk, dressed in a black robe and a black hat, danced outside the palace until he was allowed to perform in front of the emperor, then assassinated him. It is a dance symbolising the victory of good over evil.\nThe Black Hat dance is a Vajrakilaya dance and is the dance most frequently depicted in paintings. The dance is performed by Buddhist monks and operates in two levels, to achieve enlightenment and to destroy evil forces. The dancers often hold a skull and scarf tied together and then attached to the hilt of a purba.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7dbdd5ca-a7e8-48c4-b878-1fc7ad141150"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Bhutan","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7vyae02t29","content":[{"text":"In Bhutan, the dances are performed during the annual religious festivals or tshechu, held in the dzong in each district. The Cham is performed by monks, sometimes nuns and villagers. The Royal Academy of Performing Arts is the main body which promotes the preservation of the culture of Cham. This honors Guru Rinpoche (Padmasambhava) and celebrates his deeds through the performance of sacred dances. Since Guru Rinpoche was a fully enlightened being, he is extremely important in Bhutan and it is through his teachings that Bhutanese devotees are shown the true and fast path to enlightenment. These dances assist in cultivating faith and understanding of the Guru deeds, and as such both honor and educate the attendees.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7dbdd5ca-a7e8-48c4-b878-1fc7ad141150"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"India","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4a9a0gdx5w","content":[{"text":"Dances are performed during cultural and religious festivals in:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7dbdd5ca-a7e8-48c4-b878-1fc7ad141150"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mpjpk8z3pb","content":[{"text":"Lahaul and Spiti district\nSikkim\nDharamshala\nKalimpong\nDarjeeling (Sangchen Dorjee Gompa)\nPedong,\nKarnataka\nBylakuppe ([Nyingma gompa/Golden temple])\nLadakh","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7dbdd5ca-a7e8-48c4-b878-1fc7ad141150"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Mongolia","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"se3svgyepy","content":[{"text":"Tsam (Mongolian: Цам) dance was not introduced to Mongolia until the early 19th century, however it rapidly gained popularity and visibility with celebrations such as the Tsam festival and the opera Tale of the Moon Cuckoo. Tsam came to incorporate both tantric and older, shamanistic elements of dance. It became a significant part of Buddhism in Mongolia before it was banned under communist rule in 1924. The Stalinist purges in Mongolia destroyed over 700 monasteries, killed tens of thousands of Mongolian monks and lamas, and forcibly laicized thousands more monks. The mass murder of so much of Mongolia's monastic culture seriously threatened the tsam dance with extinction, as few practitioners survived the purges. With the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991 and the introduction of a new constitution permitting religious practices, the practice and performance of tsam dancing has grown enormously. Many of the costumes and masks used for tsam dances survived Soviet purges of monasteries and temples by being buried, hidden, or stored in museums such as the Choijin Lama Temple Museum.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7dbdd5ca-a7e8-48c4-b878-1fc7ad141150"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Tibet","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3h861tdfc9","content":[{"text":"Tibetans usually perform chams to large audiences during the Monlam Prayer Festival. A group of around fifteen Buddhist monks performing a \"devil dance\" at the Rongbuk Monastery in 1922, watched by a large crowd of Tibetans and the Rongbuk Lama, is featured in Part III of the black and white silent film \"Climbing Mt. Everest\" (for around 10 minutes, starting 39 minutes into the film).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7dbdd5ca-a7e8-48c4-b878-1fc7ad141150"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3zkazkakx3","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Cham dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7dbdd5ca-a7e8-48c4-b878-1fc7ad141150"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rfc7j960sh","content":[{"text":"Cham dance is traditional Buddhist dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c49c8013-6d2f-4159-9a45-30abcbac581f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pr9dzxvpkg","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 4 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c49c8013-6d2f-4159-9a45-30abcbac581f"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:04.183Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/cham-dance"}
{"id":"6fbc3392-13b8-402d-8b26-dafa43d845cd","type":"art_form","slug":"chamame","title":"chamamé","summary":"Chamamé (Guarani for: party, disorder) is a folk music genre from northeast Argentina and Argentine Mesopotamia.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4hfgmh4bn1","content":[{"text":"Chamamé (Guarani for: party, disorder) is a folk music genre from northeast Argentina and Argentine Mesopotamia. In 2020, Chamamé was inscribed in UNESCO's Intangible cultural heritage list after it was nominated by Argentina in 2018.\nChamamé is also a traditional musical style appreciated in borders zone of South America, as Paraguay and Uruguay","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0574ed1a-4d90-4917-b751-230759b40003"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"542jyymjj5","content":[{"text":"Jesuit reductions in the area encouraged cultural growth that lasted until the Jesuits were expelled by the Spanish Crown in the late 18th century. Within this area, Yapeyú, Corrientes was a centre of musical culture that many point to as the birthplace of the original Chamamé. Further mixing with instruments such as the Spanish guitar, then the violin and the accordion, finally resulted in what is currently known as \"Chamamé\". There are recordings of Chamamé dating back to the early 20th century, and the term 'Chamamé' was already used in 1931; this type of music, prior to that, was often referred to as the Corrientes Polka.\nThe Chamamé, originally schottische brought by the Volga German immigrants, has considerable Guaraní influence, mixed with the Spanish guitar and the European accordion from those immigrants that arrived in the area at the beginning of the 20th century.\nAmong chamamé figures of note are Teresa Parodi, Tránsito Cocomarola, Alejandro Brittes, Ramona Galarza, and Chango Spasiuk.\nChamamé arrived on stages such as Library Of Congress in September 2023 with accordionist Alejandro Brittes.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0574ed1a-4d90-4917-b751-230759b40003"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m2558s3px3","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Chamamé”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0574ed1a-4d90-4917-b751-230759b40003"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"h31e2qs81p","content":[{"text":"chamamé is folk music genre from Northeast Argentina and Argentinian Mesopotamia, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e2fdecf0-8d42-40fb-bf38-315517a51f30"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ws0g97a6ht","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 9 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e2fdecf0-8d42-40fb-bf38-315517a51f30"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T07:23:06.559Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/chamame"}
{"id":"e8c5cdbf-6efb-4f2d-bb3b-5b3389aae9a0","type":"art_form","slug":"chapelloise","title":"Chapelloise","summary":"The Chapelloise (French pronunciation: [\\ʃa.pɛ.lwaz\\] ) is a traditional folk dance with change of partners (a so-called mixer), belonging to the standard repertoire of a Balfolk.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"safxw0p3qn","content":[{"text":"The Chapelloise (French pronunciation: [\\ʃa.pɛ.lwaz\\] ) is a traditional folk dance with change of partners (a so-called mixer), belonging to the standard repertoire of a Balfolk. Its most common name in France and the French-influenced European Balfolk scene is Chapelloise, but the dance has many other names in different countries.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"008233ab-8783-44cb-855d-43fa35772346"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m5hgb7tzwz","content":[{"text":"The French name “La Chapelloise” is derived from a village in eastern France, Chapelle-des-Bois: Legend says that André Dufresne was teaching the dance there in the 1970s, and since participants did not remember its original name, the dance got famous by the name of the village where the workshop took place.\nThe dance was introduced in France in the 1930s by Alick-Maud Pledge. It is often claimed that the dance is of Swedish origin and that its original name is “Aleman's marsj” (Guilcher 1998, Oosterveen 2002, Largeaud 2011 and countless websites). However, the spelling “marsj” is not Swedish (it looks rather Norwegian) and the choreography bears no similarity with Swedish folk dances. Instead, this dance is known in Scandinavian dance collections (Swedish, Danish and Norwegian) as “All American Promenade”.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"008233ab-8783-44cb-855d-43fa35772346"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Description","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"121sshwpgv","content":[{"text":"The dance is a mixer in which participants progress through a series of partners. The formation is a circle. Lark-role dancers begin on the inside of the circle and robin-role dancers on the outside. The music is lively 16-bar jigs.\nThe first part of the dance begins with couples taking three steps forward counterclockwise around the circle. On the fourth step, they turn around but continue moving counterclockwise (such that they are stepping backwards) for another four steps. They then reverse direction, walking forward (clockwise) for three steps. On the fourth step, they turn again and walk backwards (still clockwise) for another four steps.\nIn the second part of the dance, couples spring together, then apart. The lark then rolls away the robin. Finally, couples form an arch with their joined hands, and the robin steps through it to the outside of the circle to progress to a new partner. The sequence repeats for the length of the tune.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"008233ab-8783-44cb-855d-43fa35772346"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"External links to dance descriptions","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jycrzqh89m","content":[{"text":"in French: La Chapelloise\nin American: All American Promenade\nvideo of the Carolina Promenade, (Folk Process?)\nvideo of Chapelloise at a Eurobal in the UK","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"008233ab-8783-44cb-855d-43fa35772346"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7wa3e724hp","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Chapelloise”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"008233ab-8783-44cb-855d-43fa35772346"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"g47spm3ydd","content":[{"text":"Chapelloise is dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"863469a0-e761-4e4a-bddf-f3501271f65e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"spsabrw6pa","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"863469a0-e761-4e4a-bddf-f3501271f65e"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Sur les chemins ball during Saint-Girons Nuit du Trad in 2018.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a4/Sur_les_chemins_-_Nuit_du_trad_de_Sent_Guirons_%2801%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Unuaiga","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Sur les chemins ball during Saint-Girons Nuit du Trad in 2018.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a4/Sur_les_chemins_-_Nuit_du_trad_de_Sent_Guirons_%2801%29.jpg/960px-Sur_les_chemins_-_Nuit_du_trad_de_Sent_Guirons_%2801%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sur_les_chemins_-_Nuit_du_trad_de_Sent_Guirons_(01).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a4/Sur_les_chemins_-_Nuit_du_trad_de_Sent_Guirons_%2801%29.jpg/1280px-Sur_les_chemins_-_Nuit_du_trad_de_Sent_Guirons_%2801%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Protest against abortion restriction in Bielsko-Biała, November 2020","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fb/02020_0071_%282%29_Protest_against_abortion_restriction_in_Bielsko-Bia%C5%82a%2C_November_2020.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Silar","height":831,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Protest against abortion restriction in Bielsko-Biała, November 2020","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fb/02020_0071_%282%29_Protest_against_abortion_restriction_in_Bielsko-Bia%C5%82a%2C_November_2020.jpg/960px-02020_0071_%282%29_Protest_against_abortion_restriction_in_Bielsko-Bia%C5%82a%2C_November_2020.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:02020_0071_(2)_Protest_against_abortion_restriction_in_Bielsko-Bia%C5%82a,_November_2020.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fb/02020_0071_%282%29_Protest_against_abortion_restriction_in_Bielsko-Bia%C5%82a%2C_November_2020.jpg/1280px-02020_0071_%282%29_Protest_against_abortion_restriction_in_Bielsko-Bia%C5%82a%2C_November_2020.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Uczestnicy konwentu Pyrkon 2019 - taniec \"belgijka\"","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4c/Pyrkon_2019_Cosplay_Belgijka.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Klarqa","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Uczestnicy konwentu Pyrkon 2019 - taniec \"belgijka\"","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4c/Pyrkon_2019_Cosplay_Belgijka.jpg/960px-Pyrkon_2019_Cosplay_Belgijka.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pyrkon_2019_Cosplay_Belgijka.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4c/Pyrkon_2019_Cosplay_Belgijka.jpg/1280px-Pyrkon_2019_Cosplay_Belgijka.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:04.263Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/chapelloise"}
{"id":"03a0ef47-61b1-4b79-bfe1-802b939a75a7","type":"art_form","slug":"charleston","title":"Charleston","summary":"The Charleston is a dance named after the harbor city of Charleston, South Carolina. The rhythm was popularized in mainstream dance music in the United States by a 1923 tune called \"The Charleston\" by composer/pianist James P.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2xysad60qx","content":[{"text":"The Charleston is a dance named after the harbor city of Charleston, South Carolina. The rhythm was popularized in mainstream dance music in the United States by a 1923 tune called \"The Charleston\" by composer/pianist James P. Johnson, which originated in the Broadway show Runnin' Wild and became one of the most popular hits of the decade. Runnin' Wild ran from 28 October 1923 through 28 June 1924. The Charleston dance's peak popularity occurred from mid-1926 to 1927.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"94fb4a80-557f-467e-83fd-0024d261cc8a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origins","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"azf907ghvq","content":[{"text":"While the dance probably came from the \"star\" or challenge dances that were all part of the African-American dance called Juba, the particular sequence of steps which appeared in Runnin' Wild were probably newly devised for popular appeal. \"At first, the step started off with a simple twisting of the feet, to rhythm in a lazy sort of way. When the dance hit Harlem, a new version was added. It became a fast kicking step, kicking the feet, both forward and backward and later done with a tap.\" Further changes were undoubtedly made before the dance was put on stage. In the words of Harold Courlander, while the Charleston had some characteristics of traditional Black American dance, it \"was a synthetic creation, a newly devised conglomerate tailored for widespread popular appeal.\" Although the step known as \"Jay-Bird\" and other specific movement sequences are of Afro-American origin, no record of the Charleston dance being performed as such on the plantation has been discovered.\nAlthough it achieved popularity when the song \"Charleston\", sung by Elisabeth Welch, was added to the production Runnin' Wild, the dance itself had first been introduced in Irving C. Miller's Liza in the spring of 1923. Although the name was new, Willie \"The Lion\" Smith noted that the dance was known well before that; in particular, he mentions the version done by Russell Brown under the name \"Geechie dance\". The Charleston composer James P. Johnson said that he had seen it danced as early as 1913 in New York City in the San Juan Hill neighborhood, at the Jungles Casino.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"94fb4a80-557f-467e-83fd-0024d261cc8a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Music and rhythm","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7rx4qaa9ck","content":[{"text":"The characteristic Charleston beat, which Johnson said he first heard from Charleston dockworkers, incorporates the clave rhythm and was considered by composer and critic Gunther Schuller to be synonymous with the Habanera and the Spanish Tinge. Johnson actually recorded several \"Charlestons\" and in later years derided most of them as being of \"that same damn beat.\" Several of these were recorded on player piano rolls, some of which have survived to this day.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"94fb4a80-557f-467e-83fd-0024d261cc8a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance steps","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b9wm7prcms","content":[{"text":"The accompanying instructions are quoted from the October 1925 issue of Photoplay, which published a nine-step guide to the Charleston featuring actress Bessie Love. The piece was prompted by a Charleston contest at a party hosted by Rudolph Valentino, in which Love, called \"Hollywood's champion\" of the dance, competed against Ann Pennington, the recognized champion of the stage. Love also performed the Charleston that year in The King on Main Street.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"94fb4a80-557f-467e-83fd-0024d261cc8a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Decline and later forms","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"e7emqbrq8j","content":[{"text":"The Charleston and similar dances, such as the Black Bottom, which involved \"kicking up your heels,\" were very popular in the latter 1920s. The trend subsided after 1930, probably in part because the new fashion for floor-level sheath evening dresses, which constricted the legs, did not suit them. In a British Pathé Instructional Short of 1933, a new variation – the \"Crawl Charleston\" – is demonstrated by Santos Casini and Jean Mence, a very sedate dance similar to a tango or waltz. It was not until dress hemlines rose toward the end of the thirties that the Charleston is again seen in film.\nA slightly different form of Charleston became popular in the 1930s and 1940s, and is associated with Lindy Hop. In this later form, the hot jazz timing of the '20s Charleston was adapted to swing jazz. This style of Charleston has many common names, including Lindy Charleston, Savoy Charleston, '30s or '40s Charleston, and Swinging Charleston, and its basic step takes eight counts and is danced either alone or with a partner. Frankie Manning and other Savoy dancers saw themselves as doing Charleston steps within the Lindy rather than dancing the Charleston itself.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"94fb4a80-557f-467e-83fd-0024d261cc8a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Contemporary Charleston","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yxmhz2d4jy","content":[{"text":"Today, Charleston is an important dance in Lindy Hop dance culture, danced in many permutations: alone (solo), with a partner, or in groups of couples or solo dancers. The basic step allows for a vast range of variations and improvisation. Both the 20s and Swinging Charleston styles are popular today, though swinging Charleston is more commonly integrated into Lindy Hop dancing.\nThe Guinness World Record for the largest Charleston dance is 1,096 participants, set by Revel In Dance in Shrewsbury, UK, on September 22, 2018.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"94fb4a80-557f-467e-83fd-0024d261cc8a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zcd47jnqdq","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Charleston (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"94fb4a80-557f-467e-83fd-0024d261cc8a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c6z3g9n43z","content":[{"text":"Charleston is American swing dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7b771c7a-6ee3-4596-86d2-910bd585cf0f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0g2cc4jg0b","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 21 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7b771c7a-6ee3-4596-86d2-910bd585cf0f"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Josephine Baker dancing the Charleston , in the silent film La Folie du jour (1926), from La Revue nègre , at the w:Folies Bergère , Paris","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/41/Baker_Charleston.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Walery , Polish-British, 1863-1929","height":1781,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Josephine Baker dancing the Charleston , in the silent film La Folie du jour (1926), from La Revue nègre , at the w:Folies Bergère , Paris","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/41/Baker_Charleston.jpg/960px-Baker_Charleston.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Baker_Charleston.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/41/Baker_Charleston.jpg/1280px-Baker_Charleston.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-08-31T05:47:18.353Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/charleston"}
{"id":"b5ba9cab-b414-4806-a51f-c0456283deb8","type":"art_form","slug":"cheerleading","title":"cheerleading","summary":"Cheerleading is an activity in which the participants (called cheerleaders) cheer for their team as a form of encouragement. It can range from chanting slogans to intense physical activity.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zccfb3kxvy","content":[{"text":"Cheerleading is an activity in which the participants (called cheerleaders) cheer for their team as a form of encouragement. It can range from chanting slogans to intense physical activity. It can be performed to motivate sports teams, to entertain the audience, or for competition. Cheerleading routines typically range anywhere from one to three minutes, and contain components of tumbling, dance, jumps, cheers, and stunting. Cheerleading originated in the United States, where it has become a tradition. It is less prevalent in the rest of the world, except via its association with American sports or organized cheerleading contests.\nModern cheerleading is very closely associated with American football and basketball. Sports such as association football (soccer), ice hockey, volleyball, baseball, and wrestling will sometimes sponsor cheerleading squads. The ICC Twenty20 Cricket World Cup in South Africa in 2007 was the first international cricket event to have cheerleaders. Some Brazilian association football (soccer) teams that play in the Brazilian Serie A have cheerleading squads, such as Bahia, Fortaleza and Botafogo. In baseball, the Florida Marlins were the first Major League Baseball team to have a cheerleading team.\nCheerleading originated as an all-male activity in the United States, and is popular predominantly in America, with an estimated 3.85 million participants in 2017.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c209dc16-5a0d-46a6-a9f4-4e89a09660d9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Before organized cheerleading","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"236gt0md4t","content":[{"text":"In the 1860s, students from Great Britain began to cheer and chant in unison for their favorite athletes at sporting events. Soon, that gesture of support crossed overseas to America.\nOn November 6, 1869, the United States witnessed its first intercollegiate football game. It took place between Princeton University and Rutgers University, and marked the day the original \"Sis Boom Rah!\" cheer was shouted out by student fans.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c209dc16-5a0d-46a6-a9f4-4e89a09660d9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Beginning of organized cheerleading","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ecmwa10s8p","content":[{"text":"Organized cheerleading began as an all-male activity. As early as 1877, Princeton University had a \"Princeton Cheer\", documented in the February 22, 1877, March 12, 1880, and November 4, 1881, issues of The Daily Princetonian. This cheer was yelled from the stands by students attending games, as well as by the athletes themselves. The cheer, \"Hurrah! Hurrah! Hurrah! Tiger! S-s-s-t! Boom! A-h-h-h!\" remains in use with slight modifications today, where it is now referred to as the \"Locomotive\".\nPrinceton class of 1882 graduate Thomas Peebles moved to Minnesota in 1884. He transplanted the idea of organized crowds cheering at football games to the University of Minnesota.\nThe term \"Cheer Leader\" had been used as early as 1897, with Princeton's football officials having named three students as Cheer Leaders: Thomas, Easton, and Guerin from Princeton's classes of 1897, 1898, and 1899, respectively, on October 26, 1897. These students would cheer for the team also at football practices, and special cheering sections were designated in the stands for the games themselves for both the home and visiting teams.\nIt was not until 1898 that University of Minnesota student Johnny Campbell directed a crowd in cheering \"Rah, Rah, Rah! Ski-u-mah, Hoo-Rah! Hoo-Rah! Varsity! Varsity! Varsity, Minn-e-So-Tah!\", making Campbell the very first cheerleader.\nNovember 2, 1898, is the official birth date of organized cheerleading. Soon after, the University of Minnesota organized a \"yell leader\" squad of six male students, who still use Campbell's original cheer today.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c209dc16-5a0d-46a6-a9f4-4e89a09660d9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Early 20th century cheerleading and female participation","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2yaqz7qg6z","content":[{"text":"In 1903, the first cheerleading fraternity, Gamma Sigma, was founded.\nIn 1923, at the University of Minnesota, women were permitted to participate in cheerleading. However, it took time for other schools to follow. In the late 1920s, many school manuals and newspapers that were published still referred to cheerleaders as \"chap\", \"fellow\", and \"man\".\nWomen cheerleaders were overlooked until the 1940s when collegiate men were drafted for World War II, creating the opportunity for more women to make their way onto sporting event sidelines. As noted by Kieran Scott in Ultimate Cheerleading: \"Girls really took over for the first time.\"\nIn 1949, Lawrence Herkimer, a former cheerleader at Southern Methodist University and inventor of the herkie jump, founded his first cheerleading camp in Huntsville, Texas. 52 girls were in attendance. The clinic was so popular that Herkimer was asked to hold a second, where 350 young women were in attendance. Herkimer also patented the pom-pom.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c209dc16-5a0d-46a6-a9f4-4e89a09660d9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Growth in popularity (1950–1979)","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"44ff72d0ge","content":[{"text":"In 1951, Herkimer created the National Cheerleading Association to help grow the activity and provide cheerleading education to schools around the country.\nDuring the 1950s, female participation in cheerleading continued to grow. An overview written on behalf of cheerleading in 1955 explained that in larger schools, \"occasionally boys as well as girls are included\", and in smaller schools, \"boys can usually find their place in the athletic program, and cheerleading is likely to remain solely a feminine occupation\". Cheerleading could be found at almost every school level across the country; even pee wee and youth leagues began to appear.\nIn the 1950s, professional cheerleading also began. The first recorded cheer squad in National Football League (NFL) history was for the Baltimore Colts. Professional cheerleaders put a new perspective on American cheerleading. Women were exclusively chosen for dancing ability as well as to conform to the male gaze, as heterosexual men were the targeted marketing group.\nBy the 1960s, college cheerleaders employed by the NCA were hosting workshops across the nation, teaching fundamental cheer skills to tens of thousands of high-school-age girls. Herkimer also contributed many notable firsts to cheerleading: the founding of a cheerleading uniform supply company, inventing the herkie jump (where one leg is bent towards the ground as if kneeling and the other is out to the side as high as it will stretch in toe-touch position), and creating the \"Spirit Stick\".\nIn 1965, Fred Gastoff invented the vinyl pom-pom, which was introduced into competitions by the International Cheerleading Foundation (ICF, now the World Cheerleading Association, or WCA).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c209dc16-5a0d-46a6-a9f4-4e89a09660d9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"1980s to present","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4dyxzqqyks","content":[{"text":"The 1980s saw the beginning of modern cheerleading, adding difficult stunt sequences and gymnastics into routines. All-star teams, or those not affiliated with a school, popped up, and eventually led to the creation of the U.S. All Star Federation (USASF). ESPN first broadcast the National High School Cheerleading Competition nationwide in 1983.\nBy 1981, a total of seventeen National Football League teams had their own cheerleaders. The only teams without NFL cheerleaders at this time were New Orleans, New York, Detroit, Cleveland, Denver, Minnesota, Pittsburgh, San Francisco, and San Diego.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c209dc16-5a0d-46a6-a9f4-4e89a09660d9"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tg987t7fts","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Cheerleading”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c209dc16-5a0d-46a6-a9f4-4e89a09660d9"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m0znmcxbvp","content":[{"text":"cheerleading is sports activity in which the participants cheer for their team as a form of encouragement, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5776a877-accf-463f-8b78-6340690e6fca"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"005x253h9w","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 28 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5776a877-accf-463f-8b78-6340690e6fca"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-02T05:48:48.072Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/cheerleading"}
{"id":"a8782ef8-c66e-4138-bb5d-d5a71ee250a0","type":"art_form","slug":"cheoyongmu","title":"Cheoyongmu","summary":"Cheoyongmu (Korean: 처용무) is a Korean mask dance based on the legend of Cheoyong (처용; 處容), a son of the Dragon King of the Eastern Sea. It is also the oldest surviving Korean court dance created during the Unified Silla period.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5npnvc315t","content":[{"text":"Cheoyongmu (Korean: 처용무) is a Korean mask dance based on the legend of Cheoyong (처용; 處容), a son of the Dragon King of the Eastern Sea. It is also the oldest surviving Korean court dance created during the Unified Silla period. Cheoyongmu has also been considered as a shamanistic dance because it was performed to drive off evil spirits at the end of the year.\nThe dancer's movements are usually majesty and vigour. It also depends on the style & tempo of music, which punctuated by various lyrical song recitations. The dance is always performed by five dancers, and its costumes and masks are noteworthy.\nIt is inscribed in UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage List from 2009 and enlisted as South Korean Intangible Cultural Property from 1971.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1b9d9153-bae1-423d-b7f6-a5089fd49e17"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4f0zkc5tvw","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Cheoyongmu”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1b9d9153-bae1-423d-b7f6-a5089fd49e17"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mtx6mmnmgj","content":[{"text":"Cheoyongmu is Korean dance of Cheoyong, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ff975924-7bc7-40db-9b64-faff96edb6b0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"htnjs4rk3p","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ff975924-7bc7-40db-9b64-faff96edb6b0"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T07:23:08.054Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/cheoyongmu"}
{"id":"58b17ba1-bc9f-4715-9642-8d167520b7aa","type":"art_form","slug":"chhau-dance","title":"Chhau dance","summary":"Chhau, also spelled Chhou, is a semi classical Indian dance with martial and folk traditions. It is found in three styles named after the location where they are performed, i.e.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"54hngg4cxj","content":[{"text":"Chhau, also spelled Chhou, is a semi classical Indian dance with martial and folk traditions. It is found in three styles named after the location where they are performed, i.e. the Purulia Chhau of West Bengal, the Seraikella Chhau of Jharkhand and the Mayurbhanj Chhau of Odisha.\nThe dance ranges from celebrating martial arts, acrobatics and athletics performed in festive themes of a folk dance, to a structured dance with religious themes found in Shaivism, Shaktism and Vaishnavism. The costumes vary between the styles, with Purulia and Serakeilla using masks to identify the character. The stories enacted by Chhau dancers include those from the Hindu epics the Ramayana and the Mahabharata, the Puranas and other Indian literature.\nThe dance is traditionally an all males troupe, regionally celebrated particularly during spring every year, and may be a syncretic dance form that emerged from a fusion of classical Hindu dances and the traditions of ancient regional tribes. The dance brings together people from diverse socio-economic backgrounds in a festive and religious spirit.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0ed4de27-5bda-4b7c-9890-56a8a80e9124"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kstqetnxg6","content":[{"text":"Chhau is a dance style originating from the regions of East India. It may have been derived from Sanskrit Chāya (shadow, image or mask). Others link it to the Sanskrit root Chadma (disguise), yet others such as Sitakant Mahapatra suggest it is derived from Chhauni (military camp, armour, stealth) in Odia language.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0ed4de27-5bda-4b7c-9890-56a8a80e9124"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Features of Chhau","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s7v92zrjzk","content":[{"text":"The Chhau dance is mainly performed during festivals in the region of Jharkhand, West Bengal and Odisha, especially the spring festival of Chaitra Parva and in which the whole community participates. The Purulia Chhau dance is celebrated during the Sun festival.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0ed4de27-5bda-4b7c-9890-56a8a80e9124"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2m5b5be09w","content":[{"text":"Masks form an integral part of Chhau dance in Purulia and Seraikella styles. The knowledge of dance, music and mask-making is transmitted orally. The Chhau dance found in northern Odisha does not use masks during the dance, but they do when the artists first appear on the stage for introduction to the audience.\nThe two styles of Chhau dance that use masks, blend within it forms of both dance and martial practices employing mock combat techniques (called khel), stylised gaits of birds and animals (called chalis and topkas) and movements based on the chores of village housewives (called uflis). This form of the Chhau dance, states Mohan Khokar, has no ritual or ceremonial meaning, it is a form of community celebration and entertainment.\nThe dance is performed by male dancers, at night in an open space, called akhada or asar. The dance is rhythmic and set to traditional folk music, played on the reed pipes mohuri and shehnai. A variety of drums accompany the music ensemble including the dhol (a cylindrical drum), dhumsa (a large kettle drum) and kharka or chad-chadi. The themes for these dances include local legends, folklore and episodes from the Ramayana and Mahabharata and other abstract themes.\nThe precursors of Chhau dance (especially Purulia style) were not only Paika and Natua, but Nachni dance also played an important role in giving Chhau its present identity. Chhau dance borrows the female gaits and movements from the Nachni dance almost exclusively (Bhattacharya, 1983, Chakravarti, 2001, Kishore, 1985).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0ed4de27-5bda-4b7c-9890-56a8a80e9124"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Three styles of Chhau","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m69xa9ea7x","content":[{"text":"The Seraikella Chhau developed in Seraikela, when it was under the rule of Kalinga's Gajapati Rule  the present day administrative headquarters of the Seraikela Kharsawan district of Jharkhand, the Purulia Chhau in Purulia district of West Bengal and the Mayurbhanj Chhau in Mayurbhanj district of Odisha. The most prominent difference among the three subgenres is regarding the use of masks. While, the Seraikela and Purulia subgenres of Chhau use masks during the dance, the Mayurbhanj Chhau uses none.\nThe Seraikella Chhau's technique and repertoire were developed by the erstwhile nobility of this region who were both its performers and choreographers, and in the modern era people from all backgrounds dance it. The Seraikella Chhau is performed with symbolic masks, and the acting establishes the role the actor is playing. The Purulia Chhau uses extensive masks shaped in the form of the character being played; for example, a lion character has a face mask of lion and body costumes too with the actor walking on all fours. These masks are crafted by potters who make clay images of Hindu gods and goddesses and is primarily sourced from the Purulia district of West Bengal. In the Mayurbhanj Chhau is performed without masks and is technically similar to the Seraikella Chhau.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0ed4de27-5bda-4b7c-9890-56a8a80e9124"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Recognition","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mqath28wn0","content":[{"text":"In 2010, the Chhau dance was inscribed in the UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.\nThe Government of Odisha established the Government Chhau Dance Centre in 1960 in Seraikella and the Mayurbhanj Chhau Nritya Pratisthan at Baripada in 1962. These institutions engage in training involving local gurus, artists, patrons and representatives of Chhau institutions and sponsor performances. The Chaitra Parva festival, significant to the Chhau Dance, is also sponsored by the state government. The Sangeet Natak Akademi has established a National Centre for Chhau Dance at Baripada, Odisha.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0ed4de27-5bda-4b7c-9890-56a8a80e9124"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"In popular culture","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m48gwkjkw6","content":[{"text":"The Hindi film Barfi! has several scenes that features the Purulia Chhau in it.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0ed4de27-5bda-4b7c-9890-56a8a80e9124"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"awwvt6093q","content":[{"text":"Eastern Zonal Cultural Centre, Kolkata, brings you the documentary. The video is a documentary on the Purulia Chhau of West Bengal. The Chhau is a semi-classical dance form from Eastern India which has tribal and folk origins.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0ed4de27-5bda-4b7c-9890-56a8a80e9124"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7fwypxqgyd","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Chhau”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0ed4de27-5bda-4b7c-9890-56a8a80e9124"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"y89ny3n2py","content":[{"text":"Chhau dance is semi classical martial Indian dance found in its eastern states, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6005ae92-b748-4554-b308-3606eead0daa"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ma80qgtytp","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 8 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6005ae92-b748-4554-b308-3606eead0daa"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Chaou danace, Purulia","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5a/Performance_of_Chhau_dance_of_Purulia.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Skasish","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Chaou danace, Purulia","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Performance_of_Chhau_dance_of_Purulia.jpg/960px-Performance_of_Chhau_dance_of_Purulia.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Performance_of_Chhau_dance_of_Purulia.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Performance_of_Chhau_dance_of_Purulia.jpg/1280px-Performance_of_Chhau_dance_of_Purulia.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:27.511Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/chhau-dance"}
{"id":"6507ce75-b16b-4e39-a6ec-854c3e63b436","type":"art_form","slug":"chholiya","title":"Chholiya","summary":"Chholiya (Kumaoni) or Hudkeli (Nepali) is a traditional folk dance form originated in the Kumaon division of the Indian state of Uttarakhand, and Sudurpashchim province of Nepal.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0pf2nzp2pw","content":[{"text":"Chholiya (Kumaoni) or Hudkeli (Nepali) is a traditional folk dance form originated in the Kumaon division of the Indian state of Uttarakhand, and Sudurpashchim province of Nepal. It has today become a symbol of Kumaoni and Sudurpashchimi (mainly in Doti, Baitadi and Darchula districts) and cultures including Khas Community in Sikkim. It is basically a sword dance accompanying a marriage procession but now it is performed on many auspicious occasions.\nIt is especially popular in the districts of Almora, Bageshwar, Champawat and Pithoragarh of Kumaon division and in Doti, Baitadi and Darchula district of Nepal. This sword dance has a history of more than a thousand years and is rooted in the martial traditions of the Kumaoni People.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"455eb174-1222-42b9-b063-62c88f46e118"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origin","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hqyhpsz1cz","content":[{"text":"Dating back over a thousand years, the dance has its origins in the warring Kshatriyas of Kumaon- the Kumaoni Rajputs and Katyuris when marriages were performed at the point of the swords. \nThe native Kshatriyas were united by the Chand Kings who arrived on the scene in the 10th century. The flux of immigrants Rajputs who made native kshatriyas a small minority also took on the hill customs and influenced Pahari culture with their traditions and language. The days of marriages on the point of the sword were over, but the traditions attached to it still continued.\nThat is why the groom is still known as Kunwar or King in Kumaon. He rides a horse in the marriage procession and wears a Khukri in his belt.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"455eb174-1222-42b9-b063-62c88f46e118"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Significance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9614eejprc","content":[{"text":"Apart from its origins in the martial traditions of the people of Kumaon, it also has religious significance. This art form is mainly performed by the Rajput community in their marriage processions. Chholiya is performed in marriages and is believed to be auspicious as it provides protection from evil spirits and demons. Marriage processions were believed to be vulnerable to such spirits who target peoples happiness. It was a common belief that demons followed a marriage procession or Baryat/Barat to bewitch the newly married and performance of Chholiya could prevent this.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"455eb174-1222-42b9-b063-62c88f46e118"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Instruments","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"y572e6mxg2","content":[{"text":"The turi (तुरी), nagphani (नागफनी) and ransing (रणसिंघ) belonging to the brass instrument family are traditional instruments of the Kumaon division, were earlier used in battles to increase the morale of the troops, are used.\nPercussion instruments like dhol (ढोल), damau (दमाऊ) which are also native to Kumaun are played by professional musicians known as dholies.\nMasakbeen (मसकबीन) or Bagpipe introduced by the British in Kumaun as instruments played in marching bands were assimilated into the wide range of instruments played.\nWoodwind instruments like the nausuriya muruli (नौसुरिया मुरूली) (lit. the nine note flute) a kind of flute and jyonya (ज्योंया) (lit. twin flute) a type of double flute native to Kumaun is also played.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"455eb174-1222-42b9-b063-62c88f46e118"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Attire","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"h6etcr6eqf","content":[{"text":"Donning the traditional Kumauni attire white churidar payajama, the taanka on their heads, the chola, face covered with sandal wood paste as if ready for battle equipped with tulwar swords and brass shields. Their costume resembles the costume of the ancient martial warriors that inhabited Kumaun.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"455eb174-1222-42b9-b063-62c88f46e118"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Features","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b7yk7me4gd","content":[{"text":"Accompanied by war-like music, equipped with swords they dance in a synchronized manner while engaging in mock fights with their fellow dancers.\nCarrying the triangular red flag the \"nishana\" (निसाण), (banners), waving their swords, with fiery expressions on the faces they give the impression of warriors going to battle. \nThere are 22 men in a full team of Chholiya dancers; 8 of them are the sword dancers and 14 are musicians.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"455eb174-1222-42b9-b063-62c88f46e118"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dnq3he655e","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Chholiya”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"455eb174-1222-42b9-b063-62c88f46e118"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cj64p5s8pr","content":[{"text":"Chholiya is Dance form practised in the Kumaun region of India and Sudurpashchim Province of Nepal, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4556d8da-9c9a-4884-955c-cdb9c2b500d3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"testmbxw4w","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4556d8da-9c9a-4884-955c-cdb9c2b500d3"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"This is a traditional dance of uttarakhand India called Choliya dance","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9e/Cholliyar.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Amitsah8888","height":720,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"This is a traditional dance of uttarakhand India called Choliya dance","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9e/Cholliyar.jpg/960px-Cholliyar.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cholliyar.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9e/Cholliyar.jpg/1280px-Cholliyar.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:23.826Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/chholiya"}
{"id":"a40719a9-fa47-4b0e-93d4-2a87722fa78c","type":"art_form","slug":"chicken-dance","title":"Chicken Dance","summary":"The \"Chicken Dance\" (also known as \"Tchip Tchip\", \"Der Ententanz\", and \"The Birdie Song\") is an oom-pah song from 1957. The melody as well as its associated fad dance has become familiar throughout the Western world.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5wz22bexrt","content":[{"text":"The \"Chicken Dance\" (also known as \"Tchip Tchip\", \"Der Ententanz\", and \"The Birdie Song\") is an oom-pah song from 1957. The melody as well as its associated fad dance has become familiar throughout the Western world. \nThe Chicken Dance is a well-known drinking and dancing song at American Oktoberfest events. It is also a popular dance at weddings, particularly in whose culture includes polka music. \nOver 140 versions have been recorded worldwide, including some that were released by Walt Disney Records, together making an estimate of more than 40,000,000 records pressed.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b00fc2bf-645c-49c6-8c21-9b16da5f2a6c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Composition","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"aj6xma2xwy","content":[{"text":"The piece is often notated in cut time and the key of C major. It begins with repeated dominant chords before moving into the main theme. The secondary theme features a contrasting rhythm. The two themes alternate. In some versions tempo shifts are introduced to confuse and amuse the dancers, and the final repetition of the main theme is often played as one continuous accelerando.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b00fc2bf-645c-49c6-8c21-9b16da5f2a6c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Composer credits and publishing rights","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qtbgqyts19","content":[{"text":"The original name of the song was \"Der Ententanz\" (The Duck Dance), composed by Swiss accordionist Werner Thomas in 1957. He played it in restaurants and hotels from the 1950s through the 1960s.\nDuring one of Thomas's performances, Belgian music producer Louis van Rymenant heard the song. Van Rymenant had some lyrics created and in 1970 released it to the public through his publishing company Intervox Music (later co-publishing with his other company Eurovox Music) without much success. It first became a worldwide hit from 1980 through 1982, and was recorded in many countries.\nOn some recorded releases of the music Werner Thomas is listed as the sole composer, while on others other composers are listed, e.g., as \"Thomas/Rendall/Hoes.\" The name Rendall refers to Van Rymenant, who was listed as co-author under the pen name of Terry Rendall. The name Hoes refers to the Dutch singer/producer Johnny Hoes, who rearranged the song for the Electronicas recording (which was released on Hoes's own record label, Telstar Records).\nEurovox Music now manages the publishing rights worldwide, except for the US (September Music), UK (Valentine Music) and the Netherlands (Benelux Music), sub-publishers.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b00fc2bf-645c-49c6-8c21-9b16da5f2a6c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Notable recordings and title changes","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ek4khf247b","content":[{"text":"In 1972, Swiss musician Werner Thomas first released the song under the title \"Tchip Tchip\".\nIn 1973, Belgian band Cash & Carry created a Moog version titled \"Tchip Tchip\". A similar Moog version by South African musician Dan Hill followed the same year.\nIn 1981, Henry Hadaway produced a version of the song, which was released in the United Kingdom as an instrumental novelty tune \"The Birdie Song\" by The Tweets. It peaked at number two on the UK Singles Chart in October 1981, making it the most popular version. A 1981 video shows bird-costumed dancers miming as instrumentalists while the recording plays and young people dance on stage. This may be the earliest recording of the dance and hand-clapping. In 2000, this version was voted \"the most annoying song of all time\" in a poll commissioned for the Web site dotmusic.\nIn 1981, the Spanish accordionist María Jesus Grados Ventura, better known as María Jesús y su Acordeón, released the song as \"El Baile de los Pajaritos.\" This version included Spanish lyrics in both the verses and refrain.\nIn 1981, the song was recorded and released in Finland by Frederik under the name \"Tralalala\"\nIn 1981 the Italian musicians Al Bano and Romina Power recorded it as \"Il ballo del Qua Qua.\"\nIn 1981 a French recording by René Simard and Nathalie Simard was released under the title \"La Danse des Canards.\"\nIn 1982, the music producer for the Milwaukee-based organist and polka composer Bob Kames first heard \"Dance Little Bird\" at a German music fair.  The producer sent Kames a copy, and Kames recorded his own version on the Hammond organ, as \"Dance Little Bird\" or \"The Chicken Dance\"  and released it that same year.  The Kames recording hit solid gold when it was released in 1983 in Poland, selling 300,000 copies.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b00fc2bf-645c-49c6-8c21-9b16da5f2a6c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Notable events","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0necrsvt47","content":[{"text":"In 1981, the song and its dance were performed during the Tulsa, Oklahoma, Oktoberfest. A local television station provided a chicken costume for the use of a dancer at the festival, in keeping with the costumed performances by The Tweets in England, and this costume is said to have been what gave the \"Chicken Dance\" its American name.\nOn 13 November 2009, CIHT-FM in Ottawa played the Chicken Dance continuously until 389 tickets for the CHEO Dream of a Lifetime were purchased at CA$100 each, to support the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario. This played for over 3 hours.\nOn 23 April 2010, in a fundraiser for Helen DeVos Children's Hospital, an attempt at the world's largest chicken dance record was held at Byron Center, Michigan, at Jake's restaurant, the site of a giant plastic chicken sculpture.\nDuring the 2015–16 season, NHL club Philadelphia Flyers had the chicken dance played over the PA system at the Wells Fargo Center every time the Flyers scored four goals in that game.  The Flyers had a partnership with Chick-Fil-A where customers could get free breakfast sandwiches from Chick-Fil-A the day after every game where the Flyers scored four goals or more.\nDuring Sanremo 2024, conductors Amadeus and Fiorello had the Chicken Dance played and performed with actor John Travolta.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b00fc2bf-645c-49c6-8c21-9b16da5f2a6c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Choreography","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vssfbhpvan","content":[{"text":"The origin of the dance moves set to the music is not known.\nThe dance step has five discrete moves. The first four moves are done in place and are repeated throughout each verse:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b00fc2bf-645c-49c6-8c21-9b16da5f2a6c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7bvrnrgqkk","content":[{"text":"The dancer lifts both hands into the air and opens and closes them as if operating a hand puppet (simulating a chicken's vocalizations) four times, once on each beat;\nThe dancer tucks their hands into their armpits and flaps them like a chicken four times, once on each beat;\nThe dancer wiggles their shoulders and/or hips (tail feathers) while descending downward for four beats;\nThe dancer claps four times.\nThe fifth move persists throughout the refrain and involves the dancer and a partner.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b00fc2bf-645c-49c6-8c21-9b16da5f2a6c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b31wqkqrq2","content":[{"text":"The pair may lock arms, facing opposite directions, and spin. They may switch arms and directions (and sometimes partners) halfway through the refrain.\nThe pair may \"swing out,\" by holding hands, leaning back, and rotating in place, first clockwise and then counterclockwise.\nIf performed in a circle dance or square dance formation, the entire group of participants may simply rotate the circle in one direction, then shift direction halfway through the refrain, or they may perform an allemande at the command of a caller.\nThe performance of one or more dancers in bird costumes leading a crowd in the dance is quite common. A 1981 video recording of the Tweets performing the song before a live television audience in the UK shows all of the \"musicians\" in large, mascot-style bird costumes, miming to the recording, while a group of British teens perform the dance in a line behind them. Since then, many state fairs, Oktoberfests, German culture festivals, and even weddings feature at least one dancer in a bird costume.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b00fc2bf-645c-49c6-8c21-9b16da5f2a6c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fe3md5y8cv","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Chicken Dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b00fc2bf-645c-49c6-8c21-9b16da5f2a6c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qnd8086e75","content":[{"text":"Chicken Dance is oom-pah song and fad dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d138f750-d85f-43fb-aec0-f816e14b5338"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1ch7m3s1jn","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 5 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d138f750-d85f-43fb-aec0-f816e14b5338"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Doing the \"chicken dance\" at the Ballard Seafood Fest (in the Ballard neighborhood of Seattle, Washington), dancing to Texas band Brave Combo.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/26/Chicken_dance_01_-_Ballard_Seafood_Fest_2007.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Joe Mabel","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Doing the \"chicken dance\" at the Ballard Seafood Fest (in the Ballard neighborhood of Seattle, Washington), dancing to Texas band Brave Combo.","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/26/Chicken_dance_01_-_Ballard_Seafood_Fest_2007.jpg/960px-Chicken_dance_01_-_Ballard_Seafood_Fest_2007.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Chicken_dance_01_-_Ballard_Seafood_Fest_2007.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/26/Chicken_dance_01_-_Ballard_Seafood_Fest_2007.jpg/1280px-Chicken_dance_01_-_Ballard_Seafood_Fest_2007.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:28.507Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/chicken-dance"}
{"id":"5774f0ea-f6b9-4791-aaf1-db43c8e24e6b","type":"art_form","slug":"chinese-dance","title":"Chinese dance","summary":"Dance in China is a highly varied art form, consisting of many modern and traditional dance genres.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"h1ac8g7p3f","content":[{"text":"Dance in China is a highly varied art form, consisting of many modern and traditional dance genres. The dances cover a wide range, from folk dances to performances in opera and ballet, and may be used in public celebrations, rituals, and ceremonies. There are also 56 officially recognized ethnic groups in China, and each ethnic minority group in China also has its own folk dances. Outside of China, the best-known Chinese dances today are the dragon dance and the lion dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"570d5582-8245-4c57-88a8-324c5febd8f0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dhdxxhcj1s","content":[{"text":"There is a long recorded history of various forms of dance in China. The earliest Chinese character for \"dance\" (舞), , written in the oracle bones, is itself a representation of a dancer holding oxtails in each hand. Some Chinese dances today, such as dancing with long sleeves, have been recorded since the very early periods, dating from at least as early as the Zhou dynasty. The most important dances of the early period were the ritual and ceremonial music and dances called yayue, and these dances were performed at the imperial court until the Qing dynasty, but only survive today as performances in Confucian ceremonies.\nThe imperial court from the Qin dynasty onward established various departments responsible for the collection of music and dances, training of performers as well as their performances at the court, such as the Music Bureau and Royal Academy.  During the Six Dynasties era (220-589 CE), there were strong influences from Central Asia in music and dance. The art of dance reached a peak in the Tang dynasty, and the dances of the period were highly diverse and cosmopolitan, dances from Central Asia, in particular, were popular. A great number of dances were recorded in the Tang dynasty. For example, there are over 60 Grand Compositions alone, which are large-scale performances from the Tang court, and there were tens of thousands of musicians and dancers at the Imperial palaces.\nDance as an independent art form, however, declined after the Tang dynasty. Dance began to be absorbed into Chinese opera that started to take shape in the Song and Yuan dynasties, replacing the song and dance of Sui and Tang.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"570d5582-8245-4c57-88a8-324c5febd8f0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Traditional dances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k7vq4tdbyc","content":[{"text":"Many of the traditional Chinese dances have a long history. These may be folk dances, or dances that were once performed as rituals or as an entertainment spectacle, and some may have been performed in the imperial court. Among the best-known of the Chinese traditional dances are the dragon dance and lion dance, and both dances were known in earlier dynasties in various forms. A form of lion dance similar to today's lion dance was described as early as the Tang dynasty, the modern form of the dragon dance, however, may be a more recent development.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"570d5582-8245-4c57-88a8-324c5febd8f0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7xbh13bwc8","content":[{"text":"In some of the earliest dances recorded in China, dancers may have dressed as animal and mythical beasts, and during the Han dynasty, some forms of the dragon dance were mentioned. The dragon dances of the Han dynasty, however, do not resemble the modern form of the dance. Dragon dances mentioned include a dance performed during a ritual to appeal for rain at a time of drought as the Chinese dragon was associated with rain, acts in the baixi variety shows where performers dressed up as a green dragon playing a flute, and acts where fish turned into a dragon. Modern dragon dance uses a light-weight structure manipulated by a dozen or so men using poles at regular intervals along the length of the dragon, and some forms of the dragon can be very long and involve hundreds of performers. There are more than 700 different dragon dances in China.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"570d5582-8245-4c57-88a8-324c5febd8f0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yhzf3sg6r3","content":[{"text":"The lion dance has been suggested to have been introduced from outside China as the lion is not native to China. Suggested origins of the dance include India and Persia, although some have also proposed a native Chinese origin.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"570d5582-8245-4c57-88a8-324c5febd8f0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Folk dances of Han Chinese","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zbrsnf6g2w","content":[{"text":"Folk dances are important historically in the development of dance in China. Some of the earliest dances in court rituals and ceremonies may have evolved from folk dances. Rulers from various dynasties collected folk dances, many of which eventually became court dances. However, at various times, there had also been antipathy towards some folk dances and some emperors attempted to ban them.\nMany of the folk dances are related to harvest and hunting and the ancient gods associated with them. For example, the Constellation Dance was performed to procure as much seed grain as there are stars in the sky, while the Harpoon Dance was associated with Fuxi who, according to the mythology, gave the Han people fish net, and the Plough Dance was connected to Shennong, the god of agriculture.\nSome examples of Chinese folk dances:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"570d5582-8245-4c57-88a8-324c5febd8f0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"se062wse7y","content":[{"text":"Yangge (秧歌) - a dance that is common in Northern China.\nLantern Dance - a dance found in Southern China.\nErrenzhuan (二人转)- a dance from Northeast China.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"570d5582-8245-4c57-88a8-324c5febd8f0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dances of ethnic minorities in China","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zr75rcvrc9","content":[{"text":"There are 56 ethnic groups in China, and each ethnic group has its own dance with ethnic characteristics, thus interpreting their local culture, lifestyle, and ethnic customs in the dance. In addition to daily life, every ethnic group likes to express their inner feeling the most by dancing. Every time there is a festival, people will gather together to express the joy in everyone's heart in the form of dance. Therefore, dance can effectively convey the emotions of different groups of people.\nA few examples of their dances:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"570d5582-8245-4c57-88a8-324c5febd8f0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"chjvbs87x1","content":[{"text":"Baishou Dance - a dance of the Tujia people.\nMongolian Bowl Dance (頂碗舞) - a dance where female dancers balance several bowls on their heads while dancing.\nLong Drum Dance (長鼓舞) - a dance of the Yao people, which inspired the orchestral composition Dance of the Yao People.\nSanam – a Uyghur dance.\nLhamo – a Tibetan opera with dancing and singing.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"570d5582-8245-4c57-88a8-324c5febd8f0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance in theatre","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7gbwv4bn7v","content":[{"text":"In the entertainment centres, called wazi during the Song dynasty, various theatrical forms flourished and Chinese opera began to take shape, and dance started to become merged into opera. Dances such as \"Dance Judgement\" (舞判, also called the Dance of Zhong Kui, 跳鐘馗) became opera pieces in the Ming dynasty, as well as dances of the Song dynasty such as Flapping the Flag (撲旗子). Other dances found in opera include the Sword Dance. Chinese opera became very popular by the Yuan dynasty, and dances became absorbed into opera over the following centuries.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"570d5582-8245-4c57-88a8-324c5febd8f0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"acpfje6rgp","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Dance in China”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"570d5582-8245-4c57-88a8-324c5febd8f0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8z4y9cb403","content":[{"text":"Chinese dance is aspect of Chinese culture, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"46defb60-97c6-48af-b28a-0d288381beab"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tsn0n6cs9q","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"46defb60-97c6-48af-b28a-0d288381beab"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-08T05:47:30.799Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/chinese-dance"}
{"id":"3ac08fc9-a8d4-46d4-bf67-e974c3fbd7eb","type":"art_form","slug":"cibi","title":"Cibi","summary":"The Cibi (Fijian pronunciation: [ˈðimbi] DHIM-bee) is a Fijian meke of Bauan origin and war dance, generally performed before or after a battle.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qfams2zwek","content":[{"text":"The Cibi (Fijian pronunciation: [ˈðimbi] DHIM-bee) is a Fijian meke of Bauan origin and war dance, generally performed before or after a battle. It came to prominence in the rugby field in 1939 when it was performed by the Fiji national rugby union team before the match. It is also known as Teivovo (\"war fence\", from tei voavoa, 'planting on abandoned land').","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0dcfc5d5-d6c3-4409-abeb-747d2ef09c57"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origins","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kvg112qrxx","content":[{"text":"The origins of the cibi date back to the country's warring times with their Pacific neighbours and intertribal warfare. On their return home the warriors heralded their victory by displaying flags – one for every enemy slain. They were met by the women who would sing songs with accompanying gestures. The cibi was meant for open battle to inspire the troops, but it was sung with more vigour when the victorious army returned home to celebrate.\nIn 1939, when Fiji prepared for its first-ever tour of New Zealand, the captain, Ratu Sir George Cakobau, thought his team should have a war dance to match the All Blacks' haka. He approached Ratu Bola, the high chief of the warrior clan of Navusaradave in Bau, who taught them the Cibi which has been adopted as Fiji's pre-match ritual ever since and went on to become the only team to remain unbeaten on a full tour of New Zealand.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0dcfc5d5-d6c3-4409-abeb-747d2ef09c57"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"The chant","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vn2tw29jgh","content":[{"text":"The cibi had perhaps been used incorrectly though, as the word actually means \"a celebration of victory by warriors\", \"a dance of triumph\" whereas bole or ibole is the acceptance of a challenge. For this reason, the Cibi was replaced in 2012 with the new Bole (pronounced [ˈᵐbole] mbo-lay) war cry. The Bole war cry has a lot more energy compared to the Cibi and seems far more fitting for the gruelling match that is about to commence, However, after the 2012 Pacific Nations Rugby Cup, the Cibi returned to be used.\nThe Bole however has not been used after the 2012 Pacific Nations Rugby Cup match against Tonga. The Flying Fijians have opted to use the Cibi for the rest of their matches. The current reason for the team removing the Bole is unknown.\nComposed by Ratu Manoa Rasigatale, the Bole is translated as follows:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0dcfc5d5-d6c3-4409-abeb-747d2ef09c57"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"678qwet56m","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Cibi”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0dcfc5d5-d6c3-4409-abeb-747d2ef09c57"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mp3dmvrhy1","content":[{"text":"Cibi is Fijian type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"faf192a9-b15f-4ab0-9c81-925660e2cad5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vb2z13cbca","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"faf192a9-b15f-4ab0-9c81-925660e2cad5"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Fijan Cibi before 07 RWC match against Canada","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6f/Cibi_RWC07.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Brett Lees-Smith from Nuneaton, Warwickshire, United Kingdom","height":721,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Fijan Cibi before 07 RWC match against Canada","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6f/Cibi_RWC07.jpg/960px-Cibi_RWC07.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cibi_RWC07.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6f/Cibi_RWC07.jpg/1280px-Cibi_RWC07.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"},{"alt":"19/11/10 Wales v Fiji, Millennium Stadium, Cardiff, Wales","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0d/The_Fiji_cibi_%285190205131%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Jon Candy from Cardiff, Wales","height":791,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"19/11/10 Wales v Fiji, Millennium Stadium, Cardiff, Wales","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0d/The_Fiji_cibi_%285190205131%29.jpg/960px-The_Fiji_cibi_%285190205131%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:The_Fiji_cibi_(5190205131).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0d/The_Fiji_cibi_%285190205131%29.jpg/1280px-The_Fiji_cibi_%285190205131%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"},{"alt":"RWC 2007 Canada 16 - Fiji 29","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/77/Fiji_vs_Canada_RWC2007_cibi.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Jason Eckmire from London, England","height":728,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"RWC 2007 Canada 16 - Fiji 29","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/77/Fiji_vs_Canada_RWC2007_cibi.jpg/960px-Fiji_vs_Canada_RWC2007_cibi.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Fiji_vs_Canada_RWC2007_cibi.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/77/Fiji_vs_Canada_RWC2007_cibi.jpg/1280px-Fiji_vs_Canada_RWC2007_cibi.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:09.925Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/cibi"}
{"id":"c4455c94-2086-4c2b-ba23-4cd29cc2fe45","type":"art_form","slug":"classical-ballet","title":"classical ballet","summary":"Classical ballet is any of the traditional, formal styles of ballet that exclusively employ classical ballet technique.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"p5z5hvq5p9","content":[{"text":"Classical ballet is any of the traditional, formal styles of ballet that exclusively employ classical ballet technique. It is known for its aesthetics and rigorous technique (such as pointe work, turnout of the legs, and high extensions), its flowing, precise movements, and its ethereal qualities.\nThere are stylistic variations related to an area or origin, which are denoted by classifications such as Russian ballet, French ballet, British ballet and Italian ballet. For example, Russian ballet features high extensions and dynamic turns, whereas Italian ballet tends to be more grounded, with a focus on fast, intricate footwork. Many of the stylistic variations are associated with specific training methods that have been named after their originators. Despite these variations, the performance and vocabulary of classical ballet are largely consistent throughout the world.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"073b311f-7861-4a10-89ef-7cf2ca727e15"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6knpyj2tea","content":[{"text":"Ballet originated in the Italian Renaissance courts and was brought to France by Catherine de' Medici in the 16th century. During ballet's infancy, court ballets were performed by aristocratic amateurs rather than professional dancers. Most of ballet's early movements evolved from social court dances and prominently featured stage patterns rather than formal ballet technique.\nIn the 17th century, as ballet's popularity in France increased, ballet began to gradually transform into a professional art. It was no longer performed by amateurs, but instead ballet performances started to incorporate challenging acrobatic movements that could only be performed by highly skilled street entertainers. In response, the world's first ballet school, the Académie Royale de Danse, was established by King Louis XIV in 1661. The Academie's purpose was to improve the quality of dance training in France and to invent a technique or curriculum that could be used to transform ballet into a formal discipline. Shortly after the Academie was formed, in 1672, King Louis XIV established a performing company called the Academie Royal de Musique de Dance (today known as Paris Opera), and named Pierre Beauchamp the head dancing-master. While at the Academie Royal, Beauchamp revolutionized ballet technique by inventing the five positions (first, second, third, fourth and fifth) of ballet, which to this day remain the foundation of all formal classical ballet technique.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"073b311f-7861-4a10-89ef-7cf2ca727e15"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Famous dancers in history","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"evacn5sygh","content":[{"text":"Anna Pavlova: 12 February 1881 – 23 January 1931\nDame Margot Fonteyn: 18 May 1919 – 21 February 1991\nRudolf Nureyev: 17 March 1938 – 6 January 1993","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"073b311f-7861-4a10-89ef-7cf2ca727e15"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Development","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"x0kexrn95a","content":[{"text":"Before classical ballet developed, ballet was in a period referred to as the Romantic era. Romantic ballet was known for its storytelling, and often held a softer aesthetic. Classical ballet came to be when a ballet master by the name of Marius Petipa (who is considered to be one of the greatest choreographers of all time) took Romantic ballet and combined it with different aspects of Russian ballet technique (as Petipa was once a choreographer and ballet master at Mariinsky Ballet). Elements pulled from these things include the storytelling found in Romantic ballet, and the athleticism of Russian technique. Therefore, a new era of ballet, which later became known as the classical era, began. Even though he was responsible for bringing in the classical ballet era, Petipa was also responsible for choreographing well-known romantic ballets such as Giselle.\nDuring the classical era, Marius Petipa was largely responsible for creating choreographic structures that are still used in ballets today. For one, Petipa was the first to use the grand pas de deux in his choreography. Additionally, he cemented the usage of the corps de ballet as a standard part of a ballet. Despite his ushering in of the classical era, these elements can be seen in his romantic ballets as well.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"073b311f-7861-4a10-89ef-7cf2ca727e15"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Famous classical ballets","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"00fd4rfkba","content":[{"text":"Don Quixote: choreographed by Marius Petipa\nSwan Lake: choreographed by Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov\nThe Nutcracker: choreographed by Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"073b311f-7861-4a10-89ef-7cf2ca727e15"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Technique","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"swd527aceb","content":[{"text":"Ballet technique is the foundational principles of body movement and form used in ballet. A distinctive feature of ballet technique is turnout; which is the outward rotation of the legs and feet emanating from the hip. This was first introduced into ballet by King Louis XIV because he loved to show off the shiny buckles on his shoes when he performed his own dances. There are five fundamental positions of the feet in ballet, all performed with turnout and named numerically as first through fifth positions. When performing jumps and leaps, classical ballet dancers strive to exhibit ballon, the appearance of briefly floating in the air. Pointe technique is the part of ballet technique that concerns pointe work, in which a ballet dancer supports all body weight on the tips of fully extended feet on specially designed and handcrafted pointe shoes. In professional companies, the shoes are made to fit the dancers' feet perfectly.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"073b311f-7861-4a10-89ef-7cf2ca727e15"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yq2mn9v5cy","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Classical ballet”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"073b311f-7861-4a10-89ef-7cf2ca727e15"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"x3aq339q5b","content":[{"text":"classical ballet is traditional, formal style of ballet, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f1759da5-b774-46de-8734-8089b60c3954"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ta5whxad8z","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 11 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f1759da5-b774-46de-8734-8089b60c3954"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Балет \"Жар-Птица\" в исполнении артистов театра Касаткиной и Василёва в рамках фестиваля \"Театральный бульвар\", Москва, 27 июня 2026","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f9/2026-06-27_-_L%27Oiseau_de_feu_of_Kasatkina_and_Vasilyev_Classical_Ballet_Theatre.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Voltmetro","height":899,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Балет \"Жар-Птица\" в исполнении артистов театра Касаткиной и Василёва в рамках фестиваля \"Театральный бульвар\", Москва, 27 июня 2026","licence":"CC BY 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f9/2026-06-27_-_L%27Oiseau_de_feu_of_Kasatkina_and_Vasilyev_Classical_Ballet_Theatre.jpg/960px-2026-06-27_-_L%27Oiseau_de_feu_of_Kasatkina_and_Vasilyev_Classical_Ballet_Theatre.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:2026-06-27_-_L%27Oiseau_de_feu_of_Kasatkina_and_Vasilyev_Classical_Ballet_Theatre.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f9/2026-06-27_-_L%27Oiseau_de_feu_of_Kasatkina_and_Vasilyev_Classical_Ballet_Theatre.jpg/1280px-2026-06-27_-_L%27Oiseau_de_feu_of_Kasatkina_and_Vasilyev_Classical_Ballet_Theatre.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0"},{"alt":"Anchorage Classical Ballet Nutcracker program December 7-8, 2018","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6e/Anchorage_Classical_Ballet_Nutcracker.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"No author or photographer.","height":1707,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Anchorage Classical Ballet Nutcracker program December 7-8, 2018","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6e/Anchorage_Classical_Ballet_Nutcracker.jpg/960px-Anchorage_Classical_Ballet_Nutcracker.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Anchorage_Classical_Ballet_Nutcracker.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6e/Anchorage_Classical_Ballet_Nutcracker.jpg/1280px-Anchorage_Classical_Ballet_Nutcracker.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:09.328Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/classical-ballet"}
{"id":"da396dcb-dc4b-43cb-bbda-345d4afd9bfa","type":"art_form","slug":"clogging","title":"clogging","summary":"Clogging, buck dancing, or flatfoot dancing is a type of folk dance practiced in the United States, in which the dancer's footwear is used percussively by striking the heel, the toe, or both against a floor or each other to create audible r…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hw6tedny9c","content":[{"text":"Clogging, buck dancing, or flatfoot dancing is a type of folk dance practiced in the United States, in which the dancer's footwear is used percussively by striking the heel, the toe, or both against a floor or each other to create audible rhythms, usually to the downbeat with the heel keeping the rhythm. Clogging can be found at various old-time and bluegrass music festivals. \nClogging is the official state dance of Kentucky and North Carolina.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1ca22d46-4574-4b99-bfe5-0e92d37d48cf"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Antecedents","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"j689kmxsxz","content":[{"text":"In the United States, team clogging originated from square dance teams in Asheville, North Carolina's Mountain Dance and Folk Festival (1928), organized by Bascom Lamar Lunsford in cultural Appalachia.\nThe Soco Gap Dancers performed at the White House in 1939, which caused an uptick in the popularity of team clogging.\nAmerican clogging is associated with the predecessor to bluegrass—\"old-time\" music, which is based on Anglo-Celtic (English and Irish) fiddle tunes by white Appalachians as well as Affrilachian banjo tunes. Clogging primarily developed from interaction between Irish step dancing called Sean-nós dance and Black American buck dancing; there were also influences from English, Scottish, German, and Cherokee step dances. It was from clogging that tap dance eventually evolved. Now, many clogging teams compete against other teams for prizes such as money and trophies.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1ca22d46-4574-4b99-bfe5-0e92d37d48cf"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Terminology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nrm0qrpa8t","content":[{"text":"The term \"buck\", as in \"buck dancing\", is traceable to the West Indies and is derived from a Tupi Indian word denoting a frame or hurdle for drying and smoking meat; the original po bockarau or buccaneers were sailors who ate smoked meat and fish after the manner of the Indians. Another source states that the word bockorau can be traced to the Angolan word \"buckra', and was used to refer to white people, which is disputed. However the word is known and currently used in Gullah Geechi culture of the Southeast region of the U.S. Eventually the term came to describe Irish immigrant sailors whose jig dance was known as \"the buck\".\nOne source states that buck dancing was the earliest combination of the basic shuffle and tap steps performed to syncopated rhythms in which accents are placed not on the straight beat, as with the jigs, clogs, and other dances of European origin, but on the downbeat or offbeat, a style derived primarily from the rhythms of American Black tribal music.\nYet another etymology of the word argues that it derives from the word \"buck\", used as a pejorative term for American Black men in the 19th century. Buck dancing was popularized in the United States by minstrel performers by European American men in blackface who would engage in American Black stereotypes in the late 19th century during their shows.\nMany folk festivals and fairs utilize dancing clubs or teams to perform both buck and regular clogging for entertainment.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1ca22d46-4574-4b99-bfe5-0e92d37d48cf"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b2dzcbwaxj","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Clogging”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1ca22d46-4574-4b99-bfe5-0e92d37d48cf"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9m1kjvqfcm","content":[{"text":"clogging is North American fast-footwork folk dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"87b620ba-f980-49fa-953b-41ddb6921662"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0yt8xcy2qq","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 10 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"87b620ba-f980-49fa-953b-41ddb6921662"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Paula Bradley and Kristin Andreassen clogging with Uncle Earl at Kult , Niederstetten","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/42/Clogging_01.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Schorle","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Paula Bradley and Kristin Andreassen clogging with Uncle Earl at Kult , Niederstetten","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/42/Clogging_01.jpg/960px-Clogging_01.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Clogging_01.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/42/Clogging_01.jpg/1280px-Clogging_01.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:22.179Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/clogging"}
{"id":"6a05121f-8b56-46ce-a3b0-64021507da50","type":"art_form","slug":"combat-hopak","title":"combat hopak","summary":"Combat Hopak (also Boyovyy Hopak, Boyovyi Hopak from Ukrainian: Бойовий гопак) is a Cossack martial art from Ukraine. It was systematised and codified in 1985 by Volodymyr Pylat (a descendant of a Cossack family from western Ukraine).","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k5sb04x1qv","content":[{"text":"Combat Hopak (also Boyovyy Hopak, Boyovyi Hopak from Ukrainian: Бойовий гопак) is a Cossack martial art from Ukraine. It was systematised and codified in 1985 by Volodymyr Pylat (a descendant of a Cossack family from western Ukraine). It can be trained in light, semi and full contact formulae. Combat Hopak includes techniques of traditional Ukrainian folk fist fighting, folk wrestling, Cossack sabre fencing, and Cossack war dances like the hopak and the Povzunets (Cossack dance centered around crawling and squat position movements) and the metelytsia. Combat Hopak practitioners wear traditional Ukrainian embroidered shirts, wide long cloth belt and Sharavary. Combat Hopak fighters also wear shoes like practitioners of Savate and perform kicks while wearing them.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"73ea347d-608d-4da7-b7e6-c496437f3dfa"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Ukraine","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4dc8x8beqr","content":[{"text":"In Ukraine, schools of Combat Hopak are present in most parts of country. Students of this martial art take part in tournaments in cossack free fighting, kickboxing, wrestling, and MMA formulas in Ukraine.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"73ea347d-608d-4da7-b7e6-c496437f3dfa"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Outside Ukraine","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zteb73pah8","content":[{"text":"It has schools in Poland, Canada, the United States, Germany, Portugal.\nCombat Hopak team was representing the style during Chungju World Martial Arts Festival in 2001.\nIn 2019 representation of Combat Hopak toured France.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"73ea347d-608d-4da7-b7e6-c496437f3dfa"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Subtypes of Combat Hopak","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2sx76xvnad","content":[{"text":"Combat Hopak can be trained in 4 ways:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"73ea347d-608d-4da7-b7e6-c496437f3dfa"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0gsjty9y9w","content":[{"text":"Оздоровчий (Fitness) — as a form of gymnastics for health improvement\nФольклорно-мистецький (Theatrical) — preparations of forms for stage shows and presentations\nСпортивний (Sport) — as regular contact sport for kickboxing, wrestling and MMA sport tournaments\nБойовий (Combat) — military grade hand-to-hand and weapon combat.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"73ea347d-608d-4da7-b7e6-c496437f3dfa"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Systems - descendants of Combat Hopak","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6956qa3ven","content":[{"text":"Asgarda (officially formed in 2004)","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"73ea347d-608d-4da7-b7e6-c496437f3dfa"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"In popular culture","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3wcwmnh9r9","content":[{"text":"Choreography of dancers in Ruslana's entry in Eurovision Song Contest 2004 included elements of Combat Hopak. Also video clips aired during Eurovision Song Contest 2005 intermissions were including presentations of Combat Hopak by adepts of the style.\nUkrainian group Tartak video clip for their song \"Nashe Lito\" includes practitioners of Combat Hopak presenting technique.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"73ea347d-608d-4da7-b7e6-c496437f3dfa"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8wfbpy744a","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Combat Hopak”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"73ea347d-608d-4da7-b7e6-c496437f3dfa"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wdfdvr4x3q","content":[{"text":"combat hopak is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3f7b3d16-79ed-49a2-bfcc-283945670c59"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b41zwd28n1","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3f7b3d16-79ed-49a2-bfcc-283945670c59"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"YAVORIV, Ukraine -- A Soldier from the Ukrainian military stands in formation during Exercise Rapid Trident’s opening ceremony here Sept. 15. Rapid Trident is an annual U.S. Army Europe conducted, Ukrainian led multinational exercise designed to enhance interoperability with…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f3/Rapid_Trident_2014_06.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"U.S. Army Europe Images","height":727,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"YAVORIV, Ukraine -- A Soldier from the Ukrainian military stands in formation during Exercise Rapid Trident’s opening ceremony here Sept. 15. Rapid Trident is an annual U.S. Army Europe conducted, Ukrainian led multinational exercise designed to enhance interoperability with…","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f3/Rapid_Trident_2014_06.jpg/960px-Rapid_Trident_2014_06.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Rapid_Trident_2014_06.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f3/Rapid_Trident_2014_06.jpg/1280px-Rapid_Trident_2014_06.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:21.451Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/combat-hopak"}
{"id":"1c1df315-5866-4656-be4f-386187c4e553","type":"art_form","slug":"competitive-dance","title":"competitive dance","summary":"Competitive dance is a popular, widespread sport in which competitors perform dances in any of several permitted dance styles—such as open, acro, ballet, contemporary, jazz, hip-hop, lyrical, modern, musical theatre, tap, and improv—before …","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"h8pwnje8rj","content":[{"text":"Competitive dance is a popular, widespread sport in which competitors perform dances in any of several permitted dance styles—such as open, acro, ballet, contemporary, jazz, hip-hop, lyrical, modern, musical theatre, tap, and improv—before a panel of judges, typically with professional dance experience. This differs from other dance-related competitions based on specific styles or purposes, such as pom squad and dancesport (competitive ballroom dance).\nThe competitive dance industry largely consists of competition production companies (sometimes called dance competition companies or competition lines) that conduct regional competitions at stops along their annual, nationwide tours. Dancers who compete at these regional competitions are students typically ranging in age from five to eighteen. After competing regionally, qualifying routines and studios go on to compete nationally towards the end of their season. Dance schools (often referred to as dance studios or academies) arrange for their classes to compete in a range of disciplines as solos, duets, trios, or in a small group dance in addition to or in place of large group routines or lines or productions, used for larger groups of dancers. Competitions typically begin in January and end in July or August.\nCompetitive dancers must be physically fit because even short dances can be physically demanding. Dancers must continuously train to maintain and improve their technique, balance skills, strength and flexibility.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2d276c2b-4f77-4b54-b6c0-730b8f69e2dd"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance music","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6vwtvmeypa","content":[{"text":"The gnarly used in competitive dance routines is typically adapted from commercially available songs created by professional recording artists or in the world of competitive ballet and musical theater can be performed by a live pianist or even a full band. Dance routines are subject to time limits at most dance competitions, and consequently the original, commercial music is usually edited to conform to such time limits.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2d276c2b-4f77-4b54-b6c0-730b8f69e2dd"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Standards","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gm5nakx2q7","content":[{"text":"There is no industry-wide standard for scoring, but awards are typically awarded in this order: Bronze, High Bronze, Silver, High Silver, Gold, High Gold, Platinum, High Platinum, and Diamond. The maximum number of points issued by each judge, as well as the maximum possible final score, varies among competition production companies. Although it is common for judges to issue a maximum of 100 points each, at least one company implements a system in which judges may issue up to 200 points, based on the rationale that such a scoring system is similar to that employed in public schools.\nAlthough scoring at dance competitions varies, judges usually give scores based on score technique, performance, costume, music, and difficulty level of the performance. Each competition's ranks are different. The performances are usually ranked within each dance category. \nMost competitions have opportunities for dancers to win title positions. Titles include Mr. and Miss Dance for petites (ages commonly 8 and under), juniors (ages 9–11), teens (12–14), and seniors (15–19). These competitions normally include dancers who choose to pay an extra fee to run for title. Although these scoring systems vary from different dance competitions, most go along these basic rules.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2d276c2b-4f77-4b54-b6c0-730b8f69e2dd"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Competitive dance industry","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jma5mptj1a","content":[{"text":"Dance competitions are organized and conducted by independent competition production companies, such as OneBeat Dance Brands. In 2007 there were at least 150 such companies operating in the United States and Canada alone. Competition production companies move from one metropolitan area to another, stopping for a few days in each area to conduct a regional competition. By touring in this manner, these companies are able to generate profits while at the same time enabling significant numbers of dancers to attend local competitions. Some companies also conduct one or more national competitions after their regional tours have ended.\nThe competitive dance industry has no oversight body or standards organization, although at least one effort was attempted to establish a limited set of competition rules and safety standards in the industry. Competition production companies seldom coordinate their tours with each other. Tour start and end dates, as well as cities visited, vary from one company to another. Most companies conduct regional tours from approximately January through May, while National competitions generally run from June through August. It is not uncommon for two regional tours to be visiting the same metropolitan area at the same time.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2d276c2b-4f77-4b54-b6c0-730b8f69e2dd"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Competitive divisions","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vjvz7zc24b","content":[{"text":"Dances and performers typically are categorized in various ways so as to create different competitive divisions. These categories are not standardized, and may vary significantly from one competition to another:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2d276c2b-4f77-4b54-b6c0-730b8f69e2dd"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c9am860ten","content":[{"text":"Age – Each dancer is assigned to a particular age division, wherein each division encompasses a range of ages.\nExperience – Each dance is assigned to a particular competitive division based on performers' experience.\nGroup size – Dances are also categorized according to the number of performers. Common categories include solo (one performer), duo/trio (two or three performers), small group (four-eight performers), large group (nine to around twenty performers), and line or production (twenty-one or more performers)\nThese divisions are intended to ensure that dancers will compete against others of the same age and experience, and similarly sized groups, and thus avoid unfair comparisons (e.g., beginner vs. advanced).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2d276c2b-4f77-4b54-b6c0-730b8f69e2dd"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Videography and photography","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tqwk0n5134","content":[{"text":"The choreography of a dance routine—which is the design of movement and flow of steps in the routine—is copyrightable. Consequently, video recording is often prohibited at dance competitions in order to steer clear of copyright infringement issues. Nowadays, most competition companies take photos and videos for dance schools. When no professional videographer is available, competition production companies will sometimes permit each attending dance school to designate a videographer to record performances of students from that school.\nUnlike videography, still photography does not infringe copyrighted choreography. Because of this, many competition production companies permit photography at their competitions. Virtually all competitions prohibit flash photography, however, both for the safety of performers and to prevent undesirable distractions. Some competition production companies employ professional photographers to capture and sell photographs of dance performances. Other competitions, such as Groove Dance Competition and Beyond The Stars, offer free photos and videos to registered competitors.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2d276c2b-4f77-4b54-b6c0-730b8f69e2dd"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dt91gxn4fz","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Competitive dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2d276c2b-4f77-4b54-b6c0-730b8f69e2dd"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nzrhkbmaw6","content":[{"text":"competitive dance is sport where dancing is judged, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"67d060ee-bbd2-413a-8c80-c2263a0eb366"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zapcrv1wyz","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 7 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"67d060ee-bbd2-413a-8c80-c2263a0eb366"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"An acro dancer ( Daria L ) pauses in a handstand during a competitive dance performance before proceeding to handwalk across the stage.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d1/AcroDanceHandstand.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"© Jim Lamberson","height":1808,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"An acro dancer ( Daria L ) pauses in a handstand during a competitive dance performance before proceeding to handwalk across the stage.","licence":"CC BY 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d1/AcroDanceHandstand.jpg/960px-AcroDanceHandstand.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:AcroDanceHandstand.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d1/AcroDanceHandstand.jpg/1280px-AcroDanceHandstand.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:11.278Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/competitive-dance"}
{"id":"4237ce5a-2de9-4f07-b916-f3865ae022f8","type":"art_form","slug":"concert-dance","title":"concert dance","summary":"Concert dance (also known as performance dance, theatre dance, or dance theatre in the United Kingdom) is dance performed for an audience, often with theatrical elements such as rehearsed choreography, costumes, set-pieces, and potentially …","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jpb2bqp1mr","content":[{"text":"Concert dance (also known as performance dance, theatre dance, or dance theatre in the United Kingdom) is dance performed for an audience, often with theatrical elements such as rehearsed choreography, costumes, set-pieces, and potentially narrative elements. It is frequently performed in a theatre setting, though this is not a requirement, and it is usually choreographed and performed to set music.\nBy contrast, social dance and participation dance may be performed without an audience and, typically, these dance forms are neither choreographed nor danced to set music, though there are exceptions. For example, some ceremonial dances and baroque dances blend concert dance with participation dance by having participants assume the role of performer or audience at different moments.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"33969dcb-cc60-4b32-b6c4-b4ef83a17c21"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Forms","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"16kewg1dg8","content":[{"text":"Many dance styles are principally performed in a concert dance context, including these:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"33969dcb-cc60-4b32-b6c4-b4ef83a17c21"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mjfwy5pf2f","content":[{"text":"Ballet originated as courtroom dance in Italy, then flourished in France and Russia before spreading across Europe and abroad. Over time, it became an academic discipline taught in schools and institutions. Amateur and professional troupes formed, bringing ballet from the courts to the theater and making it one of the most widely performed concert dance styles today.\nModern dance and contemporary dance emerged largely as 20th century offshoot of traditional ballet technique; although modern and contemporary dance have each evolved their own quality of movement, sharing only a portion of their common repertoire of techniques, both of the newer genres continue to be performed primarily in a concert/theatre hall setting.\nAcrobatic dance emerged in the United States and Canada in the early 1900s as one of the types of acts performed in vaudeville. Acro dance has evolved significantly since then, with dance movements now founded in ballet technique. From its inception, acro dance has been a concert dance form.\nClassical Indian dance originated in temples in India. After the Indian independence movement (1947 to 1950), dance became a university subject, dance schools appeared for the first time, and classical Indian dance became a concert dance form performed in theaters.\nClassical Persian dance was elevated to an art form during the Qajar dynasty (1795 to 1925). It was performed in the royal court of the Shah and it remained there and among the elite and bourgeois families until the 20th century.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"33969dcb-cc60-4b32-b6c4-b4ef83a17c21"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"In the United Kingdom","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"taqawqtdfn","content":[{"text":"In the United Kingdom, theatre dance is a common term used to indicate a range of performance dance disciplines. It is widely used in reference to the teaching of dance. The UK has a number of dance training and examination boards, with the majority having a separate branch dedicated to theatre dance, with codified syllabi in each technique. Many dance teachers and schools worldwide, prepare their pupils for dance examinations and qualifications with a UK-based organisation, with notable examples including the Royal Academy of Dance, the Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing and the International Dance Teachers Association. All UK theatre dance organisations are consistent in offering classical ballet, tap and modern or jazz as their core theatre branch subjects.  Many also offer 'theatre craft' or 'stage dance', which is devised to reflect the choreography seen in musical theatre.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"33969dcb-cc60-4b32-b6c4-b4ef83a17c21"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cq4tpsjy19","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Concert dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"33969dcb-cc60-4b32-b6c4-b4ef83a17c21"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fak1t1xezq","content":[{"text":"concert dance is type of dance (performing arts genre), according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"028c74f9-4365-481c-9010-f6ce04366581"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"j5ez7awm1k","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 10 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"028c74f9-4365-481c-9010-f6ce04366581"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Three ballet dancers performing a grand jeté jump","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a0/Grandjete.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"jeff medaugh from denver, US","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Three ballet dancers performing a grand jeté jump","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a0/Grandjete.jpg/960px-Grandjete.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Grandjete.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a0/Grandjete.jpg/1280px-Grandjete.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:03.707Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/concert-dance"}
{"id":"7fc0b79b-6781-4030-90bd-2658ad82dc27","type":"art_form","slug":"concheros","title":"Concheros","summary":"The Concheros dance, also known as the dance of the Chichimecas, Aztecas and Mexicas, is an important traditional dance and ceremony which has been performed in Mexico since early in the colonial period.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ks3nhvz7dx","content":[{"text":"The Concheros dance, also known as the dance of the Chichimecas, Aztecas and Mexicas, is an important traditional dance and ceremony which has been performed in Mexico since early in the colonial period. It presents syncretic features both pre-Hispanic and Christian. The dance has strong visual markers of its pre-Hispanic roots with feathered regalia, indigenous dance steps and indigenous instruments such as drums. However, the name Concheros comes from a type of lute made with an armadillo shell, showing Spanish influence. The dance in its current form was the adaptation of the old \"mitote\" dance to Catholicism as a means of preserving some aspects of indigenous rite. It remained a purely religious ceremony until the mid 20th century when political and social changes in Mexico also gave it cultural significance as a folk dance. Since the later 20th century, a sub group of the dance called Mexicas has emerged with the aim of eliminating the European influence, often with political aims. This form of the dance migrated to the United States in the mid-1970s and can be seen in states such as California in Mexican American communities.\nAlthough the dance tradition has been known (especially in the U.S.) as \"Aztec\" or \"Mexica,\" it is not indigenous to them in any way. The roots of the conchero dances (and thus the roots of the modern \"Mexica\" dances tradition) is deeply rooted in the Chichimeca cultures of the north.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4f7c6ac4-f2e9-49c0-8cc6-c11f80f86894"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qzfwc0rsra","content":[{"text":"While \"Concheros\" is the oldest and most common name for the dance as performed today, other names are used such as Huehuenches, Chichimecas, Aztecas and Mexicas. Some are regional and some are names that have been used more recently to mark how the dance has evolved.\nThe dance emerged shortly after the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire. It is based on the old \"mitote\" dance, but modified to include Catholic symbolism as a means of preserving ancient ritual. While the Spanish tried to eliminate as much indigenous culture as possible, total eradication was not possible. In the case of dance, that which could not be suppressed was adapted to Christianity to facilitate the evangelization process. Early dances often had a pre Hispanic idol buried or otherwise hidden.\nThe dance's origin has been ascribed to the Bajío region, Querétaro and even Tlaxcala, all on the outer edges of the former Aztec Empire. One theory states that it originated as part of a large number of dance innovations, such as re enactments of the Conquest or the battle that subdued the Otomis and Chichimecas near what is now the city of Querétaro . The dance adopted Spanish military terms for its lead dancers such as captain and lieutenant and was originally done by lords and princes who would perform in their finery. This tradition of performing the dance in as fantastic a costume as possible continues to this day. Since then, the dance has been passed down generations. By the 19th century, dancers performed in close collaboration with Catholic confraternities with limited membership often by lineage, which is still the case in many small towns and villages.\nSometime before the end of the 19th century, migrant workers brought the dance to Mexico City and other nearby cities.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4f7c6ac4-f2e9-49c0-8cc6-c11f80f86894"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Performance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rg5pr91afn","content":[{"text":"While the dance contains a number of highly visual markers of its pre Hispanic roots, it is not strictly indigenous. The dance, with its variations, is a multilayered phenomenon with both religious, cultural and political meanings, depending on the people involved. Most in Mexico who participate in dances say that they do it for personal and/or spiritual reasons, and many are those with mundane city jobs during the week looking for something the \"transcends\" the ordinary. Most dancers do not do so as performance although the dancers generally attract spectators.\nConcheros do not dance alone but are generally organized into groups with hierarchies. The basic group is called a \"mesa\" (lit. table). The most traditional of the Conchero groups in Mexico are registered with the Association of Concheros, and generally part of a complex associative network based on interpersonal relationships. Most conchero groups consider themselves as \"descendents\" of a \"dance forefather\" who is named in the standard of the mesa.  Each mesa has a group of officers such as a captain, alférez, sergeants and soldiers with a special post held by women called malinche. The captain may be a man or a woman but the post is often hereditary and is recognized by other Conchero groups. The captain's house contains an altar with the image of the group's patron saint as well as the group's standard. The captain is in charge of organizing pilgrimages, and other ritual obligations, sometimes even paying for the expenses of the group. Dancers are both individual and group. The standard is held during events by the second lieutenant. Sergeants maintain order during ritual. Malinches are in charge of the censers for the constant ritual cleansing of space.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4f7c6ac4-f2e9-49c0-8cc6-c11f80f86894"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Uniforms – Atuendo","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bfs0zx9wqa","content":[{"text":"Clothing can range from completely covered to nearly nude.  Dancers dress as lavishly as economy permits. Regalia include various elements such as animal parts, painted scenes related to religion, history, war, hunting and agriculture. The most traditional outfits are made from natural elements, but are often mixed with commercial fabrics such as denim.\nThe most traditional Conchero dances wear tunics called naguillas (little skirt) and often a cape. These dancers will also have large quantities of gold and silver colored adornments and headdresses made of dyed ostrich feathers.  Azteca or Mexica costumes tend to not wear tunics, instead try to copy Aztec dress as depicted in Mesoamerican codices, sometimes with elements of North American Indian dress. Headdresses tend to be made with pheasant feathers. The two styles of dress are not completely separate, especially in Mexico, where Azteca dress has influenced that of the more traditional Concheros, and vice versa.\nOne other form of vestments is found in San Luis Potosí where the dance is called \"Apaches\". Here dancers wear trousers and a brightly colored shirt along with a naguilla covered in sequins and beads. They wear a headdress with colorful feathers and mirrors with calfskin-soled sandals on their feet. A wooden bow is held in the left hand and a gourd rattle is in the right. This style of uniforms has been greatly influenced by popular culture, and Hollywood movies.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4f7c6ac4-f2e9-49c0-8cc6-c11f80f86894"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance locations","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k0bn828vzn","content":[{"text":"Many Conchero (and Azteca) groups are located in and around Mexico City. But there are many, large and important groups in Querétaro (the birthplace of La Danza Conchera/Chichimeca/Azteca), Guanajuato, Jalisco (especially near Zapopan), Hidalgo, Morelos, Michoacán, Zacatecas, and as far north as Chihuahua. The dance sacred space of Mexico City reflects the older Otomí and Chichimeca space of Querétaro. Sacred sites like \"La Peña de Bernal, Tequizquiapan, and others, marked out the eight ritual directions of ancestor worship and annual cleansing.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4f7c6ac4-f2e9-49c0-8cc6-c11f80f86894"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"krrc8wbday","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Concheros”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4f7c6ac4-f2e9-49c0-8cc6-c11f80f86894"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ymq27tqy9t","content":[{"text":"Concheros is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"04e408f4-dbce-4189-8562-7e49df4e075e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s993mebpy6","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"04e408f4-dbce-4189-8562-7e49df4e075e"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Danza de concheros al Niño Limosnerito","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/68/Danza_de_concheros_al_Ni%C3%B1o_Limosnerito.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Wotancito","height":964,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Danza de concheros al Niño Limosnerito","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/68/Danza_de_concheros_al_Ni%C3%B1o_Limosnerito.jpg/960px-Danza_de_concheros_al_Ni%C3%B1o_Limosnerito.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Danza_de_concheros_al_Ni%C3%B1o_Limosnerito.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/68/Danza_de_concheros_al_Ni%C3%B1o_Limosnerito.jpg/1280px-Danza_de_concheros_al_Ni%C3%B1o_Limosnerito.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Danza de concheros al Niño Limosnerito","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1e/Danza_de_concheros_al_Ni%C3%B1o_Limosnerito_02.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Wotancito","height":964,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Danza de concheros al Niño Limosnerito","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1e/Danza_de_concheros_al_Ni%C3%B1o_Limosnerito_02.jpg/960px-Danza_de_concheros_al_Ni%C3%B1o_Limosnerito_02.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Danza_de_concheros_al_Ni%C3%B1o_Limosnerito_02.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1e/Danza_de_concheros_al_Ni%C3%B1o_Limosnerito_02.jpg/1280px-Danza_de_concheros_al_Ni%C3%B1o_Limosnerito_02.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Danza de concheros al Niño Limosnerito","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fd/Danza_de_concheros_al_Ni%C3%B1o_Limosnerito_03.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Wotancito","height":964,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Danza de concheros al Niño Limosnerito","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fd/Danza_de_concheros_al_Ni%C3%B1o_Limosnerito_03.jpg/960px-Danza_de_concheros_al_Ni%C3%B1o_Limosnerito_03.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Danza_de_concheros_al_Ni%C3%B1o_Limosnerito_03.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fd/Danza_de_concheros_al_Ni%C3%B1o_Limosnerito_03.jpg/1280px-Danza_de_concheros_al_Ni%C3%B1o_Limosnerito_03.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:11.772Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/concheros"}
{"id":"d579adf2-367f-4f12-8a93-0a82542e8734","type":"art_form","slug":"conga-line","title":"Conga line","summary":"The conga line is a novelty line dance that was derived from the Cuban carnival dance of the same name and became popular in the US in the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dvvn8mmzhd","content":[{"text":"The conga line is a novelty line dance that was derived from the Cuban carnival dance of the same name and became popular in the US in the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s. In order to perform the dance, dancers form a long, processing line, which would usually turn into a circle. It has three shuffle steps on the beat, followed by a kick that is slightly ahead of the fourth beat. The conga, a term sometimes mistakenly believed to be derived from the African region of Congo, is both a lyrical and danceable genre, rooted in the music of carnival troupes or comparsas.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1b76b9dc-230c-4bfd-abe6-17409012adcf"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origin","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2e55exqw34","content":[{"text":"The conga dance was believed to have been brought over from Africa by enslaved people in the West Indies, and became a popular street dance in Cuba. The style was appropriated by politicians during the early years of republic in an attempt to appeal to the masses before election. During Gerardo Machado's dictatorship in Cuba, Havana citizens were forbidden to dance the conga since rival groups would work themselves to high excitement and start street fights. This was not the case when Fulgencio Batista became president in the 1940s - he permitted people to dance congas during elections, but a police permit was required.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1b76b9dc-230c-4bfd-abe6-17409012adcf"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Description","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4tev873d6c","content":[{"text":"The conga dance style is more of a march, which is characterized by its distinctive conga drum rhythm. It differs from the Cuban rumba, which uses movements considered \"hip\" and shows the sensually aggressive attitude of each dancer. Conga music is played with a staccato beat as its base, which gives rhythm to the movements of the dancers. Conga dancers lift their legs in time with the rhythm of the music, marking each beat with the strong motion of their body.\nThe basic dance steps start from left leg 1-2-3 kick then repeat, opposite. Originally, a band member wearing a drum would venture onto the dance floor and begin zig-zagging around while drumming out the rhythm. Dancers would start joining up behind the drummer, forming a line that moves like a snake in an open circle. The line (or the circular chain) would grow longer and the drumming more intense until it finally stopped. The dance has two styles, which is a single line form and partners. The single line is more popular in Cuba.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1b76b9dc-230c-4bfd-abe6-17409012adcf"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Western popularity","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"g8yqdqznz0","content":[{"text":"Beginning in the late 1930s, the dance became popular in the United States. With its simple march step, the interlinking of dancers circling about in single file, and one-two-three-bump rhythm with the fourth beat strongly marked, the dance was not only attractive but also readily accessible to US and other foreign audiences. The dance started to gain a foothold in the US around 1929, when the original La Conga nightclub opened its doors in Manhattan. It is believed that the La Conga was at Broadway and 51st Street. By 1937, the conga was well known in New York.\nThis music and dance form has become totally assimilated into Cuba's musical heritage and has been used in many film soundtracks in the US and Mexico. One of the earliest and most successful of 20th-century Cuban musical exports, the conga lacked the polyrhythmic sophistication of the son, mambo, or salsa but served to nurture the future receptivity of an international public to the wider gamut of Cuban musical styles.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1b76b9dc-230c-4bfd-abe6-17409012adcf"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Similar dances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5rhhw8jbte","content":[{"text":"In Germany and the Netherlands, a similar dance is known as Polonaise, which is unrelated to the traditional Polish folk dance. The dance was popularized through the song Polonäse Blankenese (1981) by German singer Gottlieb Wendehals, which was also covered in Dutch by Arie Ribbens as Polonaise Hollandaise (1982). The dance is a staple of Carnival celebrations and other festivities, such as weddings and sport events.\nIn France, the dance is known as La chenille (the caterpillar). It was popularized through the 1977 song of the same name by La Bande à Basile.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1b76b9dc-230c-4bfd-abe6-17409012adcf"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"In popular culture","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tes2a4xd9p","content":[{"text":"The widespread popularity of the dance resulted in many cultural references in contemporary media.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1b76b9dc-230c-4bfd-abe6-17409012adcf"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"aet8pkpvcp","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Conga line”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1b76b9dc-230c-4bfd-abe6-17409012adcf"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"etepbqqw47","content":[{"text":"Conga line is international novelty dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"afb08cce-1dd5-492b-86e8-a3a20ccd954d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qygvjz5jq4","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 7 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"afb08cce-1dd5-492b-86e8-a3a20ccd954d"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"A crowded swimming pool . A conga line is being formed by some of the children .","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2f/Crowded_swimming_pool.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Brandt Luke Zorn","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"A crowded swimming pool . A conga line is being formed by some of the children .","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2f/Crowded_swimming_pool.jpg/960px-Crowded_swimming_pool.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Crowded_swimming_pool.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2f/Crowded_swimming_pool.jpg/1280px-Crowded_swimming_pool.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:29.094Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/conga-line"}
{"id":"f5c7877c-3ad7-4794-84fc-88bedaa49918","type":"art_form","slug":"contact-improvisation","title":"Contact Improvisation","summary":"Contact improvisation (CI) is a postmodern dance practice that explores movement through shared weight, touch, and physical awareness.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8gnttm4e61","content":[{"text":"Contact improvisation (CI) is a postmodern dance practice that explores movement through shared weight, touch, and physical awareness. Originating in the United States in 1972, contact improvisation was developed by dancer and choreographer Steve Paxton, drawing on influences from modern dance, aikido, and somatic practices. Contact Improvisation emphasizes the interplay of gravity, momentum, and improvisation, fostering an experimental approach to movement that invites both professional dancers and newcomers into its global community.\nThe practice involves continuous physical touch between dancers, where gravity, momentum, inertia, and friction shape their interactions.\nThe dance is further described by Paxton:\n\"The exigencies of the form dictate a mode of movement which is relaxed, constantly aware and prepared, and onflowing\".\nKnown for its open \"jams,\" contact improvisation is both a social dance and a tool for movement research, offering a unique blend of physicality and mindfulness. Formally, contact improvisation is a movement improvisation that is explored with another being. According to one of its first practitioners, Nancy Stark Smith, it \"resembles other familiar duet forms, such as the embrace, wrestling, surfing, martial arts, and the Jitterbug, encompassing a wide range of movement from stillness to highly athletic.\"\nContact improvisation has evolved into various formats, including performance art, experimental dance, and education.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"90f22f51-7689-4665-a8a4-6b3f7bb466a6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"From Magnesium to Contact Improvisations","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w0g2n80nhq","content":[{"text":"Contact improvisation was developed in the United States in the 1970s by a group of dancers and athletes gathered under the guidance of choreographer and dancer Steve Paxton.\nIn January 1972, Steve Paxton was in residence at Oberlin College during a tour with Grand Union, a collective where he collaborated with other prominent figures in postmodern dance, including Yvonne Rainer and Trisha Brown. For several weeks, he offered Oberlin students two sets of practices:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"90f22f51-7689-4665-a8a4-6b3f7bb466a6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yrwvycav8x","content":[{"text":"every morning at dawn, a \"soft class\" involving an exploration that he soon called the \"small dance,\" a form of meditation that is practiced standing, where attention is paid to postural adjustments and micro-weight transfers;\nand later in the day, rehearsals for a performance that he transmitted to a group of young men and whose score is to explore the extremes of movement and disorientation, from standing still to falling, rolling, colliding, and jumping in the air. For these rehearsals, Steve Paxton relied on his training in modern dance (he had danced in the companies of José Limón and Merce Cunningham), in aikido and in gymnastics.\nThe combination of these practices culminated in Magnesium, a twenty-minute performance in which dancers performed on gym mats. The piece involved jumping, bumping into each other, manipulating, and clinging to one another. Paxton described the movements as using \"the body as a whole, where all parts are simultaneously unbalanced or thrown against another body or into the air\". After about fifteen minutes, the dancers stop and start a \"Small Dance\" that concludes the performance.\nIn the Spring of 1972, Steve Paxton received a grant from Change, Inc which allowed him to invite dancers to work on the form he was evolving.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"90f22f51-7689-4665-a8a4-6b3f7bb466a6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Styles","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"37ebxjb134","content":[{"text":"Following the first performance of Contact Improvisations in New York in 1972, the participants scattered to different parts of the United States but soon began to teach the practice. The syncopated, risky, raw and awkward style of the first performances gave place rather quickly to a variety of aesthetics within the form.\nOne of those aesthetics was the development of smooth, continuous, controlled flow of quality in the late 1970s and early 1980s, running parallel with the opposite trend of interest in conflict and unexpected responses, including previously avoided eye contact and direct hand contact. Says Nancy Stark Smith,","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"90f22f51-7689-4665-a8a4-6b3f7bb466a6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kgqke9gh9h","content":[{"text":"Within the study of Contact Improvisation, the experience of flow was soon recognized and highlighted in our dancing. It became one of my favorite practices and I proceeded to \"do flow\" for many years-challenging it, testing it: could we flow through this pass? Could we squeak through that one, and keep going?\nRegardless of those aesthetic choices, the central characteristic of contact improvisation remains a focus on bodily awareness and physical reflexes rather than consciously controlled movements.  One of the founders of the form, Daniel Lepkoff, comments that the “precedence of body experience first, and mindful cognition second, is an essential distinction between Contact Improvisation and other approaches to dance.”  Another source affirms that the practice of contact improvisation involves “mindfulness, sensing and collecting information” as its core.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"90f22f51-7689-4665-a8a4-6b3f7bb466a6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Languaging and observing","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5ga4qtkmtf","content":[{"text":"In 1975, the dancers working with Steve Paxton considered trademarking the term contact improvisation in order to control the teaching and practice of the dance form, consequently for reasons of safety. This idea was rejected in favor of establishing a forum for communication: this became the Contact Newsletter founded by Nancy Stark Smith, which evolved into the bi-annual journal Contact Quarterly which continues to be published online by the non-profit Contact Collaborations (incorporated in 1978) after a final print edition came out in January 2020. The journal, now co-edited by Nancy Stark Smith and Lisa Nelson, brings together different reflections of contact improvisation teachers and practitioners and cements an international community by equipping it with a communication organ, as well as hosting several other orders of reflections, including writings by contemporary dancers and somatic practitioners. According to the magazine's statement,Contact Quarterly is the longest living, independent, artist-made, not-for-profit, reader-supported magazine devoted to the dancer's voice. Founded in 1975, Contact Quarterly (CQ) began as a forum for discussion of the emerging dance form Contact Improvisation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"90f22f51-7689-4665-a8a4-6b3f7bb466a6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Development of art-sport","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"d35pz2srhk","content":[{"text":"Since the mid-1970s, regular jams are present in most major cities in North America (New York City, Boston, San Francisco, and Montreal). Other multi-day residential spaces (such as the Breitenbush Jam, which has existed since 1981) have been in existence since the late 1970s. Remembers dancer Mark Pritchard,","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"90f22f51-7689-4665-a8a4-6b3f7bb466a6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"e05gzk3rtj","content":[{"text":"The 1979 Country Jam was a first of its kind in the Contact world: over fifty people from the western United States and Canada came together for twelve days of non-structured existence, life and dance: neither a workshop, a conference or a seminar, but an improvisational gathering, with the sole aim of creating a space for dancing and living in flux... Our days were without structure, except for meals: at the beginning, we planned to keep 90-minute slots for the courses, but the idea was quickly abandoned thanks to a system based on Supply and demand, in which each could suggest a topic to be dealt with and offer to lead a class.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"90f22f51-7689-4665-a8a4-6b3f7bb466a6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"In Europe","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"h47c0d4xvz","content":[{"text":"In Europe, contact improvisation was presented for the first time in 1973 (from June 25 to 28th) in an art gallery…","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"90f22f51-7689-4665-a8a4-6b3f7bb466a6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8c0erwxkt8","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Contact improvisation”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"90f22f51-7689-4665-a8a4-6b3f7bb466a6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vz2kyw3f20","content":[{"text":"Contact Improvisation is dance movement, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4f0c2f4d-a72e-4a70-bd19-420f7c163ddb"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zyagcrxc45","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 4 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4f0c2f4d-a72e-4a70-bd19-420f7c163ddb"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"This image of a Contact Improvisation trio was taken in Florence (MA) during a workshop held by Nancy Stark Smith, in January 2017.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3e/Contact_Improvisation_Trio_Dojo_Florence.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Koyaanisqatsi12","height":1252,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"This image of a Contact Improvisation trio was taken in Florence (MA) during a workshop held by Nancy Stark Smith, in January 2017.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3e/Contact_Improvisation_Trio_Dojo_Florence.jpg/960px-Contact_Improvisation_Trio_Dojo_Florence.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Contact_Improvisation_Trio_Dojo_Florence.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3e/Contact_Improvisation_Trio_Dojo_Florence.jpg/1280px-Contact_Improvisation_Trio_Dojo_Florence.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:05.821Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/contact-improvisation"}
{"id":"af4b0086-e2a4-4375-bc36-e8edbb52e72c","type":"art_form","slug":"contemporary-ballet","title":"contemporary ballet","summary":"Contemporary ballet is a dance genre that incorporates elements of classical ballet and modern dance.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ge7vpa2mqd","content":[{"text":"Contemporary ballet is a dance genre that incorporates elements of classical ballet and modern dance. It employs classical ballet technique and in many cases classical pointe technique as well, but allows a greater range of movement of the upper body and is not constrained to the rigorously defined body lines and forms found in traditional, classical ballet. Many of its attributes come from the ideas and innovations of 20th-century modern dance, including floor work and turn-in of the legs. The style also contains many movements emphasizing the body's flexibility.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"57e4eccb-8267-4d6b-a9f9-d265f53d4a01"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"j0590qanwv","content":[{"text":"George Balanchine  is often considered to have been the first pioneer of contemporary ballet. However, the true origin of contemporary ballet is credited to Russian art producer Serge Diaghilev. Diaghilev wanted to bring an understanding of the arts to the general public. He created a program that combined all forms of the arts (painting, music, theater, and art) to present to the public. When this program had success in Russia, Diaghilev was inspired to bring it to a European audience by creating a new spin on classical ballet. He created Diaghilev's Russian Ballet Company, debuting the first show in 1909. However, Diaghilev was not a choreographer, he entrusted the evolvement of his creation to several well-known choreographers, one of them being George Balanchine.\nThe style of dance Balanchine developed, which lies between classical ballet and today's contemporary ballet, is known by today's standards as neoclassical ballet. He used flexed hands (and occasionally feet), turned-in legs, off-centered positions, and non-traditional costumes, such as leotards, tunics, and \"powder puff\" tutus instead of \"pancake\" tutus, to distance his work from the classical and romantic ballet traditions. Balanchine invited modern dance performers such as Paul Taylor in to dance with his company, the New York City Ballet, and he worked with modern dance choreographer Martha Graham, which expanded his exposure to modern techniques and ideas. During this period, other choreographers such as John Butler and Glen Tetley began to consciously combine ballet and modern techniques in experimentation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"57e4eccb-8267-4d6b-a9f9-d265f53d4a01"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Choreographers","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jr9rmn5kh3","content":[{"text":"One dancer who trained with Balanchine and absorbed much of this neoclassical style was Mikhail Baryshnikov. Following Baryshnikov's appointment as artistic director of the American Ballet Theatre in 1980, he worked with various modern choreographers, most notably Twyla Tharp. Tharp choreographed Push Comes To Shove for ABT and Baryshnikov in 1976; in 1986 she created In The Upper Room for her own company. Both of these pieces were considered innovative for their use of distinctly modern movements melded with the use of pointe shoes and classically trained dancers—for their use of contemporary ballet.\nTharp also worked with The Joffrey Ballet, founded in 1957 by Robert Joffrey. She choreographed Deuce Coupe for them in 1973, using pop music and a blend of modern and ballet techniques. The Joffrey Ballet continued to perform numerous contemporary pieces, many choreographed by co-founder Gerald Arpino.\nOther notable contemporary choreographers include Jorma Elo, William Forsythe, Mark Morris, Jiri Kylian, Alonzo King, and Trey McIntyre.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"57e4eccb-8267-4d6b-a9f9-d265f53d4a01"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Technique","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9vznm37exd","content":[{"text":"Contemporary ballet draws from both modern dance and classical ballet for its training methods and technique. For a dancer to be able to embody various styles the training regimen has become more diverse. In addition to classical technique, which often includes the signature speed and style of George Balanchine for American dancers, dancers study modern as well. In addition, many dancers do various forms of cross training. Pilates and yoga are often included to loosen muscles and align the body. Since the late 1920s, Pilates has been a popular form of cross training to help prevent injury, but increasingly, the Gyrotonic Expansion System is being utilized. With contemporary work, dancers' spines need to be more supple and they need to understand how to be grounded. This is in contrast to classical and neoclassical ballet where the dancers are required to \"pull up\" and the upper body is held. Dancers are required to first obtain classical ballet training in order to build on it with more modern technique in order to be more versatile. Despite formal training, dancers are often affected by ankle injuries, due to the high intensity footwork.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"57e4eccb-8267-4d6b-a9f9-d265f53d4a01"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Costumes","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dr9zygj25x","content":[{"text":"The costumes and footwear differ from any other style of dance as well. In contemporary ballet, dancers can be asked to wear pointe shoes, regular ballet shoes, or even no shoes at all. The same versatile approach goes for the music, setting, and costumes. Contemporary ballet does not require certain standards to be met. While it has more guidelines that modern dance, it does not conform to the limits of classical ballet. Classical ballet requires tutus, pointe shoes and scenery. Contemporary ballet uses different types of costumes, ranging from traditional to more modern tunic type versions.\nThe music choices may vary as well. In classical ballet, most often the choreography is done to classical music. In contemporary ballet, the music can range from the traditional classical music to popular music of today.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"57e4eccb-8267-4d6b-a9f9-d265f53d4a01"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Present day","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b9kg157647","content":[{"text":"Today there are many contemporary ballet companies and choreographers all over the world. Notable companies include Nederlands Dans Theater, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Complexions Contemporary Ballet, and Alonzo King LINES Ballet. Likewise, many traditionally \"classical\" companies also regularly perform contemporary works. Most classically trained dancers who may identify as professional ballet dancers are required to be very versatile and able to perform work ranging from classical to neoclassical to contemporary ballet to modern dance. They are required to have impeccable ballet technique with a mastery of pointe technique for women, but at the same time, are being asked to be just as comfortable in ballet slippers or bare feet performing the work of modern choreographers such as Paul Taylor or embracing Gaga in the work of Ohad Naharin.\nIt is very common for ballet companies to have an official choreographer in residence to create new work—often contemporary—on the company. For example, Dwight Rhoden serves as both artistic director and the primary choreographer for Complexions Contemporary Ballet. As well, many contemporary choreographers are commissioned to go to companies to create new work or a company will pay for the rights to perform already existing work and an official repetiteur will come to stage it. Twyla Tharp, as previously mentioned, is a renowned choreographer whose work is widely performed.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"57e4eccb-8267-4d6b-a9f9-d265f53d4a01"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yzwqct42bh","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Contemporary ballet”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"57e4eccb-8267-4d6b-a9f9-d265f53d4a01"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wq951jyds9","content":[{"text":"contemporary ballet is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5b56190a-c857-4c03-a393-7b6bdf1856ec"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tk4j778eem","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5b56190a-c857-4c03-a393-7b6bdf1856ec"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Painting by Alexey Akindinov \"High moments. Contemporary ballet\", 100.5x155 cm, 2015.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/90/Alexey_Akindinov._High_moments._Contemporary_ballet._2015.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Alex Akindinov","height":826,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Painting by Alexey Akindinov \"High moments. Contemporary ballet\", 100.5x155 cm, 2015.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/90/Alexey_Akindinov._High_moments._Contemporary_ballet._2015.jpg/960px-Alexey_Akindinov._High_moments._Contemporary_ballet._2015.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Alexey_Akindinov._High_moments._Contemporary_ballet._2015.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/90/Alexey_Akindinov._High_moments._Contemporary_ballet._2015.jpg/1280px-Alexey_Akindinov._High_moments._Contemporary_ballet._2015.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"A contemporary ballet leap performed by Daria L .","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e0/ContemporaryBalletLeap.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Lambtron","height":1622,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"A contemporary ballet leap performed by Daria L .","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e0/ContemporaryBalletLeap.jpg/960px-ContemporaryBalletLeap.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:ContemporaryBalletLeap.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e0/ContemporaryBalletLeap.jpg/1280px-ContemporaryBalletLeap.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Contemporary ballet pas de deux featuring Daria L and Ross.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f4/ContemporaryBalletPasDeDeux.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Lambtron","height":1265,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Contemporary ballet pas de deux featuring Daria L and Ross.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f4/ContemporaryBalletPasDeDeux.jpg/960px-ContemporaryBalletPasDeDeux.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:ContemporaryBalletPasDeDeux.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f4/ContemporaryBalletPasDeDeux.jpg/1280px-ContemporaryBalletPasDeDeux.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-07T05:47:15.369Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/contemporary-ballet"}
{"id":"776721d1-c252-4fa6-bba8-a0afc8d773ed","type":"art_form","slug":"contemporary-dance","title":"contemporary dance","summary":"Contemporary dance is a genre of dance performance that developed during the mid-twentieth century and has since grown to become one of the dominant genres for formally trained dancers throughout the world, with particularly strong populari…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"q0jvan644w","content":[{"text":"Contemporary dance is a genre of dance performance that developed during the mid-twentieth century and has since grown to become one of the dominant genres for formally trained dancers throughout the world, with particularly strong popularity in the U.S. and Europe. Although originally informed by and borrowing from classical, modern, and jazz styles, it has come to incorporate elements from many styles of dance. According to the New Grove Musical Dictionary, contemporary dance evolved from the foundations of modern and postmodern dance, emphasizing innovation and a break from traditional forms. Due to its technical similarities, it is often perceived to be closely related to modern dance, ballet, and other classical concert dance styles. It is characterized by a blend of styles that often integrate elements of ballet, modern dance, and cultural or social dance forms.\nIn terms of technique, contemporary dance tends to combine the strong but controlled legwork of ballet with modern dance that stresses on torso. It also employs contract-release, floor work, fall and recovery, and improvisation characteristics of modern dance. Unpredictable changes in rhythm, speed, and direction are often used as well.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b2b093a8-c423-4012-bda2-b1485a5b41aa"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"e6ghadf2az","content":[{"text":"Contemporary dance draws on both classical ballet and modern dance, whereas postmodern dance was a direct and opposite response to modern dance. Merce Cunningham is considered to be the first choreographer to \"develop an independent attitude towards modern dance\" and defy the ideas that were established by it. In 1944 Cunningham accompanied his dance with music by John Cage, who observed that Cunningham's dance \"no longer relies on linear elements (...) nor does it rely on a movement towards and away from climax. As in abstract painting, it is assumed that an element (a movement, a sound, a change of light) is in and of itself expressive; what it communicates is in large part determined by the observer themselves.\" Cunningham formed the Merce Cunningham Dance Company in 1953 and went on to create more than one hundred and fifty works for the company, many of which have been performed internationally by ballet and modern dance companies.\nAdditionally, the emergence of Tanztheater, German for “dance theater,” pushed contemporary dance beyond traditional performance boundaries. This genre incorporated everyday movements and blurred the distinction between art and daily life. Tanztheater steered contemporary dance away from linear narratives toward fragmented and montage-like choreography, giving rise to a style marked by disjointed \"dance pieces\" rather than narrative styles.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b2b093a8-c423-4012-bda2-b1485a5b41aa"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Cunningham's key ideas","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ffek8e2p7p","content":[{"text":"Cunningham's key ideas include-","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b2b093a8-c423-4012-bda2-b1485a5b41aa"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b7ghswrv2c","content":[{"text":"Contemporary dance does refuse the classical ballet's leg technique in favour of modern dance's stress on the torso\nContemporary dance is not necessarily narrative form of art\nChoreography that appears disordered, but nevertheless relies on technique\nUnpredictable changes in rhythm, speed, and direction\nMultiple and simultaneous actions\nSuspension of perspective and symmetry in ballet scenic frame perspective such as front, center, and hierarchies\nCreative freedom\nIndependence between dance and music\nDance to be danced, not analyzed\nInnovative lighting, sets, and costumes in collaboration with Andy Warhol, Robert Rauschenberg, and Jasper Johns\nOther pioneers of contemporary dance (the offspring of modern and postmodern) include Ruth St. Denis, Doris Humphrey, Mary Wigman, Pina Bausch, Francois Delsarte, Émile Jaques-Dalcroze, Paul Taylor, Rudolph von Laban, Loie Fuller, José Limón, Marie Rambert, and Trisha Brown.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b2b093a8-c423-4012-bda2-b1485a5b41aa"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Choreographer's role","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"677wgh1ng9","content":[{"text":"There is usually a choreographer who makes the creative decisions and decides whether the piece is an abstract or a narrative one. Dancers are selected based on their skill and training. The choreography is determined based on its relation to the music or sounds that are danced to. The role of music in contemporary dance is different from in other genres because it can serve as a backdrop to the piece. The choreographer has control over the costumes and their aesthetic value for the overall composition of the performance and also in regards to how they influence dancers’ movements.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b2b093a8-c423-4012-bda2-b1485a5b41aa"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance technique","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tqf7mgt59y","content":[{"text":"Post-structuralist thought has significantly influenced contemporary dance. This influence has led to a deeper exploration of the dancer’s primary medium, the body, which sparked the development and integration of innovative movement techniques. Dance techniques and movement philosophies employed in contemporary dance may include contemporary ballet, dance improvisation, interpretive dance, lyrical dance, modern dance styles from United States such as Graham technique, Humphrey-Weidman technique and Horton technique, modern dance of Europe Bartenieff fundamentals and the dance technique of Isadora Duncan (also see Free dance).\nContemporary dancers train using contemporary dance techniques as well as non-dance related practices such as Pilates, yoga, the acting practice of corporeal mime - Étienne Decroux technique and somatic practices such as Alexander technique, Feldenkrais method, Sullivan technique and Franklin method, American contemporary techniques such as José Limón technique and Hawkins technique and postmodern dance techniques such as contact improvisation and Cunningham technique,  and release technique.\nSome well-known choreographers and creators of contemporary dance created schools and techniques of their own. Paul Taylor developed a dance technique called Taylor technique, which is now taught at modern dance schools like The Ailey School in New York City.\nAdditionally, choreographers like William Forsythe developed techniques that deconstructed classical dance vocabulary and expanded both the technical and conceptual possibilities of contemporary dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b2b093a8-c423-4012-bda2-b1485a5b41aa"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance and technology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dw469k2xce","content":[{"text":"Reflecting the situation in society at large, contemporary dance is increasingly incorporating overtly technological elements, and, in particular, robots. Robotics engineer/dancer Amy LaViers, for example, has incorporated cell phones in a contemporary dance piece calling attention to the issues surrounding our ever-increasing dependence on technology.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b2b093a8-c423-4012-bda2-b1485a5b41aa"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"28rs6m2g4v","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Contemporary dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b2b093a8-c423-4012-bda2-b1485a5b41aa"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nws07338c8","content":[{"text":"contemporary dance is form of dance that developed in the mid twentieth century, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c163823a-8e80-4785-ab6e-3d21a2d2b2d5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fabrsegdyb","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 9 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c163823a-8e80-4785-ab6e-3d21a2d2b2d5"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Le Sacre, Aterballetto (2012)","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d3/ATERBalletto.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Lorenzo Gaudenzi","height":1389,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Le Sacre, Aterballetto (2012)","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d3/ATERBalletto.jpg/960px-ATERBalletto.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:ATERBalletto.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d3/ATERBalletto.jpg/1280px-ATERBalletto.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:17.465Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/contemporary-dance"}
{"id":"c05deff7-aa07-4fcb-a08b-36901d1a6965","type":"art_form","slug":"contra-dance","title":"contra dance","summary":"Contra dance (also contradance, contra-dance and other variant spellings) is a form of folk dancing made up of long lines of couples.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1c382ettkf","content":[{"text":"Contra dance (also contradance, contra-dance and other variant spellings) is a form of folk dancing made up of long lines of couples. It has mixed origins from English country dance, Scottish country dance, and French dance styles in the 17th century. Sometimes described as New England folk dance or Appalachian folk dance, contra dances can be found around the world, but are most common in the United States (periodically held in nearly every state), Canada, and other Anglophone countries.\nA contra dance event is a social dance that one can attend without a partner. The dancers form couples, and the couples form sets of two couples in long lines starting from the stage and going down the length of the dance hall. Throughout the course of a dance, couples progress up and down these lines, dancing with each other couple in the line. The dance is led by a caller who teaches the sequence of moves, called \"figures,\" in the dance before the music starts. In a single dance, a caller may include anywhere from six to twelve figures, which are repeated as couples progress up and down the lines. Each time through the dance takes 64 beats, after which the pattern is repeated. The essence of the dance is in following the pattern with your set and your line; since there is no required footwork, many people find contra dance easier to learn than other forms of social dancing.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e8957fcb-0dfd-4895-87de-7bc2a8186da5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jc3ft01wm4","content":[{"text":"Almost all contra dances are danced to live music.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e8957fcb-0dfd-4895-87de-7bc2a8186da5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"z6enwe63re","content":[{"text":"Contra dance has European origins, and over 100 years of cultural influences from many different sources.\nAt the end of the 17th century, English country dances were taken up by French dance masters. The French called these dances contredanses (which roughly translated by sound \"countrydance\" to \"contredanse\"), as indicated in a 1706 dance book called Recueil de Contredances. Over time these dances returned to England and were spread and reinterpreted in the United States, and eventually the French form of the name came to be associated with the American folk dances, where they were alternatively called \"country dances\" or in some parts of New England such as New Hampshire, \"contradances\".\nContra dances were fashionable in the United States and were considered one of the most popular social dances across class lines in the late 18th century, though these events were usually referred to as \"country dances\" until the 1780s, when the term contra dance became more common to describe these events. In the mid-19th century, group dances started to decline in popularity in favor of quadrilles, lancers, and couple dances such as the waltz and polka. By the late 19th century, contras were mostly confined to rural settings. In the 1930s and 1940s, the popularity of jazz, swing and big band music further contributed to the decline of contra dances, especially in urban areas of the US.\nThe contra dance tradition carried on primarily in towns within the northeastern portions of North America, such as Ohio, the Maritime provinces of Canada, and particularly in New England.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e8957fcb-0dfd-4895-87de-7bc2a8186da5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Revival and evolution","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0j1sd5ffgk","content":[{"text":"Contra dance regained popularity in the 1960s as part of the broader American folk music revival, especially among young, counter-cultural dancers in Boston. In the 1970s, Sannella and other callers introduced dance moves from English country dance to the contra dances (e.g. heys and right shoulder rounds). New dances, such as Shadrack's Delight by Tony Parkes, featured symmetrical dancing by all couples. (Previously, the active and inactive couples — see § Progression — had significantly different roles.) Double progression dances, popularized by Herbie Gaudreau, added to the aerobic nature of the dances, and one caller, Gene Hubert, wrote a quadruple progression dance, Contra Madness. Becket formation was introduced, with partners starting the dance next to each other in the line instead of opposite each other. The Brattleboro Dawn Dance started in 1976, and ran semiannually until its hiatus in 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic and a lack of staff.\nIn the early 1980s, Tod Whittemore started the first Saturday dance in the Peterborough Town House, which remains one of the more popular regional dances. The Peterborough dance influenced Bob McQuillen, who became a notable musician in New England. As musicians and callers moved to other locations, they founded contra dances in Michigan, Washington, Oregon, California, Texas and elsewhere.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e8957fcb-0dfd-4895-87de-7bc2a8186da5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Gender-free dances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"z447589g0b","content":[{"text":"Traditionally, contra dances were segregated by gender into two roles: gents for men and ladies for women. Although modern contra dances allow individuals to dance either role regardless of their gender, \"gender-free\" contra dances do not use the terms gents and ladies. These dances seek to be inclusive of queer individuals, especially nonbinary and transgender individuals, and they often encourage dancers to dance whatever role they want to. Some individuals are against switching to gender-free terminology on the basis of tradition.\nAs part of his Gay & Lesbian Contra Dance series, Chris Ricciotti organized the first gender-free contra dance in 1989 at Jamaica Plain, MA using armbands as visual signals of roles to include a dancer that was uncomfortable identifying with the traditional role terms:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e8957fcb-0dfd-4895-87de-7bc2a8186da5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fm7n90cpbm","content":[{"text":"I ... remembered hearing about one group who used the convention of a tie or an armband to identify roles. I decided to try using this convention at the Jamaica Plain dance, ripping up an old bed sheet to make armbands and asking dancers who were dancing in the traditional gent’s role to tie on one of these ribbons, and identifying them as “armbands” and those dancing the traditional ladies role, not wearing the armbands as the “barearms”. This method ended up being an instance hit [sic], and I started using this method of identification for all the gay community dances I went on to organize at that time. Since then some callers who have called at our community dances have shortened this identification “Bands” and “Bares” (Bears).\nFollowing this, other LGBT contra dances began using the terms bands and bares, though mainstream dances continued to use the terms gents and ladies.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e8957fcb-0dfd-4895-87de-7bc2a8186da5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Events","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8j5m9sgkv3","content":[{"text":"Contra dances take place in more than 200 cities and towns across the U.S. (as of 2020), as well as in other countries.\nContra dance events are typically open to all, regardless of experience, unless explicitly stated otherwise. It is common to see dancers with a wide range of ages, from children to the elderly. Most dancers are white and middle or upper-middle class, though all are welcome. Contra dances are family-friendly, and alcohol consumption is not part of the culture. Many events offer beginner-level instructions prior to the dance. A typical evening of contra dance is three hours long, including an intermission. The event consists of a number of individual contra dances, each lasting about 15 minutes, and typically a band intermission with some waltzes, schottisches, polkas, or Swedish hambos. In some places, traditional square dances are thrown into the mix, sometimes at the discretion of the caller.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e8957fcb-0dfd-4895-87de-7bc2a8186da5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Formations","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zz4v8zk119","content":[{"text":"Co…","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e8957fcb-0dfd-4895-87de-7bc2a8186da5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"44ghy9xap0","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Contra dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e8957fcb-0dfd-4895-87de-7bc2a8186da5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"v9vptj6t0k","content":[{"text":"contra dance is folk dance with mixed European origins, featuring long lines of couples, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"751cb174-044a-4208-96fd-5ee96c40ff58"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rdet0h44xe","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 26 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"751cb174-044a-4208-96fd-5ee96c40ff58"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Contra dancers at a Friday night dance at Glen Echo Park in January 2019","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6b/Glen_Echo_Park_contra_dance.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Sdkb","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Contra dancers at a Friday night dance at Glen Echo Park in January 2019","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6b/Glen_Echo_Park_contra_dance.jpg/960px-Glen_Echo_Park_contra_dance.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Glen_Echo_Park_contra_dance.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6b/Glen_Echo_Park_contra_dance.jpg/1280px-Glen_Echo_Park_contra_dance.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-08-31T05:47:12.563Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/contra-dance"}
{"id":"04b91a87-7d66-4270-ac9e-bf4b18fe763e","type":"art_form","slug":"cornish-dance","title":"Cornish dance","summary":"Cornish dance (Cornish: Donsyow kernewek) originates from Cornwall, UK. It has largely been shaped by the Cornish people and the industries they worked in.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ffhbw4m1qc","content":[{"text":"Cornish dance (Cornish: Donsyow kernewek) originates from Cornwall, UK. It has largely been shaped by the Cornish people and the industries they worked in. In most cases, particularly with the step dancing, the dances were still being performed across the region when they were collected.\nCornish dance can roughly be divided into 3 areas: 'Scoot' or step dancing, 'Furry' or Feast Day dances and dance which you will often find in a 'Troyl', the Cornish equivalent of a céilidh. More recently the Nos Lowen (Happy Night) dancing has attracted interest and popularity being a simpler, spontaneous form of social dancing to Cornish traditional tunes such as jigs, hornpipes, waltzes and reels.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fe8f8e90-0942-411a-b6ad-c55b66f5099e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Early history","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wbzern954a","content":[{"text":"Mediaeval toponymy Cornish stone circles and rows are often called maidens. Significantly, medn is late Cornish for stone. The associated legend (of petrifaction for dancing or playing on the sabbath) is clearly post-Christian. The timing of language change from Cornish to English suggests mediaeval naming, though some may be more recent. The stone circles and rows apparently suggested circular and linear dances to their namers, reflecting the popularity of mediaeval rondes and farandoles.\nChurch statutes The earliest documentary account which may refer to dancing in Cornwall is the statute banning (inter alia) round dances in churchyards issued in 1287 by Bishop Peter Quinel of Exeter.\nCornish verse dramas The Cornish-language Ordinalia of 1375 contains invocations to dance at the end of Origo Mundi and Resurrectio Domini. Later Cornish verse-dramas have similar passages.\nMorris and mumming There is copious documentary evidence of morris dancing and mumming from 1466/7 to 1595. Iconography at Altarnun church suggests performance of the Mattachins about 1525.\nCountry and social dancing The MS of John Giddy (c1740) has music for Minuets, Rigadons, and Hornpipes. The Morval House MS (c1768) and the Francis Prideaux MS indicates familiarity with minuets and a wide range of country dances. By the time of the MS of John Old of Par (1808) some Scottish country dances are also being danced. To these quadrilles, waltzes and polkas were added as the century progressed, as shown by many documentary and MS references.\nCommunity dancing The tune of the Helston Furry dance is used by Weekes in his 1608 madrigal Since Robin Hood, which suggests a late mediaeval origin for such celebrations.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fe8f8e90-0942-411a-b6ad-c55b66f5099e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"19th-century community and social dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"517xpjkmxk","content":[{"text":"Furry Dances There are many 19th century reports of furry dances. The Helston Furry Dance was reported in The Gentleman’s Magazine of 1790. In the West Briton in 1959 Ashley Rowe wrote. 'In the peace rejoicings at the defeat of Napoleon in 1814 Truro danced the Flora for several hours; at Falmouth they danced until midnight on the Wednesday, Friday and Saturday; Penzance people also danced.' According to Wm. Penaluna, writing in 1834, the Furry was danced in Penryn on 3 May and in Sithney and the Lizard on 1 May. Rowe also notes 'When Victoria was pronounced Queen in 1837, Falmouth and Chacewater danced the Flora.' On Coronation day 1838 Trewoon, near St. Austell, held its Flora Dance and at Truro the Mayor led the dance, which lasted till the small hours' He also tells that St. Mawes celebrated winning a lawsuit over fishing rights by dancing the Flora in 1842.' It was seen in St. Ives in 1884. Even the Newlyn riots of 1896 were accompanied by Paul brass band playing Jon the Bone (Helston furry)! The earliest evidence of Padstow's May Day revel is 1802, though, like furry dances, the tradition is probably much older.\nTroils In fishing communities a dance or ‘troil .. always terminated the pilchard season. This was a feast for those connected with the cellars, each cellar having its own troil. After the feast, which was given in the loft, games and dancing followed. These were kept up until the small hours of the morning, the music being provided by a fiddler.' In 1870 William Bottrell considered music integral to harvest home, feast days, even visits to the mill. He mentions 3-hand reels, jigs and ballads sung for dancing. M. A. Courtney, writing in about 1880, mentions a circle dance in Mounts Bay on the feasts of St. John and St. Peter.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fe8f8e90-0942-411a-b6ad-c55b66f5099e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ch2echx51x","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Cornish dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fe8f8e90-0942-411a-b6ad-c55b66f5099e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6a9aw1gfpf","content":[{"text":"Cornish dance is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f395e9a2-b6b5-4d71-824a-35e7c8d35bdf"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ht9q9fhxgw","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f395e9a2-b6b5-4d71-824a-35e7c8d35bdf"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Dancers from Catseye Morris at Lostfest, Lostwithiel, Cornwall - May 2024. Catseye Morris are based in South East Cornwall. They celebrate all Morris influences, taking inspiration from border, Cotswold, molly and Cornish dance.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/87/Dancers_from_Catseye_Morris_at_Lostfest%2C_Lostwithiel%2C_Cornwall_-_May_2024.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Mutney","height":2431,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Dancers from Catseye Morris at Lostfest, Lostwithiel, Cornwall - May 2024. Catseye Morris are based in South East Cornwall. They celebrate all Morris influences, taking inspiration from border, Cotswold, molly and Cornish dance.","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/Dancers_from_Catseye_Morris_at_Lostfest%2C_Lostwithiel%2C_Cornwall_-_May_2024.jpg/960px-Dancers_from_Catseye_Morris_at_Lostfest%2C_Lostwithiel%2C_Cornwall_-_May_2024.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dancers_from_Catseye_Morris_at_Lostfest,_Lostwithiel,_Cornwall_-_May_2024.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/Dancers_from_Catseye_Morris_at_Lostfest%2C_Lostwithiel%2C_Cornwall_-_May_2024.jpg/1280px-Dancers_from_Catseye_Morris_at_Lostfest%2C_Lostwithiel%2C_Cornwall_-_May_2024.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"},{"alt":"Catseye Morris at Lostfest, Fore Street, Lostwithiel, Cornwall - May 2024 (4), Catseye Morris are based in South East Cornwall. They celebrate all Morris influences, taking inspiration from border, Cotswold, molly and Cornish dance.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/12/Catseye_Morris_at_Lostfest%2C_Lostwithiel%2C_Cornwall_-_May_2024_%284%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Mutney","height":1125,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Catseye Morris at Lostfest, Fore Street, Lostwithiel, Cornwall - May 2024 (4), Catseye Morris are based in South East Cornwall. They celebrate all Morris influences, taking inspiration from border, Cotswold, molly and Cornish dance.","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/12/Catseye_Morris_at_Lostfest%2C_Lostwithiel%2C_Cornwall_-_May_2024_%284%29.jpg/960px-Catseye_Morris_at_Lostfest%2C_Lostwithiel%2C_Cornwall_-_May_2024_%284%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Catseye_Morris_at_Lostfest,_Lostwithiel,_Cornwall_-_May_2024_(4).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/12/Catseye_Morris_at_Lostfest%2C_Lostwithiel%2C_Cornwall_-_May_2024_%284%29.jpg/1280px-Catseye_Morris_at_Lostfest%2C_Lostwithiel%2C_Cornwall_-_May_2024_%284%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"},{"alt":"Catseye Morris at Lostfest, Fore Street, Lostwithiel, Cornwall - May 2024 (1), Catseye Morris are based in South East Cornwall. They celebrate all Morris influences, taking inspiration from border, Cotswold, molly and Cornish dance.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a0/Catseye_Morris_at_Lostfest%2C_Lostwithiel%2C_Cornwall_-_May_2024_%281%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Mutney","height":807,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Catseye Morris at Lostfest, Fore Street, Lostwithiel, Cornwall - May 2024 (1), Catseye Morris are based in South East Cornwall. They celebrate all Morris influences, taking inspiration from border, Cotswold, molly and Cornish dance.","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a0/Catseye_Morris_at_Lostfest%2C_Lostwithiel%2C_Cornwall_-_May_2024_%281%29.jpg/960px-Catseye_Morris_at_Lostfest%2C_Lostwithiel%2C_Cornwall_-_May_2024_%281%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Catseye_Morris_at_Lostfest,_Lostwithiel,_Cornwall_-_May_2024_(1).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a0/Catseye_Morris_at_Lostfest%2C_Lostwithiel%2C_Cornwall_-_May_2024_%281%29.jpg/1280px-Catseye_Morris_at_Lostfest%2C_Lostwithiel%2C_Cornwall_-_May_2024_%281%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:14.872Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/cornish-dance"}
{"id":"abd9d1dd-c36d-4259-9bf8-b49641497d0c","type":"art_form","slug":"corroboree","title":"corroboree","summary":"A corroboree is a generic word for a meeting of Australian Aboriginal peoples. It may be a sacred ceremony, a festive celebration, or of a warlike character.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0wdjm961zr","content":[{"text":"A corroboree is a generic word for a meeting of Australian Aboriginal peoples. It may be a sacred ceremony, a festive celebration, or of a warlike character. A word coined by the first British settlers in the Sydney area from a word in the local Dharug language, it usually includes dance, music, costume and often body decoration.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8a3d1358-02bd-4961-9768-ffb700159138"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origin and etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7zxn11yhe4","content":[{"text":"The word \"corroboree\" was adopted by British settlers soon after colonisation from the Dharug (\"Sydney language\") Aboriginal Australian word garaabara, denoting a style of dancing. It thus entered the Australian English language as a loan word.\nIt is a borrowed English word that has been reborrowed to explain a practice that is different from ceremony and more widely inclusive than theatre or opera.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8a3d1358-02bd-4961-9768-ffb700159138"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fvkx0xe58v","content":[{"text":"In his 1981 book The Other Side of the Frontier, historian Henry Reynolds assessed that corroborees \"provided the venue for gossip, trade and cultural interchange\" necessary amongst Aboriginals and that the anthropologist William Edward Hanley Stanner, writing of a corroboree he witnessed while studying the Daly River tribes in the 1930s, noted that:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8a3d1358-02bd-4961-9768-ffb700159138"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"krsxv106nt","content":[{"text":"...diffusion of ideas took place most propitiously in quiet moments punctuating the large, dramatic ceremonies, while little knots of men and women were resting under the trees or around campfires at night and the songs were chanted, 'the myths retold, the dances rehearsed, the little technological tricks explained.'","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8a3d1358-02bd-4961-9768-ffb700159138"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Description","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7s56wesgqq","content":[{"text":"In 1837, explorer and Queensland grazier Tom Petrie wrote: \"Their bodies painted in different ways, and they wore various adornments, which were not used every day.\" In 1938, clergyman and anthropologist Adolphus Elkin wrote of a public pan-Aboriginal dancing \"tradition of individual gifts, skill, and ownership\" as distinct from the customary practices of appropriate elders guiding initiation and other ritual practices (ceremonies).\nThe word is described in the Macquarie Atlas of Indigenous Australia (2nd ed.) as \"an Indigenous assembly of a festive, sacred or warlike character\".\nThroughout Australia the word \"corroboree\" embraces songs, dances, rallies and meetings of various kinds. In the past a corroboree has been inclusive of sporting events and other forms of skill display.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8a3d1358-02bd-4961-9768-ffb700159138"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dgd59bf717","content":[{"text":"The largest spectator event of the 19th century at the Adelaide Oval was the \"Grand Corroboree\", performed by around 100 Aboriginal men and women from Point MacLeay mission and Yorke Peninsula on Friday 29 and Saturday 30 May 1885. They had been invited to Adelaide by the colonial government to perform at the request of the Governor of South Australia, Sir William Robinson, to perform as part of the  Queen's Birthday celebrations. After organisers expected a crowd of around 5,000, approximately 20,000 spectators (around a sixth of Adelaide's population) turned up. The crowd became rowdy and police had to clear the performance space before the event could begin. Profits from the show were assigned to the Aboriginal people. The corroboree was so successful that other performances were arranged at other venues. Also at this time, the first football match held between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal teams in Adelaide was organised by Football and Cricketing Association secretary John Creswell, and a second followed at the oval on 2 June 1885.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8a3d1358-02bd-4961-9768-ffb700159138"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Associated later meanings","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sqks9ttqmj","content":[{"text":"The Macquarie Dictionary (3rd ed, 1997) gives secondary meanings \"any large or noisy gathering\" and \"a disturbance; an uproar\". It also documents its use as a verb (to take part in a corroboree).\nThe Macquarie Atlas documents a 2003 sports carnival in the Northern Territory which was described by the president of the Yuendumu community council as \"a modern day corroboree\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8a3d1358-02bd-4961-9768-ffb700159138"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7g5cczmtnr","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Corroboree”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8a3d1358-02bd-4961-9768-ffb700159138"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"y75d0r8jcf","content":[{"text":"corroboree is event where Australian Aborigines interact with the Dreamtime through dance, music and costume, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cd96572b-06a4-4857-bff4-850f4a978ff7"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7rrwg176d6","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 5 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cd96572b-06a4-4857-bff4-850f4a978ff7"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"During the dry season across the Kakadu and Corroboree Billabongs the Sacred Lotus (N. nucifera) flowers. The native species is not to be confused with waterlilies.","src":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1701842106450-77c81c4e2687?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8Y29ycm9ib3JlZXxlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MTE2Mzc5fDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1080","kind":"photo","width":5184,"credit":"Paul-Alain Hunt","height":3456,"source":"unsplash","depicts":"During the dry season across the Kakadu and Corroboree Billabongs the Sacred Lotus (N. nucifera) flowers. The native species is not to be confused with waterlilies.","licence":"Unsplash License","thumb640":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1701842106450-77c81c4e2687?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8Y29ycm9ib3JlZXxlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MTE2Mzc5fDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=640","sourceUrl":"https://unsplash.com/photos/a-pink-flower-sitting-in-the-middle-of-a-pond-of-water-lilies-5eMhIFNzwRY?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral","thumb1280":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1701842106450-77c81c4e2687?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8Y29ycm9ib3JlZXxlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MTE2Mzc5fDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1280","attributionUrl":"https://unsplash.com/@paulvanlieshouthunt?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:07.218Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/corroboree"}
{"id":"a1ea21bd-8114-4c73-9bc8-4886f852caf4","type":"art_form","slug":"cotillion","title":"cotillion","summary":"The cotillion (also cotillon or French country dance) is a social dance, popular in 18th-century Europe and North America.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"v94k8510cd","content":[{"text":"The cotillion (also cotillon or French country dance) is a social dance, popular in 18th-century Europe and North America. Originally for four couples in square formation, it was a courtly version of an English country dance, the forerunner of the quadrille and, in the United States, the square dance.\nIt was for some fifty years regarded as an ideal finale to a ball but was eclipsed in the early 19th century by the quadrille. It became so elaborate that it was sometimes presented as a concert dance performed by trained and rehearsed dancers. The later \"German\" cotillion included more couples as well as plays and games.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e97c3e55-5b12-4846-8d22-f40941697dc7"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Names","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pb16v6efr0","content":[{"text":"The English word cotillion is a variation of the French cotillon (which does not have i in the last syllable). In English, it is pronounced  or ; but in French, it is [kɔtijɔ̃].\nThe French word originally meant \"petticoat (underskirt)\" and is derived from Old French cote (‘cotte’) and the diminutive suffix -illon. \nThere are two etymological theories as to how \"underskirt\" became a dance's name:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e97c3e55-5b12-4846-8d22-f40941697dc7"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"p12tvs765h","content":[{"text":"The dance \"revealed the underskirt\".\nIt is from the lyrics of a song that accompanied the dance: Ma commère, quand je danse, mon cotillon va-t-il bien ? (‘My friend, when I dance, does my petticoat show? [or: does my petticoat move well?]’).\nIn 18th-century French, the cotillon dance was also known as contredanse française, meaning \"French country dance\" or \"French contradance\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e97c3e55-5b12-4846-8d22-f40941697dc7"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xxsyza7ckg","content":[{"text":"The name cotillion appears to have been in use as a dance-name at the beginning of the 18th century but, though it was only ever identified as a sort of country dance, it is impossible to say of what it consisted at that early date. \nAs we first encounter it, it consists of a main \"figure\" that varied from dance to dance and was interspersed with \"changes\" – a number of different figures that broke out of the square formation, often decided spontaneously by the leading couple or by a caller or \"conductor\". Each of these was designed to fit a tune of eight or occasionally sixteen measures of 2/4 time. Participants exchanged partners within the formation network of the dance. \"Changes\" included the \"Great Ring\", a simple circle dance with which the dance often began, as well as smaller Ladies' and Gentlemen's rings, top and bottom and sides rings, and chains. Other changes included the allemande, promenade and moulinet. A complete dance composed of a prescribed order of these was called a \"set\". \nThe cotillion was introduced into England by 1766 and to the United States in about 1772. In England from that time onwards there are a large number of references stressing its universal popularity in the best and highest circles of society, and many teaching manuals were published to help recall the vast number of changes that were invented. There is a reference in Robert Burns's 1790 poem Tam o' Shanter to the \"cotillion brent-new frae France\" (brand new from France). \nDancing masters differed as to the exact way of doing these dances: some, recognising the affair as an English country dance, taught that the steps and jumps of these were appropriate, while others insisted upon French elegance, recommending the basic step of the gavotte or the minuet.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e97c3e55-5b12-4846-8d22-f40941697dc7"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"United States","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k0agn1tez4","content":[{"text":"In the United States, however, the opposite was true: quadrilles were termed cotillions until the 1840s, when it was realised that all the distinctive figures of the earlier dance had been taken up into the newer. The German cotillion was introduced to New York society at a costume ball with a Louis XV theme given by William Colford Schermerhorn in the early winter of 1854. Here, too, waltzes, mazurkas, fun, games and boisterous behaviour at private parties took on a more important role, and only some figures of the earlier dances survived. Finally the term cotillion was used to refer to the ball itself and the cotillion and quadrille became the square dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e97c3e55-5b12-4846-8d22-f40941697dc7"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jqqn8m8bkh","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Cotillion”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e97c3e55-5b12-4846-8d22-f40941697dc7"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9h1j2pbcr5","content":[{"text":"cotillion is type of social dance and musical form, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"be61ada2-087c-44dc-a8bc-c32a25fed7b9"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"g6mtzt2886","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 9 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"be61ada2-087c-44dc-a8bc-c32a25fed7b9"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"A cotillion taking place in the Festsaal (\"Ballroom\") in the Hofburg palace, Vienna, Austria.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/02/Hofburg_2008-8.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Gryffindor","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"A cotillion taking place in the Festsaal (\"Ballroom\") in the Hofburg palace, Vienna, Austria.","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/02/Hofburg_2008-8.JPG/960px-Hofburg_2008-8.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hofburg_2008-8.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/02/Hofburg_2008-8.JPG/1280px-Hofburg_2008-8.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"},{"alt":"The Cotillion Ballroom in Wichita, Kansas","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3f/Cotillion_Ballroom.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Staryu","height":963,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"The Cotillion Ballroom in Wichita, Kansas","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3f/Cotillion_Ballroom.png/960px-Cotillion_Ballroom.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cotillion_Ballroom.png","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3f/Cotillion_Ballroom.png/1280px-Cotillion_Ballroom.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"},{"alt":"Rosa 'Cotillion' (Dr. K. W. Zary, 1999), Rosarium Sangerhausen.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/13/Rosa_%27Cotillion%27_kz01.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Krzysztof Ziarnek, Kenraiz","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Rosa 'Cotillion' (Dr. K. W. Zary, 1999), Rosarium Sangerhausen.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/13/Rosa_%27Cotillion%27_kz01.jpg/960px-Rosa_%27Cotillion%27_kz01.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Rosa_%27Cotillion%27_kz01.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/13/Rosa_%27Cotillion%27_kz01.jpg/1280px-Rosa_%27Cotillion%27_kz01.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:17.789Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/cotillion"}
{"id":"91a55de9-8c63-4255-a5b9-86fe49c0ebc6","type":"art_form","slug":"country-dance","title":"country dance","summary":"A country dance is any of a very large number of social dances of a type that originated in England in the British Isles; it is the repeated execution of a predefined sequence of figures, carefully designed to fit a fixed length of music, p…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6aqwxbamza","content":[{"text":"A country dance is any of a very large number of social dances of a type that originated in England in the British Isles; it is the repeated execution of a predefined sequence of figures, carefully designed to fit a fixed length of music, performed by a group of people, usually in couples, in one or more sets. The figures involve interaction between partners and with other dancers, usually with a progression so that each participant dances with everyone in the set. It is common in modern times to have a \"caller\" who teaches the dance and then calls the figures during the dance. Country dances are done in many different styles.\nAs a musical form written in 24 or 68 time, the contredanse was used by Beethoven and Mozart.\nBeethoven's 6 Ecosaises WoO83 are dated to 1806. Mozart's 6 Ländlerische Tänze, K.606 are dated to 1791.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a4a45fd7-d6f6-4bd9-b5eb-d2a912db9335"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b6phz635td","content":[{"text":"Introduced to South America by French immigrants, country dance had great influence upon Latin American music as contradanza.\nThe Anglais (from the French word meaning 'English') or Angloise is another term for the English country dance. A Scottish country dance may be termed an écossaise. Irish set dance is also related.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a4a45fd7-d6f6-4bd9-b5eb-d2a912db9335"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Characteristics","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c4dbr9v4p2","content":[{"text":"A set is a formation of dancers. The most common formations are longways for as many as will, i.e. couples in long lines, and squares, consisting of four couples. The longways formation occurs in more than 12,000 modern contra dances; it was also the most popular formation in all the dance publications of the 18th and early 19th centuries. In 2003, Burleson's Square Dancer's Encyclopedia listed 5125 calls or figures. Circles and fixed-length longways sets are also very common, but the possible formations are limited only by the imagination of the choreographer.\nThomas Wilson, in 1808, wrote, \"A Country Dance is composed of an indefinite number of persons, not less than six, but as many more as chuse, but six are sufficient to perform any figure in the treatise.\" Wilson was writing about his own period. In fact, there are numerous dances for two couples, and quite a few for three or five dancers.\nA figure is a pattern that the dancers trace along the floor, simple ones such as Circle Left are intuitive and can be danced with no prior knowledge, while complex moves such as Strip the willow need to be taught. The stepping and style of dancing varies by region and by period.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a4a45fd7-d6f6-4bd9-b5eb-d2a912db9335"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k9ps3vkqj1","content":[{"text":"Wilson in 1820 wrote, \"Country Dance Figures are certain Movements or Directions formed in Circular, Half Circular, Serpentine, Angular, Straight Lines, etc. etc. drawn out into different Lengths, adapted to the various Strains of Country Dance Music.\" . Again, the possible figures are limited only by the imagination of the choreographer.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a4a45fd7-d6f6-4bd9-b5eb-d2a912db9335"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wsj6kxx7sk","content":[{"text":"Country dances began to influence courtly dance in the 15th century and became particularly popular at the court of Elizabeth I of England. Many references to country dancing and titles shared with known 17th-century dances appear from this time, though few of these can be shown to refer to English country dance. While some early features resemble the morris dance and other early styles, the influence of the courtly dances of Continental Europe, especially those of Renaissance Italy, may also be seen, and it is probable that English country dance was affected by these at an early date. Little is known of these dances before the mid-17th century.\nJohn Playford's The English Dancing Master (1651) listed over a hundred tunes, each with its own figures. This was enormously popular, reprinted constantly for 80 years and much enlarged. Playford and his successors had a practical monopoly on the publication of dance manuals until 1711, and ceased publishing around 1728. During this period English country dances took a variety of forms including finite sets for two, three and four couples as well as circles and squares.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a4a45fd7-d6f6-4bd9-b5eb-d2a912db9335"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"41k8ngnfsj","content":[{"text":"The country dance was introduced to the court of Louis XIV of France in 1684 where it became known as the anglaise; a term used loosely to refer to any English folk dance that also encompassed the hornpipe, jig, and even the Scottish reel. The popularity of the anglaise in the French court led to experimentation of mixing English and French dance steps and styling which led to the development of the French contredanse. From the French court, the anglaise spread across Continental Europe, and remained a popular dance which composers created music for until the end of the 18th century.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a4a45fd7-d6f6-4bd9-b5eb-d2a912db9335"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Influence","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8wxp0qqa0n","content":[{"text":"The English country dance and the French contredanse, arriving independently in the American colonies, became the New England contra dance, which experienced a resurgence in the mid-20th century. The quadrille evolved into square dance in the United States while in Ireland it contributed to the development of modern Irish set dance. English country dance in Scotland developed its own flavour and became the separate Scottish country dance. English céilidh is a special case, being a convergence of English, Irish and Scottish forms. In addition certain English country dances survived independently in the popular repertoire. One such is the Virginia Reel, which is almost exactly the same as the \"Sir Roger de Coverley\".\nThe contradanza, the Spanish and Spanish-American version of the French contradanse, became an internationally popular style of music and dance in the 18th century. The contradanza was popular in Spain and spread throughout Spanish America during the 18th century, where it took on folkloric forms that still exist in Mexico, Venezuela, Colombia, Peru, Panama and Ecuador. In Cuba during the 19th century the contradanza became an important genre, the ancestor of danzon, mambo and cha cha cha. Haitians fleeing the Haitian Revolution of 1791 brought to the Cuban version a Creole influence and a new syncopation.\nThe Engelska (Swedish for \"English\") or Danish Engelsk is a 16-bar Scandinavian folk dance in 24. Its name comes from the adoption in Scandinavia of English country dances and contra dances in the early 19th century. In Denmark the description \"Engelsk\" was used for both line and square dances of English origin.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a4a45fd7-d6f6-4bd9-b5eb-d2a912db9335"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Revival","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c77xd6fave","content":[{"text":"Only due to the efforts of Cecil Sharp, Mary Neal and the English Folk Dance and Song Society in the late 19th and early 20th century did a revival take place, so that for some time schoolchildren were taught country dances. In the early 20th century, traditional and historical dances began to be revived in England. Neal, one of the first to do so, was principally known for her work in ritual dances, but Cecil Sharp, in the six volumes of his Country Dance Book, published between 1909 and 1922, attempted to reconstruct English country dance as it was performed at the time of Playford, using the surviving traditional English village dances as a guide, as the manuals defined almost none of the figures described. Sharp and his students were, however, almost wholly concerned with English country dances as found in the early dance manuals: Sharp published 160 dances from the Playford manuals and 16 traditional village country dances.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a4a45fd7-d6f6-4bd9-b5eb-d2a912db9335"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"63vvqprxp1","content":[{"text":"A …","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a4a45fd7-d6f6-4bd9-b5eb-d2a912db9335"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qvnb3aee8q","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Country dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a4a45fd7-d6f6-4bd9-b5eb-d2a912db9335"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nd6tz288k2","content":[{"text":"country dance is dance rhythm and type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f2c1a2ba-45d8-4d0a-856c-0fce5109ae80"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sb4kgyxenq","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 6 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f2c1a2ba-45d8-4d0a-856c-0fce5109ae80"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"An English country dance at the Guiding Star Grange in Greenfield, Massachusetts, U.S., during the 2017 Great Bear Magic Fantasy Dream Dance Weekend","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/64/English_country_dance_at_the_Guiding_Star_Grange.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Sdkb","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"An English country dance at the Guiding Star Grange in Greenfield, Massachusetts, U.S., during the 2017 Great Bear Magic Fantasy Dream Dance Weekend","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/64/English_country_dance_at_the_Guiding_Star_Grange.jpg/960px-English_country_dance_at_the_Guiding_Star_Grange.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:English_country_dance_at_the_Guiding_Star_Grange.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/64/English_country_dance_at_the_Guiding_Star_Grange.jpg/1280px-English_country_dance_at_the_Guiding_Star_Grange.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Watercolor; Drawings","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/97/The_Country_Dance_MET_10999.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Walter Shirlaw","height":1033,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Watercolor; Drawings","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/97/The_Country_Dance_MET_10999.jpg/960px-The_Country_Dance_MET_10999.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:The_Country_Dance_MET_10999.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/97/The_Country_Dance_MET_10999.jpg/1280px-The_Country_Dance_MET_10999.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"},{"alt":"Watercolor; Drawings","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/38/The_Country_Dance_MET_ap11.114.2.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Walter Shirlaw","height":729,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Watercolor; Drawings","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/38/The_Country_Dance_MET_ap11.114.2.jpg/960px-The_Country_Dance_MET_ap11.114.2.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:The_Country_Dance_MET_ap11.114.2.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/38/The_Country_Dance_MET_ap11.114.2.jpg/1280px-The_Country_Dance_MET_ap11.114.2.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-07T05:47:27.350Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/country-dance"}
{"id":"dabb3d40-ba8b-4dcd-b686-4b02062dde4e","type":"art_form","slug":"country-western-dance","title":"country-western dance","summary":"Country–western dance encompasses any of the dance forms or styles which are typically danced to country-western music, and which are stylistically associated with American country and/or western traditions.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"d10gzvevwc","content":[{"text":"Country–western dance encompasses any of the dance forms or styles which are typically danced to country-western music, and which are stylistically associated with American country and/or western traditions. Many are descended from dances brought to the United States by immigrants from the United Kingdom and Europe as early as the 1700s, which became integrated into American popular culture. Country dancing is also known as \"kicker dancing\" in Texas.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ce80618b-02b6-4200-9012-86e21a5e8ba1"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bg64xr6fjy","content":[{"text":"Western couple dancing is a form of social dance.  Many different dances are done to country-western music. These dances include: Two Step, Waltz, Cowboy or Traveling Cha Cha, Polka Ten Step (also known as Ten Step Polka), Schottische, and other Western promenade dances, East Coast Swing, West Coast Swing, and Nightclub Two Step. The Two Step and various Western promenade or pattern couples dances are unique to country western dancing.\nWestern group dances include the following:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ce80618b-02b6-4200-9012-86e21a5e8ba1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ja7vs9wkt5","content":[{"text":"Line dance\nSquare dance\nTraditional square dance\nModern western square dance\nCountry dancing is informal.  Because of cowboy boots, country western dance is more likely to feature a flat-footed glide with some heel and toe touches rather than a lot of \"toe type\" dancing.\nThere are many versions of each dance, and many have no one \"correct\" set of steps. Individual dances may have different names in different areas of the United States. Some dances even have specific names local to particular dance venues. Cowboy, or \"country\" waltz consists of gliding steps that are consistent with wearing cowboy boots, rather than \"on the balls of the feet\" quick steps of the classic version. Neither foot is lifted completely from the ground. Steps should be a light footed glide rather than a flat footed shuffle.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ce80618b-02b6-4200-9012-86e21a5e8ba1"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Lead and follow","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4ztpjp39rd","content":[{"text":"In traditional country–western dance, the man leads the dance by establishing the pace and length of stride, as well as deciding when to change the step. He leads his partner, usually a woman, by assertively yet gently directing her movements. The partner is expected to synchronize with the man, performing her part of the dance at his pace. In cases where the woman knew the routine and the man did not, it was acceptable for her to subtly direct the man, although she would still be the following partner. \nIn frontier days men danced with each other when women were not available. According to an early settler in Texas, \"The gentle sex were few in number at the dance... Two men had to dance together to make a set.\" Another account states that \"due to the scarcity of young women, a number  of young bachelors who were either smooth shaven or wore polished shoes were designated as ladies.\" There were also \"stag\" dances with no women. \"Heifer branded\" men, those dancing the woman's role, wore handkerchiefs tied around one arm. A photograph from one early \"stag\" dance shows a \"closed\" dance position, with the \"man's\" right arm around the back of the \"woman\". At other times men dancing the role of the woman wore aprons.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ce80618b-02b6-4200-9012-86e21a5e8ba1"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Early history","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"j7yj0e7x21","content":[{"text":"Country–western dance originated in the dances and music brought to the United States by the people of the British Isles and continental Europe. In particular, there was a fad for French culture in the United States during the French Revolution of 1789–1799, and many French dances were absorbed into American popular culture. The American version of the Virginia Reel, for example, is based on the French dance called \"Sir Roger de Coverly\". French dancing teachers also brought quadrilles, dances which featured four couples dancing in a square. The cotillion appears to have originated from a quadrillion. These dances were particularly influential in the development of the square dance. \nThese dances soon developed into less formal dances, particularly the jig. One 1774 account states that \"Betwixt the country dances they have what I call everlasting Jigs. A couple gets up and begins to cut a jig (to some Negro tune). Others come and cut them out, and these dances always last as long as the fidler can play.\" Another author wrote of whites doing \"giggs\". Southern wrote that \"the whites themselves, and especially the younger ones, were apt to move into reels and jigs at their own dances after a few perfunctory bows in the direction of \"society sets\" such as minuets and cotillions.\nPopular reels, danced with a partner, included Lady Walpole's Reel, aka Boston Fancy, Lady Washington's Reel and Speed the Plow. In the 1880s the \"Devil's Dream\", which bore a decided resemblance to the \"Old Zip Coon\", was a popular dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ce80618b-02b6-4200-9012-86e21a5e8ba1"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"1920s onwards","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xzqrm3dfqz","content":[{"text":"Commercialization of country music ramped up in the 1920s. Despite that trend, dance parties in private homes were still popular in the American South, featuring popular music played by fiddlers. Although many of the songs they played, such as \"The Sailor's Hornpipe\", or \"The Virginia Reel\" were once associated with specific dances, these associations faded over the years until the songs were completely separated from their original dances.\nFrom the late 1930s to the 1950s, Western swing was extremely popular at dance venues in the Great Plains. Popular steps for the dance-focused style included foxtrots, waltzes of the \"Mexican\" and \"cowboy\" varieties, and even simple one-step and two-steps.\nThe extensive movements of workers and troops within the United States and overseas as a result of World War II indirectly caused the spread of country music, as enthusiasts brought their favored music and dances to their new homes. During World War II, the Venice neighborhood of Los Angeles teemed with National Guardsmen keeping watch for enemy ships. As a result, Venice developed a bustling nightlife scene of dance halls and lounges that featured country western and swing music.\nFrom 1951 to 1961, the largest barn dance in California was held in Compton.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ce80618b-02b6-4200-9012-86e21a5e8ba1"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Clogging","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7rsqy1m07d","content":[{"text":"Clogging is a step dance which is usually danced in groups to bluegrass music. It originates from the Appalachian region and is associated with the predecessor to bluegrass — \"old-time\" music, which is based on Irish and Scots-Irish fiddle tunes. It could be described as a more animated version of Irish step dance or a country version of tap dancing. There are dance competitions for clogging.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ce80618b-02b6-4200-9012-86e21a5e8ba1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0cb2f9bzcg","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Country–western dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ce80618b-02b6-4200-9012-86e21a5e8ba1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nzmmw1csh9","content":[{"text":"country-western dance is dance genre originating in parts of the United States, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e180f581-7a74-48a0-b354-7a379d6f6953"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zwhfvpe6gn","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e180f581-7a74-48a0-b354-7a379d6f6953"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"A group of people dancing at a party","src":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1731848357705-d9883b01ef94?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8Y291bnRyeS13ZXN0ZXJuJTIwZGFuY2V8ZW58MXwwfHx8MTc4ODExMjU1MXww&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1080","kind":"photo","width":6240,"credit":"Cord Allman","height":4160,"source":"unsplash","depicts":"A group of people dancing at a party","licence":"Unsplash License","thumb640":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1731848357705-d9883b01ef94?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8Y291bnRyeS13ZXN0ZXJuJTIwZGFuY2V8ZW58MXwwfHx8MTc4ODExMjU1MXww&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=640","sourceUrl":"https://unsplash.com/photos/a-group-of-people-dancing-at-a-party--T7Yw6UZ9uc?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral","thumb1280":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1731848357705-d9883b01ef94?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8Y291bnRyeS13ZXN0ZXJuJTIwZGFuY2V8ZW58MXwwfHx8MTc4ODExMjU1MXww&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1280","attributionUrl":"https://unsplash.com/@cordallman?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:22.685Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/country-western-dance"}
{"id":"f04e0eb3-0f9f-43c8-9d04-4b513ff9e34e","type":"art_form","slug":"courante","title":"courante","summary":"The courante, corrente, coranto and corant are some of the names given to a family of triple metre dances from the late Renaissance and the Baroque era.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"09yqcfc5vc","content":[{"text":"The courante, corrente, coranto and corant are some of the names given to a family of triple metre dances from the late Renaissance and the Baroque era. In a Baroque dance suite an Italian or French courante is typically paired with a preceding allemande, making it the second movement of the suite or the third if there is a prelude.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aea508dd-5935-4a10-a8ef-011d853e9322"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Types","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"z8rw2k0j26","content":[{"text":"Courante literally means \"running\", and in the later Renaissance the courante was danced with fast running and jumping steps, as described by Thoinot Arbeau. But the courante commonly used in the baroque period was described by Johann Mattheson in Der vollkommene Capellmeister (Hamburg, 1739) as \"chiefly characterized by the passion or mood of sweet expectation. For there is something heartfelt, something longing and also gratifying, in this melody: clearly music on which hopes are built.\" Johann Gottfried Walther in the Musicalisches Lexicon (Leipzig, 1732), wrote that the rhythm of the courante is \"absolutely the most serious one can find.\"\nDuring the Baroque era there were two types of courante; the French and the Italian. The French type is usually notated in 32, but employing rhythmic and metrical ambiguities (especially hemiola), and had the slowest tempo of all French court dances, described by Mattheson, Quantz and Rousseau as grave and majestic, while the Italian type was a significantly faster dance.\nSometimes French and Italian spellings are used to distinguish types of courante, but original spellings were inconsistent. Bach uses courante and corrente to differentiate the French and Italian styles respectively in his Partitas of the Clavierübung and, in Dance and the Music of J. S. Bach by Meredith Little and Natalie Jenne, the courante and corrente are treated as distinct dances, but editors have frequently ignored the distinction.\nIn Bach's unaccompanied Partita for Violin No. 2 the first movement (titled Allemanda) begins as if in 34 time in a manner one might initially perform and hear as a courante. The second movement is titled corrente and is rather lively.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aea508dd-5935-4a10-a8ef-011d853e9322"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"97zg2w6ztc","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Courante”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aea508dd-5935-4a10-a8ef-011d853e9322"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"eb6qkadjht","content":[{"text":"courante is family of triple metre dances, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d5cdf223-4507-4dcd-b2b1-0810d0471fc0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cqw9eqf111","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 17 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d5cdf223-4507-4dcd-b2b1-0810d0471fc0"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Courante rhythm.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8c/Courante_dance_pattern_2.png?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"User:Hyacinth","height":128,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Courante rhythm.","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8c/Courante_dance_pattern_2.png/960px-Courante_dance_pattern_2.png?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Courante_dance_pattern_2.png","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8c/Courante_dance_pattern_2.png/1280px-Courante_dance_pattern_2.png?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:23.062Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/courante"}
{"id":"1c74bdba-5ce4-483c-ab88-48a6c95c05d2","type":"art_form","slug":"courent","title":"courent","summary":"courent is a tradition recorded in open cultural data. This page is a machine-generated stub awaiting review by someone who knows the tradition.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9pz6akcvcb","content":[{"text":"courent is a tradition recorded in open cultural data, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"be8069d4-2339-4dbf-824f-8e7d35dd03cb"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kaxd11867v","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"be8069d4-2339-4dbf-824f-8e7d35dd03cb"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T07:23:08.669Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/courent"}
{"id":"3e1412d5-a11c-4861-bc48-893c6527e862","type":"art_form","slug":"csardas","title":"csárdás","summary":"Csárdás (, US: ; Hungarian: [ˈt͡ʃaːrdaːʃ]), often seen as Czárdás, is a traditional Hungarian folk dance, the name derived from csárda (old Hungarian term for roadside tavern and restaurant).","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7ngmfjkq37","content":[{"text":"Csárdás (, US: ; Hungarian: [ˈt͡ʃaːrdaːʃ]), often seen as Czárdás, is a traditional Hungarian folk dance, the name derived from csárda (old Hungarian term for roadside tavern and restaurant). It originated in Hungary and was popularized by bands in Hungary as well as neighboring countries and regions such as of Slovenia, Burgenland, Croatia, Transylvania, Slovakia, Poland, Vojvodina and Moravia, as well as among the Banat Bulgarians, including those in Bulgaria.\nThe original folk csárdás, as opposed to the later international variants, is enjoying a revival in Hungary thanks to the táncház movement.\nThe dance is also popular among Romani people.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d996c7a3-90ee-4bd6-a5a7-01b877c70712"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jf2t455es2","content":[{"text":"The origin of the csárdás can be traced back to the 18th century Hungarian music genre the verbunkos, where the 'verbunk' was used as a recruiting dance by the Austrian army.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d996c7a3-90ee-4bd6-a5a7-01b877c70712"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Music","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9s718fpeva","content":[{"text":"The csárdás is characterized by a variation in tempo: it starts out slowly (lassú) and ends in a very fast tempo (friss, literally \"fresh\"). There are other tempo variations, called ritka csárdás, sűrű csárdás and szökős csárdás. The music is in 24 or 44 time. The dancers are both male and female, with the women dressed in traditional wide skirts, which form a distinctive shape when they whirl.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d996c7a3-90ee-4bd6-a5a7-01b877c70712"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8mfzj72zm5","content":[{"text":"Classical composers who have used csárdás themes in their works include Emmerich Kálmán, Franz Liszt, Johannes Brahms, Léo Delibes, Johann Strauss, Pablo de Sarasate, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Franz von Suppé, Vittorio Monti, and others. The csárdás \"Klänge der Heimat\" from Strauss' operetta Die Fledermaus, sung by the character Rosalinde, is probably the most famous example of this dance in vocal music. One of the best-known examples of instrumental csárdás is the composition by Vittorio Monti for violin and piano. This virtuoso piece has seven tempo variations.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d996c7a3-90ee-4bd6-a5a7-01b877c70712"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pmrdb5exqb","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Csárdás”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d996c7a3-90ee-4bd6-a5a7-01b877c70712"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vfwca6w6ex","content":[{"text":"csárdás is Hungarian folk dance performed by couples, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6a28ba4f-f046-48ae-9c80-426a32f8c795"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"44mh2s6s7w","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 20 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6a28ba4f-f046-48ae-9c80-426a32f8c795"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Csárdás - Hungarian folk dance","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/61/PSM_V41_D775_Csardas_hungarian_folk_dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Unknown author Unknown author","height":1151,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Csárdás - Hungarian folk dance","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/61/PSM_V41_D775_Csardas_hungarian_folk_dance.jpg/960px-PSM_V41_D775_Csardas_hungarian_folk_dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:PSM_V41_D775_Csardas_hungarian_folk_dance.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/61/PSM_V41_D775_Csardas_hungarian_folk_dance.jpg/1280px-PSM_V41_D775_Csardas_hungarian_folk_dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:20.073Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/csardas"}
{"id":"05b8ee8b-9713-45b3-947a-132a4c30cbf2","type":"art_form","slug":"cuarteto","title":"cuarteto","summary":"Cuarteto (Spanish: quartet), sometimes called cuartetazo, is a musical genre born in Córdoba, Argentina.\nThe roots of the cuarteto ensemble are in Italian and Spanish dance ensembles.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"n7p9xxgnnx","content":[{"text":"Cuarteto (Spanish: quartet), sometimes called cuartetazo, is a musical genre born in Córdoba, Argentina.\nThe roots of the cuarteto ensemble are in Italian and Spanish dance ensembles. The name was coined because the early dance-hall numbers were invariably four-piece bands (violin-piano-accordion-bass).\nCuarteto is almost always upbeat; its rhythm range is similar to that of modern Dominican merengue.\nIn the 1970s, cuarteto became one of the cornerstones of Córdoba's cultural identity—together with Hortensia magazine. Both reflected a local brand of popular culture overlooked by the establishment, and proposed an alternative to the Buenos Aires-centered culture that television was spreading to the rest of the country.\nCuarteto was one of the genres that gave birth to the Buenos Aires tropical scene, which was renamed as bailanta in the 1990s following the usage of Corrientes province.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c2049d4b-b53b-4121-b579-96d78249b5c9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Famous Names","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"n7b944v3j6","content":[{"text":"Cuarteto Leo was the leading cuarteto band for almost 30 years, back in the 1970s. It established the sonic texture that prevails in cuarteto to this day.\nIn the 1980s, Carlos Mona Jiménez became the foremost exponent of cuarteto after the break-up of his two-member Cuarteto de Oro (\"Golden Quartet\"). He established a pattern of nonsense humour and extravagant behavior that many tried to ape without much success. One of his most popular songs was Quién se ha tomado todo el vino (\"Who drank all the wine?\"), which was danced with a characteristic hand move.\nOthers, such as producer-bandleader Negro Videla, travelled to the Dominican Republic and Colombia to expand the range of their repertoire. Videla is the unofficial ambassador of Dominican music in cuarteto, with successful covers of merengue hits.\nSince the late 1980s, the Tru-la-lá band has had great support from dancers. At one point they were endorsed by the Catholic church for avoiding racy themes in their lyrics. All in all, they have sold over a million records.\nRodrigo became the leading cuarteto singer in the mid-1990s, and made inroads into Buenos Aires middle-class audiences. He died in a car crash on June 24, 2000. Many people believe the crash was not an accident, as Rodrigo was (allegedly) a pawn in a feud between rival mobsters. His song La mano de Dios (The Hand of God), which celebrates Diego Maradona through his most famous goal, has become a classic dance song in Argentina, and was covered by Maradona himself in his successful 2005 talk show.\nGary was another Cuarteto singer with the Tru-la-lá band, who died of natural causes in 2001.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c2049d4b-b53b-4121-b579-96d78249b5c9"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nwtahnpjr5","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Cuarteto”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c2049d4b-b53b-4121-b579-96d78249b5c9"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"53d37jkgpb","content":[{"text":"cuarteto is musical genre born in Córdoba, Argentina, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8aa6d06f-5525-42b2-8536-0ad4ccd31bc6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kaz4v1y4wz","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 9 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8aa6d06f-5525-42b2-8536-0ad4ccd31bc6"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:22.998Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/cuarteto"}
{"id":"9370e4bc-f057-46a4-adfc-4287727dd365","type":"art_form","slug":"cuban-dance","title":"Cuban dance","summary":"Cuban culture encompasses a wide range of dance forms. The island's indigenous people performed rituals known as areíto, which included dancing, although little information is known about such ceremonies.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rxnvrf5q0r","content":[{"text":"Cuban culture encompasses a wide range of dance forms. The island's indigenous people performed rituals known as areíto, which included dancing, although little information is known about such ceremonies. After the colonization of Cuba by the Spanish Kingdom, European dance forms were introduced such as the French contredanse, which gave rise to the Cuban contradanza. Contradanza itself spawned a series of ballroom dances between the 19th and 20th centuries, including the danzón, mambo and cha-cha-cha. Rural dances of European origin, such as the zapateo and styles associated with punto guajiro also became established by the 19th century, and in the 20th century son became very popular. In addition, numerous dance traditions were brought by black slaves from West Africa and the Congo Basin, giving rise to religious dances such as Santería, yuka and abakuá, as well as secular forms such as rumba. Many of these dance elements from European dance and religious dances were fused together to form the basis of la técnica cubana. Cuban music also contributed to the emergence of Latin dance styles in the United States, namely rhumba (ballroom rumba) and salsa.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fcfdc2d4-52eb-4991-8492-cb4210bb2c62"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Danzón","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"g4ppparbwm","content":[{"text":"Danzón is the official musical genre and dance of Cuba. It is also an active musical form in Mexico and is still beloved in Puerto Rico. The danzón evolved from the Cuban contradanza (also known as the habanera). In Cuba, these dances were influenced by African rhythmic and dance styles and so became a genuine fusion of European and African influences.\nThe danzón developed in 1879, and has been an important root for Cuban music up to today. Its precursor is the habanera, which is a creolized Cuban dance form. The danzón was developed, according to one's point of view, by either Manuel Saumell or Miguel Faílde in Matanzas.\nThe form of danzón created by Miguel Faílde in 1879 (\"Las alturas de Simpson\"), begins with an introduction (four bars) and paseo (four bars), which are repeated and followed by a 16-bar melody. The introduction and paseo again repeat before a second melody is played. The dancers do not dance during these sections: they choose partners, stroll onto the dance floor, and begin to dance at precisely the same moment: the fourth beat of bar four of the paseo, which has a distinctive percussion pattern that is hard to miss. When the introduction is repeated the dancers stop, chat, flirt, greet their friends, and start again, right on time as the paseo finishes.\nEarly danzón was played by groups called orquestas típicas, which were based on wind instruments. They had several brass instruments (cornet, valve trombone, ophicleide), a clarinet or two, a violin or two and tympani (kettle drums). At the beginning of the 20th century, the lighter and somewhat more elegant sound of the charanga emerged (see Early Cuban bands). Initially, they were small orchestra of two violins, a cello, flute, timbales, güiro, and doublebass.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fcfdc2d4-52eb-4991-8492-cb4210bb2c62"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Mambo","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xf7hgyjxyz","content":[{"text":"Mambo is a musical form and dance style that developed originally in Cuba, with further significant developments by Cuban musicians in Mexico and the USA.  The word \"mambo\" means \"conversation with the gods\" in Kikongo, the language spoken by Kongo slaves taken to Cuba. Modern mambo began with a song called \"Mambo\" written in 1938 by brothers Orestes and Cachao López. The song was a  danzón, a dance form descended from European social dances like the English country dance, French contredanse, and Spanish contradanza. It was backed by rhythms derived from African folk music.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fcfdc2d4-52eb-4991-8492-cb4210bb2c62"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Cha-cha-cha","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s8yb89f0xn","content":[{"text":"The cha-cha-cha, or simply cha-cha, is the name of a dance of Cuban origin. It  is danced to the music of the same name introduced by Cuban composer and violinist Enrique Jorrín in 1953. This rhythm was developed from the danzón by a syncopation of the fourth beat. The name is onomatopoeic, derived from the rhythm of the güiro (scraper) and the shuffling of the dancers' feet.\nStyles of cha-cha-cha dance may differ in the place of the chasse in the rhythmical structure. The original Cuban and the ballroom cha-cha-cha count is \"two, three, chachacha\" or \"four-and-one, two, three\". The dance does not start on the first beat of a bar, though it can start with a transfer of weight to the lead's right.\nNevertheless, many social dancers count \"one, two, cha-cha-cha\" and may find it difficult to make the adjustment to the \"correct\" timing of the dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fcfdc2d4-52eb-4991-8492-cb4210bb2c62"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Bolero","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vg6m2fa6km","content":[{"text":"The Cuban bolero dance originated in Santiago de Cuba in the last quarter of the 19th century; it does not owe its origin to the Spanish music and song of the same name. In the 19th century there grew up in Santiago de Cuba a group of itinerant musicians who moved around earning their living by singing and playing the guitar.\nPepe Sánchez is known as the father of the trova style and the creator of the Cuban bolero. Untrained, but with remarkable natural talent, he composed numbers in his head and never wrote them down. As a result, most of these numbers are now lost, but two dozen or so survive because friends and disciples wrote them down. He was the model and teacher for the great trovadores who followed.\nThe Cuban bolero has traveled to Mexico and the rest of Latin America after itsconception, where it became part of their repertoires. Some of the bolero's leading composers have come from nearby countries, most especially the prolific Puerto Rican composer Rafael Hernández; another example is Mexico's Agustín Lara. Some Cuban composers of the bolero are listed under Trova.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fcfdc2d4-52eb-4991-8492-cb4210bb2c62"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Salsa","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9xzq0sabqh","content":[{"text":"Salsa dancing originated in Cuba and Cuban salsa is danced around the world. It evolved from earlier dance forms such as Cha cha cha and Mambo which were popular in New York, and incorporated elements of Swing dancing and Hustle, as well as elements of Afro-Cuban and Afro-Caribbean dances such as Guaguanco and Pachanga. In many styles of salsa dancing, as a dancer changes weight by stepping, the upper body remains level and nearly unaffected by the weight changes. Weight shifts cause the hips to move. Arm and shoulder movements are also incorporated. The Cuban Casino style of salsa dancing involves significant movement above the waist, with up-and-down shoulder movements and shifting of the ribcage.\nThe arms are used by the \"lead\" dancer to communicate or signal the \"follower,\" either in \"open\" or \"closed\" position. The open position requires the two dancers to hold one or both hands, especially for moves that involve turns, putting arms behind the back, or moving around each other, to name a few examples. In the closed position, the leader puts the right hand on the follower's back, while the follower puts the left hand on the leader's shoulder.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fcfdc2d4-52eb-4991-8492-cb4210bb2c62"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qzd51et9q7","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Dance from Cuba”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fcfdc2d4-52eb-4991-8492-cb4210bb2c62"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6mhwmeqh4y","content":[{"text":"Cuban dance is performing arts from Cuba, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"123b6a9b-0007-4c81-87fe-0b76b16c7e23"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Cuban dance troupe, Havana Jan 2014, image by Marjorie Kaufman","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cf/Cuban_dance_troupe%2C_Havana_Jan_2014%2C_image_by_Marjorie_Kaufman.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"MiltonPoint","height":1030,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Cuban dance troupe, Havana Jan 2014, image by Marjorie Kaufman","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cf/Cuban_dance_troupe%2C_Havana_Jan_2014%2C_image_by_Marjorie_Kaufman.jpg/960px-Cuban_dance_troupe%2C_Havana_Jan_2014%2C_image_by_Marjorie_Kaufman.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cuban_dance_troupe,_Havana_Jan_2014,_image_by_Marjorie_Kaufman.jpg","thumb1280":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cf/Cuban_dance_troupe%2C_Havana_Jan_2014%2C_image_by_Marjorie_Kaufman.jpg/1280px-Cuban_dance_troupe%2C_Havana_Jan_2014%2C_image_by_Marjorie_Kaufman.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Banrarra Afro-Cuban dance troupe, Jan 2014, image by Marjorie Kaufman","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d7/Banrarra_Afro-Cuban_dance_troupe%2C_Havana_Jan_2014%2C_image_by_Marjorie_Kaufman.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"MiltonPoint","height":852,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Banrarra Afro-Cuban dance troupe, Jan 2014, image by Marjorie Kaufman","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d7/Banrarra_Afro-Cuban_dance_troupe%2C_Havana_Jan_2014%2C_image_by_Marjorie_Kaufman.jpg/960px-Banrarra_Afro-Cuban_dance_troupe%2C_Havana_Jan_2014%2C_image_by_Marjorie_Kaufman.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Banrarra_Afro-Cuban_dance_troupe,_Havana_Jan_2014,_image_by_Marjorie_Kaufman.jpg","thumb1280":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d7/Banrarra_Afro-Cuban_dance_troupe%2C_Havana_Jan_2014%2C_image_by_Marjorie_Kaufman.jpg/1280px-Banrarra_Afro-Cuban_dance_troupe%2C_Havana_Jan_2014%2C_image_by_Marjorie_Kaufman.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Banrarra Afro-Cuban dance troupe, Jan 2014, image by Marjorie Kaufman","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/63/Banrarra_Afro-Cuban_dance_troupe_3%2C_Havana_Jan_2014%2C_image_by_Marjorie_Kaufman.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"MiltonPoint","height":1085,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Banrarra Afro-Cuban dance troupe, Jan 2014, image by Marjorie Kaufman","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/63/Banrarra_Afro-Cuban_dance_troupe_3%2C_Havana_Jan_2014%2C_image_by_Marjorie_Kaufman.jpg/960px-Banrarra_Afro-Cuban_dance_troupe_3%2C_Havana_Jan_2014%2C_image_by_Marjorie_Kaufman.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Banrarra_Afro-Cuban_dance_troupe_3,_Havana_Jan_2014,_image_by_Marjorie_Kaufman.jpg","thumb1280":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/63/Banrarra_Afro-Cuban_dance_troupe_3%2C_Havana_Jan_2014%2C_image_by_Marjorie_Kaufman.jpg/1280px-Banrarra_Afro-Cuban_dance_troupe_3%2C_Havana_Jan_2014%2C_image_by_Marjorie_Kaufman.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:20.430Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/cuban-dance"}
{"id":"e9ff5929-5545-4687-9cc2-a1d35af94a5e","type":"art_form","slug":"cuban-rumba","title":"Cuban rumba","summary":"Rumba is a secular genre of Cuban music involving dance, percussion, and song. It originated in the northern regions of Cuba, mainly in urban Havana and Matanzas, during the late 19th century.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0tt129wchc","content":[{"text":"Rumba is a secular genre of Cuban music involving dance, percussion, and song. It originated in the northern regions of Cuba, mainly in urban Havana and Matanzas, during the late 19th century. It is based on African music and dance traditions, namely Abakuá and yuka, as well as the Spanish-based coros de clave. According to Argeliers León, rumba is one of the major \"genre complexes\" of Cuban music, and the term rumba complex is now commonly used by musicologists. This complex encompasses the three traditional forms of rumba (yambú, guaguancó and columbia), as\nwell as their contemporary derivatives and other minor styles.\nTraditionally performed by poor workers of African descent in streets and solares (courtyards), rumba remains one of Cuba's most characteristic forms of music and dance. Vocal improvisation, elaborate dancing and polyrhythmic drumming are the key components of all rumba styles. Cajones (wooden boxes) were used as drums until the early 20th century, when they were replaced by tumbadoras (conga drums). During the genre's recorded history, which began in the 1940s, there have been numerous successful rumba bands such as Los Papines, Los Muñequitos de Matanzas, Clave y Guaguancó, AfroCuba de Matanzas and Yoruba Andabo.\nSince its early days, the genre's popularity has been largely confined to Cuba, although its legacy has reached well beyond the island.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dee72041-9b9c-449c-aebb-ec170948562e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rpt1hxv4a0","content":[{"text":"According to Joan Corominas, the word derives from \"rumbo\", meaning \"uproar\" (and previously \"pomp\") and also \"the course of a ship\", which itself may derive from the word \"rombo\" (\"rhombus\"), a symbol used in compasses. In the 1978 documentary La rumba, directed by Óscar Valdés, it is stated that the term rumba originated in Spain to denote \"all that is held as frivolous\", deriving from the term \"mujeres de rumbo\". \nAlternatively, in Cuba the term might have originated from a West African or Bantu language, due to its similarity to other Afro-Caribbean words such as tumba, macumba, mambo and tambó. During the 19th century in Cuba, specifically in urban Havana and Matanzas, people of African descent originally used the word rumba as a synonym for party. According to Olavo Alén, in these areas \"[over time] rumba ceased to be simply another word for party and took on the meaning both of a defined Cuban musical genre and also of a very specific form of dance.\" The terms rumbón and rumbantela (the latter of Galician or Portuguese origin) are frequently used to denote rumba performances in the streets. \nAccording to non-etymological sources, rumba could be related to \"nkumba\" meaning \"navel\" in Kikongo, which refers to a dance characterized by the joining and rubbing of navels. This dance was integral to the celebrations of the Kingdom of Kongo, a historical region that spanned present-day Republic of the Congo, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Angola.\nDue to its broad etymology, the term rumba historically retained a certain degree of polysemy. By the end of the 19th century, Cuban peasants (guajiros) began to perform rumbitas during their parties (guateques, changüís, parrandas and fiestas patronales).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dee72041-9b9c-449c-aebb-ec170948562e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Instrumentation","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bgpqnt6jbg","content":[{"text":"Rumba instrumentation has varied historically depending on the style and the availability of the instruments. The core instruments of any rumba ensemble are the claves, two hard wooden sticks that are struck against each other, and the conga drums: quinto (lead drum, highest-pitched), tres dos (middle-pitched), and tumba or salidor (lowest-pitched). Other common instruments include the catá or guagua, a wooden cylinder; the palitos, wooden sticks to strike the catá; shakers such as the chekeré and the maracas; scraper percussion instruments such as the güiro; bells, and cajones, wooden boxes that preceded the congas. During the 1940s, the genre experienced a mutual influence with son cubano, especially by Ignacio Piñeiro's Septeto Nacional and Arsenio Rodríguez's conjunto, which led to the incorporation of instruments such as the tres, the double bass, the trumpet and the piano, and the removal of idiophone instruments. At the same time, Cuban big bands, in collaboration with musical artists such as Chano Pozo, began to include authentic rumbas among their dance pieces. The group AfroCuba de Matanzas, founded in 1957, added batá drums to the traditional rumba ensemble in their style, known as batá-rumba. More recently, a cappella (vocals-only, without instruments) rumba has been performed by the Cuban ensemble Vocal Sampling, as heard in their song \"Conga Yambumba\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dee72041-9b9c-449c-aebb-ec170948562e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Rhythm","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s99axx2p5k","content":[{"text":"Although rumba is played predominantly in binary meter (duple pulse: 24, 44), triple meter (triple pulse: 98, 34) is also present. In most rumba styles, such as yambú and guaguancó, duple pulse is primary and triple-pulse is secondary. In contrast, in the rural style columbia, triple pulse is the primary structure and duple pulse is secondary. This can be explained due to the \"binarization\" of African-based ternary rhythms. Both the claves and the quinto (lead drum) are responsible for establishing the rhythm. Subsequently, the other instruments play their parts supporting the lead drum. Rhythmically, rumba is based on the five-stroke guide pattern called clave and the inherent structure it conveys.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dee72041-9b9c-449c-aebb-ec170948562e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Song structure","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"g8vnasjj1q","content":[{"text":"Yambú and guaguancó songs often begin with the soloist singing a melody with meaningless syllables, rather than with word-based lyrics. This introductory part is called the diana. According to Larry Crook, the diana is important because it \"also contains the first choral refrain\". The lead singer provides a melodic phrase or musical motive/theme for the choral sections, or they may present new but related material. Parallel harmonies are usually built above or below a melodic line, with \"thirds, sixths, and octaves most common.\" Therefore, the singer who is singing the diana initiates the beginning of the rumba experience for the audience. The singer then improvises lyrics stating the reason for holding and performing the present rumba. This kind of improvisation is called decimar, since it is done in décimas, ten-line stanzas. Alternatively, the singer might sing an established song. Some of the most common and recognizable rumba standards are \"Ave Maria Morena\" (yambú), \"Llora como lloré\" (guaguancó), \"Cuba linda, Cuba hermosa\" (guaguancó), \"China de oro (Laye Laye)\" (columbia), and \"A Malanga\" (columbia).\nRumba songs consist of two main sections. The first, the canto, features the lead vocalist, performing an extended text of verses that are sometimes partially improvised. The lead singer usually plays claves. The first section may last a few minutes, until the lead vocalist signals for the other singers to repeat the short refrain of the chorus, in call and response. This second section of the song is sometimes referred to as the montuno.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dee72041-9b9c-449c-aebb-ec170948562e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Syncretic origins","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qaf94aaqpt","content":[{"text":"Enslaved Africans were first brought to Cuba in the 16th century by the early Spanish settlers.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dee72041-9b9c-449c-aebb-ec170948562e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0gtadnzt07","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Cuban rumba”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dee72041-9b9c-449c-aebb-ec170948562e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ak546ndhhx","content":[{"text":"Cuban rumba is music genre originating from Cuba, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"143ab89b-9a72-451a-8c16-40b6bcbfe69e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ryq32a1rf6","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 6 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"143ab89b-9a72-451a-8c16-40b6bcbfe69e"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Cuban rumba dancers at the workers square in Camagüey, Cuba.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/ca/Bailarines_de_rumba_cubana_en_la_plaza_de_los_trabajadores_de_Camag%C3%BCey%2C_Cuba.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Manuel Díaz Reyes","height":854,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Cuban rumba dancers at the workers square in Camagüey, Cuba.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/ca/Bailarines_de_rumba_cubana_en_la_plaza_de_los_trabajadores_de_Camag%C3%BCey%2C_Cuba.jpg/960px-Bailarines_de_rumba_cubana_en_la_plaza_de_los_trabajadores_de_Camag%C3%BCey%2C_Cuba.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bailarines_de_rumba_cubana_en_la_plaza_de_los_trabajadores_de_Camag%C3%BCey,_Cuba.jpg","thumb1280":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/ca/Bailarines_de_rumba_cubana_en_la_plaza_de_los_trabajadores_de_Camag%C3%BCey%2C_Cuba.jpg/1280px-Bailarines_de_rumba_cubana_en_la_plaza_de_los_trabajadores_de_Camag%C3%BCey%2C_Cuba.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:21.514Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/cuban-rumba"}
{"id":"78343f76-fd30-4ba4-80d1-4fe004ed52ad","type":"art_form","slug":"dabke","title":"dabke","summary":"Dabke (Arabic: دبكة also spelled dabka, dabki, dubki, dabkeh, plural dabkaat) is a Levantine folk dance, particularly popular among Lebanese, Jordanian, Palestinian, and Syrian communities.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hq9ksvdhz1","content":[{"text":"Dabke (Arabic: دبكة also spelled dabka, dabki, dubki, dabkeh, plural dabkaat) is a Levantine folk dance, particularly popular among Lebanese, Jordanian, Palestinian, and Syrian communities. Dabke combines circle dance and line dancing and is widely performed at weddings and other joyous occasions. The line forms from right to left and the leader of the dabke heads the line, alternating between facing the audience and the other dancers.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a7f26e10-331f-4e82-a8c5-9a1004368c7f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"v8dsdcstq7","content":[{"text":"The etymology of 'dabke' is uncertain but is thought to be derived from the Levantine Arabic word dabaka (Arabic: دبكة) meaning \"stamping of the feet\" or \"to make a noise\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a7f26e10-331f-4e82-a8c5-9a1004368c7f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cwmq8gnct7","content":[{"text":"According to Youssef Ibrahim Yazbec, a Lebanese historian, journalist, and politician, the dabke descends from Phoenician dances thousands of years old. According to Palestinian folklorists Abdul-Latif Barghouthi and Awwad Sa'ud al-'Awwad, the dabke jumps may have originated in ancient Canaanite fertility rituals related to agriculture, chasing off evil spirits and protecting young plants.\nAnother theory is that the stomping part of dabke started out as a way of solidifying roofs made of mud. People would stomp on the rooftops of houses together to help compress the material to compact it to prevent cracks from forming. This eventually evolved into the dancing form of dabke that is known today.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a7f26e10-331f-4e82-a8c5-9a1004368c7f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Variations","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"85ykws65jx","content":[{"text":"Dabke is popular across the Levant, Each type of dabke dance has its own corresponding set of songs, the theme of which is often love  there are six main types of dabke:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a7f26e10-331f-4e82-a8c5-9a1004368c7f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4j0a0wvgsp","content":[{"text":"Al-Shamaliyya in Palestine (الشمالية): It consists of a lawweeḥ (لويح) at the head of a group of men holding hands and formed in a semicircle. The lawweeh is expected to be particularly skilled in accuracy, ability to improvise, and quickness (generally light on his feet). Typically, the dabke begins with a musician playing a solo on the mijwiz or yarghoul of a Dal Ouna piece, often with two singers accompanying his music. The dancers develop a synchronized movement and step and when the singers finish their song, the lawweeh breaks from the semicircle to dance on his own. When the leader of the dabke sees that the men's steps are one, in sync, he instructs the dancers to slow down and begin a movement crossing their right foot in front of the opposite one (their left foot). The lawweeh continues to inform the dancers of their basic rhythms, and at this point other guests at the wedding or event occurring will join in the dabke line. This is the most popular and familiar form of dabke danced for happy family celebrations, such as weddings, circumcisions, the return of travelers, release of prisoners, and also for national holidays, in which dabke becomes a demonstration of national personality. It has six measure phrases.\nAl-Sha’rawiyya (الشعراوية): is limited to men and is characterized by strong steps or stomps. It is one of the simplest types of dabke and very close to the normal one. The lawweeh is the most important element in this type of dabke.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a7f26e10-331f-4e82-a8c5-9a1004368c7f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Regional varieties","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s12w0ggp9x","content":[{"text":"There are about twenty types of dabke, including but not limited to:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a7f26e10-331f-4e82-a8c5-9a1004368c7f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Song genres","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"eqgdxbtcc2","content":[{"text":"There are numerous kinds of songs that are sung during and specifically for dabke, by both men and women respectively, depending on the occasion, song, and audience. Some of the most popular of these songs, such as Dal Ouna (دلعونا), Al Jafra (الجفرا), Al Daḥiyya (الدحية), and Ẓareef il-Ṭool (ظريف الطول), are actually entire genres in themselves, in the sense that lyrics can vary significantly in each performance but the basic rhythm of the music is consistent and recognizable. This variation can be seen in the hundreds of lyrical variations heard and recorded of these songs which regardless of specific lyrics, are recognized by their rhythm and at times, a single phrase, as in Ala Dal Ouna, Jafra, and others. For example, even though one might have heard Ala Dal Ouna sung previously telling a different story in this famous love song, people will still call another song ascribing to the same rhythm and theme as Dal Ouna.\nThe majority of dabke music, being folk songs, is on maqam Bayati musical mode.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a7f26e10-331f-4e82-a8c5-9a1004368c7f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tnd5t86ky1","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Dabke”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a7f26e10-331f-4e82-a8c5-9a1004368c7f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"p243f0za5q","content":[{"text":"dabke is A traditional Syrian collective folk dance, performed to the tunes of folk songs at celebrations and weddings, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9b4c337b-c344-4342-863a-16f17ae54402"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w8bb7g2ep7","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 10 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9b4c337b-c344-4342-863a-16f17ae54402"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-05T01:44:13.101Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/dabke"}
{"id":"68671837-461d-4578-9be6-b2d05e31f5bd","type":"art_form","slug":"daggering","title":"daggering","summary":"Daggering is a form of dance originating from Jamaica. The dance incorporates the male dancer ramming his crotch area into the female dancer's buttocks (or vice versa), and other forms of frantic movement.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3cvqz68wx8","content":[{"text":"Daggering is a form of dance originating from Jamaica. The dance incorporates the male dancer ramming his crotch area into the female dancer's buttocks (or vice versa), and other forms of frantic movement. Daggering is not a traditional dance; it is of recent origin, associated with the 2006 wave of dancehall music.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"01d34461-f984-4cc4-84e9-68740dde58ef"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3sy7dzc001","content":[{"text":"The activity of \"daggering\" has been present in Jamaica's dancehalls for many years, but only since 2006 has the term \"daggering\" been used as a description. Some argue that it is roughly the equivalent of the Caribbean’s \"cabin stabbing\", another style of music and dance. Mojo magazine journalist and reggae historian David Katz attributes the recent popularity of daggering to a series of dancehall music videos and artists that promoted the style. YouTube videos of people performing daggering have spread the trend worldwide.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"01d34461-f984-4cc4-84e9-68740dde58ef"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Daggering music","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"eka12k615t","content":[{"text":"Daggering is performed with dancehall music, although some artists have specifically created \"daggering\" music:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"01d34461-f984-4cc4-84e9-68740dde58ef"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8hn6sdf7sp","content":[{"text":"Aidonia\nDexta Daps\nDing Dong\nMajor Lazer\nMavado\nMr. Vegas\nPopcaan\nShenseea\nSpice\nVybz Kartel","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"01d34461-f984-4cc4-84e9-68740dde58ef"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Ban in Jamaica","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2q881tbyf9","content":[{"text":"In the wake of the popularity of daggering, in 2009 the Jamaican government enacted a radio and TV ban on songs and videos with blatantly sexual content. The Jamaica Broadcasting Corporation defines daggering as \"a colloquial term or phrase used in dancehall culture as a reference to hardcore sex or what is popularly referred to as 'dry' sex, or the activities of persons engaged in the public simulation of various sexual acts and positions.\" Therefore, \"There shall not be transmitted, any recording, live song, or music video which promotes the act of daggering or which makes reference to, or is otherwise suggestive of daggering.\"\nThe Caribbean Quarterly reported in 2016 that Jamaican doctors have also warned of the dangers of daggering, after having many cases of damaged penis tissue. The condition can result in permanent damage, and therefore must be taken seriously. Jamaican doctors assert that those trying to replicate the powerful moves of daggering in the bedroom can end up with dramatic injuries. In 2009, Newsweek reported an article in the Jamaican Star which had stated that the incidence of broken penises has increased in the past year.\nThe community is divided over the dance, with singers up in arms over the ban, saying it stifles their right to free speech and diversity. Andrei Laskatelev argues that in social history numerous dances have been banned (the belly dance, the tango, the waltz etc.) and that public concern about daggering stems mostly from its novelty.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"01d34461-f984-4cc4-84e9-68740dde58ef"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"63m43rqyf5","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Daggering”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"01d34461-f984-4cc4-84e9-68740dde58ef"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bk0at73m8t","content":[{"text":"daggering is sexually explicit dance form, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f7d5aa47-2026-4dcd-b968-3da711c0ec7c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pjajy2hkhg","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f7d5aa47-2026-4dcd-b968-3da711c0ec7c"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"a man holding a gun","src":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1663270003617-f776d11537c8?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8ZGFnZ2VyaW5nfGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgxMTYzODN8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1080","kind":"photo","width":5194,"credit":"Carlos Felipe Ramírez Mesa","height":3700,"source":"unsplash","depicts":"a man holding a gun","licence":"Unsplash License","thumb640":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1663270003617-f776d11537c8?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8ZGFnZ2VyaW5nfGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgxMTYzODN8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=640","sourceUrl":"https://unsplash.com/photos/a-man-holding-a-gun-e_oXCVuBr9g?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral","thumb1280":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1663270003617-f776d11537c8?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8ZGFnZ2VyaW5nfGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgxMTYzODN8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1280","attributionUrl":"https://unsplash.com/@cafera13?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-04T05:47:22.583Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/daggering"}
{"id":"42b74515-3e5d-4014-8f9c-3059e49b2dd0","type":"art_form","slug":"dalkhai","title":"Dalkhai","summary":"Dalkhai is a popular folk dance of the Adivasis of Odisha, India.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gx2vxbpadx","content":[{"text":"Dalkhai is a popular folk dance of the Adivasis of Odisha, India.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9a4e2419-2fe1-4bfa-a3f5-ac7ceebb65a0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gxncqa3n8a","content":[{"text":"The dance originates in the western Odisha. The name is derived from dancers shouting ‘Dalkhai Bo!’ at the beginning and end of each stanza sung in the dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9a4e2419-2fe1-4bfa-a3f5-ac7ceebb65a0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Description","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4qwb9c89wt","content":[{"text":"The dance normally corresponds to the Hindu epics such as the love story of Radha and Krishna.\nIt is performed in various festivals such as Bhaijiuntia, Phagun Puni and Nuakhai. The dance is popular among the Binjhal, Kuda, Mirdha, Sama and other tribes of Western Odisha. Male dancers address their female counterparts during the performance and flirt with them.\nThe dance is accompanied by a rich orchestra of folk music played by a number of instruments known as dhol, nisan (typically a giant drum made of iron case), tamki (a tiny one sided drum 6\" in diameter played by two sticks), tasa (a one sided drum) and mahuri. The dhol player controls the tempo of the performance.\nWomen wear a colorful printed Sambalpuri saree. They also tie a scarf on their shoulders holding the ends in both the hands. Various traditional pieces of jewelry are worn by the performers to complete the look.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9a4e2419-2fe1-4bfa-a3f5-ac7ceebb65a0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"26vzx6m633","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Dalkhai”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9a4e2419-2fe1-4bfa-a3f5-ac7ceebb65a0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s843q109ky","content":[{"text":"Dalkhai is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"05c1d1ab-cb2b-43e2-a25c-1177d77e0912"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rddfhratpp","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"05c1d1ab-cb2b-43e2-a25c-1177d77e0912"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"This is just a view of the world famous Sambalpuri dance 'Dalkhai'.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8c/Artists_Performing_%27Bhaijiuntia%27-_Dalkhai_in_the_NUAKHAI_BHETGHAT_occasion_at_Burla.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Mamata Padhi","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"This is just a view of the world famous Sambalpuri dance 'Dalkhai'.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8c/Artists_Performing_%27Bhaijiuntia%27-_Dalkhai_in_the_NUAKHAI_BHETGHAT_occasion_at_Burla.jpg/960px-Artists_Performing_%27Bhaijiuntia%27-_Dalkhai_in_the_NUAKHAI_BHETGHAT_occasion_at_Burla.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Artists_Performing_%27Bhaijiuntia%27-_Dalkhai_in_the_NUAKHAI_BHETGHAT_occasion_at_Burla.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8c/Artists_Performing_%27Bhaijiuntia%27-_Dalkhai_in_the_NUAKHAI_BHETGHAT_occasion_at_Burla.jpg/1280px-Artists_Performing_%27Bhaijiuntia%27-_Dalkhai_in_the_NUAKHAI_BHETGHAT_occasion_at_Burla.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"The artist Putting a plate with burner on her head","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/99/Arists_Performing_%27Bhaijiuntia%27-_The_world_famous_Dalkhai%2C_The_tribal_dance_of_Sambalpur_district_of_India.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Mamata Padhi","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"The artist Putting a plate with burner on her head","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/99/Arists_Performing_%27Bhaijiuntia%27-_The_world_famous_Dalkhai%2C_The_tribal_dance_of_Sambalpur_district_of_India.jpg/960px-Arists_Performing_%27Bhaijiuntia%27-_The_world_famous_Dalkhai%2C_The_tribal_dance_of_Sambalpur_district_of_India.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Arists_Performing_%27Bhaijiuntia%27-_The_world_famous_Dalkhai,_The_tribal_dance_of_Sambalpur_district_of_India.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/99/Arists_Performing_%27Bhaijiuntia%27-_The_world_famous_Dalkhai%2C_The_tribal_dance_of_Sambalpur_district_of_India.jpg/1280px-Arists_Performing_%27Bhaijiuntia%27-_The_world_famous_Dalkhai%2C_The_tribal_dance_of_Sambalpur_district_of_India.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:08.039Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/dalkhai"}
{"id":"98bafb6e-aade-4605-8165-b6634a322bec","type":"art_form","slug":"dance-of-osman-taka","title":"dance of Osman Taka","summary":"The Dance of Osman Taka (Albanian: Vallja Çame e Osman Takës; Greek: Οσμαντάκας or Σαμαντάκας) is a traditional dance in Albania and Greece. In Albania it is mainly danced by Cham Albanians.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"d22j4q0r2f","content":[{"text":"The Dance of Osman Taka (Albanian: Vallja Çame e Osman Takës; Greek: Οσμαντάκας or Σαμαντάκας) is a traditional dance in Albania and Greece. In Albania it is mainly danced by Cham Albanians. The dance bears the name of Osman Taka, a 19th-century Cham Albanian guerrilla fighter who fought against Ottoman forces. It is a famous variation from the Albanian Cham repertoire of the older Çamçe dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ffe95f07-3a29-4fb6-b353-df731929e6c3"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Background","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ftxdv47e6g","content":[{"text":"Osman Taka was jailed in Yanina and was sentenced to death. When he was asked to give his final wish, he wanted to dance. The folk tradition says that his dance was so beautiful that the local Albanian gendarmes of the Ottoman army, did not execute him. After some days he was caught again and was killed in Konispol while fighting against Ottoman authorities .","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ffe95f07-3a29-4fb6-b353-df731929e6c3"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Performance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"h43q9mmxnh","content":[{"text":"The dance follows a strict tempo with emphasis in the \"attitude, style and grace\" of the dancer. It is a 24 meter with steps \"slow-quick-quick\". The dance is a row dance, with a lead dancer performing skillfully executed steps. He then drops to his knees, arches his back and extends his chest upward, forming a bridge. The other dancers then step forward onto the lead dancer's stomach and dance on top of his stomach. The dancers hold each other from the hands, bend 90 degrees upwards at the elbows. It takes a sturdy hand, especially if you are supporting the first or last person of the line. This symbolizes the strength and centrality of the lead dancer as he forms a bridge with his body for the other men to cross over.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ffe95f07-3a29-4fb6-b353-df731929e6c3"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"In Albania and Greece","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5gsynwy491","content":[{"text":"The dance is part of the repertoire of Epirote music in Greece and of the Cham music in Albania. The Dance of Osman Taka is a Cham dance well known throughout Albania and has been performed at some number of national occasions.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ffe95f07-3a29-4fb6-b353-df731929e6c3"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Albania","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"r5p4vzpk0m","content":[{"text":"The dance is performed alongside instrumental accompaniment of lute, violin, tambourine with clarinet alongside vocals. It is famous variation from the Albanian Cham repertoire of the older Çamçe dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ffe95f07-3a29-4fb6-b353-df731929e6c3"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Greece","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1bt0ftcdjr","content":[{"text":"In Greece the dance is called \"Osmantakas\" or \"Samantakas\" and it is danced in Epirus. It is one of nine basic dancing genres (the other being Tsamikos, Syrtos in 3 steps, Syrtos in 2 steps, Pogonisios, Zagorisios, Kleftes, Fezodervenagas, Berati) of Epirus. The Osmantakas dancing genre has its distinct dancing style, it's exclusively danced in the correspondent song and it's not to be confused with any other dancing genre in Epirus. Apart from the traditional 8-measure motif, today it is also performed in a 4-measure motif, very similar to the Pogonios. In the typical fashion in the music of Epirus the specific song may sometimes be interrupted at the end and end up in Syrtos or Tsamikos rhythm. A general classification of the dancing genres in Zagori region of Epirus can classify Osmanatakas, as well as the Berati, Kleftes, Perdikomata, as variations of Tsamiko. This dance is supposed to have been the dance of the Souliotes. The dance of Osman Taka |url=https://dmpp.org/the-dance-of-osman-taka/%7C","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ffe95f07-3a29-4fb6-b353-df731929e6c3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1xvs905gp2","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Dance of Osman Taka”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ffe95f07-3a29-4fb6-b353-df731929e6c3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dsn5zhnpyz","content":[{"text":"dance of Osman Taka is traditional dance in Albania (mainly danced by Cham Albanians) and Greece that bears the name of Osman Taka, a 19th-century oscure figure of a Muslim Cham Albanian guerilla fighter who fought against Ottoman forces, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ea275a08-c5e8-41b8-b5c0-a5b4a725150b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"x4szbnev5r","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ea275a08-c5e8-41b8-b5c0-a5b4a725150b"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:10.053Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/dance-of-osman-taka"}
{"id":"eff0eb90-8e7c-4765-9081-3294155bfa13","type":"art_form","slug":"dance-of-wallis-and-futuna","title":"dance of Wallis and Futuna","summary":"In Uvea (Wallis) and Futuna, dances play a major cultural role. One sees dance in fakahaha'aga (festivals), to'oto'oga (ceremonies or celebrations), or just for pure pleasure.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2cxxg52ep4","content":[{"text":"In Uvea (Wallis) and Futuna, dances play a major cultural role. One sees dance in fakahaha'aga (festivals), to'oto'oga (ceremonies or celebrations), or just for pure pleasure. In Uvea, the term faiva is used for dance, whereas the term mako is used. In Uvea and Futuna there is a katoaga which is only celebrated with the visit of chiefs and if lucky, with the Lavelua (King). As the years go by, dance and culture is still alive and well in Uvea and Futuna. The normal fakapale is given to the dancers for their magnificent dance. The following dances of Uvea and Futuna below are just some of the dances, or are the main dances seen in Wallisian and Futunan culture.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b8e25899-18a5-426f-be9e-27a2568e39dd"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Eke","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ephw0wm2jc","content":[{"text":"The Eke is a stick dance performed by both genders. The Eke started travelling during the Tongan overlordship of Uvea and Futuna in the 14th century. In Tonga they have a same but different stick dance called Soke. The dancers are armed with sticks about four feet [1.2m] long formed two lines facing each other. During the dance the pair of male and females struck the sticks together in a manner similar to quarterstaff sparring.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b8e25899-18a5-426f-be9e-27a2568e39dd"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Kailao","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m2mdrrzng0","content":[{"text":"This is the most popular of the implement dances seen in Uvea and Futuna. It's a club dance performed without a song 'to the rhythm of a wooden pate (gong) or an empty kerosene tin. Two parties of male dancers approached each other from opposite sides of the mala'e (village green), usually in columns of twos. During the dance they went through 'a drill of vigorous twirling, swinging, and slapping motions' with the clubs.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b8e25899-18a5-426f-be9e-27a2568e39dd"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Tāpaki/Tu'upaki","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vrs87s5exs","content":[{"text":"The Tā-paki (Futuna) or Tapaki (Uvea) is an implement dance using broad, flat paddles (paki) which are twirled, tossed and slapped by the dancers. In Futuna, Tāpaki is performed only by men, whereas in Uvea it can involve females to perform with the males. The Tāpaki/ Tu'upaki is performed in honour of the chief (aliki) of a village, his ancestors and their deeds The dance is originally from Futuna but has spread to Uvea and also to Tonga where they have a similar paddle dance called Me'etu'upaki.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b8e25899-18a5-426f-be9e-27a2568e39dd"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Niutao","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"a0rs7tdwsz","content":[{"text":"The Niutao or Fakaniutao (Futuna) is a dance that was named after one of the islands of Tuvalu. This dance can be performed either by men alone, women alone or the two together. It follows the elements of the Tuvaluan Fātele, but slightly more gracefully rather than extreme gestures. The accompanying song is Europeanised, and the tempo is usually accelerated from beginning to end. Uvea Museum Association holds the first 16mm colour film of dance on Wallis in its collections, which was recorded in 1943.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b8e25899-18a5-426f-be9e-27a2568e39dd"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Sasa","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ht5fkb61f7","content":[{"text":"The Sasa is a sitting dance borrowed from the neighbouring islands of Samoa. The dance consists of fast and slow actions to the accompanying chorus. There is no singing in this dance but the instruments are played, which makes the Wallis/Futuna version different from that of the Samoan version which consists of no instruments but the log drum (papa). The pulotu or dance leader normally leads the dance and makes sure that each dancer is following in time. The Sasa is performed at festivals and occasions.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b8e25899-18a5-426f-be9e-27a2568e39dd"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2fxjd3mpch","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Dance of Wallis and Futuna”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b8e25899-18a5-426f-be9e-27a2568e39dd"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"q1skyqrf9s","content":[{"text":"dance of Wallis and Futuna is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1401f971-3f4c-4532-8163-c8bc43b63966"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xkf7y2ay8h","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1401f971-3f4c-4532-8163-c8bc43b63966"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:06.366Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/dance-of-wallis-and-futuna"}
{"id":"c8125b98-2984-4a36-949b-9c3963755cdf","type":"art_form","slug":"dances-of-universal-peace","title":"Dances of Universal Peace","summary":"The Dances of Universal Peace (DUP) are a spiritual practice that employs singing and dancing the sacred phrases of the world's religions.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xc5gtf5hy1","content":[{"text":"The Dances of Universal Peace (DUP) are a spiritual practice that employs singing and dancing the sacred phrases of the world's religions. Their intention is to raise consciousness and promote peace between diverse religions according to one stated goal. The DUP are of North American Sufic origin. They combine chants from many world faiths with dancing, whirling, and a variety of movement with singing.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4230faa5-29fa-474f-ba59-bac3f044ac32"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Format","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cftyfz1jjs","content":[{"text":"Five to 500 dancers stand in a circle, often around a leader and musicians with acoustic instruments in the center. All dances are participatory and spectating is somewhat discouraged because joy is the goal, as opposed to the technical performance of specified dance steps or forms. Dances are facilitated by a dance leader who often plays a drum, guitar, flute or other stringed instrument. For lyrics, dances borrow inspirational poetry, quotes and chants which are sung as the dance is performed. Chants are often sacred phrases put to traditional, contemporary, or occasionally improvised melodies.  A wide range of languages are deliberately employed including Arabic, Aramaic, English, Hawaiian, Hebrew, Persian, and Sanskrit. Dance promoters use diverse religious practices, chants and languages to demonstrate how joy lives at the heart of every religion. Dance leaders tend to believe peace can be promoted through experiencing the same One Joy through diverse dance steps, chants, and languages.\nThe DUP emphasis is on participation regardless of ability as DUP dances are almost never performed before an audience. Dancers of all levels, including children, are able to follow along and dance together. Each dance is taught afresh at each gathering. Dances and dancing of this kind is seen as opportunity to develop participants' spiritual awareness, hand-eye-body coordination, and competency in harmonizing with others through dance. Many dances are choreographed with movements, steps, and gestures encouraging dancers to explore for deeper mystical meanings of the dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4230faa5-29fa-474f-ba59-bac3f044ac32"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gt9bpmd5v6","content":[{"text":"The Dances of Universal Peace were first formulated by Samuel L. Lewis (Sufi Ahmed Murad Chisti). The very first dance took place on 16 March, 1968 in San Francisco, California. The original dances were strongly influenced by Samuel Lewis' spiritual relationships with Ruth St. Denis, a modern dance pioneer, and Hazrat Inayat Khan, a Sufi master. The influence on the dances of Sufi practices such as Sema and The Whirling Dervishes are apparent, although Samuel Lewis was also a Rinzai Zen master and drew on the teachings of various religious and spiritual traditions.\nDances were originally performed at camps and meetings with a distinctly New Age and alternative feel but have increasingly been offered in diverse places of worship and more secular places such as schools, colleges, prisons, hospices, residential homes for those with special needs, and holistic health centers. The therapeutic uses of the Dances as well as the walking meditations developed by Samuel Lewis have also been explored in various settings.  The Dances have developed into a global movement due to the work of the International Network for the Dances of Universal Peace founded in 1982 by Neil Douglas-Klotz and Tasnim Fernandez, who at that time were teachers in the Sufi Ruhaniat International and Sufi Order International respectively. Both have continued to be leading exponents of the Dances and Douglas-Klotz's creation of Dances using Aramaic words of Jesus has entered many alternative and mainstream religious circles. The Network has members in 28 countries.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4230faa5-29fa-474f-ba59-bac3f044ac32"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"765d6rrpmm","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Dances of Universal Peace”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4230faa5-29fa-474f-ba59-bac3f044ac32"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jjhprjqmg8","content":[{"text":"Dances of Universal Peace is Spiritual practice, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"25104198-b2f5-4fd3-8454-c9851e322bf3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m4nkqc7m5z","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"25104198-b2f5-4fd3-8454-c9851e322bf3"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:10.369Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/dances-of-universal-peace"}
{"id":"7ec54367-dae0-4630-b3ae-f519cd8fea78","type":"art_form","slug":"dancesport","title":"dancesport","summary":"Dancesport (also stylized as DanceSport) is competitive dancing, as contrasted with social or exhibition dancing.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1ct3wwvy2s","content":[{"text":"Dancesport (also stylized as DanceSport) is competitive dancing, as contrasted with social or exhibition dancing. The term dancesport encompasses many dance disciplines (e.g., Acrobatic Rock'n'Roll, Boogie Woogie, Breaking, Hip Hop, and Ballroom). Most dancesport disciplines are competed by couples, but there are solo styles (e.g., Breaking) and group styles (e.g., Formation dance). In the case of Para dancesport, at least one of the dancers is in a wheelchair.\nDancesport events are sanctioned and regulated by dancesport organizations at the national and international level, such as (for Ballroom dance) the World DanceSport Federation, the World Dance Council, and the World Dance Organization.\nThe name was invented to help competitive ballroom dancing gain Olympic recognition. The physical demand of dancesport has been the subject of scientific research.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b5c2e4f9-d205-49dd-a099-772d2af66a06"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hwsh0jg9b5","content":[{"text":"The first unofficial world championship for Ballroom dance took place in 1909, and the first formation team was presented in 1932 by Olive Ripman at the Astoria Ballroom, London. The first Ballroom dancesport competition to be broadcast on TV was in Germany in 1960.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b5c2e4f9-d205-49dd-a099-772d2af66a06"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Styles of Ballroom dancesport","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mkeperty0f","content":[{"text":"Dancesport competitions are held in the Ballroom discipline in four styles, two in International Style and two in American Style. These include the following categories:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b5c2e4f9-d205-49dd-a099-772d2af66a06"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b2f7r8g4h7","content":[{"text":"International Standard\nInternational Latin\nAmerican Smooth\nAmerican Rhythm\nThese categories apply to both individual couples and formation dance. Some competitions under USA Dance and WDSF also offer solo events where individuals compete by themselves (i.e., without a partner) in either the leader or follower role and are judged on their form and execution of technique. These events were added to give more opportunities for dancers without partners to compete.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b5c2e4f9-d205-49dd-a099-772d2af66a06"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"World Dance Council","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yav4t2rg7e","content":[{"text":"The World Dance Council (WDC) is a registered limited company, and the legal successor to the International Council of Ballroom Dancing (ICBD), which was formed in 1950 in Edinburgh. The WDC operates through a general council and two committees:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b5c2e4f9-d205-49dd-a099-772d2af66a06"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mzqvr41qjy","content":[{"text":"The World Dance Sport Committee regulates professional dancesport at the international level.\nThe World Social Dance Committee \"deals with all matters of the dance profession that relate to the activities of Dance Schools and Dance Teachers\". It does not regulate social dance directly – that is the business of individual organisers, the dance teacher organisations, such as the Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing, and the chains of dance teaching schools in the United States.\nIn 2007 the WDC Amateur League was created. This organisation runs a number of competitions and has its own world ranking system for amateur dancers.\nEach member country in the WDC has its own national organisation, such as the British Dance Council, which acts as a forum for the many interested parties in that country. The national bodies decide on their delegates to the WDC.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b5c2e4f9-d205-49dd-a099-772d2af66a06"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"World DanceSport Federation","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dasyt7zvsk","content":[{"text":"The World DanceSport Federation (WDSF), formerly the International DanceSport Federation (IDSF), is the international governing body of dancesport, as recognised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC).\nFounded in 1957 as the International Council of Amateur Dancers (ICAD), it took up the name International DanceSport Federation in 1990. In 2011 it changed its name to World DanceSport Federation to emphasise the organization's global character.\nIn the past, the IDSF's focus was on administering amateur dancers and competitions. However, in 2010 the IDSF Professional Division was created (formerly known as the IPDSC), which extended this focus to professional dancesport.\nWDSF members are only allowed to dance in competitions that are on the WDSF's official competition calendar, unless the member has obtained the WDSF's written permission to compete in an event that is not on the WDSF's calendar.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b5c2e4f9-d205-49dd-a099-772d2af66a06"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"World Dance Organization","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"03mra0ncf9","content":[{"text":"The World Dance Organization (WDO) was founded with the name World Dance Organizers in 2019 with the first meeting being held on May 30, 2019, in Blackpool, England. The named was changed to the current World Dance Organization in December 2020. The controlling legal entity is the non-profit WDO Community Interest Company which was registered in England in September 2019.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b5c2e4f9-d205-49dd-a099-772d2af66a06"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hcwyj2d8nd","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Dancesport”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b5c2e4f9-d205-49dd-a099-772d2af66a06"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gz0rgyb05k","content":[{"text":"dancesport is competitive ballroom dancing, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ce4d0568-8a13-4940-a4e6-ba9ebe877546"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bhe1j54xsy","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 14 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ce4d0568-8a13-4940-a4e6-ba9ebe877546"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Dancesport at Alubijid National Comprehensive High School","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/70/Dancesport_at_Alubijid_National_Comprehensive_High_School.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Ahri Boy","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Dancesport at Alubijid National Comprehensive High School","licence":"CC BY 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/70/Dancesport_at_Alubijid_National_Comprehensive_High_School.jpg/960px-Dancesport_at_Alubijid_National_Comprehensive_High_School.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dancesport_at_Alubijid_National_Comprehensive_High_School.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/70/Dancesport_at_Alubijid_National_Comprehensive_High_School.jpg/1280px-Dancesport_at_Alubijid_National_Comprehensive_High_School.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0"},{"alt":"Dancesport at Alubijid National Comprehensive High School","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6f/Dancesport_at_Alubijid_National_Comprehensive_High_School_5.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Ahri Boy","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Dancesport at Alubijid National Comprehensive High School","licence":"CC BY 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6f/Dancesport_at_Alubijid_National_Comprehensive_High_School_5.jpg/960px-Dancesport_at_Alubijid_National_Comprehensive_High_School_5.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dancesport_at_Alubijid_National_Comprehensive_High_School_5.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6f/Dancesport_at_Alubijid_National_Comprehensive_High_School_5.jpg/1280px-Dancesport_at_Alubijid_National_Comprehensive_High_School_5.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0"},{"alt":"Dancesport at Alubijid National Comprehensive High School","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f0/Dancesport_at_Alubijid_National_Comprehensive_High_School_3.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Ahri Boy","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Dancesport at Alubijid National Comprehensive High School","licence":"CC BY 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f0/Dancesport_at_Alubijid_National_Comprehensive_High_School_3.jpg/960px-Dancesport_at_Alubijid_National_Comprehensive_High_School_3.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dancesport_at_Alubijid_National_Comprehensive_High_School_3.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f0/Dancesport_at_Alubijid_National_Comprehensive_High_School_3.jpg/1280px-Dancesport_at_Alubijid_National_Comprehensive_High_School_3.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:20.363Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/dancesport"}
{"id":"0738a22c-655b-41be-aad8-9f80b858c918","type":"art_form","slug":"danda-nata","title":"danda nata","summary":"Danda Naata, also written as Danda Jatra and Danda Yatra (Odia: ଦଣ୍ଡ ନାଟ, ଦଣ୍ଡ ଯାତ୍ରା) is one of the most important traditional dance festivals organized in different parts of South Odisha and particularly in the Ganjam District, Kandhamal …","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pehfnp2j62","content":[{"text":"Danda Naata, also written as Danda Jatra and Danda Yatra (Odia: ଦଣ୍ଡ ନାଟ, ଦଣ୍ଡ ଯାତ୍ରା) is one of the most important traditional dance festivals organized in different parts of South Odisha and particularly in the Ganjam District, Kandhamal District,Dhenkanal District & Angul District the heartland of ancient Kalinga Empire. The Danda Naata festival is being held in the month of Chaitra of every year. As per Ram Prasad Tripathy's article, it is an ancient festival of the Kalinga kingdom and still alive in and around the ancient Kalinga capital Sampa or Samapa i.e modern day Jaugada of Ganjam district. The Participants of Danda are called Danduas (also known as Bhoktas) and they pray Goddesses Kali and Shiva during this 13-, 18- or 21-day Danda period.     \nDanda begins on an auspicious day before the Chaitra Sankranti  or Meru Parba with traditional worship and fasting. The total number of days for the festival is 13, 18 or 21 days. Only male persons take part in this festival. The participants are known as the 'Bhoktas'. All the `Bhoktas` or 'Danduas'  lead a very pious life for all these days during the festival and they avoid eating meat, fish or cohabiting during this period.     \nIt is believed that the present day Danda Naata is a part of the ancient Chaitra Yatra festivals being celebrated every year at Tara Tarini Shakti Peetha. The Kalinga Emperors organised this Chaitra festival for their Ista devi, Tara Tarini.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f88ffbe5-a3c2-40af-9478-43dc40f0d8e4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fcg41a8tzr","content":[{"text":"Danda has various meanings, but there are two main meanings of the word","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f88ffbe5-a3c2-40af-9478-43dc40f0d8e4"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"q8463qkwvm","content":[{"text":"Club, Rod, Pole, Stick, Staff, Sceptre\nPunishment, Chastisement\nThe term Naata comes from the word Natya, which gives many different denotations of music, dance and drama. The term Jatra means theatre.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f88ffbe5-a3c2-40af-9478-43dc40f0d8e4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Folktale of the origin of the word danda","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"d6v4xc6wh2","content":[{"text":"Lord Ganesh was being taught a dance by his father, Lord Shiva. It was a religious dance called Tandava Nritya. In the process of learning the dance, Lord Shiva kicked the stage he was on, and made a sound that sounded like the word \"Dan\". Then a piece of brass material broke off the chain which Lord Shiva was wearing around his ankle and fell on a percussion instrument known as Mardala. The brass material hitting the Mardala made a very loud \"Da\" noise. Those two sounds were put together to form the word Danda. Danda came to be associated with dance because of that episode.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f88ffbe5-a3c2-40af-9478-43dc40f0d8e4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Danda Naata Ceremony","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"acy5a8qmwj","content":[{"text":"Danda Naata is an Indian dance festival that originated in the Ganjam district of Odisha. Danda Naata is a form of a religious festival that has theatrical and dance components. The dance is done mainly to worship Lord Shiva, the God of destruction of the Hindu mythology. There are other Gods and Goddesses that are worshiped by the spiritual dance also, such as Krishna, Ganesh, Kali, and Durga amongst others. The low caste Hindus and the high caste, such as the Brahmins, all participated in the Danda Naata. The dance along with the accompanying events is performed over the course of three months March, April, and May. Some events are performed in March – April, the month of Chaitra, and other events are performed in April – May, the month of Vaishakha. \nPeople commit self- inflicted wounds to worship Lord Shiva because the philosophy of ancient Hindu says that for a person to be great, one has to have self-control over one's body (Kaya), mind (Mana), and speech (Vakya).\nSo in order to achieve greatness, a lot of punishments, Danda, to the individual must be undergone, so this event is known as Danda Naata.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f88ffbe5-a3c2-40af-9478-43dc40f0d8e4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance component of the religious festival","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tz2av8a3v6","content":[{"text":"Danda Naata consists of multiple dances. People start Danda by fasting, having a single meal a day made up of rice and dal, and worshipping their Lord before the actual dances occur.\nThis dance consists of a series of dances which are performed one after another by the male members belonging to the Scheduled Castes and other backward castes. In this dance the Ghasis provide the music with the help of Dhol and Mahuri. The dance has a rich repertory. Parva dance is the first item of the repertory. The Prabhakar and the Prabhakariani, dressed in multi coloured dress, dance in the beginning. The dancer places a piece of cloth on his shoulders and holds the ends of the same in front with both the hands. He moves his hands forward and backward, right and left, to the rhythm of the dance. A semi-circular plate, made of bamboo sticks and covered with coloured and decorated cloth with ornamental border, is tied to the back of the Prabhkar. The Prabhakar wears multi coloured skirt and jacket. The Prabhakariani, a male in female role, dresses himself in sari and kanchala (blouse). The Prabhakariani holds apiece of coloured handkerchief in his hand. After the Parava dance is over the Hara –Parvati dance begins. Then a group dance of Fakir and Fakiriani is performed. The dances of Savara  and Savarani, Chadeya and Chadouni, are performed one after another. Then the party performs a leela based on a story from the Ramayana or the Mahabharata or from any other Puran through songs and dances . Patarasaura and Patarasaurani perform their dance at the end of the leela. The last, but not the least, is the Binakar who closes the performance with his most significant songs and dances. Then males that belong to backward and scheduled castes perform the Parava dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f88ffbe5-a3c2-40af-9478-43dc40f0d8e4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"The roles of the dancers","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hmkrbz2353","content":[{"text":"The various dances of the Danda Naata have various themes behind them. Each of the roles in the dances sing a different tune. Some songs are based on historical stories, while others have a more comical approach. Some groups use a question/answer approach. The groups that use that approach have one role, male or female role, ask questions, while the other role give answers to those replies. Although the songs can be performed through multiple approaches, all the songs have the same style, folk and Odissi.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f88ffbe5-a3c2-40af-9478-43dc40f0d8e4"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"whecbt9554","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Danda Nata”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f88ffbe5-a3c2-40af-9478-43dc40f0d8e4"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"62xd0caskn","content":[{"text":"danda nata is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2b84a850-a9ad-4822-8eb5-e85c06076c52"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f122r6m1th","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2b84a850-a9ad-4822-8eb5-e85c06076c52"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:10.669Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/danda-nata"}
{"id":"fa4caf03-00e3-47f9-b501-d48ef5cacc5e","type":"art_form","slug":"dandiya-raas","title":"dandiya raas","summary":"Raas or Dandiya Raas is the socio-religious folk dance originating from Indian state of Gujarat and popularly performed in the festival of Navaratri. The dance is performed in the Marwar region of Rajasthan too.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wmbrk6px76","content":[{"text":"Raas or Dandiya Raas is the socio-religious folk dance originating from Indian state of Gujarat and popularly performed in the festival of Navaratri. The dance is performed in the Marwar region of Rajasthan too. The etymology of Dandiya-Raas is in Sanskrit. Dandiya-raas exists in the different forms, including the collegiate competitive form. The dance style is now in a competitive format and a traditional format.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f8d55b23-c2ca-4a74-9bbb-9abb3628b94f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"v3vbghpkfn","content":[{"text":"Men and women traditionally play dandiya-raas and the dance operates in pairs, meaning the group must contain an even number. Generally, two lines are formed, with partners facing each other:The lines move clockwise, and each person steps forward to hit sticks with their partner, then moves on two people. At the end of the line, each turns and joins the line opposite, so the movement is continuous. The music starts very slowly […] It is an eight-beat time cycle called Kaherva and performed in the following manner: on the first beat, your own sticks are hit together, followed by right sticks with your partner, then left sticks (or the same stick if using one). Each one then turns away to the left to hit their own sticks together before turning back to the partner to hit the right sticks again, and before moving on two places to a new partner.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f8d55b23-c2ca-4a74-9bbb-9abb3628b94f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cpt1xnsyq2","content":[{"text":"The word \"Raas\" comes from the Sanskrit word \"Rasa\", an aesthetic Indian concept related to emotions and feelings. Kapila Vatsyayan argued that the aesthetic theory of the Rasa gives the underlying unity to the Indian arts.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f8d55b23-c2ca-4a74-9bbb-9abb3628b94f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Forms","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7scvcqgrqq","content":[{"text":"Dandiya Raas, Gopgunthan Solanga Raas and Mer Dandiya Raas are the popular forms of Raas. In Saurashtra, Raas is performed by the men and the dance performed by women is called as Raasda. Element of dance is more prominent in the Raas while music is more prominent in Raasda.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f8d55b23-c2ca-4a74-9bbb-9abb3628b94f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Collegiate Garba-Raas","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ywtfb531k5","content":[{"text":"Garba-Raas, more commonly known as Raas, is a combination dance style consisting of mainly Dandiya-Raas and some Garba. Garba-Raas emerged as a competitive dance style due to the efforts of the Federation of Gujarati Associations of North America (FOGNA). The Garba-Raas competitive dance style was further developed in the early 2000s by first generation Indian-American college students. Furthermore, a cohesive national organization for Garba-Raas was established in 2009 called Raas All-stars (RAS). As of 2023, the organization consists of almost 50 actively competing collegiate Garba-Raas teams nationwide, out of a total of 66 recorded teams.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f8d55b23-c2ca-4a74-9bbb-9abb3628b94f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Competitive Garba-Raas","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1wsky87wer","content":[{"text":"Garba-Raas is traditionally a recreational social dance form that is done in large groups. The competitive form is described as \"...competitive sport, rather than an inclusive, ritualistic dance form, the need to \"entertain\" has become increasingly paramount\" by Falcone. In order to turn this social dance into a competitive activity, many aspects of the dance, such as the formations, the moves, and structures, have changed. The new evolved style is described in further detail below under \" The Garba-Raas Competitive Dance Style\".\nSimilarities between the traditional and competitive styles are the clothing, the music, and the basic moves. Jessica Falcone points out that dancers prefer to identify the new dance style as a branch of Garba and Dandiya-raas but in reality, she states that intercollegiate Garba-Raas is transforming into its own dance style.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f8d55b23-c2ca-4a74-9bbb-9abb3628b94f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nz4syahgzh","content":[{"text":"The structure competition dance consists of 12-16 dancers who perform 8-9 continuous dances which are a combination of Garba, dandiya-raas, and tran tali. All dancers are required to be college students but may attend a different college from which they represent. Teams are expected to be in traditional Garba-Raas clothing. Routines are commonly constructed with a theme presented throughout the dance through props and special effects.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f8d55b23-c2ca-4a74-9bbb-9abb3628b94f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Raas All-Stars","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ynanzfnm2b","content":[{"text":"Raas All-Stars (RAS) is the national organization under which the collegiate Garba-Raas competitions and teams function. RAS was established in 2009. They are responsible for certifying eligible competitions and hosting the national championship at the end of each season.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f8d55b23-c2ca-4a74-9bbb-9abb3628b94f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9xanq0fnzj","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Dandiya Raas”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f8d55b23-c2ca-4a74-9bbb-9abb3628b94f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6amhdexzhe","content":[{"text":"dandiya raas is Indian Gujrati folk dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2b4a16df-d5eb-49a7-9af6-3bdc1d0d0f81"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vfpbqhkdj9","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2b4a16df-d5eb-49a7-9af6-3bdc1d0d0f81"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Children performing Dandiya in Palace Grounds, Bangalore. Credit information: This work was created by Subhashish Panigrahi . You are free to use it for any purpose as long as you credit me properly. ✐ Contact me ( log in required ) • ✍︎ Email If you are the subject of the…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3f/Children_performing_Dandiya_in_Palace_Grounds%2C_Bangalore.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"User:psubhashish","height":1280,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Children performing Dandiya in Palace Grounds, Bangalore. Credit information: This work was created by Subhashish Panigrahi . You are free to use it for any purpose as long as you credit me properly. ✐ Contact me ( log in required ) • ✍︎ Email If you are the subject of the…","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3f/Children_performing_Dandiya_in_Palace_Grounds%2C_Bangalore.jpg/960px-Children_performing_Dandiya_in_Palace_Grounds%2C_Bangalore.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Children_performing_Dandiya_in_Palace_Grounds,_Bangalore.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3f/Children_performing_Dandiya_in_Palace_Grounds%2C_Bangalore.jpg/1280px-Children_performing_Dandiya_in_Palace_Grounds%2C_Bangalore.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:19.126Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/dandiya-raas"}
{"id":"6edf8b60-55ac-4c03-aece-b7c54b262258","type":"art_form","slug":"danza-de-los-viejitos","title":"Danza de los Viejitos","summary":"The Danza de los viejitos (Spanish: Dance of the little old men) is a traditional folk dance in Michoacán, Mexico.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"58d9196ds1","content":[{"text":"The Danza de los viejitos (Spanish: Dance of the little old men) is a traditional folk dance in Michoacán, Mexico.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8965cc16-0dab-4bf5-ba0e-b496b909d5e7"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origin","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7y8jkg9hnz","content":[{"text":"The Danza de los Viejitos is a Mexican folk dance created by the Purépecha culture who lived incolonization, it was called T'arche Uarakua. The men that perform this dance are known as Danzantes or \"Dancers.\" This dance was performed by four Petamunis (the town's wisest men). Four to represent fire, water, earth, and air. Four dancers are also believed to be the correct number to dance in this traditional performance because there are four colors that make corn which is red, yellow, white, and blue. The dance ask Tata Jurhiata (The Sun God) for good harvest, communication with spirits, and to learn about the past or to predict the future.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8965cc16-0dab-4bf5-ba0e-b496b909d5e7"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Clothing","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jxarjq381q","content":[{"text":"A Danzante wears a top and bottom made out of a white blanket. It is topped with a \"sarape,\" which is a blanket worn as a cloak in Latin America. Each sarape contains different designs and colors. They wear a hat made out of straw with adorned lengthy pieces of ribbon, each one a different color. The ribbon is parted down the middle of the hat, each one hanging 10 cm on the sides. Their shoes are sandals that have a wooden sole in order to make a tapping noise throughout their dance, followed by a wooden cane they also use. The dancers also wear a mask made out of either wood, cornstalk paste, or clay with an elderly man's face painted on it.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8965cc16-0dab-4bf5-ba0e-b496b909d5e7"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Music","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m5akw5hcr1","content":[{"text":"The music consists of 3 instruments.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8965cc16-0dab-4bf5-ba0e-b496b909d5e7"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vqs9nd3j41","content":[{"text":"Violin\nClarinet\nGuitar","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8965cc16-0dab-4bf5-ba0e-b496b909d5e7"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mk3tqymatb","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Danza de los Viejitos”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8965cc16-0dab-4bf5-ba0e-b496b909d5e7"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vx5sc9q7qh","content":[{"text":"Danza de los Viejitos is traditional folk dance in Michoacán, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"147fdb12-9e5c-491e-8f38-1ec1f296dfd5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nzmmsg6ap8","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"147fdb12-9e5c-491e-8f38-1ec1f296dfd5"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Danza típica de Patzcuaro, Michoacán","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3f/Danza_de_los_Viejitos.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Jessicatena","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Danza típica de Patzcuaro, Michoacán","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3f/Danza_de_los_Viejitos.jpg/960px-Danza_de_los_Viejitos.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Danza_de_los_Viejitos.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3f/Danza_de_los_Viejitos.jpg/1280px-Danza_de_los_Viejitos.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:25.606Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/danza-de-los-viejitos"}
{"id":"df5cc5be-5a56-4939-ae63-7166c65e2d16","type":"art_form","slug":"danza-de-los-voladores","title":"Danza de los Voladores","summary":"The Danza de los Voladores (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈdansa ðe los βolaˈðoɾes]; \"Dance of the Flyers\"), or Palo Volador (pronounced [ˈpalo βolaˈðoɾ]; \"flying pole\"), is an ancient Mesoamerican ceremony/ritual still performed today, albeit in…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bymbdgjah3","content":[{"text":"The Danza de los Voladores (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈdansa ðe los βolaˈðoɾes]; \"Dance of the Flyers\"), or Palo Volador (pronounced [ˈpalo βolaˈðoɾ]; \"flying pole\"), is an ancient Mesoamerican ceremony/ritual still performed today, albeit in modified form, in isolated pockets in Mexico. It is believed to have originated with the Nahua, Huastec and Otomi peoples in central Mexico, and then spread throughout most of Mesoamerica.  The ritual consists of dance and the climbing of a 30-meter (98 ft 5 in) pole from which four of the five participants then launch themselves tied with ropes to descend to the ground. The fifth remains on top of the pole, dancing and playing a flute and drum.  According to one myth, the ritual was created to ask the gods to end a severe drought. Although the ritual did not originate with the Totonac people, today it is strongly associated with them, especially those in and around Papantla in the Mexican state of Veracruz.  The ceremony was named an Intangible cultural heritage by UNESCO in order to help the ritual survive and thrive in the modern world. The Aztecs believed that Danza de los Voladores was the symbol of their culture.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"954a5f48-5895-4947-b41d-80dccc77b689"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dt0qhg2kpd","content":[{"text":"According to Totonac myth, at least 450 years ago there was a severe drought that brought hunger to the people. The gods were withholding the rain because the people had neglected them.  The ceremony was created, to appease the gods and bring back the rains. In some versions of the story, the ritual is created by the old men of a village, who then chose five young men who were chaste. In other versions, the five men themselves create the ritual. The tallest tree in the nearby forest is cut down, with the permission of the mountain god, stripped of branches and dragged to the village. The trunk is erected with much ceremony. The youths climb the pole and four jump off while the fifth played music. The ritual pleased the rain god Tlaloc and other gods, so the rains began again and the fertility of the earth returned.\nThe exact origin of this ritual/dance is unknown, but it is thought to have originated with the Huastec, Nahua and Otomi peoples  in Sierra de Puebla and mountain areas of Veracruz. The ritual spread through much of the Mesoamerican world until it was practiced from northern Mexico to Nicaragua. Evidence for the ritual stretches back at least as far as the pre-Classic period according to ceramics found in Nayarit. In pre-Hispanic times, the ritual was far more complex, involving taboos and meditation. The participants were thought to impersonate birds and in some areas were dressed as parrots, macaws, quetzals and eagles. These birds represented the gods of the earth, air, fire, and water. By the 16th century, the ritual was strongly associated with solar ceremonies, such as the spring equinox.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"954a5f48-5895-4947-b41d-80dccc77b689"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Versions","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"21t0dt7enz","content":[{"text":"In addition to whether or not there is a pole ceremony, other variations in the ritual exist. Among the Nahua and Otomi peoples, there is generally no dance before climbing the pole; the ceremony begins at the top. There is also a version where the suspended frame has five sides instead of four and the ritual involves six dancers and not five. The most traditional time to perform this version is on Holy Thursday at the culmination of a festival held on this day called the Huapangueada. Some dancers have rules to follow such as needing to fast for one or more days before the ceremony and abstain from sexual relations so that the gods will look upon the ceremony favorably.  Most of the variations are found in Puebla state.\nHowever, the most controversial variation is whether or not to permit women to perform the ritual. In Papantla, which is the community most closely associated with the ritual, the Consejo de Ancianos Totonacas (Council of Totonac Elders) has formally prohibited the inclusion of women. Traditionally, women have been excluded from all Totonac ritual dancing. Even for the dance called La Maringuilla, the female protagonist is portrayed by a man.  The prohibition stems from the belief that women are “bad entities, who bring bad luck” and their inclusion would be a sin and/or anger the gods.\nHowever, in a few communities, such as Cuetzalan  and Pahuatlán in Puebla and Zozocolco de Hidalgo in Veracruz, women have been allowed to be voladores.  Those who are allowed to take part must first complete a series of rituals designed to ask the forgiveness of the gods and Catholic saints for being a woman. The women must also be virgins without a boyfriend if unmarried or abstain from sexual relations before the ritual if married.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"954a5f48-5895-4947-b41d-80dccc77b689"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Totonac version","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jcgz5kyhb6","content":[{"text":"According to Totonac myth, the gods told men, “Dance, and we shall observe.”  Today, pleasing the gods of old is still a part of the most traditional version of the ritual. The Totonac dress for this ritual consists of red pants with a white shirt, a cloth across the chest and a cap. The pants, hat and chest cloth are heavily embroidered and otherwise decorated. The cloth across the chest symbolized blood. The hat is adorned with flowers for fertility; mirrors represent the sun and from the top stream multicolored ribbons representing the rainbow.  These costumes are made by the voladores themselves and can cost between 5,000 and 8,000 pesos each.\nThe most traditional and lengthy version starts from the selection and cutting of the tree to be used, to the final dance after all voladores have descended from the pole. The tree selection, cutting and erecting ceremony is called the tsakáe kiki. It involves going into the forest to find a suitable tree and asking the permission or the pardon of the mountain god Quihuicolo for taking it. The tree is stripped of its branches and dragged to the ceremonial site, where a hole has been dug for the now-30-meter pole. Before erecting the pole, offerings of flowers, copal, alcohol, candles and live chickens or a live turkey are placed in the hole. These are then crushed as the pole is erected, adding to the fertility of the earth. The pole becomes a connection point between the sky and the earth and the underworld with the surface world, a representation of the world tree, and considered to be the fifth cardinal direction of the earth.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"954a5f48-5895-4947-b41d-80dccc77b689"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Intangible Cultural Heritage and conservation of the tradition","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yjhh8esgsw","content":[{"text":"The Ritual Ceremony of the Voladores of Papantla was recognized as Intangible cultural heritage (ICH) by UNESCO in 2009. This is the second Mexican event to be so recognized, with the first being the Indigenous Festivity of the Dead in 2008. Governor Fidel Herrera Beltrán received the award in the name of the people and the government of Veracruz, and especially the indigenous people of the Totonacapan region of the state. Celebrations of the recognition took place on October 12, 2009, in Takilhsukut Park at El Tajín and other volador sites in Mexico. The ritual was inscribed along with the Traditions of the Otomi-Chichimecas of Toliman, Peña de Bernal, Querétaro.\nThe recognition carries the responsibility for Mexico to safeguard and promote the tradition to keep it alive.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"954a5f48-5895-4947-b41d-80dccc77b689"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"In popular culture","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wmwbenqm06","content":[{"text":"In episode 6 of the animated series Onyx Equinox, …","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"954a5f48-5895-4947-b41d-80dccc77b689"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7jhacbv0vf","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Danza de los Voladores”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"954a5f48-5895-4947-b41d-80dccc77b689"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nzhg65w8bw","content":[{"text":"Danza de los Voladores is Mesoamerican rite, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1c17fc5d-142b-4edf-afe6-b3feabdba086"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"d36s0rv1qr","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 4 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1c17fc5d-142b-4edf-afe6-b3feabdba086"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Mariachi band in Zacatecas in August","src":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1660843836089-752e28601a8b?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8RGFuemElMjBkZSUyMGxvcyUyMFZvbGFkb3Jlc3xlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MTE2Mzg0fDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1080","kind":"photo","width":3343,"credit":"Jon Tehero","height":1542,"source":"unsplash","depicts":"Mariachi band in Zacatecas in August","licence":"Unsplash License","thumb640":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1660843836089-752e28601a8b?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8RGFuemElMjBkZSUyMGxvcyUyMFZvbGFkb3Jlc3xlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MTE2Mzg0fDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=640","sourceUrl":"https://unsplash.com/photos/a-large-crowd-of-people-in-a-street-iaIyjAv9nns?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral","thumb1280":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1660843836089-752e28601a8b?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8RGFuemElMjBkZSUyMGxvcyUyMFZvbGFkb3Jlc3xlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MTE2Mzg0fDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1280","attributionUrl":"https://unsplash.com/@jtehero?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:07.711Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/danza-de-los-voladores"}
{"id":"01f20a75-5032-48d1-9d51-4d691ea57272","type":"art_form","slug":"danza-de-tijeras","title":"Danza de tijeras","summary":"The Danza de las tijeras (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈdansa ðe las tiˈxeɾas]; English: scissors dance; Quechua: Supaypa wasin tusuq, also Galas, laijas) is an original dance of Chanka origin from the south of the Andes, in Peru.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k5q6zp85bn","content":[{"text":"The Danza de las tijeras (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈdansa ðe las tiˈxeɾas]; English: scissors dance; Quechua: Supaypa wasin tusuq, also Galas, laijas) is an original dance of Chanka origin from the south of the Andes, in Peru. The dance consists of two or more dancers, followed by their respective orchestras of a violin and a harp. The dancers dance in turns, doing explicit moves and challenging steps, such as dancing with just one foot.\nThe places where this dance is most influential are: Huancavelica, Ayacucho, Junín, Apurimac, and Lima.\nUNESCO designated the Danza de las tijeras intangible cultural heritage in 2010.\nThe scissors dance can be of different types, for example, the greater or competition dance, the smaller dance or \"Qolla alva\" which is danced at night; and zapateos, executed in the Christmas festivities. In the competition dance, two dancers (also called \"danzaq\" or \"tusuq\") dance by turns challenging each other to overcome the risk of the steps they perform, this competition is known as \"Atipanakuy\", \"Hapinakuy\", \"Tupanakuy\" among others.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3491ac2c-2dfa-45d7-9c6c-b76b099ff952"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2755kbqvb1","content":[{"text":"Danzantes de tijeras (scissors dancers) are descendants of the \"tusuq laykas\", prehispanic priests, fortune tellers, healers and shamans who experienced persecution during the colony. In this colonial period, they began to be known as \"supaypa waman\" (son of the devil in Quechua) and took refuge in the highest areas. As time passed by, the colonizers accepted they return but conditioning them to dance for the Catholic God and saints. In this way, they started to perform the danza de tijeras in fiestas patronales.\nNowadays, it is a magical-religious and ritual dance that represents, through their choreographies, the spirits of pachamama, yacumama, hanaccpacha, ucupacha, and others.\nPeruvian writer José María Arguedas (1911-1969) immortalized danzante de tijeras in several novels, even in the short story La agonía de Rasu Ñiti (1962), the main character is one of them.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3491ac2c-2dfa-45d7-9c6c-b76b099ff952"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Symbolism","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hgjd6vwd2j","content":[{"text":"The scissor dancers are identified with ritual skill and challenge from the outsider's point of view. Basically, the scissors dance is an impressive manifestation of physical art and skills, but to the Andean man it represents a complex ritual. A series of mysteries stalk around the dancers (the ones who do the ritual) who, in a surge of force and elasticity, test their skills with the gymnastics-like jump at the sound of a harp and a violin, while they cut the air with their scissors.\nAccording to the priests of the colony, its magical side obeys to an assumption pact with the devil, due to surprising moves or tests that they execute in the dance. This tests denominate Atipanacuy.\nThe central instrument of the dance is the elaborated scissors of two independent metal plates of approximately 25 cm, and when the two plates are fused, they make a shape of blunt-end scissors. The scissors replaced the flat stones used in antiquity due to the similar sound they emit. It is considered a great humiliation if the scissors fall from the dancer's hand while he is dancing.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3491ac2c-2dfa-45d7-9c6c-b76b099ff952"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hh522x432m","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Danza de tijeras”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3491ac2c-2dfa-45d7-9c6c-b76b099ff952"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hgt6j9hmah","content":[{"text":"Danza de tijeras is dance from the Andes, Peru, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"79047c60-0862-4de3-a6ed-31e0cbacc29e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c985kv9fkb","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 4 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"79047c60-0862-4de3-a6ed-31e0cbacc29e"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"La danza de las tijeras, danza de gala es una danza indígena originaria de la región de Ayacucho en el Perú, cuyo marco musical es provisto por violín y arpa, y que posteriormente fue difundida a las regiones de Huancavelica y Apurímac. En Apurímac la danza es denominada gala y…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/40/%C2%ABSupaypa_Wasin_Tusuq%C2%BB-_el_danzante_en_la_casa_del_diablo.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Art DiNo from Lima, Perú","height":852,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"La danza de las tijeras, danza de gala es una danza indígena originaria de la región de Ayacucho en el Perú, cuyo marco musical es provisto por violín y arpa, y que posteriormente fue difundida a las regiones de Huancavelica y Apurímac. En Apurímac la danza es denominada gala y…","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/40/%C2%ABSupaypa_Wasin_Tusuq%C2%BB-_el_danzante_en_la_casa_del_diablo.jpg/960px-%C2%ABSupaypa_Wasin_Tusuq%C2%BB-_el_danzante_en_la_casa_del_diablo.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:%C2%ABSupaypa_Wasin_Tusuq%C2%BB-_el_danzante_en_la_casa_del_diablo.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/40/%C2%ABSupaypa_Wasin_Tusuq%C2%BB-_el_danzante_en_la_casa_del_diablo.jpg/1280px-%C2%ABSupaypa_Wasin_Tusuq%C2%BB-_el_danzante_en_la_casa_del_diablo.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:25.903Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/danza-de-tijeras"}
{"id":"2d0d4428-2472-405a-93a6-6d8635b87ccb","type":"art_form","slug":"danza-prima","title":"danza prima","summary":"danza prima is a tradition recorded in open cultural data. This page is a machine-generated stub awaiting review by someone who knows the tradition.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gzwd7zf2kp","content":[{"text":"danza prima is a tradition recorded in open cultural data, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cef0e645-4b6b-4205-9586-186cd39e932c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s4eqcwv28m","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cef0e645-4b6b-4205-9586-186cd39e932c"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T07:23:08.675Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/danza-prima"}
{"id":"71e84bf5-bcb7-4214-b6e0-51c6b7d35536","type":"art_form","slug":"dashing-white-sergeant","title":"Dashing White Sergeant","summary":"The Dashing White Sergeant is a Scottish country dance, performed to a similarly titled piece of music. The dance is in 44 time, thus it is in the form of a reel. The dance is performed by groups of six dancers and is progressive.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7ey4act22j","content":[{"text":"The Dashing White Sergeant is a Scottish country dance, performed to a similarly titled piece of music. The dance is in 44 time, thus it is in the form of a reel. The dance is performed by groups of six dancers and is progressive.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fdbf9255-be9e-4a47-96b0-866f31a1103b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"y5h6wxbsn5","content":[{"text":"The title comes from the original lyrics, traditionally attributed to the 18th century General, John Burgoyne. It was set to music by the English composer, Sir Henry Rowley Bishop in 1826. The song was to be part of one of Bishop's operas, but there is no evidence it was ever incorporated into one. It was adapted into a military march and was the regimental march of the Royal Berkshire Regiment. It quickly became very popular in the United States both as a song and a dance tune, and was added to the repertoire of the West Point Military Academy, where it is still played today at certain events. It has been suggested that it was the inspiration for \"I Wish I Was in Dixie\", as the opening bars bear a resemblance. The dance steps come from the tradition of Swedish circle dancing, that was popular in Victorian Britain. The better known lyrics shown below, were written by the Scottish composer, Sir Hugh S. Roberton for the Glasgow Orpheus Choir.\nThe earlier version by Bishop and the later arrangement by Sir Hugh Roberton bear no relationship to one another.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fdbf9255-be9e-4a47-96b0-866f31a1103b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Steps","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sze9mpfv9r","content":[{"text":"The six dancers form a circle, traditionally of three men and three women standing alternately, which will break apart into two sets of three dancers. All six join hands and the circle turns anti-clockwise for eight counts, then clockwise for eight counts. The circle then separates into the two sets of three. The dancer in the middle (leader) of the three turns to the partner on the right, sets to (dances with) them for four counts and turns them for four counts, then repeats this with the partner on the left. The leader then turns the partner on the right again, followed by the partner on the left, the partner on the right, the partner on the left. He then joins hands with both partners so the three form a straight line facing the other set of three. Both sets walk towards each other for two steps, and stamp their feet three times (over the course of two counts, therefore including one off-beat), then retreat for two steps and clap their hands similarly to the stamping. They then walk towards each other again (again holding hands), and one set raises its arms to form archways under which the other dancers pass to meet the next set of three coming from another circle, with whom the dance is repeated.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fdbf9255-be9e-4a47-96b0-866f31a1103b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7zsvjttxdy","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Dashing White Sergeant”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fdbf9255-be9e-4a47-96b0-866f31a1103b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"e9mjb3sx6b","content":[{"text":"Dashing White Sergeant is Scottish country dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"046a988a-d4fc-41a4-a2b0-769d64e9de1d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4ry0h338bc","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"046a988a-d4fc-41a4-a2b0-769d64e9de1d"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-05T01:44:09.008Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/dashing-white-sergeant"}
{"id":"aa7edfc3-3792-4500-9756-c1b43185d5c9","type":"art_form","slug":"daychovo-horo","title":"Daychovo horo","summary":"Dajchovo horo (Bulgarian: Дайчово хоро) is a Bulgarian folk dance done to a nine-beat meter.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"g8p9v537f9","content":[{"text":"Dajchovo horo (Bulgarian: Дайчово хоро) is a Bulgarian folk dance done to a nine-beat meter.  It is unique in two ways: it is a circle dance (most Bulgarian dances are either line or couple dances), and yet it has a leader (most circle dances have no leader).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"eed3b490-34b8-4ede-a85c-027d6441c2f1"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance steps","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nf4p8e5eng","content":[{"text":"The dance has a basic step pattern consisting of a lift of the right knee on the first beat, followed by three steps in place.  This pattern is repeated, alternating which knee is lifted.  Each pattern is done in a single measure of 9 beats (98) with a pattern counted 2+2+2+3 or \"quick-quick-quick-slow\".  A leader in the circle can then call out variations to be performed, starting on the first beat of a pattern (when the right knee would be lifted). This is done as a banter between the leader and the rest of the circle.  Following the banter, the entire circle performs the variation, and then resumes the basic dance step.  \nThe banter and most variations take up four measures of the music. This means that the leader can choose to call a new variation during the execution of the current variation; if this occurs, the dancers execute the next variation without resuming the basic step.\nA sample variation consists of:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"eed3b490-34b8-4ede-a85c-027d6441c2f1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"31xxga62yg","content":[{"text":"Leader says \"Chukni nane\" (let's stamp)\nDancers reply: \"Chukum, chukum\" (stamp, stamp)\nLeader says: \"Hajdi nane\" (when shall we do it?)\nDancers reply: \"Asigadeh\" (do it now)\nAll dancers then perform the variation, which in this case consists of three rapid stamps with the right foot and a pause followed by a basic step lifting the right knee; the pattern is then repeated stamping with the left feet and a basic step lifting the left knee.  These stamps are then repeated.\nEach variation has its own name, and it is not uncommon for new variations to be developed within a given group.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"eed3b490-34b8-4ede-a85c-027d6441c2f1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"164q73zvg6","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Daychovo horo”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"eed3b490-34b8-4ede-a85c-027d6441c2f1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"aav7p7322p","content":[{"text":"Daychovo horo is Bulgarian folk dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f084d9f0-2022-4853-a64c-189a406b5c48"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"br4aqz5tcj","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f084d9f0-2022-4853-a64c-189a406b5c48"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-05T01:44:10.110Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/daychovo-horo"}
{"id":"5974ec67-6cb4-4d26-b0c6-63fbdd87ba97","type":"art_form","slug":"debaa","title":"Debaa","summary":"The debaa or deba is a mixture of traditional dance, music and song practiced on the island of Mayotte, where it is reserved exclusively for women.\n\nDebaa can have religious significance, be practiced as a distraction, or be akin to a compe…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8qbkjv2hsy","content":[{"text":"The debaa or deba is a mixture of traditional dance, music and song practiced on the island of Mayotte, where it is reserved exclusively for women.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e7995001-34de-4c91-9ec7-f5f7db67cadf"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0tbtbvxnxv","content":[{"text":"Debaa can have religious significance, be practiced as a distraction, or be akin to a competition between several groups of women from different villages.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e7995001-34de-4c91-9ec7-f5f7db67cadf"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origin","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gp7w1fgyb3","content":[{"text":"The debaa is a recent tradition drawn from Sufism, a form of spirituality developed in Basra through contact with Shiism by the successors of Abdou-l-Wâhid ibnou Zayd, a disciple of Al-Hassan al-Basrî, himself being a  tali'i of Persian origin, that is to say an individual who has known at least one sahâbi, a companion of the prophet of Islam, the religion which is the majority religion in Islam in Mayotte.  It should nevertheless be noted that the specificities of Sufism are not based on the sacred texts (the Koran and the corpus of the Hadith) unanimously recognized as authentic, and that if the asceticism of Al-Hassan al-Basrî inspired Sufism, nothing has been reported to confirm that he was the instigator.\nThe debaa developed in Mayotte in the years 1920-1930 under the influence of a foundi (Madrasa school teacher).  Linked to the Sufi brotherhood Rifa'iyya, it was first reserved for men and of a purely religious nature, before opening up to women, then being reserved for them.\nThe debaa is identical to the practices of Sufism with regard to chanting and music, which consists of a few simple percussions, the only notable difference being the dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e7995001-34de-4c91-9ec7-f5f7db67cadf"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"x4h6140wkr","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Debaa”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e7995001-34de-4c91-9ec7-f5f7db67cadf"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"teybd77fw1","content":[{"text":"Debaa is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2e238a28-7c39-43cc-82ef-5f8fa41476cd"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k4s6a57zjz","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2e238a28-7c39-43cc-82ef-5f8fa41476cd"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Debaa à Mayotte Le debaa est une danse traditionnelle de l'île de Mayotte réservée exclusivement aux femmes.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/09/Danse_of_Debaa.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Bertrand Fanonnel | Eight Studio","height":854,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Debaa à Mayotte Le debaa est une danse traditionnelle de l'île de Mayotte réservée exclusivement aux femmes.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/09/Danse_of_Debaa.jpg/960px-Danse_of_Debaa.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Danse_of_Debaa.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/09/Danse_of_Debaa.jpg/1280px-Danse_of_Debaa.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:16.606Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/debaa"}
{"id":"9bdbadee-4c48-4591-8960-72a329566adb","type":"art_form","slug":"deer-dance","title":"deer dance","summary":"A deer dance is any of the world's folk dances performed by people dressed as deer.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9x1g77t9ca","content":[{"text":"A deer dance is any of the world's folk dances performed by people dressed as deer.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e5b81ca1-9689-41e9-b7f1-494a467b2835"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Guatemala","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5hwfx3hd8d","content":[{"text":"The Mayan Deer Dance is an important part of the culture of Guatemala.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e5b81ca1-9689-41e9-b7f1-494a467b2835"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"India","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nj27ap18cx","content":[{"text":"Manattam in Tamil Nadu","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e5b81ca1-9689-41e9-b7f1-494a467b2835"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Japan","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s2pjjkms4z","content":[{"text":"Deer dance (鹿踊, shishi-odori) is widely practised in Japan, particularly in Northeastern Japan.\nDeer dance in the style of Kanezu (video)","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e5b81ca1-9689-41e9-b7f1-494a467b2835"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Mexico","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"715tkgs5rt","content":[{"text":"The Danza del Venado of the Mayo and Yaqui people of Sonora and Sinaloa\nDanza del Venado del Ballet Folklorico de Mexico de Amalia Hernandez, en el Palacio de Bellas Artes, video por Viajes Segara","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e5b81ca1-9689-41e9-b7f1-494a467b2835"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"United Kingdom","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1sfd502c3z","content":[{"text":"Abbots Bromley Horn Dance","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e5b81ca1-9689-41e9-b7f1-494a467b2835"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"a7m7wwyfjw","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Deer dance (folk dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e5b81ca1-9689-41e9-b7f1-494a467b2835"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t0twb1hba0","content":[{"text":"deer dance is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"53bc2f6e-6a8e-4972-9360-5f112f545278"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ynssd2bwxa","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"53bc2f6e-6a8e-4972-9360-5f112f545278"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Gyōzan-style Miyakodori Deer Dance group [1] of Oshu (at the Kitakami Michinoku Traditional Dance Festival )","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b7/Deer_dance_of_Tono_Town%2C_Iwate%2C_Japan.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Yoshi Canopus","height":850,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Gyōzan-style Miyakodori Deer Dance group [1] of Oshu (at the Kitakami Michinoku Traditional Dance Festival )","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b7/Deer_dance_of_Tono_Town%2C_Iwate%2C_Japan.jpg/960px-Deer_dance_of_Tono_Town%2C_Iwate%2C_Japan.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Deer_dance_of_Tono_Town,_Iwate,_Japan.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b7/Deer_dance_of_Tono_Town%2C_Iwate%2C_Japan.jpg/1280px-Deer_dance_of_Tono_Town%2C_Iwate%2C_Japan.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:26.181Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/deer-dance"}
{"id":"965106a4-e055-46eb-b1eb-e3a959edea39","type":"art_form","slug":"deknni","title":"Deknni","summary":"Deknni (also spelled dekhnnî, dekni, dekṇi, dekhṇi) is a semi-classical Goan dance form.  The plural of Dekhnnî in Konkani remains the same.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"v88fcmzfrn","content":[{"text":"Deknni (also spelled dekhnnî, dekni, dekṇi, dekhṇi) is a semi-classical Goan dance form.  The plural of Dekhnnî in Konkani remains the same.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4ed037b8-cc10-453d-a414-e25f3d01f47b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Influence","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7q5cg0gq4f","content":[{"text":"Dekhni is characterized by its blend of Indian classical dance elements, such as those found in Kathak, Bharatanatyam, and Kuchipudi, performed to Western music.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4ed037b8-cc10-453d-a414-e25f3d01f47b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2szc19cene","content":[{"text":"The term \"Dekhni\" implies beauty, with the dance being so named because it is filled with such grace.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4ed037b8-cc10-453d-a414-e25f3d01f47b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"are0666hb8","content":[{"text":"While the exact origins of the dance are a subject of debate among experts, its history dates back approximately 150 years. One perspective suggests it originated from the dance performed by Devadasi women in front of temple palanquins. Another viewpoint attributes the development of the dance to the cultural influence or impositions of the Portuguese. A third theory posits that it was created as a fusion of Indian dance styles and Western music to entertain Portuguese officials.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4ed037b8-cc10-453d-a414-e25f3d01f47b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Performance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ehmdk2qnm9","content":[{"text":"Dekhni is a graceful and attractive folk dance. During the performance, women traditionally wear a nav-vari (nine-yard) saree, adorned with flowers in their hair tied in a bun. They also wear traditional gold jewelry, specifically a nath (nose ring), and ghungroos (ankle bells) on their feet.\nThe musical accompaniment for the dance features a blend of instruments including the guitar, violin, and ghumot. The dancers perform to the rhythm of Western-style chorus songs. Both Hindu and Christian women participate in the dance. During the performance, the main dancers hold oil lamps (divzas) in their hands while dancing to the musical rhythm.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4ed037b8-cc10-453d-a414-e25f3d01f47b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Overview","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"a3a4bxgkng","content":[{"text":"One of the earliest deknni which may be dated around 1869 is Kuxttoba in which he is called \"heir to India and terror of Goa\", implying resistance to Portuguese rule. Kuxttoba was a member of the Salekar branch of the Rane family. Information about his birth, the reason and the course of his rebellion and the manner of his end are vague. He rebelled as an individual against the rule of the Portuguese in Goa but he presented no concept for a free Goa.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4ed037b8-cc10-453d-a414-e25f3d01f47b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t026jzsvwp","content":[{"text":"One of the best known Dekhnnî songs is \"Hanv Saiba Poltoddi Voitam\" by Carlos Eugenio Ferreira (1869–1932) first published in Paris in 1895 and then in Goa in 1926 by Tipografia Rangel. The song was adapted by Raj Kapoor as Na mangoon sona chandi in his Hindi movie Bobby. The story that is depicted in this song is about two temple dancers who want to go for Damu's wedding and they approach the boatman to ferry them across the river. The boatman says, \"No! The river is rough!\" The dancers offer the boatman their gold jewellery; but the boatman is still firm. \"No!\" he says. So the dancers dance for the boatman and this time he ferries them across the river.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4ed037b8-cc10-453d-a414-e25f3d01f47b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"g14eyhw0zk","content":[{"text":"Other deknni songs are:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4ed037b8-cc10-453d-a414-e25f3d01f47b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4wb97r2pzy","content":[{"text":"Arê tanddela\nTendulechim tendulim\nVaingem kazar zata mhunn\nVoddekara\nVhoir vhoir dongrar\nXeutim mogrim abolim","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4ed037b8-cc10-453d-a414-e25f3d01f47b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"y89rew085f","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Deknni”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4ed037b8-cc10-453d-a414-e25f3d01f47b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tqkdag7kmq","content":[{"text":"Deknni is semi classical Goan (Indian) dance form, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7ca422ca-ac08-4b44-a92f-c7a64a25e7d9"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mgc36gw0pn","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7ca422ca-ac08-4b44-a92f-c7a64a25e7d9"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:11.821Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/deknni"}
{"id":"cf11e639-91b3-480e-895a-f08033eb0f27","type":"art_form","slug":"devil-s-sword-dance","title":"Devil's Sword Dance","summary":"The Devil's Sword Dance (鬼剣舞, onikenbai) is a sword dance usually performed by a group of eight dancers, especially popular in northeastern Japan.  It is so called because the dancers wear face masks which look like demons (鬼, oni).","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kpq4ja2a2a","content":[{"text":"The Devil's Sword Dance (鬼剣舞, onikenbai) is a sword dance usually performed by a group of eight dancers, especially popular in northeastern Japan.  It is so called because the dancers wear face masks which look like demons (鬼, oni).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8397fa36-d3fd-43f1-aa91-d14fa74196ca"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vdp4bk1354","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Devil's sword dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8397fa36-d3fd-43f1-aa91-d14fa74196ca"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"myqstqcxg1","content":[{"text":"Devil's Sword Dance is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ff2881a7-a05b-491a-a9af-f214ad1f063b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nfszdbcw23","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ff2881a7-a05b-491a-a9af-f214ad1f063b"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T07:23:06.856Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/devil-s-sword-dance"}
{"id":"c79f36c7-d41c-4c18-969a-2f9422350386","type":"art_form","slug":"dhalo","title":"Dhalo","summary":"Dhalo is a popular ritual folk dance form Goa, India. The dance is performed by women and serves as a prayer of protection for their households. The songs to which the dance is performed are usually sung in Konkani language or Marathi.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"39g75wapd8","content":[{"text":"Dhalo is a popular ritual folk dance form Goa, India. The dance is performed by women and serves as a prayer of protection for their households. The songs to which the dance is performed are usually sung in Konkani language or Marathi. The themes of such songs are commonly religious or social in nature. It is conducted over a period of 1 week in the month of Pousha at the onset of winter. On the final day women dress up elaborately and draw caricatures of men.\nDhalo was chosen to be presented at the folk dance festival at New Delhi.\nIt is a traditional dance festival celebrated by women in the Konkan region, spanning areas from Sindhudurg to Majali-Karwar. The dances are primarily performed by women from communities such as the Kunbi, Bhandari, Nayak, Gabit, and Gawdi.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c96cf802-3d29-45c6-97f2-e85ce602ed6a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Traditions","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zx05cfmk1s","content":[{"text":"The festival is observed annually during the Hindu month of Pausha. The performances take place in an open space known as the 'Mand', which is typically located in front of a Tulsi vrindavan, within temple premises, or in a cleared courtyard of a house.\nWomen participating in Dhalo often adorn their hair with flowers such as Surangi, Onval, Aboli, Mogra, and Chafa. The nightly gatherings include unmarried women, married women, and widows. The proceedings are guided by knowledgeable women who act as mentors.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c96cf802-3d29-45c6-97f2-e85ce602ed6a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Technique","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wnjqnsccda","content":[{"text":"In this form of dance, 12–24 women dance together in two parallel rows facing each other and with interlocked arms.\nIn comparison to Fugdi this dance is performed at a slower pace.\nThe festival period typically extends from the full moon of Pausha to the sixth day of the waning moon (Krishna Paksha). The commencement and conclusion of the festival are governed by traditional rights held by specific families.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c96cf802-3d29-45c6-97f2-e85ce602ed6a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Opening","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"z2kbweax33","content":[{"text":"The rituals begin with an offering to the village deity. Women place items such as betel leaves, betel nuts, sweets, and bananas on a plate, alongside a lit lamp. Following prayers for the welfare of the village, women apply sandalwood paste to their foreheads before gathering at the Mand.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c96cf802-3d29-45c6-97f2-e85ce602ed6a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"The Dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vp41t7vcns","content":[{"text":"Participants form two rows facing each other, known as 'fanti'. They dance by holding hands or placing arms around each other's waists, moving forward and backward while singing. The songs traditionally focused on themes related to Radha and Krishna, though over time, verses dedicated to other deities, mythological tales, and contemporary topics have been incorporated.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c96cf802-3d29-45c6-97f2-e85ce602ed6a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Closing","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rgxqmndzpx","content":[{"text":"On the final night, which is considered the most significant, the festivities continue until dawn. The conclusion involves specific rituals, such as the distribution of offerings and the final performance of the Dhalo, after which the Mand is cleaned.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c96cf802-3d29-45c6-97f2-e85ce602ed6a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t8awtqj3g0","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Dhalo”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c96cf802-3d29-45c6-97f2-e85ce602ed6a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tq07era2pr","content":[{"text":"Dhalo is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8d64b3b9-b00b-46c6-b7d6-1b4f85710989"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"j4dxj5jqv2","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8d64b3b9-b00b-46c6-b7d6-1b4f85710989"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:12.101Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/dhalo"}
{"id":"21d0c06c-c0ed-47c0-8750-1f89966d901a","type":"art_form","slug":"diablada-pillarena","title":"Diablada pillareña","summary":"The Diablada, also known as the Danza de los Diablos (English: Dance of the Devils), is an Andean folk dance performed in Bolivia, in the Altiplano region of South America, characterized by performers wearing masks and costumes representing…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"knr95mraqx","content":[{"text":"The Diablada, also known as the Danza de los Diablos (English: Dance of the Devils), is an Andean folk dance performed in Bolivia, in the Altiplano region of South America, characterized by performers wearing masks and costumes representing the devil and characters from pre-Columbian theology and mythology combined with Spanish and Christian elements added during the colonial era. Many scholars have concluded that the dance is descended from the Llama llama dance in honor of the Uru god Tiw, and the Aymaran ritual to the demon Anchanchu, both originating in pre-Columbian Bolivia\nWhile the dance had been performed in the Andean region as early as the 1500s, its name originated in 1789 in Oruro, where performers dressed like the devil in parades called Diabladas. The first organized Diablada group with defined music and choreography appeared in Bolivia in 1904. There is also some evidence of the dance originating among miners in Potosí, while regional dances in Peru and Chile may have also influenced the modern version.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"46f9ab06-f40c-47d9-9307-acc86a5c08e9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Pre-Columbian origins","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"arw5bqg2xx","content":[{"text":"Bolivian historians claim that the Diablada originated in that country, and that should be named as its place of origin under the Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity policy promoted by UNESCO;  has also claimed that performances of the dance in other countries are cultural appropriation. Bolivian historians currently maintain that the Diablada dates back 2000 years to the rituals of the Uru civilization dedicated to the mythological figure Tiw, who protected caves, lakes, and rivers as places of shelter. The dance is believed to have originated as the Llama llama in the ancient settlement of Oruro, which was one of the major centers of the Uru civilization. The dance includes references to animals that appear in Uru mythology such as ants, lizards, toads, and snakes. Bolivian anthropologist Milton Eyzaguirre adds that the ancient cultures of the Bolivian Andes practiced a death cult called cupay, with that term eventually evolving into supay or the devil figure in the modern Diablada.\nDue to syncretism caused by Spanish influence in later centuries, Tiw was eventually associated with the devil; Spanish authorities also outlawed several of the ancient traditions but incorporated others into Christian theology. Local and regional Diablada festivals arose during the Spanish colonial period and were eventually consolidated as the Carnaval de Oruro in the modern city of that name.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"46f9ab06-f40c-47d9-9307-acc86a5c08e9"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cgyemz3rk0","content":[{"text":"...The Spanish banned these ceremonies in the seventeenth century, but they continued under the guise of Christian liturgy: the Andean gods were concealed behind Christian icons and the Andean divinities became the Saints. The Ito festival was transformed into a Christian ritual, celebrated on Candlemas (2 February).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"46f9ab06-f40c-47d9-9307-acc86a5c08e9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Spanish influence","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bvvatvf5qj","content":[{"text":"Some historians have theorized that the modern Diablada exhibits influences from Spanish dance traditions. In her book La danza de los diablos, Julia Elena Fortún proposed a connection with the Catalan entremés called Ball de diables as performed in the Catalonian communities of Penedès and Tarragona. That dance depicts a struggle between Lucifer and the archangel Saint Michael and is first known to have been performed in 1150. Catalan scholar Jordi Rius i Mercade has also found similarities between the Ball de diables and several Andean dances including the similarly-themed Baile de Diablos de Cobán in Guatemala and Danza de los diablicos de Túcume in Peru.\nThose theories contradict the more common theory that the modern Diablada is most influenced by the Spanish practice of autos sacramentales during which the colonizers introduced Christianity to the natives of the Andes, due to differing conceptions of the devil and his temptations. The autos sacramentales process has been cited as an influence on the emergence of the Diablada puneña in Peru, shortly after the Spanish conquest of the Inca Empire, as believed by Garcilaso de la Vega. Peruvian scholar Nicomedes Santa Cruz and Bolivian anthropologist Freddy Arancibia Andrade have suggested a similar process, with the dance originating among miners who rebelled against the Spanish at Potosi in 1538 while combining the ancient ritual of Tinku with Christian references. Andrade has also proposed a similar process among striking miners in 1904 as the origin of the modern version of the Diablada.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"46f9ab06-f40c-47d9-9307-acc86a5c08e9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Post-independence period","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c2xzjfrsmq","content":[{"text":"Though the traditions of the Diablada were merged with Christianity during the colonial period, the meanings of the original traditions were revived and reassessed during the Latin American wars of independence. The Altiplano region, particularly around Lake Titicaca, became a center of appreciation for pre-Columbian dance and music. During the Bolivian War of Independence, the main religious festival honoring the Virgin of the Candlemas was replaced by Carnival, which allowed for greater acknowledgement of pre-Christian traditions including the Diablada. The present annual Diablada festival was established in Oruro by 1891.\nThe first institutionalized Diablada dance squad was the Gran Tradicional y Auténtica Diablada Oruro, founded in Bolivia in 1904 by Pedro Pablo Corrales. That squad established a counterpart called the Los Vaporinos in Peru in 1918. A squad from Bolivia was invited to travel to the Fiesta de la Tirana in Chile in 1956, and that country's first established squad was called Primera Diablada Servidores Virgen del Carmen, centered in Iquique. In 2001, the Carnaval de Oruro was declared one of the Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity, along with the Diablada and 19 other dances performed at the festival. In 2004, the Bolivian government awarded high national honors to the Gran Tradicional y Auténtica Diablada Oruro for its 100th anniversary.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"46f9ab06-f40c-47d9-9307-acc86a5c08e9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Choreography","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0g03q9b11d","content":[{"text":"In its original form, the dance was performed with music by a band of Sikuris, who played the siku. In modern times the dance is accompanied by an orchestra. Dancers often perform on streets and public squares, but the ritual can also be performed at indoor theaters and arenas. The ritual begins with a krewe featuring Lucifer and Satan with several China Supay, or devil women. They are followed by the personified seven deadly sins of pride, greed, lust, anger, gluttony, envy, and sloth. Afterwards, a troop of devils come out. They are all led by Saint Michael, with a blouse, short skirt, sword, and shield. During the dance, angels and demons move continuously. This confrontation between the two sides is eclipsed when Saint Michael appears and defeats the Devil. The choreography has three versions, each consisting of seven moves.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"46f9ab06-f40c-47d9-9307-acc86a5c08e9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Music","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"be8ce2vqk7","content":[{"text":"The music associated with the dance has two parts: the first is known as the March and the second one is known as the Devil's Mecapaqueña. Some squads play only one melody or start the Mecapaqueña in the fourth movement \"by four\". Since the second half of the 20th century, dialogue is omitted so the focus is only on the dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"46f9ab06-f40c-47d9-9307-acc86a5c08e9"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9jqr759bt2","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Diablada”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"46f9ab06-f40c-47d9-9307-acc86a5c08e9"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"je55kf8yty","content":[{"text":"Diablada pillareña is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"292c7ead-5905-44ba-8481-6af9d89bafe2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zk8hbvqwcx","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"292c7ead-5905-44ba-8481-6af9d89bafe2"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-08T05:47:34.821Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/diablada-pillarena"}
{"id":"29aa906f-da9c-418d-a235-3f6035557421","type":"art_form","slug":"diablada-punena","title":"Diablada puneña","summary":"The Diablada, also known as the Danza de los Diablos (English: Dance of the Devils), is an Andean folk dance performed in Bolivia, in the Altiplano region of South America, characterized by performers wearing masks and costumes representing…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fx0smdjasv","content":[{"text":"The Diablada, also known as the Danza de los Diablos (English: Dance of the Devils), is an Andean folk dance performed in Bolivia, in the Altiplano region of South America, characterized by performers wearing masks and costumes representing the devil and characters from pre-Columbian theology and mythology combined with Spanish and Christian elements added during the colonial era. Many scholars have concluded that the dance is descended from the Llama llama dance in honor of the Uru god Tiw, and the Aymaran ritual to the demon Anchanchu, both originating in pre-Columbian Bolivia\nWhile the dance had been performed in the Andean region as early as the 1500s, its name originated in 1789 in Oruro, where performers dressed like the devil in parades called Diabladas. The first organized Diablada group with defined music and choreography appeared in Bolivia in 1904. There is also some evidence of the dance originating among miners in Potosí, while regional dances in Peru and Chile may have also influenced the modern version.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"46f9ab06-f40c-47d9-9307-acc86a5c08e9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Pre-Columbian origins","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7wgj7mqznc","content":[{"text":"Bolivian historians claim that the Diablada originated in that country, and that should be named as its place of origin under the Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity policy promoted by UNESCO;  has also claimed that performances of the dance in other countries are cultural appropriation. Bolivian historians currently maintain that the Diablada dates back 2000 years to the rituals of the Uru civilization dedicated to the mythological figure Tiw, who protected caves, lakes, and rivers as places of shelter. The dance is believed to have originated as the Llama llama in the ancient settlement of Oruro, which was one of the major centers of the Uru civilization. The dance includes references to animals that appear in Uru mythology such as ants, lizards, toads, and snakes. Bolivian anthropologist Milton Eyzaguirre adds that the ancient cultures of the Bolivian Andes practiced a death cult called cupay, with that term eventually evolving into supay or the devil figure in the modern Diablada.\nDue to syncretism caused by Spanish influence in later centuries, Tiw was eventually associated with the devil; Spanish authorities also outlawed several of the ancient traditions but incorporated others into Christian theology. Local and regional Diablada festivals arose during the Spanish colonial period and were eventually consolidated as the Carnaval de Oruro in the modern city of that name.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"46f9ab06-f40c-47d9-9307-acc86a5c08e9"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ky5wzb7smm","content":[{"text":"...The Spanish banned these ceremonies in the seventeenth century, but they continued under the guise of Christian liturgy: the Andean gods were concealed behind Christian icons and the Andean divinities became the Saints. The Ito festival was transformed into a Christian ritual, celebrated on Candlemas (2 February).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"46f9ab06-f40c-47d9-9307-acc86a5c08e9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Spanish influence","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sxj2sarfgq","content":[{"text":"Some historians have theorized that the modern Diablada exhibits influences from Spanish dance traditions. In her book La danza de los diablos, Julia Elena Fortún proposed a connection with the Catalan entremés called Ball de diables as performed in the Catalonian communities of Penedès and Tarragona. That dance depicts a struggle between Lucifer and the archangel Saint Michael and is first known to have been performed in 1150. Catalan scholar Jordi Rius i Mercade has also found similarities between the Ball de diables and several Andean dances including the similarly-themed Baile de Diablos de Cobán in Guatemala and Danza de los diablicos de Túcume in Peru.\nThose theories contradict the more common theory that the modern Diablada is most influenced by the Spanish practice of autos sacramentales during which the colonizers introduced Christianity to the natives of the Andes, due to differing conceptions of the devil and his temptations. The autos sacramentales process has been cited as an influence on the emergence of the Diablada puneña in Peru, shortly after the Spanish conquest of the Inca Empire, as believed by Garcilaso de la Vega. Peruvian scholar Nicomedes Santa Cruz and Bolivian anthropologist Freddy Arancibia Andrade have suggested a similar process, with the dance originating among miners who rebelled against the Spanish at Potosi in 1538 while combining the ancient ritual of Tinku with Christian references. Andrade has also proposed a similar process among striking miners in 1904 as the origin of the modern version of the Diablada.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"46f9ab06-f40c-47d9-9307-acc86a5c08e9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Post-independence period","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8kwmd8rj9s","content":[{"text":"Though the traditions of the Diablada were merged with Christianity during the colonial period, the meanings of the original traditions were revived and reassessed during the Latin American wars of independence. The Altiplano region, particularly around Lake Titicaca, became a center of appreciation for pre-Columbian dance and music. During the Bolivian War of Independence, the main religious festival honoring the Virgin of the Candlemas was replaced by Carnival, which allowed for greater acknowledgement of pre-Christian traditions including the Diablada. The present annual Diablada festival was established in Oruro by 1891.\nThe first institutionalized Diablada dance squad was the Gran Tradicional y Auténtica Diablada Oruro, founded in Bolivia in 1904 by Pedro Pablo Corrales. That squad established a counterpart called the Los Vaporinos in Peru in 1918. A squad from Bolivia was invited to travel to the Fiesta de la Tirana in Chile in 1956, and that country's first established squad was called Primera Diablada Servidores Virgen del Carmen, centered in Iquique. In 2001, the Carnaval de Oruro was declared one of the Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity, along with the Diablada and 19 other dances performed at the festival. In 2004, the Bolivian government awarded high national honors to the Gran Tradicional y Auténtica Diablada Oruro for its 100th anniversary.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"46f9ab06-f40c-47d9-9307-acc86a5c08e9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Choreography","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"akb0dq8nsz","content":[{"text":"In its original form, the dance was performed with music by a band of Sikuris, who played the siku. In modern times the dance is accompanied by an orchestra. Dancers often perform on streets and public squares, but the ritual can also be performed at indoor theaters and arenas. The ritual begins with a krewe featuring Lucifer and Satan with several China Supay, or devil women. They are followed by the personified seven deadly sins of pride, greed, lust, anger, gluttony, envy, and sloth. Afterwards, a troop of devils come out. They are all led by Saint Michael, with a blouse, short skirt, sword, and shield. During the dance, angels and demons move continuously. This confrontation between the two sides is eclipsed when Saint Michael appears and defeats the Devil. The choreography has three versions, each consisting of seven moves.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"46f9ab06-f40c-47d9-9307-acc86a5c08e9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Music","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t33sq4ach0","content":[{"text":"The music associated with the dance has two parts: the first is known as the March and the second one is known as the Devil's Mecapaqueña. Some squads play only one melody or start the Mecapaqueña in the fourth movement \"by four\". Since the second half of the 20th century, dialogue is omitted so the focus is only on the dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"46f9ab06-f40c-47d9-9307-acc86a5c08e9"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jjepkmgcp6","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Diablada”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"46f9ab06-f40c-47d9-9307-acc86a5c08e9"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"brcapwwy8b","content":[{"text":"Diablada puneña is Dance of Peru, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"868a62a0-5ba0-40b9-b7fd-d161e7a92594"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5hprvtqtpx","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"868a62a0-5ba0-40b9-b7fd-d161e7a92594"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-08T05:47:35.151Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/diablada-punena"}
{"id":"722c6e1a-29c3-42af-810c-f4ffc5f12285","type":"art_form","slug":"discofox","title":"Discofox","summary":"Discofox or disco fox is a social partner dance which evolved in Europe in the mid-1970s as a rediscovery of the dance hold in the improvisational disco dance scene dominated by solo dancing, approximately at the same time when the hustle e…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bmq6q6rzrc","content":[{"text":"Discofox or disco fox is a social partner dance which evolved in Europe in the mid-1970s as a rediscovery of the dance hold in the improvisational disco dance scene dominated by solo dancing, approximately at the same time when the hustle emerged in the United States. Both dances were greatly influenced by Saturday Night Fever starring John Travolta. In various regions, it is also known under different names: disco hustle, swing fox, disco swing, and rock fox.\nDiscofox is popular in Austria, Germany, Poland, Switzerland, as well as in Russia.\nDiscofox may be danced to a wide variety of 24 and 44 music such as 1970s disco, 1980s Eurodisco, Italo disco, disco polo, pop, and techno. Tempo may vary. In a social setting it is mostly danced in one place, although the couple may also move across the dance floor. It is danced with various types of single and double handhold. Among the figures are various handwraps, spins, throw-outs/catches, poses, drops, and for competitions also acrobatic figures.\nThere are international competitions in discofox.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"188507ea-3c5c-4867-b21e-7d7aa6322680"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Basic timing and step","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"982qs82f12","content":[{"text":"The beginner's count of the basic step is \"step-step-tap\". Advanced dancers use the hustle-style split-beat four-step basic (still occupying 3 beats of music), counted variously: (1,2, & 3), (1,2, a3) (1,2, 3&), (1,2, 3a).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"188507ea-3c5c-4867-b21e-7d7aa6322680"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yab04he424","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Discofox”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"188507ea-3c5c-4867-b21e-7d7aa6322680"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m2yszb3yp5","content":[{"text":"Discofox is social partner dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b462300e-a947-4449-b08e-fcdd6119b344"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"p51je6qqnf","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 4 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b462300e-a947-4449-b08e-fcdd6119b344"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"DISCOFOX-ANTENNE Logo","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2f/DISCOFOX-ANTENNE_Logo.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Flexwert","height":343,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"DISCOFOX-ANTENNE Logo","licence":"CC BY 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2f/DISCOFOX-ANTENNE_Logo.png/960px-DISCOFOX-ANTENNE_Logo.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:DISCOFOX-ANTENNE_Logo.png","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2f/DISCOFOX-ANTENNE_Logo.png/1280px-DISCOFOX-ANTENNE_Logo.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0"},{"alt":"Martha Wermann, Discofox Weltmeisterin 2015, Tänzerin und Tanzlehrerin in Action","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/79/AB-Bamenohl-02-18-230.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Benutzer1996","height":1920,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Martha Wermann, Discofox Weltmeisterin 2015, Tänzerin und Tanzlehrerin in Action","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/79/AB-Bamenohl-02-18-230.jpg/960px-AB-Bamenohl-02-18-230.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:AB-Bamenohl-02-18-230.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/79/AB-Bamenohl-02-18-230.jpg/1280px-AB-Bamenohl-02-18-230.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:08.920Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/discofox"}
{"id":"7d499fa4-85cf-4620-9ecb-36bac7bb044d","type":"art_form","slug":"dollu-kunitha","title":"Dollu Kunitha","summary":"Dollu Kunitha, is a major popular drum dance of Karnataka.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"e21tab007r","content":[{"text":"Dollu Kunitha, is a major popular drum dance of Karnataka.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"20473f51-ed36-4977-985e-9337a029403e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Background","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f400m5wygq","content":[{"text":"In all temples of Beereshwara, the major instrument Dollu is hung by means of a thick thread tied to hooks in the ceiling. Every time worship is offered to Beereshwara, there should be an instantaneous beating of the dollu.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"20473f51-ed36-4977-985e-9337a029403e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"a57k4gdk62","content":[{"text":"This expressive literature its oral tradition goes by the legend called 'Halumatha Purana' or Kuruba Purana. The story is that the demon Dolla-asura worshipped Shiva devotedly and, when Shiva appeared before him, asked him to ask for a boon; that he should be able to swallow Shiva himself, or else he requests immortality which Shiva refuses so that the enraged Dollu swallow's Shiva. Shiva started growing big. The asura, unable to bear the pain, pleaded for Shiva to come out. Shiva tore open the demon, thus killing him, and came out. Shiva used the skin of the asura to make a dollu/drum and gave it to the rustics, his devotees, the “Halu Kurubas”. The “Halu Kuruba” tribes in Shimoga follow this tradition even today.\nThe performers form a semi-circle and involve in extremely swift and supple movements. The beat is controlled and directed by a leader with cymbals who is positioned in the centre. Slow and fast rhythms alternate and group weaves varied patterns. The costumes are simple. The upper part of the body is usually left bare while a black sheet-rug is tied on the lower body over the `dhooti` or sarong.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"20473f51-ed36-4977-985e-9337a029403e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"axxc799sjw","content":[{"text":"Kuruba Gowdas sing with intonation distinct from other kinds of folk singers, tracing the origin of their genealogy, evolution and development over the ages. Dollu dance has gone on uninterruptedly generation after generation with renewed vigour and raciness of performance. Hardly any religious performance of a ritualistic ceremony or any village festival can ever take place without this dance, especially in North Karnataka.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"20473f51-ed36-4977-985e-9337a029403e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qn5mb6grz9","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Dollu Kunitha”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"20473f51-ed36-4977-985e-9337a029403e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sg9j1amj7v","content":[{"text":"Dollu Kunitha is major popular drum dance of Karnataka, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"37fceff2-8563-44b9-88c8-0286c0f528ea"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"anwyp04wk7","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"37fceff2-8563-44b9-88c8-0286c0f528ea"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Dollu Kunitha - drum dance of Karnataka. at National folk festival, Thiruvananthapuram, Feb 26, 2017","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/82/Dollu_Kunitha_01.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Navaneeth Krishnan S","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Dollu Kunitha - drum dance of Karnataka. at National folk festival, Thiruvananthapuram, Feb 26, 2017","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/82/Dollu_Kunitha_01.jpg/960px-Dollu_Kunitha_01.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dollu_Kunitha_01.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/82/Dollu_Kunitha_01.jpg/1280px-Dollu_Kunitha_01.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:21.738Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/dollu-kunitha"}
{"id":"df373676-64a5-4574-8571-f7ead6a3853d","type":"art_form","slug":"dondang-sayang","title":"Dondang Sayang","summary":"Dondang Sayang (literally 'love ballad') originated in Malacca sometime in the 15th century, influenced by traditional Portuguese folk music.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gqdbdnkawt","content":[{"text":"Dondang Sayang (literally 'love ballad') originated in Malacca sometime in the 15th century, influenced by traditional Portuguese folk music. It is a traditional Malay form of entertainment where Baba and Nyonya singers exchange extemporaneous Malay Pantun (poetry), in a lighthearted and sometimes humorous style. The singers are normally accompanied by a violin, two Malay rebana (drums), and a tetawak (gong). These instruments are often supplemented by other available instruments, most notably, accordions, flutes, or an additional violin.\nThe chief musician is usually the violinist who plays a primary role in dondang sayang, providing a counter melody to the vocal melody. Musicians may switch instruments in between performances, but the violinist rarely does, although this is permitted. If there are musicians to spare, up to five rebana may be used. Sometimes, the rebana may be substituted by the tambour and barrel drum or even the kompang. The music is slow, and a song usually consists of 32 bars, beginning with a violin introduction, with the rebana and then the gong entering, and the voice finally entering in bar 5. Its style is somewhat informal and its lyrics usually consist of love poems. (Ahmad Usop 1984). The musical instruments may also be augmented with an accordion (Shafiee Ahmad 1992).\nIt is also associated with the Ronggeng dance.\nDondang Sayang also serves as the interval signal for the radio stations owned by Radio Televisyen Malaysia in the past.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cf2d7565-41e0-42bf-9b4b-1d92064a720c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2hjex1vnav","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Dondang Sayang”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cf2d7565-41e0-42bf-9b4b-1d92064a720c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"68d6ea2v6f","content":[{"text":"Dondang Sayang is Malaccan love ballads, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f6d0da82-d034-4247-94fa-3d645e98952f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3tk2pnwbbz","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 7 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f6d0da82-d034-4247-94fa-3d645e98952f"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-05T02:44:19.835Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/dondang-sayang"}
{"id":"69fd203b-06e7-4dc6-bda2-9db6b3f3589c","type":"art_form","slug":"double-bugg","title":"Double bugg","summary":"Double bugg (Swedish: Dubbelbugg) is a Swedish swing dance.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nyzj9w006f","content":[{"text":"Double bugg (Swedish: Dubbelbugg) is a Swedish swing dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"517c3395-a1db-486e-89c6-b24e949115ae"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance detail","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m9460c068b","content":[{"text":"Double bugg is more or less a competitive dance within the BRR dance family administered by the Swedish Dancesport Federation. The dance style has its background in another typical and invented Swedish dance style, namely Bugg. Bugg comes originally from Lindy Hop (Jitterbug).\nDouble bugg is danced by three persons, especially a man and two women. Variations occur however. Double bugg is mostly performed at dance competitions, but sometimes among social dancers. The dance arose during the 80s due to a lack of men wanting to dance. Then it was discovered that a man could dance the Swedish partner dance Bugg with two women concurrent. Suddenly a new dance style in Sweden was invented, double bugg.\nToday double bugg is a small formation dance consisting of three people. The formation of different patterns and formations, for example lines, circles, triangles are apart from changing place between the dancers, one of several main features in double bugg. The essence of the dance is free and is taken from some other Swedish BRR dances: Bugg, Lindy Hop, Boogie Woogie and Rock and Roll (dance). Double bugg is mainly danced to modern pop or rock'n'roll music.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"517c3395-a1db-486e-89c6-b24e949115ae"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xvv0qqhpes","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Double bugg”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"517c3395-a1db-486e-89c6-b24e949115ae"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vq6xvcas4d","content":[{"text":"Double bugg is Swedish dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"384a37e2-0f05-4d52-ad64-264f6f0800cb"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wnykmg0vmt","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"384a37e2-0f05-4d52-ad64-264f6f0800cb"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Bull Island, Dublin Bay, Dublin.","src":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1700574500850-efb4fd47ec67?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8RG91YmxlJTIwYnVnZ3xlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MTYyMDM5fDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1080","kind":"photo","width":3217,"credit":"Proinsias Mac an Bheatha","height":2069,"source":"unsplash","depicts":"Bull Island, Dublin Bay, Dublin.","licence":"Unsplash License","thumb640":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1700574500850-efb4fd47ec67?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8RG91YmxlJTIwYnVnZ3xlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MTYyMDM5fDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=640","sourceUrl":"https://unsplash.com/photos/a-close-up-of-a-bug-on-a-plant-0u-aoFOT2Zg?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral","thumb1280":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1700574500850-efb4fd47ec67?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8RG91YmxlJTIwYnVnZ3xlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MTYyMDM5fDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1280","attributionUrl":"https://unsplash.com/@proine?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:12.370Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/double-bugg"}
{"id":"0652d9c0-796b-4088-9026-181effb820d9","type":"art_form","slug":"dragon-dance","title":"dragon dance","summary":"Dragon dance (simplified Chinese: 舞龙; traditional Chinese: 舞龍; pinyin: wǔ lóng; Jyutping: mou5 lung4) is a form of traditional dance and performance in Chinese culture.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qn69d4s72v","content":[{"text":"Dragon dance (simplified Chinese: 舞龙; traditional Chinese: 舞龍; pinyin: wǔ lóng; Jyutping: mou5 lung4) is a form of traditional dance and performance in Chinese culture.  Like the lion dance, it is most often seen during festive celebrations.  The dance is performed by a team of experienced dancers who manipulate a long flexible giant puppet of a dragon using poles positioned at regular intervals along the length of the dragon.  The dance team simulates the imagined movements of this mythological creature in a sinuous, undulating manner.\nThe dragon dance is often performed during Chinese New Year. The Chinese dragon is a symbol of China's culture, and it is believed to bring good luck to people, therefore the longer the dragon is in the dance, the more luck it will bring to the community. The dragons are believed to possess qualities that include great power, dignity, fertility, wisdom and auspiciousness. The appearance of a dragon is both fearsome and bold but it has a benevolent disposition, and it was an emblem to represent imperial authority. The movements in a performance traditionally symbolize the power and dignity of the dragon.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"269a7b06-c544-4652-93aa-76ae18a70592"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8nagjpctje","content":[{"text":"During the Han dynasty, different forms of the dragon dance were described in ancient texts.  Rain dance performed at times of drought may involve the use of figures of dragon as Chinese dragon was associated with rain in ancient China, for example the dragon Yinglong was considered a rain deity, and the Shenlong had the power to determine how much wind and rain to bring.  According to the Han dynasty text Luxuriant Dew of the Spring and Autumn Annals by Dong Zhongshu, as part of a ritual to appeal for rain, clay figures of the dragons were made and children or adults may then perform a dance.  The number of dragons, their length and color, as well as the performers may vary according to the time of year.  Other dances involving dragons may be found in a popular form of entertainment during the Han dynasty, the baixi (百戲) variety shows, where performers called \"mime people\" (象人) dressed up as various creatures such as beasts, fish and dragons. In his Lyric Essay on Western Capital (西京賦) Zhang Heng recorded various performances such as performers who dressed as a green dragon playing a flute, and a fish-dragon act where fish transformed into a dragon. A version of the fish-dragon dance called \"fish-dragon extending\" (魚龍曼延) was also performed at the Han court to entertain foreign guests – in this dance a mythical beast of Shenli (舍利之獸) transforms into a flounder, then to a dragon. These ancient dances however do not resemble modern Dragon Dance in their descriptions, and depictions of dragon dance in Han dynasty stone relief engravings suggest that the props used may also be cumbersome, unlike modern Dragon Dance where light-weight dragons are manipulated by performers.  \nThe dragon acts of the Han dynasty were also mentioned in the Tang and Song dynasty.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"269a7b06-c544-4652-93aa-76ae18a70592"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dragon structure","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c02kz0zmwr","content":[{"text":"The dragon is a long serpentine body formed of a number of sections on poles, with a dragon head and a tail.  The dragon is assembled by joining the series of hoops on each section and attaching the ornamental head and tail pieces at the ends. Traditionally, dragons were constructed of wood, with bamboo hoops on the inside and covered with a rich fabric, however in the modern era lighter materials such as aluminium and plastics have replaced the wood and heavy material.\nDragons can range in length from as little as 2 metres (10 ft) operated by two people for small displays, around 25 to 35 metres (80 to 110 ft) for the more acrobatic models, and up to 50 to 70 metres (160 to 230 ft) for the larger parade and ceremonial styles. The size and length of a dragon depends on the human power available, financing, materials, skills and size of the field. A small organization cannot afford to run a very long dragon because it requires considerable human power, great expense and special skills.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"269a7b06-c544-4652-93aa-76ae18a70592"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5sr23jm8hm","content":[{"text":"The normal length and size of the body recommended for the dragon is 34 metres (110 ft) and is divided into nine major sections.  The distance of each minor (rib-like) section is 35 cm (14 in) apart; therefore, the body has 81 rings. Many may also be up to 15 sections long, and some dragons are as long as 46 sections. Occasionally, dragons with far more sections may be constructed in Chinese communities around the world to produce the longest dragon possible, since part of the myth of the dragon is that the longer the creature, the more luck it will bring. Sun Loong in Bendigo, Australia was, at the time it was made in 1970, the longest dragon in the world measuring approximately 100 metres (330 ft) and is believed to be the longest regularly used dragon.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"269a7b06-c544-4652-93aa-76ae18a70592"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Performance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3dyvhn04mp","content":[{"text":"The dragon dance is performed by a skilled team whose job is to bring the motionless puppet body to life.  The correct combination and proper timing of the different parts of the dragon are very important to make a successful dance. Any mistakes made by even some of the performers would spoil the whole performance. To be very successful in the dance, the head of the Dragon must be able to coordinate with the body movement to match the timing of the drum. For larger ceremonial and parade style dragons, the head can weigh as much as 12 katis (14.4 kg, almost 32 lb). The dragon tail also has an important role to play as it will have to keep in time with head movements. The  fifth section is considered to be the middle portion and the performers must be very alert as the body movements change from time to time.  The dragon is often led by a person holding a spherical object representing a pearl.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"269a7b06-c544-4652-93aa-76ae18a70592"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6ha4ashs3q","content":[{"text":"The patterns of the dragon dance are choreographed according to the skills and experiences acquired by the performers. Some of the patterns of the dragon dance are \"Cloud Cave\", \"Whirlpool\", tai chi pattern, \"threading the money\", \"looking for pearl\", and \"dragon encircling the pillar\". The movement \"dragon chasing the pearl\" shows that the dragon is continually in the pursuit of wisdom.\nThe dragon moves in a wave-like pattern achieved by the co-ordinated swinging of each section in succession. Whilst this swinging constitutes the basic movement of the dragon, executing more complex formations is only limited by a team's creativity. The patterns and tricks that are performed generally involve running into spiraled formations to make the dragon body turn and twist on itself. This causes performers to jump over or through the dragon's body sections, adding to the visual display.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"269a7b06-c544-4652-93aa-76ae18a70592"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Competition","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ezh2neavhc","content":[{"text":"A number of dragon dance competitions have been organized around the world.  In competition performances however, there are strict rules governing the specifications of the dragon body and the routine performed, and so dragons made for these events and what are mostly seen in the impressive stage shows are made for speed and agility, to be used by the performing team for maximum trick difficulty.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"269a7b06-c544-4652-93aa-76ae18a70592"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Outside China","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zr4gzg91xn","content":[{"text":"The Chinese dragon is \"perhaps the most recognized form of parade puppet\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"269a7b06-c544-4652-93aa-76ae18a70592"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tncfqdhrjp","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Dragon dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"269a7b06-c544-4652-93aa-76ae18a70592"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3yh51h6h9p","content":[{"text":"dragon dance is traditional dance in Chinese culture performed by a team of dancers who manipulate a long flexible figure of a dragon, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"382a4632-ba83-4b4c-970b-4f4e2fae2ba3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gj3hbxcfna","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"382a4632-ba83-4b4c-970b-4f4e2fae2ba3"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:15.691Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/dragon-dance"}
{"id":"c0bd41d0-4b3e-4204-b6f3-44fe3608afa8","type":"art_form","slug":"drametse-ngacham","title":"Drametse Ngacham","summary":"The Drametse Ngacham (meaning \"mask dance of the drums from Drametse\", nga means \"drum\" and cham means \"mask dance\") is a sacred dance performed in the village of Drametse in eastern Bhutan.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t0z12w07r8","content":[{"text":"The Drametse Ngacham (meaning \"mask dance of the drums from Drametse\", nga means \"drum\" and cham means \"mask dance\") is a sacred dance performed in the village of Drametse in eastern Bhutan. It is performed twice a year during the Drametse festival, which occurs on the fifth and tenth months of the Bhutanese calendar. The festival is organized by the Ogyen Tegchok Namdroel Choeling Monastery to honor Padmasambhava, an 8th-century Buddhist master.\nA performance of the dance features sixteen masked male dancers and ten musicians. The dancers wear monastic robes and wooden masks with features of animals, both real and mythical. The musicians play \"cymbals, trumpets and drums, including the bang nga, a large cylindrical drum, the lag nga, a small hand-held circular flat drum, and the nga chen, a drum beaten with a bent drumstick.\" They first perform a prayer dance in the soeldep cham, the main shrine, before appearing one by one in the courtyard of the monastery. The dance has two parts: a calm, contemplative part to represent the peaceful deities, and a rapid, athletic part for the wrathful ones.\nPerformances of the dance have been conducted for almost five centuries. In the late nineteenth century, the dance started spreading to other parts of Bhutan.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e696f244-f5d6-47b2-b4dc-a13f074940ee"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1cdwqmqgck","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Drametse Ngacham”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e696f244-f5d6-47b2-b4dc-a13f074940ee"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xgqfyq1fbn","content":[{"text":"Drametse Ngacham is The mask dance of the Drametse community is a sacred dance performed during the Drametse festival in honour of Padmasambhava, a Buddhist guru. Inscribed in 2008 on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fda8ad87-1bf2-4d54-81d6-3d09945f604c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hnyz8yy6dd","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fda8ad87-1bf2-4d54-81d6-3d09945f604c"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T07:23:06.284Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/drametse-ngacham"}
{"id":"486b9045-915c-43de-a606-a2939fda212e","type":"art_form","slug":"dunhuang-dance","title":"Dunhuang dance","summary":"Dunhuang dance is a form of Chinese dance which combines traditional culture and modern art.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"njsa2h52cr","content":[{"text":"Dunhuang dance is a form of Chinese dance which combines traditional culture and modern art. Dunhuang dance draws inspiration from the body movements in the Dunhuang grotto frescoes (such as in the Mogao caves), and the musical instruments and music scores found in Dunhuang, Gansu province, West China. Based on the imagery found in the Mogao Grottoes' cave paintings, the dance features unique hand movements that can be traced back to Indian classical dance forms like the Natyasastra, Bharatanatyam, and Kathakali, showcasing how Indian dance aesthetics were transmitted to western China through historical routes across Bactria and the Tarim Basin.\nDunhuang dance emerged as a separate classical dance form in the 1980s. Today, Dunhuang dance is performed in both academic settings and professional shows, serving as a living testament to the lasting influence of Indian culture on Chinese and wider Asian performing arts. The dance shows the combination of ethnic dance styles from Central and Western China.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a3941495-688e-4c95-b00e-8aaeb614085c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origins and sources of inspiration","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rkt8n6b1mn","content":[{"text":"Dunhuang dance is inspired by the murals and artistic heritage of the Dunhuang grottoes in the Gansu province of northwestern China. Rooted in the imagery depicted in the cave murals of the Mogao Grottoes, the dance form draws heavily on Buddhist iconography, particularly the representations of \"flying apsaras\" (feitian) and the \"Thousand-Hand Avalokitesvara,\" both of which reflect the profound influence of Indian Buddhism on Chinese performance arts.\nThe style is characterized by distinctive hand gestures traceable to Indian classical dance traditions such as the Natyasastra, Bharatanatyam, and Kathakali, reflecting the cultural transmission of dance aesthetics from India into China's western regions via historical routes through Bactria and the Tarim Basin. This cross-cultural exchange is further documented in the murals of Qiuci and the Yungang grottoes.\nThe Mogao grottoes in Dunhuang houses several form of fine arts such as dance and music. It is filled with many dance images which inspired modern dance artists in China.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a3941495-688e-4c95-b00e-8aaeb614085c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Thousand Hand Guanyin","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vdahvazdpq","content":[{"text":"It is a contemporary creation produced by the Chinese choreographer Zhang Jigang. It was performed by the China Disabled Performing Art Troupe in which the group dancers are hearing-impaired.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a3941495-688e-4c95-b00e-8aaeb614085c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Other depictions in media","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zvmywe6q8p","content":[{"text":"Rain of Flowers Along the Silk Road, a dance drama presented in Beijing on May 23, 1979 by the Gansu Dunhuang Art Academy of China.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a3941495-688e-4c95-b00e-8aaeb614085c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dtsp838ajs","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Dunhuang dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a3941495-688e-4c95-b00e-8aaeb614085c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zpb0eq016e","content":[{"text":"Dunhuang dance is Chinese dance style, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"af623707-9594-45a7-a31e-2fcd8297bef0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"caxespjvsj","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"af623707-9594-45a7-a31e-2fcd8297bef0"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"A balinese dancer performs with an ensemble","src":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1741272689174-f7f03b09a0ab?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8RHVuaHVhbmclMjBkYW5jZXxlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MTYyMDQyfDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1080","kind":"photo","width":3008,"credit":"Didi Paul","height":2000,"source":"unsplash","depicts":"A balinese dancer performs with an ensemble","licence":"Unsplash License","thumb640":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1741272689174-f7f03b09a0ab?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8RHVuaHVhbmclMjBkYW5jZXxlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MTYyMDQyfDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=640","sourceUrl":"https://unsplash.com/photos/a-balinese-dancer-performs-with-an-ensemble-fWvv8L9Ann0?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral","thumb1280":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1741272689174-f7f03b09a0ab?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8RHVuaHVhbmclMjBkYW5jZXxlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MTYyMDQyfDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1280","attributionUrl":"https://unsplash.com/@didipaul?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:12.714Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/dunhuang-dance"}
{"id":"9066f2c6-10a8-4325-90fa-338dacc37d74","type":"art_form","slug":"dutch-dance","title":"Dutch dance","summary":"There is great variety in dance in the Netherlands. The traditional dance is the Dutch folk dance; however, this is hardly practiced anymore.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"55k7dfb9x2","content":[{"text":"There is great variety in dance in the Netherlands. The traditional dance is the Dutch folk dance; however, this is hardly practiced anymore. Many Dutch practice ballroom dancing, but also tango has a large following.\nMany young girls start their dancing career with classical ballet and jazz dance.\nOnly a few dances are invented by the Dutch. Most of the Folk Dances are Scottish in origin. The Dutch are inventors of Hakken, which was mainly danced in the Hardcore techno and Gabber scene in the 1990s. Jumpen, which was invented in Belgium, developed further in the Netherlands. The Netherlands is one of the leading countries in the Brazilian version of zouk (a successor to lambada).\nThe reality show and competition Dancing with the Stars has popularized Ballroom dancing and the Dutch version of So You Think You Can Dance helps the popularity of modern dance in the Netherlands. Ice dance has been popularised by the TV shows Dancing on Ice and Sterren Dansen Op Het IJs.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4411ffc2-6eec-433d-8731-14642f313791"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Choreographers","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b49h16n27j","content":[{"text":"Annabelle Lopez Ochoa\nEmio Greco\nHans van Manen\nItzik Galili\nNicole Beutler\nPolly Cuninghame\nRudi van Dantzig","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4411ffc2-6eec-433d-8731-14642f313791"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dancers","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qm8jjqa6ny","content":[{"text":"Alexandra Radius\nBenjamin Feliksdal\nHannie van Leeuwen\nHans van Manen\nJaap Flier\nLouis van Amstel\nMarcus van Teijlingen\nMata Hari\nMilou Nuyens\nPolly Cuninghame\nRomy Haag\nRudi van Dantzig\nSonia Gaskell","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4411ffc2-6eec-433d-8731-14642f313791"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Companies","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"czmp39f15d","content":[{"text":"Het Nationale Ballet\nDe Stilte\nICKamsterdam\nIntrodans\nNederlands Dans Theater\nNicole Beutler Projects\nScapino Ballet","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4411ffc2-6eec-433d-8731-14642f313791"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance education","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"p30xktjkay","content":[{"text":"AHK Amsterdamse Hogeschool voor de Kunsten\nCodarts Rotterdamse Dansacademie\nFontys Dansacademie Tilburg\nArtEZ Dansacademie Arnhem","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4411ffc2-6eec-433d-8731-14642f313791"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Festivals","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jz6traawdr","content":[{"text":"Hollands Dance Festival\nJulidans\nNederlands Dans Dagen (Dutch Dance Days)\nStilte Festival","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4411ffc2-6eec-433d-8731-14642f313791"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ts55d6wqtj","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Dance in the Netherlands”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4411ffc2-6eec-433d-8731-14642f313791"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bn7ycd6qs0","content":[{"text":"Dutch dance is a tradition recorded in open cultural data, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"548ca6a2-143f-4d0c-ab3b-3c90418b3ad8"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:08.695Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/dutch-dance"}
{"id":"a1db40db-0f64-4d53-a144-72fb1c9493f0","type":"art_form","slug":"east-coast-swing","title":"East Coast Swing","summary":"East Coast Swing (ECS) is a form of social partner dance. It belongs to the group of swing dances.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3a4h8kg3jm","content":[{"text":"East Coast Swing (ECS) is a form of social partner dance. It belongs to the group of swing dances. It is danced under fast swing music, including: big band, rock and roll, rockabilly, and boogie-woogie.\nYerrington and Outland equated East Coast Swing to the New Yorker in 1961. Originally known as \"Eastern Swing\" by Arthur Murray Studios, the name East Coast Swing became more common between 1975 and 1980.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6d9c5bbe-fc73-460f-9b19-4ae5583b1708"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"grhgbbrq2g","content":[{"text":"The dance was created by dance studios including the Arthur Murray dance studios in the 1940s, based on the Lindy Hop. Lindy Hop was felt by dance studios to be both too difficult and too unstructured to teach to beginners, but there was market demand for training in swing dance. The dance studios had initially dismissed Lindy Hop in particular as a fad. East Coast Swing can be referred to by many different names in different regions of the United States and the world. It has alternatively been called Eastern Swing, Jitterbug, American Swing, East Coast Lindy, Lindy (not to be confused with Lindy Hop), and Triple Swing (or Triple-step swing). Other variants of East Coast Swing that use altered footwork forms are known as Single Swing or \"Single-step Swing\" (where the triple step is replaced by a single step forming a slow, slow, quick, quick rhythm common to Foxtrot), and Double Swing (using a tap-step footwork pattern).\nEast Coast Swing is a rhythm dance that has both 6 and 8 beat patterns.\nThe name East Coast Swing was coined initially to distinguish the dance from the street form and the new variant used in the competitive ballroom arena (as well as separating the dance from West Coast Swing, which was developed in California). While based on Lindy Hop, it does have clear distinctions. East Coast Swing is a standardized form of dance developed first for instructional purposes in the Arthur Murray studios, and then later codified to allow for a medium of comparison for competitive ballroom dancers. It can be said that there is no right or wrong way to dance it; however, certain styles of the dance are considered correct \"form\" within the technical elements documented and governed by the National Dance Council of America. The N.D.C.A.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6d9c5bbe-fc73-460f-9b19-4ae5583b1708"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Basic Positions/Moves","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dw7djbjcng","content":[{"text":"The 5 basic positions/moves are:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6d9c5bbe-fc73-460f-9b19-4ae5583b1708"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zd59sbhgf1","content":[{"text":"Semi-closed Position (normal starter position)\nOpen Position (most common position used between moves)\nCrossovers (most common move)\nWraps (waist wraps or neck wraps)\nHammerlocks","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6d9c5bbe-fc73-460f-9b19-4ae5583b1708"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Single-time Swing","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5qrs0vad40","content":[{"text":"East Coast Swing has a 6-count basic step.  This is in contrast to the meter of most swing music, which has a 4-count basic rhythm.  In practice, however, the 6-count moves of East Coast Swing are sometimes combined with 8-count moves from Lindy hop, Charleston, and Balboa.\nDepending on the region and instructor, the basic step of single-step East Coast Swing is either \"rock step, step, step\" or \"step, step, rock step\". In both cases, the rock step always starts on the downbeat.\nFor \"rock step, step, step\" the beats, or counts, are the following:\nSteps for the \"lead\" (traditionally, the man's part)","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6d9c5bbe-fc73-460f-9b19-4ae5583b1708"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7c1xx3zaa6","content":[{"text":"Steps for the \"follow\" (traditionally, the woman's part which mirrors the lead's part)","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6d9c5bbe-fc73-460f-9b19-4ae5583b1708"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6jsyferkap","content":[{"text":"For \"step, step, rock step,\" the rock step occurs on beats 5 and 6, but the overall progression remains the same.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6d9c5bbe-fc73-460f-9b19-4ae5583b1708"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Standard ECS (Lindy Swing)","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rxpgq8hdwt","content":[{"text":"The normal steps can be substituted with a triple step or double step \"step-tap\"  or \"kick-step\" instead of a single step. This is commonly used during songs when a slower tempo makes the single step difficult (an example progression would be \"rock step, triple step, triple step\").","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6d9c5bbe-fc73-460f-9b19-4ae5583b1708"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Timing","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"61qe0h6150","content":[{"text":"Because East Coast uses a six-step pattern with music employing four beats per measure, three measures of music are required to complete two sets of steps, as shown in the following table.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6d9c5bbe-fc73-460f-9b19-4ae5583b1708"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mfsarbayx0","content":[{"text":"The rock step starts on 1, 2 the first triple step starts 3a4 and the second on 5a6.\nIn single time style (used with faster music) the triple steps are replaced by single steps, so two beats of music are used for each single step while each step in the rock (R) step (S) is still completed in one beat, finishing the cycle in six musical beats.  Some instructors will teach vocalizing the single time style as\" \"Quick. Quick. Slow. Slow. \"  or \"Back Step. Slow. Slow.\"\nThere is the choice to start with triples or with a rock step, however if you check the above chart where a triple step starts on a 1, 2 you can see that the pattern progresses and wraps back around.  The choice of starting with a triple or a rock step does have musical consequences as music has phrasing with hits that often happen on 12, or 24 or 36... This means that dancers who choose to start with a rock step will probably find themselves on a rock step on every new phrase. Those who start with a triple will start with a triple on each new phrase.  An advantage of starting with the triple step is that dancers can more easily change their foot work right at the start of the musical phrase.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6d9c5bbe-fc73-460f-9b19-4ae5583b1708"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mb1tbp5pfr","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “East Coast Swing”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6d9c5bbe-fc73-460f-9b19-4ae5583b1708"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ym5qb0zsmk","content":[{"text":"East Coast Swing is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a0dc0b69-f859-4242-a8ec-f9d200bb1748"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"am39ywgkzq","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a0dc0b69-f859-4242-a8ec-f9d200bb1748"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Jack Armstrong & Faith Wailes, East Coast Swing, 2023 UCWDC Country Dance World Championships, (United Country Western Dance Council), Phoenix, Arizona, United States. Classic Crystal Division II and Classic Diamond Division II World Champions from Denver, Colorado","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e7/Jack_Armstrong_%26_Faith_Wailes%2C_East_Coast_Swing%2C_2023%2C_EC5.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Gridiron Steamroller","height":1280,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Jack Armstrong & Faith Wailes, East Coast Swing, 2023 UCWDC Country Dance World Championships, (United Country Western Dance Council), Phoenix, Arizona, United States. Classic Crystal Division II and Classic Diamond Division II World Champions from Denver, Colorado","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e7/Jack_Armstrong_%26_Faith_Wailes%2C_East_Coast_Swing%2C_2023%2C_EC5.jpg/960px-Jack_Armstrong_%26_Faith_Wailes%2C_East_Coast_Swing%2C_2023%2C_EC5.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Jack_Armstrong_%26_Faith_Wailes,_East_Coast_Swing,_2023,_EC5.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e7/Jack_Armstrong_%26_Faith_Wailes%2C_East_Coast_Swing%2C_2023%2C_EC5.jpg/1280px-Jack_Armstrong_%26_Faith_Wailes%2C_East_Coast_Swing%2C_2023%2C_EC5.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:18.067Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/east-coast-swing"}
{"id":"4188da15-57de-4b4e-b168-ec7786c70cc1","type":"art_form","slug":"eisa","title":"eisa","summary":"Eisa (Okinawan: エイサー, romanized: Eisā) is a folk dance originating from Okinawa Island in the Ryukyu Islands.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8e09pv7s3c","content":[{"text":"Eisa (Okinawan: エイサー, romanized: Eisā) is a folk dance originating from Okinawa Island in the Ryukyu Islands. It is derived from the Obon (Okinawan: Bun / usōrō, ブン / ウソーロー,  盆) dance that is performed by young people of each community during Obon festival to honor the spirits of their ancestors. It underwent drastic changes in the 20th century and is today seen as a vital part of Okinawan culture.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9d429465-f016-4a18-af1a-8c088356056a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Style","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nm71p8x5nt","content":[{"text":"Modern Eisa is danced by 20 to 30 young men or women, mainly in doubled lines or circles to the accompaniment of singing, chanting, and drumming by the dancers as well as by folk songs played on the sanshin. Three types of drums are used in various combinations, depending upon regional style: the ōdaiko (大太鼓), a large barrel drum; the shimedaiko (締太鼓), a medium-sized drum similar to ones used in Noh theatre; and the paarankuu (Okinawan: パーランクー), a small hand drum similar to ones used in Buddhist ceremony. The dancers also sometimes play small hand gongs and yotsutake castanets. Eisa dancers wear various costumes, usually according to local tradition and gender of the dancer; modern costumes are often brightly colored and feature a characteristic, colorful knotted turban. Special vests, leggings, and shoes are also popular.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9d429465-f016-4a18-af1a-8c088356056a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origin","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gx5mqkcx3j","content":[{"text":"The origin of Eisa is unclear, like for many other folk performing arts. Iha Fuyū argued that the name of Eisa was related to wesa omoro (Okinawan: ゑさおもろ), a phrase appearing in Volume 14 of the Omoro Sōshi (16th–17th centuries). This theory is no longer supported. It is more likely that the name derived from an exclamation used in the original song of Eisa, the Mamauya Ninbuchi (Okinawan: 継親念仏). The standardization of the written form was relatively new. Meiji era newspaper articles used various forms including yensaa (イェンサー), yaisaa (ヤイサー), and ensaa (エンサー).\nThe core of Eisa consists of nembutsu songs. The Ryūkyū-koku yuraiki (1713) attributes the introduction of nembutsu to Taichū (1552–1639), a Jōdo sect monk from Mutsu Province. According to the record, he translated Buddhist teaching into the vernacular speech and taught it to the people of Naha during the reign of Shō Nei. Other sources confirm that Taichū stayed in the capital region for three years in the early 1600s and converted the king and other high-ranking officials. Some researchers speculate that he introduced odori nembutsu or dancing nembutsu to Naha. However, Taichū's teaching did not prevail; it was barely carried on by his followers in Kakinohana, Naha.\nAnother important factor related to the origin of Eisa is Chondaraa (チョンダラー), a group of puppeteers. The Ryūkyū-koku yuraiki records two theories regarding the etymology of Chondaraa. One is that it indicates their origin, Kyoto. The other is that its founder was named Kyō (no) Kotarō (京小太郎). The fact that their origin had been obscured by the early 18th century suggests that they came from mainland Japan a long time ago.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9d429465-f016-4a18-af1a-8c088356056a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Pre-World War II traditions","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b0grxxpt10","content":[{"text":"It is not clear when nembutsu songs spread to central Okinawa, which later played a central role in transforming Eisa. According to an oral tradition, Eisa was introduced to Kamiyama, Ginowan in the Meiji period, when a wealthy farmer invited performers from Shuri and made them teach Bon dance to young villagers. The community of Ganeko, Ginowan has a similar oral history. It appears that Eisa spread to northern Okinawa from the late Meiji period to the early Shōwa period. Several communities in northern Okinawa believe that Eisa was introduced from Sesoko, Motobu, a supplying center of seasonal workers.\nEisa was originally performed at the Bon Festival. It is not known when it extended to other occasions. Newspaper articles confirm that Eisa, together with other folk performing arts, had been performed as an attraction at various government-sponsored exhibitions in central Okinawa already in 1900s.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9d429465-f016-4a18-af1a-8c088356056a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Post-World War II transformation","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c1p5pbm1qw","content":[{"text":"Eisa underwent drastic changes in post-World War II Okinawa. In 1956, then under U.S. occupation, the first Zentō Eisa Contest was held in Koza (part of the modern-day Okinawa City). It was originally an effort to recover from the great damage to the base-dependent commercial city caused by the \"Off Limits\" ordinance by the U.S. military. As a contest, participating groups were judged by screening criteria such as costumes, formation, technique, the number of performers, and innovativeness. Folklorist Kumada Susumu noted values imposed by the criteria. They clearly emphasized group dynamics, although earlier groups were not necessarily large. Contrary to today's perception of Eisa as Okinawa's tradition, they did encourage the creative nature of Eisa. In fact it was not uncommon to wear Western clothing during the performance.\nAnother major event, the \"Youth Furusato Eisa Festival,\" began in Naha in 1964, originally under the name of \"All Okinawa Seinen Eisa Contest.\" At first, both events were competitive. In 1975, the latter abolished the contest and changed itself into a non-competitive festival, which was followed by the former in 1977. One reason behind the change was that some youth associations started showing their dissatisfaction at values imposed by the contests. Eisa had changed itself into spectacular group dynamics that was to fascinate the audience. To give the performance more punch, participating groups adopted an increasingly large number of drums.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9d429465-f016-4a18-af1a-8c088356056a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Creative Eisa","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"scz9cf8cx6","content":[{"text":"The 1980s saw the beginning of a new style of Eisa, called \"creative Eisa\" or \"club team Eisa,\" which holds many distinctions from traditional forms of Eisa. Whereas traditionally Eisa groups consist of people from a village or community due to the sacredness of the activity in honoring the ancestors of a specific community, creative Eisa teams are usually independent of local communities, and admit anyone regardless of their heritage. Creative Eisa is characterized largely by its song selection, with groups usually choosing to dance to newer songs, rather than the traditional standards. Hidekatsu, a Taketomi-born Ryukyu music artist, has become one of the most popular artists that creative Eisa groups dance to. His hit song, Mirukumunari, has become one of the most frequently performed creative Eisa dances. Hidekatsu is unique in that his songs are almost entirely sung in the Ryukyuan languages, which is a marked departure from most modern day Ryukyu pop singers, who sing primarily in Japanese, making Hidekatsu's music a vital link for young modern Ryukyuans to the languages of their ancestors, who otherwise receive little exposure to the languages. All of the Ryukyu languages are endangered due to over a century of social and political prejudice against the Ryukyu languages by the Japanese government.\nSome examples of creative Eisa clubs include Ryukyukoku Matsuri Daiko and Chinagu Eisa (based in Hawaiʻi). Ryukyukoku Matsuri Daiko, formed in 1982, was one of the first creative Eisa clubs, and has since expanded to form chapters in mainland Japan, Hawaiʻi, the mainland United States, and other locations with Okinawan populations.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9d429465-f016-4a18-af1a-8c088356056a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8ybh9q262t","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Eisa (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9d429465-f016-4a18-af1a-8c088356056a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7e5qfjd6m5","content":[{"text":"eisa is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"737c7c1a-568f-4dfb-a819-9e9018a02fd1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mnydn3913d","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"737c7c1a-568f-4dfb-a819-9e9018a02fd1"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Okinawa Island, the largest of the Okinawa Islands and the Ryukyu Islands of Japan, is known for its rich history and cultural heritage. With a subtropical climate, it offers a unique blend of natural beauty, from its sandy beaches to the lush Yanbaru forest in the north. The…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1d/Eisa%2C_a_traditional_Okinawan_dance.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"xiquinhosilva","height":2195,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Okinawa Island, the largest of the Okinawa Islands and the Ryukyu Islands of Japan, is known for its rich history and cultural heritage. With a subtropical climate, it offers a unique blend of natural beauty, from its sandy beaches to the lush Yanbaru forest in the north. The…","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1d/Eisa%2C_a_traditional_Okinawan_dance.jpg/960px-Eisa%2C_a_traditional_Okinawan_dance.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Eisa,_a_traditional_Okinawan_dance.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1d/Eisa%2C_a_traditional_Okinawan_dance.jpg/1280px-Eisa%2C_a_traditional_Okinawan_dance.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:23.706Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/eisa"}
{"id":"242468c8-ba59-4b15-a830-7f36d12acdda","type":"art_form","slug":"electric-boogaloo","title":"electric boogaloo","summary":"Electric boogaloo (sometimes referred to as electric boogie on the East Coast) is a dance style closely related to the earlier Boogaloo street dance performed in Oakland and popping; it combines modern popping techniques and earlier boogalo…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w3d7nwwpj6","content":[{"text":"Electric boogaloo (sometimes referred to as electric boogie on the East Coast) is a dance style closely related to the earlier Boogaloo street dance performed in Oakland and popping; it combines modern popping techniques and earlier boogaloo forms. It became the signature style of the mid-1970s dance group, the Electric Boogaloos and also performed by the bush. Along with electric boogaloo, they also popularized popping and many of its related styles.\nIt is characterized as a fluid leg-oriented style danced to funk music, utilizing rolls of the hips, knees, legs, and head, which was later combined with popping.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"99c6e8bc-17c0-4c78-8f0c-c3ba0a3f59fc"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance steps","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vycvz3sx7z","content":[{"text":"Creepin\nA foundational step of Boogaloo done in Oakland inspired by cartoon's Goofy, typically done as an entry and exit step with arms out, legs extended. Sometimes the Creep can be combined with a physical pointing hand gesture to challenge an opponent.\nCrazy legs\nA footwalk that was created by Poppin Pete. He invented \"Crazy Legs\" by watching a boy called Crazy Legs dancing and changed what he saw into a popping move.\nThe Slot (ex. Fresno)\nThis foundation originates in Oakland's Boogaloo generation, created by John Murphy.\nBasic movement between body, arm, and foot. Previously referred to earlier Boogaloo dancers in Oakland as \"The Slot\", it was a side to side movement ending in a hard pose or a \"hit\" to help keep dancers in rhythm or \"put him in the slot\", to imitate a pinball slot machine.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"99c6e8bc-17c0-4c78-8f0c-c3ba0a3f59fc"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xedm6d8wpk","content":[{"text":"It was adapted later by Boogaloo Sam and used to refer to a whole routine called \"The Fresno\". The adapted Electric Boogaloo move is a fundamental move in Popping. The Slot can be performed in various ways as only the following requirements exist. In a fresno or the slot, the dancer moves side-to-side doing a hit on each turn with the leg and arm of the side the dancer has moved to; it can be done backward and forwards.\nNeck-o-flex\nThe neck twix between the body and the neck.\nOld man\nA type of boogaloo style was created by Boogaloo Sam. Boogaloo Sam invented this move by watching an old man walking across the street.\nTwist-o-flex\nA technique where, as in the mannequin, the dancer creates the impression of unnatural body joints by moving and twisting various parts in sequence. Non-twisting parts should remain absolutely still. The effect resembles a Rubik's Cube moving, or somewhat a clay figure being modeled.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"99c6e8bc-17c0-4c78-8f0c-c3ba0a3f59fc"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gd7f70k4fn","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Electric boogaloo (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"99c6e8bc-17c0-4c78-8f0c-c3ba0a3f59fc"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wps3fv4gar","content":[{"text":"electric boogaloo is dance style closely related to popping and Boogaloo street dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cab3b2f0-856a-44f7-9db9-4b01be69679b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pzyz6pn0mm","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cab3b2f0-856a-44f7-9db9-4b01be69679b"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:10.835Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/electric-boogaloo"}
{"id":"d9f32e58-da48-498e-9051-8c79c79384be","type":"art_form","slug":"electric-slide","title":"Electric Slide","summary":"The Electric (better known as The Electric Slide) is a four-wall line dance. Choreographer and dancer Richard L.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qp9gbdjhw9","content":[{"text":"The Electric (better known as The Electric Slide) is a four-wall line dance. Choreographer and dancer Richard L. \"Ric\" Silver claims to have created the dance in 1976.\nThe dance's popularity is sometimes attributed to \"Electric Boogie\", written by Bunny Wailer and recorded by Marcia Griffiths. The song was first released in December 1982.\nThere are several variations of the dance. The original choreography has 22 steps, while variants include the Freeze (16 steps), Cowboy Motion (24 steps), Cowboy Boogie (24 steps), and Electric Slide 2 (18 steps). The 18-step variation became popular in 1989 and was listed by Linedancer Magazine as the number-one dance in the world for ten years.\nThe original choreography was performed in two lines facing each other, with dancers circling those opposite them during the dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"23397ec9-a75c-44f2-a0bd-9ddaea06a73c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Controversy","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"haetd69bkn","content":[{"text":"In 2007, Silver issued DMCA-based takedown notices targeting YouTube videos of people performing the 18-step variation. The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) filed suit against Silver on behalf of videographer Kyle Machulis, asking the court to protect Machulis's free speech rights to record several steps of the dance in a documentary posted on the Internet. On May 22, 2007, the parties reached a settlement under which Silver agreed to license the Electric Slide under a Creative Commons noncommercial license and post the license on any of his current or future websites that mention the dance.\nIn 2021, NPR reporter Patricia Meschino described Silver as the creator of the Electric Slide and noted that Wailer demonstrated the routine in a 1989 video. \nThe claimed creation date of the Electric Slide has been disputed. Silver stated that he received a demo of \"Electric Boogie\" in 1976 and used it to create the dance. According to Griffiths, however, Wailer wrote \"Electric Boogie\" for her in the early 1980s.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"23397ec9-a75c-44f2-a0bd-9ddaea06a73c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"g6dv81anb5","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Electric Slide”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"23397ec9-a75c-44f2-a0bd-9ddaea06a73c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7bxs92y97k","content":[{"text":"Electric Slide is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1a21c702-ce08-462d-844e-cc4f02c02204"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"v263w98k8f","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1a21c702-ce08-462d-844e-cc4f02c02204"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"SafePod Electric Slide Valve","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/69/SafePod_Electric_Slide_Valve.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Bdcook","height":1707,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"SafePod Electric Slide Valve","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/69/SafePod_Electric_Slide_Valve.jpg/960px-SafePod_Electric_Slide_Valve.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:SafePod_Electric_Slide_Valve.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/69/SafePod_Electric_Slide_Valve.jpg/1280px-SafePod_Electric_Slide_Valve.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:13.030Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/electric-slide"}
{"id":"8b6fe9c7-5c70-43a7-8b93-a43fe37e562c","type":"art_form","slug":"engolo","title":"Engolo","summary":"N'golo (anglicized as Engolo) is a traditional Bantu martial art and game from Angola, that combines elements of combat and dance, performed in a circle accompanied by music and singing.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t75f7rep1c","content":[{"text":"N'golo (anglicized as Engolo) is a traditional Bantu martial art and game from Angola, that combines elements of combat and dance, performed in a circle accompanied by music and singing. It has been proposed by some researchers as a possible precursor or influence on the development of capoeira, although the extent of this relationship remains debated in the academic literature.\nEngolo is a traditional combat game associated with communities along the Cunene River in the Cunene Province of Angola. Contemporary descriptions of engolo highlight movements inspired by observations of nature, including the imitation of animal behaviors, such as a zebra's kicking motion or the swaying of trees. The practice includes physical combat elements, and accounts describe the possibility of serious injuries during its performance.\nThe combat style of engolo encompasses a variety of techniques, including different types of kicks, dodges, and takedowns, with a particular emphasis on inverted positions. Some researchers have pointed out similarities between engolo techniques and movements found in capoeira, such as meia lua de compasso, scorpion kick, chapa, chapa de costas, rasteira, L-kick, and others, although the extent and nature of any direct historical connection between these techniques remain debated.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1b47ff0f-cc10-4741-838c-0de62d0a841e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Name","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hg8jvmy4sr","content":[{"text":"The term ngolo derived from the Kikongo Bantu language and signifies concepts related to strength, power, and energy. Moreover, in the 15th century, ngola was a title held by African kings. The term ngolo originates from a Bantu root *-gol, meaning to bend or twist. \nNgolo is also colloquially referred to as the Zebra dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1b47ff0f-cc10-4741-838c-0de62d0a841e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Music","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7zdpj1eq2x","content":[{"text":"In West Central Africa, martial arts naturally take the form of dance. In Bantu culture, dance is an integral part of daily life. People danced while working, playing, praying, mourning, and celebrating. In Congo-Angola, dance is intricately linked to song, music, and ritual, and even incorporated into wartime preparations and battles.\nEngolo is typically performed within a circle, accompanied by percussion, with participants humming, singing, and clapping hands. The dance synchronizes with the rhythm of handclaps. In Jogo de corpo documentary, sometimes the musical bow was also played (with mouth).\nOne of the traditional song in engolo is: “Who dies in engolo won’t be wept for”. There are also alternative translation from Kimbundu language:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1b47ff0f-cc10-4741-838c-0de62d0a841e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rfg252ya8c","content":[{"text":"Another engolo song highlightes the all-important ability to dodge and escape: “Kauno tchivelo kwali tolondo”, meaning “You don’t have a door, maybe jump over”, emphasizing agility in evasions and cunning in finding creative solutions to challenges.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1b47ff0f-cc10-4741-838c-0de62d0a841e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Engolo circle","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w88xz3s8nd","content":[{"text":"Within the Bantu culture, the circle carries profound symbolism. Village dwellings are frequently arranged in circular formations, and communal meals are enjoyed while seated in a circle. Dancing in a circle holds significance, representing protection and strength, symbolizing the bond with the spirit world, life, and the divine.\nThe practice of engolo, as documented in the 1950s, involves a circle of singing participants and potential combatants, and, similar to a capoeira roda, participants must remain within a defined area. Sometimes, this circle is overseen by a kimbanda, a ritual specialist. The game starts with clapping and call-and-response songs, some of them featuring humming instead of lyrics. A practitioner enters the circle, dancing and shouting, and when another participant joins, they engage in a dance-off, assessing each other's skills. This interaction incorporates kicks and sweeps, with defenders using dodges and blending techniques to counterattack smoothly. This cycle continues until one participant concedes defeat, feels the match is complete, or the kimbanda overseeing the match calls for its conclusion.\nIn engolo games documented in the 2010s, players often initiate the engolo circle by challenging others. In such cases, they enthusiastically leap into the circle, showcasing agile movements and occasional shouts while awaiting someone to join and engage in the play. They can also select a specific individual to join them by using kicks or simulated kicks.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1b47ff0f-cc10-4741-838c-0de62d0a841e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"The origin of engolo","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3hjqsm3e59","content":[{"text":"There is no written record of engolo's origin. Engolo practitioners claim that \"engolo comes from the ancestors\" and that their fathers, grandfathers, and great-grandfathers played engolo.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1b47ff0f-cc10-4741-838c-0de62d0a841e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"61nss4hkmm","content":[{"text":"According to Desch-Obi, engolo was likely developed by Bantu shamans and warriors in ancient Angola, based on the inverted worldview of kongo religion. With this worldview, shamans put themselves upside down to gain power from the ancestral realm. Among the Pende shamans, the most used movement was the front crescent kick. Masked shaman kicked over sacred medicine to activate it and over the kneeling people to heal them. Moreover, engolo was a military training method to develop warriors' close combat skills. \nNeves e Sousa believes that the techniques of engolo derived from the way in which zebras fight among themselves. Desch-Obi finds that using the zebra as a combat role model in Angola makes sense because it symbolizes nimbleness and agile defense. The engolo also resembled the zebra's fighting style, particularly the zebra kicks executed with the palms touching the ground, which is a defining feature of engolo.\nMatthew Zylstra suggests that a dance performed by the Gwikwe Bushmen bears a striking resemblance to the Angolan art. He proposes a theory that the Bantu peoples in southern Angola, who interacted with San Bushmen groups in the region, may have known such dances and integrated them into their cultures. If this theory holds, it would imply that the origins of engolo could be thousands of years old.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1b47ff0f-cc10-4741-838c-0de62d0a841e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Engolo in Africa","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t3k1xx3ytq","content":[{"text":"In precolonial Angola, mock combats were a major part of military training, and since hand-to-hand combat was essential to warfare, techniques to avoid blows and attacks were a key focus of martial exercises.\nSince the Portuguese invasion in the 16th century, European chroniclers noted the martial skills of the local people. Mock combats were a common feature of military reviews in Kongo/Angola, similar to drills in Europe. These movements could be applied in warfare, as Angolan warriors heavily relied on personal maneuvers in their fighting technique. Written sources from the 16th century describe martial arts similar to capoeira.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1b47ff0f-cc10-4741-838c-0de62d0a841e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8tt0m76rjd","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Engolo”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1b47ff0f-cc10-4741-838c-0de62d0a841e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"692xpt0epz","content":[{"text":"Engolo is Bantu martial art from Angola, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"261b8f27-bf6f-48ab-96da-67aa952ad4e7"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"p9z5dj0hg1","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"261b8f27-bf6f-48ab-96da-67aa952ad4e7"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Engolo ginga. Art based on 2010s engolo games in Angola.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/34/Engolo_ginga.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Mladifilozof","height":720,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Engolo ginga. Art based on 2010s engolo games in Angola.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/34/Engolo_ginga.jpg/960px-Engolo_ginga.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Engolo_ginga.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/34/Engolo_ginga.jpg/1280px-Engolo_ginga.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Engolo back kick, known as zebra kick. Art based on 2010s engolo games in Angola.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6f/Engolo_back_kick.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Mladifilozof","height":849,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Engolo back kick, known as zebra kick. Art based on 2010s engolo games in Angola.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6f/Engolo_back_kick.jpg/960px-Engolo_back_kick.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Engolo_back_kick.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6f/Engolo_back_kick.jpg/1280px-Engolo_back_kick.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Embarkation of Queen Nzinga's captured warriors and their deportation to Brazil (modern graphics).","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/02/Embarkation_of_Queen_Nzinga%27s_captured_warriors.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"UNESCO","height":699,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Embarkation of Queen Nzinga's captured warriors and their deportation to Brazil (modern graphics).","licence":"CC BY 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/02/Embarkation_of_Queen_Nzinga%27s_captured_warriors.jpg/960px-Embarkation_of_Queen_Nzinga%27s_captured_warriors.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Embarkation_of_Queen_Nzinga%27s_captured_warriors.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/02/Embarkation_of_Queen_Nzinga%27s_captured_warriors.jpg/1280px-Embarkation_of_Queen_Nzinga%27s_captured_warriors.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:20.718Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/engolo"}
{"id":"230c3695-3f27-4efe-b021-39f7eb7f150e","type":"art_form","slug":"escola-bolera","title":"escola bolera","summary":"escola bolera is designation of intangible heritage of Sevilla, Spain. This page is a machine-generated stub awaiting review by someone who knows the tradition.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8xw1rmxcst","content":[{"text":"escola bolera is designation of intangible heritage of Sevilla, Spain, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"333723bb-ce8d-450c-a964-1421b0929224"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1d6y1edd99","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"333723bb-ce8d-450c-a964-1421b0929224"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-05T02:44:06.683Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/escola-bolera"}
{"id":"9bb892f5-3a05-4061-909a-da7e2c90313b","type":"art_form","slug":"eurythmy","title":"eurythmy","summary":"Eurythmy is an expressive movement art originated by Rudolf Steiner in conjunction with his wife, Marie Steiner-von Sivers, in the early 20th century.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wkzh4jfj14","content":[{"text":"Eurythmy is an expressive movement art originated by Rudolf Steiner in conjunction with his wife, Marie Steiner-von Sivers, in the early 20th century. Primarily a performance art, it is also used in education, especially in Waldorf schools, and – as part of anthroposophic medicine – for claimed therapeutic purposes.\nThe word eurythmy stems from Greek roots meaning beautiful or harmonious rhythm. (“Eu” meaning “well”).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a7e639e5-c106-4a75-95a1-c209f479ddc8"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fb2p69fsqf","content":[{"text":"Eurythmy was conceived in 1911 when a widow brought her young daughter, Lory Smits, who was interested in movement and dance, to Rudolf Steiner. Due to the recent loss of her father, it was necessary for the girl to find a career. Steiner's advice was sought; he suggested that the girl begin working on a new art of movement. As preparation for this, she began to study human anatomy, to explore the human step, to contemplate the movement implicit in Greek sculpture and dance, and to find movements that would express spoken sentences using the sounds of speech. Soon a number of other young people became interested in this form of expressive movement.\nDuring these years, Steiner was writing a new drama each year for performance at the Anthroposophical Society's summer gatherings; beginning in 1912, he began to incorporate the new art of movement into these dramas. When the Society decided to build an artistic center in Dornach, Switzerland (this later became known as the Goetheanum) a small stage group began work and offered weekly performances of the developing art. Marie von Sivers, later Steiner's wife, who was a trained actress and speech artist, was given responsibility for training and directing this ensemble. This first eurythmy ensemble went on tour in 1919, performing across Switzerland, the Netherlands and Germany.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a7e639e5-c106-4a75-95a1-c209f479ddc8"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f1h38zmkj4","content":[{"text":"Steiner saw eurythmy as a unique expression of the anthroposophical impulse:It is the task of Anthroposophy to bring a greater depth, a wider vision and a more living spirit into the other forms of art.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a7e639e5-c106-4a75-95a1-c209f479ddc8"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mns7hngfmc","content":[{"text":"The word eurythmy stems from Greek roots meaning beautiful or harmonious rhythm. The term was used by Ancient Greek and Roman architects to refer to the harmonious proportions of a design or building; The English word eurythmy was used from the 17th to 19th century to refer not only to harmonious architectural proportions, but also to \"rhythmical order or movement\" and \"a graceful proportion and carriage of the body\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a7e639e5-c106-4a75-95a1-c209f479ddc8"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Movement repertoire","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cv5pt2p32j","content":[{"text":"The gestures in the eurythmist's movement repertoire relate to the sounds and rhythms of speech, to the tones and rhythms of music and to \"soul experiences\", such as joy and sorrow. Once these fundamental repertoire elements are learned, they can be composed into free artistic expressions. The eurythmist also cultivates a feeling for the qualities of straight lines and curves, the directions of movement in space (forward, backward, up, down, left, right), contraction and expansion, and color. The element of color is also emphasized both through the costuming, usually given characteristic colors for a piece or part and formed of long, loose fabrics that accentuate the movements rather than the bodily form, and through the lighting, which saturates the space and changes with the moods of the piece.\nEurythmy's aim is to bring the artists' expressive movement and both the performers' and audience's feeling experience into harmony with a piece's content; eurythmy is thus sometimes called \"visible music\" or \"visible speech\", expressions that originate with its founder, Rudolf Steiner, who described eurythmy as an \"art of the soul\".\nMost eurythmy today is performed to classical (concert) music or texts such as poetry or stories. Silent pieces are also sometimes performed.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a7e639e5-c106-4a75-95a1-c209f479ddc8"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Eurythmy with music","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qq3sszx8mh","content":[{"text":"When performing eurythmy with music (also called tone eurythmy), the three major elements of music, melody, harmony and rhythm, are all expressed.  The melody is primarily conveyed through expressing its rise and fall; the specific pitches; and the intervallic qualities present.  Harmony is expressed through movement between tension and release, as expressions of dissonance and consonance, and between the more inwardly directed minor mood and the outwardly directed major mood.  Rhythm is chiefly conveyed through livelier and more contoured movements for quick notes, slower, dreamier movements for longer notes; in addition, longer tones move into the more passive (listening) back space, quicker tones into the more active front space.\nBreaths or pauses are expressed through a larger or smaller movement in space, giving new impulse to what follows.  Beat is conveyed through greater emphasis of downbeats, or those beats upon which stress is normally placed.  Beat is generally treated as a subsidiary element. Eurythmy has only occasionally been done to popular music, in which beat plays a large role.\nThe timbre of individual instruments is brought into the quality both of the tonal gestures and of the whole movement of the eurythmist.  Usually there will be a different eurythmist or group of eurythmists expressing each instrument, for example in chamber or symphonic music.\nA piece's choreography usually expresses elements such as the major or minor key, the shape of the melody line, the interplay between voices or instruments and the relative dominance of one or another voice or instrument.  Thus, musicians can often follow even the finest details of their part in the movements of the eurythmists on stage.  Particular musical forms (e.g.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a7e639e5-c106-4a75-95a1-c209f479ddc8"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Eurythmy with spoken texts","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1kez3f3es5","content":[{"text":"Eurythmy is often performed with spoken texts such as poetry, stories or plays. Speech eurythmy includes such elements as the sounds of speech, rhythms, poetic meters, grammar and mood. In speech eurythmy, all the sounds of language have characteristic gestural qualities: the sound of an 'A' is open due to the position of the articulators during the vowel. A 'k' sounds sharper due to the manner of articulation of the consonant, that it is a plosive. Note that it is the audible sounds themselves, not the letters of the written language, that are expressed.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a7e639e5-c106-4a75-95a1-c209f479ddc8"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f1akb5mqft","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Eurythmy”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a7e639e5-c106-4a75-95a1-c209f479ddc8"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6secbrx4wy","content":[{"text":"eurythmy is expressive movement art associated with anthroposophy, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"64f7b43c-825d-4ead-9392-bd96024ec5ee"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6jktyy469m","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 20 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"64f7b43c-825d-4ead-9392-bd96024ec5ee"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:09.760Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/eurythmy"}
{"id":"173a315f-ebaf-4c10-b397-df255134f9b0","type":"art_form","slug":"fa-ataupati","title":"Fa'ataupati","summary":"The Fa'ataupati is a dance indigenous to Samoans. In English it is simply the \"Samoan Slap Dance\". It was developed in Samoa in the 19th century and is only performed by males.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m0fcmq6jcy","content":[{"text":"The Fa'ataupati is a dance indigenous to Samoans. In English it is simply the \"Samoan Slap Dance\". It was developed in Samoa in the 19th century and is only performed by males.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"99a85776-f8d2-432a-a089-8d5ab2558f05"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xawbdfdz95","content":[{"text":"The word pati in Fa'ataupati means \"to clap\", Fa'ataupati means to 'forcefully clap or to slap'.\nDances in Samoa would reflect on everyday life activities. In the 19th century there was an invasion of mosquitoes to the Kingdom, which later on became another part of everyday life, and it was there that the Fa'ataupati was created from when a man would forcefully slap his body. This dance mimics a person slapping the mosquitoes off their body when bitten.\nFrom then on it became part of the Samoan culture.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"99a85776-f8d2-432a-a089-8d5ab2558f05"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Performance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1mhv3pwfd2","content":[{"text":"The Fa'ataupati is traditionally performed by a group of men and requires strength and stability. The men would clap and slap in sync with each other. This dance is the only dance in Samoa that does not require any instrument, as the slapping of the bodies, the clapping of the hands and stomping of the feet create the music for this dance. It is the only all-male dance in Samoa.\nThe Fa'ataupati is rarely performed alone. This dance requires a lot of coconut oil rubbed on the skin, as the slapping can sometimes leave marks on one's body.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"99a85776-f8d2-432a-a089-8d5ab2558f05"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Use in Mainstream New Zealand Dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"68ze4gm4d5","content":[{"text":"Fa'ataupati has been used by one of New Zealand's leading contemporary dance companies; Black Grace, in their dances Minoi and Minoi 2.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"99a85776-f8d2-432a-a089-8d5ab2558f05"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qys1xs4acb","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Fa'ataupati”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"99a85776-f8d2-432a-a089-8d5ab2558f05"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cjr1xqb511","content":[{"text":"Fa'ataupati is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"489a5893-fed1-4b00-a69c-e108d67c073b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zfrmxy5fx3","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"489a5893-fed1-4b00-a69c-e108d67c073b"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Showing Wesley College students performing Sasa Fa'ataupati, the traditional Samoan slap dance.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/73/Wesley_College%2C_ASB_Polyfest._%28POLY-D-2015-060%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Smita Biswas","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Showing Wesley College students performing Sasa Fa'ataupati, the traditional Samoan slap dance.","licence":"CC BY 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/73/Wesley_College%2C_ASB_Polyfest._%28POLY-D-2015-060%29.jpg/960px-Wesley_College%2C_ASB_Polyfest._%28POLY-D-2015-060%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Wesley_College,_ASB_Polyfest._(POLY-D-2015-060).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/73/Wesley_College%2C_ASB_Polyfest._%28POLY-D-2015-060%29.jpg/1280px-Wesley_College%2C_ASB_Polyfest._%28POLY-D-2015-060%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0"},{"alt":"Showing Wesley College students performing Sasa Fa'ataupati, the traditional Samoan slap dance.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/95/Wesley_College%2C_ASB_Polyfest._%28POLY-D-2015-059%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Smita Biswas","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Showing Wesley College students performing Sasa Fa'ataupati, the traditional Samoan slap dance.","licence":"CC BY 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/95/Wesley_College%2C_ASB_Polyfest._%28POLY-D-2015-059%29.jpg/960px-Wesley_College%2C_ASB_Polyfest._%28POLY-D-2015-059%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Wesley_College,_ASB_Polyfest._(POLY-D-2015-059).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/95/Wesley_College%2C_ASB_Polyfest._%28POLY-D-2015-059%29.jpg/1280px-Wesley_College%2C_ASB_Polyfest._%28POLY-D-2015-059%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:13.891Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/fa-ataupati"}
{"id":"4ff66455-5442-40a0-9072-d32fbde14648","type":"art_form","slug":"fado","title":"fado","summary":"Fado (Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈfaðu]; \"destiny, fate\") is a music genre which can be traced to the 1820s in Lisbon, Portugal, but probably has much earlier origins.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"assprb00sx","content":[{"text":"Fado (Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈfaðu]; \"destiny, fate\") is a music genre which can be traced to the 1820s in Lisbon, Portugal, but probably has much earlier origins. Fado historian and scholar Rui Vieira Nery states that \"the only reliable information on the history of fado was orally transmitted and goes back to the 1820s and 1830s at best. But even that information was frequently modified within the generational transmission process that made it reach us today.\"\nAlthough the origins are difficult to trace, today fado is commonly regarded as simply a form of song which can be about anything, but must follow a certain traditional structure. In popular belief, fado is a form of music characterized by mournful tunes and lyrics, often about the sea or the life of the poor, and infused with a sense of resignation, fate and melancholy. This is loosely captured by the Portuguese word saudade, or longing, symbolizing a feeling of loss (a permanent, irreparable loss and its consequent lifelong damage). This is similar to the character of several musical genres in Portuguese ex-colonies such as morna from Cape Verde, which may be historically linked to fado in its earlier form and have retained its rhythmic heritage.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f578c2af-9a18-4f3a-804a-304f82dc2a13"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7vzwsb30z5","content":[{"text":"The word fado possibly comes from the Latin word fatum (\"fate\", \"death\" or \"utterance\"). The word is linked to the music genre itself, although both meanings are approximately the same in the two languages. Nevertheless, many songs play on the double meaning, such as the Amália Rodrigues song \"Com que voz\", which includes the lyric \"Com que voz chorarei meu triste fado\" (\"With what voice should I lament my sad fate/sing my sad fado?\").\nPerhaps shedding light on fadista are the Proto-Celtic *wātis (prophet, poet; see Proto-Celtic language), the English-Latin vates (Celtic bard, prophet, philosopher),  and the Old French fatiste (poet), evolving to the Middle French fatiste (actor in a medieval mystery play).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f578c2af-9a18-4f3a-804a-304f82dc2a13"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hnv0vxnznb","content":[{"text":"Fado appeared during the early 19th century in Lisbon, and is believed to have its origins in the bohemian areas of the capital, such as Bairro Alto, Mouraria and Alfama districts.\nA different theory about the origin of fado was defended by Brazilian musical critic José Ramos Tinhorão, who said that fado was brought into Portugal by the hands and craft of a mixed-race Brazilian musician called Domingos Caldas Barbosa in the mid 18th century.\nThere are numerous theories about the origin of fado. Some trace its origins or influences to the medieval \"cantigas de amigo\" (song of a friend), others suggest some ancient Moorish influence, and yet others point to the chants of (enslaved) Africans sailing at sea. None of these are compelling. It possibly evolved and formed from various older musical genres.\nFado performers in the middle of the 19th century were mainly from the urban working-class, namely sailors, bohemians and courtesans in popular taverns, who not only sang but also danced and beat the fado. During the second half of the 19th century, the dance rhythms faded away, and the performers became merely singers (fadistas).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f578c2af-9a18-4f3a-804a-304f82dc2a13"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jncmkhra8e","content":[{"text":"The 19th century's fadista Maria Severa, a half Cigano woman considered scandalous by some at the time, was the artist who made this genre famous.\nMore recently Amália Rodrigues, known as the \"Rainha do Fado\" (\"Queen of Fado\") was most influential in popularizing fado worldwide. Fado performances today may be accompanied by a string quartet or a full orchestra.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f578c2af-9a18-4f3a-804a-304f82dc2a13"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Musicological aspects","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jqq8t6gjt3","content":[{"text":"Fado typically employs major or minor tonal harmony, sometimes switching between the two during a melody or verse change.\nA particular stylistic trait of fado is the use of rubato, where the music pauses at the end of a phrase and the singer holds the note for dramatic effect. The music uses double-time rhythm and triple-time (waltz style).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f578c2af-9a18-4f3a-804a-304f82dc2a13"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Varieties","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8ay5p102wz","content":[{"text":"There are two main varieties of fado, linked respectively to the cities of Lisbon and Coimbra.\nThe Lisbon style is better known, owing much to the popularity of Amália Rodrigues. It has been suggested that fado appeared on the streets of Lisbon only after 1840. Before then, the sailor's fado was sung at the bow of a boat, serving as a model for the first fados sung on land. Lisbon hosts a Fado Museum.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f578c2af-9a18-4f3a-804a-304f82dc2a13"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Coimbra fado","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"g6wkw24fs7","content":[{"text":"The fado style of Coimbra is traditionally linked to the city's university and the style of medieval serenading troubadours. It is sung exclusively by men; both the singers and musicians wear the academic outfit (traje académico): dark robe, cape and leggings. Dating to the troubadour tradition of medieval times, it is sung at night, almost in the dark, in city squares or streets. Typical venues are the steps of the Santa Cruz Monastery and the Old Cathedral of Coimbra. It is also customary to organize serenades where songs are performed before the window of a woman to be courted.\nAs in Lisbon, Coimbra fado is accompanied by the guitarra portuguesa and viola (a type of guitar).  The Coimbra guitar has evolved into an instrument different from that of Lisbon, with its own tuning, sound colouring, and construction. Artur Paredes, a progressive and innovative singer, revolutionised the tuning of the guitar and the style with which it accompanied Coimbra fado. Artur Paredes was the father of Carlos Paredes. He followed in his father's footsteps and expanded on his work, making the Portuguese guitar an instrument known around the world.\nIn the 1950s, a new movement led the singers of Coimbra to adopt the ballad and folklore. They began interpreting lines of the great poets, both classical and contemporary, as a form of resistance to the Salazar dictatorship.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f578c2af-9a18-4f3a-804a-304f82dc2a13"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1m8at8f1vm","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Fado”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f578c2af-9a18-4f3a-804a-304f82dc2a13"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t4rpj8wsr7","content":[{"text":"fado is Portuguese music genre, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"772d7900-629c-44da-8f89-e02eab40572f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dgy72fc33s","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 31 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"772d7900-629c-44da-8f89-e02eab40572f"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"\" Fado \", one of the Azulejos at Estrada Velha, Sintra, Portugal","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b0/Old_Portuguese_Tiles_O_Fado_%282861589727%29.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Pedro Simões from Lisboa, Portugal","height":920,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"\" Fado \", one of the Azulejos at Estrada Velha, Sintra, Portugal","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b0/Old_Portuguese_Tiles_O_Fado_%282861589727%29.jpg/960px-Old_Portuguese_Tiles_O_Fado_%282861589727%29.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Old_Portuguese_Tiles_O_Fado_(2861589727).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b0/Old_Portuguese_Tiles_O_Fado_%282861589727%29.jpg/1280px-Old_Portuguese_Tiles_O_Fado_%282861589727%29.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:20.129Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/fado"}
{"id":"75616f1e-fc66-4423-bd45-c669dd774444","type":"art_form","slug":"fan-dance","title":"fan dance","summary":"In the West, a fan dance (i.e., a dance performed with fans) may be an erotic dance performance, traditionally by a woman, but not exclusively. Beyond eroticism it is a form of musical interpretation.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vqzq2kz0d4","content":[{"text":"In the West, a fan dance (i.e., a dance performed with fans) may be an erotic dance performance, traditionally by a woman, but not exclusively. Beyond eroticism it is a form of musical interpretation.  The performer, sometimes entirely nude or apparently so, dances while manipulating two or more large fans that can be constructed from many different materials including ostrich feathers, silks, velvet, sequined and organza fabrics. The unifying factor in all is the spins, or fan staves, that give form to this prop.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ec239e35-49d4-4a20-9e3c-638e583683d1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vw6ybr31x3","content":[{"text":"In the 1970s gay men removed the solid pin at the center of the fan and replaced it with knotted string allowing for a fluid curvaceous movement. This disco art has been seen in San Francisco's Trocadero (perhaps first before the East's Paradise Garage), New York's Roseland Ballroom plus numerous circuit parties from Corbett Reynolds 1996 \"Jungle Red\" Party in Cleveland to the White and Winter Parties of Miami and London's 1998 Red Heart's Ball. More difficult to construct (and manipulate) than the flags commonly used today, there are but a handful of artists, male and female, who occasionally exhibit this style of dance. The 1997 and 2016 Dance on the Pier images both give a closer look at a pair of medium-sized fans caught in fast motion. At times these fans travel in a simple elliptical pattern seen as a circle by the audience while further into the choreography one might see a perfect windmill, helicopter blades, a set of wings or even Carmen's skirt.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ec239e35-49d4-4a20-9e3c-638e583683d1"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"In popular culture","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"azz536e5qq","content":[{"text":"The 1963 film Gypsy is a musical about Gypsy Rose Lee, a noted fan dancer.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ec239e35-49d4-4a20-9e3c-638e583683d1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hc1spaq9v5","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Fan dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ec239e35-49d4-4a20-9e3c-638e583683d1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kxgaf2bpqx","content":[{"text":"fan dance is type of dance including hand fans as props, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9c9d5fb8-88a4-418c-bd3b-5ea4ea972f3e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vzqnm3xzfq","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9c9d5fb8-88a4-418c-bd3b-5ea4ea972f3e"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Asian fan dance","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4d/Asian_fan_dance2.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"user:AngMoKio","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Asian fan dance","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.5","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4d/Asian_fan_dance2.jpg/960px-Asian_fan_dance2.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Asian_fan_dance2.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4d/Asian_fan_dance2.jpg/1280px-Asian_fan_dance2.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5"},{"alt":"Nasty Canasta performing a fan dance.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fa/Nasty_Canasta_fan_dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Michael Albov","height":1950,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Nasty Canasta performing a fan dance.","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fa/Nasty_Canasta_fan_dance.jpg/960px-Nasty_Canasta_fan_dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Nasty_Canasta_fan_dance.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fa/Nasty_Canasta_fan_dance.jpg/1280px-Nasty_Canasta_fan_dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"},{"alt":"1982 World's Fair, Knoxville, Tennessee, digital copy of slide. Complete indexed photo collection at www.WorldHistoryPics.com.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4e/Korean_Fan_Dance_02.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Gary Lee Todd, Ph.D.","height":920,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"1982 World's Fair, Knoxville, Tennessee, digital copy of slide. Complete indexed photo collection at www.WorldHistoryPics.com.","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4e/Korean_Fan_Dance_02.jpg/960px-Korean_Fan_Dance_02.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Korean_Fan_Dance_02.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4e/Korean_Fan_Dance_02.jpg/1280px-Korean_Fan_Dance_02.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:14.222Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/fan-dance"}
{"id":"77e20061-00d3-47cb-9d34-64677404f3ae","type":"art_form","slug":"fancy-dance","title":"fancy dance","summary":"Fancy dance, Pan-Indian dancing, Fancy Feather or Fancy War Dance is a style of dance some believe was originally created by members of the Ponca tribe in the 1920s and 1930s, in an attempt to preserve their culture and religion.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kgq8ep741s","content":[{"text":"Fancy dance, Pan-Indian dancing, Fancy Feather or Fancy War Dance is a style of dance some believe was originally created by members of the Ponca tribe in the 1920s and 1930s, in an attempt to preserve their culture and religion. It is loosely based on the war dance. Fancy dance was considered appropriate to be performed for visitors to reservations and at \"Wild West\" shows. But today, fancy dancers can be seen at many powwows across the nation and even the world.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4d77b72e-5455-4216-b8b9-3ec7330c5d79"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rc5zs902w5","content":[{"text":"Native American dances, the practices of medicine men, and religious ceremonies were banned by White authorities with the introduction of The Code of Indian Offenses in 1883.  As in many oppressed cultures, the ceremonies simply went underground to avoid detection by the authorities. Tribes created new dances that could legally be danced in public. Kiowa and Comanche created new styles of dance regalia in the 1930s that included long-johns with bells attached to the knee up to the waist, two small arm bustles with white fluff, two bustles with white down, beadwork harnesses, and some feathers, and the roach being tall and usually with fluffs. This regalia would be incorporated into the fancy dance.\nThe fancy dance was developed after 1928, when the Ponca Tribe built their own dance arena in White Eagle, Oklahoma. Two young Ponca boys are specifically credited with developing the fast-paced dance that the audiences loved. One of the boys was the grandfather of Parrish Williams, a Ponca roadman. The Wild West shows popularized the dance. Gus McDonald (Ponca) was the first World Champion Fancy War Dancer.\nThe intertribal powwow circuit was established in the early 20th century, spreading across the Southern Plains. The Kiowa held contest powwows as early as 1918. Among Kiowa, fancy dancing was incorporated into the O-ho-mah Society. Contest powwows became an important source of income during the Great Depression. Professional fancy dancers of the 1930s included Chester Lefthand (Arapaho), Stephen Mopope (Kiowa), Dennis Rough Face (Ponca), and George \"Woogie\" Watchetaker (Comanche).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4d77b72e-5455-4216-b8b9-3ec7330c5d79"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Description","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dsgha3swzj","content":[{"text":"Men's fancy dance is flashy, colorful and highly energetic. It requires strength and stamina and is usually performed by younger men and boys. The drum can play a medium war beat, a ruffle, crow hop, and a fast beat. It is always expected that a fancy dancer should do a pose at each end of the beat. Some might do splits or stop in mid-air. Male fancy dancers typically wear brightly colored regalia. Twin feather bustles are one of the hallmarks of modern fancy dance regalia, along with a beaded bodice, leggings or breech cloth and side tabs (most popular), bells just below the knees, Icelandic sheep hair or also known as \"Goats\", moccasins, a roach with two feathers (Most wear a roach rocker which rocks the feathers with the dancer's movements), beaded cuffs, beaded headband, and other feathered or beaded accouterments. The regalia often has a fringe of many colors. The old style regalia is making a comeback.\nThe women's fancy shawl dance represents the opening of a cocoon when the butterfly emerges.  The shawl is usually the most extravagant piece. The fringed shawls are colorful and flashy, often featuring embroidery or ribbon work. The fringe on the shawl have a movement that coincides with the dancer. The dancers usually wear beaded or appliqued designs, and beaded hairpieces. Chokers, earrings, bracelets, and eagle plumes are usually worn as well. Elaborate moccasins and leggings complete the regalia. The practice of women's fancy shawl dance is far more recent than that of Men's Fancy Dance. It was not until fancy dance had existed for several decades that women began to participate.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4d77b72e-5455-4216-b8b9-3ec7330c5d79"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Competition","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rhg7n14bj1","content":[{"text":"The men's fancy dance is one of the most popular contemporary powwow dances. Thus living up to its name, the fancy dance is a highly athletic dance with lots of movement. As the dancer dances, his regalia moves with the dancer to create the tone of the following of motion. The medium war, ruffle, crow hop, and fast beats are usually mixed together and are usually called mix-up songs or confusion songs. The Fancy Dancer must dance according to the beat and must strike a \"pose\" whenever the drum beat stops. Singers can try to trick the dances with unexpected final beats.\nThe popularity of fancy dance - sometimes as a competitive sport - has spread, and is now practiced by many Native American tribes.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4d77b72e-5455-4216-b8b9-3ec7330c5d79"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hnhq8yk98p","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Fancy dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4d77b72e-5455-4216-b8b9-3ec7330c5d79"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bwx1wvj11n","content":[{"text":"fancy dance is style of dance practiced by Indigenous Peoples of North America, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"12ad6307-b284-4a24-8ba4-14f045f6514b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tckwvtc7an","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"12ad6307-b284-4a24-8ba4-14f045f6514b"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"500px provided description: A fancy feather dancer launches himself into the air during contest dancing at Oglala Nation Fair in Pine Ridge South Dakota [#dance ,#culture ,#dancer ,#powwow ,#Oglala ,#South Dakota ,#Sioux ,#Native American ,#Lakota ,#Pine Ridge]","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/43/Anti_Gravity_Fancy_Dancer_%28119377041%29.jpeg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"David Brown Eyes","height":1920,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"500px provided description: A fancy feather dancer launches himself into the air during contest dancing at Oglala Nation Fair in Pine Ridge South Dakota [#dance ,#culture ,#dancer ,#powwow ,#Oglala ,#South Dakota ,#Sioux ,#Native American ,#Lakota ,#Pine Ridge]","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/43/Anti_Gravity_Fancy_Dancer_%28119377041%29.jpeg/960px-Anti_Gravity_Fancy_Dancer_%28119377041%29.jpeg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Anti_Gravity_Fancy_Dancer_(119377041).jpeg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/43/Anti_Gravity_Fancy_Dancer_%28119377041%29.jpeg/1280px-Anti_Gravity_Fancy_Dancer_%28119377041%29.jpeg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"},{"alt":"Fancy dance","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9e/Fancy_dance_%2829775705665%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"US Embassy from New Zealand","height":1707,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Fancy dance","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9e/Fancy_dance_%2829775705665%29.jpg/960px-Fancy_dance_%2829775705665%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Fancy_dance_(29775705665).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9e/Fancy_dance_%2829775705665%29.jpg/1280px-Fancy_dance_%2829775705665%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"},{"alt":"Rhamphomyia longicauda female. Rock Creek Park, Washington, DC, USA. Finally a decent shot of these. They're fast!","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7e/Fancy_Dance_Fly_-_Flickr_-_treegrow.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Katja Schulz from Washington, D. C., USA","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Rhamphomyia longicauda female. Rock Creek Park, Washington, DC, USA. Finally a decent shot of these. They're fast!","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7e/Fancy_Dance_Fly_-_Flickr_-_treegrow.jpg/960px-Fancy_Dance_Fly_-_Flickr_-_treegrow.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Fancy_Dance_Fly_-_Flickr_-_treegrow.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7e/Fancy_Dance_Fly_-_Flickr_-_treegrow.jpg/1280px-Fancy_Dance_Fly_-_Flickr_-_treegrow.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:16.085Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/fancy-dance"}
{"id":"ff3ed4f0-1886-42bb-828c-81bd8f11d027","type":"art_form","slug":"farandole","title":"farandole","summary":"The farandole (French: [faʁɑ̃dɔl]; Provençal: farandola [faʀanˈdulɔ]) is an open-chain community dance popular in Provence, France. It bears similarities to the gavotte, jig, and tarantella.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mrcphvk7ym","content":[{"text":"The farandole (French: [faʁɑ̃dɔl]; Provençal: farandola [faʀanˈdulɔ]) is an open-chain community dance popular in Provence, France. It bears similarities to the gavotte, jig, and tarantella. The carmagnole of the French Revolution is a derivative.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"49562e88-83a1-4cc2-86dc-b74bf8fe5d0c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cbc7x3fj5t","content":[{"text":"No satisfactory derivation has been given of the name. Diez connects it with the Spanish farándula, indicating a company of strolling players, which he derives from the German fahrende (\"travelling\"). A still more unlikely derivation has been suggested from the Greek fálanx (φάλαγξ, \"phalanx\") and doúlos (δούλος, \"slave\"), because the dancers in the farandole are linked together in a long chain. It has been also suggested that farandole may be an alteration of Provençal barandello, from brandello (derivative of branda, \"stir\"), under the influence of Occitan words such as flandina (\"cajoler\") and flandrina (\"dawdle\"). However, this hypothesis is not very convincing because it comes up against the fact that b(a)randello is defined as being a Languedocian farandole.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"49562e88-83a1-4cc2-86dc-b74bf8fe5d0c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4a0j3s95z2","content":[{"text":"The farandole is considered as the oldest of the dances as well as the most characteristic and the most representative of Provence. Its name is attested only from the 18th century, however, it has been represented since prehistoric times by rock engravings then during Antiquity on ceramics or frescoes. Today in Provence, it is danced to the tunes played by the drummers who accompany it with their galoubets and their tambourines. Its popularity made it enter in the Christmas crib (crèche) of Provence and it is one of the most characteristic elements of the Provençal tradition.\nThe dance is very probably of Greek origin, and seems to be a direct descendant of the \"Cranes' dance\", the invention of which was ascribed to Theseus, who instituted it to celebrate his escape from the Labyrinth. This dance is alluded to at the end of the hymn to Delos by Callimachus: it is still danced in Greece and the islands of the Aegean, and may well have been introduced into the South of France from Marseilles.\nFolklorists of the early 20th century (e.g. Alford 1932) interpreted most folk dances as being very ancient, and postulated even for the farandole an ancestry traceable to ancient Greece, remaining more or less unchanged \"during its two or three thousands years of life\".\nMany recent websites, older encyclopedias, and some music history books claim that the farandole is a medieval dance, but never provide an actual medieval quote mentioning the farandole.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"49562e88-83a1-4cc2-86dc-b74bf8fe5d0c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Farandole of the Death","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0j60ww2qxg","content":[{"text":"After the Black Death, numerous exorcism rites appeared which aimed to tame the comrade, if not to push it back. In these rituals, music and dance played the leading roles.\nIn this farandole, skeletons and living people alternate, arranged in a descending hierarchical order: the pope, the emperor, the cardinal, the king, the patriarch, the constable, the archbishop, the knight, the bishop, the squire, the abbot, the bailiff, the astrologer, the bourgeois, the Carthusian, the sergeant, the doctor, the wife, the usurer, and the poor. The number of characters and the composition of the dance depends on the place of creation. Death, most often represented with a musical instrument, draws everyone into the dance, not looking at rank, wealth, gender, or age.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"49562e88-83a1-4cc2-86dc-b74bf8fe5d0c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Modern farandole","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t641ck9r53","content":[{"text":"Current musical accompaniment is always performed by one or more drummers. The dancers join hands to form a wandering open chain and mark each beat with jumps. The leader guides the chain by drawing a snake shape. Its role is to articulate the farandole, dance of agrarian rites, in its two main themes: that of the spiral (also known as the snail or labyrinth) and that of the passage under the vault (known as the serpent).\nAlso in Provence, other dances related to the farandole were practiced on more free steps: the brandi, the morisca (\"Moorish\"), the passa-carriera (\"street passer\", cf. the Spanish passacalle and the passacaille). It gave birth to certain medieval dances with repeated steps, such as the caroles of the 13th and 14th centuries, the branles of the 15th and 16th centuries.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"49562e88-83a1-4cc2-86dc-b74bf8fe5d0c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Farandole of Provence","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qfeq6cwp9q","content":[{"text":"The santons dancing the farandole are one of the classics of the Provence crib. The dancers form a long line which moves by meandering. The twists and turns of this dance in the crèche must represent a labyrinth. The dancers are either dressed in traditional Arles, Provençal, or Comtadin clothing, with the different clothing nuances provided by the local santonnier.\nThe dancers and the drummer wear an almost identical costume made up of white pants tightened by a taiole, a typical belt from Provence made up of a strip of red woolen fabric, and a white shirt tied at the collar by a cord.\nAs the drummer is notable, he has put on his most elegant costume, wears a wide-brimmed felt hat, and under his velvet jacket appears his embroidered waistcoat on his white shirt. Nicknamed \"Guillaume\", by tradition, it is he who leads the farandole with his tambourine and his galoubet. This scene is one of the major subjects of the Provençal crib, to which it is essential.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"49562e88-83a1-4cc2-86dc-b74bf8fe5d0c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2h08nm41sp","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Farandole”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"49562e88-83a1-4cc2-86dc-b74bf8fe5d0c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"n6yw5ws5tk","content":[{"text":"farandole is French community dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9c7e2771-8401-4b02-84ca-38c1d88bc000"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2nrh82t32s","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 14 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9c7e2771-8401-4b02-84ca-38c1d88bc000"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Farandole médiévale vers 1400","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/70/Farandole_m%C3%A9di%C3%A9vale_enluminure_vers_1400.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Unknown medieval period","height":681,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Farandole médiévale vers 1400","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/70/Farandole_m%C3%A9di%C3%A9vale_enluminure_vers_1400.jpg/960px-Farandole_m%C3%A9di%C3%A9vale_enluminure_vers_1400.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Farandole_m%C3%A9di%C3%A9vale_enluminure_vers_1400.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/70/Farandole_m%C3%A9di%C3%A9vale_enluminure_vers_1400.jpg/1280px-Farandole_m%C3%A9di%C3%A9vale_enluminure_vers_1400.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"Farandole à la feria de Béziers","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9f/Farandole_%C3%A0_B%C3%A9ziers.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"le petit biterrois","height":850,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Farandole à la feria de Béziers","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9f/Farandole_%C3%A0_B%C3%A9ziers.jpg/960px-Farandole_%C3%A0_B%C3%A9ziers.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Farandole_%C3%A0_B%C3%A9ziers.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9f/Farandole_%C3%A0_B%C3%A9ziers.jpg/1280px-Farandole_%C3%A0_B%C3%A9ziers.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"},{"alt":"Farandole catalane à Andorre","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a7/Farandole_catalane_%C3%A0_Andorre.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Unknown early 1900s","height":1492,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Farandole catalane à Andorre","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a7/Farandole_catalane_%C3%A0_Andorre.jpg/960px-Farandole_catalane_%C3%A0_Andorre.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Farandole_catalane_%C3%A0_Andorre.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a7/Farandole_catalane_%C3%A0_Andorre.jpg/1280px-Farandole_catalane_%C3%A0_Andorre.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-04T05:47:34.612Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/farandole"}
{"id":"2406e50f-379e-4c42-ad87-bb8d9de5ee5d","type":"art_form","slug":"faroese-dance","title":"Faroese dance","summary":"The Faroese chain dance (Faroese: Føroyskur dansur, Danish: Kædedans) is the national circle dance of the Faroe Islands, accompanied by kvæði, the Faroese ballads.\nThe dance is a typical Medieval dance.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7xxbtyh039","content":[{"text":"The Faroese chain dance (Faroese: Føroyskur dansur, Danish: Kædedans) is the national circle dance of the Faroe Islands, accompanied by kvæði, the Faroese ballads.\nThe dance is a typical Medieval dance. The dance is danced traditionally in a circle, but when there are many dancers, they usually let it swing around in various wobbles within the circle.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"497f1ba1-2e96-402b-8f15-5f321a137658"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance rules","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8swvfn1aat","content":[{"text":"When dancing there are a few rules. One is that your right hand must overlap the left hand of the one next to you while moving your feet two paces to the left and one pace back. The \"skipari\" is the one who sings and must know all the verses, while the people who are dancing with him in the circle join in at the chorus.\nThe following description is by V. U. Hammershaimb, Færøsk Anthologi, 1891:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"497f1ba1-2e96-402b-8f15-5f321a137658"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"z7zc73tatt","content":[{"text":"The storyline of the ballad is attended by everybody with great interest, and if something especially pleasant or moving occurs, it can be seen in the look and movement of the dancers – when the rage of the battle is described, the hands are clenched together, and when victory is in hand, the dancers make cheering movements.\nThe dance in itself only consists in holding each other's hands, while the dancers form a circle. When more and more dancers join the dance ring, the circle starts to bend and forms a new one within itself, and if the number of dancers is high enough and the space in the room allows it, a new one will form within that, too – but of course still in one unbroken circle or chain. This means every dancer must follow these curves of the chain, and soon is in the outer circle, then in the middle of the chain. The dancers thereby pass each other face-to-face twice in each round.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"497f1ba1-2e96-402b-8f15-5f321a137658"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Stígingarstev - The Common Dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k9qpdvd340","content":[{"text":"The tunes of the ballads are in sixth bars and accompanied by a rhythmical, monotonous stamping of the feet.  The most common version of the dance is the “stígingarstev” [stamping dance step].\nThis consists of the dancers slowly moving to their left, with six dance steps between the bars:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"497f1ba1-2e96-402b-8f15-5f321a137658"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cv0575ghsd","content":[{"text":"Left foot makes a step forward (to the left)\nThe right foot steps towards the left\nLeft foot makes another step forward\nThe right foot steps again towards the left\nThe right foot steps to the side or one step backwards\nThe left foot steps towards the right,\nand then all over again, between the bars, until the ballad is over.  If it is a solemn ballad, which is sung in a slow tempo, then the dance goes at a leisurely pace.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"497f1ba1-2e96-402b-8f15-5f321a137658"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Trokingarstev - The Crowding Dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"p3nka99b92","content":[{"text":"Another variation of the dance is the “trokingarstev” (from: “at troka” – to crowd).  Here people hold hands in the usual circle, but stand still or go a bit backwards while making the usual dance steps while the stanzas are sung, and then suddenly move forwards when the refrain starts.\nFor this dance, the more quick and lively ballads are used. This dance is less practiced in the northern Faroe Islands than in the southern Faroe Islands, especially in the southernmost villages. The people from Suðuroy do, all things considered, use more expression in the dance than people on the northern islands, where the emphasis is put on the monotonous stamping of the feet.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"497f1ba1-2e96-402b-8f15-5f321a137658"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Bandadansur - The Ribbon Dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yp6wx3zk65","content":[{"text":"A third variant of the dance, where quick folksongs and ballads are used as well, is “bandadansur” (The Ribbons Dance).\nThe dancers stand in two rows, two to four feet apart – men on one side, women on the other, holding a ribbon between each couple.  While the stanzas are sung, they stand still, while making the common rhythmical stamps with the feet.  When the refrain starts, they raise the ribbons, and the people from the end of the row, bend over two by two and move under the raised ribbons, until they get out of the tunnel, where they turn around and raise their ribbons over the following couples.  When the refrain ends, the dancers stop and lower their ribbons, and then go on like this, until the ballad ends.  This is a very lively, yet rather tiring dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"497f1ba1-2e96-402b-8f15-5f321a137658"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance Games","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tjjk2v6xzk","content":[{"text":"Besides the common dances, there are different dance games, some of which are accompanied by special songs.  Some of these games are of Faroese origin, while others originate from other countries.  In Svabo's fifth travel book in the Royal Library, he has described several of these dance games, which were played at gatherings indoors as well as outdoors.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"497f1ba1-2e96-402b-8f15-5f321a137658"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wnd208n0na","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Faroese chain dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"497f1ba1-2e96-402b-8f15-5f321a137658"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k9wkjwf3dr","content":[{"text":"Faroese dance is style of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7e26427a-b5f1-467f-8615-ab4713c280a8"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fxxts4qtz6","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7e26427a-b5f1-467f-8615-ab4713c280a8"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:15.117Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/faroese-dance"}
{"id":"670593bd-c6c4-4b6f-8fd4-bdbe80041d94","type":"art_form","slug":"farruca","title":"Farruca","summary":"Farruca (Spanish pronunciation: [faˈruka]) is a palo, or musical form, of flamenco.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"r88qpsgfr7","content":[{"text":"Farruca (Spanish pronunciation: [faˈruka]) is a palo, or musical form, of flamenco. It developed as a flamenco style in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries and is usually classified among the lighter or more stylized forms of flamenco, often described as a cante chico. The form is traditionally associated with Galicia or with Galician musical imagery, although its precise geographical origin has not been established with certainty. The Instituto Andaluz del Flamenco defines the farruca as a cante of non-Andalusian folkloric origin that has become aflamencado, that is, adapted into flamenco style.\nThe modern theatrical and instrumental form of the farruca is closely associated with the guitarist Ramón Montoya and the dancer Faíco, who helped establish it as a dance and guitar piece in the early twentieth century. Since then, farruca has become especially important as a vehicle for flamenco dance and solo guitar. It is often performed in A minor, with a sober and dramatic character, and is traditionally associated with masculine styling, sharply marked footwork and strong stage presence.\nAlthough the farruca was traditionally sung and danced by men, women dancers have also performed and transformed the style. Earlier female interpreters sometimes danced it in male clothing, while later performers such as Carmen Amaya and Sara Baras created well-known versions that expanded the expressive possibilities of the form.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a6e1b7d7-bfe4-4252-b253-85e46ba80b3d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Name and etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"q9rvh5m89z","content":[{"text":"The word farruca is related to farruco, a term used in Andalusia with several meanings. Some sources state that farruco was used in Andalusia to refer to people from Galicia or Asturias, especially migrants from northern Spain. It has also been used as a familiar form of the name Francisco. Because of this, the title of the palo has usually been connected with northern Spanish, and especially Galician, associations.\nA further proposed etymology derives the word from Arabic faruq, meaning \"brave\" or \"valiant\". This interpretation is sometimes invoked to explain the bold, austere or defiant character associated with the dance, but it is not universally accepted.\nThe feminine form farruca may also refer, in the traditional letra, to a Galician woman. One of the best-known farruca verses begins with the image of \"una farruca en Galicia\" crying bitterly for the death of a farruco who played the bagpipes. This imagery has contributed to the association between the palo and Galicia.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a6e1b7d7-bfe4-4252-b253-85e46ba80b3d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origins and development","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9q4sehttyh","content":[{"text":"The origin of the farruca is uncertain. The traditional explanation links it to Galicia, and several features have been interpreted as signs of a northern Spanish source: the title, the references to Galicia in the letras, the mention of the Galician bagpipe, and the use of vocables such as tran tran tran treiro. Flamencopolis notes, however, that the geographic origin of the form has not been scientifically proven.\nA cautious way to describe the farruca is therefore to say that it is a flamenco form with a non-Andalusian folkloric association, probably connected in memory and imagery with Galicia, but shaped musically and theatrically within flamenco. The Instituto Andaluz del Flamenco places it with other cantes of non-Andalusian folkloric origin that became aflamencados. In this respect it is often discussed alongside the garrotín, another palo usually considered to have non-Andalusian folkloric roots.\nThe farruca seems to have entered flamenco practice relatively late compared with older palos such as soleá, seguiriyas or tangos. Its modern flamenco form is strongly connected with the stage environment of the early twentieth century, when flamenco dance, theatrical presentation and solo guitar were developing in close contact. Some writers have connected its melodic world with theatrical songs and zarzuela, including José Serrano's Alma de Dios of 1907, which contains a song sometimes compared with the flamenco farruca.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a6e1b7d7-bfe4-4252-b253-85e46ba80b3d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Ramón Montoya and Faíco","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vp4qwwv35h","content":[{"text":"The best-known account of the modern farruca credits the flamenco dancer Faíco and the guitarist Ramón Montoya with giving the form its classic dance and guitar shape. Faíco, whose full name was Francisco Mendoza Ríos, was a Sevillian dancer active in the early twentieth century. His name is especially associated with the development of both the farruca and the garrotín as danced flamenco forms.\nAccording to the traditional account, Montoya provided or consolidated the characteristic guitar material for Faíco's dance. The result was highly successful and helped make farruca a standard vehicle for male flamenco dance. The form was then stylized and expanded by other dancers, including Antonio de Bilbao, Manolito la Rosa and El Batato. Later interpreters such as Antonio Gades, El Güito, Mario Maya and Manolete also contributed to the continuing stage image of the farruca as a dramatic male dance.\nMontoya's role is also important because the farruca became one of the flamenco forms most closely associated with guitar solo performance. Paco Peña notes that the dance adaptation attributed to Montoya is seldom sung and is commonly played in A minor. This helped give the farruca an identity not only as a cante, but also as a guitar and dance form.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a6e1b7d7-bfe4-4252-b253-85e46ba80b3d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Musical characteristics","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"p362th73nn","content":[{"text":"The farruca is normally performed in a binary or quadruple metre. In guitar pedagogy it is often counted as two measures of 44, with strong accents on the first, third, fifth and seventh beats:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a6e1b7d7-bfe4-4252-b253-85e46ba80b3d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ntyfxt285e","content":[{"text":"[1] 2 [3] 4 [5] 6 [7] 8","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a6e1b7d7-bfe4-4252-b253-85e46ba80b3d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"09tb0p7z2v","content":[{"text":"This accent pattern is closely related to the compás used in tangos and tientos, but the farruca has a different melodic and harmonic character. Studio Flamenco describes the basic pulse as a four-count pattern with a strong first beat.\nThe farruca is commonly played in A minor. In this setting the guitar accompaniment often alternates between E7 and A minor, with characteristic melodic figures and cadences. Pedagogical guitar sources commonly describe a basic accompaniment in the area of:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a6e1b7d7-bfe4-4252-b253-85e46ba80b3d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"r2z4n1ndd9","content":[{"text":"E7 – A minor","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a6e1b7d7-bfe4-4252-b253-85e46ba80b3d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sen6321be6","content":[{"text":"and a common cadential pattern such as:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a6e1b7d7-bfe4-4252-b253-85e46ba80b3d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yxt6msjy3q","content":[{"text":"D minor – A minor – E7 – A minor","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a6e1b7d7-bfe4-4252-b253-85e46ba80b3d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k80zxertk2","content":[{"text":"These patterns should not be treated as fixed rules. Flamenco guitarists vary the harmony, bass movement, rasgueado patterns and falsetas according to the dancer, the singer, the tempo and the performance context. Nevertheless, the A minor setting and the strong E7–A minor pull are central to the standard modern sound of the farruca.\nThe mood of the music is often described as austere, serious or sombre. Compared with more festive binary palos such as tangos or rumba, the farruca tends to use sharper pauses, more dramatic contrasts, and a controlled rhythmic drive suited to footwork and theatrical presentation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a6e1b7d7-bfe4-4252-b253-85e46ba80b3d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Cante and lyrics","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"99tw9jb7h5","content":[{"text":"Although the farruca can be sung, modern performance often treats it primarily as a guitar or dance form. Paco Peña describes Montoya's dance adaptation as seldom sung. Studio Flamenco similarly notes that for many years the farruca was often performed without singing, especially as a male dance to guitar accompaniment.\nTraditional letras, however, are important for understanding the palo's imagery.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a6e1b7d7-bfe4-4252-b253-85e46ba80b3d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"75p31z9mys","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Farruca”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a6e1b7d7-bfe4-4252-b253-85e46ba80b3d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"891kjnxv2q","content":[{"text":"Farruca is form of flamenco music, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8ebb1fd0-7dcd-4fa1-9e9d-3caefb8ae7ba"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mth2cmtx9r","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8ebb1fd0-7dcd-4fa1-9e9d-3caefb8ae7ba"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Cases de Torredembarra","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6c/022_Ca_la_Paca_Farruca%2C_c._Antoni_Roig_54_%28Torredembarra%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Enric","height":1707,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Cases de Torredembarra","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6c/022_Ca_la_Paca_Farruca%2C_c._Antoni_Roig_54_%28Torredembarra%29.jpg/960px-022_Ca_la_Paca_Farruca%2C_c._Antoni_Roig_54_%28Torredembarra%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:022_Ca_la_Paca_Farruca,_c._Antoni_Roig_54_(Torredembarra).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6c/022_Ca_la_Paca_Farruca%2C_c._Antoni_Roig_54_%28Torredembarra%29.jpg/1280px-022_Ca_la_Paca_Farruca%2C_c._Antoni_Roig_54_%28Torredembarra%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:11.582Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/farruca"}
{"id":"20a1f447-490e-446d-a700-af057d08631c","type":"art_form","slug":"fiction","title":"fiction","summary":"Fiction is any creative work, chiefly any narrative work, portraying individuals, events, or places that are imaginary or in ways that are imaginary. Fictional portrayals are thus inconsistent with fact, history, or plausibility.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gpacdw3q5f","content":[{"text":"Fiction is any creative work, chiefly any narrative work, portraying individuals, events, or places that are imaginary or in ways that are imaginary. Fictional portrayals are thus inconsistent with fact, history, or plausibility. In a traditional narrow sense, fiction refers to written narratives in prose – often specifically novels, novellas, and short stories. More broadly, however, fiction encompasses imaginary narratives expressed in any medium, including not just writings but also live theatrical performances, films, television programs, radio dramas, comics, role-playing games, and video games.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4320912b-5956-4872-8d0f-9d4e559785cf"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Definition and theory","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t9y4m7psfj","content":[{"text":"Typically, the fictionality of a work is publicly expressed, so the audience expects a work of fiction to deviate to a greater or lesser degree from the real world, rather than presenting for instance only factually accurate portrayals or characters who are actual people. Because fiction is generally understood as not adhering to the real world, the themes and context of a fictional work, such as if and how it relates to real-world issues or events, are open to interpretation. Since fiction is most long-established in the realm of literature (written narrative fiction), the broad study of the nature, function, and meaning of fiction is called literary theory, and the narrower interpretation of specific fictional texts is called literary criticism (with subsets like film criticism and theatre criticism also now long-established). Aside from real-world connections, some fictional works may depict characters and events within their own context, entirely separate from the known physical universe: an independent fictional universe. The creative art of constructing such an imaginary world is known as worldbuilding.\nLiterary critic James Wood argues that \"fiction is both artifice and verisimilitude\", meaning that it requires both creative inventions as well as some acceptable degree of believability to its audience, a notion often encapsulated in the poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge's idea of the audience's willing suspension of disbelief. For centuries, scholars have inquired about the effects of experiencing fiction, and the way the audience is changed by the new information they discover via fiction.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4320912b-5956-4872-8d0f-9d4e559785cf"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Fiction versus non-fiction","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vehy5jp0km","content":[{"text":"In contrast to fiction, creators of non-fiction assume responsibility for presenting information and sometimes opinion based only in historical and factual reality. Despite the traditional view that fiction and non-fiction are opposites, some works (particularly in the modern era) blur this boundary, particularly works that fall under certain experimental storytelling genres—including some postmodern fiction, autofiction, or creative nonfiction like non-fiction novels and docudramas—as well as the deliberate literary fraud of falsely marketing fiction as nonfiction. \nThe distinction between the non-fiction and fiction may be best defined from the viewpoint of the audience, according to whom a work is non-fiction if its people, settings, and plot are perceived entirely as historically or factually real, while a work is regarded as fiction if it deviates from reality in any of those areas.\nEven most works of fiction usually have elements of, or grounding in, truth of some kind, or truth from a certain point of view. All types of fiction invite their audience to explore real-world ideas, issues, or understandings (called themes) using an otherwise imaginary setting, imaginary series of events, or something else similar to reality, though still distinct from it.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4320912b-5956-4872-8d0f-9d4e559785cf"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Speculative versus realistic fiction","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"03jgccr2k4","content":[{"text":"The umbrella genre of speculative fiction is characterized by a lesser degree of adherence to realistic or plausible individuals, events, or places, while the umbrella genre of realistic fiction is characterized by a greater degree. For instance, speculative fiction may depict an entirely imaginary universe or one in which the laws of nature do not strictly apply (often, the sub-genre of fantasy). Or, it depicts true historical moments, except that they have concluded in a completely imaginary way or been followed by major new events that are completely imaginary (the genre of alternative history). Or, it depicts impossible technology or technology that defies current scientific understandings or capabilities (the genre of science fiction).\nContrarily, realistic fiction involves a story whose basic setting (time and location in the world) is, in fact, real and whose events could believably happen in the context of the real world. One realistic fiction sub-genre is historical fiction, centered around true major events and time periods in the past. The attempt to make stories feel faithful to reality or to more objectively describe details, and the 19th-century artistic movement that began to vigorously promote this approach, is called literary realism, which incorporates some works of both fiction and non-fiction.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4320912b-5956-4872-8d0f-9d4e559785cf"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"y9w40g95fv","content":[{"text":"Storytelling has existed in all human cultures, and each culture incorporates different elements of truth and fiction into storytelling. Early fiction was closely associated with history and myth. Greek poets such as Homer, Hesiod, and Aesop developed fictional stories that were told first through oral storytelling and then in writing. Prose fiction was developed in Ancient Greece, influenced by the storytelling traditions of Asia and Egypt. Distinctly fictional work was not recognized as separate from historical or mythological stories until the imperial period. Plasmatic narrative, following entirely invented characters and events, was developed through ancient drama and New Comedy. One common structure among early fiction is a series of strange and fantastic adventures as early writers test the limits of fiction writing. Milesian tales were an early example of fiction writing in Ancient Greece and Italy. As fiction writing developed in Ancient Greece, relatable characters and plausible scenarios were emphasized to better connect with the audience, including elements such as romance, piracy, and religious ceremonies. Heroic romance was developed in medieval Europe, incorporating elements associated with fantasy, including supernatural elements and chivalry.\nThe structure of the modern novel was developed by Miguel de Cervantes with Don Quixote in the early-17th century. The novel became a primary medium of fiction in the 18th and 19th centuries. They were often associated with Enlightenment ideas such as empiricism and agnosticism. Realism developed as a literary style at this time. New forms of mass media developed in the late-19th and early-20th centuries, including popular-fiction magazines and early film.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4320912b-5956-4872-8d0f-9d4e559785cf"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Elements","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f0segq8k4e","content":[{"text":"Certain basic elements define all works of narrative, including all works of narrative fiction. Namely, all narratives include the elements of character, conflict, narrative mode, plot, setting, and theme.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4320912b-5956-4872-8d0f-9d4e559785cf"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mj9m5vdx4n","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Fiction”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4320912b-5956-4872-8d0f-9d4e559785cf"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"r1zqbbb8bf","content":[{"text":"fiction is genre and narrative form, in any medium, consisting of people, events, or places that are imaginary—in other words, not based strictly on history or fact, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"78d01461-ced9-4bfe-bd7e-8e1623a701d0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yawja58gp9","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 47 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"78d01461-ced9-4bfe-bd7e-8e1623a701d0"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"original illustration (1865) by John Tenniel (28 February 1820 - 25 February 1914), of the novel by Lewis Carroll, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/ba/Alice_par_John_Tenniel_30.png?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"John Tenniel","height":1864,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"original illustration (1865) by John Tenniel (28 February 1820 - 25 February 1914), of the novel by Lewis Carroll, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/ba/Alice_par_John_Tenniel_30.png/960px-Alice_par_John_Tenniel_30.png?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Alice_par_John_Tenniel_30.png","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/ba/Alice_par_John_Tenniel_30.png/1280px-Alice_par_John_Tenniel_30.png?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:16.476Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/fiction"}
{"id":"3d908d2a-636d-4b62-bd4d-f8916ecdc32f","type":"art_form","slug":"first-dance","title":"first dance","summary":"The first dance is an element in a number of traditions, being an opening of a certain dance function: ball, prom, wedding, etc.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9qg003qv3j","content":[{"text":"The first dance is an element in a number of traditions, being an opening of a certain dance function: ball, prom, wedding, etc.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7dd77618-78dd-475e-94c5-f20d7371937e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Balls","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"php59fvzxe","content":[{"text":"In the context of balls, the term \"first dance\" has two meanings.\nAt various formal balls the first dance was led by the guest of honor, which was usually the person of the highest social position in a given context, such as a member of the royal family, if any were present.  Their dance was the opening of the ball. As these were generally long country dances, the guests of honor would be the first people to go down the set, not the only two people dancing for the entirety of the first piece of music.\nIn 17th-century France, the minuet, also called \"the Queen of Dances\", was the first dance. In the Victorian era of Great Britain the first dance was a quadrille. In 19th century Russian Empire balls were opened with Polonaise.  \nAnother meaning is the first occurrence of a young lady in a social gathering. It could have happened either during a usual ball or during a specially arranged debutante ball or cotillion.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7dd77618-78dd-475e-94c5-f20d7371937e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Weddings","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"azfkv1zt1n","content":[{"text":"The \"first dance\" of a married couple is a popular element at modern European and American wedding receptions or post-wedding celebrations. The newly married couple, as the guests of honor at a dance, open the dancing. The style of dance is a personal choice. Some couples opt for a rehearsed, choreographed dance, whereas sources like etiquette columnist Judith Martin feel that performing a choreographed duet for spectators is inappropriate.\nIn the past, the couple did not dance the first dance alone. In her 1922 guide, Etiquette, Emily Post recommended that newlyweds not join the dancing until after their guests had begun, and simply dance with one another first before moving on to other partners. This occurred while other guests continued dancing, and was not given particular attention or treated as a performance.\nIn the current times, ballroom dance is not a skill that is common within society. Therefore, some modern couples either slow dance or learn a dance, whether it be a ballroom dance style or a choreographed dance routine. The music to which they dance is also highly varied, with modern chart hits often being selected.  Teaching and rehearsing the \"first dance\" is now a service offered by dance studios, independent dance instructors and specialist wedding dance tuition companies.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7dd77618-78dd-475e-94c5-f20d7371937e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Other","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mbk0hpkn6c","content":[{"text":"At \"Studniówka\", a kind of prom in Poland, the first dance is usually a polonaise, which students usually have to practice before the ball.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7dd77618-78dd-475e-94c5-f20d7371937e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Metaphorical use","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"een888zfcv","content":[{"text":"Today, in modern day, the phrase \"to open the ball\" has become a figure of speech for initiating an activity which will be subsequently continued by others. The term has been used in descriptions of battle scenes.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7dd77618-78dd-475e-94c5-f20d7371937e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fmk6kmgfyf","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “First dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7dd77618-78dd-475e-94c5-f20d7371937e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dwf49jgsh6","content":[{"text":"first dance is opening of a dance function, in several traditions, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"53390020-d8ca-42f7-85d8-3b6945739bf9"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dnmf88rxsj","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"53390020-d8ca-42f7-85d8-3b6945739bf9"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"A bride and groom enjoying their first dance at their wedding.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2e/Wedding_dance_couple.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Wikiamy000","height":2650,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"A bride and groom enjoying their first dance at their wedding.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2e/Wedding_dance_couple.jpg/960px-Wedding_dance_couple.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Wedding_dance_couple.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2e/Wedding_dance_couple.jpg/1280px-Wedding_dance_couple.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:16.429Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/first-dance"}
{"id":"da6dc429-cd3e-4dca-b650-354df8c0d8b8","type":"art_form","slug":"flamenco","title":"flamenco","summary":"Flamenco (Spanish pronunciation: [flaˈmeŋko]) is an art form based on the various folkloric music traditions of southern Spain, developed within the gitano subculture of the region of Andalusia, and also having historical presence in Extrem…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jzsnr4bw50","content":[{"text":"Flamenco (Spanish pronunciation: [flaˈmeŋko]) is an art form based on the various folkloric music traditions of southern Spain, developed within the gitano subculture of the region of Andalusia, and also having historical presence in Extremadura and Murcia. In a wider sense, the term is used to refer to a variety of both contemporary and traditional musical styles typical of southern Spain. Flamenco is closely associated with the gitanos of the Romani ethnicity, who have contributed significantly to its origin and professionalization. However, its style is uniquely Andalusian, and flamenco artists have historically included Spaniards of both gitano and non-gitano heritage.\nAlthough it is often described as a folk, popular or oral tradition, flamenco is also regarded as a complex and sophisticated musical system. Its forms combine song, guitar, dance, compás, modal and tonal harmony, falsetas, handclaps, footwork, melodic ornamentation and improvisatory variation. The musical identity of a palo may depend on several features at once, including rhythmic cycle, mode, chord progression, stanzaic form, geographic origin and performance convention.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fa4ae95e-3a49-457d-b48a-9ef8e9f14a32"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4dynmmjw6f","content":[{"text":"Historically, the term flamenco was used to identify the Romani people (gitanos) of Spain. The English traveller George Borrow who travelled through Spain during the 1830s stated that the gitanos were also called Flemish (in Spanish, 'flamenco') due to German and Flemish being erroneously considered synonymous. According to flamencologist Cristina Cruces-Roldán, a year prior to Borrow's account, there already existed a gitano party in Madrid that was clearly identified as flamenco. This equivalency between gitano and flamenco is also noted by Manuel Fernández y González, Demófilo, and the scholar Irving Brown who stated in 1938 that \"flamenco is simply another term for gitano, with special connotations.\"\nThe origins of the term lie in the sociological prejudice towards the Roma who were seen as ruffians and cocky troublemakers by the Spaniards and were thus associated with the 18th century German colonists of the Sierra Morena who formed groups of urban Bohemians that lived outside the law and were seen as idle and lazy. Other less successful hypotheses include those of Felipe Pedrell and Carlos Alemendros who state that while the term flamenco is Spanish for Flemish, it is actually synonymous with cantador (professional singer) in reference to the group of Flemish singers brought by Spanish King Carlos I in 1516.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fa4ae95e-3a49-457d-b48a-9ef8e9f14a32"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Cultural origins","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8x44xgtst0","content":[{"text":"There are hypotheses that point to the influence on flamenco of types of dance from the Indian subcontinent; the place of origin of the Romani people. The North Indian scales of flamenco were introduced to Andalusia by the Romani migrations from Northern India. These Roma migrants also brought bells, and an extensive repertoire of songs and dances. Upon arrival to Andalusia in the 15th century, they were exposed to the rich Arab-Andalusian music culture, itself a hybrid of Spanish music tradition going back to the 8th century with the establishment of Al-Andalus, which brought in traditions and music from the Arabian Peninsula, Northern Africa and Sephardic features. Some of the instruments associated with flamenco and Spanish folklore in different regions today, are the wooden castanets and tambourines, both believed to originate during the Al Andalus period. This centuries-long period of cultural intermingling, formed the roots of flamenco song and dance genres.\nIt is believed that the flamenco genre emerged at the end of the 18th century in cities and agrarian towns of Baja Andalusia, highlighting Jerez de la Frontera as the first written vestige of this art, although there is practically no data related to those dates and the manifestations of this time are more typical of the bolero school than of flamenco. It appeared as a modern art form from the convergence of the urban subaltern groups, gitano communities, and journeyman of Andalusia that formed the marginalized flamenco artistic working class who established flamenco as a singular art form, marked from the beginning by the gitano brand. Andalusia was the origin and cradle of the early flamenco cantaores and of the three or four dozen gitano families who created and cultivated flamenco.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fa4ae95e-3a49-457d-b48a-9ef8e9f14a32"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Casticismo","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jtxbf0ek72","content":[{"text":"During the end of the 18th and beginning of the 19th century, a number of factors led to the rise in Spain of a phenomenon known as \"Costumbrismo Andaluz\" or \"Andalusian Mannerism\".\nIn 1783 Carlos III promulgated a pragmatics that regulated the social situation of the gitanos. This was a momentous event in the history of Spanish gitanos who, after centuries of marginalization and persecution, saw their legal situation improve substantially.\nAfter the Spanish War of Independence (1808–1812), a feeling of racial pride developed in the Spanish conscience, in opposition to the \"gallified\" afrancesados - Spaniards who were influenced by French culture and the idea of the enlightenment. In this context, gitanos were seen as an ideal embodiment of Spanish culture and the emergence of the bullfighting schools of Ronda and Seville, the rise of the Bandidos and Vaqueros led to a taste for Andalusian romantic culture which triumphed in the Madrid court.\nAt this time there is evidence of disagreements due to the introduction of innovations in art.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fa4ae95e-3a49-457d-b48a-9ef8e9f14a32"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"The cantante cafés","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pmy2rv456q","content":[{"text":"In 1881 Silverio Franconetti opened the first flamenco singer café in Seville. In Silverio's café the cantaores were in a very competitive environment, which allowed the emergence of the professional cantaor and served as a crucible where flamenco art was configured. Locals learned the cantes, while reinterpreting the Andalusian folk songs in their own style, expanding the repertoire. Likewise, the taste of the public contributed to configure the flamenco genre, unifying its technique and its theme.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fa4ae95e-3a49-457d-b48a-9ef8e9f14a32"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Antiflamencoism in the \"Generation of '98\"","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8ftzsnvtxm","content":[{"text":"Flamenquismo, defined by the Royal Spanish Academy as a \"fondness for flamenco art and customs\", is a conceptual catch-all where flamenco singing and a fondness for bullfighting, among other traditional Spanish elements, fit. These customs were strongly attacked by the generation of 98, all of its members being \"anti-flamenco\", with the exception of the Machado brothers, Manuel and Antonio. Being Sevillians and sons of the folklorist Demófilo Machado, the brothers had a more complex view of the matter. The greatest standard bearer of anti-flamenquism was the Madrid writer Eugenio Noel, who, in his youth, had been a militant casticista. Noel attributed to flamenco and bullfighting the origin of the ills of Spain which he saw as manifestations of the country's Oriental character which hindered economic and social development. These considerations caused an insurmountable rift to be established for decades between flamenco and most \"intellectuals\" of the time.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fa4ae95e-3a49-457d-b48a-9ef8e9f14a32"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c83tcbc680","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Flamenco”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fa4ae95e-3a49-457d-b48a-9ef8e9f14a32"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"12p4mp4dz6","content":[{"text":"flamenco is genre of Spanish music and dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0db3ae1b-0c3c-416b-b26d-00209a44d333"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2a6cxrcz21","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 53 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0db3ae1b-0c3c-416b-b26d-00209a44d333"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:23.869Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/flamenco"}
{"id":"be5638ab-5e4b-4c7b-83c4-3a4656291fdc","type":"art_form","slug":"flexing","title":"flexing","summary":"FlexN, also spelled as Flexing, is a style of street dance from Brooklyn, New York that is characterized by rhythmic Brukup/Dancehall, incorporating showmanship elements like pauzN, konnectN, GlidN, Getlow, Bonebreaking and hat tricks.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yk67jx6rz5","content":[{"text":"FlexN, also spelled as Flexing, is a style of street dance from Brooklyn, New York that is characterized by rhythmic Brukup/Dancehall, incorporating showmanship elements like pauzN, konnectN, GlidN, Getlow, Bonebreaking and hat tricks.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1903b912-075c-4aba-a329-70b8abfb6c76"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origins","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"050wy5yhy4","content":[{"text":"Before FlexN gained mainstream exposure, it started out at the home of a couple called Rocky and Sandra Cummings. In 1992, the couple created a talent show and a local cable TV show in New York City, called 'Flex N Brooklyn'. The dance roots are traced back to reggae, dancehall, and \"...a chopped-up instrumental called the 'Volume' riddim\". The producers of the new genre refer to it as FDM, Flex Dance Music. Unlike other street dance styles originating in the United States, FlexN did not come from hip-hop dance, funk music, or hip-hop culture. It evolved from a Jamaican style of street dance called bruk-up. In a 2009 interview with WireTap magazine, dancer Stefan \"Mr. Wiggles\" Clemente described bruk-up as a \"reggae style of animation.\"","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1903b912-075c-4aba-a329-70b8abfb6c76"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Variations","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mbv2tj2yz4","content":[{"text":"FlexN is represented by 8 movement styles, with flexers often mixing the styles.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1903b912-075c-4aba-a329-70b8abfb6c76"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zgfqc78qs7","content":[{"text":"Bone-breaking is characterized by rhythmic contortionist movement.\nBruk Up, “broken” in Jamaican Patois, is a style that resembles movement of broken limbs.\nConnecting (K'nect'N), is often compared to tutting, but is of different origins than popping.\nGet Lo integrates movements on the floor and the levels in between.\nGrooving is the foundation of the flow of FlexN with roots in Jamaican dancehall, characterized by rhythmic movements that can be subtle or aggressive.\nGliding is a style of illusion of air walking, sliding, and floating, using hand placements, body movement, and foot placement.\nHat Tricks is a style that utilizes the hat for illusions, concepts, and animations.\nPausing (Pauzn) is characterized by discrete movement similar to a movie watched frame by frame.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1903b912-075c-4aba-a329-70b8abfb6c76"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Exposure","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m47h59rpe9","content":[{"text":"FlexN has been performed on the third season of America's Best Dance Crew (ABDC), on the second season of The LXD, and at the Guggenheim Museum as part of the YouTube Play event. In 2011, the Huffington Post published a brief news article on flex dancers Bones the Machine and DJ Aaron. In 2013, NextLevelSquad performed FlexN at Breakin' Convention and Adedamola \"Ringmaster Nugget\" Orisagbemi performed FlexN at the Vail International Dance Festival.\nThe 2013 independent film Flex Is Kings documents the lives of several flexers over a two-year period leading up to a dance competition called BattleFest. Flex Is Kings was screened at the Tribeca Film Festival. FlexN was also the subject of a French online dance show called \"Puma the Quest\". In 2014, The New Yorker published a seven-page article about flex dancer Saalim \"Storyboard P\" Muslim.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1903b912-075c-4aba-a329-70b8abfb6c76"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Notable FDM Producers","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sbb3gaa7hb","content":[{"text":"DJ Aaron \nEpic B \nHitmakerchinx \nUninamise","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1903b912-075c-4aba-a329-70b8abfb6c76"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"p8zya0q8y1","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Flexing (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1903b912-075c-4aba-a329-70b8abfb6c76"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m3a9a7wczw","content":[{"text":"flexing is style of street dance from Brooklyn, New York, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a6e95b76-52a2-4b6e-9e24-c974f4c095c5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ppgk0t453d","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a6e95b76-52a2-4b6e-9e24-c974f4c095c5"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"white rumped vulture flexing its wings chitwan national park","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a0/White_rumped_vulture_flexing_its_wings.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Prasan Shrestha","height":720,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"white rumped vulture flexing its wings chitwan national park","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a0/White_rumped_vulture_flexing_its_wings.jpg/960px-White_rumped_vulture_flexing_its_wings.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:White_rumped_vulture_flexing_its_wings.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a0/White_rumped_vulture_flexing_its_wings.jpg/1280px-White_rumped_vulture_flexing_its_wings.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"VSCDA Road America 2021","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f9/Flexing_%2851564232113%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Arturo Hurtado","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"VSCDA Road America 2021","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f9/Flexing_%2851564232113%29.jpg/960px-Flexing_%2851564232113%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Flexing_(51564232113).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f9/Flexing_%2851564232113%29.jpg/1280px-Flexing_%2851564232113%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"},{"alt":"A spot billed pelican flexing its pouch before it’s flight","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/11/Flexing_the_pouch.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"DrRohithgurugubelli","height":2276,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"A spot billed pelican flexing its pouch before it’s flight","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/11/Flexing_the_pouch.jpg/960px-Flexing_the_pouch.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Flexing_the_pouch.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/11/Flexing_the_pouch.jpg/1280px-Flexing_the_pouch.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:09.532Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/flexing"}
{"id":"9413e949-5853-4fc5-bdf5-97ae45f92013","type":"art_form","slug":"folk-dance","title":"folk dance","summary":"A folk dance is a dance that reflects the life of the people of a certain country or region. Not all ethnic dances are folk dances. For example, ritual dances or dances of ritual origin are not considered to be folk dances.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5e53z58bjc","content":[{"text":"A folk dance is a dance that reflects the life of the people of a certain country or region. Not all ethnic dances are folk dances. For example, ritual dances or dances of ritual origin are not considered to be folk dances. Ritual dances are usually called \"religious dances\" because of their purpose.\nThe terms \"ethnic\" and \"traditional\" are used when it is required to emphasize the cultural roots of the dance. In this sense, nearly all folk dances are ethnic ones. If some dances, such as polka, cross ethnic boundaries and even cross the boundary between \"folk\" and \"ballroom dance\", ethnic differences are often considerable enough to mention.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f549e0eb-f5a8-4980-b860-3eae894371fd"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Background","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hjf1njmvp3","content":[{"text":"Folk dances share several commonly recognized characteristics:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f549e0eb-f5a8-4980-b860-3eae894371fd"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"acr4xw4ma2","content":[{"text":"They are typically performed at social gatherings or community events by people with little or no professional training, often accompanied by traditional or folk music.\nFolk dances generally originate as participatory social activities rather than as staged performances, although some may later be adapted or stylized for theatrical presentation.\nTheir form and execution are primarily guided by inherited traditions transmitted across generations, reflecting local or regional identities, though gradual adaptation and change are common.\nNew dancers typically learn through informal means—by observing, imitating, and receiving assistance from more experienced participants—rather than through formal instruction.\nModern social dances such as hip hop and other street styles have often evolved spontaneously within communities, but the term folk dance is generally not applied to them. Instead, they are more commonly referred to as street dances or vernacular dances. The term folk dance is typically reserved for dance forms that are significantly bound by tradition and that originated during periods when a clear distinction existed between the dances of the “common folk” and those of the social elite, many of which later evolved into modern ballroom and theatrical dance forms.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f549e0eb-f5a8-4980-b860-3eae894371fd"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Europe","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m7feqhjnpw","content":[{"text":"Sword dances include traditional forms such as long sword dances and rapper dancing. Some choreographed social dances, such as contra dance, Scottish highland dance, Scottish country dance, and modern Western square dance, are sometimes described as folk dances, though this usage is not accurate in the strictest ethnological sense.\nCountry dance shares historical and stylistic features with both contemporary folk dance and ballroom dance. Many country and ballroom dances trace their origins to earlier folk traditions, having undergone gradual refinement and formalization over time.\nFolk dances often developed long before the establishment of modern national or political boundaries, resulting in certain dance forms being shared across multiple countries and cultures. For example, several Serbian, Bulgarian, and Croatian dances exhibit closely related steps, styles, and musical structures, and in some cases even share the same names and melodies.\nInternational folk dance groups exist in many cities and on college campuses around the world, where participants learn and perform traditional dances from a wide variety of cultures for recreation and social connection.\nBalfolk refers to social dance events featuring live folk-inspired music, popular primarily in Western and Central Europe. The movement originated during the folk revival of the 1970s and has grown in popularity since around 2000. Balfolk events typically include partner dances that were fashionable across Europe in the late 19th century—such as the schottische, polka, mazurka, and waltz—along with a variety of regional and traditional dances, mainly from France, but also from Sweden, Spain, and other European countries.\nVarieties of European folk dances include:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f549e0eb-f5a8-4980-b860-3eae894371fd"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Middle East, Central Asia and South Asia","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"j7dt341zbg","content":[{"text":"The regions of the Middle East, Central Asia, and South Asia are home to a vast array of folk dance traditions that reflect centuries of cultural exchange, migration, and shared heritage across ancient trade routes such as the Silk Road. Folk dances in these areas often feature rhythmic footwork, expressive gestures, and distinctive regional music, serving as integral parts of weddings, festivals, and communal celebrations. In the Middle East, circle and line dances such as the Dabke are performed across Lebanon, Syria, Palestine, and Jordan. Central Asian traditions include energetic group dances such as the Attan of Afghanistan and the Lezginka found across the Caucasus and Central Asia. In South Asia, folk dances such as Bhangra and Giddha from Punjab, Garba and Dandiya Raas from Gujarat, and the Kummi and Kolattam dances of southern India express agricultural, seasonal, and social themes through movement and music.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f549e0eb-f5a8-4980-b860-3eae894371fd"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"India","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c68wwxqghb","content":[{"text":"India has a rich and diverse tradition of folk dances, reflecting its regional, linguistic, and cultural variety. Nearly every state and community maintains distinctive dance forms associated with agricultural cycles, festivals, rituals, and social gatherings. In northern India, dances such as Bhangra and Giddha from Punjab and Rouf from Jammu and Kashmir celebrate seasonal and festive occasions, while in western India, Garba and Dandiya Raas from Gujarat, and Lavani from Maharashtra, blend rhythm and storytelling. Eastern India features dances such as Chhau of Odisha, Jharkhand, and West Bengal, and Bihu from Assam, whereas in southern India, forms such as Kummi, Kolattam, and Oppana are performed during festivals and community events. These dances often emphasize collective participation, traditional costume, and regionally distinct music and instruments.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f549e0eb-f5a8-4980-b860-3eae894371fd"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Sri Lanka","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"spr55s0cg6","content":[{"text":"Main folk dances of Sri Lanka which are associated with folk activities and festivities are; \nLeekeli (Stick Dance)\nKalagedi (Pot Dance)\nPolKatu (Coconut Dance)\nKulu (Harvesting Dance)\nRupathnari is a traditional dance form, one of many varied vibrant, cultural and traditional dances of the island nation.\nDance styles of Sri Lanka","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f549e0eb-f5a8-4980-b860-3eae894371fd"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"e3e08xpgaa","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Folk dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f549e0eb-f5a8-4980-b860-3eae894371fd"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w93jq2h626","content":[{"text":"folk dance is dances that were danced to traditional folk festivals and in traditional societies and are still been danced, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e2a1832e-04ec-4050-af79-4272e277a082"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9mxpa33t84","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 36 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e2a1832e-04ec-4050-af79-4272e277a082"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:05.928Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/folk-dance"}
{"id":"3637fda8-283b-49f9-8d6f-d5a741a83fec","type":"art_form","slug":"formation-dance","title":"Formation dance","summary":"Formation dance is a style of ballroom dancing. It is pattern or shadow team dancing by couples in a formation team. The choreography may be based on a particular dance or a medley of dances.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k9dexyjta9","content":[{"text":"Formation dance is a style of ballroom dancing. It is pattern or shadow team dancing by couples in a formation team. The choreography may be based on a particular dance or a medley of dances. Formation dancing may be done for exhibition or for competition between teams. There is also a type of formation in Bhangra.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"efe5f1c9-2ca4-40f4-b2a5-cc7f1e68c18d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wr28nmgerb","content":[{"text":"Formation dancing originated in 1932 in London's Astoria Ballroom. It was Olive Ripman who introduced it under the name \"pattern dancing\". Soon it became a competitive dance form.\nFormation team contests began in the 1930s in England, and spread to many other countries. International matches have taken place. Formation dances were an important part of the BBC TV program Come Dancing when Frank and Peggy Spencer's formation teams competed against Constance Millington's team. The peak of popularity was in the 1960s, and is now growing from strength to strength with formation teams from all over the world competing against each other.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"efe5f1c9-2ca4-40f4-b2a5-cc7f1e68c18d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Choreography","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vdmnmbkz82","content":[{"text":"The choreography of a  formation team includes both choreography of a dancesport routine of an individual couple and the overall pattern of movements of the couples on the floor. All couples are expected to follow the beat of the music and movements should be executed simultaneously. Teams are marked on their synchronicity\nLatin Dancesport formation is a medley of dances that include the 5 International Latin dances: Cha Cha, Rumba, Jive, Paso Doble and Samba.\nStandard or Ballroom formation is a medley of the 5 international ballroom dances Waltz, Quickstep, Tango, Viennese Waltz and Foxtrot.\nThe routines generally feature at least some free-form choreography in the walk on and walk off, which may include movements from jazz dance, ballet, or any other type of dance.  This is clearly marked by a gong.\nA complete routine usually lasts a total of 6 minutes.\nFormation routines allow dancers to show off their own technique in addition to their ability to move as a team.\nUnlike individual competitions tricks such as \"round abouts\", \"chain reactions\" form a large section of the choreography.\nShapes (also known as patterns or images) that are an accepted part of choreography are diamonds, squares, diagonals, circles and lines. The routine is judged by the distribution of competitors across the floor, how \"readable\" the patterns are and the transitions between these patterns.\nSpecialist formation choreographers include Ona Skaistutė Idzelevičienė, Roberto Albanese, Horst Beer,  and Rachael Holland.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"efe5f1c9-2ca4-40f4-b2a5-cc7f1e68c18d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Competitions","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rth36dwcs4","content":[{"text":"The international governing body is the International DanceSport Federation (IDSF) (which has Olympic recognition). Competing teams must be a member of one of its member organisations such as the English amateur dancesport association ltd (EADA)\nThe following is a summary of the IDSF rules for European and World Formation competitions.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"efe5f1c9-2ca4-40f4-b2a5-cc7f1e68c18d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1g95v28yqh","content":[{"text":"Each member country may send 2 formation teams to compete in each of the 2 international styles (Latin and Standard).\nThese are selected by national competitions, such as the British National Championships at the Blackpool Dance Festival.\nInternational competitions have a minimum of 4 countries\nThe usual sporting anti-doping rules apply.\nAll competitors must be amateurs.\nEach team must contain between 6 and 8 couples.\nIn the standard section Men's dress must be black or midnight blue.\nIn Latin men may wear coloured shirts but all men must dress the same.\nIn standard formation, solo work is restricted to 8 bars. This does not apply in Latin where solo work usually plays a part.\nLifts are not allowed in the main \"judged\" part of the routine, but are usually allowed in the walk on and walk off, which is clearly marked by a gong.\nA routine is a maximum of 6 minutes long including entry to and from the floor (a walk on and walk off). Only 4+1⁄2 minutes of this is judged so a gong is used to clearly signify which sections are to be judged.\nCompeting teams are judged by those experienced in formation.\nIn early rounds, judges mark if they believe teams should go through to the next round.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"efe5f1c9-2ca4-40f4-b2a5-cc7f1e68c18d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Formation teams, 2013","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f4vn8w9ts4","content":[{"text":"This is a list of Adult Formation Teams competing in 2013 in the IDSF World Ranking Competition.  There were 22 Latin Teams and 18 Standard teams that compete annually in the World Cup","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"efe5f1c9-2ca4-40f4-b2a5-cc7f1e68c18d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Results","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7wj8kts4xp","content":[{"text":"Below are the Winners of IDSF World Championships","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"efe5f1c9-2ca4-40f4-b2a5-cc7f1e68c18d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ytqaazykg8","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Formation dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"efe5f1c9-2ca4-40f4-b2a5-cc7f1e68c18d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wexxpr9vn6","content":[{"text":"Formation dance is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f3dcd74e-0924-4e17-9d54-a08aca183350"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m6wqpk0k5b","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f3dcd74e-0924-4e17-9d54-a08aca183350"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"A troupe of maganda dancers during a formation dance. Maganda is traditional dance for Baganda of Central Uganda","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/25/A_troupe_of_maganda_dancers_during_a_formation_dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Owobusingye","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"A troupe of maganda dancers during a formation dance. Maganda is traditional dance for Baganda of Central Uganda","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/25/A_troupe_of_maganda_dancers_during_a_formation_dance.jpg/960px-A_troupe_of_maganda_dancers_during_a_formation_dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:A_troupe_of_maganda_dancers_during_a_formation_dance.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/25/A_troupe_of_maganda_dancers_during_a_formation_dance.jpg/1280px-A_troupe_of_maganda_dancers_during_a_formation_dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:11.588Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/formation-dance"}
{"id":"f96f9bfc-be1a-4c1e-83e7-c1739abbac2e","type":"art_form","slug":"foxtrot","title":"foxtrot","summary":"The foxtrot is a smooth, progressive dance characterized by long, continuous flowing movements across the dance floor. It is danced to big band (usually vocal) music.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s9jy5kv99y","content":[{"text":"The foxtrot is a smooth, progressive dance characterized by long, continuous flowing movements across the dance floor. It is danced to big band (usually vocal) music. The dance is similar in its look to waltz, although the rhythm is in a 44 time signature instead of 34. Developed in the 1910s, the foxtrot reached its height of popularity in the 1930s and remains practiced today.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a1bf8e5b-76c2-4b35-8950-60af77ada2f1"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0kvwfjw71j","content":[{"text":"The dance was premiered in 1914, quickly catching the eye of the husband and wife duo Vernon and Irene Castle, who gave the dance its signature grace and style.  The origin of the name of the dance is unclear, although one theory is that it took its name from its popularizer, the vaudevillian Harry Fox.  Two sources, Vernon Castle and dance teacher Betty Lee, credit African American dancers as the source of the foxtrot.  Castle saw the dance, which \"had been danced by negroes, to his personal knowledge, for fifteen years, [at] a certain exclusive colored club\".\nW. C. Handy (\"Father of the Blues\") notes in his autobiography that his \"The Memphis Blues\" was the inspiration for the foxtrot.  During breaks from the fast-paced Castle Walk and One-Step, Vernon and Irene Castle's music director, James Reese Europe, would slowly play \"The Memphis Blues\".  The Castles were intrigued by the rhythm, and Jim suggested they create a slow dance to go with it.  The Castles introduced what they then called the \"Bunny Hug\" in a magazine article.  Shortly after, they went abroad and, in mid-ocean, sent a wireless to the magazine to change the name of the dance from \"Bunny Hug\" to \"Foxtrot.\"  It was subsequently standardized by Arthur Murray, in whose version it began to imitate the positions of tango.\nAt its inception, the foxtrot was originally danced to ragtime.  From the late 1910s through the 1940s, the foxtrot was the most popular fast dance, and the vast majority of records issued during these years were foxtrots. The waltz and tango, while popular, never overtook it.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a1bf8e5b-76c2-4b35-8950-60af77ada2f1"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Styles","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sfepypbs1n","content":[{"text":"Three distinct styles of slow foxtrot are in common use among ballroom dancers today: the American Social Style, the American Continuity Style, and the International Style. All three are partner dances in which the dancers progress around the dance floor in a counter-clockwise direction and are danced to much the same music. However, they differ significantly in technique, positions, and figures.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a1bf8e5b-76c2-4b35-8950-60af77ada2f1"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"American Social Foxtrot","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"16n2xkk6gy","content":[{"text":"The American Social Style was, and to some extent still is, widely employed in the United States as a social and party dance. It is particularly well suited to dancing in a crowded room, by partners who may or may not know each other well, and who may or may not have had much formal training in dance. Its defining feature is that the dancers close their feet at the end of almost every figure, as opposed to passing their feet as in the other two styles. As a result, the dancers progress fairly slowly around the room, and some figures can even be danced in place. Furthermore, almost every figure begins in much the same position, with the two partners facing each other squarely in the closed position and the man starting on his left foot. Since each figure leads so easily and consistently in the next, it is fairly easy for the leader to string multiple figures together on the fly in an ever-changing sequence. Body contact is unnecessary and not generally expected; all figures can be led through the frame formed by the arms. Hence, the potential social awkwardness of body contact between partners who do not know each other well is avoided. As American Social Style is the only style allowed in bronze (beginner) level American Style dance competition, this style is sometimes also known as \"American Bronze Foxtrot\".\nThe American Social style uses both six-count and eight-count figures. The rhythmic alteration between the two is one of the few potential difficulties in the dance. Syncopation is generally avoided.\nThe six-count figures extend across one and a half measures of music, and use the rhythm slow (two counts), slow (two counts), quick (one count), quick (one count).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a1bf8e5b-76c2-4b35-8950-60af77ada2f1"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"American Continuity style","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rfrw95qkdv","content":[{"text":"The American Continuity Style is widely employed in the United States as a competitive dance and as a base for formation dance and the performing arts. It is the style generally seen in American musical theater productions and in film. It differs from the social style in that the dancers pass their feet at the end of each figure, rather than closing them. Consequently, dancers progress much more rapidly around the room, in a smooth, continuous manner that gives the style its name. It differs from the International Style in that body contact is optional. This permits the dance partners to assume a much wider variety of positions and, therefore, to execute many types of figures that are not possible in the International Style. As American Continuity Style is expected in Silver Level American Style dance competitions and above, this style is sometimes also known as \"American Silver Foxtrot\".\nTransitions from one dance position to another are an important aspect of the American style. Commonly employed dance positions include normal (closed) position, in which the dancers face each other squarely with the man's right hand around the woman's back; promenade position, in which the partners open slightly in a vee; open position (a two-hand hold with the arms extending forward sideways); and shadow position (in which both partners face the same direction, rather than each other). Partners may even separate completely for short periods of time. \"Lines\", in which the partners form and hold a special shape for a short period of time, also play an important role.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a1bf8e5b-76c2-4b35-8950-60af77ada2f1"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"International style","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3qwkgdwmwj","content":[{"text":"The International (British) Style is widely employed in Europe and Great Britain as a social and competitive dance. Its defining characteristic is that partners must maintain body contact at all times. Consequently, the variety of possible figures and positions is much more limited than in the American style. Dancers concentrate on creating an image of a smooth, gliding motion around the dance floor. The use of body contact makes it possible to execute very tight turns, which is further enhanced by the extensive use of heel turns. This use of heel turns, and the effort required to produce the desired gliding motion, give International Style Foxtrot a reputation as being perhaps the most difficult of all ballroom dances to execute well.\nMost figures are based upon four-count units with the rhythm slow (two counts), quick (one count), quick (one count), repeating in each measure. A basic dance sequence progressing around the room might employ a feather step (four counts), reverse turn with feather finish (eight counts), three step (four counts), natural turn (four counts) with impetus (four count) and feather finish (four count), connecting again to a reverse turn.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a1bf8e5b-76c2-4b35-8950-60af77ada2f1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f7wgkqxmdc","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Foxtrot”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a1bf8e5b-76c2-4b35-8950-60af77ada2f1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dn9exw1qmb","content":[{"text":"foxtrot is dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c20c64fd-7b68-47dc-84ff-27a481fa06da"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rxajfzgqj0","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 23 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c20c64fd-7b68-47dc-84ff-27a481fa06da"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Dancers Vernon and Irene Castle . Gelatin silver print.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/60/Vernon_and_Irene_Castle2.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Johnston, Frances Benjamin, 1864-1952, photographer.","height":1171,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Dancers Vernon and Irene Castle . Gelatin silver print.","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/60/Vernon_and_Irene_Castle2.jpg/960px-Vernon_and_Irene_Castle2.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Vernon_and_Irene_Castle2.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/60/Vernon_and_Irene_Castle2.jpg/1280px-Vernon_and_Irene_Castle2.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:17.986Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/foxtrot"}
{"id":"5d7e315c-92ad-4cb5-b881-faa201f5d7eb","type":"art_form","slug":"free-dance","title":"Free dance","summary":"Free dance is a 20th-century dance form that preceded modern dance. Rebelling against the rigid constraints of classical ballet, Loie Fuller, Isadora Duncan and Ruth St.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vszc0eebsh","content":[{"text":"Free dance is a 20th-century dance form that preceded modern dance. Rebelling against the rigid constraints of classical ballet, Loie Fuller, Isadora Duncan and Ruth St. Denis (with her work in theater) developed their own styles of free dance and laid the foundations of American modern dance with their choreography and teaching. In Europe, Rudolf Laban, Emile Jaques-Dalcroze and François Delsarte developed their own theories of human movement and methods of instruction that led to the development of European modern and Expressionist dance.\nFree dance was prolific in Central and Eastern Europe, where national schools were created, such as the School of Musical Movement (Heptachor), in Russia, and the Orkesztika School, in Hungary.\nJosh Owings added much to the style of Free dance in North America. His style revolved around swift body movements combined with passionate facial expressions.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cfa8dedf-9a9e-40c4-b8f2-5dcebbc75a9f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Characteristics","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"73jpk0snvn","content":[{"text":"Compared to other dance styles, free dance is regarded by artists, including Isadora Duncan, as a natural dance style.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cfa8dedf-9a9e-40c4-b8f2-5dcebbc75a9f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tve1ark00r","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Free dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cfa8dedf-9a9e-40c4-b8f2-5dcebbc75a9f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2xk7s4ahtq","content":[{"text":"Free dance is 20th-century dance form that preceded modern dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f2860ac3-3630-4d98-8bd2-74f915324bc5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zbdd5z7tjd","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f2860ac3-3630-4d98-8bd2-74f915324bc5"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Stacey Smith and John Summers perform during the ice dancing free dance at the 1980 Lake Placid Olympics .","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cb/Stacey_Smith_%26_John_Summers_1980_Lake_Placid_Olympics_Free_Dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Dan Lundberg","height":806,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Stacey Smith and John Summers perform during the ice dancing free dance at the 1980 Lake Placid Olympics .","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cb/Stacey_Smith_%26_John_Summers_1980_Lake_Placid_Olympics_Free_Dance.jpg/960px-Stacey_Smith_%26_John_Summers_1980_Lake_Placid_Olympics_Free_Dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Stacey_Smith_%26_John_Summers_1980_Lake_Placid_Olympics_Free_Dance.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cb/Stacey_Smith_%26_John_Summers_1980_Lake_Placid_Olympics_Free_Dance.jpg/1280px-Stacey_Smith_%26_John_Summers_1980_Lake_Placid_Olympics_Free_Dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"},{"alt":"Henriette Fröschl and Christian Steiner perform during the ice dancing free dance at the 1980 Lake Placid Olympics .","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0e/Henriette_Fr%C3%B6schl_%26_Christian_Steiner_1980_Lake_Placid_Olympics_Free_Dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Dan Lundberg","height":790,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Henriette Fröschl and Christian Steiner perform during the ice dancing free dance at the 1980 Lake Placid Olympics .","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0e/Henriette_Fr%C3%B6schl_%26_Christian_Steiner_1980_Lake_Placid_Olympics_Free_Dance.jpg/960px-Henriette_Fr%C3%B6schl_%26_Christian_Steiner_1980_Lake_Placid_Olympics_Free_Dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Henriette_Fr%C3%B6schl_%26_Christian_Steiner_1980_Lake_Placid_Olympics_Free_Dance.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0e/Henriette_Fr%C3%B6schl_%26_Christian_Steiner_1980_Lake_Placid_Olympics_Free_Dance.jpg/1280px-Henriette_Fr%C3%B6schl_%26_Christian_Steiner_1980_Lake_Placid_Olympics_Free_Dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"},{"alt":"Natalia Linichuk and Gennadi Karponosov perform during the ice dancing free dance at the 1980 Lake Placid Olympics .","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/99/Natalia_Linichuk_%26_Gennadi_Karponosov_1980_Lake_Placid_Olympics_Free_Dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Dan Lundberg","height":766,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Natalia Linichuk and Gennadi Karponosov perform during the ice dancing free dance at the 1980 Lake Placid Olympics .","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/99/Natalia_Linichuk_%26_Gennadi_Karponosov_1980_Lake_Placid_Olympics_Free_Dance.jpg/960px-Natalia_Linichuk_%26_Gennadi_Karponosov_1980_Lake_Placid_Olympics_Free_Dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Natalia_Linichuk_%26_Gennadi_Karponosov_1980_Lake_Placid_Olympics_Free_Dance.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/99/Natalia_Linichuk_%26_Gennadi_Karponosov_1980_Lake_Placid_Olympics_Free_Dance.jpg/1280px-Natalia_Linichuk_%26_Gennadi_Karponosov_1980_Lake_Placid_Olympics_Free_Dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:09.627Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/free-dance"}
{"id":"2d5cc947-b50a-4a6c-baad-3837d726321b","type":"art_form","slug":"freilekhs","title":"Freilekhs","summary":"Klezmer (Yiddish: כּלי־זמר or ,קלעזמער, romanized: klezmer) is an instrumental musical tradition of the Ashkenazi Jews of Central and Eastern Europe.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c7kf6v3205","content":[{"text":"Klezmer (Yiddish: כּלי־זמר or ,קלעזמער, romanized: klezmer) is an instrumental musical tradition of the Ashkenazi Jews of Central and Eastern Europe. The essential elements of the tradition include dance tunes, ritual melodies, and virtuosic improvisations played for listening; these would have been played at weddings and other social functions. The musical genre incorporated elements of many other musical genres including Ottoman (especially Greek and Romanian) music, Baroque music, German and Slavic folk dances, and religious Jewish music. As the music arrived in the United States, it lost some of its traditional ritual elements and adopted elements of American big band and popular music. Among the European-born klezmers who popularized the genre in the United States in the 1910s and 1920s were Dave Tarras and Naftule Brandwein; they were followed by American-born musicians such as Max Epstein, Sid Beckerman and Ray Musiker.\nAfter the destruction of Jewish life in Eastern Europe during the Holocaust, and a general fall in the popularity of klezmer music in the United States, the music began to be popularized again in the late 1970s in the so-called Klezmer Revival. During the 1980s and onwards, musicians experimented with traditional and experimental forms of the genre, releasing fusion albums combining the genre with jazz, punk, and other styles.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f1c9f67f-846a-424c-b393-ce22659e91d4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology and usage","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8mhtyjfr1e","content":[{"text":"The term klezmer, as used in the Yiddish language, has a Hebrew etymology: klei, meaning \"tools, utensils or instruments of\" and zemer, \"melody\"; leading to k'lei zemer כְּלֵי זֶמֶר, meaning \"musical instruments\". Over time the usage of \"klezmer\" in a Yiddish context evolved to describe musicians instead of their instruments, first in Bohemia in the second half of the sixteenth century and then in Poland, possibly as a response to the new status of the musicians who were at that time forming professional guilds. Previously the musician may have been referred to as a lets (לץ) or other terms. After the term klezmer became the preferred term for these professional musicians in Yiddish-speaking Eastern Europe, other types of musicians were more commonly known as muziker or muzikant. Twentieth-century Russian scholars sometimes used the term \"klezmer\"; Ivan Lipaev did not use it, but Moisei Beregovsky did when publishing in Yiddish or Ukrainian.\nIt was not until the late 20th century that the word \"klezmer\" became a commonly known English-language term. During that time, through metonymy it came to refer not only to the musician but to the musical genre they played, a meaning which it had not had in Yiddish. Early 20th century recording industry materials and other writings had referred to it as Hebrew, Jewish, or Yiddish dance music, or sometimes using the Yiddish term Freilech music (\"Cheerful music\"). The term 'klezmer' to refer to a genre of music was popularized as a marketing term in the late 1970s by Revival bands; Walter Zev Feldman, whose 1979 LP with Andy Statman used the term, claims credit for this shift in usage.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f1c9f67f-846a-424c-b393-ce22659e91d4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Style","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0see9b2z4y","content":[{"text":"The traditional style of playing klezmer music, including tone, typical cadences, and ornamentation, sets it apart from other genres. Although klezmer music emerged from a larger Eastern European Jewish musical culture that included Jewish cantorial music, Hasidic Niguns, and later Yiddish theatre music, it also borrowed from the non-Jewish folk musics of Central and Eastern Europe and from cosmopolitan European musical forms. Therefore it evolved into an overall style which has recognizable elements from all of those other genres.\nFew klezmer musicians before the late nineteenth century had conservatory musical training, but they generally learned through apprenticeship and inherited a rich tradition with its own advanced musical techniques. Each musician had their understanding of how the style should be \"correctly\" performed. The usage of these ornaments was not random; the matters of \"taste\", self-expression, variation and restraint were and remain important elements of how to interpret the music.\nKlezmer musicians apply the overall style to available specific techniques on each melodic instrument. They incorporate and elaborate the vocal melodies of Jewish religious practice, including the vocal style of the Hazzan, Jewish prayer, and paraliturgical song, extending the range of human voice into the musical expression possible on instruments. Among those stylistic elements that are considered typically \"Jewish\" in klezmer music are those which are shared with cantorial or Hasidic vocal ornaments, including imitations of sighing or laughing. Various Yiddish terms were used for these vocal-like ornaments such as קרעכץ (Krekhts, \"groan\" or \"moan\"), קנײטש (kneytsh, \"wrinkle\" or \"fold\"), and קװעטש (kvetsh, \"pressure\" or \"stress\").","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f1c9f67f-846a-424c-b393-ce22659e91d4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Historical repertoire","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m6re0tf7b5","content":[{"text":"The repertoire of klezmer musicians was very diverse and tied to specific social functions and dances, especially of the traditional wedding. These melodies might have a non-Jewish origin, or have been composed by a klezmer, but only rarely are they attributed to a specific composer. Generally klezmer music can be divided into two broad categories: music for specific dances, and music for listening (at the table, in processions, ceremonial, etc.).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f1c9f67f-846a-424c-b393-ce22659e91d4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"r3btza4p27","content":[{"text":"Given that Ashkenazic Jewish weddings have taken place in many countries and historical contexts, the dances preserved in klezmer music show a variety of ritual and cultural origins:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f1c9f67f-846a-424c-b393-ce22659e91d4"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"00pzqzxt8m","content":[{"text":"A Freylekhs is the simplest and most widespread type of klezmer dance tunes are those played in 24 and intended for group circle dances. Depending on the location this basic dance may also have been called a Redl (circle), Hopke, Khosid, Karahod (round dance, literally the Belarusian translation of the Russian khorovod), Dreydl, Rikudl, etc.\nA bulgar, bulgarish or bolgar is a circle dance originating in Moldavia dance with a recognizable syncopated rhythm in 24 or 44. It became the most popular klezmer dance form in the United States in the early twentieth century.\nSher is a contra dance in 24, typically arranged for four couples who move together and trade places during the dance. Musically, it sounds like a Freylekhs, but the total number of sections allows the particular dance to be performed. Beregovsky, writing in the 1930s, noted that despite the dance being very commonly played across a wide area, he suspected that it had its roots in an older German dance. This dance continued to be known in the United States even after other complex European klezmer dances had been forgotten.\nKosher-tants (kosher dance) or mitsve-tants (mitzvah dance) are ritual dances dating back hundreds of years, often in 34 and borrowing the form and melodies of a polonaise or a gavotte. Incorporating themes of purity, piety or commitment, the dance sees the bride dancing with the groom or other community members separated by a handkerchief or belt.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f1c9f67f-846a-424c-b393-ce22659e91d4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Non-dance repertoire","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vqdn4dmam3","content":[{"text":"Historically, klezmer musicians also performed a variety of ritual and listening music which may have been rhythmic or freeform dependin…","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f1c9f67f-846a-424c-b393-ce22659e91d4"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0vk4mbx2xe","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Klezmer”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f1c9f67f-846a-424c-b393-ce22659e91d4"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"e4awn7wk69","content":[{"text":"Freilekhs is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"156b4c51-8a36-40df-86d1-11e54a968a6f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kq2bj7ejzz","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"156b4c51-8a36-40df-86d1-11e54a968a6f"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"A Russian-language disc label for an album by Belf's Romanian Orchestra recorded in Warsaw before WWI. The track title is \"Бессарабскій фрейлихсъ\" Bessarabian Freylekhs, a type of klezmer dance.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7f/Bessarabski_Freylekhs_record_cover_from_Mayrent_Collection.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Syrena Records (Warsaw)","height":1277,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"A Russian-language disc label for an album by Belf's Romanian Orchestra recorded in Warsaw before WWI. The track title is \"Бессарабскій фрейлихсъ\" Bessarabian Freylekhs, a type of klezmer dance.","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7f/Bessarabski_Freylekhs_record_cover_from_Mayrent_Collection.jpg/960px-Bessarabski_Freylekhs_record_cover_from_Mayrent_Collection.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bessarabski_Freylekhs_record_cover_from_Mayrent_Collection.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7f/Bessarabski_Freylekhs_record_cover_from_Mayrent_Collection.jpg/1280px-Bessarabski_Freylekhs_record_cover_from_Mayrent_Collection.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-09T05:47:05.641Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/freilekhs"}
{"id":"071d1801-5c3d-46c2-b80b-4cefa20292f3","type":"art_form","slug":"frevo","title":"frevo","summary":"Frevo is a dance and musical style originating from Recife, Pernambuco, Brazil, traditionally associated with Brazilian Carnival. The word frevo is said to come from frever, a variant of the Portuguese word ferver (to boil).","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s222vz35ta","content":[{"text":"Frevo is a dance and musical style originating from Recife, Pernambuco, Brazil, traditionally associated with Brazilian Carnival. The word frevo is said to come from frever, a variant of the Portuguese word ferver (to boil). It is said that the sound of the frevo will make listeners and dancers feel as if they are boiling on the ground. The word frevo is used for both the frevo music and the frevo dance.\nIt was declared as Intangible Cultural Heritage by UNESCO in 2012, under the title \"Frevo, performing arts of the Carnival of Recife\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1bd3c982-33b5-4bb6-9784-c1a4a4bddf26"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origins of Frevo","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bc620v9267","content":[{"text":"The frevo music came first. By the end of the 19th century, bands from the Brazilian Army regiments based in the city of Recife started a tradition of parading during the Carnival. Since the Carnival is originally linked to Catholicism, they played religious procession marches and martial music, as well. A couple of infantry and cavalry regiments had famous bands which attracted many followers amongst the populace of the state and it was just a matter of time to people start to compare one to another and cheer for their favorite bands. The two most famous bands were the Espanha (meaning Spain), whose conductor was of Spanish origin, and the 14, from the 14th Infantry Regiment. The bands started to compete with each other and also started playing faster and faster, louder and louder.\nIn order to end the violence, the police started to pursue the capoeiras and arrested many during their exhibitions. The latter reacted in a clever way by carrying umbrellas instead of knives and also disguising the capoeira movements as dance movements. Thus the dances evolved into what would be a unique form of dance - the frevo dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1bd3c982-33b5-4bb6-9784-c1a4a4bddf26"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Development","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gb839wmnfp","content":[{"text":"Frevo is more than 100 years old (1907) and naturally it has developed throughout this time to reach its current form.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1bd3c982-33b5-4bb6-9784-c1a4a4bddf26"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fhpda1wbfa","content":[{"text":"In the same spirit of competition that created it, Frevo was developed by transforming the capoeira movements into the quasi-acrobatical movements of the dance. Each dancer worked hard in order to develop a new movement which required much rehearsal, strength, endurance, and flexibility and the fight between the groups moved from the physical to the aesthetical field. Frevo dance movements include jumps, coordinated fast leg movements, leg flexions, tumbling, etc.\nFrevo dance is now known as passo and Frevo dancers as passistas. The clothes of the passistas also developed from regular clothing to a skimpy attire that is more appropriate for the movements. They are also very colorful, so they can be more visible in the crowd.\nThe umbrella also developed from regular black umbrellas with wooden handles to a small and also colorful umbrella. Umbrella movements are part of the dance and doing acrobatics with them is a common practice. It's not uncommon to see passistas throwing umbrellas in the air, do some movement, and catch them again. They also pass the umbrellas between their legs. The most common movement is just swinging the umbrella and passing it from hand to hand while executing regular movements.\nStarting in the 1950s, one of the biggest contributors to the passo is the master Nascimento do Passo. It's said that he added more than 100 different movements to the dance since then. He also founded the first Frevo school in Recife in the late 1990s. The image of the passista is one of the most prominent icons of the carnival of Pernambuco.\nAmerican pop-star Cyndi Lauper is dancing the frevo when she sings her song \"Maybe He'll Know\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1bd3c982-33b5-4bb6-9784-c1a4a4bddf26"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Frevo-de-rua","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"26gz89wan3","content":[{"text":"Frevo-de-Rua (Street Frevo), the most common meaning of the word \"frevo\", is an instrumental style, played in a fiery fast tempo with brass instruments, namely trumpets, trombones, saxophones, and tuba. It is frequently perceived by American ears as resembling polka.\nFrevo-de-Rua bands can often be found playing during football matches in Recife, forming a sort of pep band. A well-known Frevo-de-Rua tune is called \"Vassourinhas\". A famous conductor in this style is Maestro Duda. In the 2000s the best-known ambassadors of the frevo is the Recife-based big band SpokFrevo Orquestra, led by sax player Inaldo Cavalcante de Albuquerque, better known as Spok. These are 17-18 professional musicians - including two virtuoso drummers and a percussionist - who have made it their mission to introduce the world to frevo music. They embarked on their first US tour in March 2012.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1bd3c982-33b5-4bb6-9784-c1a4a4bddf26"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Instrumentation of Street Frevo bands","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2fsnmgkkt4","content":[{"text":"Brass section\nTrumpet\nCornet\nFlugelhorn\nTrombone (valved and/or slide)\nincluding Bass trombone\nMellophone\nTuba\nEuphonium\nSousaphone\nSaxophones\nTenor saxophone\nAlto saxophone\nSoprano saxophone\nMarching percussion\nSnare drum\nBass drum\nClash cymbals\nSurdo\nRepinique","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1bd3c982-33b5-4bb6-9784-c1a4a4bddf26"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tvf2vknrwa","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Frevo”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1bd3c982-33b5-4bb6-9784-c1a4a4bddf26"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"arm6mg4k7h","content":[{"text":"frevo is dance and musical style originating from Recife, Pernambuco, Brazil, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bec1bd74-3423-4d92-8177-5ca5fc282376"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ebvakmm7rz","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 14 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bec1bd74-3423-4d92-8177-5ca5fc282376"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Passistas de Frevo - Pernambuco, Brasil.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d7/Passistas_de_Frevo.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Prefeitura de Olinda","height":1518,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Passistas de Frevo - Pernambuco, Brasil.","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d7/Passistas_de_Frevo.jpg/960px-Passistas_de_Frevo.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Passistas_de_Frevo.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d7/Passistas_de_Frevo.jpg/1280px-Passistas_de_Frevo.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:20.401Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/frevo"}
{"id":"d1303f55-4627-4f65-9d50-c49ec290ad8c","type":"art_form","slug":"furry-dance","title":"Furry Dance","summary":"The Furry Dance ( FUH-ree) is a celebration of the passing of winter and the arrival of spring, and one of the oldest British customs still practised today.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6zehewhj5v","content":[{"text":"The Furry Dance ( FUH-ree) is a celebration of the passing of winter and the arrival of spring, and one of the oldest British customs still practised today. Traditionally held on 8 May, it is held in Helston, Cornwall, where dancers wear lily of the valley, the town's symbolic flower. The name probably derives from Cornish fer meaning \"fair, feast\" referencing the celebration on 8 May of the Apparition of the Archangel Michael at Monte Gargano, Italy, Helston's patron saint.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fd509edf-f9f2-48e6-b271-8d3a2fa9fdc6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origin","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5m75hrjyj5","content":[{"text":"The most famous Furry Dance takes place in Helston, Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is one of the oldest British customs still practised today. The earliest mention seems to be in a letter to the Gentleman's Magazine for 1790  where the writer says \"At Helstone, a genteel and populus borough town in Cornwall, it is customary to dedicate the 8th May to revelry (festive mirth, not loose jollity). It is called Furry Day\". The dance is very well attended every year and people travel from all over the world to see it: Helston Town Band play all the music for the dances.\nThe Furry Dance takes place every year on 8 May (except when the date falls on a Sunday or Monday — Monday being Market Day — when it is the preceding Saturday). In Helston, 8 May, the Apparition of Saint Michael, the Archangel Michael of Christianity, is called Flora Day, and the term furry probably derives from the Cornish language: fer, \"fair, feast\". It is a celebration of the passing of winter and the arrival of spring. The schedule of the day is thus: morning dance at 7 a.m., the first performance of the Hal-an-Tow pageant at 8:30 a.m. with the last completed by 9:30 a.m., children's dance traditionally at 10 a.m. though in recent years the numbers and logistics have seen this advanced to 9.50 a.m. and in 2016 to 9.40 a.m., midday dance at noon, and evening dance at 5 p.m.. Of these, the midday dance is perhaps the best known: it was traditionally the dance of the gentry in the town, and today the men wear top hats and tails while the women dance in their finest frocks.\nTraditionally, the dancers wear lily of the valley, which is Helston's symbolic flower. The gentlemen wear it on the left, with the flowers pointing upwards, and the ladies wear it upside down on the right.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fd509edf-f9f2-48e6-b271-8d3a2fa9fdc6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Children's dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2k3349ntyd","content":[{"text":"The children's dance involves over 1,000 children aged from 7 to 18, all dressed in white, the boys with lily of the valley buttonholes and the girls wearing flowers in their hair, the flower determined by the school they attend. They come from St Michael's School, Nansloe School, Parc Eglos School, and Helston Community College: each year a different school leads the dance.\nAll the boys wear white clothing, with the only colour being their school ties, and the girls (also in white) wear matching coloured head-dress flowers (blue cornflowers for St Michael's, forget-me-nots for Helston Community College, daisies for Nansloe and poppies and buttercups for Parc Eglos) in their hair.\nThe girls wear white dresses following the school rules and boys white shirt and trousers or shorts. They all dance around Helston town, with the band playing the accompanying music.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fd509edf-f9f2-48e6-b271-8d3a2fa9fdc6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Pageant","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bw9w35a6z4","content":[{"text":"The Hal-an-Tow, which takes place on the same day, is a kind of mystery play with various historical and mythical themes. The Hal-an-Tow Pageant starts at St John's Bridge and is performed at seven locations around the town. Characters include Friar Tuck, Robin Hood, Saint George, and Saint Michael. The Hal-an-Tow song welcomes the coming of summer. It contains disparaging references to the Spaniards, probably referring to the Spanish raid on Newlyn in 1595. The Helston Furry Dance is number 135 in Roy Palmer's Everyman's Book of English Country Songs.\nThe meaning of Hal-an-Tow is unclear. The word kalan means the first of the month in Cornish, but the first letter mutates to an \"h\" in some circumstances. It has been suggested that \"tow\" means garland in Cornish. This is not correct, though \"tosow\" means tufts, tassles, or bunches. Some have suggested that Hal-an-Tow means \"raise the roof\". In Helston tow is pronounced to rhyme with cow and not toe. The Cornish word \"tew\" means fat, and a recent explanation of the name is that Hal-an-Tow means the eve of the fattening time. The version of the Hal-an-Tow sung by The Watersons and other folk groups has never been sung in Helston. The Helston song does not include the verse about cuckolds and horns. These words appear to have been added from Shakespeare's play As You Like It by Mike Waterson, and this version must be later than 1954. The original song was recorded in Sabine Baring-Gould's Songs of the West (which contains errors) and the versions in Canow Kernow edited by Inglis Gundry, such as the one recorded by William Sandys in 1846. The words of the Hal-an-Tow as it is currently sung in Helston are:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fd509edf-f9f2-48e6-b271-8d3a2fa9fdc6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"724qnwstqz","content":[{"text":"The verse about Saint Michael was added in the 1930s by Robert Morton Nance. The Saint Piran verse was added in 2005.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fd509edf-f9f2-48e6-b271-8d3a2fa9fdc6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Music","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7sknphtnms","content":[{"text":"The music is provided by Helston Town Band, augmented by members of other local bands. They play from memory, as it is suggested that the music for the dance has never been written down. However it was at various times, such as by Davies Gilbert in 1823. In 1890 Cornish antiquarian Margaret Ann Courtney wrote that the tune was sometimes known as \"John the Bone\". the following rhyme often being attached to the tune by local children,","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fd509edf-f9f2-48e6-b271-8d3a2fa9fdc6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s74arak1hm","content":[{"text":"The BBC recorded the band playing for the dance on 8 May 1943 and this recording is included in The Voice of the People vol. 16: You lazy lot of bone-shakers, issued by Topic Records in 1998.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fd509edf-f9f2-48e6-b271-8d3a2fa9fdc6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"\"The Floral Dance\"","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kaw542w395","content":[{"text":"In 1911 Katie Moss, a London composer visiting Helston, observed the Furry Dance and joined in the dancing herself in the evening. On the train home she wrote words and music of a song about her experience, calling the song \"The Floral Dance\". She quotes the Furry Dance tune in the piano accompaniment to the chorus – though altering the melody in two bars.\nThis song was soon published by Chappell & Co., and first performed by baritone Thorpe Bates the same year. The first recording was made by Peter Dawson on the Zonophone label in 1912. It has since been recorded by many other artists. A bass baritone version of the song was recorded by Inia Te Wiata and was released posthumously in a collection called \"Just call me Happy\".\nIn 1976 the Brighouse and Rastrick Brass Band recorded an arrangement of the Moss song made by their musical director Derek Broadbent. By Christmas 1977 half a million copies of the record had been sold, and it was only kept from the top position in the Christmas charts by Paul McCartney's \"Mull of Kintyre\". In January 1978 a vocal version by Terry Wogan accompanied by the Hanwell Band reached number 21 on the UK singles chart. Wogan did not include the last verse (the climax of the story) in this recording.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fd509edf-f9f2-48e6-b271-8d3a2fa9fdc6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"25abx4064j","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Furry Dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fd509edf-f9f2-48e6-b271-8d3a2fa9fdc6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"j68vc0s22f","content":[{"text":"Furry Dance is Traditional British floral dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dd641379-4044-4605-af6b-e068bb9a683d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"14nhse9nje","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dd641379-4044-4605-af6b-e068bb9a683d"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"The Furry Dance, Helston, Cornwall from 1912","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/45/The_Furry_Dance%2C_Helston%2C_Cornwall_from_1912_%2850627506886%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Mark Crombie","height":827,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"The Furry Dance, Helston, Cornwall from 1912","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/45/The_Furry_Dance%2C_Helston%2C_Cornwall_from_1912_%2850627506886%29.jpg/960px-The_Furry_Dance%2C_Helston%2C_Cornwall_from_1912_%2850627506886%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:The_Furry_Dance,_Helston,_Cornwall_from_1912_(50627506886).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/45/The_Furry_Dance%2C_Helston%2C_Cornwall_from_1912_%2850627506886%29.jpg/1280px-The_Furry_Dance%2C_Helston%2C_Cornwall_from_1912_%2850627506886%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"VINTAGE HELSTON FURRY DANCE CORNWALL RP POSTCARD","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cf/VINTAGE_HELSTON_FURRY_DANCE_CORNWALL_RP_POSTCARD_%2850627601587%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Mark Crombie","height":766,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"VINTAGE HELSTON FURRY DANCE CORNWALL RP POSTCARD","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cf/VINTAGE_HELSTON_FURRY_DANCE_CORNWALL_RP_POSTCARD_%2850627601587%29.jpg/960px-VINTAGE_HELSTON_FURRY_DANCE_CORNWALL_RP_POSTCARD_%2850627601587%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:VINTAGE_HELSTON_FURRY_DANCE_CORNWALL_RP_POSTCARD_(50627601587).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cf/VINTAGE_HELSTON_FURRY_DANCE_CORNWALL_RP_POSTCARD_%2850627601587%29.jpg/1280px-VINTAGE_HELSTON_FURRY_DANCE_CORNWALL_RP_POSTCARD_%2850627601587%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"VINTAGE ANIMATED HELSTON FURRY DANCE CORNWALL RP POSTCARD OLD CAR ETC","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5b/VINTAGE_ANIMATED_HELSTON_FURRY_DANCE_CORNWALL_RP_POSTCARD_OLD_CAR_ETC_%2850626754333%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Mark Crombie","height":765,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"VINTAGE ANIMATED HELSTON FURRY DANCE CORNWALL RP POSTCARD OLD CAR ETC","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5b/VINTAGE_ANIMATED_HELSTON_FURRY_DANCE_CORNWALL_RP_POSTCARD_OLD_CAR_ETC_%2850626754333%29.jpg/960px-VINTAGE_ANIMATED_HELSTON_FURRY_DANCE_CORNWALL_RP_POSTCARD_OLD_CAR_ETC_%2850626754333%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:VINTAGE_ANIMATED_HELSTON_FURRY_DANCE_CORNWALL_RP_POSTCARD_OLD_CAR_ETC_(50626754333).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5b/VINTAGE_ANIMATED_HELSTON_FURRY_DANCE_CORNWALL_RP_POSTCARD_OLD_CAR_ETC_%2850626754333%29.jpg/1280px-VINTAGE_ANIMATED_HELSTON_FURRY_DANCE_CORNWALL_RP_POSTCARD_OLD_CAR_ETC_%2850626754333%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:18.100Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/furry-dance"}
{"id":"95c6f10d-c08f-4f56-9578-687c421d84fb","type":"art_form","slug":"furyu-odori","title":"furyū-odori","summary":"furyū-odori is Japanese ritual dance. This page is a machine-generated stub awaiting review by someone who knows the tradition.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7vzv4gjyaj","content":[{"text":"furyū-odori is Japanese ritual dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c39d53cd-967b-44ee-a4b1-107bcfde7957"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7vhqfsetk6","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 4 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c39d53cd-967b-44ee-a4b1-107bcfde7957"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T07:23:07.767Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/furyu-odori"}
{"id":"00c099a5-6cb6-4eae-bad0-515fbc2e3238","type":"art_form","slug":"gaarudi-gombe","title":"Gaarudi Gombe","summary":"Gaarudi Gombe is a folk dance prevalent in the state of Karnataka, India. Dancers adorn themselves with giant doll-suits made of bamboo sticks. The term Gaarudi-Gombe means magical-doll in the native language, Kannada.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f635j2m7d6","content":[{"text":"Gaarudi Gombe is a folk dance prevalent in the state of Karnataka, India. Dancers adorn themselves with giant doll-suits made of bamboo sticks. The term Gaarudi-Gombe means magical-doll in the native language, Kannada. This dance is performed during major festivals and also in the procession held during the festivities of Mysore Dasara. This dance is also known as Tattiraya in the coastal districts of Karnataka. The term Tattiraya means a person carrying a doll made of bamboo sticks.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6c9848bd-cee0-466a-b338-9ead47a9b1d8"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origin","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k9ezjckdtb","content":[{"text":"According to a legend, this dance was performed even in the times of the Hindu epic, Mahabharata. When the Hindu Lord Krishna's wife Satyabhama was angry with him, he soothed her anger by wearing a Gaarudi Gombe doll.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6c9848bd-cee0-466a-b338-9ead47a9b1d8"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Creation of the dolls","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"q65smea24q","content":[{"text":"The face of the doll is made up of wooden basket with papier-mache applied on it. Using appropriate sketches and colours, the face of the doll is created. Each face is supported by a wooden frame. The dolls can be as much as 10 to 12 feet in height and including the frame, the total weight can be as high as 40 kg. A person fits himself into the frame from the underside and performs the dance carrying this huge structure on his shoulder Provisions are made for the performer to see the outside world through an opening in the frame.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6c9848bd-cee0-466a-b338-9ead47a9b1d8"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"The dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"j4cr53w2er","content":[{"text":"Due to the heavy weight of the dolls to be carried, most of the performers are men. The dance performance can go on for as much as eight hours, thus the performers take turns carrying the heavy dolls. Though the main idea behind the performance is to create a funny atmosphere, they are also used as a medium to ward off evil spirits.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6c9848bd-cee0-466a-b338-9ead47a9b1d8"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"z550xd5rhr","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Gaarudi Gombe”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6c9848bd-cee0-466a-b338-9ead47a9b1d8"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zjvz586wsr","content":[{"text":"Gaarudi Gombe is Folk dance from Karnataka, India, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"05ab5ba4-a9d7-4ef8-a51d-4f7b24efcb16"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b92bjtfv5x","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"05ab5ba4-a9d7-4ef8-a51d-4f7b24efcb16"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Gaarudi Gombe, a kind of folk performance from Karnataka, India","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9c/Gaarudi_Gombe_02.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Pavanaja","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Gaarudi Gombe, a kind of folk performance from Karnataka, India","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9c/Gaarudi_Gombe_02.JPG/960px-Gaarudi_Gombe_02.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Gaarudi_Gombe_02.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9c/Gaarudi_Gombe_02.JPG/1280px-Gaarudi_Gombe_02.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:18.359Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/gaarudi-gombe"}
{"id":"5123d3e3-a93e-4030-b85d-ce4a69286b5a","type":"art_form","slug":"gainjeonmokdan","title":"Gainjeonmokdan","summary":"Gainjeonmokdan (Korean pronunciation: [ka.in dʑʌmoktan]) is a Korean court dance (called jeongjae 정재 in Korean), and literally means \"beautiful people plucking peonies\".","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"by9xyamd3n","content":[{"text":"Gainjeonmokdan (Korean pronunciation: [ka.in dʑʌmoktan]) is a Korean court dance (called jeongjae 정재 in Korean), and literally means \"beautiful people plucking peonies\". This jeongjae was initiated and arranged by Hyomyeong Seja (Crown Prince Hyomyeong) in 1829 to please his father, King Sunjo. Gainjeonmokdan was first recorded in Mujajinjak uiqwe (무자진작의궤) in 1828. \nIn performance, peonies in a large vase for a prop are placed in the center of the stage, and then female dancers from divided two groups anticipate the flowers as moving around the vase. Dancers pick a peony one by one, and then dance in a calm movement.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8205ce43-ef7f-4acb-b490-b4172e0026a3"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Changsa","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pvmfce8kv9","content":[{"text":"Changsa (창사 唱詞) is  verses of the accompanying song for dance or other performing arts. It is used for gainjeonmokdan","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8205ce43-ef7f-4acb-b490-b4172e0026a3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"he7g1pahw4","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Gainjeonmokdan”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8205ce43-ef7f-4acb-b490-b4172e0026a3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3jg0chq66n","content":[{"text":"Gainjeonmokdan is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"67786c19-8f7c-4152-9357-9771311fd4b5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"erayrskeh6","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"67786c19-8f7c-4152-9357-9771311fd4b5"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:17.184Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/gainjeonmokdan"}
{"id":"65666baa-39bf-4a06-b3b9-1313cc161b79","type":"art_form","slug":"gair-dance","title":"Gair dance","summary":"Gair dance is one of the popular, famous folk dances from Rajasthan in India which is mostly performed by the Bhil community but found in all over Rajasthan.\nIt is alternatively referred to as Gair Ghalna, Gair Ghumna, Gair Khelna, and Gair…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4vrbggckdz","content":[{"text":"Gair dance is one of the popular, famous folk dances from Rajasthan in India which is mostly performed by the Bhil community but found in all over Rajasthan.\nIt is alternatively referred to as Gair Ghalna, Gair Ghumna, Gair Khelna, and Gair Nachna. This dance is famous and performed mostly by all the communities but it is more famous in Mewar and Marwar regions of Rajasthan. Gair is not similar of all the places. Every place has its own rhythm, style of forming circle, costume etc. It is performed during occasions like in month of Holi and Janmastami.  Colourful costumes, traditional instruments and captivating dance steps are the highlights of this dance. To enjoy this folk art form various viewers from different corners of the world flock to the state every year. Gair dance is performed by both men and women. Gair has got its birth from a Bhil dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"88aa8767-9798-4f2a-a3c2-decef5ee84dc"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Performance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"edghkt8wm4","content":[{"text":"Usually, the dancers dance in a big circle with wooden stick in their hands. There are numerous variations to this pleasing dance form that is performed by both men and women. The men wear long, pleated tunics that open out into full-length skirts\nBoth men and women dance together, dressed in traditional costume. At the commencement of the dance, participants form two circles, the women, who form a small inner circle, are encompassed by men, who form a large circle around them, and They move first in clockwise then in anti-clockwise direction determining the rhythm of the dance by the beating together of sticks and striking of drums. As the dance proceeds, the participants change places, with men forming the inner circle. Sometimes, it is performed exclusively by men folk. At that time, a series of half-swirls make up a simpler version of the dance depending on the dancer`s ability & proficiency, it is danced with a series of intricate pattern steps. The striking of sticks gives the dance a vigorous character & consistent tempo. Gair dances by Bhil folk are performed with wearing colourful dresses and carrying swords, arrows and sticks. It is the major attraction of people. There are many differences in the performance of men and women in this dance. The sticks used in the dance are called Khanda. It is danced with a series of intricate pattern steps.The striking of the sticks gives the dance a vigorous character and a consistent tempo. When they are dancing it seems as if they are depicting a scene from war front. It is believed by the locals that this dance must have got some significance to war. This form of dance is also seen in Africa and Central Asia. These sticks are very attractive and catch every eye. The sticks play vital role in the dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"88aa8767-9798-4f2a-a3c2-decef5ee84dc"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Instruments","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"007th6tsbz","content":[{"text":"The musical instruments that accompany this folk dance consist of Dhol, Nagada, Dholak and flute. The melodious song and enchanting background music encourages everyone to dance with the beat.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"88aa8767-9798-4f2a-a3c2-decef5ee84dc"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Occasions of dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f1zz6d4bvg","content":[{"text":"Though Gair dance can performed at any time in the form of entertainment but it is performed at the time any festive occasions. It is mainly performed on the festive occasion of Festive month occasions like Holi(feb-march) and Janmastami., Janmastami seems incomplete without the show of Gair dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"88aa8767-9798-4f2a-a3c2-decef5ee84dc"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Variations of Gair Dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xq4anbmy1z","content":[{"text":"It is also known as Gair Ghalna, Gair Gamna, Gair khelna and Gair Nachna.\nSome of the variations of Gair dance are the Dandi Gair found in the Marwar region and Geendad found in the Shekhawati region of Rajasthan.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"88aa8767-9798-4f2a-a3c2-decef5ee84dc"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Costumes","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"efvt8r3fv0","content":[{"text":"Generally, the men wear long, pleated tunic that open out into full length skirts but variations are in costumes according to local areas. The Bhil folk perform this dance by wearing colourful dresses and carrying swords, arrows and sticks.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"88aa8767-9798-4f2a-a3c2-decef5ee84dc"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"weqs3tej86","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Gair dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"88aa8767-9798-4f2a-a3c2-decef5ee84dc"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tn0bqtc9me","content":[{"text":"Gair dance is folk dance of Rajsthan, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b032ce11-6c60-4a1f-b603-48ff42d31993"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"e2vbskd8jf","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b032ce11-6c60-4a1f-b603-48ff42d31993"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"gair dance is performed by tribal people from across rajasthan state of india . they wore red and white traditional attire with stick in both hand and other instrument also they circle around dance by sticking stick with neighbor performer","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7a/Gair_dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Siddharth 36","height":848,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"gair dance is performed by tribal people from across rajasthan state of india . they wore red and white traditional attire with stick in both hand and other instrument also they circle around dance by sticking stick with neighbor performer","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7a/Gair_dance.jpg/960px-Gair_dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Gair_dance.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7a/Gair_dance.jpg/1280px-Gair_dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"An important festival of the region with special celebration; colorfully attired tribesmen carrying sticks, performing the Gair dance.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d2/An_important_festival_of_the_region_with_special_celebration%3B_colorfully_attired_tribesmen_carrying_sticks%2C_performing_the_Gair_dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"pradeep kumar chatte…","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"An important festival of the region with special celebration; colorfully attired tribesmen carrying sticks, performing the Gair dance.","licence":"CC BY 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d2/An_important_festival_of_the_region_with_special_celebration%3B_colorfully_attired_tribesmen_carrying_sticks%2C_performing_the_Gair_dance.jpg/960px-An_important_festival_of_the_region_with_special_celebration%3B_colorfully_attired_tribesmen_carrying_sticks%2C_performing_the_Gair_dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:An_important_festival_of_the_region_with_special_celebration;_colorfully_attired_tribesmen_carrying_sticks,_performing_the_Gair_dance.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d2/An_important_festival_of_the_region_with_special_celebration%3B_colorfully_attired_tribesmen_carrying_sticks%2C_performing_the_Gair_dance.jpg/1280px-An_important_festival_of_the_region_with_special_celebration%3B_colorfully_attired_tribesmen_carrying_sticks%2C_performing_the_Gair_dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:18.681Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/gair-dance"}
{"id":"69412bb5-6657-4dd9-914e-b409b5de9318","type":"art_form","slug":"galop","title":"galop","summary":"In dance, the galop, named after the fastest running gait of a horse (see Gallop), a shortened version of the original term galoppade, is a lively country dance, introduced in the late 1820s to Parisian society by the Duchesse de Berry and …","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"n339hxft6v","content":[{"text":"In dance, the galop, named after the fastest running gait of a horse (see Gallop), a shortened version of the original term galoppade, is a lively country dance, introduced in the late 1820s to Parisian society by the Duchesse de Berry and popular in Vienna, Berlin and London.  In the same closed position familiar in the waltz, the step combined a glissade with a chassé on alternate feet, ordinarily in a fast 24 time.\nThe galop was a forerunner of the polka, which was introduced in Prague ballrooms in the 1830s and made fashionable in Paris when Raab, a dancing teacher of Prague, danced the polka at the Odéon Theatre in 1840. In Australian bush dance, the dance is often called galopede. An even livelier, faster version of the galop called the can-can developed in Paris around 1830.\nThe galop was particularly popular as the final dance of the evening. The \"Post Horn Galop\", written by the cornet virtuoso Herman Koenig, was first performed in London in 1844; it remains a signal that the dancing at a hunt ball or wedding reception is ending.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"74ff9f08-d760-4a0e-9831-49a1d8024853"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Examples","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"37tzdfyq6v","content":[{"text":"Numerous galops were written by Johann Strauss II.\nDmitri Shostakovich employed a \"posthorn galop\" as the second Allegro scherzo of his Eighth Symphony in 1943, and another galop in Act 1, scene 3 of Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk.\nFranz Schubert composed the \"Grazer Galopp\". He also composed the fourth movement of his Symphony No. 2 as a galop.\nThe \"Devil's Galop\" by Charles Williams\nThe \"Infernal Galop\" from Orpheus in the Underworld by Jacques Offenbach\nThe \"Comedians' Galop\" from The Comedians by Dmitry Kabalevsky\nThe \"Prestissimo Galop\" by Émile Waldteufel.\nThe \"Malapou Galop\" by Joseph Lanner.\nDanish composer Hans Christian Lumbye (1810–1874) wrote several galops, including the \"Telegraph Galop\" (1844), the \"Champagne Galop\" (1845) and the \"Copenhagen Steam Railway Galop\" (1847).\nGeorge Gershwin composed the galop \"French Ballet Class\" for two pianos in his score for the film Shall We Dance.\nGalops were also written by Nino Rota.\nFranz Liszt wrote some galops for piano, notably the \"Grand Galop Chromatique\" (1838) and the \"Galop in A minor\" (1846).\nCsikós Post by Hermann Necke.\nIsaak Dunayevsky wrote some galops, including one for the film \"The Son of the Clown\" (1950).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"74ff9f08-d760-4a0e-9831-49a1d8024853"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mhfwn4g0m3","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Galop”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"74ff9f08-d760-4a0e-9831-49a1d8024853"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tk2tv1jwhc","content":[{"text":"galop is dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6bd4d744-1cac-4da8-b822-19fcad60bd5e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"h0yrv9eps8","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 10 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6bd4d744-1cac-4da8-b822-19fcad60bd5e"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Kolorierter Kupferstich zu \"Der große Galopp von Joh. Strauß\" (Johann Strauss Vater). Stich von Andreas Geiger nach Johann Christian Schoeller.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1b/Strauss_I_-_Wiener_Scene_-_Der_gro%C3%9Fe_Galop.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Johann Christian Schoeller / Andreas Geiger the Elder","height":1074,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Kolorierter Kupferstich zu \"Der große Galopp von Joh. Strauß\" (Johann Strauss Vater). Stich von Andreas Geiger nach Johann Christian Schoeller.","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1b/Strauss_I_-_Wiener_Scene_-_Der_gro%C3%9Fe_Galop.jpg/960px-Strauss_I_-_Wiener_Scene_-_Der_gro%C3%9Fe_Galop.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Strauss_I_-_Wiener_Scene_-_Der_gro%C3%9Fe_Galop.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1b/Strauss_I_-_Wiener_Scene_-_Der_gro%C3%9Fe_Galop.jpg/1280px-Strauss_I_-_Wiener_Scene_-_Der_gro%C3%9Fe_Galop.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:23.351Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/galop"}
{"id":"38433af5-d45d-4b99-b43b-bc927d6b996d","type":"art_form","slug":"gambuh","title":"Gambuh","summary":"Gambuh (from Balinese  ᬕᬫ᭄ᬩᬸᬄ) is an ancient form of Balinese dance-drama. It is accompanied by musicians in a gamelan gambuh ensemble.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"em7bn4p3sg","content":[{"text":"Gambuh (from Balinese  ᬕᬫ᭄ᬩᬸᬄ) is an ancient form of Balinese dance-drama. It is accompanied by musicians in a gamelan gambuh ensemble.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"30681771-e291-4156-9271-c8c4eeb59d1a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cawdv92tte","content":[{"text":"Gambuh is one of the oldest surviving forms in Balinese performing arts, dating to the late Majapahit era (ca. 15th century) with very little known change since this time.  Emiko Susilo writes, \"when the dance-dramas of Majapahit came to Bali, they had the new task of preserving the tradition of a fallen dynasty\" (emphasis in original).  It also introduced a new element of narrative to Balinese performing arts that influenced other forms of dance-drama on the island, such as topeng masked dance and arja opera.  For centuries it was supported by patronage at the royal courts of Bali's aristocracy, during which it achieved its greatest heights of sophistication.  As the courts fell apart in the bloody wars with the Dutch, this support evaporated and much of the art of gambuh was lost.  Like the many other arts that formerly depended on royal patronage, gambuh found some community support by playing for temple ceremonies.\nGambuh is mainly preserved in one village, Batuan.  In 1997, Susilo observed, \"In total there are perhaps only four groups that perform in the Gambuh style.\"  It is unknown even among Balinese performers.  The dance and music are technically exacting and complex; the dialogue requires knowledge of the Kawi language.  Musicians are required to master the metre-long end-blown flutes. Performances are long and, unlike wayang shows, contain only small sections comic relief, making demands of potential audiences.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"30681771-e291-4156-9271-c8c4eeb59d1a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dramatic components","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qszat898nh","content":[{"text":"Combining dance, music, and acting, gambuh draws on the narrative material of the Malat, a long poem about the fictional Javanese prince, Raden Panji. He is separated from his fiancée, Rangkesari (known as Candra Kirana in Javanese versions of the story), after she goes wandering in the forest and gets swept up by a gust of wind. This begins a long romance in which the two lovers search for each other over years and across wide areas of medieval Java. They finally meet on the field of battle, recognise each other through their disguises, and live happily ever after. Other characters include members of the court and their servants. The refined (alus) characters speak in Kawi, an old literary tongue, which is translated for the audience into contemporary Balinese by the characters of lower status.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"30681771-e291-4156-9271-c8c4eeb59d1a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Gamelan gambuh","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5awwgfawp0","content":[{"text":"A complete gamelan gambuh requires approximately 17 musicians to accompany the dance-drama. The main instruments in gambuh performances are very low bamboo flutes, called suling gambuh, between 75 and 100 cm in length and 4 and 5 cm in diameter.  There are usually four such flutes, but sometimes only as few as two or as many as six flutes are employed. The suling gambuh play melodies along with a rebab while percussion instruments fill out the sound with a variety of timbres and rhythms: a medium-sized gong, a small gong called kajar, two kendang, a chime called klenang, a bell tree called gentorag, rincik (reminiscent of a ceng-ceng), a metallophone called kenyir, kangsi, and gumanak.  The last three of those instruments—the kenyir, kangsi, and gumanak—are not currently found in any other gamelan ensemble of Bali.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"30681771-e291-4156-9271-c8c4eeb59d1a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"57p82v12fd","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Gambuh”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"30681771-e291-4156-9271-c8c4eeb59d1a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6c03erp74w","content":[{"text":"Gambuh is Indonesian traditional dance from Bali, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d1b29b98-9a03-4744-b884-86867939b9af"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2bz23sqah8","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d1b29b98-9a03-4744-b884-86867939b9af"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:11.493Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/gambuh"}
{"id":"687946e6-d830-4532-8c2d-4303c14e25b9","type":"art_form","slug":"gamelan","title":"gamelan","summary":"Gamelan (;Javanese: ꦒꦩꦼꦭꦤ꧀, romanized: gamelan (in the ngoko register), ꦒꦁꦱ, gangsa (in the krama register); Balinese: ᬕᬫ᭄ᬩᭂᬮ᭄ᬮᬦ᭄;  Sundanese: ᮌᮙᮨᮜᮔ᮪) is the traditional ensemble music of the Javanese, Sundanese, and Balinese peoples of Ind…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t3ms5c76w5","content":[{"text":"Gamelan (;Javanese: ꦒꦩꦼꦭꦤ꧀, romanized: gamelan (in the ngoko register), ꦒꦁꦱ, gangsa (in the krama register); Balinese: ᬕᬫ᭄ᬩᭂᬮ᭄ᬮᬦ᭄;  Sundanese: ᮌᮙᮨᮜᮔ᮪) is the traditional ensemble music of the Javanese, Sundanese, and Balinese peoples of Indonesia, made up predominantly of percussive instruments. The most common instruments used are metallophones (played with mallets) and a set of hand-drums called kendang, which keep the beat. The kemanak, a banana-shaped idiophone, and the gangsa, another metallophone, are also commonly used gamelan instruments on Bali. Other notable instruments include xylophones, bamboo flutes (similar to the Indian bansuri), a bowed string instrument called a rebab (somewhat similar to the gadulka of Bulgaria), and a zither-like instrument called a siter, used in Javanese gamelan. Additionally, vocalists may be featured, being referred to as sindhen for females or gerong for males. Related traditions are also found elsewhere in Maritime Southeast Asia, including Gamelan melayu (Malay Gamelan), a distinct courtly tradition associated with the Johor–Riau cultural sphere that has been documented since at least the eighteenth century and remains practised principally in Malaysia.\nAlthough the popularity of gamelan has declined slightly since the introduction of modern popular music to Indonesia, the art form is still widely respected, being commonly played in many traditional ceremonies.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"eef55a7d-e21b-454e-97a7-cbb6973202ae"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fkbpwn2cdc","content":[{"text":"The word gamelan comes from the Javanese word gamel (ꦒꦩꦼꦭ꧀) in the ngoko register, which refers to playing of percussion instruments or the act of striking with a mallet, and the noun-forming suffix -an. The gamelan in the Sundanese is Degung (Degung), the word Degung apparently is an old Sundanese term, which refers to gongs and gong ensembles. For this reason, the words degung and gong are essentially synonyms for the word gamelan. At the same time, the expression gamelan degung may be a way to point at a gamelan ensemble tuned to degung scale. The term karawitan (ꦏꦫꦮꦶꦠꦤ꧀) refers to classical gamelan music and performance practice, and comes from the Javanese word rawit (ꦫꦮꦶꦠ꧀) of Sanskrit origin, meaning 'intricate' or 'finely worked', referring to the sense of smoothness and elegance idealized in Javanese music. Another word, pangrawit (ꦥꦁꦫꦮꦶꦠ꧀), means a person with such sense, and is used as an honorific when discussing esteemed gamelan musicians. The Javanese word for gamelan in the krama register is gangsa (ꦒꦁꦱ), formed either from the words tembaga (ꦠꦼꦩ꧀ꦧꦒ) and rejasa (ꦉꦗꦱ) referring to the materials used in bronze gamelan construction (copper and tin), or tiga (ꦠꦶꦒ) and sedasa (ꦱꦼꦢꦱ) referring to their proportions (three and ten).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"eef55a7d-e21b-454e-97a7-cbb6973202ae"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gbkqpnjxaa","content":[{"text":"The gamelan predates the Hindu-Buddhist culture that dominated Indonesia in its earliest records and thus represents an indigenous art form of Indonesia. In contrast to the heavy Indian influence in other art forms, the only obvious Indian influence in gamelan music is in the Javanese, Sundanese, and Balinese style of singing, and in the themes of the Wayang kulit and Wayang Golek (shadow puppet plays).\nIn Javanese mythology, the gamelan was created by Sang Hyang Guru in Saka era 167 (c. AD 230), the god who ruled as king of all Java from a palace on the Maendra mountain in Medang Kamulan (now Mount Lawu). He needed a signal to summon the gods and thus invented the gong. For more complex messages, he invented two other gongs, thus forming the original gamelan set.\nThe earliest image of a musical ensemble is found on the bas-relief of the 8th century Buddhist monument of Borobudur, Central Java. The Borobudur's musicians play lute-like stringed instruments, various kendang drums, various suling flutes, cymbals, bells, metallophones, and xylophones. Some of these musical instruments are indeed included in a complete gamelan orchestra. Musical instruments such as metallophones (saron, kenong, kecer), xylophones (gambang), the bamboo flute (suling), drums in various sizes (kendang), cymbals, bell (genta), and bowed and plucked string instruments were identified in this image. These reliefs of this musical ensemble are suggested to be the ancient form of the gamelan.\nThe instruments developed into their current form during the Majapahit Empire. According to the inscriptions and manuscripts (Nagarakretagama and Kakawin Sutasoma) dated from the Majapahit period, the kingdom even had a government office in charge of supervising the performing arts, including the gamelan.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"eef55a7d-e21b-454e-97a7-cbb6973202ae"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Instruments","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vrh8c767a2","content":[{"text":"A gamelan is a multi-timbre ensemble consisting of metallophones, xylophones, flutes, gongs, voices, as well as bowed and plucked strings. The hand-played drum called kendang controls the tempo and rhythm of pieces as well as transitions from one section to another, while one instrument gives melodic cues to indicate treatment or sections of a piece.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"eef55a7d-e21b-454e-97a7-cbb6973202ae"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Typical Javanese gamelan instruments","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rw84a7p4ae","content":[{"text":"In the courts of Java, Javanese gamelan is grouped into 2 groups of gamelan, namely gamelan Pakurmatan and gamelan Ageng. Gamelan pakurmatan is the gamelan used for special Javanese court events and all of them are sacred gamelan. The gamelan pakurmatan consists of the gamelan kodhok ngorek, the gamelan monggang, the gamelan sekati, and the gamelan carabalen. As for the gamelan ageng is considered the most complete in the Javanese court. The Gamelan Ageng instruments are usually owned by the general public (artists, schools, studios, and other communities) in Java and outside Java. This gamelan is used to accompany arts or rituals either in the palace or in the general public, the gamelan can use a complete gamelan or less.\nA set of complete Javanese Gamelan Ageng Ensemble maintained by the Javanese court consists of:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"eef55a7d-e21b-454e-97a7-cbb6973202ae"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Typical Balinese gamelan instruments","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jps7fthhnm","content":[{"text":"In Bali, the Gamelan instruments are all kept together in a balé, a large open space with a roof over the top of it and several open sides. Gambelan (the Balinese term) are owned by a banjar, nobility or temples and kept in their respective compounds. In case of banjar ownership the instruments are all kept there together because people believe that all the instruments belong to the community as a whole and that no one person has ownership over an instrument. Not only is this where the instruments are stored, but this is also the practice space for the sekaha (Gamelan orchestra group). The open walls allow for the music to flow out into the community where the rest of the people may enjoy it. Balinese gamelan cannot be heard inside closed rooms, because it easily crosses the threshold of pain. This does not apply to small ensembles like a gamelan gendér.\nThe sekaha is led by a single instructor whose job it is in the community to lead this group and to come up with new pieces. When they are working on a new piece, the instructor will lead the group in practice and help the group form the new music as they are practicing. When the instructor creates a new song, he leaves enough open for interpretation that the group can improvise, so the group will write the music as they practice it.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"eef55a7d-e21b-454e-97a7-cbb6973202ae"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"aaeb17e9gm","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Gamelan”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"eef55a7d-e21b-454e-97a7-cbb6973202ae"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jvw7xm8jwx","content":[{"text":"gamelan is style of traditional music originated in the island of Java in Indonesia, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8c382a2f-4fae-4c22-9c09-0ccda9559ad0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2kg73hmhjf","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 33 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8c382a2f-4fae-4c22-9c09-0ccda9559ad0"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Fotografies fetes durant el Backstage pass al Museu de la Música de Barcelona, el 21-11-2013","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8b/165_Museu_de_la_M%C3%BAsica%2C_gamelan.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Enfo","height":775,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Fotografies fetes durant el Backstage pass al Museu de la Música de Barcelona, el 21-11-2013","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8b/165_Museu_de_la_M%C3%BAsica%2C_gamelan.jpg/960px-165_Museu_de_la_M%C3%BAsica%2C_gamelan.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:165_Museu_de_la_M%C3%BAsica,_gamelan.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8b/165_Museu_de_la_M%C3%BAsica%2C_gamelan.jpg/1280px-165_Museu_de_la_M%C3%BAsica%2C_gamelan.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:19.827Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/gamelan"}
{"id":"c504bbc0-1458-4672-bb32-c25c1e196a46","type":"art_form","slug":"gandrung","title":"Gandrung","summary":"Gandrung (Javanese: ꦒꦤ꧀ꦝꦿꦸꦁ; Osing: Gandrong; Balinese: ᬕᬦ᭄ᬤ᭄ᬭᬸᬂ; Petjo: Gandroeng) is a traditional dance from Indonesia.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xarebfdpjq","content":[{"text":"Gandrung (Javanese: ꦒꦤ꧀ꦝꦿꦸꦁ; Osing: Gandrong; Balinese: ᬕᬦ᭄ᬤ᭄ᬭᬸᬂ; Petjo: Gandroeng) is a traditional dance from Indonesia. Gandrung has many variations and is popular in Bali, Lombok, and Eastern Java among the Balinese, Sasak, and Javanese (especially the Osing Javanese). The most popular variation is gandrung from the Banyuwangi region  in the eastern peninsula of Java; thus, the city is often referred to as Kota Gandrung, or \"the city of gandrung\".\nOriginally a ritual dance dedicated to the goddess of rice and fertility, Dewi Sri, it is currently performed as a social dance of courtship and love in communal and social events, or as a tourist attraction. The Gandrung Sewu Festival is held at Banyuwangi annually.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c5a07dea-6cfb-4a7e-bae2-4fa9f5d7ce80"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Descriptions","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ree8scjk59","content":[{"text":"Gandrung derives its name from the Javanese word for \"love\". It is theorized that the dance originated as a ritual dance to express the people's affection for the rice goddess Dewi Sri, with trance and as a kind of fertility dance. However, it has now lost its ritual connotations, especially among the Muslim Javanese and the Sasak. The dance has evolved into a social dance describing a girl looking for love companions. The dance has thus been de-ritualized and has mostly lost its connections with the rice goddess.\nGandrung is usually performed in an all-night performance that begins sometime around 9 p.m. and ends just before dawn. It is also commonly performed as a tourist attraction, for example in Bali or in Grajagan Bay in Banyuwangi. It is also performed as a social dance at communal and social events such as circumcisions or weddings.\nThe gandrung, or main dancer, is usually an unmarried girl or a transvestite (or simply a boy playing the role of a female dancer). The dancer is dressed in traditional costume, with a fan, shawl, and ornamental headgear.  Often there will be more than one gandrung dancer in the performance.\nGandrung usually starts with the dancer(s) at the side of the stage, surrounded by the gamelan ensemble. When the music starts, the dancer begins dancing with hip thrusts and moves to the center stage. When the gandrung spots an audience member she wishes to dance with, she throws her shawl to him to bring him to the stage. The dancer and the audience member will then dance together. If there is more than one gandrung dancer in the performance, each dancer will choose a different partner to dance with.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c5a07dea-6cfb-4a7e-bae2-4fa9f5d7ce80"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Music","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2hkdj89kwp","content":[{"text":"The dance is performed to the tunes of a traditional ensemble similar to the gamelan, often composed of two violins, gendangs, bonang and gongs with gamelan xylophones (gambang). A singer is also present to sing the accompanying song for the gandrung performance. Villages in Banyuwangi, Bali, and Lombok sometimes have their own gandrung music ensemble. Variations in ensemble composition exist between the different areas where gandrung is performed. The music has been described as \"vibrant and earthy\" and has been recorded by several anthropologists.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c5a07dea-6cfb-4a7e-bae2-4fa9f5d7ce80"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2r71tar414","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Gandrung”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c5a07dea-6cfb-4a7e-bae2-4fa9f5d7ce80"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"41cvyb78yw","content":[{"text":"Gandrung is Indonesian traditional folk dance originating from Banyuwangi region, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b7bc2a4c-c2fb-437a-8b59-6b14a3ecfca6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"amzfazk1cs","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b7bc2a4c-c2fb-437a-8b59-6b14a3ecfca6"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"there is traditional dance from Jawa Timur named Gandrung; it is much magical though, and even beautiful","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/91/%27Beradu%27_dalam_Tari_Gandrung_Jawa_Timur.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Maturnuwun","height":850,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"there is traditional dance from Jawa Timur named Gandrung; it is much magical though, and even beautiful","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/91/%27Beradu%27_dalam_Tari_Gandrung_Jawa_Timur.jpg/960px-%27Beradu%27_dalam_Tari_Gandrung_Jawa_Timur.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:%27Beradu%27_dalam_Tari_Gandrung_Jawa_Timur.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/91/%27Beradu%27_dalam_Tari_Gandrung_Jawa_Timur.jpg/1280px-%27Beradu%27_dalam_Tari_Gandrung_Jawa_Timur.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:24.074Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/gandrung"}
{"id":"606ff05a-d067-41ae-8ef3-a71341ca397a","type":"art_form","slug":"ganggangsullae","title":"Ganggangsullae","summary":"Ganggangsullae (Korean: 강강술래) is an ancient Korean dance that was first used to bring about a bountiful harvest and has developed into a cultural symbol for Korea.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3ty595fe6y","content":[{"text":"Ganggangsullae (Korean: 강강술래) is an ancient Korean dance that was first used to bring about a bountiful harvest and has developed into a cultural symbol for Korea. It incorporates singing, dancing, and playing and is exclusively performed by women. The dance is mostly performed in the southwestern coastal province of South Jeolla Province. It is often associated with the Chuseok holiday and Daeboreum and is performed when the full moon rose above the mountains  They dance all night and continue to play folk games in circles. The performance starts with a late Ganggangsullae and changes to a 'Jajeun-Ganggangsullae', which are characterized by the most beautiful and feminine charms of late Ganggangsullae, and 'Jung-Ganggangsullae\" only in Haenam and Jindo regions.\nThe dance was registered as the UNESCO's intangible cultural heritage from Korea in 2009.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b6fd56c6-3e9f-4792-a7ca-6c626e72b0a9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f2fjbc2ebk","content":[{"text":"The etymology of Ganggangsullae is not clear, however the term's origins can be guessed by interpreting the name in either indigenous Korean or Hanja characters. Some theorize that the term was derived from the indigenous Korean words, in which 'Gang' of Ganggangsullae means circle and 'sullae', which derived from the words 'sunu' or 'sulla', means a wagon or to alert. In combination, the term means to wagon or alert around in circle. Additionally, in the Jeolla dialect, 'ganggang' translates to 'surroundings' or 'in circles', and 'sullae', meaning 'patrol'. This interpretation frames 'ganggangsullae' means to \"Beware of your surroundings\".\nOthers suggests that the word Ganggangsullae was a hanja phrase meaning \"a powerful barbarian is going to invade our country\", given it was a chant to make the public aware of enemy invaders. This meaning was derived from the history of the naval commander Yi Sun-sin utilizing ganggangsullae in military strategy, but there is little evidence to support this theory.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b6fd56c6-3e9f-4792-a7ca-6c626e72b0a9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Ancient times","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"eyfmt59hpx","content":[{"text":"The dance is thought to have originated in ancient times when the ancient Koreans believed that the Sun, Moon, and Earth controlled the universe. Participants would dance under the brightest full moon of the year in order to wish for a fertile harvest.\nActually, Ganggangsullae is still held in Korea's most common festivities such as New Year's Day, Daeboreum, Dano, and Chuseok. Since Chuseok has its largest size of the moon of the year, the dance itself is considered as a notable event on Chuseok holidays by dozens of young women dancing and singing all together.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b6fd56c6-3e9f-4792-a7ca-6c626e72b0a9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Joseon dynasty","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zrwany7xj8","content":[{"text":"Before Joseon, Goryeo dynasty maintained liberal atmosphere of trade and communications under the strong power of Buddhism. Newly founded dynasty Joseon needed to rebuild the country in a different manner, which called for another national policy - Confucianism. Under the strict Confucian influence expansion, the female status started to degrade sharply, resulting in more difficulties and obstacles for even noble women. For example, women should wear long hood by covering all the face and head while going out of house is not allowed. Under this kind of social atmosphere, the dance gave women the chance to go outside and sing together away from invisible restraints.\nIn the 16th century, during the Japanese invasion of Korea, Admiral Yi Sun-sin ordered women to do this dance in military uniform to intimidate the Japanese. The women were said to have dressed in military uniform and danced on Mount Okmae (옥매산). The Japanese scouts thus overestimated the strength of the Korean troops.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b6fd56c6-3e9f-4792-a7ca-6c626e72b0a9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Present","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ttt9pscwgz","content":[{"text":"Nowadays, Ganggangsullae is passed down to younger generations in music class at local schools and students can learn how to perform folk dance, including the origin of the artistic movement, exercising melody skills. Notably, there is an instance that the Korean dance is getting into the pop culture. The Korean pop group ATEEZ, for example, includes Ganggangsullae in their performances featuring the movement and general references of Korean culture.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b6fd56c6-3e9f-4792-a7ca-6c626e72b0a9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Wonmu","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nmzwe48hzt","content":[{"text":"It is the main action of Ganggangsullae, which is spinning counterclockwise.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b6fd56c6-3e9f-4792-a7ca-6c626e72b0a9"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1svxb8af7j","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Ganggangsullae”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b6fd56c6-3e9f-4792-a7ca-6c626e72b0a9"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6pntdwvvpd","content":[{"text":"Ganggangsullae is Korean circle dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"98933f9f-5eb7-4b8b-9733-db75c4ffdd65"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hk7xk9dta6","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 4 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"98933f9f-5eb7-4b8b-9733-db75c4ffdd65"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-03T05:47:34.265Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/ganggangsullae"}
{"id":"ff034faf-d571-4035-b577-e60c7584b3eb","type":"art_form","slug":"garba","title":"garba","summary":"Garba is an Indian folk dance. It is a form of circle and social dance originating from Gujarat, and played across the Indian diaspora at festivals and other events.\nGarba is part of the annual Hindu festival of Navaratri (or \"Nine Nights\")…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"a6yxr7qcbb","content":[{"text":"Garba is an Indian folk dance. It is a form of circle and social dance originating from Gujarat, and played across the Indian diaspora at festivals and other events.\nGarba is part of the annual Hindu festival of Navaratri (or \"Nine Nights\"), held in celebration of Amba Mata, or the primordial mother, an incarnation of Durga. Garbas form part of Navaratri celebrations at fairs and feasts. Typically, at the end of each Navaratri night of dance, the Gujarati community also plays dandiya raas, a sibling circle-dance form, in which players hold a stick in each hand and tap out a rhythm with a partner. Everyone is invited to join garba and raas, and people of all ages dance together. It is played around an earthen pot with holes on the sides, revealing a flame inside (a symbol of the jiva or soul inside the womb). Alternatively, a picture or statue of the Hindu goddess Amba may be placed in the center of the circle. When there are large numbers of participants, they make concentric circles to form rings around the object of veneration.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9c431b94-a5a4-4bca-9599-8f87490b40d3"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"r8kggdjesq","content":[{"text":"The word garba comes from the Sanskrit word (Sanskrit: गर्भ, romanized: Garbha) for \"womb\" and so implies gestation or pregnancy — life. Folk dances in Gujarat are frequently performed to mark the first menstrual cycle or are performed to mark a marriage.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9c431b94-a5a4-4bca-9599-8f87490b40d3"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance, music and symbolism","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mfgq8rncez","content":[{"text":"Modern garba is also heavily influenced by Dandiya Raas, a dance traditionally performed by men. The merger of these two dances has formed the high-energy dance that is seen today. Traditional garba music accompanying the dance involves the dhol and dholak (Indian drums), cymbals and shehnai (an Indian flute).\nThe dance is a counterclockwise circle dance, alternatively participants can form concentric circles moving in opposite directions. The dance gathers speed as it progresses. Its main aspect consists of encircling an image or symbolic representation (like a clay pot), representing the shakti of goddess Durga. Garba dances honour the nine forms of Durga during the Navaratri (\"Nine Nights\") festival and celebrates fertility and womanhood.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9c431b94-a5a4-4bca-9599-8f87490b40d3"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Popularity","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2q9zamek1m","content":[{"text":"Garba has spread beyond Gujarat all over India and among the Indian diaspora worldwide. For instance, garba is popular among Gujarati communities in the United Kingdom where there are a number of these communities hold their own garba nights. Garba competitions are now also organised by dance troupes in universities since the turn of the millennium.\nIn December 2023, UNESCO recognized garba on the list of the world's Intangible cultural heritage.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9c431b94-a5a4-4bca-9599-8f87490b40d3"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Discrimination","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8mhthf66m2","content":[{"text":"Hindu nationalist organizations have attempted to harass Muslims taking part in Garba events. Muslims have also been denied entry into Garba events without prior warning or rule. In 2014, Hindutva organisation Vishva Hindu Parishad demanded Muslims not to join Garba events. In 2025, a memorandum was submitted by Antarrashtriya Hindu Parishad and Rashtriya Bajrang Dal demanding ban on entry of Muslims in Garba events and checking of Aadhar IDs before allowing entry. In Chattisgarh, a Muslim youth participating in the event were forced to chant religious slogans and bow before a deity.\nIn 2017, a Dalit youth was killed by upper caste men after he went to watch a Garba event in Anand district. After such series of attacks on Dalits, more than 100 Dalit families celebrated Navratri with \"Ambedkar garba\".\nIn 2018, a Dalit man alleged that he was told to not enter a Garba event in Ahmedabad. Following this, a fight broke out between the members of Dalit and Darbar castes.\nIn 2022, an episode was dedicated to the Garba controversy on Aaj Tak's show Black and White, where the anchor Shudhir Chaudhary speculated a Love Jihad motive on part of Muslim individuals who were interested in attending Garba. Similarly,  the show \"Rashtramev Jayate\" on News Nation referred to a “garba jihad”.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9c431b94-a5a4-4bca-9599-8f87490b40d3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5t246cp0ck","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Garba (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9c431b94-a5a4-4bca-9599-8f87490b40d3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2yecg229g1","content":[{"text":"garba is Indian folk dance that originated from the state of Gujarat, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ad01d1e9-f6d5-4544-b3d3-3dfa350ee62a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"33d2mdhgkg","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 5 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ad01d1e9-f6d5-4544-b3d3-3dfa350ee62a"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Garba depicts the true nature of Gujarati Tradition - Colorful, Joyous and Welcoming","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4f/Garba_Chorus.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Mon!l1991","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Garba depicts the true nature of Gujarati Tradition - Colorful, Joyous and Welcoming","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4f/Garba_Chorus.jpg/960px-Garba_Chorus.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Garba_Chorus.jpg","thumb1280":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4f/Garba_Chorus.jpg/1280px-Garba_Chorus.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Capturing the Garba vibes","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ef/Capturing_the_Garba_vibes.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Soulful sunshine","height":910,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Capturing the Garba vibes","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ef/Capturing_the_Garba_vibes.jpg/960px-Capturing_the_Garba_vibes.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Capturing_the_Garba_vibes.jpg","thumb1280":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ef/Capturing_the_Garba_vibes.jpg/1280px-Capturing_the_Garba_vibes.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Ready for garba","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c5/Garba_dress.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Ketandelhiwala","height":1707,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Ready for garba","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c5/Garba_dress.jpg/960px-Garba_dress.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Garba_dress.jpg","thumb1280":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c5/Garba_dress.jpg/1280px-Garba_dress.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:23.143Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/garba"}
{"id":"62884dc9-c621-4b57-b5d6-466ea8fcf1b3","type":"art_form","slug":"garrotin","title":"Garrotín","summary":"Garrotín is a style of improvised song, featuring (palo) flamenco singing, dancing, and guitar playing, which developed near the end of the nineteenth century in Asturias, in northern Spain.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bkw881npye","content":[{"text":"Garrotín is a style of improvised song, featuring (palo) flamenco singing, dancing, and guitar playing, which developed near the end of the nineteenth century in Asturias, in northern Spain. It is played or sung in a Major mode, and a simple 2/4 meter, and has a cheerful and festive character.  After being introduced into the flamenco repertoire, garrotín was further developed by singer Pastora Pavón (\"Niña de los Peines\"), and has been recently popularized by dancer, Carmen Amaya.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ea3d2c36-0c71-44a3-a770-137a65ec3ac0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Style","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bkwtbcn7ee","content":[{"text":"Garrotín is sung in 2/4 metres, normally with 8 syllables per line. It consists of a fixed chorus with a rhythmic melody, and the stanzas are improvised as they are sung. The content of the stanzas is usually burlesque or ironic, with the sole purpose of amusing the people who listen to it. The chorus, which is sung between each stanza to allow time for the next person to prepare, usually follows this pattern:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ea3d2c36-0c71-44a3-a770-137a65ec3ac0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ybxrx7amq2","content":[{"text":"Al garrotín, al garrotan,\nde la vera vera vera de Sant Joan;\nal garrotín, al garrotan,\nde la vera vera vera de Sant Joan.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ea3d2c36-0c71-44a3-a770-137a65ec3ac0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ta8cbbpzv9","content":[{"text":"In the verses, it is only the second and fourth lines that rhyme.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ea3d2c36-0c71-44a3-a770-137a65ec3ac0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Videos","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gs6jmr7a7g","content":[{"text":"\"Garrotín de LLeida\" interpretat pel grup lleidatà La Violeta. Cançó i ball típics recuperats pel grup La Violeta. Cafè del Teatre (LLeida), 2006\nConcurs de garrotins a la taverna de la Fira Mediterrània de Manresa, novembre del 2007 (YouTube.com) Sopar popular celebrat a la Fira Mediterrània of Manresa .\n\"Garrotins al Combat de Corrandes\" a Santa Pau, la Garrotxa, març del 2009 (YouTube.com)\nGarrotins al concert de Miquel del Roig a Roda de Ter el 2010","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ea3d2c36-0c71-44a3-a770-137a65ec3ac0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"z6a8r2pxwd","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Garrotín”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ea3d2c36-0c71-44a3-a770-137a65ec3ac0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xedqx6h45j","content":[{"text":"Garrotín is music genre, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b7a9f6db-3fc7-464c-bf87-698d6a0fc6d7"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5xmbascwx0","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b7a9f6db-3fc7-464c-bf87-698d6a0fc6d7"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Éditeur : Dotesio (Paris)","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5e/La_Buenaventura%2C_garrotin_gitano_verdaaers._La_Bonnaventure_%28sic%29%2C_veritable_garrotin_gitane...._Paroles_et_musique_de_M._Sarrablo_-_bpt6k11614816_%287_of_8%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Sarrablo, Manuel. Compositeur. Auteur du texte","height":1705,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Éditeur : Dotesio (Paris)","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5e/La_Buenaventura%2C_garrotin_gitano_verdaaers._La_Bonnaventure_%28sic%29%2C_veritable_garrotin_gitane...._Paroles_et_musique_de_M._Sarrablo_-_bpt6k11614816_%287_of_8%29.jpg/960px-La_Buenaventura%2C_garrotin_gitano_verdaaers._La_Bonnaventure_%28sic%29%2C_veritable_garrotin_gitane...._Paroles_et_musique_de_M._Sarrablo_-_bpt6k11614816_%287_of_8%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:La_Buenaventura,_garrotin_gitano_verdaaers._La_Bonnaventure_(sic),_veritable_garrotin_gitane...._Paroles_et_musique_de_M._Sarrablo_-_bpt6k11614816_(7_of_8).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5e/La_Buenaventura%2C_garrotin_gitano_verdaaers._La_Bonnaventure_%28sic%29%2C_veritable_garrotin_gitane...._Paroles_et_musique_de_M._Sarrablo_-_bpt6k11614816_%287_of_8%29.jpg/1280px-La_Buenaventura%2C_garrotin_gitano_verdaaers._La_Bonnaventure_%28sic%29%2C_veritable_garrotin_gitane...._Paroles_et_musique_de_M._Sarrablo_-_bpt6k11614816_%287_of_8%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"Éditeur : Dotesio (Paris)","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ef/La_Buenaventura%2C_garrotin_gitano_verdaaers._La_Bonnaventure_%28sic%29%2C_veritable_garrotin_gitane...._Paroles_et_musique_de_M._Sarrablo_-_bpt6k11614816_%283_of_8%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Sarrablo, Manuel. Compositeur. Auteur du texte","height":1705,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Éditeur : Dotesio (Paris)","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ef/La_Buenaventura%2C_garrotin_gitano_verdaaers._La_Bonnaventure_%28sic%29%2C_veritable_garrotin_gitane...._Paroles_et_musique_de_M._Sarrablo_-_bpt6k11614816_%283_of_8%29.jpg/960px-La_Buenaventura%2C_garrotin_gitano_verdaaers._La_Bonnaventure_%28sic%29%2C_veritable_garrotin_gitane...._Paroles_et_musique_de_M._Sarrablo_-_bpt6k11614816_%283_of_8%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:La_Buenaventura,_garrotin_gitano_verdaaers._La_Bonnaventure_(sic),_veritable_garrotin_gitane...._Paroles_et_musique_de_M._Sarrablo_-_bpt6k11614816_(3_of_8).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ef/La_Buenaventura%2C_garrotin_gitano_verdaaers._La_Bonnaventure_%28sic%29%2C_veritable_garrotin_gitane...._Paroles_et_musique_de_M._Sarrablo_-_bpt6k11614816_%283_of_8%29.jpg/1280px-La_Buenaventura%2C_garrotin_gitano_verdaaers._La_Bonnaventure_%28sic%29%2C_veritable_garrotin_gitane...._Paroles_et_musique_de_M._Sarrablo_-_bpt6k11614816_%283_of_8%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"Éditeur : Dotesio (Paris)","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/48/La_Buenaventura%2C_garrotin_gitano_verdaaers._La_Bonnaventure_%28sic%29%2C_veritable_garrotin_gitane...._Paroles_et_musique_de_M._Sarrablo_-_bpt6k11614816_%282_of_8%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Sarrablo, Manuel. Compositeur. Auteur du texte","height":1697,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Éditeur : Dotesio (Paris)","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/48/La_Buenaventura%2C_garrotin_gitano_verdaaers._La_Bonnaventure_%28sic%29%2C_veritable_garrotin_gitane...._Paroles_et_musique_de_M._Sarrablo_-_bpt6k11614816_%282_of_8%29.jpg/960px-La_Buenaventura%2C_garrotin_gitano_verdaaers._La_Bonnaventure_%28sic%29%2C_veritable_garrotin_gitane...._Paroles_et_musique_de_M._Sarrablo_-_bpt6k11614816_%282_of_8%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:La_Buenaventura,_garrotin_gitano_verdaaers._La_Bonnaventure_(sic),_veritable_garrotin_gitane...._Paroles_et_musique_de_M._Sarrablo_-_bpt6k11614816_(2_of_8).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/48/La_Buenaventura%2C_garrotin_gitano_verdaaers._La_Bonnaventure_%28sic%29%2C_veritable_garrotin_gitane...._Paroles_et_musique_de_M._Sarrablo_-_bpt6k11614816_%282_of_8%29.jpg/1280px-La_Buenaventura%2C_garrotin_gitano_verdaaers._La_Bonnaventure_%28sic%29%2C_veritable_garrotin_gitane...._Paroles_et_musique_de_M._Sarrablo_-_bpt6k11614816_%282_of_8%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:19.902Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/garrotin"}
{"id":"d826e6ed-87f9-42fa-b2cb-66b0f876cb2b","type":"art_form","slug":"gatka","title":"Gatka","summary":"Gatka (Gurmukhi: ਗੱਤਕਾ. Shahmukhi: گَتّکا; gatkā), also known as Khutka, is a form of martial art associated primarily with the Sikhs of the Punjab. It is a style of stick-fighting, with wooden sticks intended to simulate swords.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"d8dhwft7zh","content":[{"text":"Gatka (Gurmukhi: ਗੱਤਕਾ. Shahmukhi: گَتّکا; gatkā), also known as Khutka, is a form of martial art associated primarily with the Sikhs of the Punjab. It is a style of stick-fighting, with wooden sticks intended to simulate swords. The Punjabi name, gatka, refers to the wooden stick used and this term might have originated as a diminutive of a Sanskrit word, gada, meaning \"mace\". It has been revived as a standardised, international sport. There are two forms, traditional and sport. It has also been described as a folk-dance.\nThe stick used in Gatka is made of wood and is usually 91–107 cm (36–42 in) long, with a thickness of around 12.7 mm (0.50 in). It comes with a fitted leather hilt, 15–18 cm (5.9–7.1 in) and is often decorated with Punjabi-style multi-coloured threads.\nThe other weapon used in the sport is a shield, natively known as phari. It is round in shape, measuring 23 by 23 centimetres (9.1 in × 9.1 in), and is made of dry leather. It is filled with either cotton or dry grass to protect the hand of player in case of full contact hit by an opponent.\nGatka originated in the Punjab in the 15th century as part of the Shastar Vidya martial art system. There has been a revival during the later 20th century, with an International Gatka Federation was founded in 1982 and formalized in 1987, and gatka is now popular as a sport or sword dance performance art and is often shown during Sikh festivals.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"63c0ef0d-3cd3-4a1d-8e34-c5a4bb621133"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gf1wpjb4me","content":[{"text":"There are claims of gatka's antecedents as a stick-fighting art, such as it being a surviving form of an ancient Indian martial-art, as showcased during Dussehra processions in relation to the Ramayana. There are a number of akharas where martial-arts were practiced, with it being claimed that gatka originates from Manu. Gatka has been connected to the Sikh martial-art Shastar Vidya, which is chiefly practicised by the Nihangs and associated historically with Guru Hargobind and Guru Gobind Singh. It developed as a style of fighting when outnumbered. Martial-arts has a long association with Sikhism, with Guru Angad believed to have sponsored wrestling and learnt it from Guru Nanak. Guru Ram Das founded the Mal Akhara in Amritsar and awarded a turban-of-victory to Guru Arjan after he won a wrestling match against the wrestler Maskeen. The next guru Guru Hargobind martialized the Sikhs further, such as the adoption of the principle of miri-piri. Originally, Gatka existed as a style under one branch (known as a aṅg) of the wider Shastar Vidya martial art system. Gatka originated as a stick-fighting style known as Gatkabazi under the Gadā yudh (stick/club fighting) branch of Shastar Vidya. Gatka's theory and techniques were taught by the Sikh gurus. It has been handed down in an unbroken lineage of ustāds (masters), and taught in many akharas (arenas) around the world. Gatka was employed in the Sikh wars and has been thoroughly battle-tested. It originates from the need to defend dharam (righteousness), but is also based on the unification of the spirit and body: miri piri).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"63c0ef0d-3cd3-4a1d-8e34-c5a4bb621133"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Competition","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bvmcm5w84t","content":[{"text":"Khel (meaning \"sport\" or \"game\") is the modern competitive aspect of gatka, originally used as a method of sword-training (fari‑gatka) or stick-fighting (lathi khela) in medieval times. While khel gatka is today most commonly associated with Sikhs in Punjab, India, it is also practiced to a smaller extent in Punjab and the Hazara region of Pakistan.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"63c0ef0d-3cd3-4a1d-8e34-c5a4bb621133"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Description","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jmdng7cgj9","content":[{"text":"A distinction between traditional shastar vidya and gatka is on lethality and exhibitionism, with the former being more lethal while the latter is more performative. There are two forms of gatka, khel (sport) and rasmi (ritualistic). There are at-least three types of gatka described in 1936:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"63c0ef0d-3cd3-4a1d-8e34-c5a4bb621133"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"h71whqby2y","content":[{"text":"Each player having two gatka sticks\nEach player having one gatka stick and one shield\nEach player only having one gatka stick (the most popular form)\nEach fight is around three-minutes long and consists of alternating offence and defence turns. The assailant earn points by striking the opponent. Clear strikes to the body, head, arms, legs, or feet of the opponent are permitted while hits to the face or ears, and those intended to cause injury, are fouls. Points earned vary depending on what part of the body are struck with one point for the lower body, two points for the upper torso, and three points for the back and head.\nWeapons fall into four categories, blunt, bladed, flexible and projectile. Common equipment includes a stick, staff, sword, or shield. The sticks (called soti) are meant to imitate swords, used now for safety reasons. Sotis are fire hardened bamboo, also known as ratan. Shields are known as farri. Other weapons used include the quarterstaff (lathi), bamboo stick with wooden or cloth balls on its ends (marhati), mace (gurj), push-dagger (katar), straight-blade (khanda), curved-sword (kirpan), curved-dagger (bichua), arrow (teer), spear (barcha), and curved-sword (talwār). As a sport, the overall theme is stop and attack, sparring consists of attacking, blocking, and counter-attacking. As a martial-art, it is used for self-defence and combat. For self-defence, aspects such as evasive footwork and practical hand techniques have utility.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"63c0ef0d-3cd3-4a1d-8e34-c5a4bb621133"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Influence on Defendu","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"v0n6ckevaz","content":[{"text":"The Defendu system devised by Captain William E. Fairbairn and Captain Eric Anthony Sykes borrowed methodologies from Gatka, jujutsu, Chinese martial arts and \"gutter fighting\". This method was used to train soldiers in close-combat techniques at the Commando Basic Training Centre at Achnacarry in Scotland.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"63c0ef0d-3cd3-4a1d-8e34-c5a4bb621133"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Weapons in Gatka","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"35df3p4ted","content":[{"text":"Kirpan (knife)\nTalwar (sabre)\nLathi (stick)\nChakkar (throwing ring)\nKhanda\nDhaal (shield)\nBarcha (lance)\nTeer-kamaan (bow and arrow)\nSaif (sword)\nKatar (push dagger)\nSirohi (cavalry sword)","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"63c0ef0d-3cd3-4a1d-8e34-c5a4bb621133"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kjv6cfs6dd","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Gatka”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"63c0ef0d-3cd3-4a1d-8e34-c5a4bb621133"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"td2kf5dng1","content":[{"text":"Gatka is Art of Traditional Indian Martial Arts, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"37e02073-4cf8-43e8-818e-8d497723037c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"agqy88as73","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"37e02073-4cf8-43e8-818e-8d497723037c"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Demonstration of the Sikh martial art of Gatka , at the head of a religious procession (celebrating the 538th birthday of Guru Nanak Dev ) by Sikhs in Bedford, Bedfordshire, England. It is taking place at on Kempston Road at the Junction with Britannia Road and the building in…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a8/GatkaSikhProcessionBedford.JPG?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Simon Speed","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Demonstration of the Sikh martial art of Gatka , at the head of a religious procession (celebrating the 538th birthday of Guru Nanak Dev ) by Sikhs in Bedford, Bedfordshire, England. It is taking place at on Kempston Road at the Junction with Britannia Road and the building in…","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a8/GatkaSikhProcessionBedford.JPG/960px-GatkaSikhProcessionBedford.JPG?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:GatkaSikhProcessionBedford.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a8/GatkaSikhProcessionBedford.JPG?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail_unscaled"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:05.665Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/gatka"}
{"id":"b22057a7-bf4e-4ccd-9b0e-d7ca5065a5bb","type":"art_form","slug":"gaudiya-nritya","title":"Gaudiya Nritya","summary":"Gaudiya Nritya (Bengali: Gaur̤īẏa Nṛtya or Gour̤īyo Nrityo) is a classical dance form of Bengal.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4q31fcp6q5","content":[{"text":"Gaudiya Nritya (Bengali: Gaur̤īẏa Nṛtya or Gour̤īyo Nrityo) is a classical dance form of Bengal. This dance expressed religious stories through songs written and composed to the ragas and talas of Gaudiya music by ancient poets, especially Vaishnavism. Gaudiya Nritya performances have also expressed ideas of other traditions related to the Hindu deities Shiva and Ganesha, as well as Shakta concepts. It was reconstructed by Mahua Mukherjee in the 1980s and a research scholarship has since been awarded for it by the Indian Ministry of Culture.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"53c36a53-b7b6-49a5-b449-23f661efad8a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zye6z3v5e2","content":[{"text":"On 21 September 1994, The name Gaudiya Nritya was adopted on the advice of Indologist Bratindra Nath Mukhopadhyay. Reasons for this designation include: in ancient times – the reign of Shashanka and the Pala and Sena eras – the whole of Bengal was referred to as Gauda and the presence of the Gaudiya style in Indian music and literature. Also, in the seventeenth century, Sangeet Shastrakar Maheswara Mohapatra of Odisha mentions seven types of dance styles in his Sanskrit treatise Abhinaya Chandrika including Gaudiya dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"53c36a53-b7b6-49a5-b449-23f661efad8a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"e9apyb4336","content":[{"text":"The theoretical foundations of Gaurika dance can be found in the ancient Sanskrit text Natyashastra; Its existence in ancient times is attested by dance poses in sculptures of the Gaudiya style temple and archaeological sites associated with Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism and it is mentioned by ancient poets of Bengal. After India's independence from colonial rule, it underwent revival, reconstruction and expansion in the 1980s.\nIt has been reconstructed by Mahua Mukherjee, a Bengali researcher and dancer. A research scholarship was awarded by the Ministry of Culture for this dance-based research, which is mainly offered to recognize Indian classical dances. Rabindra Bharati University and University of Oklahoma have recognized it as a classical dance form.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"53c36a53-b7b6-49a5-b449-23f661efad8a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Music and instruments","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"r25505eyg3","content":[{"text":"Like other classical dances of India, the development of Gauḍīya Nṛtya is also based on religion and centered on deities. Therefore, naturally, its songs are also religious. Various types of Prabandha-gītis (essay songs), such as Kīrtana, Bhāvasaṅgīta, etc., are associated with Gauḍīya Nṛtya.  The Prabandha-gīti has 6 angas to, and 5 jātis based on the number of angas. The angas are svara, viruda, pada, tenaka, pāṭa and tāla.  Kīrtana is the mainstay of Gauḍīya Nṛtya. According to Svāmī Prajñānānanda, all six angas of the Prabandha-gīti are present in Kīrtana, and it is a Medinī type of Prabandha-gīti. Kīrtana song is a form of advanced Prabandha-gīti.\nIn Gauḍīya Nṛtya, tāla is measured by varṇakāla. This concept is referred to as akṣarakāla in Carnatic music and as mātrā in Hindustani music. Different tālas are formed through specific numerical combinations of varṇakālas; in Gauḍīya Nṛtya, there are various distinct tālas ranging from four varṇakālas up to sixty-eight varṇakālas. For example, four varṇakālas constitute Āditāla or Rāsatāla, whereas six or twelve varṇakālas constitute Lophā, whose other commonly known name is Japatāla. An eight-varṇakāla tāla features Cañcupuṭa or Kārphā, among others. In Gauḍīya Nṛtya, Āditāla or Rāsatāla is considered the foundation.\nThe main instruments in Gauḍīya Nṛtya are the Pakhavaj and the Shrikhol. In addition, other instruments are used at special times, in special roles, to create atmosphere and rasas.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"53c36a53-b7b6-49a5-b449-23f661efad8a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vkmhgjnd92","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Gaudiya Nritya”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"53c36a53-b7b6-49a5-b449-23f661efad8a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"y7241earr2","content":[{"text":"Gaudiya Nritya is Bengali classical dance tradition, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"784ecd33-cc97-4340-8713-c2b21c8bd81d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bhgacd92f5","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"784ecd33-cc97-4340-8713-c2b21c8bd81d"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"On Wednesday, December 27, 2017, Asaduzzaman Noor, the Minister for Cultural Affairs, addressed the All Bengal Writer-Artist Conference on Gaudiya Nritya, the classical dance of Bengal, organized by the Bangiya Sahitya Sanskriti Sangsad at the National Museum's main auditorium…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d0/2017-12-27_Asaduzzaman_Noor_addresses_All_Bengal_Writer-Artist_Conference_on_Gaudiya_Nritya_at_National_Museum_Dhaka_%28PID-0046409%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Press Information Department","height":910,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"On Wednesday, December 27, 2017, Asaduzzaman Noor, the Minister for Cultural Affairs, addressed the All Bengal Writer-Artist Conference on Gaudiya Nritya, the classical dance of Bengal, organized by the Bangiya Sahitya Sanskriti Sangsad at the National Museum's main auditorium…","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d0/2017-12-27_Asaduzzaman_Noor_addresses_All_Bengal_Writer-Artist_Conference_on_Gaudiya_Nritya_at_National_Museum_Dhaka_%28PID-0046409%29.jpg/960px-2017-12-27_Asaduzzaman_Noor_addresses_All_Bengal_Writer-Artist_Conference_on_Gaudiya_Nritya_at_National_Museum_Dhaka_%28PID-0046409%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:2017-12-27_Asaduzzaman_Noor_addresses_All_Bengal_Writer-Artist_Conference_on_Gaudiya_Nritya_at_National_Museum_Dhaka_(PID-0046409).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d0/2017-12-27_Asaduzzaman_Noor_addresses_All_Bengal_Writer-Artist_Conference_on_Gaudiya_Nritya_at_National_Museum_Dhaka_%28PID-0046409%29.jpg/1280px-2017-12-27_Asaduzzaman_Noor_addresses_All_Bengal_Writer-Artist_Conference_on_Gaudiya_Nritya_at_National_Museum_Dhaka_%28PID-0046409%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"Padabali Nritya refers to a traditional dance form based on Vaishnava Padabali (poetry) and is often associated with the classical Gaudiya Nritya of Bengal.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ee/Padabali_Nritya_by_Anuradha_Roy_of_Sri_Hamsavahini_Kalalayam_27.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Goutam1962","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Padabali Nritya refers to a traditional dance form based on Vaishnava Padabali (poetry) and is often associated with the classical Gaudiya Nritya of Bengal.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ee/Padabali_Nritya_by_Anuradha_Roy_of_Sri_Hamsavahini_Kalalayam_27.jpg/960px-Padabali_Nritya_by_Anuradha_Roy_of_Sri_Hamsavahini_Kalalayam_27.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Padabali_Nritya_by_Anuradha_Roy_of_Sri_Hamsavahini_Kalalayam_27.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ee/Padabali_Nritya_by_Anuradha_Roy_of_Sri_Hamsavahini_Kalalayam_27.jpg/1280px-Padabali_Nritya_by_Anuradha_Roy_of_Sri_Hamsavahini_Kalalayam_27.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Padabali Nritya refers to a traditional dance form based on Vaishnava Padabali (poetry) and is often associated with the classical Gaudiya Nritya of Bengal.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/90/Padabali_Nritya_by_Anuradha_Roy_of_Sri_Hamsavahini_Kalalayam_36.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Goutam1962","height":1920,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Padabali Nritya refers to a traditional dance form based on Vaishnava Padabali (poetry) and is often associated with the classical Gaudiya Nritya of Bengal.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/90/Padabali_Nritya_by_Anuradha_Roy_of_Sri_Hamsavahini_Kalalayam_36.jpg/960px-Padabali_Nritya_by_Anuradha_Roy_of_Sri_Hamsavahini_Kalalayam_36.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Padabali_Nritya_by_Anuradha_Roy_of_Sri_Hamsavahini_Kalalayam_36.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/90/Padabali_Nritya_by_Anuradha_Roy_of_Sri_Hamsavahini_Kalalayam_36.jpg/1280px-Padabali_Nritya_by_Anuradha_Roy_of_Sri_Hamsavahini_Kalalayam_36.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:19.057Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/gaudiya-nritya"}
{"id":"42859aa5-0ea3-4f1b-bc11-d8a8f8f33981","type":"art_form","slug":"gavotte","title":"gavotte","summary":"The gavotte (also gavot, gavote, or gavotta) is a French dance, taking its name from a folk dance of the Gavot, the people of the Pays de Gap region of Dauphiné in the southeast of France, where the dance originated, according to one source…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"v2gq09byxg","content":[{"text":"The gavotte (also gavot, gavote, or gavotta) is a French dance, taking its name from a folk dance of the Gavot, the people of the Pays de Gap region of Dauphiné in the southeast of France, where the dance originated, according to one source. According to another reference, the word gavotte is a generic term for a variety of French folk dances, and most likely originated in Lower Brittany in the west, or possibly Provence in the southeast or the French Basque Country in the southwest of France. It is notated in 44 or 22 time and is usually of moderate tempo, though the folk dances also use meters such as 98 and 58.\nIn late 16th-century Renaissance dance, the gavotte is first mentioned as the last of a suite of branles. Popular at the court of Louis XIV, it became one of many optional dances in the classical suite of dances. Many were composed by Lully, Rameau and Gluck, and the 17th-century cibell is a variety. The dance was popular in France throughout the 18th century and spread widely. In early courtly use the gavotte involved kissing, but this was replaced by the presentation of flowers.\nThe gavotte of the 16th, 17th, and 18th centuries has nothing in common with the 19th-century column-dance called the \"gavotte\" but may be compared with the rigaudon and the bourrée.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3b53b11d-a492-4279-867c-b27ec12127d0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w1t9jckpaw","content":[{"text":"The term gavotte for a lively dance originated in the 1690s from Old Provençal gavoto (mountaineer's dance) from gavot, a local name for an Alpine resident, said to mean literally \"boor\", \"glutton\", from gaver (to stuff, force-feed poultry) from Old Provençal gava (crop). The word is cognate to French gavache (coward, dastard). The Italianized form is gavotta.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3b53b11d-a492-4279-867c-b27ec12127d0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Musical characteristics","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dm4j6g236t","content":[{"text":"The phrases of the 18th-century French court gavotte begin in the middle of the bar, creating a half-measure (half-bar) upbeat. However the music for the earlier court gavotte, first described by Thoinot Arbeau in 1589, invariably began on the downbeat of a duple measure. Later composers also wrote gavottes that began on the downbeat rather than on the half-measure: an example is Jean-Philippe Rameau's Gavotte Variée in A minor for keyboard. Various folk gavottes found in mid-20th-century Brittany are danced to music in 44, 24, 98, and 58 time.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3b53b11d-a492-4279-867c-b27ec12127d0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"50867bpcs9","content":[{"text":"In the ballroom the gavotte was often paired with a preceding triple-time minuet: both dances are stately, and the gavotte's lifted step contrasted with the shuffling minuet step. It had a steady rhythm, not broken up into faster notes.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3b53b11d-a492-4279-867c-b27ec12127d0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"esp42fzdbg","content":[{"text":"In the Baroque suite the gavotte is played after (or sometimes before) the sarabande. Like most dance movements of the Baroque period it is typically in binary form but this may be extended by a second melody in the same metre, often one called the musette, having a pedal drone to imitate the French bagpipes, played after the first to create a grand ternary form; A–(A)–B–A. There is a Gavotte en Rondeau (\"Gavotte in rondo form\") in J.S. Bach's Partita No. 3 in E Major for solo violin, BWV 1006.\nThe gavotte could be played at a variety of tempos: Johann Gottfried Walther wrote that the gavotte is \"often quick but occasionally slow\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3b53b11d-a492-4279-867c-b27ec12127d0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Renaissance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ck1ryzw8xd","content":[{"text":"The gavotte is first described in the late 16th century as a suite or miscellany of double branles danced in a line or circle to music in duple time, \"with little springs in the manner of the Haut Barrois\" branle and with some of the steps \"divided\" with figures borrowed from the galliard.\nThe basic gavotte step, as described by Arbeau, is that of the common or double branle, a line of dancers moving alternately to the left and right with a double à gauche and double à droite, each requiring a count of four. In the double branle these composite steps consist of; a pied largi (firm outward step), a pied approche (the other foot drawn near to the first), another pied largi and a pied joint (the other foot drawn against the first).\nIn the gavotte's double à gauche a skip (petit saut) is inserted after each of the four components; the second pied largi is replaced by a marque pied croisé (the following foot crosses over the left with toe contacting the floor); the final pied approche is replaced by a grève croisée (the right foot crosses over the left, raised).\nThe double à droite begins with a pieds joints and petit saut, followed by two quick steps, a marque pied gauche croisé and marque pied droit croisé, during beat two, a grève droit croisée and petit saut on beat three and on the last beat pieds joints and a capriole (leap into the air with entrechat).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3b53b11d-a492-4279-867c-b27ec12127d0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Baroque","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qtqxjhb1hd","content":[{"text":"The gavotte became popular in the court of Louis XIV where Jean-Baptiste Lully was the leading court composer. Gaétan Vestris did much to define the dance. Subsequently many composers of the Baroque period incorporated the dance as one of many optional additions to the standard instrumental suite of the era. The examples in suites and partitas by Johann Sebastian Bach are well known.\nMovements of early 18th-century musical works entitled Tempo di gavotta sometimes indicated the sense of a gavotte rhythm or movement, without fitting the number of measures or strains typical of the actual dance. Examples of these can be found in the works of Arcangelo Corelli or Johann Sebastian Bach.\nGeorge Frideric Handel wrote a number of gavottes, including the fifth-and-final movement, Allegro, of the Concerto Grosso in B-flat major, Op. 3, No. 2, HWV 313.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3b53b11d-a492-4279-867c-b27ec12127d0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Later examples","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"aenpw87c7x","content":[{"text":"Composers in the 19th century wrote gavottes that began, like the 16th-century gavotte, on the downbeat rather than on the half-measure upbeat. The famous Gavotte in D by Gossec is such an example, as is the Gavotte in Massenet's Manon but not the one in Ambroise Thomas's Mignon. A gavotte also occurs in the second act of The Gondoliers and the Act I finale of Ruddigore, both by Gilbert and Sullivan.\nEdvard Grieg's suite From Holberg's Time, based on eighteenth-century dance forms, features a \"Gavotte\" as its third movement (1884).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3b53b11d-a492-4279-867c-b27ec12127d0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6pwfre7gp9","content":[{"text":"Australian composer Fred Werner used a gavotte he composed for teaching students.\nIgor Stravinsky's ballet Pulcinella features a \"Gavotta con due variazioni\", as number 18, and movement VI in the suite (1922).\nSergei Prokofiev employs a gavotte instead of a minuet in his Symphony No. 1 (Classical), Op. 25 (1917), and includes another one as the second of his Ten Piano Pieces Op. 12 (1913), and another as the third of his Four Piano Pieces, Op. 32 (1918).\nLeonard Bernstein's Candide has a \"Venice Gavotte\" in act 2.\n\"The Ascot Gavotte\" is a song in the 1956 musical My Fair Lady by Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3b53b11d-a492-4279-867c-b27ec12127d0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6s9ks7w7w9","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Gavotte”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3b53b11d-a492-4279-867c-b27ec12127d0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tnhhq6b9r5","content":[{"text":"gavotte is French dance, taking its name from a folk dance of the Gavot, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"82344224-d373-4a8b-889d-d724aa571f68"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w7x536pjqp","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 23 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"82344224-d373-4a8b-889d-d724aa571f68"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:07.405Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/gavotte"}
{"id":"66acfd2f-1b2b-434f-8894-fb12c0212fe0","type":"art_form","slug":"gay-gordons","title":"Gay Gordons","summary":"The Gay Gordons is a Scottish country dance. The usual tune was written by James Scott Skinner. It was also known as The Gordon Highlanders' March, first printed in the collection \"Monikie Series no 3\" in c 1890.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4w4j0jqwwp","content":[{"text":"The Gay Gordons is a Scottish country dance. The usual tune was written by James Scott Skinner. It was also known as The Gordon Highlanders' March, first printed in the collection \"Monikie Series no 3\" in c 1890. Jimmy Shand made a recording of it in 1942.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"07db30c7-9993-4c3f-9d52-8c2759e87393"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance instructions","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"66rr867a89","content":[{"text":"A standard ceilidh instruction:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"07db30c7-9993-4c3f-9d52-8c2759e87393"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zhdr0s95ss","content":[{"text":"Formation: couples in a circle around the room facing anti-clockwise, ladies on the right.\nMusic: 2/4 or 4/4 march. E.g. \"Scotland the Brave\", \"The Gay Gordons\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"07db30c7-9993-4c3f-9d52-8c2759e87393"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4sz9wzbp1h","content":[{"text":"Repeat ad lib. In order to make the dance progressive, the ladies may leave their partners between bars 12-13 and move to the partner before them in the circle.\nFor Scottish country dancers, the grip in the first eight bars is allemande hold.\nA live demonstration was performed by the Royal Scottish Country Dancing Society [1] in 2007.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"07db30c7-9993-4c3f-9d52-8c2759e87393"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b33tersxjp","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Gay Gordons (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"07db30c7-9993-4c3f-9d52-8c2759e87393"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"703t6bc8q9","content":[{"text":"Gay Gordons is Scottish country dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fb57ff16-731f-450b-b86d-39e4e37cc190"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b2exe29pgj","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fb57ff16-731f-450b-b86d-39e4e37cc190"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Manchester Pride 2025 Gay Gordons","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/10/Manchester_Pride_2025_Gay_Gordons.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Rathfelder","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Manchester Pride 2025 Gay Gordons","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/10/Manchester_Pride_2025_Gay_Gordons.jpg/960px-Manchester_Pride_2025_Gay_Gordons.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Manchester_Pride_2025_Gay_Gordons.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/10/Manchester_Pride_2025_Gay_Gordons.jpg/1280px-Manchester_Pride_2025_Gay_Gordons.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"},{"alt":"Gay Pride London 2007, photos from Trafalgar Square.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cf/Pride_London_2007_102.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Fæ","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Gay Pride London 2007, photos from Trafalgar Square.","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cf/Pride_London_2007_102.JPG/960px-Pride_London_2007_102.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pride_London_2007_102.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cf/Pride_London_2007_102.JPG/1280px-Pride_London_2007_102.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"},{"alt":"Gay Pride London 2007, photos from Trafalgar Square.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/45/Pride_London_2007_101.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Fæ","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Gay Pride London 2007, photos from Trafalgar Square.","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/45/Pride_London_2007_101.JPG/960px-Pride_London_2007_101.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pride_London_2007_101.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/45/Pride_London_2007_101.JPG/1280px-Pride_London_2007_101.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:19.330Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/gay-gordons"}
{"id":"c1a8973b-c215-457e-ace9-40b178d0d98e","type":"art_form","slug":"geommu","title":"Geommu","summary":"Geommu (also transliterated Gummu, Kommu) is a traditional sword dance practiced in Korea. Geommu is performed with special costume, dance moves, and music. The dance is known for its grace in performance.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s3y0rm2mmd","content":[{"text":"Geommu (also transliterated Gummu, Kommu) is a traditional sword dance practiced in Korea. Geommu is performed with special costume, dance moves, and music. The dance is known for its grace in performance. Extra emphasis is placed on the movement of the costuming, notably the sleeves, in harmony with the movements of the dancer. The symbolic use of ssang dan geom, i.e. a replica of dual short swords, keeps to the militaristic origins of this dance. Geom-mu has become a dance of great beauty and is treasured as the South Korea's 12th Important Intangible Cultural Property.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"63de604a-4455-48b6-bcd7-f343780f944d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"efbkwajsxm","content":[{"text":"According to legend, Geommu originated during the later portion of the Three Kingdoms of Korea with estimates placing it near 660 AD. At that time, Korea was divided into the three kingdoms, Silla, Baekje, and Goguryeo. The legend of Geommu states that a young boy in Silla named Hwangchang had an unusual talent for sword dance. His talent brought him great fame, even in the enemy kingdom, Baekje. One day, a king of Baekje invited him to his court to perform his great skill. The boy performed but in an act of great defiance killed the king before the royal assembly. Hwangchang was executed by the Baekje military. People in Silla expressed their respect and sorrow at Hwangchang's death by dancing in imitation of Hwangchang's abilities, adorning a mask which was made to resemble his face. Thereafter, people named this dance \"Hwangchangmu\".\nSurviving as a folk dance and cultural asset, Geommu was considerably changed during the Joseon Dynasty period from 1392 through 1910. At that point Geommu was rearranged by the Royal Court and recreated by the Kisaeng. The Kisaeng learned the formalized dance through the Gwonbeon, a pre-Korean War performance institution comparable to the Geisha tradition of Japan. One major change was the Kisaeng  performers discontinued wearing the traditional mask while dancing Geommu. Geommu has  remained a Court dance in the form of Jinju Geommu but has also retained its status as a primarily female dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"63de604a-4455-48b6-bcd7-f343780f944d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Costume and sword","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8e4tks2exv","content":[{"text":"Dancers of Geommu wear Hanbok, Kwaeja (overcoat), Jeon-Dae (belt), and Jeon-Rip (military style cap). Hanbok is the traditional Korean dress that consists of Chima (a skirt) and Jeogori (a jacket). These elements combine to form a stylized version of the Joseon Dynasty military uniform. The costume traditionally has the colors of blue, red, yellow, green and black but many regional variations exist. The Jinju region has a blue Chima and a jade green Jeogori. Gwangju in the Jeolla Province has a red Chima and a light green Jeogori.\nThe knife or kal (칼) is the replica sword used in geommu, also referred to as a short sword, dangeom or dando (단검; 단도). Between the blade and the handle of a kal are three rings. These three rings have varying sizes and make sounds when performers dance the geommu.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"63de604a-4455-48b6-bcd7-f343780f944d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Performing geommu","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ddc1b66383","content":[{"text":"Geommu is a group dancing activity performed by 6 to 8 performers. It has two unique characters which are chumsawi, a dance motion, and changdan, rhythmic cycle or 'long and short'. There are three typical motions, Ipchum-sawi, Anjeon-sawi, and Yeonpungdae. In Ipchum-sawi the dancers form two rows and stand face to face. Anjeon-sawi is to dance kneeling down while maintaining the two rows of Ipchum-sawi. The last motion, Yeonpungdae, the dancers form a circle and rotate in pattern.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"63de604a-4455-48b6-bcd7-f343780f944d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Variations","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9xkz9r2y0t","content":[{"text":"Geommu is a compound of the Korean words \"geom\", meaning sword, and \"mu\", meaning dance. This name applies to the base martial form of the dance. The dance is also known by the term hwangchangmu in reference to its origin story. The royal court version of the dance is called Jinju geommu.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"63de604a-4455-48b6-bcd7-f343780f944d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Geommu and Changdan rhythmic patterns","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wwcaw40j8g","content":[{"text":"In Geommu, special rhythmic cycles called Changdan appear. Changdan is usually made by Janggu, a double-headed hourglass drum and Buk, a barrel drum. In Korea there are many variations of Changdan with each name designating a certain type of meter, tempo, and beat. Basic nature of Korean rhythmic patterns may be described as having these four main characteristics (Garland encyclopedia of world: East Asia- China, Japan, Korea, p. 901).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"63de604a-4455-48b6-bcd7-f343780f944d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wp0vmt76ry","content":[{"text":"A length of time, short enough to be held easily in memory and quickly recognized.\nA sense of speed (not tempo, which is related to beat)\nA typical meter, which fills the length of time\nCharacteristic events the rhythmic pattern","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"63de604a-4455-48b6-bcd7-f343780f944d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xhe2vp2d24","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Geommu”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"63de604a-4455-48b6-bcd7-f343780f944d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f6tw30d1aq","content":[{"text":"Geommu is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"34860e30-ad76-4976-895d-9d93db867bcb"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8epwh051gh","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"34860e30-ad76-4976-895d-9d93db867bcb"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Korean sword dance-Jinju geommu","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/64/Korean_sword_dance-Jinju_geommu-09.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"SJ Yang","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Korean sword dance-Jinju geommu","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/64/Korean_sword_dance-Jinju_geommu-09.jpg/960px-Korean_sword_dance-Jinju_geommu-09.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Korean_sword_dance-Jinju_geommu-09.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/64/Korean_sword_dance-Jinju_geommu-09.jpg/1280px-Korean_sword_dance-Jinju_geommu-09.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"},{"alt":"Geommu is performed with special costume, dance motions, and music.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/57/Geommu%28Sword_dance%29_%284420816591%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Korea.net / Korean Culture and Information Service","height":811,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Geommu is performed with special costume, dance motions, and music.","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/57/Geommu%28Sword_dance%29_%284420816591%29.jpg/960px-Geommu%28Sword_dance%29_%284420816591%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Geommu(Sword_dance)_(4420816591).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/57/Geommu%28Sword_dance%29_%284420816591%29.jpg/1280px-Geommu%28Sword_dance%29_%284420816591%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"},{"alt":"Geommu is performed with special costume, dance motions, and music.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3f/Geommu%28Sword_dance%29_%284420813757%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Korea.net / Korean Culture and Information Service","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Geommu is performed with special costume, dance motions, and music.","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3f/Geommu%28Sword_dance%29_%284420813757%29.jpg/960px-Geommu%28Sword_dance%29_%284420813757%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Geommu(Sword_dance)_(4420813757).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3f/Geommu%28Sword_dance%29_%284420813757%29.jpg/1280px-Geommu%28Sword_dance%29_%284420813757%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:13.318Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/geommu"}
{"id":"49e3f7b8-aee9-48fb-ad94-9c38d60c284b","type":"art_form","slug":"georgian-folk-dance","title":"Georgian folk dance","summary":"The Georgian dance (Georgian: ქართული ცეკვა), commonly known as Kartuli, is the traditional dance of Georgia. It stems from military moves, sports games, and dances celebrated during holidays in the Middle Ages.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0q4wg56wyv","content":[{"text":"The Georgian dance (Georgian: ქართული ცეკვა), commonly known as Kartuli, is the traditional dance of Georgia. It stems from military moves, sports games, and dances celebrated during holidays in the Middle Ages. The dance was popularized by the founders of the Georgian National Ballet, Iliko Sukhishvili, and his wife, Nino Ramishvili.\nTwo folk dances, Perkhuli and Khorumi, are on the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Georgia list.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7a7c4123-ef9c-4e02-b083-7b44553404d8"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xyt26amxct","content":[{"text":"The folk dances of the Georgian people have an ancient history, as evidenced by numerous historical sources and archaeological findings.\nGeorgian tribes inhabited the eastern part of the Black Sea coast several centuries before the adoption of Christianity. The works of the ancient Greek geographer Strabo contain vivid descriptions of the pagan rituals of the Georgians, which included elements of dance. The arrival of Christianity introduced significant changes into the life of the population; however, many rituals were preserved and adapted to the new religion. Within these rituals, dance gradually assumed a leading role, while the religious content diminished. In this way, Georgian dances developed into an integral element of folk artistic culture.\nIt is known that by the 4th century BCE, secular music was widespread among Georgian tribes. The Colchian tribes began their battles with martial songs and dances.\nDuring the medieval period, dance became increasingly professionalized, and performances were frequently held in the palaces of kings and feudal lords. At this time, solo and paired dances underwent significant development, and canonical dance movements became firmly established.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7a7c4123-ef9c-4e02-b083-7b44553404d8"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Kartuli","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gms6a8y2yy","content":[{"text":"Kartuli (ქართული) dance is a romantic, or wedding dance, performed by a couple. During the dance, the man is not allowed to touch the woman and must keep a certain distance. The man's upper body is motionless at all times. It shows that even in love, men must control their feelings. The man focuses his eyes on his partner as if she were the only woman in the whole world. The woman keeps her eyes downcast at all times and glides on the rough floor as a swan on the smooth surface of a lake. There have been only a few great performers of Kartuli including Nino Ramishvili, Iliko Sukhishvili, Iamze Dolaberidze, and Pridon Sulaberidze.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7a7c4123-ef9c-4e02-b083-7b44553404d8"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Khorumi","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vhvgpvvhc4","content":[{"text":"Khorumi (ხორუმი) is a war dance originating in Guria, southwestern Georgia, and is based on the numerous invasions of the country. The dance was originally performed by only a few men. However, over time it has grown. In today's version of Khorumi, 30-40 dancers can participate, as long as the number is odd. The dance has four parts: searching for a campsite, the reconnoiter of the enemy camp, the fight, and the victory and its celebration. It is strong and simple but distinctive movements and precise lines create a sense of awe. The dance portrays the themes of search war, the celebration of victory, and the courage and glory of Georgian soldiers. Khorumi is traditionally accompanied by instruments and is not accompanied by clapping. Drum (doli) and the bagpipe (chiboni) are two key instruments to  accompany Khorumi. Another unique element of Khorumi is that it has a specific rhythm, based on five beat meter (3+2).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7a7c4123-ef9c-4e02-b083-7b44553404d8"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Acharuli","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m64y9t5v5z","content":[{"text":"Acharuli (აჭარული) is a bright and cheerful dance that originates from the Adjara region of Georgia. It portrays playful flirtation between men and women. The mood of the dance is relaxed, joyful, and lively, with dancers wearing colorful costumes, predominantly featuring the color red. Unlike the Kartuli dance, the interaction between men and women in Acharuli is more relaxed and informal.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7a7c4123-ef9c-4e02-b083-7b44553404d8"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Partsa","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8bzvbmjwfv","content":[{"text":"Partsa (ფარცა) is a fast pace dance originating in Guria and is characterized by its rhythm, festive mood, and colorfulness. Partsa mesmerizes the audience with not only speed and gracefulness, but also with \"live towers\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7a7c4123-ef9c-4e02-b083-7b44553404d8"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"af1qpckv44","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Georgian dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7a7c4123-ef9c-4e02-b083-7b44553404d8"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7tf2f2xyyd","content":[{"text":"Georgian folk dance is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8d3c4e84-48ea-4b38-a3ab-763ec8f5a833"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tq2w1gbbf8","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8d3c4e84-48ea-4b38-a3ab-763ec8f5a833"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Georgian Folk dance \"Simdi\" (Ossetian Folk dance \"Simd\"), performed by Sukhishvili Ensemble","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/20/Georgian_folk_dance_Simdi.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Alsandro","height":816,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Georgian Folk dance \"Simdi\" (Ossetian Folk dance \"Simd\"), performed by Sukhishvili Ensemble","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/20/Georgian_folk_dance_Simdi.JPG/960px-Georgian_folk_dance_Simdi.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Georgian_folk_dance_Simdi.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/20/Georgian_folk_dance_Simdi.JPG/1280px-Georgian_folk_dance_Simdi.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"},{"alt":"Georgian folk dance \"Davluri\", performed by Sukhishvili Ensmeble, November 2007.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/be/Georgian_folk_dance_Davluri.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Alsandro","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Georgian folk dance \"Davluri\", performed by Sukhishvili Ensmeble, November 2007.","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/be/Georgian_folk_dance_Davluri.JPG/960px-Georgian_folk_dance_Davluri.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Georgian_folk_dance_Davluri.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/be/Georgian_folk_dance_Davluri.JPG/1280px-Georgian_folk_dance_Davluri.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"},{"alt":"Georgian national folk dance, performed by Sukhihsvili Ensemble in New York during their US tour, Fall 2007.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/80/Georgian_Folk_Dance_1.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Alsandro","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Georgian national folk dance, performed by Sukhihsvili Ensemble in New York during their US tour, Fall 2007.","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/80/Georgian_Folk_Dance_1.JPG/960px-Georgian_Folk_Dance_1.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Georgian_Folk_Dance_1.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/80/Georgian_Folk_Dance_1.JPG/1280px-Georgian_Folk_Dance_1.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:04.821Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/georgian-folk-dance"}
{"id":"a4659eb4-0c25-4271-9121-f2fbd1e44d59","type":"art_form","slug":"ghoomar","title":"Ghoomar","summary":"Ghoomar or ghumar is a traditional folk dance of Rajasthan. It was the Bhil tribe who performed it to worship Goddess Saraswati which was later embraced by Rajputs.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"31cp0yek60","content":[{"text":"Ghoomar or ghumar is a traditional folk dance of Rajasthan. It was the Bhil tribe who performed it to worship Goddess Saraswati which was later embraced by Rajputs. The dance is chiefly performed by veiled women who wear flowing dresses called ghaghara. The dance typically involves performers pirouetting while moving in and out of a wide circle. The word ghoomna describes the twirling movement of the dancers and is the basis of the word ghoomar. \nAccording to the traditional rituals, newly married bride is expected to dance ghoomar on being welcomed to her new marital home. Ghoomar is often performed on special occasions, such as at weddings, festivals and religious occasions, which sometimes lasts for hours.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"46f803be-c09a-464e-83ff-e8dad0e83bbf"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gk4zybqv3v","content":[{"text":"Ghoomar is of Bhil tribe performed to worship goddess Sarasvati which was later embraced by other Rajasthani communities. Bheels were a strong community at that time and were in constant war with Rajput kings. After much fighting peace was made and they began interacting with each other. Ghoomar was performed at Rajputana by local women, later on Rajput elite women also started participating in the dance. Men were not allowed at these dance performances. Ghoomar became popular in the Indian state of Rajasthan during the reigns of Rajput kings, and is typically performed by women during auspicious occasions. Women perform ghoomar with ghoonghat on their head covering their face. The dance form acquires different style and slight change in attire with the different regions of Rajasthan. Ghoomar is performed with faster beats in areas adjoining Gujarat, steps similar to garba style, while slower beats in Dhaulpur Karauli Braj kshetra, similarly difference in attire and dancing style can be seen in Udaipur, Kota, Bundi etc.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"46f803be-c09a-464e-83ff-e8dad0e83bbf"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Ghoomar Songs","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"a2t6cxy57v","content":[{"text":"As a traditional dance, ghoomar often includes traditional songs such as \"Gorband\", \"Podina\", \"Rumal\" and \"Mor Bole Re\". Songs might be centered on royal legends or their traditions.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"46f803be-c09a-464e-83ff-e8dad0e83bbf"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"52r3czevs3","content":[{"text":"\"Jaipur jao to\"-Traditional Rajasthani Folk Dance [1]\n\"Chirmi Mhari Chirmali\"\n\"Aave Hichki\" - Traditional Rajasthani Ghoomar song\n\"Mhari Ghoomar Chye Nakhrali\"\n\"Jawai Ji Pawna\" - Rajasthani folk song\n\"Taara Ri Chundadi\"\n\"Mharo Gorband Nakhralo\"\n\"Naina Ra Lobhi\"\n\"Aur Rang De \"\n\"Ghoomar\"\n\"Surat Aap Ri Bannsa\"","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"46f803be-c09a-464e-83ff-e8dad0e83bbf"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Cultural impact","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"479nnm4br2","content":[{"text":"\"Gangaur Ghoomar Dance Academy\" was established by Maharani Rajmata Goverdhan Kumari of Santrampur in 1986, to preserve and promote ghoomar folk dance. The Government of India awarded her the fourth highest civilian honour of the Padma Shri, in 2007, for her contributions to arts.\nThe 2017 Bollywood film Padmaavat featured a popular song titled \"Ghoomar\" that showcased this traditional folk dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"46f803be-c09a-464e-83ff-e8dad0e83bbf"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7m5tn536ew","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Ghoomar”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"46f803be-c09a-464e-83ff-e8dad0e83bbf"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ac1dkcpexs","content":[{"text":"Ghoomar is traditional folk dance of Rajasthan, India and southern Asia, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f7140be6-4c94-4572-a637-9416fbfc1b52"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k8mg40haae","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f7140be6-4c94-4572-a637-9416fbfc1b52"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"This media has been taken in the country: India","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3b/Ghoomar_Dancer_in_Chokhi_Rajasthan.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Ktorrespr","height":872,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"This media has been taken in the country: India","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3b/Ghoomar_Dancer_in_Chokhi_Rajasthan.jpg/960px-Ghoomar_Dancer_in_Chokhi_Rajasthan.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ghoomar_Dancer_in_Chokhi_Rajasthan.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3b/Ghoomar_Dancer_in_Chokhi_Rajasthan.jpg/1280px-Ghoomar_Dancer_in_Chokhi_Rajasthan.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Ghoomar or ghumar is a traditional folk dance of Rajasthan.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/dc/Ghoomar_dancers_%28Rajasthan%2C_India%2C_2023%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Aali Jain","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Ghoomar or ghumar is a traditional folk dance of Rajasthan.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/dc/Ghoomar_dancers_%28Rajasthan%2C_India%2C_2023%29.jpg/960px-Ghoomar_dancers_%28Rajasthan%2C_India%2C_2023%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ghoomar_dancers_(Rajasthan,_India,_2023).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/dc/Ghoomar_dancers_%28Rajasthan%2C_India%2C_2023%29.jpg/1280px-Ghoomar_dancers_%28Rajasthan%2C_India%2C_2023%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"A beautiful waterfall near Jagdalpur on the way to Chitrakote falls.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8d/Ghoomar_Falls.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Drashokk","height":1707,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"A beautiful waterfall near Jagdalpur on the way to Chitrakote falls.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8d/Ghoomar_Falls.jpg/960px-Ghoomar_Falls.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ghoomar_Falls.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8d/Ghoomar_Falls.jpg/1280px-Ghoomar_Falls.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:19.631Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/ghoomar"}
{"id":"3a23e8c7-dd5c-4d17-b4ac-215572231082","type":"art_form","slug":"ghumura-dance","title":"Ghumura dance","summary":"Ghumura dance is a folk dance of Kalahandi district of the Indian state Odisha.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"r68cawyfza","content":[{"text":"Ghumura dance is a folk dance of Kalahandi district of the Indian state Odisha. It is classified as folk dance as the dress code of Ghumura resembles more like a tribal dance, but there are arguments about mudra and dance forms of Ghumura bearing more resemblance with other classical dance forms of India.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c634aae7-4f0d-42c0-b0ab-70944a199d5b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Mythology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"j4ztb3f67h","content":[{"text":"Beside historical evidence, the origin of Ghumura dance has taken into consideration public views and myths. Based on myth, poet Shivam Bhasin Panda wrote Ghumura Janma Bidhan in 1954. Nandini Bhasin and Gaganeswar have also described a myth regarding origin of Ghumura, in which they described that Chandra Dhwaja had originally established the dance and later it was taken over by a demon — Karttabirya Asura.\nAs per Chandi Purana Durga, the eternal deity of Shakti, asked all the Gods and Goddesses of heaven to lend their weapons, as instruments and conveyances to kill a demon king Mahisasur. One of the war-musical instruments collected was the Ghumura instrument that was formed by combination of a portion of Dambaru, a musical instrument of Lord Siva, and Veena of goddess Saraswati.\nAs per Mahabharata, Ghumura was used by Gods and Goddesses as a musical instrument during war. According to Sarala Mahabharata, during Satya Juga-Jenabali-Patana was the capital of the king Gogingh Daitya, grandson of Mahisasura. Many people accept that Mahisasura Jenabali-Patana of that age is the Junagarh of today. However, in the Madhya Parba of Mahabharat, Ghumura has been mentioned with description about killing of Gosingh Daitya. Sarala Dasa has also described it as the Rana-Badya (war music) of Mahisasura.\nA few experts believed Ghumura was a war music (Rana-Badya) of Ravana, demon king of Lanka, and Lanka-garh. Goddess Lankeswari, the favorite goddess of Ravana, is worshiped in the region. According to them after Lanka was destroyed by Hanuman and after Ravana was killed, Goddess Lankeswari left Lanka and came to settle in Jenabali-Patana (now it is Junagarh, Kalahandi) where she is worshiped.\nThere are myths about the origin of Nishan and Tala.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c634aae7-4f0d-42c0-b0ab-70944a199d5b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Archaeological aspects","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"j7nz2ygs05","content":[{"text":"Archaeological evidence proves that there are some cave painting from pre-historic period discovered from Gudahandi of Kalahandi and Yogi Matha of Nuapada district that looks like Ghumura, Damru and other attractive things. These rock art sites belongs to more than 8000 B.C. and from such painting the antiquity of musical instrument Ghumura and Damru can be imagined. It is also proved that during mythological age, Kalahandi had prosperous and developed civilization. The origin of Ghumura goes back to ancient times.\nThere is a beautiful waterfall in the river valley of Indravati, which was initially recognized by Chindak Nagas of Chakrakot. Many believe that Ghumura dance originated from this river valley and gradually spread into the areas between Indravati and Mahanadi, indicating this dance form belongs to the 10th century A.D. On the other hand, analysts opine that 'Banka-Paika' of Kalampur had carried Lankeswari deity with a grand procession of Ghumura music to Junagarh in 1008 A.D. when the Naga dynasty shifted their old capital from Jugasaipatna to Junagarh. The terracotta and stone objects found from medieval site in Nehena, 3 km from Khariar, resembles Ghumura object dated to the 9th and 10th centuries. In the 12th century A.D. Ghumura dance was already popular, which is evident from a scene of one person playing the instrument Ghumura in a stone-hole of Nritya Mandir of Konark Sun Temple. Bhimeswar temple in Bhubaneswar shows another scene of Ghumura dance reconfirming that origin of Ghumura dance was in the 10th century A.D.\nDr Mahendra Kumar Mishra, a noted folklorist and ethnomusicologist of Kalahandi, has researched extensively on ethnography of Ghumra dance of kalahandi, which can be accessed in the website www.scribd.com.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c634aae7-4f0d-42c0-b0ab-70944a199d5b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Transformation of war music into folk music and dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zcfdr73wrq","content":[{"text":"In mythological ages Ghumura was a favorite music instrument of Gods and Demons during war, which was followed in subsequent time as the heroic war music by successive kings and soldiers of Odisha, especially in Kalahandi. Many kings in the region such as Eastern Ganga dynasty had well-organized soldiers with Ghumura as their primary war music. During that period, the Ghumura song hadn't been composed nor sung.\nOnly its music and dance were being used during wartime to make the soldiers excited with the spirit of fighting. Later on the song was integrated with the music and dance of Ghumura, since it was regarded as the only medium of exercise for body building and entertainment during leisure time of Paikas or soldiers. During British rule, the Paikas were often inactive and used to get sufficient leisure time, for which the Ghumura was developed by them as a primary means of entertainment.\nAfterwards poets and writers in general of Odisha and in particular of Kalahandi took initiatives to compose songs of Ghumura while writing about Devi bandana (hymns or prayer to deities), glory of dynasties and mythological studies. In this way Chanda-Chaupadis of poet Upendra Bhanja, Dinakrushna, Abhimanyu Samanta Singar, etc. gradually entered into Ghumura, which made it much more enchanting. As a result, common people living in the rural areas of Kalahandi became very attracted by this music, song and dance of Ghumura and formed many Ghumura groups to develop and spread. In this respect, the royal families of Bhawanipatna, Jayapatna, Madanpur Rampur, Khariar etc.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c634aae7-4f0d-42c0-b0ab-70944a199d5b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymological meaning","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2dgtv7tm0h","content":[{"text":"Ghumura is an earthen pitcher and the imagination of the preparation of such pitcher into a musical instrument is a polygenetic development. 'Ghumura' is derived from 'Ghum+u+Ra'. 'Ghum' means bowl like pitcher made of soil or clay and having a thin face with big belly. 'U' means 'Lord Siva' and 'Ra' mean 'Raba' or 'Dhowni' (vibrating sound). Earthen clay pot is locally known as 'Ghumuri', which was largely used by females to reserve water for home use. The male version of 'Ghumuri' is 'Ghumura'. Since Ghumura is a male dance form and it is found in almost all parts of the human culture that equipment and appliances invented for human use have been the foundation to the invention of musical instruments, the derivation of name of Ghumura from 'Ghumuri' signifies such claim.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c634aae7-4f0d-42c0-b0ab-70944a199d5b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Classical form","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f3zsafe694","content":[{"text":"Nrutta, Nrutya and Natya\nNrutya\nSangita (song)\nTala and Laya","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c634aae7-4f0d-42c0-b0ab-70944a199d5b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pzza80w942","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Ghumura dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c634aae7-4f0d-42c0-b0ab-70944a199d5b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wadtttmvw8","content":[{"text":"Ghumura dance is Indian folk dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1d876003-7473-4ff9-af1b-fe58e190b982"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xk87tndh6z","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1d876003-7473-4ff9-af1b-fe58e190b982"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Ghumura dance folk dance orissa odisha","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d1/Ghumura_dancer_India.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Akkkanksha","height":1707,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Ghumura dance folk dance orissa odisha","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d1/Ghumura_dancer_India.JPG/960px-Ghumura_dancer_India.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ghumura_dancer_India.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d1/Ghumura_dancer_India.JPG/1280px-Ghumura_dancer_India.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:20.566Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/ghumura-dance"}
{"id":"a4afab52-256e-4257-990a-353364139d2b","type":"art_form","slug":"go-go-dancing","title":"go-go dancing","summary":"Go-go dancers are dancers who are employed to entertain crowds at nightclubs or other venues where music is played. Go-go dancing originated in the early 1960s at the French bar Whisky a Gogo, located in the town of Juan-les-Pins.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"35bgvq0swf","content":[{"text":"Go-go dancers are dancers who are employed to entertain crowds at nightclubs or other venues where music is played. Go-go dancing originated in the early 1960s at the French bar Whisky a Gogo, located in the town of Juan-les-Pins. The French bar then licensed its name to the West Hollywood rock club Whisky a Go Go, which opened in January 1964 and chose the name to reflect the already popular craze of go-go dancing. Many 1960s-era nightclub dancers wore short, fringed skirts and high boots which eventually came to be called go-go boots. Nightclub promoters in the mid‑1960s then conceived the idea of hiring women dressed in these outfits to entertain patrons.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d55499f3-f111-41e0-a23e-8ca281f7507e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6d82v8vta3","content":[{"text":"The term go-go derives from the phrase \"go-go-go\" for a high-energy person, and was influenced by the French expression à gogo, meaning \"in abundance, galore\", which is in turn derived from the Old French word la gogue for \"joy, happiness\". The term go-go dancer originated from the French bar Whisky à Gogo located in Juan-les-Pins, a seaside town near Cannes, which was among the first places in the world to replace live music with records selected by a disc jockey and to provide the spectacle of paid dancers known as go-go girls. The bar's name was taken from the French title of the Scottish comedy film Whisky Galore!","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d55499f3-f111-41e0-a23e-8ca281f7507e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"In the 1960s","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"q1cvsxqyab","content":[{"text":"On 19 June 1964, Carol Doda began go-go dancing topless at the Condor Club on Broadway and Columbus in the North Beach neighborhood of San Francisco. She became the world's most famous topless and bottomless go-go dancer, dancing at the Condor for 22 years. In Canada, in 1966, Bonny Rush was mentioned as the country's first topless go-go dancer in the news media. In general, however, go-go dancers in the 1960s did not work topless.\nIn 1964, the Los Angeles–based club Whisky a Go Go began suspending go-go dancers above the audience in glass cages. Located on the Sunset Strip in West Hollywood, the club hired scantily clad dancers wearing knee-high vinyl go-go boots (or occasionally the Courrèges boots which inspired them) and mini skirts or mini flapper dresses. The club began to hire go-go dancers regularly in July 1965.\nGo-go discotheques began to open across the United States. In 1967, an article in Newsweek estimated that there were 8000 go-go dancers working in the US, aged mostly between 18 and 21. The majority of go-go dancers in the New York metropolitan area were migrants from Brazil. Go-go dancing was generally performed to recorded music rather than a live band. The go-go dancers danced on tables, in cages, on dance floors or on small go-go stages. Their role was to entertain the audience and demonstrate dance moves. Many dancers hoped that go-go dancing would provide them a way into show business. Others simply earned money while travelling around the US as part of the counterculture of the 1960s.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d55499f3-f111-41e0-a23e-8ca281f7507e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Television and media","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0y5rp9zxde","content":[{"text":"Go-go dancers were employed as background dancers accompanying performances (real or lip-synced) by rock and roll bands on teen music programs in the mid-1960s. Hullabaloo was a musical variety series that ran on NBC from 12 January 1965 to 29 August 1966. The Hullabaloo Dancers—a team of four men and six women—appeared on a regular basis. Another female dancer, model/actress Lada Edmund, Jr., was best known as the caged \"go-go girl\" dancer in the Hullabaloo A-Go-Go segment near the closing sequence of the show. Other dance TV shows during this period such as ABC's Shindig! (16 September  1964 – 8 January 1966) also featured go-go dancers in cages. Sometimes these cages were made of clear plastic with lights strung inside of them; sometimes the lights were synchronized to go on and off with the music. Shivaree (syndicated, 1965–1966), another music show, usually put go-go dancers on scaffolding and on a platform behind the band which was performing. Beat-Club, a German show in the period, also used go-go dancers.\nGo-go dancing became the subject of 1960s pop songs such as \"Little Miss Go-Go\" (1965) by Gary Lewis & the Playboys and \"Going to a Go-Go\" (1965) by the Miracles.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d55499f3-f111-41e0-a23e-8ca281f7507e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"In the 1970s and after","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3prsjbxmjs","content":[{"text":"During the 1970s, discotheques became less popular and few nightclubs employed go-go dancers. Opportunities for go-go dancing work mainly continued at strip clubs where the audience was all male. Most of the strip clubs in the 1970s abandoned traditional burlesque striptease in favour of live sex shows and go-go dancing which was performed topless or naked.\nHowever, in the late 1970s, there was a nightclub at 128 West 45th Street (the same location where the Peppermint Lounge had been) in Manhattan, New York City, called G.G. Barnum's Room, patronized largely by transgender women, that had male go-go dancers who danced on trapezes above a net over the dance floor. In 1978, the Xenon night club in Manhattan became the first night club to provide go-go boxes for amateur go-go dancers to dance on.\nDuring the 1980s, go-go dancing continued in strip clubs and peep shows. Lawmakers in some jurisdictions passed regulations prohibiting nude dancing, requiring go-go dancers to wear pasties and a G-string. These laws were challenged under the First Amendment to the United States Constitution using the argument that naked go-go dancing qualifies as free speech.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d55499f3-f111-41e0-a23e-8ca281f7507e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vcp6f5v034","content":[{"text":"Musical styles such as techno, house music and trance music appeared during the 1990s as part of underground rave culture. As these styles became mainstream, an increase in the use of go-go dancing accompanied their rise in popularity. Dancers performing to these musical styles began to appear at music festivals and nightclubs to encourage the crowd to dance. In the 21st century, professional go-go dancers, mostly female, are paid to dance at these events in elaborate, brightly coloured costumes.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d55499f3-f111-41e0-a23e-8ca281f7507e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"LGBTQ","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8545xbkksm","content":[{"text":"Many gay clubs had male go-go dancers, often called go-go boys, from 1965 to 1968, after which few gay clubs had go-go dancers. In the early 1980s, New York's gay Anvil club featured go-go dancers and drag shows. By the 1990s, go-go dancing was taking place in the city's lesbian bars and clubs and male go-go dancers had become fashionable again at gay clubs in big US cities.\nDuring the early 2010s, the City of West Hollywood celebrated the history and culture of go-go dancing by hosting an annual \"Go-Go Boy Appreciation Day\" that included a street festival and competition. The event also served to promote West Hollywood as a gay destination.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d55499f3-f111-41e0-a23e-8ca281f7507e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ymsfgfnnnv","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Go-go dancing”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d55499f3-f111-41e0-a23e-8ca281f7507e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7avjfjbyrs","content":[{"text":"go-go dancing is form of nightclub entertainment, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"37a1962d-eb30-4c3a-b9c7-0751d8167a15"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tzsh4n5ak0","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"37a1962d-eb30-4c3a-b9c7-0751d8167a15"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"This was taken at Immerse, in Orlando, Florida. This crew had a bunch of epic moves and movements and this one was taken just in time.","src":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1508700929628-666bc8bd84ea?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8Z28tZ28lMjBkYW5jaW5nfGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgxMTI1NTN8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1080","kind":"photo","width":7952,"credit":"Michael Afonso","height":5304,"source":"unsplash","depicts":"This was taken at Immerse, in Orlando, Florida. This crew had a bunch of epic moves and movements and this one was taken just in time.","licence":"Unsplash License","thumb640":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1508700929628-666bc8bd84ea?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8Z28tZ28lMjBkYW5jaW5nfGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgxMTI1NTN8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=640","sourceUrl":"https://unsplash.com/photos/man-doing-breakdancing-on-gray-surface-z8Tul255kGg?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral","thumb1280":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1508700929628-666bc8bd84ea?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8Z28tZ28lMjBkYW5jaW5nfGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgxMTI1NTN8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1280","attributionUrl":"https://unsplash.com/@mafonso?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:23.026Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/go-go-dancing"}
{"id":"ee5a13ad-1792-48b4-acac-6513c410774e","type":"art_form","slug":"gombey","title":"Gombey","summary":"The Gombey is an iconic symbol of Bermuda, a cultural expression full of colorful and intricate masquerade, dance, and drumming.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"z8hf00m8ee","content":[{"text":"The Gombey is an iconic symbol of Bermuda, a cultural expression full of colorful and intricate masquerade, dance, and drumming. This folk tradition reflects the island's blend of African, Caribbean and British cultures with Indigenous influences.\nDancers are usually men and perform in groups of 10 to 30 though in modern times women's groups have emerged. The traditions have been passed down orally from one generation to the next within families. The captains of each troupe determine the troupe's style and direction. Subtle but distinct differences emerged between troupes in beats, dances, costumes, headdresses, by which each troupe can each be recognized.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"073d017f-2252-459f-a414-fe90e5ae43f8"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"v8gh77qk97","content":[{"text":"Historically, the Gombeys were not viewed as a respectable art form by the island's ruling class and were banned by the slave masters. Enslaved people were allowed to dance only once a year and did so in masks in order to protest, without fear of retribution, the injustices done them by their slave masters.\nIn an article from The Royal Gazette newspaper posted on January 10, 1831, a reward is being offered for the return of two slaves by the names of Ajax and Mentor who went off without a cause at Christmas, following that Idolatrous procession the Gumba. It is hoped that this late nuisance, the Gumba and other clamorous puppet shows of the Negroes, will meet the attention of all men of reflection that they be suppressed – as none but the worst or most ignorant Negroes follow such ridiculous shows.\"\nHenceforth Gombey tradition is at its liveliest during the Christmas season, customarily performed during Boxing Day, where the troupes would march the whole day around the island with crowds of followers. Additional performances take place on Easter, New Year's Day, Bermuda Day, and in modern times at football and cricket matches and other festivals and celebrations.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"073d017f-2252-459f-a414-fe90e5ae43f8"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology and Bahamian roots","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"15jt60hsje","content":[{"text":"The word Gombey is related to the Bahamian Goombay, a similar musical tradition (though lacking costume and dance elements). It also refers to a specific drum of African origin (see List of Caribbean drums). In addition to the Bahamian Goombay tradition, Gombey is similar to some other Afro-Caribbean and other styles and celebrations (such as the Mummers and Morris dance). In Bermuda, Gombeys are seen more as dancers than musicians, with ritualised costumes, accoutrements, and the steps of a war dance that were recognised by Wampanoag dancers, whereas in the West Indies the term applies to a musical tradition not normally accompanied by dance. Cultural continuity would be expected not only with other British or formerly British territories in the Americas, but also with Latin America. Africans and people of African ancestry who formed part of Bermuda's 17th-century founding population came primarily from former Spanish colonies as free but indentured servants in the seventeenth century (until the terms of indenture were raised from seven to ninety-nine years as a discouragement). Most arrived as Spanish-speaking Catholics but later acculturated as English-speaking Protestants. Smaller numbers of slaves, many of African birth, were also captured from the Spanish and other enemies, survived shipwrecks on Bermuda's reef line, or were deliberately imported, and were sold in Bermuda. The Spanish were not heavily involved in the enslavement of Africans for the trans-Atlantic slave trade, instead primarily purchasing enslaved Africans from the Portuguese and Arabs, both of whom enslaved Africans in southern Africa, from Angola to Zanzibar.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"073d017f-2252-459f-a414-fe90e5ae43f8"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Genetic studies","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kp99f3ms6w","content":[{"text":"This was understood from the written record, and confirmed in 2009 by a genetic survey, which looked exclusively at the Black (or, rather, \"mixed race\") population of St. David's Island (as the purpose of the study was to seek Native American haplogroups, which could be assumed to be absent from the white population) that consequently showed that the African ancestry of Black Bermudians (other than those resulting from recent immigration from the British West Indian islands) is largely from a band across southern Africa, from Angola to Mozambique, which is similar to what is revealed in Latin America, but distinctly different from the Blacks of the British West Indies and the United States.\n68% of the mtDNA (maternal) lineages of the Black islanders were found to be African, with the two most common being L0a and L3e, which are sourced from populations spread from Central-West to South-East Africa. These lineages represent less than 5% of the mtDNA lineages of Blacks in the United States and the English-speaking West Indies. They are, however, common in Brazil and the Spanish-speaking countries of Latin America. L3e, by example, is typical of !Kung-speaking populations of the Kalahari, as well as of parts of Mozambique and Nigeria. The modern nation where it represents the highest percentage of the population is actually Brazil, where it represents 21% of mtDNA lineages. 31% of the mtDNA lineages of Blacks in Bermuda are West Eurasian (European), with J1c being the most common.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"073d017f-2252-459f-a414-fe90e5ae43f8"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Instruments","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zksrfef7ha","content":[{"text":"In addition to the bass, or \"Mother\" drum, typically home-made the modern Bermudian Gombey is distinguished by the use of the snare drum (generally in pairs), derived from the British use of the instrument. In addition, a kettle drum and a fife are integral parts of Gombey accompaniment; whistles are used by leaders to issue commands. The snare drummers play complicated riffs over the steady pulse of the mother drum, often employing call and response patterns, and striking the rim of the snare, as well as the skin. The result is an exhilarating, intoxicating, rhythmic mix which provides the impulse (or impetus) for both the dancers as well as the followers, with the snare drum patterns driving the body of the movement and the rimshots communicating with the dancer's feet.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"073d017f-2252-459f-a414-fe90e5ae43f8"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Attire","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3tye73reev","content":[{"text":"Gombey's costumes cover their bodies from head to toe and are decorated with tassels, mirrors, bells, and other small items and symbols. The peacock feather headdresses, the painted masks, and the capes are distinguishing features of Gombey costumes. Many adornments of the costumes as worn today rely on modern materials or items, such as the Asian peacock feathers, that would have been hard or impossible to come by before the 20th century, but there is little record of the original costume worn, so how it has changed since the 19th century can only be guessed at. Susette Harriet Lloyd in 1835 (see below) described them using \"plentiful bedaubing of red and yellow paints, scarlet cloth, flowers and ribbons\", but made no reference to the design of their clothing or the use of feathers.\nAlthough the Gombeys have enjoyed a remarkable shift in social status, going from a marginalized group to now appearing on postage stamps and performing overseas, there are still today old laws in place that prevent Gombeys from performing in the streets of Hamilton without permits.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"073d017f-2252-459f-a414-fe90e5ae43f8"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"87r77dt2qa","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Gombey”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"073d017f-2252-459f-a414-fe90e5ae43f8"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kedp2sk3dk","content":[{"text":"Gombey is Bermudian masquerade dance tradition, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bf7bdf74-67f4-442f-9b2c-b4713ce1574c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"z5ysqsm6c5","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bf7bdf74-67f4-442f-9b2c-b4713ce1574c"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Gombey dancers, Royal Naval Dockyard, Bermuda","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f9/Bermuda_-_Gombey_dancers.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"P. Hughes","height":897,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Gombey dancers, Royal Naval Dockyard, Bermuda","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f9/Bermuda_-_Gombey_dancers.jpg/960px-Bermuda_-_Gombey_dancers.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bermuda_-_Gombey_dancers.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f9/Bermuda_-_Gombey_dancers.jpg/1280px-Bermuda_-_Gombey_dancers.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Gombey dancers performing in Kings Square, St. George's, Bermuda .","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/22/Gombey_dancers_Bermuda.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Captain-tucker","height":850,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Gombey dancers performing in Kings Square, St. George's, Bermuda .","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/22/Gombey_dancers_Bermuda.JPG/960px-Gombey_dancers_Bermuda.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Gombey_dancers_Bermuda.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/22/Gombey_dancers_Bermuda.JPG/1280px-Gombey_dancers_Bermuda.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"},{"alt":"The Gombey is an iconic symbol of Bermuda, this folklife tradition reflecting the island’s blend of African, Caribbean and British cultures, incorporating them over time into a unique performance art full of colorful and intricate masquerade, dance and drumming. Hamilton,…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ee/Gombeys.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"kansasphoto","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"The Gombey is an iconic symbol of Bermuda, this folklife tradition reflecting the island’s blend of African, Caribbean and British cultures, incorporating them over time into a unique performance art full of colorful and intricate masquerade, dance and drumming. Hamilton,…","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ee/Gombeys.jpg/960px-Gombeys.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Gombeys.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ee/Gombeys.jpg/1280px-Gombeys.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:20.919Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/gombey"}
{"id":"49ee6441-7ed7-43f6-b274-f7cc98ba511d","type":"art_form","slug":"goravara-kunitha","title":"Goravara Kunitha","summary":"Goravara Kunitha is a traditional dance of Kurubas of Karnataka. Kuruba are devotees of lord Mailara Linga, men belonging to this community take Deekshe or the process of initiation to follow the tradition of Gorava.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"efkj4ngg2y","content":[{"text":"Goravara Kunitha is a traditional dance of Kurubas of Karnataka. Kuruba are devotees of lord Mailara Linga, men belonging to this community take Deekshe or the process of initiation to follow the tradition of Gorava. The Deekshe is usually performed before marriage. They dedicate their rest of lives for lord Mailara Linga and the folk form Goravara Kunitha.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6493ad83-815b-4252-ae7e-01e904447deb"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Deekshe","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mq76mab4w2","content":[{"text":"Deekshe to the boys belonging to Kuruba community is given on a preordained date in the presence of Lord Mailara Linga. The guru or head of the Gorava clan blesses and accepts the boy into the sect. A woolen blanket is presented to the person upon his undertaking the Deekshe. Accessories such as Gante (jingle), Jolge (bag), Bandara (holy Turmaric powder), Betha (wooden stick), Dhone (bowl), Damaru (small drum), and Pillangovi (flute) are worshipped and presented to him. These accessories are crucial for him to carry on his life as a Gorava. He is made to wear a red shirt and Kavade sara (cowries necklace) and then takes an oath to serve the Gorava and Kuruba faith.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6493ad83-815b-4252-ae7e-01e904447deb"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Presentation","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qgpnsrxbhn","content":[{"text":"Goravara Kunitha is a traditional dance with religious implication that is performed at festivals, local fairs and also upon invitation in the houses of devotees of lord Mailara Linga. at housewarming ceremonies, devotees invite Goravas to their new homes and is called as mane seve or ogu seve. In private ceremonies like housewarming, a black wollen blanket is spread and a small bowl is kept with milk in it and sometimes bananas and Kajayas are also kept. the offering is worshipped and then the goravayyas break into dance around it. They perform rhythmically accompanied by the sound of their anklets and the intoxicating beat of Damaru. During the performance they sing praises of lord Mailara Linga and repeat Paraks. As they dance they sit and eat the offerings laid out to them. They lie flat on their stomachs and eat the offering without touching it with their hands.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6493ad83-815b-4252-ae7e-01e904447deb"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Public appearances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7p9a5kqwjh","content":[{"text":"In public appearances the unruly behaviour exhibited in private appearances is avoided. they perform usually in groups of 10-12 people, they stand in a straight line, the senior most Gorava of the group begins the performance by playing his Pilangovi and then beats the Damaru. The rest of the team join him. They move around in circles brandishing their flute and Damaru. They dance making big eyes and raised eyebrows to create scare among the viewers. They recite the stories of Mailara Linga and sometimes Manteswami and Mahadeshwara. These stories are of epic proportions recited continuously and can go on for days.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6493ad83-815b-4252-ae7e-01e904447deb"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Costumes","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gwzmqh0wte","content":[{"text":"Goravas have unique costumes. The costume is the main attraction of this folk form. A white or yellow Panche/Kache and white full arm Juba are the basic clothing. the head is covered with a rumala, usually a white sari or Panche. The headgear is make of bearskin and placed on the Rumala. In the right hand Nagabetha(wooden stick) is held and in the left Pilangovi (flute). The forehead is smeared with Vibhuthi and the eyes are marked with white and red circles to create a scary look.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6493ad83-815b-4252-ae7e-01e904447deb"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"x69ygjfb0v","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Goravara Kunitha”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6493ad83-815b-4252-ae7e-01e904447deb"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8s1j1vfk8b","content":[{"text":"Goravara Kunitha is folk dance in India, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a53090fb-cc45-4591-a56e-71e5e6891131"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"85tkyh457c","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a53090fb-cc45-4591-a56e-71e5e6891131"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Goravara Kunitha, a kind of folk performance from Karnataka, India","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/03/Goravara_Kunitha_05.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Pavanaja","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Goravara Kunitha, a kind of folk performance from Karnataka, India","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/03/Goravara_Kunitha_05.JPG/960px-Goravara_Kunitha_05.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Goravara_Kunitha_05.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/03/Goravara_Kunitha_05.JPG/1280px-Goravara_Kunitha_05.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Goravara Kunitha, a kind of folk performance from Karnataka, India","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a1/Goravara_Kunitha_20.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Pavanaja","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Goravara Kunitha, a kind of folk performance from Karnataka, India","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a1/Goravara_Kunitha_20.JPG/960px-Goravara_Kunitha_20.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Goravara_Kunitha_20.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a1/Goravara_Kunitha_20.JPG/1280px-Goravara_Kunitha_20.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Goravara Kunitha, a kind of folk performance from Karnataka, India","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ab/Goravara_Kunitha_17.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Pavanaja","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Goravara Kunitha, a kind of folk performance from Karnataka, India","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/ab/Goravara_Kunitha_17.JPG/960px-Goravara_Kunitha_17.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Goravara_Kunitha_17.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/ab/Goravara_Kunitha_17.JPG/1280px-Goravara_Kunitha_17.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:21.203Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/goravara-kunitha"}
{"id":"17964dde-0297-41c5-9816-61e79b7bf899","type":"art_form","slug":"gothic-belly-dance","title":"Gothic belly dance","summary":"Gothic belly dance, also named and separated in substyles as Gothic fusion belly dance, dark fusion belly dance and Gothic tribal fusion, is a recently founded dance art movement, distilled from the influences of Middle Eastern dance, triba…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8jy3zmm5qv","content":[{"text":"Gothic belly dance, also named and separated in substyles as Gothic fusion belly dance, dark fusion belly dance and Gothic tribal fusion, is a recently founded dance art movement, distilled from the influences of Middle Eastern dance, tribal fusion, goth subculture and neopaganism. Originating in the United States in the 1990s, it has spread to be practiced by amateur and professional dancers around the world, and it is growing with the spread of tribal belly dance formats.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3ea9b618-5902-4085-a414-49a70507a820"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s0jv903eae","content":[{"text":"Originating in the Middle East, South Asia (India), and North Africa, the art of belly dance arrived in the West with the trend of Orientalism. Exotic to the Western eye and mysterious in its roots, belly dance has always attracted interpretive dance artists who have woven it into trends of Western culture. As a modern and versatile world dance genre, belly dance has evolved into an array of interpretive dance sub-styles compatible with modern music and imagery. The new millennium brought a revival of popular interest in goth subculture and gothic art motifs in dance, and a new interpretive style, Gothic belly dance, was propelled to prominence.\nDance publications started exploring this new phenomenon, thousands of Gothic belly dance enthusiasts have subscribed to online discussion groups dedicated to this genre, leading artists started traveling across the US and overseas with workshops and tours, DVDs featuring Gothic belly dance performances, and instructional materials have appeared on retail shelves.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3ea9b618-5902-4085-a414-49a70507a820"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8zhcy1j7w3","content":[{"text":"Gothic belly dance was born in the US urban centers as a blend of Goth and world music, the movement vocabulary of belly dance and other dance forms, and Gothic fashion and aesthetics.  Performing at Gothic-themed events and Goth clubs, dancers started to explore Goth music and adopt costuming styles incorporating Victorian, vampire, dark cabaret, silent-movie vamp, industrial, and other visual themes related to Goth subculture.\nGothic belly dance is not just a US phenomenon. Its popularity has been growing in the UK and Germany where belly dance artists have been dancing darkly since the early 1990s.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3ea9b618-5902-4085-a414-49a70507a820"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"The 21st century","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"v248fnkn2n","content":[{"text":"Gothic belly dance discussion groups hosted by tribe.net, MySpace, and other online community sites connected dancers from around the world, making possible workshops and tours, and helping this new genre to solidify and gain recognition within the larger dance community. In addition, the rapidly expanding global access to free online video resources at YouTube and similar sites has allowed artists to unify and combine their efforts in promoting and developing their genre — unconstrained by national borders, scarcity of funds, or lack of support from their local communities.\nIn 2007 Southern California-based dancers and instructors, Tempest and Sashi, launched the annual Gothla, described by the L.A. Weekly as \"a \"Gothic hafla\" that combined weekend-long workshops with a Saturday festival featuring 12 hours of performances and merchant booths where dancers could find costumes and accessories.\"\nGothla UK was also first held in 2007, in Leicester, England, and is now a highly successful festival covering three days, usually in July.  International teachers are joined by UK teachers such as Lucretia (Christine Emery), Fulya (Lynn Chapman), and Akasha (Heike Humphreys) to offer a range of themes not often covered by general belly dance events from Steampunk and 1920s to zombie and vampire belly dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3ea9b618-5902-4085-a414-49a70507a820"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Notable performers and troupes","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1f6yh4b03v","content":[{"text":"Neon (dancer)\nTempest (USA)\nAriellah (USA)\nSashi (USA)\nMa'isah (Australia)\nDani Cooper (Australia)\nKalikah Jade (Australia)\nJeniviva (USA)","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3ea9b618-5902-4085-a414-49a70507a820"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1ddver04fr","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Gothic belly dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3ea9b618-5902-4085-a414-49a70507a820"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k9z52cr77x","content":[{"text":"Gothic belly dance is a modern variant of belly dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6b6744bf-a25c-4c96-b949-028a6d5e394c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4wwn2rmv5w","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6b6744bf-a25c-4c96-b949-028a6d5e394c"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Performance artist Zoe Jakes performing with Beats Antique at Rick's in Starkville, MS.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8e/Beats_Antique%2C_Zoe_Jakes.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Danecarney","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Performance artist Zoe Jakes performing with Beats Antique at Rick's in Starkville, MS.","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8e/Beats_Antique%2C_Zoe_Jakes.jpg/960px-Beats_Antique%2C_Zoe_Jakes.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Beats_Antique,_Zoe_Jakes.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8e/Beats_Antique%2C_Zoe_Jakes.jpg/1280px-Beats_Antique%2C_Zoe_Jakes.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-09T05:47:08.332Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/gothic-belly-dance"}
{"id":"c13d127c-08d8-4fb0-9d4e-5145db905a7f","type":"art_form","slug":"gotipua","title":"Gotipua","summary":"Gotipua (Odia- ଗୋଟିପୁଅ, pronounced goṭipuå) is a traditional dance form in the state of Odisha, India, and the precursor of Odissi classical dance.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s423kts7bj","content":[{"text":"Gotipua (Odia- ଗୋଟିପୁଅ, pronounced goṭipuå) is a traditional dance form in the state of Odisha, India, and the precursor of Odissi classical dance. It has been performed in Orissa for centuries by young boys, who dress as women to praise Jagannath and Krishna. The dance is executed by a group of boys who perform acrobatic figures inspired by the life of Radha and Krishna. The boys begin to learn the dance at an early age until adolescence, when their androgynous appearance changes. In the Odia language, Gotipua means \"single boy\" (goti-pua). Raghurajpur, Odisha (near Puri) is a historic village known for its Gotipua dance troupes. The dance of the Gotipuas is accompanied by traditional Odissi music with the primary percussion being the Mardala.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"44f76eae-6e27-4774-b5ae-248ae83586a6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dancers","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"seb4ka6d4h","content":[{"text":"To transform into graceful feminine dancers the boys do not cut their hair, instead they style it into a knot and weaving garlands of flowers into it. They make up their faces with mixed white and red powder. Kajal is broadly applied around the eyes to give them an elongated look. The bindi, usually round, is applied to the forehead, surrounded with a pattern made from sandalwood. Traditional paintings adorn the face, which are unique to each dance school.\nThe costume has evolved over time. The traditional dress is a Kanchula, a brightly coloured blouse with shiny decorations. An apron-like, embroidered silk cloth (nibibandha) is tied around the waist like a ruffle and worn around the legs. Some dancers still adhere to tradition by wearing a pattasari: a piece of thin fabric about 4 metres (13 ft 1 in) long, worn tightly with equal lengths of material on both sides and a knot on the navel. However, this traditional dress is often replaced by a newly designed cloth which is easier to put on.\nDancers wear specially designed, beaded jewellery: necklaces, bracelets, armbands and ear ornaments. Nose-piercing jewellery has been replaced with a painted motif. Ankle bells are worn, to accentuate the beats tapped out by the feet. The palms of the hands and soles of the feet are painted with a red liquid known as alta. The costume, jewellery and bells are considered sacred.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"44f76eae-6e27-4774-b5ae-248ae83586a6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2y45s40kf7","content":[{"text":"Long ago, the temples in Orissa had female dancers known as devadasis (or mahari), who were devoted to Jagannath, which gave rise to Mahari dance. Sculptures of dancers on bas-reliefs in temples in Orissa (and the Konark Sun and Jagannath Temples in Puri) demonstrate this ancient tradition. With the decline of mahari dancers around the 16th century during the reign of Rama Chandra Dev (who founded the Bhoi dynasty), boy dancers in Orissa continued the tradition. Gotipua dance is in the Odissi style, but their technique, costumes and presentation differ from those of the mahari; the singing is done by the dancers. Present-day Odissi dance has been influenced by Gotipua dance. Most masters of Odissi dance (such as Kelucharan Mohapatra, from Raghurajpur) were Gotipua dancers in their youth.\nOdissi dance is a combination of tandava (vigorous, masculine) and lasya (graceful, feminine) dances. It has two basic postures: tribhangi (in which the body is held with bends at the head, torso and knees) and chouka (a square-like stance, symbolising Jagannath). Fluidity in the upper torso is characteristic of Odissi dance, which is often compared to the gentle sea waves which caress the Orissa beaches.\nEach year, the Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra Odissi Research Centre organises the Gotipua Dance Festival in Bhubaneswar.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"44f76eae-6e27-4774-b5ae-248ae83586a6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Repertoire","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"z99apxmnh7","content":[{"text":"The dance typically begins with a vandana prayer (an invocation, with prayers of gratitude to Mother Earth, Jagannath and one's guru and welcoming the audience). The dancers perform a three-step salutation: the first above their heads towards God, the second in front of their faces for the guru and the third in front of their chests for the audience. The Sarigama is a dance celebrating beauty, and highlighting the mastery of technique; it is portrayed by dancers and musicians carved into the outer walls of ancient temples.\nThe Abhinaya is the enactment of a song and interpretation of ancient poetry. This dance depicts Radha Krishna-oriented poems, such as the 12th-century Gita Govinda. The verses used for narration are extremely ornate in content and suggestion. Graceful, fluid, and sensual, the Abhinaya resembles a moving love poem with its facial expressions, eye movement and mudra gestures:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"44f76eae-6e27-4774-b5ae-248ae83586a6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ydnp4cb50c","content":[{"text":"An interesting part of Gotipua is Bandha Nrutya, the presentation of acrobatic yogic postures (referring to mythological scenes from the life of Krishna) similar to visual presentations by the pattachitra artists of Orissa. The difficult and intricate poses (requiring suppleness of limb) are known as bandha (\"acrobatic\" in the Odia language). To perform this dance, boys need to start learning it at the age of five or six.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"44f76eae-6e27-4774-b5ae-248ae83586a6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"j1mgjsbjn2","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Gotipua”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"44f76eae-6e27-4774-b5ae-248ae83586a6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"r18k9v06w4","content":[{"text":"Gotipua is traditional dance of Odisha, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6e2c1c61-2a91-4d5d-b0b3-8103ddaff16a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mkje0qk3bg","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6e2c1c61-2a91-4d5d-b0b3-8103ddaff16a"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Gotipua Dancers perform at Sterling Resort Puri, Odisha","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/51/Gotipua_Dance_1.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Rangan Datta Wiki","height":848,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Gotipua Dancers perform at Sterling Resort Puri, Odisha","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/51/Gotipua_Dance_1.jpg/960px-Gotipua_Dance_1.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Gotipua_Dance_1.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/51/Gotipua_Dance_1.jpg/1280px-Gotipua_Dance_1.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:26.789Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/gotipua"}
{"id":"493117cc-6d26-4bd1-bf01-0a5a8ed04a3a","type":"art_form","slug":"gourd-dance","title":"Gourd Dance","summary":"The Gourd Dance is a Kiowa dance and song tradition that has become popular at modern powwows in southwestern Oklahoma.\nThe gourd dance is Kiowa. Many tribes dance it but it is Kiowa and has STRICT dress codes.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ehppymfy4q","content":[{"text":"The Gourd Dance is a Kiowa dance and song tradition that has become popular at modern powwows in southwestern Oklahoma.\nThe gourd dance is Kiowa. Many tribes dance it but it is Kiowa and has STRICT dress codes. In this picture, the men are wearing jeans and wearing hats which is NOT ALLOWED. No jeans, no short sleeve shirts, no head coverings, no sunglasses. Only long sleeves, dress pants or khakis, only head covering can be an otter cap and only prescription glasses allowed.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee265330-3a42-4182-b3ec-6c6358a4f829"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origin legends","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m7s5zd6gny","content":[{"text":"Many Native Americans dispute the origin of the legend of the Gourd Dance. A Kiowa story recounts the tale of a young man who had been separated from the rest of the tribe. Hungry and dehydrated after many days of travel, the young man approached a hill and heard an unusual kind of singing coming from the other side. There he saw a red wolf singing and dancing on its hind legs. The man listened to the songs all afternoon and through the night and when morning came, the wolf spoke to him and told him to take the dance and songs back to the Kiowa people. The \"howl\" at the end of each gourd dance song is a tribute to the red wolf. The Kiowa Gourd Dance was once part of the Kiowa Sun Dance ceremony.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee265330-3a42-4182-b3ec-6c6358a4f829"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Decline, revival, and organizations within the Kiowa Tribe","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qyerkka62k","content":[{"text":"Beginning in 1890 the United States government began to actively enforce bans on Kiowa cultural ceremonials and the Gourd Dance was out of normal practice by the late 1930s.   \nIn 1957 the Kiowa Director for the American Indian Exposition, Fred Tsoodle, called upon singers Bill Koomsa and William Tanedooah who remembered the Gourd Dance songs. Also called were Clyde Ahtape, Harry Hall Zotigh, Fred Botone, Oliver Tanedooah, and Abel Big Bow in Kiowa Gourd Dance dress to dance to the songs for a special tribal presentation at that year's festivities. Two years later inspired by the presentation several Kiowa men reorganized the Kiowa Gourd Dance Society and formally established the organization on January 30, 1957 and voted on the name \"Kiowa Gourd Dance\". Within the next decade the organization split into three unrelated branches: the establishing group (now called Kiowa Gourd Clan), Tiah-Piah Society of Oklahoma (established in 1962), and the Tia-piah Society of Carnegie (now known as the Kiowa TiaPiah Society). All three societies hold their annual ceremonials on and around July 4, due to the Gourd Dance at one time being a part of the Sun Dance ceremonials usually held in mid-summer.   \nThe variations on the word \"Tia-Piah\" used in the names of Kiowa Gourd Dance organizations comes from Jài:fè:gàu (Tdeinpei-gah) [IPA: tãi.peː.gɔ] one of the eight Kiowa warrior societies. Perhaps because of the military connotations of the term the Gourd Dance has often been mistaken for a \"veteran's dance\". However, leaders of all three of the earliest Kiowa-established gourd dance organizations agree that this is not a requirement to become a member of the societies.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee265330-3a42-4182-b3ec-6c6358a4f829"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Participation","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9028veqvmf","content":[{"text":"The Gourd Dance originated with the Kiowa tribe, and is a man's dance. Women participate by dancing in place behind their male counterparts and outside the perimeter formed by the men. The dance in the Kiowa Language is called \"Ti-ah pi-ah\" which means \"ready to go, ready to die\".  \nThe Kiowa consider this dance as their dance since it was given to them by \"Red Wolf\". It has spread to many other tribes and societies, most of which do not have the blessing of the Kiowa Elders. Some gourd societies do not distinguish race as a criterion, and even non-Indians can and are inducted into their gourd societies, the Kiowa gourd dance society however only inducts Indians of half blood or more. Many participants may be older men, and the dance is less energetic and less physically demanding than most pow-wow dances. Some of the Gourd Dances that are held go on all afternoon and on into the evening when it finally cools off enough so that more energetic Intertribal dances can begin. Some Tribal dances feature only Gourd Dancing.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee265330-3a42-4182-b3ec-6c6358a4f829"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Regalia","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rb7yz48c3f","content":[{"text":"Modern Gourd Dance regalia consists of a red and blue blanket draped over the shoulders. (This accessory represents night and day). Some dancers change the blanket to rest over the heart red during the day and blue after dark. A skunk berry (Ka-hole) and silver beaded bandolier fastened on the left shoulder is draped across the heart. The red skunk berry bandolier was added as a memorial tribute to a battle fought with Cheyenne warriors. The aftermath left the land covered with red blood and is represented by the red skunk berries. A handkerchief bundle of Indian perfume, gathered from the foothills, is tied to the back of the bandolier.\nA metal rattle to accompany the drumbeat and a feathered fan usually are held in opposite hands. Normally Kiowa Gourd Clan members do not use real gourds in this dance because they are associated with the Native American Church ceremonies.\nTraditionally dressed gourd dancers wear buckskin leggings and a long, red breechcloth. These are covered by a black fringed shawl wrapped above the black shawl to secure it. Today these are accompanied with a long sleeved shirt, bolo tie or tie.\nHead attire can include hair wrapped with otter wraps, a roach or otter cap. Following Kiowa protocol, it is considered disrespectful to wear ball caps, T-shirts, cowboy hats or boots while participating in this dance. The four Kiowa headsman of this society urge its members to dress with dignity and discretion.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee265330-3a42-4182-b3ec-6c6358a4f829"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Music and choreography","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"g6rsmck0n2","content":[{"text":"Like pow-wow dancing, Gourd Dancing is performed in a circular arena. The drum can be placed on the side or in the center of the arena. The dancers take their place around the perimeter of the area. During most of the song, the dancers dance in place, lifting their feet in time to the drumbeats, and shaking their rattles from side to side. At certain points in the singing, the drum beat changes to harder beats. At this point, the dancers will dance in place. When it changes to softer beats the dancers will dance a short distance from their spots. \nTypically, the dance begins in the afternoon, and the opening song (referred to as a \"Calling Song\") is sung first. The head singer will determine how many songs are sung in a set. Usually the slower paced songs are sung in the beginning and progressively faster songs are sung as the gourd dance progresses. When the gourd dance draws to a close, a fast song is usually the last to be performed, but it is not the \"official\" closing song. Sometimes buffalo songs will be sung after that last gourd dance song.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee265330-3a42-4182-b3ec-6c6358a4f829"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zt1y26pvxx","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Gourd Dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee265330-3a42-4182-b3ec-6c6358a4f829"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ar80kbc4y8","content":[{"text":"Gourd Dance is Native American dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"98fbebac-d84d-4698-98c8-bf4ab314b64f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"96kk39rsah","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"98fbebac-d84d-4698-98c8-bf4ab314b64f"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"13th Annual NCI New Year's Eve Sobriety Pow Wow and Gourd Dance at the Miyamura High School Gym in Gallup, NM on December 31, 2011.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5a/Native_American_Gourd_Dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Donovan Shortey","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"13th Annual NCI New Year's Eve Sobriety Pow Wow and Gourd Dance at the Miyamura High School Gym in Gallup, NM on December 31, 2011.","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Native_American_Gourd_Dance.jpg/960px-Native_American_Gourd_Dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Native_American_Gourd_Dance.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Native_American_Gourd_Dance.jpg/1280px-Native_American_Gourd_Dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"},{"alt":"A photo of a Native American painting, which commemorates the duality of a Native American and a United States warrior is displayed at the third annual Gourd Dance here, June 23. The Gourd Dance is a Native American ceremony to honor the warriors of past and present to…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cd/Gourd_Dance_120623-Z-kv675-002.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Spc. Christopher Moore","height":1860,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"A photo of a Native American painting, which commemorates the duality of a Native American and a United States warrior is displayed at the third annual Gourd Dance here, June 23. The Gourd Dance is a Native American ceremony to honor the warriors of past and present to…","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cd/Gourd_Dance_120623-Z-kv675-002.jpg/960px-Gourd_Dance_120623-Z-kv675-002.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Gourd_Dance_120623-Z-kv675-002.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cd/Gourd_Dance_120623-Z-kv675-002.jpg/1280px-Gourd_Dance_120623-Z-kv675-002.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-09T05:47:09.292Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/gourd-dance"}
{"id":"5a6d39c6-1c8a-43a2-bb53-dba72902f333","type":"art_form","slug":"grand-pas","title":"Grand pas","summary":"In classical ballet, a Grand pas, or Grand pas classique (French: [ɡʁɑ̃ pɑ]; literally meaning big or large classical step) is a suite of pure dance numbers that is devoid of dramatic action, serving strictly as the pièce de résistance in t…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pjmf3caqpa","content":[{"text":"In classical ballet, a Grand pas, or Grand pas classique (French: [ɡʁɑ̃ pɑ]; literally meaning big or large classical step) is a suite of pure dance numbers that is devoid of dramatic action, serving strictly as the pièce de résistance in the context of a full-length ballet performance to showcase the talents of the principal dancers, demi-soloists, and occasionally the corps de ballet. The Grand pas traditionally consists of a combination \nof particular dances: an Entrée (introduction to the suite where the dancers make their entrance); a Grand adage (adagio of the lead ballerina, partnered by the lead male dancer and occasionally other partners); a dance for the corps de ballet can be included; variations (solo dances) for the lead dancers demi-soloists; and finally the Coda (or Grand coda) concludes the suite.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"be9766ac-f36c-4c18-8b8a-9796bfccd566"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Formats","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"aq739wgg3j","content":[{"text":"The grand pas appears in a variety of formats and may employ varying numbers of dancers. For example, a grand pas de deux is performed by only two dancers; this typically serves as the pièce de résistance for the principal male and female characters of a full-length ballet. A grand pas for three soloists is a grand pas de trois, and for four soloists is a grand pas de quatre. \nA Grand pas d'action is a grand pas that contributes to the ballet's story. A well-known example of this is the first act of The Sleeping Beauty, consisting of the Rose Adagio grand adage, Dance for the Maids of Honor and Pages, Princess Aurora variation, and coda which is abruptly interrupted by the evil fairy Carabosse, who gives Princess Aurora a poisoned spindle. This grand pas d'action tells an integral part of the story, with Princess Aurora choosing between four prospective princes and receiving a rose from each.\nIn a grand pas classique, classical ballet technique prevails and the piece itself does not carry the action of the ballet forward. A well-known example of such a piece is the grand pas created by Marius Petipa in 1881 for his revival of the ballet Paquita, known today as Paquita Grand Pas Classique.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"be9766ac-f36c-4c18-8b8a-9796bfccd566"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s25hb4y1cw","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Grand pas”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"be9766ac-f36c-4c18-8b8a-9796bfccd566"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5z1pchgqkh","content":[{"text":"Grand pas is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d384b2c4-f461-4325-9bc6-3e407c25ec92"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"a9fndptkk9","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d384b2c4-f461-4325-9bc6-3e407c25ec92"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Grand pas de deux of the Sugar Plum Fairy from the ballet The Nutcracker as performed by the Escuela Superior de Música y Danza in 2011.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9c/ESMD_The_Nutcracker_2011_grand_pas_de_deux.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Gabriel Saldana","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Grand pas de deux of the Sugar Plum Fairy from the ballet The Nutcracker as performed by the Escuela Superior de Música y Danza in 2011.","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9c/ESMD_The_Nutcracker_2011_grand_pas_de_deux.jpg/960px-ESMD_The_Nutcracker_2011_grand_pas_de_deux.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:ESMD_The_Nutcracker_2011_grand_pas_de_deux.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9c/ESMD_The_Nutcracker_2011_grand_pas_de_deux.jpg/1280px-ESMD_The_Nutcracker_2011_grand_pas_de_deux.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"},{"alt":"Cirque rouge tazandavitra","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ea/Grand_pas_voie.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Promo2024","height":964,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Cirque rouge tazandavitra","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ea/Grand_pas_voie.jpg/960px-Grand_pas_voie.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Grand_pas_voie.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ea/Grand_pas_voie.jpg/1280px-Grand_pas_voie.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:22.332Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/grand-pas"}
{"id":"5079ca7d-0c06-49d9-9815-8b15a830e5d2","type":"art_form","slug":"grass-dance","title":"Grass dance","summary":"The grass dance or Omaha dance is a style of modern Native American men's pow wow dancing originating in the warrior societies on the Northern Great Plains.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tdk85r31tg","content":[{"text":"The grass dance or Omaha dance is a style of modern Native American men's pow wow dancing originating in the warrior societies on the Northern Great Plains. Unlike most forms of pow wow dancing, the grass dance regalia generally has no feathers besides the occasional roach feather. The regalia consists of brightly colored fringe made of either yarn, broadcloth, or ribbon.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4443ffb6-f94a-483c-af85-e5332472aca4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origins","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mae4ws5p3b","content":[{"text":"The original creators of the grass dance and the purpose of the dance are widely contested. Sources attribute possible origins to the Omaha, Pawnee, Anishnabe people, Ponca, Dakota, or Ho-Chunk tribes. While the specific tribe of origin is unknown, it is generally accepted as a Northern Plains dance that was used by warrior societies.\nThere are several stories behind the origins of the grass dance. One is that a medicine man told a handicapped boy to seek inspiration in the prairie. There he observed the swaying of the grass and received a vision of himself dancing the same style as the grass. When he shared this vision with his village, the use of his legs was returned to him and he performed the first grass dance.\nOther origins attribute the grass dance to scouts blessing and flattening the grass for a ceremony, Dance or battle. The dancers would also then tie braided grass into their belts. Tying grass to the belt is believed to have led to the yarn and ribbons common today.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4443ffb6-f94a-483c-af85-e5332472aca4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Description","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"35rnebwds0","content":[{"text":"The grass dance is a fast-paced dance consisting of sweeping motions and symmetry. It is generally  faster than Northern Tradition or Straight style dancing, but not as fast as a Fancy dance. Like with most pow wow dances, the dancer brings his foot down to tap or step on the drum beat. Whatever the grass dancer does on one side of his body, he must also do that on the other side to create symmetry and mimic waving grass. Wide sweeping motions and tapping are also used to imitate laying down the grass. Other movements show a warrior stalking the enemy or game through tall grass. One dance steps typical of this involves one foot being firmly planted on the ground while the rest of the body moves around it. This is said to show a warrior still fighting when one foot has been staked down.\nThe main difference between grass dance regalia and the regalia of the other pow wow styles is that there are very few if any feathers compared to bustles of most men's dances. The regalia of the grass dancer instead consists of brightly colored fringe made of yarn or ribbon. While most dances involve making the bustle move, the grass dancer is instead intent on the swaying of the fringe. The dancer wears a roach headdress with either one to two feathers or two fluff antennae. A fully or partially beaded set consists of an \"H-Harness\" (two long suspenders that hang to below the knees and a belt), cuffs, headband, and side tabs. Grass dancers normally carry feather fans, mirror board, scarves, dream catchers, hoops, or dance sticks.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4443ffb6-f94a-483c-af85-e5332472aca4"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fx1dybgtz5","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Grass dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4443ffb6-f94a-483c-af85-e5332472aca4"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mhb456528z","content":[{"text":"Grass dance is Style of Native American dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"db38e3cb-656b-48a6-8cfe-585d7bcde16f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2hp7rs40n1","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"db38e3cb-656b-48a6-8cfe-585d7bcde16f"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Grass Dancers at the 2007 National Pow Wow.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/16/2007_National_Pow_Wow_Grass_Dancers.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Smithsonian Institute: Cynthia Frankenburg","height":858,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Grass Dancers at the 2007 National Pow Wow.","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/16/2007_National_Pow_Wow_Grass_Dancers.jpg/960px-2007_National_Pow_Wow_Grass_Dancers.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:2007_National_Pow_Wow_Grass_Dancers.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/16/2007_National_Pow_Wow_Grass_Dancers.jpg/1280px-2007_National_Pow_Wow_Grass_Dancers.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"Grass dancers, Seafair Indian Days Pow Wow, Daybreak Star Cultural Center, Seattle, Washington. The event is part of Seafair (a series of annual summer events in Seattle) and under the aegis of the United Indians of All Tribes Foundation.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/df/UIATF_Pow_Wow_2009_-_grass_dancers_01.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Joe Mabel","height":1927,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Grass dancers, Seafair Indian Days Pow Wow, Daybreak Star Cultural Center, Seattle, Washington. The event is part of Seafair (a series of annual summer events in Seattle) and under the aegis of the United Indians of All Tribes Foundation.","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/df/UIATF_Pow_Wow_2009_-_grass_dancers_01.jpg/960px-UIATF_Pow_Wow_2009_-_grass_dancers_01.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:UIATF_Pow_Wow_2009_-_grass_dancers_01.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/df/UIATF_Pow_Wow_2009_-_grass_dancers_01.jpg/1280px-UIATF_Pow_Wow_2009_-_grass_dancers_01.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"},{"alt":"Grass dancers, Seafair Indian Days Pow Wow, Daybreak Star Cultural Center, Seattle, Washington. The event is part of Seafair (a series of annual summer events in Seattle) and under the aegis of the United Indians of All Tribes Foundation.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/88/UIATF_Pow_Wow_2009_-_grass_dancers_06.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Joe Mabel","height":850,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Grass dancers, Seafair Indian Days Pow Wow, Daybreak Star Cultural Center, Seattle, Washington. The event is part of Seafair (a series of annual summer events in Seattle) and under the aegis of the United Indians of All Tribes Foundation.","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/88/UIATF_Pow_Wow_2009_-_grass_dancers_06.jpg/960px-UIATF_Pow_Wow_2009_-_grass_dancers_06.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:UIATF_Pow_Wow_2009_-_grass_dancers_06.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/88/UIATF_Pow_Wow_2009_-_grass_dancers_06.jpg/1280px-UIATF_Pow_Wow_2009_-_grass_dancers_06.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:23.206Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/grass-dance"}
{"id":"aed4b2d5-7d25-4820-9068-6bdad3bd9d2b","type":"art_form","slug":"greek-dance","title":"Greek dance","summary":"Greek dance (choros; Greek: χορός, romanized: chorós) is an old tradition, being referred to by authors such as Plato, Aristotle, Plutarch and Lucian.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8ndgn3kqwb","content":[{"text":"Greek dance (choros; Greek: χορός, romanized: chorós) is an old tradition, being referred to by authors such as Plato, Aristotle, Plutarch and Lucian. There are different styles and interpretations from all of the islands and surrounding mainland areas. Each region formed its own choreography and style to fit in with their own ways. For example, island dances have more of a different smooth flow to them, while Pontic dancing closer to the Black Sea, is very sharp. There are over 10,000 traditional dances that come from all regions of Greece. There are also pan-Hellenic dances, which have been adopted throughout the Greek world. These include specifically the Syrtos, Kalamatianos, Pyrrhichios, Ballos, Zeibekiko, and hasapiko.\nTraditional Greek dancing has a primarily social function. It brings the community together at key points of the year, such as Easter, the grape harvest or patronal festivals; and at key points in the lives of individuals and families, such as weddings. For this reason, tradition frequently dictates a strict order in the arrangement of the dancers, for example, by age.\nA study conducted on children engaging in a dance program involving the performance of various types of traditional Greek dances has demonstrated that it is an effective exercise for strengthening young children's static and dynamic balance.\nGreek dances are performed also in diaspora Greek communities among international folk dance groups.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"839267a2-2d7f-4300-82dd-70d711f8db95"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Ancient Greek dances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k251t0n0e7","content":[{"text":"Antistrophe\nCarpaea\nChoreia (dance)\nCordax\nDionysiakos\nHyporchema\nKorybantes\nPyrrhichios (dance)\nSyrtos\nIn Ancient Greece, dance was a form of ritual, as well as a pastime. Dance could be included in hunting communities, initiation ceremony rituals of age, marriage, and death, entertainment, dance festivals, and religious activity. It was also viewed as a way to educate children about social norms and morals, and was viewed as being essential for physical and emotional development. Dance was used in regard to war as a form of military training, as well as a ritual that served as a mediator between the gods and humans. What modern times may consider a parade, military drill, funeral, children's game, these were seen as forms of dance as long as they were meant to be an exhibition of a rhythmic performance. Strobilos (στρόβιλος) was a whirling dance.\nThe Suda mentions an ancient Greek dance called Dipodia (Διποδία), meaning two-step/two-footer. It also describes Orchesis (Ὄρχησις), which included two types of dance: one involving acrobatics and another performed with a ball. Aristonicus of Carystus, was known for performing the ball-dance. In addition, the Suda mentions Pantomime dancing (Ὄρχησις παντόμιμος), a form of dance associated with Augustus Caesar and the performers Pylades and Bathyllus.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"839267a2-2d7f-4300-82dd-70d711f8db95"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Aegean Islands","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vq99k6c720","content":[{"text":"The Aegean islands have dances which are fast in pace and light and jumpy. Many of these dances, however, are couples dances, and not so much in lines. See Nisiotika for more information.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"839267a2-2d7f-4300-82dd-70d711f8db95"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Crete","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6ewba85mft","content":[{"text":"These dances are light and jumpy, and extremely cardiovascular.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"839267a2-2d7f-4300-82dd-70d711f8db95"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Epirus","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"22f3bm01by","content":[{"text":"Epirote dances are the most slow and heavy in all of Greece. Great balance is required in order to perform these dances.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"839267a2-2d7f-4300-82dd-70d711f8db95"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Peloponnese","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"majbtay4gr","content":[{"text":"The dances of the Peloponnese are very simple and heavy, with the leader of the line improvising.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"839267a2-2d7f-4300-82dd-70d711f8db95"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m7acd2c63f","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Greek dances”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"839267a2-2d7f-4300-82dd-70d711f8db95"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"54nh9zqqvv","content":[{"text":"Greek dance is group denoting Greek dances, both traditional folk and modern, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e0bca266-ca35-45f3-a432-ec6cdf24b5d0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jqm521x235","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e0bca266-ca35-45f3-a432-ec6cdf24b5d0"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Monumento al voluntariado, en el parque de Huelin, Málaga, España. La escultura en bronce representa cuatro figuras humanas de frente, tres masculinas y una femenina, que entrelazan sus brazos mutuamente sobre sus hombros. Es una obra del año 2005 de Elena Laverón, titulada…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/97/Greek_Dance%2C_Monument_to_Volunteerism.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Daniel Capilla","height":974,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Monumento al voluntariado, en el parque de Huelin, Málaga, España. La escultura en bronce representa cuatro figuras humanas de frente, tres masculinas y una femenina, que entrelazan sus brazos mutuamente sobre sus hombros. Es una obra del año 2005 de Elena Laverón, titulada…","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/97/Greek_Dance%2C_Monument_to_Volunteerism.jpg/960px-Greek_Dance%2C_Monument_to_Volunteerism.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Greek_Dance,_Monument_to_Volunteerism.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/97/Greek_Dance%2C_Monument_to_Volunteerism.jpg/1280px-Greek_Dance%2C_Monument_to_Volunteerism.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Dancers perform a traditional Greek dance during the 2017 Rochester en:Greek festival","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3b/DancersPerformingAtRochesterGreekFestival2017.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"DanielPenfield","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Dancers perform a traditional Greek dance during the 2017 Rochester en:Greek festival","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3b/DancersPerformingAtRochesterGreekFestival2017.jpg/960px-DancersPerformingAtRochesterGreekFestival2017.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:DancersPerformingAtRochesterGreekFestival2017.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3b/DancersPerformingAtRochesterGreekFestival2017.jpg/1280px-DancersPerformingAtRochesterGreekFestival2017.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:23.539Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/greek-dance"}
{"id":"0016da59-efb9-41ab-850c-e89ad5f7039c","type":"art_form","slug":"grizzly-bear","title":"Grizzly Bear","summary":"The pas de l'ours, first known by its English name grizzly bear, is a couple dance that emerged in the United States around 1910 and achieved international popularity until the outbreak of the First World War.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"apbqyqb0v2","content":[{"text":"The pas de l'ours, first known by its English name grizzly bear, is a couple dance that emerged in the United States around 1910 and achieved international popularity until the outbreak of the First World War. Its name refers to a stylized and parodic imitation of the swaying gait of a grizzly bear, as well as to the close embrace of the dancers and movements likened to the animal's paws. Performed to ragtime music, the pas de l'ours belongs to a group of early 20th-century American animal dances that shared a taste for fantasy and marked a departure from established social dance conventions. Characterized by syncopated movements, improvisation, and a playful tone, the dance quickly attracted a wide audience. At the same time, it provoked controversy: critics associated its movements with moral laxity, viewed animal imitation as a form of regression, and, in some cases, called for restrictions or bans on public performances. Such reactions were often reinforced by claims that the dance originated in African American communities of the San Francisco underworld. As a result, the pas de l'ours was frequently described as vulgar, a label that sometimes carried racial connotations.\nFrom 1911 onward, several songs by Irving Berlin, notably The Dance of the Grizzly Bear and Everybody's Doin' It Now, played a significant role in popularizing the dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"921c54fe-64ad-447d-a642-e676be7afd67"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Ragtime dances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"78wk8t3gah","content":[{"text":"The grizzly bear was one of several dances practiced in the United States between about 1910 and 1913 to ragtime music, a term that originally referred to \"ragged time\". These dances belonged to the category of closed-couple dances, in which partners remained in physical contact, holding one another with both hands or arms.\nRagtime is characterized by syncopation, displaced accents, and rhythmic shifts set against a steady bass pattern. This rhythmic structure influenced the dances performed to it, which were generally based on walking steps that allowed for numerous variations. Dancers could play with the musical structure through foot placement and bodily accents, modify their speed of execution while moving, or introduce visible contrasts to the regular bass line through movements of the arms, shoulders, and hips.\nThe emergence of ragtime dances followed the diffusion of ragtime music beyond African American communities during the first decade of the 20th century, particularly into venues associated with popular entertainment and nightlife. This spread was accelerated by music hall performances, including minstrel shows. Reconstructing ragtime dances as they were originally practiced by popular audiences is difficult. Rather than existing as a single fixed or authentic form, these dances were generally spontaneous, evolving, and informal, marked by playfulness and by early hybridization that combined elements of African American cultural practices with influences from European traditions. Dance terminology was not standardized during this period. A step referred to as the grizzly bear in one city might be called the turkey trot or bunny hug in another, with these terms sometimes used interchangeably for the one-step.\nAn article published in the St.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"921c54fe-64ad-447d-a642-e676be7afd67"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Animal dances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yyej2h7aem","content":[{"text":"The grizzly bear and other ragtime dance steps popular in the United States in the years preceding the country's entry into the First World War are commonly grouped under the label animal dances, a term derived from the animal names assigned to them. This group includes dances such as the turkey trot, the bunny hug, the monkey glide, the horse trot, the crab step, the possum trot, the bullfrog hop, the fish walk, the snake dip, the eagle rock, the chicken scratch, the kangaroo kant, and the wiggle worm. The breadth of this repertoire has been described as a \"zoo\", reflecting both the popularity of such dances and the rapid turnover of fashionable steps presented as new variations.\nThe animal-based names primarily reflect the imitative and playful qualities of the dances. In the case of the grizzly bear, this imitation involved movements associated with a bear, including pronounced lateral swaying, bent knees, a close embrace with partners positioned chest to chest and arms resting loosely on one another's shoulders, and the curling of the fingers to suggest claws.\nMany historians interpret the emergence of the grizzly bear and animal dances more generally as the outcome of a dual process of hybridization. On the one hand, changes in African American social practices associated with urbanization, migration to the Northeastern United States, and the transformation of leisure venues contributed to shifts in dance style, including a more upright posture, abandonment of barefoot dancing, increased individualization of movement, and heightened sexual connotations of gestures.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"921c54fe-64ad-447d-a642-e676be7afd67"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Social changes","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yyv6asdx40","content":[{"text":"Several authors, following Kathy Peiss, situate animal dances in general, and the grizzly bear in particular, within broader changes in social dancing practices in the United States from the late 19th century onward. These changes accompanied the rise of a culture of dance halls (dance-hall), which offered young wage-earning women new opportunities for social interaction outside family and neighborhood networks and contributed to evolving attitudes toward leisure, sexuality, and personal fulfillment.\nThese new forms of entertainment, less constrained by kinship ties and traditional supervision, were encouraged by the spread of collective housing (tenements) and by the emergence of rackets, clubs or amusement societies operated for profit through alcohol sales and characterized by limited oversight of admissions. Their popularity led to the multiplication of increasingly large dance halls, which often functioned as dance academies during the day and hosted social events in the evenings and on Sundays. Unlike earlier social settings, these venues did not promote intergenerational mixing and instead relied on instructors who demonstrated the latest fashionable steps.\nThe expansion of such dance halls, where young women of modest means were admitted at reduced prices and where comparatively relaxed moral codes prevailed, was viewed with concern by observers from higher social classes. Within a broader media climate marked by anxiety over the so-called white slavery, these venues were often portrayed as encouraging prostitution.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"921c54fe-64ad-447d-a642-e676be7afd67"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Role of Irving Berlin","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2rvmgmmsr1","content":[{"text":"In 1910, the composer George Botsford published the Grizzly Bear Rag. His publisher, Ted Snyder, subsequently asked Irving Berlin to write lyrics for a vocal version, which involved only minor melodic modifications. The resulting song, entitled The Dance of the Grizzly Bear, was issued in sheet-music form alongside the original piano-only composition.\nThe vocal version achieved substantial commercial success, reportedly selling around one million copies. Its popularity contributed to the rapid dissemination of the dance itself.\nThe lyrics, which humorously evoke the intense excitement generated by the grizzly bear, attest to the notoriety of the dance at an early stage.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"921c54fe-64ad-447d-a642-e676be7afd67"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Crackdown in dance halls","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k3gtr3wfbh","content":[{"text":"The popularity of Irving Berli…","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"921c54fe-64ad-447d-a642-e676be7afd67"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"atmybvsj7d","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Grizzly Bear (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"921c54fe-64ad-447d-a642-e676be7afd67"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k9grcqe32k","content":[{"text":"Grizzly Bear is early 20th-century dance style, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d0f69daf-95da-453c-a115-2ad9ea5154d6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"j48r154gkb","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d0f69daf-95da-453c-a115-2ad9ea5154d6"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"The grizzly bear ( Ursus arctos ssp .) is any North American subspecies of brown bear .","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e3/Grizzly_Bear_%28Ursus_arctos_ssp.%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Gregory \"Slobirdr\" Smith","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"The grizzly bear ( Ursus arctos ssp .) is any North American subspecies of brown bear .","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e3/Grizzly_Bear_%28Ursus_arctos_ssp.%29.jpg/960px-Grizzly_Bear_%28Ursus_arctos_ssp.%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Grizzly_Bear_(Ursus_arctos_ssp.).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e3/Grizzly_Bear_%28Ursus_arctos_ssp.%29.jpg/1280px-Grizzly_Bear_%28Ursus_arctos_ssp.%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"},{"alt":"Grizzly bear ( Ursus arctos horribilis ), also known as the North American brown bear, found at Sofia zoo.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ef/Grizzly_bear_-_Ursus_arctos_horribilis.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"MrPanyGoff","height":943,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Grizzly bear ( Ursus arctos horribilis ), also known as the North American brown bear, found at Sofia zoo.","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ef/Grizzly_bear_-_Ursus_arctos_horribilis.jpg/960px-Grizzly_bear_-_Ursus_arctos_horribilis.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Grizzly_bear_-_Ursus_arctos_horribilis.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ef/Grizzly_bear_-_Ursus_arctos_horribilis.jpg/1280px-Grizzly_bear_-_Ursus_arctos_horribilis.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"},{"alt":"A grizzly bear making its way through greenery as it searches for food.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/95/Wild_Grizzly_Bear.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Ashley98lee","height":1834,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"A grizzly bear making its way through greenery as it searches for food.","licence":"CC BY 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/95/Wild_Grizzly_Bear.jpg/960px-Wild_Grizzly_Bear.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Wild_Grizzly_Bear.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/95/Wild_Grizzly_Bear.jpg/1280px-Wild_Grizzly_Bear.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:24.336Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/grizzly-bear"}
{"id":"29df3ab9-4631-49a6-81c1-f634006cce88","type":"art_form","slug":"gujo-odori","title":"Gujō Odori","summary":"Gō Odori (郡上おどり) is a Bon Festival held every summer in Gujō, Gifu, Japan.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"y7rxwbp0nc","content":[{"text":"Gō Odori (郡上おどり) is a Bon Festival held every summer in Gujō, Gifu, Japan. The dance festival's origins have been traced back to the Kan'ei era (1624–44), when it is believed to have originated as an exercise in social cohesion; it has been designated an Important Intangible Folk Cultural Property.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3f9e2e3e-a59b-4fac-8794-40a5843d218a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mvxz3whqma","content":[{"text":"The festival lasts thirty-two nights, from the middle of July to early September. During the four days of Obon in mid-August (August 13 to 16), dances continue all night. Gujō Odori has 10 kinds of dances. Kawasaki and Harukoma are very famous and easy to dance for beginners. The final song of every night is always Matsusaka. Dancers dance in a circular motion around the center stage. All dances are traditional Japanese lines dances. There is no difference between the dancers and the audience, anyone can participate; therefore the dances attract many visitors. About 250,000 people during the four days of Obon and about 300,000 people every summer come to this small town, which has a population about 15,000 in Gujō Hachiman district, for the odori.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3f9e2e3e-a59b-4fac-8794-40a5843d218a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t3710ghxv4","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Gujō Odori”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3f9e2e3e-a59b-4fac-8794-40a5843d218a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"g0gzpe93m8","content":[{"text":"Gujō Odori is Japanese festival, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d9553baa-49e5-4317-bec8-b79b2015cfe4"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"npreqf20vs","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 8 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d9553baa-49e5-4317-bec8-b79b2015cfe4"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"切り子灯籠の下で踊る郡上踊り. 岐阜県郡上市八幡町旧庁舎記念館前","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5f/Gujo_Odori2.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"郡上市観光課","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"切り子灯籠の下で踊る郡上踊り. 岐阜県郡上市八幡町旧庁舎記念館前","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5f/Gujo_Odori2.jpg/960px-Gujo_Odori2.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Gujo_Odori2.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5f/Gujo_Odori2.jpg/1280px-Gujo_Odori2.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:31.402Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/gujo-odori"}
{"id":"7af2a852-0630-4617-a354-a7424bfaf751","type":"art_form","slug":"gule-wamkulu","title":"Gule Wamkulu","summary":"Gule Wamkulu is type of dance. This page is a machine-generated stub awaiting review by someone who knows the tradition.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zv0cm4zs5j","content":[{"text":"Gule Wamkulu is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5075da42-3a37-4870-842e-0c6678a87dc2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"91vmyh2t7k","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5075da42-3a37-4870-842e-0c6678a87dc2"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T07:23:06.564Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/gule-wamkulu"}
{"id":"383d0310-9f63-4a61-a8ad-10d2304945e2","type":"art_form","slug":"gumboot-dance","title":"Gumboot dance","summary":"The gumboot dance (or Isicathulo) is a South African dance that is performed by dancers wearing Wellington boots.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2ey9de4am3","content":[{"text":"The gumboot dance (or Isicathulo) is a South African dance that is performed by dancers wearing Wellington boots. In South Africa these are more commonly called gumboots.\nThe boots may be embellished with bells, so that they ring as the dancers stamp on the ground. This sound would be a code or a different calling to say something to another person a short distance away. This was used to communicate in the mines as there was strictly no talking otherwise there would be severe, drastic punishments at the discretion of their superior. The mines were very noisy workplaces, with pneumatic drills at work most of the time; in those days (until the mid 1970s) ear-defenders did not exist in South African mines.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fdbbf737-ab8a-426d-9b43-fc8d1a8a1a63"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rb2zt07w2p","content":[{"text":"Rooted back in the dark gold mine tunnels of South Africa, gumboot dancing has come full circle. Initially a codified tap used by black miners deprived of conversation, gumboot dancing today is one of the most expressive South African dance genres.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fdbbf737-ab8a-426d-9b43-fc8d1a8a1a63"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Description","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4s67cfryhe","content":[{"text":"Gumboot dancers are commonly sighted on the streets and plazas of tourist areas in South Africa such as the Victoria & Alfred Waterfront in Cape Town. Many of the steps and routines are parodies of the officers and guards who controlled the mines and barracks of South African gold miners.  Like other forms of African dance, Gumboot utilizes the concepts of polyrhythm and total body articulation, drawing from the cultural dances of the African workers that worked the mines. It is a percussive dance made by idiophones or autophones (objects of the everyday life vibrating by themselves), and is similar in execution and style to forms of \"stepping\" done by African-American fraternities and sororities.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fdbbf737-ab8a-426d-9b43-fc8d1a8a1a63"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Appearances outside core context","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rgh8yhkvdm","content":[{"text":"The dance is the highlight of the performance of Black Umfolosi, a prominent South African folk group.\nThe album Graceland by the American pop singer Paul Simon has a song titled \"Gumboots\", which is performed in the style of South African township jive (mbaqanga) and contains performances by members of the Boyoyo Boys.\nThe British-American composer David Bruce has written a clarinet quintet entitled \"Gumboots\", which was inspired by Gumboot dancing. It was commissioned by Carnegie Hall in 2008 and can be heard in full on their website, performed by Todd Palmer and the St. Lawrence String Quartet.\nSince a South-African student introduced gumboot to his classmates from all over the world at Pearson College UWC, the international school has kept this tradition through the Gumboot Core Team – a group that trains the steps, learns about the culture, and keeps the respect for it alive on campus for over 45 years now. The group respects the origins of the dance and tries to be as authentic and educative as possible when performing. At the beginning of every year, around the months of March and April, the team is responsible for choreographing and performing at the One World festival, an annual concert in Victoria, BC.\nSince the 1990s and 2000s, Drakensberg Boys' Choir School based at gumboot dancing the folk-African part of their repertoire and white gumboots are the part of the second variant of their concert costume (the first variant is a classical \"white man's\" costume).\nIn 2017, World of Step was established by Creative Director, Chuck Maldonado and Founder of Art of Stepping, Jessica 'Remo' Saul in direct response of preserve the historical component of gumboot dance to be shared to the mass.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fdbbf737-ab8a-426d-9b43-fc8d1a8a1a63"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f79kckr3jh","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Gumboot dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fdbbf737-ab8a-426d-9b43-fc8d1a8a1a63"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qj9z857eb1","content":[{"text":"Gumboot dance is African dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a850d685-b3d2-42ae-a21f-af39588e464a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1gx1ngs7b5","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a850d685-b3d2-42ae-a21f-af39588e464a"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Gumboot dance","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/24/Gumboot_dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Maansi Agrawal","height":720,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Gumboot dance","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/24/Gumboot_dance.jpg/960px-Gumboot_dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Gumboot_dance.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/24/Gumboot_dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail_unscaled","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"4 men dancing the \"Gum Dance\" in Durban, South Africa","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/67/Gum_Boot_Dance_%28South_Africa%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Grace Flora","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"4 men dancing the \"Gum Dance\" in Durban, South Africa","licence":"CC BY 2.5","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/67/Gum_Boot_Dance_%28South_Africa%29.jpg/960px-Gum_Boot_Dance_%28South_Africa%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Gum_Boot_Dance_(South_Africa).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/67/Gum_Boot_Dance_%28South_Africa%29.jpg/1280px-Gum_Boot_Dance_%28South_Africa%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.5"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:14.672Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/gumboot-dance"}
{"id":"9f3c154d-da94-4880-86ef-87931eea0008","type":"art_form","slug":"gwo-ka","title":"gwo ka","summary":"Gwo ka is an Antillean Creole term for big drum.  Alongside Gwotanbou, simply Ka or Banboula (archaic), it refers to both a family of hand drums and the music played with them, which is a major part of Guadeloupean folk music.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7rf5c1px81","content":[{"text":"Gwo ka is an Antillean Creole term for big drum.  Alongside Gwotanbou, simply Ka or Banboula (archaic), it refers to both a family of hand drums and the music played with them, which is a major part of Guadeloupean folk music.  Moreover, the term is occasionally found in reference to the small, flat-bottomed tambourine (tanbou d'bas) played in kadri music, or even simply to drum (tanbou) in general.\nThe Gwo Ka musical practice emerged in the seventeenth century, during the transatlantic slave trade\nSeven simple drum patterns form the basis of gwo ka music, on which the drummers build rhythmic improvisations.  Different sizes of drums provide the foundation and its flourishes.  The largest, the boula, plays the central rhythm while the smaller maké (or markeur) embellishes upon it, inter-playing with dancers, audience, or singer.  Gwo ka singing is usually guttural, nasal, and rough, though it can also be bright and smooth, and is accompanied by uplifting and complex harmonies and melodies.  There are also dances that tell folk stories that are accompanied by the gwo ka drums.\nIn modern, urban Guadeloupe, playing drums is not inextricably linked to dance anymore. But historically, the two practices were inseparable parts of the tradition of léwôz, events held fortnightly on Saturdays near the bigger plantations (payday), and each Saturday of the carnival season in areas of greater land parcelling.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d5a6f0fe-a035-4949-852b-01b66428c4f0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gcy2a0h2vr","content":[{"text":"The Gwo Ka musical practice emerged in the 17th century during the transatlantic slave trade, as a result of a creolization process: adaptation to surrounding context and assimilation of European cultural elements. African slaves of Guadeloupe used to gather to play drums, sing and dance. The use  of any kind of drum was at that time forbidden by the Code Noir.  As a consequence, slaves used a vocal technique called bouladjèl, which imitates drums.  At that time, Gwoka practice was directly linked to agricultural work, especially sugar cane, coffee and banana cultivation.\nPost 1946, along with anti-assimilation and anti-colonialism movements, Gwoka spread throughout  the island, which marks the beginning of its rehabilitation process.  As a consequence, in 1988, lawyer and nationalist activist Félix Cotellon created the Festival de Gwoka Sentann in the city of Sainte-Anne without the support of the municipality.  Studies and symposiums were held on the occasion.\nIn 1981, local musician Gérard Lockel published the Traité de Gwoka modên, the first attempt  to formalize this  musical genre.  He claimed that Gwoka was atonal, breaching with western conventions and tastes. By affirming the modality of Gwoka, he situated this music style within the realm of African musical traditions.  Paradoxically, under Lockel's leadership, Gwoka was transformed from a participatory music played outdoors to a presentational music played on stage with European and North American instruments.\nMusical research show that the instrument can find its roots in the drums and songs of the West African countries (Guinea gulf, Congo...).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d5a6f0fe-a035-4949-852b-01b66428c4f0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Instruments","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xwvh5y5kq2","content":[{"text":"Traditional gwo ka is ideally played with at least 2 hand drums (ka in créole): 1 boula and 1 makè. Historically, ka were made of:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d5a6f0fe-a035-4949-852b-01b66428c4f0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"908p13ymrx","content":[{"text":"a recycled cured meat keg for the body (bari a vyann or bouko in créole);\na goat skin (po a kabrit in créole) — male for the boula vs. female for the makè;\ntensioning metal hoops (sèk, i.e. circle in créole);\nwooden tensioning pegs (klé in créole);\nrope (zoban in créole).\nOften, the Ka section is further accompanied by:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d5a6f0fe-a035-4949-852b-01b66428c4f0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"a46s6whsnz","content":[{"text":"ti-bwa: 15 to 20 cm wooden sticks drummed on the side of a \"Ka\" or a section of bamboo culm of about 15 cm in diameter;\nchacha: emptied & dried calabash — or any other container — filled with a granular material (e.g. grains, salt, sand...).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d5a6f0fe-a035-4949-852b-01b66428c4f0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Rhythms","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tj1bpthwvr","content":[{"text":"The influences (lifestyle and musical genre) of the \"master\" combined with this base to create the seven rhythms or dances:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d5a6f0fe-a035-4949-852b-01b66428c4f0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rj00gnsg6r","content":[{"text":"The léwôz is the war rhythm, used to give rhythm the attacks against the plantations, but was also an incantation dance;\nThe kaladja symbolises the struggle in love;\nThe toumblak, like the kaladja, deals with the love theme, belly dance, fertility dance;\nThe padjabèl is the cane cutting dance;\nThe graj accompanies the agricultural work;\nThe woulé is the \"creole waltz\", to charm and mimic the whites;\nThe mendé would have been the last rhythm to arrive in the islands, with the \"Congos\" under contract after the abolition, and symbolises the collective celebration of carnival.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d5a6f0fe-a035-4949-852b-01b66428c4f0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jj74q912nr","content":[{"text":"\"Gwo-ka is a dance of improvisation by excellence, a dance of the instinct, of the moment. (…) Gwo-ka, dance of resistance, of resilience and adaptation: Dance of Life\"","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d5a6f0fe-a035-4949-852b-01b66428c4f0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Gwo ka moderne","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nkhyanaa4d","content":[{"text":"A more modernized version of gwo ka is gwo ka moderne, which adds new instruments ranging from conga or djembe drums and chimes to electric bass guitar. At root, however, these styles all use the same fundamental seven rhythms as folk gwo ka. Zouk legends Kassav' played an important role in the modernization of gwo ka, giving urban credibility to a style that was seen as backward and unsophisticated; they initially played in a gro ka format, using songs from the gwo ka Carnival tradition of mas a St. Jean and even placing an homage to traditionalist drumming legend Velo on their earlier albums.\nGwo ka moderne artists include Pakala Percussion, Van Lévé and Poukoutan'n, alongside more pop-influenced musicians like Marcel Magnat and Ti Celeste, while Gerard Hubert and others have fused gwo ka with zouk. The most famous modern gwo ka performer, however, is William Flessel, whose Message Ka in 1994 became an international hit.\nIn 2013, the Heritage Committee of the Ministry of Culture and Communication has selected the intent to apply of gwoka for registration to the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in order to enhance the gwoka and organize a network of actors.\nIn 2014, the Heritage Committee recognized gwoka in the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d5a6f0fe-a035-4949-852b-01b66428c4f0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b7zz5t7ph3","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Gwo ka”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d5a6f0fe-a035-4949-852b-01b66428c4f0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hzvcrysdwh","content":[{"text":"gwo ka is music genre and type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"11a883e3-d82c-4d87-b304-5ef3ee713e9b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"khh2aysbds","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 10 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"11a883e3-d82c-4d87-b304-5ef3ee713e9b"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"tambours de Guadeloupe","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e1/Gwo_Ka%2C_f%C3%AAte_des_voisins_%C3%A0_Grande_Ravine%2C_Gosier%2C_Guadeloupe.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"FreeProuilhe","height":1278,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"tambours de Guadeloupe","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e1/Gwo_Ka%2C_f%C3%AAte_des_voisins_%C3%A0_Grande_Ravine%2C_Gosier%2C_Guadeloupe.jpg/960px-Gwo_Ka%2C_f%C3%AAte_des_voisins_%C3%A0_Grande_Ravine%2C_Gosier%2C_Guadeloupe.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Gwo_Ka,_f%C3%AAte_des_voisins_%C3%A0_Grande_Ravine,_Gosier,_Guadeloupe.jpg","thumb1280":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e1/Gwo_Ka%2C_f%C3%AAte_des_voisins_%C3%A0_Grande_Ravine%2C_Gosier%2C_Guadeloupe.jpg/1280px-Gwo_Ka%2C_f%C3%AAte_des_voisins_%C3%A0_Grande_Ravine%2C_Gosier%2C_Guadeloupe.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Traditional music of Guadeloupe Young girl dancing gwoka in the streets of Pointe à Pitre in Guadeloupe","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/14/Traditional_Gwoka.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Filo gèn'","height":721,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Traditional music of Guadeloupe Young girl dancing gwoka in the streets of Pointe à Pitre in Guadeloupe","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/14/Traditional_Gwoka.jpg/960px-Traditional_Gwoka.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Traditional_Gwoka.jpg","thumb1280":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/14/Traditional_Gwoka.jpg/1280px-Traditional_Gwoka.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:26.389Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/gwo-ka"}
{"id":"6f268bbc-80b7-4122-ad56-72c4c6e4f9ad","type":"art_form","slug":"haka","title":"haka","summary":"Haka (; singular and plural haka, in both Māori and New Zealand English) are a variety of ceremonial dances in Maoli, Maohi, and Māori culture.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"da2ffgr2v4","content":[{"text":"Haka (; singular and plural haka, in both Māori and New Zealand English) are a variety of ceremonial dances in Maoli, Maohi, and Māori culture. A performance art, haka are often performed by a group, with vigorous movements and stamping of the feet with rhythmically shouted accompaniment. Haka have been traditionally performed by both men and women for a variety of social functions throughout Polynesia. They are performed to welcome distinguished guests, or to acknowledge great achievements, occasions, or funerals.\nIn New Zealand, Kapa haka groups are common in schools. The main Māori performing arts competition, Te Matatini, takes place every two years.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8a918099-3592-4890-99e9-67ff53a5f01b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xzp5n70h1d","content":[{"text":"New Zealand sports teams' practice of performing a haka to challenge opponents before international matches has made the dance form more widely known around the world. This tradition began with the 1888–89 New Zealand Native football team tour and has been carried on by the New Zealand rugby union team (known as the All Blacks) since 1905. Although popularly associated with the traditional battle preparations of male warriors, conceptions that haka are typically war dances are considered erroneous by Māori scholars, alongside the inaccurate performance of haka by non-Māori.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8a918099-3592-4890-99e9-67ff53a5f01b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hqq1q14gk1","content":[{"text":"The group of people performing a haka is referred to as a kapa haka (kapa meaning group or team, and also rank or row). The Māori word haka has cognates in other Polynesian languages, for example: Samoan saʻa (saʻasaʻa), Tokelauan haka, Rarotongan ʻaka, Hawaiian haʻa, Marquesan haka, meaning 'to be short-legged' or 'dance'; all from Proto-Polynesian saka, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian sakaŋ, meaning 'bowlegged'.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8a918099-3592-4890-99e9-67ff53a5f01b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Overview","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"epf7bnhkwx","content":[{"text":"Haka is a form of indigenous dance that encompasses multiple ceremonial purposes in Māori culture. As Nathan Matthew explains, \"it is a posture dance accompanied by chanted or shouted song... One of the main characteristics of haka are that actions involving all parts of the body are used to emphasise the words.\"","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8a918099-3592-4890-99e9-67ff53a5f01b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origins in Māori tradition","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rzm31nk739","content":[{"text":"According to Māori tradition, haka originated from a creation story. The sun god, Tama-nui-te-rā, had two wives, the Summer Maid, Hine-raumati, and the Winter Maid, Hine-takurua. Haka originated in the coming of Hine-raumati, whose presence on still, hot days was revealed in a quivering appearance in the air. This was haka of Tāne-rore, the son of Hine-raumati and Tama-nui-te-rā. Hyland comments that \"the haka is (and also represents) a natural phenomena  [sic]; on hot summer days, the 'shimmering' atmospheric distortion of air emanating from the ground is personified as 'Te Haka a Tānerore'\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8a918099-3592-4890-99e9-67ff53a5f01b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Types and functions","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"81djqrft6d","content":[{"text":"Haka includes various forms serving different ceremonial purposes. These functions include:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8a918099-3592-4890-99e9-67ff53a5f01b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6xtkw5s4w6","content":[{"text":"welcoming guests (haka pōwhiri),\nfare-welling and mourning the deceased (waiata tangi),\ngiving advice or instructions (waiata tohutohu),\nrestoring self-respect (pātere),\nintimidating adversaries (peruperu – war dance),\nand transmitting social and political messages (haka taparahi, ngeri).\nThe peruperu is a war haka that uses weapons, while haka taparahi is performed without weapons and is the more common ceremonial form. Other forms include:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8a918099-3592-4890-99e9-67ff53a5f01b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vccxcsek5n","content":[{"text":"tūtū ngārahu (similar to peruperu but with sideways jumping),\nwhakatū waewae (like peruperu with no jumping),\nmanawa wera (like ngeri with no set actions, usually ceremonial and connected with death), and\nkaioraora (hatred or venting haka).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8a918099-3592-4890-99e9-67ff53a5f01b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Performance elements","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ka9b7xsbhk","content":[{"text":"Various actions are employed in haka performance, including facial contortions such as showing the whites of the eyes (pūkana), and poking out the tongue (whetero, performed by men only), and a wide variety of vigorous body actions such as slapping the hands against the body and stomping of the feet. The body serves as the instrument and vessel of delivery, with the key aspect being the words and the message they contain.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8a918099-3592-4890-99e9-67ff53a5f01b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"96j97a3xwp","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Haka”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8a918099-3592-4890-99e9-67ff53a5f01b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"aqh25vh7s6","content":[{"text":"haka is traditional Māori chanting dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6f9cb1d0-4105-489e-b627-1396bead1e0e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"970arwhdrv","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 10 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6f9cb1d0-4105-489e-b627-1396bead1e0e"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Māori Battalion survivors of action in Greece, performing a haka in Helwan , Egypt for the King of Greece . From left to right, the four men in the foreground are John Manuel, Maaka White, Te Kooti Reihana, and Rangi Henderson. A cropped version of this photo featured on an…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/77/E_003261_E_Maoris_in_North_Africa_July_1941.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Unidentified New Zealand official photographer; Restoration by Adam Cuerden","height":1263,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Māori Battalion survivors of action in Greece, performing a haka in Helwan , Egypt for the King of Greece . From left to right, the four men in the foreground are John Manuel, Maaka White, Te Kooti Reihana, and Rangi Henderson. A cropped version of this photo featured on an…","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/77/E_003261_E_Maoris_in_North_Africa_July_1941.jpg/960px-E_003261_E_Maoris_in_North_Africa_July_1941.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:E_003261_E_Maoris_in_North_Africa_July_1941.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/77/E_003261_E_Maoris_in_North_Africa_July_1941.jpg/1280px-E_003261_E_Maoris_in_North_Africa_July_1941.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"War dance, New Zealand","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/86/MaoriWardanceKahuroa.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Merrett, Joseph Jenner, 1816-1854.","height":813,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"War dance, New Zealand","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/86/MaoriWardanceKahuroa.jpg/960px-MaoriWardanceKahuroa.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:MaoriWardanceKahuroa.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/86/MaoriWardanceKahuroa.jpg/1280px-MaoriWardanceKahuroa.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"Haka Performers, Clandon Park","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/22/Haka_Performers%2C_Clandon_Park_-_geograph.org.uk_-_1873238.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Colin Smith","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Haka Performers, Clandon Park","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/22/Haka_Performers%2C_Clandon_Park_-_geograph.org.uk_-_1873238.jpg/960px-Haka_Performers%2C_Clandon_Park_-_geograph.org.uk_-_1873238.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Haka_Performers,_Clandon_Park_-_geograph.org.uk_-_1873238.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/22/Haka_Performers%2C_Clandon_Park_-_geograph.org.uk_-_1873238.jpg/1280px-Haka_Performers%2C_Clandon_Park_-_geograph.org.uk_-_1873238.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-07T05:47:14.721Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/haka"}
{"id":"2e30f559-ec2e-44e6-af92-d8d8ea804bdc","type":"art_form","slug":"halay","title":"halay","summary":"Halay is the national dance of Turkey. It refers to all traditional circular and line dances performed across the country.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jd0mn100j0","content":[{"text":"Halay is the national dance of Turkey. It refers to all traditional circular and line dances performed across the country. The term is used among Turks, Kurds, Arabs, and Asia Minor Greeks (particularly Pontic Greeks, Karamanlides, and Cappadocian Greeks).\nCircular and line dances in Turkey are commonly performed at weddings and festive gatherings, traditionally accompanied by the zurna and davul, or sometimes by the singing of the dancers themselves. In recent years, electronic instruments have increasingly been used in place of traditional musical instruments. Halay dancers typically form a circle or a line, holding each other by the fingers, hands, or shoulders. The first and last dancers may also hold a handkerchief known as a mendil. These dances usually begin slowly and gradually speed up in tempo, and their name, style, and musical characteristics vary from one town or village to another.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9917bddc-73b0-4056-9ee4-e2facd4c2558"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"q15yqeaqm1","content":[{"text":"The term halay is derived from a Pontic Greek folk dance called \"Χαλάι\" (Khalái), who emerged in Central Anatolia (Cappadocia) in the early 20th century when Pontic Greek miners migrated from the Eastern Black Sea to the district of Akdağmadeni in Yozgat Province. The name of the dance was taken from the refrain of a Turkish folk song popular among the community that accompanied the dance, suggesting that these Pontic Greeks were Turkish-speaking.\nIt was a slow-paced, semi-circular dance, characterized by intense bending movements and rhythmic foot strikes. Dancers would start with their right foot, taking the first three steps diagonally to the right. On the fourth step, they would extend their feet toward the center of the circle, then step backward with the left foot on the fifth step, placing the toe inward and the heel outward. They would return to the position of the fourth step on the sixth step, then repeat the sequence, moving in unison to the accompaniment of musical instruments, such as the violin, oud, zurna and davul.\nThe dance soon became widely recognized among other communities in Cappadocia, who began using the term to refer to all circular and line folk dances throughout the country. Variants later spread to the provinces of Sivas, Çorum, Kayseri, and other areas of northern Cappadocia, each developing distinct local characteristics while maintaining the fundamental structure and rhythm of the original dance.\nThe historical documentation of halay dates back to the early 20th century. The earliest known written definition of the word halay appears in the 1932 ethnographic compilation Anadilden Derlemeler by Hamit Zübeyir Koşay and İshak Işıtman, where halay is defined as a hand-held line dance from Central Anatolia, accompanied by the zurna and davul.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9917bddc-73b0-4056-9ee4-e2facd4c2558"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cg3grb6nx3","content":[{"text":"Halay comes from the Turkish word alay, meaning “group”, “crowd”, or \"celebration\", and in this context, \"a large number of people gathered together for a ceremony or demonstration\". The Turkish alay originates from the Byzantine Greek term alágion (αλάγιον).\nAn alternate etymology has been proposed by Sevan Nişanyan in his Etymological Dictionary of Contemporary Turkish suggesting that halay originates from the Kurdish (Kurmanji) word hildan, meaning \"to lift\". However, on 24 July 2022, Nişanyan put doubt on this revealing that he doesn't know the origin of the word.\nAlthough commonly known by its Turkish name halay, this category of folk dance is also referred to by different names among other ethnic groups in Turkey: govend or dîlan in Kurdish, ḥiggā (ܚܓܐ) in Syriac, yallı in Azerbaijani, and šurǰpar (Շուրջպար) in Armenian.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9917bddc-73b0-4056-9ee4-e2facd4c2558"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Examples of halay","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nxy3n8hj62","content":[{"text":"Khalái (danced by Asia Minor Greeks)\nElazığ dik halay (danced by Turks and Kurds)\nÜç Ayak  (danced by Turks)\nKaba (danced by Turks)\nAfshar (danced by Turks)\nHalabi (danced by Turks, Kurds, and Arabs)\nDunnik (danced by Kurds)\nYallı (danced by Azerbaijanis)","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9917bddc-73b0-4056-9ee4-e2facd4c2558"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yw0hgbcj6f","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Halay”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9917bddc-73b0-4056-9ee4-e2facd4c2558"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"a3p6w6jnz7","content":[{"text":"halay is folk dance in the Middle East, as well as among Kurds, Talyshi, Turks, Armenians, and Persians, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"249d3b93-1787-4564-a60b-6b5f573945d1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0ajyf2pmac","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"249d3b93-1787-4564-a60b-6b5f573945d1"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"halay zamanı","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/47/Halay_zaman%C4%B1.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Rotadefterim","height":887,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"halay zamanı","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/47/Halay_zaman%C4%B1.jpg/960px-Halay_zaman%C4%B1.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Halay_zaman%C4%B1.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/47/Halay_zaman%C4%B1.jpg/1280px-Halay_zaman%C4%B1.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"halay çekmek","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/19/Halay_Dans%C4%B1.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Hapşik","height":750,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"halay çekmek","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/19/Halay_Dans%C4%B1.jpg/960px-Halay_Dans%C4%B1.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Halay_Dans%C4%B1.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/19/Halay_Dans%C4%B1.jpg/1280px-Halay_Dans%C4%B1.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Halay - Azərbaycanda uşaq və gənclər arasında toy, eləcə də el şənliklərində dəstələrə bölünərək oynanılan bütün oyunların başlanğıc forması.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/19/Halay.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Şahzadə","height":850,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Halay - Azərbaycanda uşaq və gənclər arasında toy, eləcə də el şənliklərində dəstələrə bölünərək oynanılan bütün oyunların başlanğıc forması.","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/19/Halay.jpg/960px-Halay.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Halay.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/19/Halay.jpg/1280px-Halay.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:26.627Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/halay"}
{"id":"44554e13-3b5b-4579-8b48-7ee7f689063b","type":"art_form","slug":"halling","title":"Halling","summary":"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.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m6epmmca9k","content":[{"text":"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 parties.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"75e65baa-cfad-4407-9d6d-8bdea004566b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Overview","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"caa5720psg","content":[{"text":"The halling is a quick (95–106 bpm) dance in 68 or 24 that includes acrobatic, athletic competition between the dancers. Hallingdans can best be described as rhythmic acrobatic dance and consists of a number of steps which requires both strength and softness elation.\nThe dance is associated with the valleys and traditional districts of Valdres and Hallingdal, where it is often referred to as the laus (loose dance). The term refers to it being danced solo, not in couples (although coupled halling dancing is traditional in the western parts of the country). According to some scholars, the word may refer to the fact that the dance was \"half\" the performance, as the other half was the springar (after the fashion of a Renaissance dance suite).\nThe meter of the dance is 24 or 68 of a quite fast (95–106 bpm), sharp quality which calls for an experienced musician. The musician has to give the dancers enough impetus to perform the various challenging moves that are involved in the dance such as the nakkespretten (neck jump), kruking (hooked dancing), hodestift (going over the head) and especially the kast (throw). The dancer Olav Thorshaug performed hallingdans shows in the United States of America around 1910–1920, incorporating the headspin in his dance.\nOne of the dance moves is called hallingkast. In this move, a girl has traditionally held a hat high using a stick or something similar, and the dancer is supposed to kick down the hat. Kast is seen as the test of strength, which involves kicking a hat that is held about 230 to 280 cm above the floor.  Some girls have been able dancers themselves, and known to be as agile as any man.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"75e65baa-cfad-4407-9d6d-8bdea004566b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"In popular culture","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"n1ynt7csge","content":[{"text":"Noted Norwegian composer Edvard Grieg composed several pieces of music for the halling dance in his Lyric Pieces. The finale of Geirr Tveitt's Piano Concerto No. 5, published in 1954, is described as 'Tempo di Halling'.\nThe dance was performed by the Frikar Dance Company to the Norwegian winning contribution for the 2009 Eurovision Song Contest, \"Fairytale\", by singer and fiddle player Alexander Rybak.\nFrikar Dance Company has toured 29 countries with halling dance the last years. The company's founder and choreographer Hallgrim Hansegård is known as the reinventor of halling, exploring the tradition in meeting with new artistic expressions and arenas as for example in the computer game \"Age of Conan\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"75e65baa-cfad-4407-9d6d-8bdea004566b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7f495j1rbk","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Halling (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"75e65baa-cfad-4407-9d6d-8bdea004566b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"h265n6wrvq","content":[{"text":"Halling is Traditional Norwegian dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0519660a-297b-410b-9be2-da08483b52a2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gx8we4py1j","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0519660a-297b-410b-9be2-da08483b52a2"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Kent Road, Halling","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/36/Kent_Road%2C_Halling_-_geograph.org.uk_-_1958841.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Chris Whippet","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Kent Road, Halling","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/36/Kent_Road%2C_Halling_-_geograph.org.uk_-_1958841.jpg/960px-Kent_Road%2C_Halling_-_geograph.org.uk_-_1958841.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kent_Road,_Halling_-_geograph.org.uk_-_1958841.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/36/Kent_Road%2C_Halling_-_geograph.org.uk_-_1958841.jpg/1280px-Kent_Road%2C_Halling_-_geograph.org.uk_-_1958841.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"},{"alt":"Kent Road, Halling","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2e/Kent_Road%2C_Halling_-_geograph.org.uk_-_5087038.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Chris Whippet","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Kent Road, Halling","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2e/Kent_Road%2C_Halling_-_geograph.org.uk_-_5087038.jpg/960px-Kent_Road%2C_Halling_-_geograph.org.uk_-_5087038.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kent_Road,_Halling_-_geograph.org.uk_-_5087038.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2e/Kent_Road%2C_Halling_-_geograph.org.uk_-_5087038.jpg/1280px-Kent_Road%2C_Halling_-_geograph.org.uk_-_5087038.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"},{"alt":"Halling Village Sign near Halling Community Centre","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e6/Halling_Village_Sign_near_Halling_Community_Centre_-_geograph.org.uk_-_2099007.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"David Anstiss","height":1707,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Halling Village Sign near Halling Community Centre","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e6/Halling_Village_Sign_near_Halling_Community_Centre_-_geograph.org.uk_-_2099007.jpg/960px-Halling_Village_Sign_near_Halling_Community_Centre_-_geograph.org.uk_-_2099007.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Halling_Village_Sign_near_Halling_Community_Centre_-_geograph.org.uk_-_2099007.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e6/Halling_Village_Sign_near_Halling_Community_Centre_-_geograph.org.uk_-_2099007.jpg/1280px-Halling_Village_Sign_near_Halling_Community_Centre_-_geograph.org.uk_-_2099007.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:17.173Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/halling"}
{"id":"c62bbd25-47d2-4f7e-aab2-a839de04ff9d","type":"art_form","slug":"hand-jive","title":"hand jive","summary":"The hand jive is a dance particularly associated with music from the 1950s, rhythm and blues in particular. It involves a complicated pattern of hand moves and claps at various parts of the body.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hvyhjjh6j7","content":[{"text":"The hand jive is a dance particularly associated with music from the 1950s, rhythm and blues in particular. It involves a complicated pattern of hand moves and claps at various parts of the body. It resembles a highly elaborate version of pat-a-cake. Hand moves include thigh slapping, crossing the wrists, fist pounding, hand clapping, and hitchhike moves.\nIn 1957, when filmmaker Ken Russell was a freelance photographer, he recorded the teenagers of Soho, London, hand-jiving in the basement of The Cat's Whisker coffee bar, where the hand-jive had been invented by Leon Bell of Leon Bell and the Bell Cats. According to an article in the Daily Mirror, \"it's so crowded [at The Cat's Whisker] the girls hand-jive to the band as there's no room for dancing.\" Russell told interviewer Leo Benedictus of The Guardian that \"the place was crowded with young kids... the atmosphere was very jolly. Wholesome... everyone jiving with their hands because there was precious little room to do it with their feet... a bizarre sight. The craze fascinated me. It seemed like a strange novelty; I used to join in.\"","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7eb90210-83ef-4d4f-b6c1-8eada338522a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Songs referring to \"Hand Jive\"","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0hke1w894n","content":[{"text":"His Master's Voice licensed Capitol Records to release the song \"Hand Jive 6-5\" in the U.S., backed with \"Ramshackle Daddy\" (3937), by British group Don Lang and his \"Frantic Five\" in March 1958. This recording does not feature the Bo Diddley rhythm.\nIn April 1958, the UK record label Decca Records, released a song called \"Hand Jive\" by Bud Allen, performed by the Betty Smith Group. The song lyrics describe the hand dance the title refers to.\nThe hand jive was popularized in the United States by Johnny Otis's \"Willie and the Hand Jive\", described as a \"funky blues rendition in a Bo Diddley styling\" and \"another approach to the growing Stateside interest in the British originated hand dance.\"\nThis song exhibited the Bo Diddley beat, a rhythm that originated in Afro-Latin music and was brought into mainstream American music by Bo Diddley. It has since influenced generations of musicians.\nJazz trumpeter Miles Davis has a track titled \"Hand Jive,\" written by drummer Tony Williams, on the album Nefertiti from 1967.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7eb90210-83ef-4d4f-b6c1-8eada338522a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Versions","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"n2t8vkfwjk","content":[{"text":"Eric Clapton did a version of the Johnny Otis song in 1974 that reached the Top 40.\nAdditionally, \"Willie and the Hand Jive\" was played on several occasions by the New Riders of the Purple Sage featuring Jerry Garcia from the Grateful Dead.\nGeorge Thorogood and the Delaware Destroyers recorded a version of \"Willie and the Hand Jive\" and a music video.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7eb90210-83ef-4d4f-b6c1-8eada338522a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Other uses: in music","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fscwja0bxe","content":[{"text":"The hand jive is also featured prominently in the Broadway musical Grease (1971) through the song \"Born to Hand Jive\"; in the movie adaptation of the musical, the song is performed by Sha Na Na. On a DVD audio commentary for the movie, choreographer Patricia Birch mentions that the dance also went by the much more risque name \"hand job\", but the title was changed as Grease was aimed at a family audience.\nThe hand movements are also featured in John Waters' 1988 film Hairspray, as the special education class does this behind the teacher's back during the Pledge of Allegiance.\nJazz fusion guitarist John Scofield's 1993 album is called Hand Jive.\nThe long-running Walt Disney World musical Festival of the Lion King (1997) uses this during the song \"Hakuna Matata,\" and the performers and audience do it while singing the song. The audience is taught the hand jive sometime before the show begins.\nThe 2005 album Midnight Boom by the band The Kills features the hand-jive rhythm in the song \"Sour Cherry.\" The band's goal while writing the album was to write rhythms inspired by old-school schoolyard hand claps.\nContestants of the British version of Blockbusters, a television game show, would perform a hand-jive over the theme tune during the closing credits. It was started by a bored contestant awaiting his turn.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7eb90210-83ef-4d4f-b6c1-8eada338522a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"v3w4x7h6a1","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Hand jive”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7eb90210-83ef-4d4f-b6c1-8eada338522a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wgkavqwb91","content":[{"text":"hand jive is kind of dance game from the 1950s, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"49b5cda2-3ede-441b-9a7b-9ece15258f46"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hc2x2bdh9y","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"49b5cda2-3ede-441b-9a7b-9ece15258f46"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"These ladies were part of a dance troupe that did some dancing that seemed Indian. Like the type you see in Bollywood movies. Does anyone know anything about the outfits they're wearing, and what they say about what these people's story might be?","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/82/Hand_jive_%284754683356%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"istolethetv","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"These ladies were part of a dance troupe that did some dancing that seemed Indian. Like the type you see in Bollywood movies. Does anyone know anything about the outfits they're wearing, and what they say about what these people's story might be?","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/82/Hand_jive_%284754683356%29.jpg/960px-Hand_jive_%284754683356%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hand_jive_(4754683356).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/82/Hand_jive_%284754683356%29.jpg/1280px-Hand_jive_%284754683356%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"},{"alt":"1 Kingly St in Soho, London was the site of en:The Cat's Whisker , a coffee bar that saw the invention of the hand jive and was a hangout for musicians such as Cliff Richard. In 2010 it is a Korean restaurant called Myung Ga.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b9/1-kingly-street-london.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Le Deluge","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"1 Kingly St in Soho, London was the site of en:The Cat's Whisker , a coffee bar that saw the invention of the hand jive and was a hangout for musicians such as Cliff Richard. In 2010 it is a Korean restaurant called Myung Ga.","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b9/1-kingly-street-london.jpg/960px-1-kingly-street-london.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:1-kingly-street-london.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b9/1-kingly-street-london.jpg/1280px-1-kingly-street-london.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:10.188Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/hand-jive"}
{"id":"f0b58fb8-2482-49cc-a0b2-31d32973b034","type":"art_form","slug":"harlem-shake","title":"Harlem shake","summary":"The Harlem shake is a style of hip-hop dance characterized by jerky arm and shoulder movements in time to music. The dance was created in 1981 and first known as \"The Albee\", after its creator.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cxkwmxtr7x","content":[{"text":"The Harlem shake is a style of hip-hop dance characterized by jerky arm and shoulder movements in time to music. The dance was created in 1981 and first known as \"The Albee\", after its creator. As indicated by the name, it is associated with the predominantly African American neighborhood of Harlem, in New York City. The dance became known as the Harlem Shake as its prominence grew beyond the neighborhood. In 2001 G. Dep's music video for the song \"Let's Get It\" introduced the dance to the mainstream.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"828ae04b-c407-4298-9648-24b05f0d7f5b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dj8s8vkg3e","content":[{"text":"The dance was created by Al B. who was known for performing it during breaks at the Entertainer's Basketball Classic basketball tournament at Rucker Park. Harlem resident Al B. (also known as Ali Saadat and Al Cisco), whose legal name was Albert Leopold Boyce, died in 2006 at the age of 43. The dance was first called \"The Albee\" after its creator and later became known as the Harlem Shake when it became popular outside of the neighborhood. The dance was then popularised by four man dance crew Crazy Boyz (members Maurice \"Motion\" Strayhorn, Jesse \"Smiley\" Rutland, Kirkland \"Dirty Kirt\" Young and Joseph \"No Bones\" Collins).\nSources differ in identifying the inspiration for the dance - some say it is based on an Ethiopian dance Eskista and others that it was inspired by the dance moves of the creator's mother Sandra Boyce.\nIn 2003 interview Al B. said that the dance is \"It's a drunken shake anyway, it's an alcoholic shake, but it's fantastic, everybody loves it and everybody appreciates it. And it's glowing with glory. And it's respected.\" According to Al. B. the dance came from the ancient Egyptians and describes it as what the mummies used to do. Because they were all wrapped up, they couldn't really move, all they could do was shake.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"828ae04b-c407-4298-9648-24b05f0d7f5b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"In African-American culture","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"24chtzc0zh","content":[{"text":"The Harlem Shake became mainstream in 2001 with the release of the music video for \"Let's Get It\" by G. Dep. The video featured children performing the dance. The dance became popular in hip-hop music videos of the era especially with artists from Harlem. Most notably it was a key feature in music videos for   Jadakiss' \"Put Your Hands Up and G.Dep's \"Special Delivery\", both released in 2001. The outro to Missy Elliott's 2002 hit \"Work It\" states \"Yo, it's okay though, you know if you wanna be hard and ice-grilled, and Harlem Shake at the same time, whatever, let's just have fun.\" The Harlem Shake was also referenced in the lyrics to the song \"Down and Out\" by Harlem rapper Cam'ron.\nThe Harlem Shake is commonly associated with a similar dance move \"The Chicken Noodle Soup\". The \"Chicken Noodle Soup\" dance evolved from the Harlem Shake and exploded into popularity in the summer of 2006 when DJ Webstar and Young B brought it to the mainstream with the release of a song of the same name. The dance is referred to in the CunninLynguists song \"Old School\", in Mac Dre's \"Thizzle Dance,\" and in Nelly's \"Dilemma.\" A band from New York City took the name of the dance and dubbed themselves Harlem Shakes.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"828ae04b-c407-4298-9648-24b05f0d7f5b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Reaction to the Harlem shake meme and song","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0k3xb0qgra","content":[{"text":"In February 2013, a song named \"Harlem Shake\" (due to a sampled line referring to the Harlem Shake dance), originally released by Baauer in May 2012, went viral and became an Internet meme after featuring in a YouTube video by DizastaMusic, primarily known as Pink Guy or FilthyFrank at the time, who is now known as Joji. The dance that is done on the internet as a meme is not the Harlem Shake.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"828ae04b-c407-4298-9648-24b05f0d7f5b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"an7ce3j2x4","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Harlem shake (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"828ae04b-c407-4298-9648-24b05f0d7f5b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zdamkgr4yc","content":[{"text":"Harlem shake is hip-hop dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"774885ac-2543-47b0-8626-15774f199e56"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"de13stae6w","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"774885ac-2543-47b0-8626-15774f199e56"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Finally saw a \"Harlem Shake\" happen. From what I've been told, it starts off with one person (normally a person dressed up or wearing a mask) dancing around with everyone ignoring and/or not joining in. Next thing you know, lots of people have joined in doing all sorts of moves.…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d5/Harlem_Shake_%288567553226%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"greyloch from Washington, DC, area, U.S.A.","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Finally saw a \"Harlem Shake\" happen. From what I've been told, it starts off with one person (normally a person dressed up or wearing a mask) dancing around with everyone ignoring and/or not joining in. Next thing you know, lots of people have joined in doing all sorts of moves.…","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d5/Harlem_Shake_%288567553226%29.jpg/960px-Harlem_Shake_%288567553226%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Harlem_Shake_(8567553226).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d5/Harlem_Shake_%288567553226%29.jpg/1280px-Harlem_Shake_%288567553226%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"},{"alt":"Fotografía tomada durante la VIII Olimpiada Española de Biología, que se celebró en la UAM en marzo de 2013. Representa a un grupo de olímpicos y antiguos olímpicos sufriendo un brote psicótico simultáneamente","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a9/OEB_Harlem_Shake.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Vic fh","height":850,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Fotografía tomada durante la VIII Olimpiada Española de Biología, que se celebró en la UAM en marzo de 2013. Representa a un grupo de olímpicos y antiguos olímpicos sufriendo un brote psicótico simultáneamente","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a9/OEB_Harlem_Shake.jpg/960px-OEB_Harlem_Shake.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:OEB_Harlem_Shake.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a9/OEB_Harlem_Shake.jpg/1280px-OEB_Harlem_Shake.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"},{"alt":"BIR Grupp 2 PYRENÉERHUND DK UCH EUW-15 NORD UCH SE JV-13 SE UCH SE V-13 SE V-14 SE&NO UCH Vi’Skaly’s Harlem Shake MyDOG, Nordens största hundevenemang: www.mydog.se","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e0/BIR_Grupp_2-_PYREN%C3%89ERHUND%2C_Vi%E2%80%99Skaly%E2%80%99s_Harlem_Shake_%2823607403953%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Svenska Mässan from Sweden","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"BIR Grupp 2 PYRENÉERHUND DK UCH EUW-15 NORD UCH SE JV-13 SE UCH SE V-13 SE V-14 SE&NO UCH Vi’Skaly’s Harlem Shake MyDOG, Nordens största hundevenemang: www.mydog.se","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e0/BIR_Grupp_2-_PYREN%C3%89ERHUND%2C_Vi%E2%80%99Skaly%E2%80%99s_Harlem_Shake_%2823607403953%29.jpg/960px-BIR_Grupp_2-_PYREN%C3%89ERHUND%2C_Vi%E2%80%99Skaly%E2%80%99s_Harlem_Shake_%2823607403953%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:BIR_Grupp_2-_PYREN%C3%89ERHUND,_Vi%E2%80%99Skaly%E2%80%99s_Harlem_Shake_(23607403953).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e0/BIR_Grupp_2-_PYREN%C3%89ERHUND%2C_Vi%E2%80%99Skaly%E2%80%99s_Harlem_Shake_%2823607403953%29.jpg/1280px-BIR_Grupp_2-_PYREN%C3%89ERHUND%2C_Vi%E2%80%99Skaly%E2%80%99s_Harlem_Shake_%2823607403953%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:14.567Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/harlem-shake"}
{"id":"1acf56be-6863-4283-9679-1c6b18a22324","type":"art_form","slug":"hatajo-de-negritos","title":"Hatajo de negritos","summary":"Hatajo de negritos is a tradition recorded in open cultural data. This page is a machine-generated stub awaiting review by someone who knows the tradition.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bf439tz2vw","content":[{"text":"Hatajo de negritos is a tradition recorded in open cultural data, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"98a943e8-1e5a-4cde-9e19-03d9ffd447aa"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sh1n7fz54m","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"98a943e8-1e5a-4cde-9e19-03d9ffd447aa"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T07:23:11.461Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/hatajo-de-negritos"}
{"id":"36977e8e-9291-43f3-a8b0-7bd52c3267c5","type":"art_form","slug":"hayachine-kagura","title":"Hayachine Kagura","summary":"Hayachine kagura (早池峰神楽) is a ritual dance, or kagura, in Shinto ceremonies, which is composed of a series of twelve dances.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c0yaxysppr","content":[{"text":"Hayachine kagura (早池峰神楽) is a ritual dance, or kagura, in Shinto ceremonies, which is composed of a series of twelve dances. It is performed on August 1 at Hayachine Shrine in Hanamaki, Iwate, Japan.\nThese dances are performed in honor of Seoritsu, tutelary deity of Mount Hayachine, to music of containing drums, cymbals and flutes. The first six dances (Torimai Bird Dance 鳥 舞, Okina Old Man Dance 翁, Sanbasō Third Old Man Dance 三 番 叟, War God Hachiman Dance 八 幡, Mountain God Yama no kami 山 の 神 Dance, Opening Dance of the rock cave Iwato biraki 岩 戸) are ritualistic, the next five tell the medieval history of Japan and its deities (there are many different hypotheses on the constitution of the cycle of 12 dances). The dancers are masked. The final dance is performed by a shishi, a personification of the mountain god.\nThe dances are also performed at other times of the year and outside of the Hayachine Shrine, but rarely in the full cycle, which lasts five hours. Hayachine kagura \"discipleship\" shows are performed throughout Iwate Prefecture.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7b21fab7-82c4-4976-8f75-8c62d38dbd46"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8jxsx5r6b8","content":[{"text":"The tradition dates back to the 14th or 15th century and would have been influenced by the practices of the yamabushi, Buddhist ascetics withdrawn in the mountains; moreover, scholars wonder about its relation with the history of the noh theater.\nUNESCO inscribed Hayachine Kagura on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2009.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7b21fab7-82c4-4976-8f75-8c62d38dbd46"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rd0d7s2s22","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Hayachine kagura”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7b21fab7-82c4-4976-8f75-8c62d38dbd46"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7bwmzpnsx9","content":[{"text":"Hayachine Kagura is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"05733cbd-bb3d-4f23-9e5f-69d1b2d1a979"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ek9tep9wm8","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 4 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"05733cbd-bb3d-4f23-9e5f-69d1b2d1a979"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-05T01:44:19.423Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/hayachine-kagura"}
{"id":"72032bd4-4d6b-47c0-84a7-a9c3e8cf8545","type":"art_form","slug":"headbanging","title":"headbanging","summary":"Headbanging is the act of violently shaking one's head in rhythm with music. It is common in rock, punk, heavy metal and dubstep, where headbanging is often used by musicians on stage.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1a69422jrd","content":[{"text":"Headbanging is the act of violently shaking one's head in rhythm with music. It is common in rock, punk, heavy metal and dubstep, where headbanging is often used by musicians on stage. Headbanging is also common in traditional Islamic Sufi music traditions such as Qawwali in the Indian subcontinent and Iran.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4d087e6f-e9db-426f-ba56-fb2f06f381e2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Sufi music","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kdyccmxj6n","content":[{"text":"Headbanging has been common in Islamic devotional Sufi music traditions dating back centuries, such as the Indian subcontinent's 600-year-old Qawwali tradition, and among dervishes in Iran's Kurdistan Province. Qawwali performances, particularly at Sufi shrines in the Indian subcontinent, usually in honour of Allah, Islamic prophets, or Sufi saints, often have performers and spectators induced into a trance-like state and headbanging in a manner similar to metal and rock concerts. A popular song often performed by Sufis and fakirs in the Indian subcontinent is the 600-year-old \"Dama Dam Mast Qalandar\" (in honour of 13th-century Sufi saint Lal Shahbaz Qalandar), which often has performers and spectators rapidly headbanging to the beats of naukat drum sounds.\nThe most well-known Qawwali performer in modern times is late Pakistani singer Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, whose performances often induced trance-like headbanging experiences in the late 20th century. Khan's popularity in the Indian subcontinent led to the emergence of fusion genres such as Sufi rock and techno qawwali in South Asian popular music (Pakistani pop, Indi-pop, Bollywood music and British-Asian music) in the 1990s which combine the traditional trance-like zikr headbanging of Qawwali with elements of modern rock, techno or dance music, which has occasionally been met with criticism and controversy from traditional Sufi and Qawwali circles.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4d087e6f-e9db-426f-ba56-fb2f06f381e2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Rock music","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9gavgc0c5p","content":[{"text":"The origin of the term \"headbanging\" is contested. It is possible that the term \"headbanger\" was coined during Led Zeppelin's first US tour in 1969. During a show at the Boston Tea Party concert venue, audience members in the first row were banging their heads against the stage in rhythm with the music.\nFurthermore, concert footage of Led Zeppelin performing at the Royal Albert Hall January 9, 1970, on the Led Zeppelin DVD released in 2003, the front row can be seen headbanging throughout the performance.\nHowever, an instance of headbanging prior to the alleged coining of the term can be seen during Cream's Farewell Concert in November 1968, also at the Royal Albert Hall. Specifically during the performance of Sunshine of Your Love, front row audience members with particularly large amounts of hair are seen quickly bobbing their heads to the music in a fashion typically associated with modern headbanging.\nOzzy Osbourne and Geezer Butler of Black Sabbath are among the first documented headbangers, as it is possible to see in footage of their gig in Paris, 1970.\nIn the early 1970s, Status Quo was one of the first hard rock bands to headbang on stage.\nLemmy from Motörhead, however, said in an interview on the documentary The Decline of Western Civilization II: The Metal Years, that the term \"Headbanger\" may have originated in the band's name, as in \"Motorheadbanger\".\nThe practice itself and its association with the rock genre was popularized by guitarist Angus Young of the band AC/DC.\nEarly televised performances in the 1950s of Jerry Lee Lewis depict young male fans who had grown their hair in the fashion of Lewis, where his front locks would fall in front of his face.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4d087e6f-e9db-426f-ba56-fb2f06f381e2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Parrots","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c6t9brt812","content":[{"text":"At least one parrot, a cockatoo named Snowball, developed the habit of headbanging to music, causing something of an Internet sensation. Scientists were intrigued, as untrained dancing among animals is rare.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4d087e6f-e9db-426f-ba56-fb2f06f381e2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Health issues","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ajtdxnpasx","content":[{"text":"In the mid-1980s, Metallica bassist Cliff Burton complained repeatedly about neck pain associated with his almost constant and heavy headbanging during concerts or even rehearsals.\nIn 2005, Evanescence guitarist Terry Balsamo incurred a stroke which doctors postulated may have been caused by frequent headbanging.\nIn 2007, Irish singer and former Moloko vocalist Róisín Murphy suffered an eye injury during a performance of her song \"Primitive\" when she headbanged into a chair on stage.\nIn 2009, Slayer bassist/vocalist Tom Araya began experiencing spinal problems due to his aggressive form of headbanging, and had to undergo anterior cervical discectomy and fusion. After recuperating from the surgery, he can no longer headbang.\nIn 2011, Megadeth guitarist Dave Mustaine said that his neck and spine condition, known as spinal stenosis, was caused by many years of headbanging. That same year, Stone Sour drummer Roy Mayorga suffered a stroke as a result of his frequent headbanging while drumming. The event led to him having to re-learn how to play drums. Slipknot sampler Craig Jones once suffered from whiplash after an extended case of powerful headbanging.\nIn May 2026, Kim Chaewon, a member of the South Korean girl group Le Sserafim, was forced to take a temporary hiatus from group activities to recover from a neck injury. The injury was closely linked to the group's promotional performances for their single \"Celebration\", which featured intense headbanging choreography that had previously sparked public concern over the physical strain it placed on the members' necks.\nSeveral case reports can be found in the medical literature which connect excessive headbanging to aneurysms and hematomas within the brain and damage to the arteries in the neck which supply the brain.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4d087e6f-e9db-426f-ba56-fb2f06f381e2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"55tx649h0b","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Headbanging”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4d087e6f-e9db-426f-ba56-fb2f06f381e2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"r2mn8h5c9e","content":[{"text":"headbanging is violent shaking of the head, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2c295edc-5332-4b3c-abac-9aa20dd583fd"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hcdfrapggc","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2c295edc-5332-4b3c-abac-9aa20dd583fd"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Concert crowd moshing enthusiastically in the night","src":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1741775933621-27681fbfdf06?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8aGVhZGJhbmdpbmd8ZW58MXwwfHx8MTc4ODExMjU1NHww&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1080","kind":"photo","width":5522,"credit":"Evgeniy Smersh","height":3650,"source":"unsplash","depicts":"Concert crowd moshing enthusiastically in the night","licence":"Unsplash License","thumb640":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1741775933621-27681fbfdf06?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8aGVhZGJhbmdpbmd8ZW58MXwwfHx8MTc4ODExMjU1NHww&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=640","sourceUrl":"https://unsplash.com/photos/concert-crowd-moshing-enthusiastically-in-the-night-jVtSmbDZYk4?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral","thumb1280":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1741775933621-27681fbfdf06?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8aGVhZGJhbmdpbmd8ZW58MXwwfHx8MTc4ODExMjU1NHww&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1280","attributionUrl":"https://unsplash.com/@igrindphoto?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:23.307Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/headbanging"}
{"id":"3a50b2ad-aecb-4bee-b3ba-31096b36d02c","type":"art_form","slug":"highland-fling","title":"Highland Fling","summary":"The Highland Fling is a solo Highland dance that gained popularity in the early 19th century. The word 'Fling' means literally a movement in dancing.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qwz47c0xx1","content":[{"text":"The Highland Fling is a solo Highland dance that gained popularity in the early 19th century. The word 'Fling' means literally a movement in dancing. In John Jamieson's 1808 Etymological Dictionary of the Scottish Language, the Highland Fling was defined as 'one species of movement' in dancing, not as one particular movement. There is some speculation that the first solo Highland Fling dances simply showed off steps that individual dancers preferred in the Strathspey Reel, a social dance.\nThis dance is now performed at dance competitions and events around the world. One goal of dancers today is to stay in the same spot throughout the dance. The Highland Fling is danced at almost all competition levels, from primary to premier. It is also performed for Highland and theory examinations. Dancers wear a kilt to perform the dance, which is in 44 time.\nA version of a Fling in a percussive dance style was remembered and danced by John Gillis in Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia, and those steps were written down in 1957 by Frank Rhodes. Each step was preceded by a travelling step in a circular pathway danced to the first part of the tune Sterling Castle, while the individual Fling steps were danced to the second part of the tune.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"21cc2875-8db7-4406-894e-fd4c6cbdb9b2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"List of steps","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qqkg8vpkqd","content":[{"text":"The dance can be performed as a:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"21cc2875-8db7-4406-894e-fd4c6cbdb9b2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sf4mygyyh2","content":[{"text":"Four-step dance: usually danced by primary, beginner, and novice dancers at competitions.\nSix-step dance: usually danced by intermediate and premier dancers at competitions.\nEight-step dance: very rarely at Scottish Official Board of Highland Dancing (SOBHD) competitions, although it is still danced at some traditional Highland Games.\nThe first and last steps must always be placed in the same spot, but the other steps may be placed as the dancer chooses. For championships competitions the SOBHD specifies a different order of steps for each year. Dancers taking theory exams may also need to know all of these steps, as well as their order, depending on the level they reach.\nMusical accompaniment is usually provide by the bagpipes), playing \"Monymusk\" or any other suitable Strathspey tune.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"21cc2875-8db7-4406-894e-fd4c6cbdb9b2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Example steps","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hv7bhqcza0","content":[{"text":"These following steps are included in the SOBHD text book. The required tempo is 114* beats per minute (bpm):","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"21cc2875-8db7-4406-894e-fd4c6cbdb9b2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"q716s44g9b","content":[{"text":"First Step: Shedding\nSecond Step: Back-stepping\nThird Step: Toe-and-heel\nFourth Step: Rocking\nFifth Step: Second back-stepping\nSixth Step: Cross-over\nSeventh Step: Shake and turn\nEighth Step: Last shedding\nThere are many more steps in existence, some of which have been recorded in publications, for example, Traditional Step-Dancing in Scotland while some exist only in the memories of senior dancers.\nIn 2008 the SOBHD recommended a tempo of  112-124 bpm for the Highland Fling on 2008 is 112-124 bpm. This has slowed considerably over the years – from 192 bpm one hundred years ago, 152 bpm in the 1960s and then 134 bpm in the 1980s.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"21cc2875-8db7-4406-894e-fd4c6cbdb9b2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"In popular culture","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qjaf12ewpn","content":[{"text":"The Highland Fling is referenced in the lyrics of Harlem hot jazz musician Harry Gibson's 1947 hit \"Who Put the Benzedrine in Mrs. Murphy's Ovaltine?\"\nThe Highland Fling can be seen in the 2002 film Nicholas Nickleby, performed by Alan Cumming.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"21cc2875-8db7-4406-894e-fd4c6cbdb9b2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"16rhwwrfhb","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Highland Fling”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"21cc2875-8db7-4406-894e-fd4c6cbdb9b2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vdzbrjyjp7","content":[{"text":"Highland Fling is traditional Scottish dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3c782ad5-f8f6-4c7c-b6d6-9649b4da4108"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"htdrr07pgw","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 5 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3c782ad5-f8f6-4c7c-b6d6-9649b4da4108"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Title: Highland fling Physical description: 1 print. Notes: This record contains unverified data from PGA shelflist card.; Associated name on shelflist card: Sarony & Major.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/78/Highland_fling_LCCN2003664111.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Popular Graphic Arts","height":1001,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Title: Highland fling Physical description: 1 print. Notes: This record contains unverified data from PGA shelflist card.; Associated name on shelflist card: Sarony & Major.","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/78/Highland_fling_LCCN2003664111.jpg/960px-Highland_fling_LCCN2003664111.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Highland_fling_LCCN2003664111.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/78/Highland_fling_LCCN2003664111.jpg/1280px-Highland_fling_LCCN2003664111.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"Title: The highland fling - a bonnie shot for a canny scot Physical description: 1 print : lithograph, hand-colored. Notes: Artist: C.M. Vergues (signature on image).","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/63/The_highland_fling_-_a_bonnie_shot_for_a_canny_scot_LCCN2002695866.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Popular Graphic Arts","height":1025,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Title: The highland fling - a bonnie shot for a canny scot Physical description: 1 print : lithograph, hand-colored. Notes: Artist: C.M. Vergues (signature on image).","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/63/The_highland_fling_-_a_bonnie_shot_for_a_canny_scot_LCCN2002695866.jpg/960px-The_highland_fling_-_a_bonnie_shot_for_a_canny_scot_LCCN2002695866.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:The_highland_fling_-_a_bonnie_shot_for_a_canny_scot_LCCN2002695866.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/63/The_highland_fling_-_a_bonnie_shot_for_a_canny_scot_LCCN2002695866.jpg/1280px-The_highland_fling_-_a_bonnie_shot_for_a_canny_scot_LCCN2002695866.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"Title: Highland Fling, summer residence of Mrs. E. S. Peck, Oak Bluffs, Mass. Subjects: Houses Places: Massachusetts > Dukes (county) > Martha's Vineyard (island) > Oak Bluffs Notes: Title from item. Extent: 1 print (postcard) : linen texture, color ; 3 1/2 x 5 1/2 in. Accession…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/64/Highland_Fling%2C_summer_residence_of_Mrs._E._S._Peck%2C_Oak_Bluffs%2C_Mass_%2873154%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Tichnor Bros. Inc., Boston, Mass.","height":824,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Title: Highland Fling, summer residence of Mrs. E. S. Peck, Oak Bluffs, Mass. Subjects: Houses Places: Massachusetts > Dukes (county) > Martha's Vineyard (island) > Oak Bluffs Notes: Title from item. Extent: 1 print (postcard) : linen texture, color ; 3 1/2 x 5 1/2 in. Accession…","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/64/Highland_Fling%2C_summer_residence_of_Mrs._E._S._Peck%2C_Oak_Bluffs%2C_Mass_%2873154%29.jpg/960px-Highland_Fling%2C_summer_residence_of_Mrs._E._S._Peck%2C_Oak_Bluffs%2C_Mass_%2873154%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Highland_Fling,_summer_residence_of_Mrs._E._S._Peck,_Oak_Bluffs,_Mass_(73154).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/64/Highland_Fling%2C_summer_residence_of_Mrs._E._S._Peck%2C_Oak_Bluffs%2C_Mass_%2873154%29.jpg/1280px-Highland_Fling%2C_summer_residence_of_Mrs._E._S._Peck%2C_Oak_Bluffs%2C_Mass_%2873154%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:20.716Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/highland-fling"}
{"id":"314e1bd8-8940-453e-9218-e26e64906126","type":"art_form","slug":"hip-hop-dance","title":"hip hop dance","summary":"Hip-hop dance is a range of street dance styles primarily performed to hip-hop music or that have evolved as part of hip-hop culture.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"js4kvxm015","content":[{"text":"Hip-hop dance is a range of street dance styles primarily performed to hip-hop music or that have evolved as part of hip-hop culture. It is influenced by a wide range of styles that were created in the 1970s and made popular by dance crews in the United States. The television show Soul Train and the 1980s films Breakin', Beat Street, and Wild Style showcased these crews and dance styles in their early stages, thereby giving hip-hop dance mainstream exposure.\nThe dance industry responded with a commercial, studio-based version of hip-hop—sometimes called \"new style\"—and a hip-hop-influenced style of jazz dance called \"jazz-funk\". Classically trained dancers developed these studio styles in order to create choreography from the hip-hop dances that were performed on the street. Because of this development, hip-hop dance is practiced in both dance studios and outdoor spaces.\nThe commercialization of hip-hop dance continued into the 1990s and 2000s with the production of several television shows and movies such as The Grind, Planet B-Boy, Rize, StreetDance 3D, America's Best Dance Crew, Saigon Electric, the Step Up film series, and The LXD, a web series. Though the dance is established in entertainment, including mild representation in theater, it maintains a strong presence in urban neighborhoods, which has led to the creation of street dance derivatives like Memphis jookin, turfing, jerkin', and krump.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"518cabbc-d70e-4c97-ab98-e7310750a9b1"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"36p0kc4ga6","content":[{"text":"Hip-hop dance is a fusion dance genre with influences from older street dance styles created in the 1970s. These include uprock, breaking, and the funk styles. Breaking was created in The Bronx, New York, in the early 1970s. In its earliest form, it began as elaborations on James Brown's \"Good Foot\" dance, which debuted in 1972. Breaking at this period was not primarily floor-oriented as seen today; it started out as toprock, which dancers perform while standing up. An influence on toprock was uprock, which was created in Brooklyn, New York. Uprock looks similar to toprock, but it is more aggressive and looks like a fight. Uprock is also performed with partners, but in toprock—and in breaking in general—each person takes turns dancing. In 1973, DJ Kool Herc popularized the break beat. A break beat is a rhythmic, musical interlude of a song that has been looped over and over again to extend that instrumental solo, because \"breaks\" were seen as the part of the song best to dance to. In the 1970s, DJs started using two copies of the same record to mix them, extending the break. This was known as Beat juggling. This interluding, which had previously been used in Funk and Soul songs, inspired this musical evolution. Kool Herc did this to provide a means for dancers who attended his parties to demonstrate their skills. B-boy and b-girl stands for \"break-boy\" and \"break-girl\"; b-boys and b-girls dance to the break of a record. Further influenced by martial arts and gymnastics, breaking went from being a purely upright dance style—toprock only—to becoming more floor-oriented.\nAt the same time that breaking was developing in New York, other styles were being created in California.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"518cabbc-d70e-4c97-ab98-e7310750a9b1"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Breaking","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"p5x1rpn81d","content":[{"text":"Breaking or b-boying, commonly known by its exonym as breakdancing, was created in the South Bronx, New York City during the early 1970s. It is considered the first hip-hop dance style. At the time of its creation, it was the only hip-hop dance style because Afrika Bambaataa classified it as one of the five pillars of hip-hop culture along with MCing (rapping), DJing (turntablism), graffiti writing (bombing), and knowledge. Though African Americans created breaking, Puerto Ricans maintained its growth and development when it was considered a fad in the late 1970s. In a 2001 interview Richard \"Crazy Legs\" Colón, the president of Rock Steady Crew, commented on how Puerto Ricans contributed to breaking: \"I think the difference is when the brothas first started doing [it] and it was at its infancy they weren't doing acrobatic moves. That didn't come into play until more Puerto Ricans got involved in the mid 70s. We then took the dance, evolved it, and kept it alive. In '79 I was getting dissed. I would go into a dance and I would get dissed by a lot of brothas who would ask 'Why y'all still doing that dance? That's played out'. By 79, there were very few African American brothas that was doing this... We always maintained the flava. It was like a changing of the guard and all we did was add more flava to something that already existed.\" Breaking includes four foundational dances: toprock, footwork-oriented steps performed while standing up; downrock, footwork performed with both hands and feet on the floor; freezes, stylish poses done on your hands; and power moves, complex and impressive acrobatic moves. Transitions from toprock to downrock are called \"drops.\"\nTraditionally, breakers dance within a cypher or an Apache Line.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"518cabbc-d70e-4c97-ab98-e7310750a9b1"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Locking","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jxk7z3pz1s","content":[{"text":"Locking, originally called Campbellocking, was created in 1969 in Los Angeles, California by Don \"Campbellock\" Campbell and popularized by his crew The Lockers. In addition to Campbell, the original members of The Lockers were Fred \"Mr. Penguin\" Berry, Leo \"Fluky Luke\" Williamson, Adolfo \"Shabba-Doo\" Quiñones, Bill \"Slim the Robot\" Williams, Greg \"Campbellock Jr\" Pope, and Toni Basil, who also served as the group's manager. At the 2009 World Hip Hop Dance Championships, Basil became the first female recipient of the Living Legend Award in honor of her role in giving locking commercial exposure.\nLocking looks similar to popping, and the two are frequently confused by the casual observer. In locking, dancers hold their positions longer. The lock is the primary move used in locking. It is \"similar to a freeze or a sudden pause.\" A locker's dancing is characterized by frequently locking in place and after a brief freeze moving again. According to Dance Spirit magazine, a dancer cannot perform both locking and popping simultaneously; thus, it is incorrect to call locking \"pop-locking\". While both styles are from Los Angeles, locking and popping are two distinct funk styles with their own histories, their own set of dance moves, their own pioneers, and their own competition categories. Locking is more playful and character-driven, whereas popping is more illusory. In popping, dancers push the boundaries of what they can do with their bodies. Locking has specific dance moves that distinguish it from popping and other funk styles.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"518cabbc-d70e-4c97-ab98-e7310750a9b1"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Popping","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"abff42sj82","content":[{"text":"Popping was derived from the earlier boogaloo street dance movement taking place in Oakland, California during the late 1960s. It was created in Fresno, California in the 1970s and popularized by Samuel \"Boogaloo Sam\" Solomon and his crew the Electric Boogaloos. It is based on the technique of quickly contracting and relaxing muscles to cause a jerk in a dancer's body, referred to as a pop or a hit. When performed correctly, each hit is synchronized to the rhythm and beats of the music.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"518cabbc-d70e-4c97-ab98-e7310750a9b1"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Derivative styles","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pz8c7xs19a","content":[{"text":"Decades after breaking, locking, and popping became established, four new dance styles ap…","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"518cabbc-d70e-4c97-ab98-e7310750a9b1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5x4vdx2w33","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Hip-hop dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"518cabbc-d70e-4c97-ab98-e7310750a9b1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cg27k9w3v6","content":[{"text":"hip hop dance is street dance styles primarily performed to hip-hop music, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"738db7f8-1cc5-4c3c-9d3e-f6dfe8feb77e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"e5p02snptx","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 6 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"738db7f8-1cc5-4c3c-9d3e-f6dfe8feb77e"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Breakdancing, also called breaking or b-boying/b-girling, is an athletic style of street dance originating from the African American and Puerto Rican communities in the United States. While diverse in the amount of variation available in the dance, breakdancing mainly consists…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/38/Hip_hop_dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Muhammed amine benloulou","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Breakdancing, also called breaking or b-boying/b-girling, is an athletic style of street dance originating from the African American and Puerto Rican communities in the United States. While diverse in the amount of variation available in the dance, breakdancing mainly consists…","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/38/Hip_hop_dance.jpg/960px-Hip_hop_dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hip_hop_dance.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/38/Hip_hop_dance.jpg/1280px-Hip_hop_dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Breakdancing, also called breaking or b-boying/b-girling, is an athletic style of street dance originating from the African American and Puerto Rican communities in the United States. While diverse in the amount of variation available in the dance, breakdancing mainly consists…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/74/Bboying_dance_movments.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Muhammed amine benloulou","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Breakdancing, also called breaking or b-boying/b-girling, is an athletic style of street dance originating from the African American and Puerto Rican communities in the United States. While diverse in the amount of variation available in the dance, breakdancing mainly consists…","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/74/Bboying_dance_movments.jpg/960px-Bboying_dance_movments.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bboying_dance_movments.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/74/Bboying_dance_movments.jpg/1280px-Bboying_dance_movments.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Tsurumi Commercial High School Dance Team","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b1/Tsurumi_Commercial_High_School_Dance_Team1.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Mr.ちゅらさん","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Tsurumi Commercial High School Dance Team","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b1/Tsurumi_Commercial_High_School_Dance_Team1.jpg/960px-Tsurumi_Commercial_High_School_Dance_Team1.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tsurumi_Commercial_High_School_Dance_Team1.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b1/Tsurumi_Commercial_High_School_Dance_Team1.jpg/1280px-Tsurumi_Commercial_High_School_Dance_Team1.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-06T05:47:20.264Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/hip-hop-dance"}
{"id":"aa79d9a3-23d5-4112-96b5-afb1672ee574","type":"art_form","slug":"hiragasy","title":"Hiragasy","summary":"Hiragasy or hira gasy (hira: song; gasy: Malagasy) is a musical tradition in Madagascar,  particularly among the Merina ethnic group of the Highland regions around the capital of Antananarivo.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wjkcq85j5j","content":[{"text":"Hiragasy or hira gasy (hira: song; gasy: Malagasy) is a musical tradition in Madagascar,  particularly among the Merina ethnic group of the Highland regions around the capital of Antananarivo. It is a day-long spectacle of music, dance, and kabary oratory performed by a troupe (typically related by blood or marriage and of rural origin) or as a competition between two troupes.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fd0282fe-d944-4ce7-8a10-107e248fb311"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origins and history","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cv4c437jab","content":[{"text":"The tradition in its contemporary form began in the late 18th century when Merina prince Andrianampoinimerina first used musicians to draw a crowd for his political speeches (kabary); these troupes became independent, and began to incorporate political commentary and critique in their performances.  The audience plays an active role at hiragasy events, expressing their satisfaction with the talent of the troupe members and the message they proclaim through applause, cheers or sounds of disapproval. Hiragasy troupes were used during the French colonial administration to communicate decrees and other information to the rural population in the Highlands, and as such troupe members were exempt from the forced labor requirements imposed on all other Malagasy.\nAfter independence from France in 1960, the hiragasy troupe was held up as an icon of traditional Malagasy culture, and began to find greater popularity along the coasts, although performances remain largely concentrated in the Highlands.  Aspiring politicians routinely hire hiragasy troupes to attract a crowd for their political speeches while campaigning.  While most troupes remain apolitical, some have opted to throw their support behind particular candidates to spectacular effect, as when former hiragasy member-cum-popstar Rossy authored his 1995 song \"Lera.\"  The song was critical of the Zafy regime and was picked up by hiragasy troupes, who performed it across the island; the popularity of this song played a key role in mobilizing popular support for Zafy's impeachment. The most famous troupe is Ramilison Fenoarivo, Rossy's former troupe and staunch supporter of ex-President Didier Ratsiraka.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fd0282fe-d944-4ce7-8a10-107e248fb311"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Structure and performance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vxn7kcqt0m","content":[{"text":"The performance of the hiragasy follows a number of conventions, such that there are certain similarities between the 80+ troupes currently performing in Madagascar.  Among these are the order in which songs, dances and oratory are performed; how troupes are named (after the last name of the founding member and his/her town of origin); what costumes are worn (men typically wear straw hats, red coats and pants inspired by 19th century French military garb, and matching lamba cloth sashes; women wear identical dresses designed after the style popular among ladies of the court during the Imperial period); and which instruments are used.  Traditional instruments are not common at hiragasy performances, due to the origins of the performance with the royal court, where European influences reigned.  Instead, the most common instruments are violins, trumpets, and snare and bass drums; the sodina, accordion, kabosy or clarinet may occasionally make an appearance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fd0282fe-d944-4ce7-8a10-107e248fb311"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"p30693v37g","content":[{"text":"Hiragasy follow a specific structure under the direction of the troupe leader who is often the oldest member and responsible for the presentation of kabary.  \n1. The Sasitehaka: Over the course of approximately ten minutes, the male members of the troupe settle in the middle of the crowd of spectators as the snare and base drummers beat an accompanying militaristic rhythm.  The women are often to the side, completing their wardrobe and makeup.\n2. The Mpikabary (Making Kabary):  One of the artists, often the troupe leader or oldest member of the group, will typically take off his straw hat and formally announce the beginning of the spectacle.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fd0282fe-d944-4ce7-8a10-107e248fb311"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zb9dgeyz79","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Hiragasy”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fd0282fe-d944-4ce7-8a10-107e248fb311"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"akw09fy9q8","content":[{"text":"Hiragasy is performing art composed of song, dance and speech, originating in the central highlands of Madagascar, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4ef24800-9895-4228-b640-4b0c970bde0a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"v3f43gewk9","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4ef24800-9895-4228-b640-4b0c970bde0a"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"women and men of a malagasy traditional singer group preforming at Mahamasina stadium.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/58/Hira_gasy%2C_Malagasy_traditional_singers.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Hopeandlink","height":852,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"women and men of a malagasy traditional singer group preforming at Mahamasina stadium.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/58/Hira_gasy%2C_Malagasy_traditional_singers.jpg/960px-Hira_gasy%2C_Malagasy_traditional_singers.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hira_gasy,_Malagasy_traditional_singers.jpg","thumb1280":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/58/Hira_gasy%2C_Malagasy_traditional_singers.jpg/1280px-Hira_gasy%2C_Malagasy_traditional_singers.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:21.794Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/hiragasy"}
{"id":"196cbc6c-4c56-42f1-8763-431560e95f93","type":"art_form","slug":"historical-dance","title":"historical dance","summary":"Historical dance (or early dance) is a term covering a wide variety of Western European-based dance types from the past as they are danced in the present.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3ncncpps6c","content":[{"text":"Historical dance (or early dance) is a term covering a wide variety of Western European-based dance types from the past as they are danced in the present. Today historical dances are danced as performance, for pleasure at themed balls or dance clubs, as historical reenactment, or for musicological or historical research.\nDances from the early 20th century can be recreated precisely, being within living memory and after the advent of film and video recording. Earlier dance types, however, must be reconstructed from less reliable evidence such as surviving notations and instruction manuals.\nFor performance dancing, see History of dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"54aecffe-e508-4f4d-b64f-0bdb07aeffd7"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Medieval dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7gbs8fq7cb","content":[{"text":"Very little evidence survives about medieval dance except what can be gleaned from paintings and works of literature from this time period. Some names of the dances which we know existed during the Middle Ages include Carole, Ductia, Estampie (Istampitta), Saltarello, and the Trotto. The farandole is also frequently presented as a medieval dance, based on surviving iconography.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"54aecffe-e508-4f4d-b64f-0bdb07aeffd7"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Renaissance dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"j5sdw7rs9x","content":[{"text":"The earliest surviving dance manuals come from the Renaissance period, including examples by Italian dance master and composer Fabritio Caroso and French cleric Thoinot Arbeau. Thus we are able to reconstruct the dances with a greater degree of certainty. The large number of dances with Spanish origin reflect the cultural influence of the dominating power of the age.\nDance types:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"54aecffe-e508-4f4d-b64f-0bdb07aeffd7"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"x7pqr6g35k","content":[{"text":"Allemande (Almain)\nBasse danse (Bassadance)\nBranle (Bransle)\nCanario\nCoranto\nDompe\nGalliard\nLa volta, variation on the Galliard\nPavane\nSarabande\nSpagnoletta\nTourdion, a fast Galliard","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"54aecffe-e508-4f4d-b64f-0bdb07aeffd7"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Baroque dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8n156k5b39","content":[{"text":"It was during the baroque era that Londoner John Playford published The Dancing Master, which, along with similar publications, provides us with a large repertoire of baroque English country dances.\nApart from country dances, the most well-documented baroque dance style was that which was developed at the French court during the 17th century. The term \"baroque dance\" is often used to refer specifically to this style, reflecting the dominating power of the era.\nDance types include:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"54aecffe-e508-4f4d-b64f-0bdb07aeffd7"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tybam12hd8","content":[{"text":"Bourrée\nCanary\nChaconne\n(French) Courante\nEntrée grave\nForlana\nGavotte\nGigue\nLoure\nMenuet (minuet)\nMusette\nPassacaille (passacaglia)\nPassepied\nRigaudon\nSarabande\nTambourin\nThe French style was also danced in England where they introduced their own dance type:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"54aecffe-e508-4f4d-b64f-0bdb07aeffd7"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4bgxc6cge2","content":[{"text":"Hornpipe","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"54aecffe-e508-4f4d-b64f-0bdb07aeffd7"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance during the English Regency","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rbktetq3z7","content":[{"text":"An era of uncertainty in England, with the Napoleonic Wars, periodic riots, and the French Revolution across the Channel. Clothing tended to be light and unrestrictive, encouraging dances with lots of skipping and jumping, such as the English Country Dance, Polonaise, Quadrille, and Scotch Reel.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"54aecffe-e508-4f4d-b64f-0bdb07aeffd7"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance in the mid-19th century","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"x9ben0g6hn","content":[{"text":"Starting with the great international polka craze of 1844 anyone who was anyone was dancing. Women were in hoop skirts, and turning dances helped to keep them out of the way. Dances popular during this period included the polka, schottische, two-step, and the waltz.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"54aecffe-e508-4f4d-b64f-0bdb07aeffd7"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qe8781ts8v","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Historical dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"54aecffe-e508-4f4d-b64f-0bdb07aeffd7"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cvsvwkxjj1","content":[{"text":"historical dance is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"96f2761b-e6ed-4282-8bfd-e75904b7ef41"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kng1k7tgv7","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 9 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"96f2761b-e6ed-4282-8bfd-e75904b7ef41"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-03T05:47:51.694Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/historical-dance"}
{"id":"8d8ad524-3c9d-457e-a678-234639b1e02b","type":"art_form","slug":"hoedown","title":"Hoedown","summary":"A hoedown is a type of American folk dance or square dance in duple meter, and also the musical form associated with it.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c8k33phfzv","content":[{"text":"A hoedown is a type of American folk dance or square dance in duple meter, and also the musical form associated with it.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8ffc9b9c-9f2e-4d35-b9e7-6952c7c38b50"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Overview","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nvgb5vzm0k","content":[{"text":"The most popular sense of the term is associated with Americans in rural or southeastern parts of the country, particularly Appalachia. It is a dance in quick movement most likely related to the jig, reel or clog dance. In contest fiddling, a hoedown is a tune in fast 2/4 time. In many contests, fiddlers are required to play a waltz, a hoedown, and a \"tune of choice\", which must not be a waltz or a hoedown (typically it is a jig or a schottische).\nIn modern western square dance, a hoedown is a piece of music used for a patter call (a call that is spoken or chanted, rather than sung to the tune of a popular song), or the recording that contains this piece of music. In the early days of the Western square dance revival (the 1940s and early 1950s), most hoedowns were traditional fiddle tunes; since the late 1950s, recordings of simple chord progressions, with no discernible melody, have also been sold to callers under the name \"hoedown\". In the 1940s and early 1950s, the term \"hoedown\" was sometimes used to mean a call made up of parts of other calls. \"Hoedown\" was, and occasionally still is, also used to mean a dance party jointly sponsored by several dance clubs or by a federation of clubs.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8ffc9b9c-9f2e-4d35-b9e7-6952c7c38b50"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"References in modern culture","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ddb3tkj0kd","content":[{"text":"The most famous hoedown in classical music is the section entitled \"Hoe-Down\" from the Rodeo ballet by Aaron Copland (1942).  The most frequently heard version is from the Four Dance Episodes from Rodeo, which Copland extracted from the ballet shortly after its premiere; the dance episodes were first performed in 1943 by the Boston Pops conducted by Arthur Fiedler. An arrangement of this song featured on Emerson, Lake & Palmer's album Trilogy.\nMany episodes of the improvisational comedy show Whose Line Is It Anyway? featured an impromptu hoedown singing competition.\nHoedown is a dance that is celebrated every day in Disney Magic Kingdom Florida in the Frontierland section of the park. They officially started that celebration in honor of the opening day of the Country Bear Jamboree on October 1, 1971.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8ffc9b9c-9f2e-4d35-b9e7-6952c7c38b50"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"53f2ne1sqj","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Hoedown”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8ffc9b9c-9f2e-4d35-b9e7-6952c7c38b50"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"khag6g519s","content":[{"text":"Hoedown is type of American folk dance or square dance and the musical form associated with it, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d6b17ff8-3df4-4556-a5fc-c1783fa26058"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5yrxncvxp2","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d6b17ff8-3df4-4556-a5fc-c1783fa26058"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"838 National Road; Mount Auburn; Indiana; Wayne; Jackson; Hoosier Hootenanny Hoedown inside bank/basement barn","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5c/Huddleston_House_Barn_Interior%2C_838_National_Road_%28Mount_Auburn%2C_Ind.%29_-_DPLA_-_f765e26cc22a31dd37908b3cefe795fa.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Indiana Landmarks","height":848,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"838 National Road; Mount Auburn; Indiana; Wayne; Jackson; Hoosier Hootenanny Hoedown inside bank/basement barn","licence":"CC BY 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5c/Huddleston_House_Barn_Interior%2C_838_National_Road_%28Mount_Auburn%2C_Ind.%29_-_DPLA_-_f765e26cc22a31dd37908b3cefe795fa.jpg/960px-Huddleston_House_Barn_Interior%2C_838_National_Road_%28Mount_Auburn%2C_Ind.%29_-_DPLA_-_f765e26cc22a31dd37908b3cefe795fa.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Huddleston_House_Barn_Interior,_838_National_Road_(Mount_Auburn,_Ind.)_-_DPLA_-_f765e26cc22a31dd37908b3cefe795fa.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5c/Huddleston_House_Barn_Interior%2C_838_National_Road_%28Mount_Auburn%2C_Ind.%29_-_DPLA_-_f765e26cc22a31dd37908b3cefe795fa.jpg/1280px-Huddleston_House_Barn_Interior%2C_838_National_Road_%28Mount_Auburn%2C_Ind.%29_-_DPLA_-_f765e26cc22a31dd37908b3cefe795fa.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:27.078Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/hoedown"}
{"id":"60174cf5-10df-4058-a9c7-ed4bd8e24ac4","type":"art_form","slug":"hojagiri","title":"Hojagiri","summary":"There are several forms of folk dance performed in the state of Tripura in northeastern India.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"21vxzftnn7","content":[{"text":"There are several forms of folk dance performed in the state of Tripura in northeastern India. These dances are performed by the Tripuri (the largest regional ethnic group) and Mog (or Marma) peoples, during annual regional celebrations, such as sowing and harvesting festivals.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8b062b5e-1598-4550-88fb-396bfbbed722"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"The dancers","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"88b9gagx8c","content":[{"text":"The Tripuris comprise over half the tribal population of Tripura. They live in the hills of Tripura and are jhum cultivators. Their dances and festivals revolve around the agricultural seasons. Other large local groups, such as the Marmas, Halams, and Reangs share in and conduct their versions of these dance festivals as well.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8b062b5e-1598-4550-88fb-396bfbbed722"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Goria/Garia","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mw20bgdnfd","content":[{"text":"The Tripuris practice jhum, or shifting cultivation and the Goria Puja festival marks the commencement of their sowing season. Garia is commemorated through the Garia dance that accompanies the prayers and pujas for a bountiful harvest and is held in April. The Goria or Garia dance is performed at the time of the sowing of the crops during the festival, in the month of April, and includes people from other ethnic groups in addition to the Tripuri themselves. The dance is accompanied by drums and flutes, and consists of both sexes dancing from village to village in a gradually increasing tempo through various mudra which mimic the movements of different aspects of nature.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8b062b5e-1598-4550-88fb-396bfbbed722"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Hai-hak","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zqgxm0bd4z","content":[{"text":"Hai-hak dance is a dance which is specific to the Halam community within the Tripuri. It is performed to honor the goddess Lakshmi after the annual harvest, and is typically done at her place of worship.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8b062b5e-1598-4550-88fb-396bfbbed722"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Hojagiri","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jkfsma866c","content":[{"text":"Hojagiri is a folk dance performed by young women of the Tripuri people of Reang clan. It comprises four to six members in a team singing and balancing various objects or props on their head and hands, (such as a bottle or an earthen pitcher on the head; and lamps on the hands) while only moving the lower half of the body.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8b062b5e-1598-4550-88fb-396bfbbed722"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Jhum","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zaet35rwq6","content":[{"text":"The Jhum dance is a dance which is typically performed by girls and boys.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8b062b5e-1598-4550-88fb-396bfbbed722"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mcm01ybm18","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Dances of Tripura”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8b062b5e-1598-4550-88fb-396bfbbed722"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ys4a6psqty","content":[{"text":"Hojagiri is Wikipedia category, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"11b17c7d-45c4-44d7-99aa-f5a6c94b804c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kbw3x9agkw","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"11b17c7d-45c4-44d7-99aa-f5a6c94b804c"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"It is said that at the time of Subrai Raja, the most famous and legendary King of Tripura, through his 250 wives he had invented two hundred fifty designs of rignai. He married those woman whoever invented a new design. But all these design had lost in time and only few are…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9b/Girl_from_Reang_Tribe_of_Tripura_ready_for_Hojagiri_dance_wearing_Rignai_DSCN1230.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Sumita Roy Dutta","height":2240,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"It is said that at the time of Subrai Raja, the most famous and legendary King of Tripura, through his 250 wives he had invented two hundred fifty designs of rignai. He married those woman whoever invented a new design. But all these design had lost in time and only few are…","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9b/Girl_from_Reang_Tribe_of_Tripura_ready_for_Hojagiri_dance_wearing_Rignai_DSCN1230.jpg/960px-Girl_from_Reang_Tribe_of_Tripura_ready_for_Hojagiri_dance_wearing_Rignai_DSCN1230.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Girl_from_Reang_Tribe_of_Tripura_ready_for_Hojagiri_dance_wearing_Rignai_DSCN1230.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9b/Girl_from_Reang_Tribe_of_Tripura_ready_for_Hojagiri_dance_wearing_Rignai_DSCN1230.jpg/1280px-Girl_from_Reang_Tribe_of_Tripura_ready_for_Hojagiri_dance_wearing_Rignai_DSCN1230.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:24.638Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/hojagiri"}
{"id":"417a3b9d-4c38-4085-8dcd-9f1508f378d1","type":"art_form","slug":"hokey-pokey","title":"Hokey Pokey","summary":"The Hokey Cokey (also known as Hokey Pokey in the United States) is a participation dance with a distinctive accompanying tune and lyric structure. It is well-known in English-speaking countries.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jfje88j71r","content":[{"text":"The Hokey Cokey (also known as Hokey Pokey in the United States) is a participation dance with a distinctive accompanying tune and lyric structure. It is well-known in English-speaking countries. It originates in a British folk dance, with variants attested as early as 1826. The song and accompanying dance peaked in popularity as a music hall song and novelty dance in the mid-1940s in the UK. The song became a chart hit twice in the 1980s. The first UK hit was by The Snowmen, which peaked at UK No. 18 in 1981.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bddaee7f-901e-4328-8772-7788486079c5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origins and meaning","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"abb11tpxnp","content":[{"text":"Despite several claims of a recent invention, numerous variants of the song exist with similar dances and lyrics dating back to the 19th century. \nFrom 1842, one of the earlier variants, with a very similar dance to the modern one, is found in Robert Chambers' Popular Rhymes of Scotland.\nThe words there are given as:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bddaee7f-901e-4328-8772-7788486079c5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vasv1dpczn","content":[{"text":"From 1857, a song rendered (\"with appropriate gestures\") by two sisters from Canterbury, England, United Kingdom, while on a visit in 1857 to Bridgewater, New Hampshire, United States, starts as an \"English/Scottish ditty\" in this way:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bddaee7f-901e-4328-8772-7788486079c5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"881q4q3010","content":[{"text":"As the song continues, the \"left hand\" is put in, then the \"right foot\", then the \"left foot\", then \"my whole head\" . . . It does not seem to have been much used in Shaker societies.\nFrom 1872, a version known as \"Ugly Mug\" is described.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bddaee7f-901e-4328-8772-7788486079c5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qwn8wytb60","content":[{"text":"A version from c. 1891 from the town of Golspie, Scotland, was published by Edward W. B. Nicholson:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bddaee7f-901e-4328-8772-7788486079c5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qat6xbndqq","content":[{"text":"In the 1892 book, English Folk-Rhymes, a version of the song originating from Sheffield, England, is given:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bddaee7f-901e-4328-8772-7788486079c5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3nkn2bvtr2","content":[{"text":"From 1940, a later variant of this song is the Shakers' song \"Hinkum-Booby\", which had more similar lyrics to the modern song and was published in Edward Deming Andrews' A gift to be simple (page 42).\nSome early versions of this song thus show a marked resemblance to the modern song Looby (or Loopty) Loo, and the songs have been described as having a common origin.\nPublished around 1900, the book Charming Talks about People and Places, there is a song with music entitled \"Turn The Right Hand In\" (page 163). It has nine verses, which run as: \"Turn the right hand in, turn the right hand out, give your hands a very good shake, and turn your body around\". Additional verses include v2. left hand...; v3. both hands...; v4. right foot...; v5. left foot...; v6. both feet...; v7.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bddaee7f-901e-4328-8772-7788486079c5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Australia","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rb2gxh46nv","content":[{"text":"In Australia, the dance may be called the \"hokey pokey\" or the \"hokey cokey.\" It was a hit for Johnny Chester & The Chessmen in 1961.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bddaee7f-901e-4328-8772-7788486079c5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Denmark","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gmdbndv7jt","content":[{"text":"Mostly performed in the British style of the dance, it is known as the \"boogie woogie\" (pronounced ).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bddaee7f-901e-4328-8772-7788486079c5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Germany","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1d2t5kcvvw","content":[{"text":"Performed mainly in the carnival in a variation of the British style of the dance, it is known as \"Rucki-Zucki\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bddaee7f-901e-4328-8772-7788486079c5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Mexico","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"z8frnkjb1f","content":[{"text":"Released as a commercial recording by Tatiana (singer) as \"Hockey-Pockey\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bddaee7f-901e-4328-8772-7788486079c5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"n3xw67fccj","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Hokey Cokey”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bddaee7f-901e-4328-8772-7788486079c5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"647v35azax","content":[{"text":"Hokey Pokey is participation song and dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"517b65f9-56fd-4f0d-b7b3-dc7dd73c879d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9kbbmf1brf","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"517b65f9-56fd-4f0d-b7b3-dc7dd73c879d"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Ice cream honeycomb","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6f/Hokey_pokey_ice_cream.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Finbar.concaig","height":1707,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Ice cream honeycomb","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6f/Hokey_pokey_ice_cream.jpg/960px-Hokey_pokey_ice_cream.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hokey_pokey_ice_cream.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6f/Hokey_pokey_ice_cream.jpg/1280px-Hokey_pokey_ice_cream.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Ice cream honeycomb","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2f/Hokey_pokey_ice_cream_%28cropped%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Finbar.concaig","height":1030,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Ice cream honeycomb","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2f/Hokey_pokey_ice_cream_%28cropped%29.jpg/960px-Hokey_pokey_ice_cream_%28cropped%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hokey_pokey_ice_cream_(cropped).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2f/Hokey_pokey_ice_cream_%28cropped%29.jpg/1280px-Hokey_pokey_ice_cream_%28cropped%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Let's do the Hokey Pokey !","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b6/Let%27s_do_the_Hokey_Pokey_%21_%284318302875%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Trish Hamme from Reno , Nevada, USA","height":1024,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Let's do the Hokey Pokey !","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b6/Let%27s_do_the_Hokey_Pokey_%21_%284318302875%29.jpg/960px-Let%27s_do_the_Hokey_Pokey_%21_%284318302875%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Let%27s_do_the_Hokey_Pokey_!_(4318302875).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b6/Let%27s_do_the_Hokey_Pokey_%21_%284318302875%29.jpg/1280px-Let%27s_do_the_Hokey_Pokey_%21_%284318302875%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-07T05:47:15.870Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/hokey-pokey"}
{"id":"65e8a548-ca79-449f-97a5-daebe897f8e7","type":"art_form","slug":"hoochie-coochie","title":"hoochie coochie","summary":"The hoochie coochie () is a catch-all term to describe several sexually provocative belly dance-like dances from the mid-to late 1800s.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vdtcgbjhed","content":[{"text":"The hoochie coochie () is a catch-all term to describe several sexually provocative belly dance-like dances from the mid-to late 1800s. Also spelled hootchy-kootchy and a number of other variations, it is often associated with \"The Streets of Cairo, or the Poor Little Country Maid\" song, also known as \"the snake charmer song\". \"Hoochie Coochie Man\" (originally titled \"I'm Your Hoochie Cooche Man\") is also a blues standard written by Willie Dixon and first recorded by Muddy Waters in Chicago, January 7, 1954. Numerous cover versions of this classic continue to be recorded. Hoochie Coochie is also mentioned in Alan Jackson's hit country music song \"Chattahoochee\", where he says it refers to \"a country fair strip show\", and in the Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller songs \"Little Egypt (Ying-Yang)\" and \"Saved\" (sung by LaVern Baker). The Ohio Players 1976 song \"Who'd She Coo\" is a take-off on the wording.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d01b0214-7a63-4eab-9593-4a2c3f5680c8"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Overview","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gnyqdax1bh","content":[{"text":"Such dances, or something similar, were performed at the Crystal Palace Exhibition in London in 1851, the Centennial Exhibition in Philadelphia in 1876, and the World's Fair in Paris in 1889.  Although such dances became wildly popular in the United States during the Chicago World's Fair in 1893, there is no evidence of them being known by the name \"Coochie Coochie\" at the time.  Before, during and immediately after the fair, these dances were frequently called, \"Mussel dance\", \"stomach dance\", danse du ventre and sometimes, \"Kouta Kouta\".  The transition from \"kouta kouta\" to \"coochie coochie\", and later, \"hoochie coochie\", may have been influenced by the expressions, \"hoochy, coochy, coochy\", \"kutchy, kutchy\", or \"kutchy, kutchy coo\", which were found in popular song lyrics from the 1860s and the 1880s.\nDescribed by the New York Journal in 1893 as \"Neither dancing of the head nor the feet\", it was a dance performed by women of, or presented as having, Middle-Eastern and/or Romani heritage, often as part of traveling sideshows.\nThe hoochie coochie replaced the much older can-can as the ribald dance of choice in New York dance halls by the 1890s.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d01b0214-7a63-4eab-9593-4a2c3f5680c8"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"d5yf84j9cv","content":[{"text":"A carnival company recently rented a large open space in a New York town of 5000 population and opened up for business. The most lucrative part of their business is a \"girl\" show, too foul to write of. The barker in his endeavor to secure customers appeals to all that is opposed to decency, while the three main attractions emphasize his harangue by \"hoochie-coochie\" dances and other physical contortions.\n —The Social Hygiene Bulletin, Vol. VII, No. 7, July 1920","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d01b0214-7a63-4eab-9593-4a2c3f5680c8"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bfwe9hkky7","content":[{"text":"Since the dance was performed by women, female impersonators or drag queens, a goochie man, or hoochie coochie man, either watched them or ran the show.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d01b0214-7a63-4eab-9593-4a2c3f5680c8"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Spelling variations","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wms8cmp1dh","content":[{"text":"Pronounced  or hüchē¦küchē according to Merriam-Webster's dictionary definition, the words can be found in literature with a number of alternate spellings:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d01b0214-7a63-4eab-9593-4a2c3f5680c8"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c48nsx7d0b","content":[{"text":"Hoochie: hootchy, hootchey, hootchie, hoochy, hoochey,\nCoochie: kootchy, kootchey, kootchie, koochy, koochey, cootchy, cootchey, cootchie, coochy, coochey,","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d01b0214-7a63-4eab-9593-4a2c3f5680c8"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9fpn0evb31","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Hoochie coochie”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d01b0214-7a63-4eab-9593-4a2c3f5680c8"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1ywk10rbhc","content":[{"text":"hoochie coochie is dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e429079e-c9e1-4f23-8390-268df708a33c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gk4t2mrezd","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e429079e-c9e1-4f23-8390-268df708a33c"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Skupina Hoochie Coochie Band na festivalu Daňkovický bigbít 12. prosince 2009","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/03/Da%C5%88kovice09-Hoochie_Coochie_Band21.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Ben Skála","height":1927,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Skupina Hoochie Coochie Band na festivalu Daňkovický bigbít 12. prosince 2009","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.5","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/03/Da%C5%88kovice09-Hoochie_Coochie_Band21.jpg/960px-Da%C5%88kovice09-Hoochie_Coochie_Band21.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Da%C5%88kovice09-Hoochie_Coochie_Band21.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/03/Da%C5%88kovice09-Hoochie_Coochie_Band21.jpg/1280px-Da%C5%88kovice09-Hoochie_Coochie_Band21.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5"},{"alt":"Skupina Hoochie Coochie Band na festivalu Daňkovický bigbít 12. prosince 2009","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5a/Da%C5%88kovice09-Hoochie_Coochie_Band9.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Ben Skála","height":850,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Skupina Hoochie Coochie Band na festivalu Daňkovický bigbít 12. prosince 2009","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.5","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Da%C5%88kovice09-Hoochie_Coochie_Band9.jpg/960px-Da%C5%88kovice09-Hoochie_Coochie_Band9.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Da%C5%88kovice09-Hoochie_Coochie_Band9.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Da%C5%88kovice09-Hoochie_Coochie_Band9.jpg/1280px-Da%C5%88kovice09-Hoochie_Coochie_Band9.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5"},{"alt":"Skupina Hoochie Coochie Band na festivalu Daňkovický bigbít 12. prosince 2009","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4f/Da%C5%88kovice09-Hoochie_Coochie_Band2.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Ben Skála","height":1927,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Skupina Hoochie Coochie Band na festivalu Daňkovický bigbít 12. prosince 2009","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.5","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4f/Da%C5%88kovice09-Hoochie_Coochie_Band2.jpg/960px-Da%C5%88kovice09-Hoochie_Coochie_Band2.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Da%C5%88kovice09-Hoochie_Coochie_Band2.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4f/Da%C5%88kovice09-Hoochie_Coochie_Band2.jpg/1280px-Da%C5%88kovice09-Hoochie_Coochie_Band2.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:21.062Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/hoochie-coochie"}
{"id":"f6f9db98-5756-46a7-b470-210e0a8cf1f3","type":"art_form","slug":"hoop-dance","title":"hoop dance","summary":"Native American Hoop Dance is a form of individual dance, performed as a show dance in many tribes.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rt1adcfrz3","content":[{"text":"Native American Hoop Dance is a form of individual dance, performed as a show dance in many tribes. It features a solo dancer dancing with a dozen or more hoops and using them to form a variety of both static and dynamic shapes (poses and moves). Most of the hoop dances in tribes across North America belong to modern hoop dance, which was invented in 1930.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e542533c-50d3-4592-87c3-43895a5b0a37"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Description","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"40t82ft75w","content":[{"text":"Like other native dances, hoop dance is not acrobatic, but restrained. The dancer usually takes small steps when performing the dance. Hoop dance, an individual dance, is a \"show dance\" in some tribes. They will move either clockwise or counterclockwise as determined by their cosmology and worldview. Native American Hoop dance usually focuses on very rapid moves, but sometimes speed and creativeness balance the scoring between Hoop dancers who use only four hoops but dance to extremely fast songs, versus dancers with 20 or more hoops who danced to a slower drumbeat. Every dance is as individual as the person who choreographs it. Some dancers mimic animals such as birds or working of hunting, fishing, planting and harvesting. In elaborate sequences of moves, the hoops are made to interlock, and in such a way they can be extended from the body of the dancer to form appendages such as wings and tails.\nThere are usually 28 hoops used in the hoop dance, and they symbolize \"a prayer that the promised renewal of the collective human spirit will accelerate and that we will all find our place in one great hoop made up of many hoops.\" The hoops symbolizes the \"never-ending cycle of life,\" having no beginning and no end. The dancers usually make their own hoops. Modern hoops are made from an array of materials while traditional wood hoops are made of willow. More popular now are reed and plastic hose hoops decorated with tape and paint, according to the dancer's preference. Today, many contemporary hoop dancers will color their hoops in four colors to represent the four directions.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e542533c-50d3-4592-87c3-43895a5b0a37"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origin","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"93qz98pqbq","content":[{"text":"According to writer Basil H. Johnston in Anishinaabe culture, a Manitou named Pukawiss, brother of Nanabozho, and born to live amongst the people, created the hoop dance. Unlike the other boys, Pukawiss did not show an interest in running, swimming or hunting. He only wanted to watch the animals. His fascination with things drove his father's interest away from him towards his brother Maudjee-kawiss, therefore, leading to everyone calling him Pukawiss: the disowned or unwanted. Pukawiss learned so much about life in the movements of eagles, bears, snakes that taking their life would have been wrong. The animals had much to teach human beings about values and relationship like loyalty, kindness and friendship. Pukawiss taught his village about the animals by spinning like an eagle in flight or hopping through grass like rabbits or bouncing like a baby deer. He became a dancer. So many villages wanted him to teach them about the ways of the animals that he had to give up his home and became a permanent visitor.  Many women wanted him to settle with them in their village but he preferred to keep moving.\nPukawiss and his brother Cheeby-aub-oozoo added drums and flute to the dance. Later, Pukawiss added the stories of humankind to his performances. He invented the hoop dance to help him with this goal. The dancer became a counselor with the hoops representing a circle that returns each problem back to the responsibility of its creator. According to Basil Johnston, \"the hoop is also emblematic of the way things are, in that mischief breeds mischief that eventually returns to haunt and plague the inventor\". Eventually many became jealous of Pukawiss - his fancy dress, and his skill with the hoops so they copied him.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e542533c-50d3-4592-87c3-43895a5b0a37"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Hoop Dance in White Mountain Apache","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rg4qbcw940","content":[{"text":"The White Mountain Apache is one of the few Native American tribes that was not forced to leave its territory and live on a reservation when faced with the Westward expansion of the US government. They kept on living on their territory they had settled in Athabaskan migration in East Arizona. For the most part, White Mountain Apache dance and religious ceremonies had always been oriented toward healing. The modern medicine has taken away some of the healing ritual and traditional curing ceremonies, however, dancing still retains its strong spiritual significance. Hoop dance is one of the most important healing dances in the White Mountain Apache. In the past, the Hoop Dance was performed during lightning ceremonies, to cure people who had been struck by lightning or who had inadvertently used a piece of lightning-struck wood for some purpose. In a 1936 record, a sick person was seated on a blanket in the middle of a dance gourd facing east. One boy and one girl stood on the east, south, west and north side of him, holding crosses and hoops. The youngsters danced to the patient while the medicine man started to sing. The boy then placed the hoops over the patient’s head and the girls holding the crosses. Then the boys and girls danced back to their original position. The dance was then repeated as the medicine man sang.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e542533c-50d3-4592-87c3-43895a5b0a37"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Competition","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jnjvcbzmxj","content":[{"text":"Native American Hoop Dance has been formally recognized as a cultural heritage, embodied in both documentary films and as a living tradition in formal competition. The most popular competition occurs annually at the Heard Museum in Phoenix, Arizona. Up to 80 dancers have participated in any given year, and the competitions have drawn as many as 10,000 spectators.\nThe first World Hoop Dance Competition was held at the New Mexico State Fair in 1991. The first World Champion Hoop Dancer was Eddie Swimmer, a Cherokee from Cherokee, North Carolina. The venue was moved to the Heard Museum in Arizona for the second event and the first adult winner of what was to become the permanent venue was Quentin Pipestem of the Tsuu T'ina Nation in Alberta, Canada. The hoop dance is part of the pan-Indian movement and as such has evolved over the years by becoming faster and incorporating many influences from outside traditional culture such as the use of moves from hip hop dance as well as the widespread use of industrial piping to construct hoops that were originally made from reeds or willow branches. Hoop dance has gained a strong following internationally as an increasing number of dancers tour the world. Nakota La Rance, already a six-time World Championship winner at 23, performed for the 2010-11 season of Totem by Cirque du Soleil.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e542533c-50d3-4592-87c3-43895a5b0a37"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Women and the hoop dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6kdggf6mb3","content":[{"text":"Although originally a male-only dance form, in recent years women have become active participants in the hoop dance and in hoop dance competitions. In 1994, Jackie Bird (Mandan, Hidatsa and Santee Sioux, from South Dakota) became the first woman to compete in the Hoop Dance World Championships. In 1997, Ginger Sykes (Navajo, from Arizona) became the first woman to win the Hoop Dance World Championships by winning the Teen Division. For performing at Mount Rushmore, Jasmine Pickner (Lakota) has been featured in the PBS documentary The National Parks: America's Best Idea (2009).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e542533c-50d3-4592-87c3-43895a5b0a37"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c0an2mgjte","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Native American Hoop Dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e542533c-50d3-4592-87c3-43895a5b0a37"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6esd2qfkfh","content":[{"text":"hoop dance is form of dance practiced by Indigenous Peoples of North America, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a3bd3f04-c447-4e6b-a705-a1cfb491e141"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"662zez4w9c","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a3bd3f04-c447-4e6b-a705-a1cfb491e141"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"This photo has been taken in the country: United States","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/ce/Hoop_Dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"AbsconditumEtIncognitum","height":1265,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"This photo has been taken in the country: United States","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/ce/Hoop_Dance.jpg/960px-Hoop_Dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hoop_Dance.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/ce/Hoop_Dance.jpg/1280px-Hoop_Dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"2005 World Hoop dance championship at the Heard Museum Phoenix AZ USA using the Hoops","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/17/Hoop_Dancer4.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"karol m from arizona, USA","height":1003,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"2005 World Hoop dance championship at the Heard Museum Phoenix AZ USA using the Hoops","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/17/Hoop_Dancer4.jpg/960px-Hoop_Dancer4.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hoop_Dancer4.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/17/Hoop_Dancer4.jpg/1280px-Hoop_Dancer4.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:21.936Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/hoop-dance"}
{"id":"c0759d2f-8dc9-4479-a122-cf478c6f740e","type":"art_form","slug":"hopak","title":"hopak","summary":"Hopak (Ukrainian: гопак, IPA: [ɦoˈpɑk]) is a Ukrainian folk dance originating as a male dance among the Zaporozhian Cossacks, but later danced by couples, male soloists, and mixed groups of dancers.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c48wrn3ajj","content":[{"text":"Hopak (Ukrainian: гопак, IPA: [ɦoˈpɑk]) is a Ukrainian folk dance originating as a male dance among the Zaporozhian Cossacks, but later danced by couples, male soloists, and mixed groups of dancers. It is performed most often as a solitary concert dance by amateur and professional Ukrainian dance ensembles, as well as other performers of folk dances. It has also been incorporated into larger artistic opuses such as operas, ballets and theatre.\nThe hopak is often popularly referred to as the \"National Dance of Ukraine\" and has become very popular in Poland. There are similar folkloric dance tunes known as Sirmpa in Leros, Greece.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6cadef93-0586-4e81-afac-3f63ca00d77f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qgjm4mcb40","content":[{"text":"The name hopak is derived from the verb hopaty (Ukrainian: гопати) which means \"to hop\", as well as the corresponding exclamation hop! (Ukrainian: гоп) which can be uttered during a jump as an expression of surprise or amazement.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6cadef93-0586-4e81-afac-3f63ca00d77f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Medieval history","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3qn1fs3cr7","content":[{"text":"The Hopak developed initially as a Cossack social dance (Ukrainian: побyтовi танці, translit. pobutovi tantsi), and was practiced in the lands of present-day Ukraine beginning in the 16th century. While the militaristic Zaporizhian Sich generally frowned upon amusements and diversions from military training, such regulations were overlooked when Kozaks returned victorious after battle. Kobzars and other musicians would gather their instruments - violins, bagpipes, bandura, cimbaloms, and sopilka - while others would dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6cadef93-0586-4e81-afac-3f63ca00d77f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ea5d3bb1h3","content":[{"text":"This celebratory hopaky was performed only by male participants, as they took place in an all-male environment. The performers were young, boisterous mercenaries, and not professional dancers; as such, the dance steps performed were predominantly improvisational, reflecting the performers' sense of manliness, heroism, speed and strength. The steps exhibited included many acrobatic jumps (Ukrainian: стрибки, translit. strybky). Often fights from the battlefield would be re-enacted in pantomime, with real swords, lances or other weaponry, as the performer lashed out at invisible enemies. These dances were not tied down to specific rhythms, and the dancers could change tempo at any point.\nSuch festive dancing differed greatly in character from the older ritual dances (Ukrainian: oбpядовi танці, translit. obryadovi tantsi), such as the Khorovod, which had previously been the dominant choreographic works in Ruthenian lands. A primary distinction was the gender of the participants – all male – as opposed to the predominantly all-female ritual dances.\nWith the elevation of Cossack status in the region, hopaky began to appear in the villages within their domain.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6cadef93-0586-4e81-afac-3f63ca00d77f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Concert dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6drytn41ph","content":[{"text":"After Hopak-like dances began to be performed on stage in the 18th century in Serf and Peasant theaters, professional dramatic troupes began to incorporate this popular dance into their repertoire. These performances only incorporated the Hopak into a larger opus, such as Kotliarevsky's operetta Natalka Poltavka. It was the pioneering work of a performer in a dramatic ensemble, the ethnochoreologist Vasyl Verkhovynets, in the early 20th century, that enable the dance to develop into its current format. Verkhovynets' initial work entailed gathering authentic village steps throughout central Ukraine and constructing dances which more accurately represented the Ukrainian cultural tradition. His break-through, however, was demonstrating that staged Ukrainian dance could exist as a distinct performing art, in the form of concert dance. He and his disciple Vasyl Avramenko began staging performances throughout western Ukraine, forming troupes of dancers in village after village.\nIn the spring of 1935, the All-Union Organization of Cultural Relations with Foreign Countries agreed to send a delegation to the upcoming First International Festival of the Folk Dance in London. Verkhovynets worked with Leonid Zhukov of the T. Shevchenko Kyiv Opera and Ballet, and professional dancers from both the Kyiv and Kharkiv Opera houses, on constructing a suite to represent the Ukrainian SSR. For his part, Verkhovynets choreographed what became known as the \"London Hopak\" (Ukrainian: лондонський гопак, translit. londonskiy hopak): this was a 3-part dance, consisting of a men's dance (much like the original Kozak dance), a second, slower segment danced only by women, and finally a rousing closing with both male and female dancers sharing the stage.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6cadef93-0586-4e81-afac-3f63ca00d77f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance steps","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hvz1bnf51f","content":[{"text":"The modern-day Hopak is a choreographed dance made to appear full of improvisation. Much of the seemingly improvised parts involve solo dancers, usually male, performing visually and technically amazing acrobatic feats. These include jumps and spins, and are usually the highlight of the performance.\nThe rest of the dance includes many movements performed in unison, especially by the female dancers, while male dancers typically perform squat sequences.\nBecause of the speed and energy required to perform a successful Hopak, this dance is usually performed at the end of a program. As in many Ukrainian dances, the dancers, especially the women, do not stop moving until the end of the dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6cadef93-0586-4e81-afac-3f63ca00d77f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Hopak music","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ttkcf0qx1n","content":[{"text":"Music for the Hopak is not standardized by tempo or melody, although 24 time predominates most arrangements. The dance is supposed to evoke a sense of improvisation, so the pace of the music changes from segment to segment, allowing dancers to distinguish themselves. The melodies of the songs Hop, moyi hrechanyky (Ukrainian: Гоп, мої гречаники) and Od Kyieva do Luben (Ukrainian: Од Києва до Лубень) can be found in many Hopak arrangements. Hopaks usually end on a fast and furious pace, with some incorporating boisterous Ukrainian marches, such as Zasvystaly kozachen'ky (Ukrainian: Засвистали козаченьки).\nA number of composers have composed a Hopak as part of an opera or ballet:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6cadef93-0586-4e81-afac-3f63ca00d77f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9fs3c9af7p","content":[{"text":"Operas\nModest Mussorgsky, in The Fair at Sorochyntsi\nPyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, in Mazepa\nNikolay Rimsky-Korsakov, in May Night\nSemen Hulak-Artemovsky, in Zaporozhets za Dunayem\nBallets\nAram Khachaturian, in Gayane\nVasily Solovyov-Sedoi, in Taras Bulba\nCesare Pugni, in The Little Humpbacked Horse\nAnatoliy Sviechnikov, in Marusia Bohuslavka","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6cadef93-0586-4e81-afac-3f63ca00d77f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hk9rr3k7ps","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Hopak”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6cadef93-0586-4e81-afac-3f63ca00d77f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hy4nmfq46g","content":[{"text":"hopak is Ukrainian folk dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"42c8345e-ad0e-4bfc-a085-00efdc14ce9d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gky5bbr7r5","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 6 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"42c8345e-ad0e-4bfc-a085-00efdc14ce9d"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Гопак:","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e5/Gopak.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Невідомий художник","height":1643,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Гопак:","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e5/Gopak.jpg/960px-Gopak.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Gopak.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e5/Gopak.jpg/1280px-Gopak.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:27.884Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/hopak"}
{"id":"3774b41c-22bf-4b24-a578-b2fb11a754b5","type":"art_form","slug":"hora","title":"hora","summary":"Hora, also known as horo and oro, is a type of circle dance traditionally performed in Southeast Europe.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"a5m7z6d7ys","content":[{"text":"Hora, also known as horo and oro, is a type of circle dance traditionally performed in Southeast Europe. Circle dances with similar names are found in Bulgaria, Romania, Moldova, North Macedonia, Greece and Turkey, and among ethnic minorities such as the Ashkenazi Jews (Yiddish: האָרע hore), Sephardic Jews (Ladino: הורו horo) and the Roma. \nCombining elements from Eastern European circle dances, the Balkan hora, the Yemenite step and Hasidic dancing, the hora became a defining symbol of early Zionist culture.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9922f54a-11e2-46f5-985d-f52d5e7199be"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3ztrynrhmx","content":[{"text":"The name, spelled differently in various countries, is derived from the Greek χορός (khorós): \"dance\", which is cognate with the Ancient Greek art form of χορεία (khoreía). The original meaning of the Greek word χορός may have been \"circle\".\nAlso, the words hora and oro are found in many Slavic languages and have the meaning of \"round (dance)\"; the verb oriti means \"to speak, sound, sing\" and previously meant \"to celebrate\".\nThe Greek χορός (khorós) is cognate with Pontic Greek χορόν (khorón), and has also given rise to the names of Bulgarian хоро (horo), Macedonian оро (oro), Romanian horă, Turkish hora and  Hebrew הורה (horah). The Khorumi dance of Georgia also might be connected to the Horon dance in the neighboring Turkish regions, as it rose out of the Adjara region, where Kartvelian Laz people co-existed for centuries with Greek Pontians.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9922f54a-11e2-46f5-985d-f52d5e7199be"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Romania and Moldova","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3x5nnfhre9","content":[{"text":"Horă (plural: hore) is a traditional Romanian and Moldovan folk dance where the dancers hold each other's hands and the circle spins, usually counterclockwise, as each participant follows a sequence of three steps forward and one step back. The dance is usually accompanied by musical instruments such as the cymbalom, accordion, violin, viola, double bass, saxophone, trumpet or the pan pipes.\nThe hora is popular during wedding celebrations and festivals, and is an essential part of the social entertainment in rural areas. One of the most famous hore is the \"Hora Unirii\" (\"Hora of the Union\"), which became a Romanian patriotic song as a result of being the hymn when Wallachia and Moldavia united to form the Principality of Romania in 1859. During the 2006/2007 New Year's Eve celebration, when Romania and Bulgaria joined the European Union, people were dancing Hora Bucuriei (\"Hora of Joy\") over the boulevards of Bucharest as a tribute to the EU anthem, Ode to Joy (Romanian: Odă bucuriei). Some of the biggest hora circles can be found on early 20th century movies filmed by the Manaki brothers in Pindus, Greece, and performed by local Aromanians.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9922f54a-11e2-46f5-985d-f52d5e7199be"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Horo in Bulgaria","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zznhx5jj15","content":[{"text":"The traditional Bulgarian dance horo (Bulgarian: хоро) comes in many shapes. It is not necessary to be in a circle; a curving line of people is also acceptable. The steps used in a horo dance are extremely diverse. The horo may vary between three and seven or eight steps forward and one to five or six steps back, depending on the specific type.\nIn Bulgaria, each region has their own type of horo. They differ by the rhythm of the music and the steps taken. There are no two horo dances with similar steps. There are probably over one hundred types of horo dances in the Bulgarian folklore.\nIn the past, the horo dance had a social role in Bulgarian society. It was mainly for fun, as a contest of skills, or for show, leading to the development of the variety of horo dances. There are hora for people with little skill that can be learned in five to ten minutes, but there are also very sophisticated dances that cannot be learned unless one is fluent in many of the simpler dances.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9922f54a-11e2-46f5-985d-f52d5e7199be"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Oro in North Macedonia","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7bnfq69hj4","content":[{"text":"North Macedonia uses the Cyrillic spelling of oro. The origins of the word oro vary from its use in socializing and celebrating to historical dancing before going into battle. Teshkoto, translated as \"The difficult one\", is one of those, danced by men only, the music of which reflects the sorrow and mood of war. The oro is danced in a circle, with men and women holding one another by hand. They are used to celebrate occasions such as weddings, christenings, name-days, national and religious holidays, graduations, and birthdays.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9922f54a-11e2-46f5-985d-f52d5e7199be"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Roma horo","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"23sea07qrq","content":[{"text":"The horo is also popular among the Roma of Southeastern Europe, and the dancing is practically the same as that of the neighboring ethnicities. Roma Horos, and Roma music in general, are very much appreciated among the non-Roma in the Balkans, as they also have a reputation as skillful performers of other people's folk music.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9922f54a-11e2-46f5-985d-f52d5e7199be"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1r8krntrrt","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Hora (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9922f54a-11e2-46f5-985d-f52d5e7199be"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ztth9ehtpp","content":[{"text":"hora is type of circle dance originating in the Balkans, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3a441d69-9213-4d09-8717-38feee3f8acb"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"my1hr8p1r9","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 5 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3a441d69-9213-4d09-8717-38feee3f8acb"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Kutná Hora","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/51/Kutn%C3%A1_Hora_-_panoramio_%2810%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Laima Gūtmane (simka…","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Kutná Hora","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/51/Kutn%C3%A1_Hora_-_panoramio_%2810%29.jpg/960px-Kutn%C3%A1_Hora_-_panoramio_%2810%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kutn%C3%A1_Hora_-_panoramio_(10).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/51/Kutn%C3%A1_Hora_-_panoramio_%2810%29.jpg/1280px-Kutn%C3%A1_Hora_-_panoramio_%2810%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"},{"alt":"Interior shots of St. James' Church (Kostel sv. Jakuba) in Kutná Hora","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b9/Innenaufnahmen_der_St.-Jakobkirche_%28Kostel_sv._Jakuba%29_in_Kuttenberg_%28Kutn%C3%A1_Hora%29_22.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"JensKunstfreund","height":924,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Interior shots of St. James' Church (Kostel sv. Jakuba) in Kutná Hora","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b9/Innenaufnahmen_der_St.-Jakobkirche_%28Kostel_sv._Jakuba%29_in_Kuttenberg_%28Kutn%C3%A1_Hora%29_22.jpg/960px-Innenaufnahmen_der_St.-Jakobkirche_%28Kostel_sv._Jakuba%29_in_Kuttenberg_%28Kutn%C3%A1_Hora%29_22.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Innenaufnahmen_der_St.-Jakobkirche_(Kostel_sv._Jakuba)_in_Kuttenberg_(Kutn%C3%A1_Hora)_22.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b9/Innenaufnahmen_der_St.-Jakobkirche_%28Kostel_sv._Jakuba%29_in_Kuttenberg_%28Kutn%C3%A1_Hora%29_22.jpg/1280px-Innenaufnahmen_der_St.-Jakobkirche_%28Kostel_sv._Jakuba%29_in_Kuttenberg_%28Kutn%C3%A1_Hora%29_22.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"The Chapel of the Body of Christ in Kutná Hora","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2d/Die_Leib-Christi-Kapelle_in_Kuttenberg_%28Kutn%C3%A1_Hora%29_05.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"JensKunstfreund","height":703,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"The Chapel of the Body of Christ in Kutná Hora","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2d/Die_Leib-Christi-Kapelle_in_Kuttenberg_%28Kutn%C3%A1_Hora%29_05.jpg/960px-Die_Leib-Christi-Kapelle_in_Kuttenberg_%28Kutn%C3%A1_Hora%29_05.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Die_Leib-Christi-Kapelle_in_Kuttenberg_(Kutn%C3%A1_Hora)_05.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2d/Die_Leib-Christi-Kapelle_in_Kuttenberg_%28Kutn%C3%A1_Hora%29_05.jpg/1280px-Die_Leib-Christi-Kapelle_in_Kuttenberg_%28Kutn%C3%A1_Hora%29_05.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:17.484Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/hora"}
{"id":"f0f2b6fd-c045-4716-813b-11de7f00def1","type":"art_form","slug":"hornpipe","title":"hornpipe","summary":"The hornpipe is any of several dance forms and their associated tunes, played and danced in Great Britain and Ireland and elsewhere from the 16th century until the present day. The dance is still performed in competition.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cxjpg9wgyn","content":[{"text":"The hornpipe is any of several dance forms and their associated tunes, played and danced in Great Britain and Ireland and elsewhere from the 16th century until the present day. The dance is still performed in competition. George Frideric Handel's hornpipe from Water Music is one of his most famous compositions.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c072ce4d-58c7-4fb3-a963-79e8a11ae039"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"d51k7s8m8x","content":[{"text":"Hornpipes are a class of wind instruments. One candidate for the specific hornpipe that might have leant its name to the dance is the pib-corn. There is no clear evidence the dance was named after any instrument, and many alternative etymologies have been proposed.\nReferences to hornpipes abound in literature. Geoffrey Chaucer's 14th century translation of The Romaunt of the Rose mentions the hornpipe as a Cornish instrument. In a 1609 pamphlet titled Old Meg of Hereford-shire, the hornpipe dance is described as a product of Lancashire. Michael Drayton dwells on \"Lancastrian nymphs\" dancing the hornpipe in Poly-Olbion (1612). In The King's Entertainment at Welbeck (1633), Ben Jonson describes it as a dance native to Nottingham and Darbishire.\nThe hornpipe became a regular feature of English theater. Dancers would perform hornpipes between the acts of larger stage works. Many tunes were named after the dancers who performed them: Fishar's Hornpipe, Aldridge's Hornpipe, Richar's Hornpipe, Miss Baker's Hornpipe, West's Hornpipe, Durang's Hornpipe, etc. One of the standard dances became the \"sailor's hornpipe\", where the performer would appear as Jack Tar and emulate the life aboard ship. By the 19th century, the ability to dance a hornpipe was a basic part of an entertainer's toolkit.\nA legend took hold that reversed the origin of the hornpipe. In some tellings it was invented by sailors stuck in the doldrums. In fact, the popular dance was adopted by sailors like Captain Cook who recognized it as an effective exercise routine aboard ships which have limited space. It soon became a popular pastime and an official part of Royal Navy training.\nCharles Dickens mentions the hornpipe in Dombey & Son and Martin Chuzzlewit. He was also a skilled dancer of the sailor's hornpipe.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c072ce4d-58c7-4fb3-a963-79e8a11ae039"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"g0d7dr7b7h","content":[{"text":"The country dance form of the hornpipe differs from the solo step dance. Couples execute a series of steps and turns in an endless variety of combinations. In an 1816 dance manual, the \"College Hornpipe\" requires, among other movements, the \"top couple to swing with the right hand round the second couple, then swing with the left hand\". In the 18th century, dancing masters were widely employed to teach these dances to English gentility. There are hornpipes in Beauchamp-Feuillet notation.  \nSolo hornpipes were typically danced with folded arms as a display of strength. One dance historian described the posture as a demonstration of the English spirit, \"The upper part of the body is kept in a state of calm repose, while the lower limbs are executing the most complicated, rapid, and difficult move-ments. Is not all this typical of an ideally English trait? To appear calm and collected amid circumstances calculated to induce a condition of physical and mental agitation.\"\nA travelogue from 1798 described hornpipes being danced at a ball in Wales, \"The ball was concluded by a contest of agility between two brothers, who danced two distinct hornpipes with so much power and muscle, variety of step and inflexible perseverance, as exceeded everything we had seen.\" A typical response from female dancers would be something like a cotillion.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c072ce4d-58c7-4fb3-a963-79e8a11ae039"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Competition","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wzyhtgpbx4","content":[{"text":"In competition, the hornpipe is a hard shoe dance, which enables judges to hear the steps. In Ireland, the dance is traditionally performed by men. Dancers will use slower tempi to show off their virtuosity. An Coimisiún Le Rincí Gaelacha requires a minimum tempo in competition of 76 beats per minute, and the standard tempo is 113 bpm.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c072ce4d-58c7-4fb3-a963-79e8a11ae039"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Music","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vpfcnstkv6","content":[{"text":"Hornpipes were originally in triple meters like 32, 62, 94, or 98. In 1776, John Hawkins explained, \"The measure of the Hornpipe is triple time of six crotchets in a bar, four whereof are to be beat with a down, and two with an up hand.\" \nIn 1853, William Stenhouse enthused that tunes like \"Wee Totum Fogg\", \"The Dusty Miller\", \"Go to Berwick, Johnnie\", \"Mount your Baggage\", \"Robin Shure in Har'est\" have been played in Scotland \"time out of mind\". Tunes that were catalogued in the 18th century in collections like the William Dixon manuscript remained virtually unchanged when transcribed by 20th century practitioners like Tom Clough.\nBy the time John Playford was anthologizing hornpipes in collections like Apollo's Banquet (1669), the melodies could be categorized into subgenres like bagpipe-hornpipes, jig-hornpipes, or hornpipe-jigs. An important feature of hornpipes were the divisions in the tune which enabled repetition and variation. A 98 hornpipe, or slip jig, like \"Mad Moll\" went through several manifestations. It turns up in John Gay's ballad opera Polly (1729). It was anthologized twice in The Dancing Master, once as \"Mad Moll\" and again as \"The Virgin Queen\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c072ce4d-58c7-4fb3-a963-79e8a11ae039"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k59n1r8jfr","content":[{"text":"The hornpipe was often used in dance suites by Baroque composers like Guillaume de Morlaye, Antony Holborne, William Byrd, and Thomas Arne.  Hugh Aston's Hornepype of 1522 is one of the earliest known examples of a composer writing for the dance form. Henry Purcell and George Frideric Handel composed hornpipes and considered the rhythm as characteristically English. \nPurcell's \"Hornpipe No. 8\" from the incidental music for Abdelazer (1695) was anthologized by Playford. The hornpipe also provided the vehicle for one of classical music's most famous melodies in Handel's Water Music (1717).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c072ce4d-58c7-4fb3-a963-79e8a11ae039"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"a9dfs41b96","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Hornpipe”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c072ce4d-58c7-4fb3-a963-79e8a11ae039"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bhhhq6t9zk","content":[{"text":"hornpipe is dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6af37c97-f2b1-4c29-89de-22141fb812e6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5cm0sj52xc","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 11 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6af37c97-f2b1-4c29-89de-22141fb812e6"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"\"The College Hornpipe\" as it appears in Alexander McGlashan's Collection of Scots Measures (1781).","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/40/College_Hornpipe%2C_1781.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Alexander McGlashan","height":370,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"\"The College Hornpipe\" as it appears in Alexander McGlashan's Collection of Scots Measures (1781).","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/40/College_Hornpipe%2C_1781.png/960px-College_Hornpipe%2C_1781.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:College_Hornpipe,_1781.png","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/40/College_Hornpipe%2C_1781.png/1280px-College_Hornpipe%2C_1781.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"The College Hornpipe as it appears in Alexander McGlashan's Collection of Scots Measures (1781).","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1a/The_College_Hornpipe%2C_1781.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Trumpetrep","height":370,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"The College Hornpipe as it appears in Alexander McGlashan's Collection of Scots Measures (1781).","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1a/The_College_Hornpipe%2C_1781.png/960px-The_College_Hornpipe%2C_1781.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:The_College_Hornpipe,_1781.png","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1a/The_College_Hornpipe%2C_1781.png/1280px-The_College_Hornpipe%2C_1781.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"The College Hornpipe as it appears in Alexander McGlashan's Collection of Scots Measures (1781).","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5e/The_College_Hornpipe_1781.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Trumpetrep","height":370,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"The College Hornpipe as it appears in Alexander McGlashan's Collection of Scots Measures (1781).","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5e/The_College_Hornpipe_1781.png/960px-The_College_Hornpipe_1781.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:The_College_Hornpipe_1781.png","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5e/The_College_Hornpipe_1781.png/1280px-The_College_Hornpipe_1781.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:16.886Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/hornpipe"}
{"id":"e6d6ccb2-903f-4526-bfb5-38c6dacabd5c","type":"art_form","slug":"horon","title":"Horon","summary":"Horon (Pontic: χορόν, romanized: khorón) is a group of traditional folk dances from the Eastern Black Sea Region in Turkey.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mzn45bskyp","content":[{"text":"Horon (Pontic: χορόν, romanized: khorón) is a group of traditional folk dances from the Eastern Black Sea Region in Turkey.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"76eb901f-7ead-4d1d-ab1f-4646bf8c363f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ka1vw1wq48","content":[{"text":"The term horon derives from Greek choros (Greek: χορός, romanized: khorós, see chorus), which means \"dance.\" The earliest instance of its usage in a Turkic language is in Codex Cumanicus from 1303.\nIn the provinces of Ordu and Giresun, the term horan is used instead of horon.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"76eb901f-7ead-4d1d-ab1f-4646bf8c363f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Variants","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8tzhtnyy8x","content":[{"text":"Over 50 variations of horon have been identified in a single region.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"76eb901f-7ead-4d1d-ab1f-4646bf8c363f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Anatolia","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nrbykz9ncn","content":[{"text":"In The Black Sea Region from the border of Samsun to Georgian border, this dance is performed often in weddings, engagement ceremonies, highland festivals, military send-off ceremonies with kemenche, clarinet, tulum (bagpipe), alongside with davul-zurna. Depending on the variation, the dance may be performed by only mens (male horon), only womans (girl horon), mixed male-female groups (karma horon). The music is either accompanied by türkü, or with just instrumental accompany.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"76eb901f-7ead-4d1d-ab1f-4646bf8c363f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origin","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0e8501dj6e","content":[{"text":"Horon or horonu is the Turkish equivalent of the serra war dance of the Pontian Greeks, resembling the ancient Greek Pyrrhic armed dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"76eb901f-7ead-4d1d-ab1f-4646bf8c363f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5dgtxhjpxk","content":[{"text":"The horon is typically performed by a group of men or women in a line or semicircle. This dance form involves fast shoulder shimmy (Greek: Τρέμουλο, tremoulo), trembling of the entire body, and sudden squats. Horon dances require speed and agility in a dancer.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"76eb901f-7ead-4d1d-ab1f-4646bf8c363f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"y596z0yaj2","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Horon”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"76eb901f-7ead-4d1d-ab1f-4646bf8c363f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0190ghcwct","content":[{"text":"Horon is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fed1db0a-6af6-4c1b-808c-744a1ddd1b4b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1061kg08qp","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fed1db0a-6af6-4c1b-808c-744a1ddd1b4b"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Mevo Horon from Canada park","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/00/Mevo_horon_houses.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"יעקב","height":325,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Mevo Horon from Canada park","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/00/Mevo_horon_houses.JPG/960px-Mevo_horon_houses.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mevo_horon_houses.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/00/Mevo_horon_houses.JPG/1280px-Mevo_horon_houses.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"},{"alt":"Her Yıl Giresun ve Trabzon sınırlarının kesisim yeri olan Sisdağında her yıl yapılan sisdağı yayla şenliklerinden bir estantane","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/06/Sisda%C4%9F%C4%B1nda_Horon_%C5%9Eenli%C4%9Fi.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Turreis10700","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Her Yıl Giresun ve Trabzon sınırlarının kesisim yeri olan Sisdağında her yıl yapılan sisdağı yayla şenliklerinden bir estantane","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/06/Sisda%C4%9F%C4%B1nda_Horon_%C5%9Eenli%C4%9Fi.jpg/960px-Sisda%C4%9F%C4%B1nda_Horon_%C5%9Eenli%C4%9Fi.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sisda%C4%9F%C4%B1nda_Horon_%C5%9Eenli%C4%9Fi.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/06/Sisda%C4%9F%C4%B1nda_Horon_%C5%9Eenli%C4%9Fi.jpg/1280px-Sisda%C4%9F%C4%B1nda_Horon_%C5%9Eenli%C4%9Fi.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Trabzon ve Giresun yaylalarının kesistiği, Sisdağı yaylasında geleneksel giysilerle her yıl düzenlenen şenliklerden bir an.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8d/Sis_Da%C4%9F%C4%B1nda_Horon_01.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Turreis10700","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Trabzon ve Giresun yaylalarının kesistiği, Sisdağı yaylasında geleneksel giysilerle her yıl düzenlenen şenliklerden bir an.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8d/Sis_Da%C4%9F%C4%B1nda_Horon_01.jpg/960px-Sis_Da%C4%9F%C4%B1nda_Horon_01.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sis_Da%C4%9F%C4%B1nda_Horon_01.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8d/Sis_Da%C4%9F%C4%B1nda_Horon_01.jpg/1280px-Sis_Da%C4%9F%C4%B1nda_Horon_01.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:03.585Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/horon"}
{"id":"692d5a53-5830-47d0-aab0-e3e061b9de78","type":"art_form","slug":"huaconada","title":"Huaconada","summary":"Huaconada (Spanish pronunciation: [wakoˈnaða]) is a ritual dance performed in the village of Mito in the province of Concepción in the central Peruvian Andes.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ebj0anp6nh","content":[{"text":"Huaconada (Spanish pronunciation: [wakoˈnaða]) is a ritual dance performed in the village of Mito in the province of Concepción in the central Peruvian Andes. It has been inscribed on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO in 2010.\nOn the first three days of every January, masked men known as \"huacones\" perform a choreographed series of dances in the center of the village. There are two types of \"huacones\": those that wear traditional costumes and finely carved masks \"inspiring respect and fear,\" and those that wear modern costumes, \"embodying terror, sadness, or mockery.\" A small indigenous drum called the \"tinya\" beats out time to which the dance is performed. The dance is passed from father to son with the accompanying clothing and masks, but only those of good conduct and moral integrity are allowed to perform the dance ritual as \"huacones\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"01747842-65e6-4df3-8574-9e2168898a16"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xecn24zmn0","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Huaconada”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"01747842-65e6-4df3-8574-9e2168898a16"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bte4vbt8jr","content":[{"text":"Huaconada is Peruvian dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1e22cb07-3dc6-4754-955b-e78658c126aa"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bvbhnpgjx7","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1e22cb07-3dc6-4754-955b-e78658c126aa"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T07:23:08.341Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/huaconada"}
{"id":"e68604bb-1dc6-4f93-af9c-c78e56b6bd07","type":"art_form","slug":"hudoq","title":"Hudoq","summary":"Hudoq (Indonesian pronunciation: [huˈdɔʔ]) is a masked dance performed during the Erau harvest thanksgiving festival by many of the sub-groups of the Dayak ethnic group in East Kalimantan province, Indonesia.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mwpmdtg2er","content":[{"text":"Hudoq (Indonesian pronunciation: [huˈdɔʔ]) is a masked dance performed during the Erau harvest thanksgiving festival by many of the sub-groups of the Dayak ethnic group in East Kalimantan province, Indonesia. \nThe Hudoq culture and performance are indigenous to the Dayak population of East Kalimantan province, and they are said to have originated from Mahakam Ulu Regency.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a8287e7e-80c5-4127-91b3-13c840194c98"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Mythology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"26v79brhaa","content":[{"text":"According to the traditional beliefs of the Bahau, Busang, Modang, Ao’heng, and Penihing people, hudoqs are thirteen crop-destroying pests, including rats, boars, leopards, and crows. In the festival, the Hudoqs are symbolized by dancers who wear masks representing pests and jackets made of pinang (areca palm) or banana tree bark. The entire body is covered with frayed pinang palm leaves. The dance is finished when two human hudoqs come out and chase the pest hudoqs. The duration of the dance is 1–5 hours.\nIt is arranged from village to village after people dibble the land to grow dry-field rice paddies in September to October every year. They pray so that their fields will grow abundantly.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a8287e7e-80c5-4127-91b3-13c840194c98"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4d7j9prcwx","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Hudoq”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a8287e7e-80c5-4127-91b3-13c840194c98"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"x2vrcxej5e","content":[{"text":"Hudoq is Indonesian traditional culture, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5ec4d83e-aff2-474d-85d1-2146c3727e13"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"x1zg2sdsvv","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5ec4d83e-aff2-474d-85d1-2146c3727e13"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Hudoq mask of Dayak people from East Kalimantan, Indonesia.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/06/Hudoq_mask.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Taman Renyah","height":1707,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Hudoq mask of Dayak people from East Kalimantan, Indonesia.","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/06/Hudoq_mask.jpg/960px-Hudoq_mask.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hudoq_mask.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/06/Hudoq_mask.jpg/1280px-Hudoq_mask.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:28.244Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/hudoq"}
{"id":"d3ba61d4-7f81-452c-8a89-7bf8e3458557","type":"art_form","slug":"hula","title":"hula","summary":"Hula () is a Hawaiian dance form expressing chant (oli) or song (mele). It was developed in the Hawaiian Islands by the Native Hawaiians who settled there.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ag6r4pgz0j","content":[{"text":"Hula () is a Hawaiian dance form expressing chant (oli) or song (mele). It was developed in the Hawaiian Islands by the Native Hawaiians who settled there. The hula dramatizes or portrays the words of the oli or mele in a visual dance form.\nThere are many sub-styles of hula, with the two main categories being Hula ʻAuana and Hula Kahiko. Ancient hula, performed before Western encounters with Hawaiʻi, is called kahiko. It is accompanied by chant and traditional instruments. Hula, as it evolved under Western influence in the 19th and 20th centuries, is called ʻauana (a word that means \"to wander\" or \"drift\"). It is accompanied by song and Western-influenced musical instruments such as the guitar, the ʻukulele, and the double bass.\nTerminology for two additional categories is beginning to enter the hula lexicon: \"Monarchy\" includes any hula which were composed and choreographed during the 19th century. During that time the influx of Western culture created significant changes in the formal Hawaiian arts, including hula. \"Ai Kahiko\", meaning \"in the ancient style\" are those hula written in the 20th and 21st centuries that follow the stylistic protocols of the ancient hula kahiko.\nThere are also two main positions of a hula dance: either sitting (noho dance) or standing (luna dance). Some dances utilize both forms.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4fb8f490-f8b0-48b5-b940-6ec8fdc41d22"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ec34j9whhf","content":[{"text":"Hula dancing is complex, with many hand motions used to represent the words in a song or chant.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4fb8f490-f8b0-48b5-b940-6ec8fdc41d22"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Hula kahiko","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"exx5yt4cha","content":[{"text":"Hula kahiko, often defined as those hula composed prior to 1894 which do not include modern instrumentation (such as guitar, ʻukulele, etc.), encompasses an enormous variety of styles and moods, from the solemn and sacred to the frivolous. Many hula were created to praise the chiefs and performed in their honor, or for their entertainment. Types of hula kahiko include ʻālaʻapapa, haʻa, ʻōlapa, and many others. Today hula kahiko is simply stated as \"Traditional\" Hula.\nMany hula dances are considered to be a religious performance, as they are dedicated to, or honoring, a Hawaiian goddess or god. As was true of ceremonies at the heiau, the platform temple, even a minor error was considered to invalidate the performance. It might even be a presage of bad luck or have dire consequences. Dancers who were learning to do such hula necessarily made many mistakes. Hence they were ritually secluded and put under the protection of the goddess Laka during the learning period. Ceremonies marked the successful learning of the hula and the emergence from seclusion.\nHula kahiko is performed today by dancing to the historical chants. Many hula kahiko are characterized by traditional costuming, by an austere look, and a reverence for their spiritual root.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4fb8f490-f8b0-48b5-b940-6ec8fdc41d22"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Chant (Oli)","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c4bdcexeba","content":[{"text":"Hawaiian history was oral history. It was codified in genealogies and chants, which were memorized and passed down. In the absence of a written language, this was the only available method of ensuring accuracy. Chants told the stories of creation, mythology, royalty, and other significant events and people.\nThe ʻŌlelo Noʻeau (Hawaiian saying or proverb), \"'O 'oe ka luaʻahi o kāu mele,\" translates loosely as \"You bear both the good and the bad consequences of the poetry you compose\" The idea behind this saying originates from the ancient Hawaiian belief that language possessed mana, or \"power derived from a spiritual source\" particularly when delivered through oli (chant). Therefore, skillful manipulation of language by haku mele (composers) and chanters was of utmost reverence and importance. Oli was an integral component of ancient Hawaiian society, and arose in nearly every social, political and economic aspect of life.\nTraditional chant types are extremely varied in context and technical components and cover a broad range of specific functions. Among them (in vague descending order of sacredness) exist mele pule (prayer), hula kuahu (ritual dance), kūʻauhau (cosmogeny), koʻihonua (genealogy), hānau (birth), inoa (name), maʻi (procreation/genital), kanikau (lamentation), hei (game), hoʻoipoipo (love), and kāhea (expression/call out).\nAn important distinction between oli, hula, and mele is as follows: mele can hold many different meanings, and is often translated to mean simply, song. However, in a more broad sense, mele can be taken to mean poetry or linguistic composition. Hula (chant with dance) and oli (chant without dance) are two general styles in which mele can be used/performed.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4fb8f490-f8b0-48b5-b940-6ec8fdc41d22"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Instruments and implements","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kdc3ny0whm","content":[{"text":"Ipu—single gourd drum\nIpu heke—double gourd drum\nPahu—sharkskin covered drum; considered sacred\nPuniu—small knee drum made of a coconut shell with fish skin (kala) cover\nʻIliʻili—water-worn lava stone used as castanets\nʻUlīʻulī—feathered gourd rattles (also ʻulili)\nPūʻili—split bamboo sticks\nKālaʻau—rhythm sticks\nThe dog's-tooth anklets sometimes worn by male dancers could also be considered instruments, as they underlined the sounds of stamping feet.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4fb8f490-f8b0-48b5-b940-6ec8fdc41d22"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dress/outfits","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3cqnqghjg9","content":[{"text":"Traditional female dancers wore the everyday pāʻū, or wrapped skirt, but were topless. Today this form of dress has been altered. As a sign of lavish display, the pāʻū might be much longer than the usual length of tapa, or barkcloth, which was just long enough to go around the waist. Visitors report seeing dancers swathed in many yards of tapa, enough to increase their circumference substantially. Dancers might also wear decorations such as necklaces, bracelets, and anklets, as well as many lei (in the form of headpieces (lei poʻo), necklaces, bracelets, and anklets (kupeʻe)), and other accessories.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4fb8f490-f8b0-48b5-b940-6ec8fdc41d22"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8ykqhsskvw","content":[{"text":"A skirt of green kī (Cordyline fruticosa) leaves may also be worn over the pāʻū. They are arranged in a dense layer of around fifty leaves. Kī were sacred to the goddess of the forest and the hula dance Laka, and as such, only kahuna and aliʻi were allowed to wear kī leaf leis (lei lāʻī) during religious rituals. Similar C. fruticosa leaf skirts worn over tupenu are also used in religious dances in Tonga, where it is known as sisi. However, Tongan leaf skirts generally use red and yellow leaves.\nTraditional male dancers wore the everyday malo, or loincloth. Again, they might wear bulky malo made of many yards of tapa. They also wore necklaces, bracelets, anklets, and lei.\nThe materials for the lei worn in performance were gathered in the forest, after prayers to Laka and the forest gods had been chanted.\nThe lei and tapa worn for sacred hula were considered imbued with the sacredness of the dance, and were not to be worn after the performance. Lei were typically left on the small altar to Laka found in every hālau, as offerings.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4fb8f490-f8b0-48b5-b940-6ec8fdc41d22"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Performances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"avx336b4fn","content":[{"text":"Hula performed for spontaneous daily amusement or family feasts were attended with no particular ceremony. However, hula performed as entertainment for chiefs were anxious affairs. High chiefs typically traveled from one place to another within their domains. Each locality had to house, feed, and amuse the chief and his or her entourage. Hula performances were a form of fealty, and often of flattery to the chief.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4fb8f490-f8b0-48b5-b940-6ec8fdc41d22"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bbs3e5z6bn","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Hula”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4fb8f490-f8b0-48b5-b940-6ec8fdc41d22"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0p3e9b602t","content":[{"text":"hula is Polynesian dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a7797601-1514-4230-ab9d-de92660853f6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c9f6dsm4y7","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 12 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a7797601-1514-4230-ab9d-de92660853f6"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Havaijilaista hula-kulttuuria.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/62/Hula_Kahiko_Hawaii_Volcanoes_National_Park_01.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Ron Ardis","height":923,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Havaijilaista hula-kulttuuria.","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/62/Hula_Kahiko_Hawaii_Volcanoes_National_Park_01.jpg/960px-Hula_Kahiko_Hawaii_Volcanoes_National_Park_01.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hula_Kahiko_Hawaii_Volcanoes_National_Park_01.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/62/Hula_Kahiko_Hawaii_Volcanoes_National_Park_01.jpg/1280px-Hula_Kahiko_Hawaii_Volcanoes_National_Park_01.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:25.925Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/hula"}
{"id":"c98d7b09-9350-4faa-b2e6-8715fe14f05f","type":"art_form","slug":"hulivesha","title":"Hulivesha","summary":"Pilivēṣa in \"Tiger Masque\" is a folk dance unique in coastal Karnataka, India. Pilivēṣa is performed during Navratri to honour the Goddess Durga, whose favoured animal is the tiger (mārnemi).","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7emfhmgp68","content":[{"text":"Pilivēṣa in \"Tiger Masque\" is a folk dance unique in coastal Karnataka, India. Pilivēṣa is performed during Navratri to honour the Goddess Durga, whose favoured animal is the tiger (mārnemi). Mangalore Dasara is one of the festivals during which a large number of enthusiasts participate. It originated in Udupi District of Karnataka and was initially performed during the Krishna Janmashtami/Mosarukudike and Ganesha Chaturthi at Mangalore, Udupi, Moodabidri, Kundapur and many other places in Tulu Nadu.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aa75078e-92a2-48eb-8a72-09734e35d718"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Troupes","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kg7fqvaqpn","content":[{"text":"Typically, young males form troupes of five to ten members or more. Three to five males are painted and costumed to look like tigers, and accompanied by a band called thaase in Tulu with two or three drummers. This troupe is accompanied by the manager of the group. During Navratri, these troupes roam the streets, with accompanying drum beats of their bands. They stop at homes and businesses or on the roadsides to perform for about ten minutes after which they collect money from the people who have observed their performance.\nThe troupes perform until the last day of Navratri, and almost all of them form part of the Sharada processions organized by temples such as Mangaladevi, Gokarnanatheshwara and Venkatramana temple. After the procession is over, performances are stopped and the paint is removed.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aa75078e-92a2-48eb-8a72-09734e35d718"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Costumes","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"91b661j68e","content":[{"text":"While Pili means \"tiger\" in Tulu, dancers also painted themselves with leopard or cheetah motifs. The costumes vary depending on the place. Costumes in Mangalore differ from those in Udupi district. Each person wears just a knicker/shorts, which usually has a tiger-skin motif. The rest of his bare body and face is painted with designs that denote tigers, cheetahs, and leopards. A headgear or mask made of fake fur and sometimes a tail is worn to complete the ensemble.\nThe paint causes a burning sensation on the skin. But this is endured as part of the celebrations and also to earn extra money in the holiday season. Originally performers did this as a part of a religious vow. The paint was kept on the body for a couple of days and repainted or retouched as needed.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aa75078e-92a2-48eb-8a72-09734e35d718"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Skills","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mttkb3njfp","content":[{"text":"Skill levels vary from person to person. The basic requirement is to know the tiger dance steps and to have enough stamina. Typical skills are Fire breathing, Hand walking, Handstands, gymnastic moves, picking money from mouth by bending backwards and lifting akkimudi (rice tied in straw, weighing 42 kg!) in their teeth and throwing it backwards etc.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aa75078e-92a2-48eb-8a72-09734e35d718"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Popular culture","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fy8b4s0xfv","content":[{"text":"The 2014 Kannada movie Ulidavaru Kandanthe featured a tiger dance where one of the character (actor Achyuth Kumar) belonged to the Pilivesha troupe. A song titled \"Pilivesha Beats\" was dedicated to tiger dance.\nThe 2021 movie Garuda Gamana Vrishabha Vahana also had a brief history and featured Pili Vesha where the character of Shiva (actor Raj B. Shetty) performed the tiger dance, with the song \"Sojugada sooju mallige\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aa75078e-92a2-48eb-8a72-09734e35d718"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kj09wyzdd5","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Pili Yesa”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aa75078e-92a2-48eb-8a72-09734e35d718"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0ns85tgdp4","content":[{"text":"Hulivesha is part of the culture, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d1138e9c-4757-4b2c-aced-9b2e156596af"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zc4f6nsm3j","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d1138e9c-4757-4b2c-aced-9b2e156596af"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Hulivesha Painting in Mannagudda Mangaluru by Barke friends.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/dd/Hulivesha_Barke_%2818%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Ashay vb","height":1920,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Hulivesha Painting in Mannagudda Mangaluru by Barke friends.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/dd/Hulivesha_Barke_%2818%29.jpg/960px-Hulivesha_Barke_%2818%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hulivesha_Barke_(18).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/dd/Hulivesha_Barke_%2818%29.jpg/1280px-Hulivesha_Barke_%2818%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Hulivesha Mask","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b8/Hulivesha_Barke_%2815%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Ashay vb","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Hulivesha Mask","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b8/Hulivesha_Barke_%2815%29.jpg/960px-Hulivesha_Barke_%2815%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hulivesha_Barke_(15).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b8/Hulivesha_Barke_%2815%29.jpg/1280px-Hulivesha_Barke_%2815%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Hulivesha Painting in Mannagudda Mangaluru by Barke friends.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a7/Hulivesha_Barke_%284%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Ashay vb","height":1920,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Hulivesha Painting in Mannagudda Mangaluru by Barke friends.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a7/Hulivesha_Barke_%284%29.jpg/960px-Hulivesha_Barke_%284%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hulivesha_Barke_(4).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a7/Hulivesha_Barke_%284%29.jpg/1280px-Hulivesha_Barke_%284%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:24.920Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/hulivesha"}
{"id":"da8e23b3-a06a-4e6d-8769-04bac72c4954","type":"art_form","slug":"hungarian-folk-dance","title":"Hungarian folk dance","summary":"Hungarian dance refers to the folk dances practised and performed by the Hungarians, both amongst the populations native to Hungary and also amongst the Hungarian diaspora.\nAccording to György Martin, a prominent folklore expert, Hungarian …","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b56fxexxve","content":[{"text":"Hungarian dance refers to the folk dances practised and performed by the Hungarians, both amongst the populations native to Hungary and also amongst the Hungarian diaspora.\nAccording to György Martin, a prominent folklore expert, Hungarian dances can be divided into two categories. The first refers to dances performed in the Middle Ages while the second relates to the 18th and 19th century. Hungarians have been noted for their \"exceptionally well developed sense of rhythm\". In the mid-19th century, Musicologist Theodor Billroth performed tests with troops of various nationalities stationed in Vienna and found that the Hungarian troops outperformed others in keeping time with music.\nImprovisation and energetic movements are often mentioned as being characteristic of Hungarian dance. Daniel Berzsenyi wrote, \"Its secret laws are not ordered by craft. The laws are its own and enthusiasm sets the limit.\" Elizabeth Charlotte Rearick wrote, \"The peasant dance is not one which is set absolutely according to rule; the dancer constructs his steps according to his mood and ingenuity.\" Collections of the Folk Music Research Group of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, and the national Ethnographic Museum of the State Folk Ensemble cover almost 10,000 dance variations from 700 Hungarian villages.\nThe Reformed Church in Hungary was opposed to dancing, but the Catholic Church was less restrictive. Some Catholic authors wrote of their approval of dancing, particularly in heaven.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"14897d3a-b390-40d8-9810-46914b985cea"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"d6sp1ae5d8","content":[{"text":"The dance arts of the ancient Hungarians—like those of most nomadic peoples—have largely disappeared. Their dances and music were not recorded, and so we can only learn about them indirectly.\nModern historians know relatively the most about the ancient melodic world of the Hungarians, since its legacy still lives on in the oldest layer of Hungarian folk music. Archaic Hungarian folk songs show striking similarities to the music of certain Finno-Ugric and Turkic peoples, which can only be explained by the idea that \"the Hungarians brought it with them from their ancient homeland as an ancestral heritage along with their language\" (Zoltán Kodály). Any original, ancient elements in Hungarian dances have long since disappeared, leaving no clear connection to any currently known forms.\nThe earliest known mention of Hungarian dance is found in records of the 926 raid on the Abbey of Saint Gall, where the Hungarians, after their victorious attack, were reported to perform a joyful, combative dance. Later records indicate that dancing remained a significant part of Hungarian culture even after the adoption of Christianity: the 1279 Synod of Buda instructed priests not to allow people to break into dance inside the church, the churchyard or cemetery—an order that ultimately had little effect. Dancing in cemeteries is further attested to in several other documents throughout the medieval period, like the 16th century work Ungarischer oder Dacianischer Simplicissimus, leading to the conclusion that cemetery-dancing was an integral ritualistic dance in folk tradition. Some funeral dances, then performed before the traditional wedding feast, survived until at least the 1940s.\nFrom a historical standpoint, Hungarian folk dances can be divided into two distinct groups.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"14897d3a-b390-40d8-9810-46914b985cea"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"czdgb6hr9b","content":[{"text":"In the dance traditions of Hungarian villages across the Carpathian Basin the repertoire of folk dances was relatively small and consistent from one area to another. Typically, a community maintained only four or five core kinds: the circle dance, the male dance, the slow and quick couple dance and dances with implements preserving the remnants of old weapon dances. In spite of their modest number, the almost total absence of strict choreographic rules in solo and couple dances allowed for a wide degree of individual variation and improvisation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"14897d3a-b390-40d8-9810-46914b985cea"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dances with implements","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0ynpjz7q51","content":[{"text":"Historical sources of the 16th to 18th centuries often mention the hajdútánc, a male dance accompanied by the skillful manipulation of a weapon and acrobatic steps closely interwoven with fighting movements. It was performed either solo or in groups, and even sometimes with women. By the early 18th century, however, it disappeared in its original form and gave rise to implement dances that retain only hints of their original martial character.\nThe remaining implement dances vary widely and may be performed solo, in groups or by couples. These dances, most often performed with sticks, shepherds’ crooks, or different axes, are referred to as kanásztánc or botoló and can mostly be found in southern Transdanubia and in the Alföld, where it has retained a duel-like form and is also practiced by the local Romani population. There also exists a variant danced with a broom, called söprűtánc.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"14897d3a-b390-40d8-9810-46914b985cea"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Circle and chain dances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7420k336kx","content":[{"text":"There exist several different types of circle and chain dance across the Hungarian language area. The girls’ circle dance, referred to as karikázó, is a circle dance performed by women only accompanied by the singing of folksongs. It is very closely connected with medieval European circle dances and is most popular in Transdanubia. The rise of other dance forms over time has pushed this dance to the periphery of folk dance tradition, where it took the role of entertainment in the periods of fasting without dance and music, and in the intervals between dances during dance events. The karikázó consists of a few simple motifs, some of which resemble those used in Faroese dances, but most attention is given to singing, which is done by all women in unison. In some areas without it, the girls' circle dance is substituted during dance events by the körcsárdás, an offshoot of the csárdás which is danced by both men and women in a circle.\nThe many chain dances of the Csángó of Gyimes are collectively referred to as héjsza. These dances are composed of short, repeating sections built from either longer compound motifs or short motif sequences, representing a simpler form of Balkan chain dances. There exist around ten different kinds. The dances of the Csángó of Western Moldavia also include more than a dozen archaic circle dances.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"14897d3a-b390-40d8-9810-46914b985cea"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Ugrós","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ckw9y8rv27","content":[{"text":"The ugrós encompasses a large group of dances closely related to the kanásztánc, with the main distinguishing factor being that it is danced without implements. The structures, forms and motifs of these two large families often overlap in both historical sources and in their recent variants. Dances of the ugrós type may be performed by men, women, or mixed groups, and may take solo, couple, quartet, or chain dance forms. There are many regional subtypes of the ugrós, often known by different names: cinege, mars, dus, oláhos and féloláhos, among others. These regional types can primarily be differentiated by the complexity of the motif repertoire.\nThe ugrós dances have been found across the entire Carpathian Basin with the most characteristic variants being in Transdanubia. Nevertheless, they are notably absent from some regions such as central Transylvania, where they were superseded by the legényes.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"14897d3a-b390-40d8-9810-46914b985cea"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"484cf13c44","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Hungarian folk dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"14897d3a-b390-40d8-9810-46914b985cea"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4g1583zg4e","content":[{"text":"Hungarian folk dance is type of dance from Hungary, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8029cd2f-dcc8-4bfe-84d2-6e6f884b5da4"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hf4yq7f452","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 5 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8029cd2f-dcc8-4bfe-84d2-6e6f884b5da4"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Kecskemét Táncegyüttes","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d5/T%C3%A1ncegy%C3%BCttes.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Koós Ildikó","height":852,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Kecskemét Táncegyüttes","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d5/T%C3%A1ncegy%C3%BCttes.jpg/960px-T%C3%A1ncegy%C3%BCttes.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:T%C3%A1ncegy%C3%BCttes.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d5/T%C3%A1ncegy%C3%BCttes.jpg/1280px-T%C3%A1ncegy%C3%BCttes.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-08-31T05:47:21.801Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/hungarian-folk-dance"}
{"id":"0a69ee10-cd4f-49d0-b569-c0deef7438fa","type":"art_form","slug":"hustle","title":"hustle","summary":"The Hustle is a catch-all name for some disco dances which were extremely popular in the 1970s. In the late 1970s, Bump, Hustle, Watergate and Spank were popular.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"y67at22jav","content":[{"text":"The Hustle is a catch-all name for some disco dances which were extremely popular in the 1970s. In the late 1970s, Bump, Hustle, Watergate and Spank were popular. It mostly refers to the unique partner dance done in nightclubs to disco music. Hustle has steps in common with Mambo and Salsa and basic steps are somewhat similar to Euro dance style Discofox, which emerged at about the same time and is more familiar in various European countries. Modern partner hustle is sometimes referred to as New York hustle, however, its original name is the Latin hustle. \nA source for research on the origins of the Hustle is a book written by Willie Estrada, one of the original pioneers of the Latin Hustle, The Dancing Gangsters of the South Bronx (Rise of the Latin Hustle).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dc42bf4d-ac36-428a-86fb-793051ac704b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Latin Strut","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"as4nffyah7","content":[{"text":"Joe Bataan recorded a song called \"Latin Strut\" after visiting a Bronx Club called the \"310 1/2\" in 1973 and seeing the first version of a 6-step dance called \"The Hustle.\" This new Latin rhythmic sound helped young Latino Teenagers develop a faster more robust version of the original slower paced six-step dance which was also a bit robotic. However, with the introduction of songs with faster rhythmic tempos young hustle dancers started doing the dance with fancier gyrations which is when it became known as the Latin Hustle. Other variations of the Hustle would soon be developed by the Black and White communities who also helped spread the Hustle throughout New York City, and eventually the world.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dc42bf4d-ac36-428a-86fb-793051ac704b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"James Brown and Fatback","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"n8zejhv0b0","content":[{"text":"The original early hustle was a 5-step count with no turns, created by Puerto Rican teenagers in late 1972 as a direct result of Puerto Rican elders objecting to young teenagers doing a grinding slow dance known as the 500. Created in the South Bronx among Puerto Rican teens it was originally done at house parties, hooky gigs, and basements club dances in the South Bronx. It became known as \"Spanish hustle\"; from 1975 to 1976, funk band the Fatback Band made a song with that name. It was also known as the \"Latin hustle\"; and was a 6 step count to the beat of the music. And James Brown released Everybody's Doin' the Hustle & Dead on the Double Bump album in 1975. Same year The JB's released Hustle with Speed album. Around 1976 it became known as the \"New York hustle\". Later, known as just \"the hustle\", when the dance became commercialized after the release of Saturday Night Fever in 1977.  The early Latin hustle Pioneers were Willie \"Marine Boy\" Estrada and many other members. Some of them were members of a gang called the Imperial Bachelors, who used the Latin hustle as a way to bring peace into a violent South Bronx. They hosted hustle parties at St. Mary's Recreation Center on 145th St. and St. Ann's Ave, in 1974. Those parties ended in October 1974.  However, it was the venue that produced some of the best hustle dancers in New York City, who would help spread the dance in nightclubs throughout New York City in late 1974.\nIn 1975 music business entrepreneur, Marty Angelo created the first all hustle dance television show entitled, Disco Step-by-Step. Each one-hour show featured top hustle dancers and two 10-minute instructional segments that allowed viewers to learn how to hustle dance in the privacy of their own living rooms.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dc42bf4d-ac36-428a-86fb-793051ac704b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Van McCoy's song","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6z5619z8ff","content":[{"text":"The original Latin Hustle started being developed in late 1972 by Puerto Rican Teenagers in the South Bronx and by 1974 was being done all over New York and the Tri-State area, and by 1976 became an International Dance Sensation. Van McCoy and the Soul City Symphony's song \"The Hustle\" became a hit in 1975, reaching the #1 spot on both the Billboard Hot 100 and Hot Soul Singles charts. Tipped off by DJ David Todd, McCoy sent his partner Charlie Kipps Jr.to the Adam's Apple discotheque in New York City's East Side.  And \"The Hustle\" reached the top of the Billboard Pop Singles chart the week ending July 26, 1975.\nVan McCoy with The Stylistics got disco songs such as \"Disco Baby\", \"Can't Give You Anything\", \"Love is the Answer\" and \"Funky Weekend\".  Van McCoy and Charlie Kipps produced David Ruffin also.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dc42bf4d-ac36-428a-86fb-793051ac704b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Depiction in Saturday Night Fever","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"94agpnetyk","content":[{"text":"The 1977 disco movie Saturday Night Fever (the sound track includes Tavares, Yvonne Elliman, Bee Gees, Kool & the Gang, KC & the Sunshine Band, The Trammps) showed both the line and partner forms of hustle, as well as a dance referred to as the \"tango hustle\" (invented for that film by Deney Terrio, according to the DVD commentary). Although the popularity of the movie faded quickly as the hype of the movie died down, the hustle and the step-by-step dance has continued even after the Disco Sucks movement and is still a \"global social dance\" and it took its place beside swing, salsa, mambo, cha-cha-cha, tango, rumba, bolero, nightclub two-step and other partner dances in America.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dc42bf4d-ac36-428a-86fb-793051ac704b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"New York hustle","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4zxkrgjby9","content":[{"text":"The couple dance form of hustle is usually called The Hustle but is frequently referred to by other names including \"The Latin hustle\" or \"New York Hustle\". It has some resemblance to, and steps in common with, Mambo and Salsa. As in the Latin dances, couples tend to move more on the dance floor, as opposed to following a line of dance as in foxtrot.\nOne similarity between hustle and swing is that the lead takes the back-forward steps from his left foot; however it is not exactly a rock-step (there is no rocking action because of speed) and if the dance is taught by counting, the steps happen at the beginning of the count – \"and-one, two, three\" rather than at the end of the count as in swing – \"left, right, rock-step\". However, those who originally developed this dance never used step counts, everything was developed by sight and sound starting in 1972.\nThe dance is somewhat unusual rhythmically because of the syncopation it is associated with. Most dances are danced with either 4/4 or 3/4 music with counting to match, with either a triple or duple base depending on the dance.  The Latin Hustle is generally danced to 4/4 music but counted as a six-beat pattern. The most common Latin Hustle counting pattern is \"&1 2 3 &1 2 3\", meaning \"LR L R LR L R\" in the leader's pattern and the natural opposite of the follower's pattern. However, the syncopation in three-count hustle also be danced: 1&23, 12&3, or 123&.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dc42bf4d-ac36-428a-86fb-793051ac704b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"z3fxa164qj","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Hustle (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dc42bf4d-ac36-428a-86fb-793051ac704b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ps2rpkntv7","content":[{"text":"hustle is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"06913dd6-4068-448b-9d12-f16cb64fc97c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0mczcext4r","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"06913dd6-4068-448b-9d12-f16cb64fc97c"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"HUSTLE","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/88/Hustle_2008-07-27.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Andrew Quentin","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"HUSTLE","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/88/Hustle_2008-07-27.jpg/960px-Hustle_2008-07-27.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hustle_2008-07-27.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/88/Hustle_2008-07-27.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail_unscaled","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"},{"alt":"hustle","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/be/Latrell.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Annoynous account22","height":2296,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"hustle","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/be/Latrell.jpg/960px-Latrell.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Latrell.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/be/Latrell.jpg/1280px-Latrell.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Robert Vaughn at Memorabilia March 2009","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6d/Robert_Vaughn_Memorabilia_March09.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"The Yeti","height":1522,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Robert Vaughn at Memorabilia March 2009","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6d/Robert_Vaughn_Memorabilia_March09.JPG/960px-Robert_Vaughn_Memorabilia_March09.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Robert_Vaughn_Memorabilia_March09.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6d/Robert_Vaughn_Memorabilia_March09.JPG/1280px-Robert_Vaughn_Memorabilia_March09.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:17.525Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/hustle"}
{"id":"bb499f56-d7b8-454b-a30b-7e3c1e280ec3","type":"art_form","slug":"ice-dance","title":"ice dance","summary":"Ice dance (sometimes referred to as ice dancing) is a discipline of figure skating that historically draws from ballroom dancing.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"z3qfs0yy3p","content":[{"text":"Ice dance (sometimes referred to as ice dancing) is a discipline of figure skating that historically draws from ballroom dancing. It joined the World Figure Skating Championships in 1952, and became a Winter Olympic Games medal sport in 1976. According to the International Skating Union (ISU), the governing body of figure skating, an ice dance team consists of one woman and one man.\nIce dance, like pair skating, has its roots in the \"combined skating\" developed in the 19th century by skating clubs and organizations and in recreational social skating. Couples and friends would skate waltzes, marches, and other social dances. The first steps in ice dance were similar to those used in ballroom dancing. In the late 1800s, American Jackson Haines, known as \"the Father of Figure Skating\", brought his style of skating, which included waltz steps and social dances, to Europe. By the end of the 19th century, waltzing competitions on the ice became popular throughout the world. By the early 1900s, ice dance was popular around the world and was primarily a recreational sport, although during the 1920s, local skating clubs in Britain and the U.S. conducted informal dance contests. Recreational skating became more popular during the 1930s in England.\nThe first national competitions occurred in England, Canada, the U.S., and Austria during the 1930s. The first international ice dance competition took place as a special event at the World Championships in 1950 in London.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"283f8fe8-a4e5-4eba-9142-43ab096a9623"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Beginnings","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wphyap8bnt","content":[{"text":"Ice dance, like pair skating, has its roots in the \"combined skating\" developed in the 19th century by skating clubs and organizations and in recreational social skating. Couples and friends would skate waltzes, marches, and other social dances together. According to writer Ellyn Kestnbaum, ice dance began with late 19th-century attempts by the Viennese and British to create ballroom-style performances on ice skates. However, figure skating historian James Hines argues that ice dance had its beginnings in hand-in-hand skating, a short-lived but popular discipline of figure skating in England in the 1890s; many of the positions used in modern ice dance can be traced back to hand-in-hand skating. The first steps in ice dance were similar to those used in ballroom dancing, so unlike modern ice dance, skaters tended to keep both feet on the ice most of the time, without the \"long and flowing edges associated with graceful figure skating\".\nIn the late 1800s, American Jackson Haines, known as \"the Father of Figure Skating\", brought his style of skating to Europe. He taught people in Vienna how to dance on the ice, both singly and with partners. Capitalizing on the popularity of the waltz in Vienna, Haines introduced the American waltz, a simple four-step sequence, each step lasting one beat of music, repeated as the partners moved in a circular pattern. By the 1880s, it and the Jackson Haines waltz, a variation of the American waltz, were among the most popular ice dances. Other popular ice dance steps included the mazurka, a version of the Jackson Haines waltz developed in Sweden, and the three-step waltz, which Hines considers \"the direct predecessor of ice dancing in the modern sense\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"283f8fe8-a4e5-4eba-9142-43ab096a9623"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Early years","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ann93468h5","content":[{"text":"By the early 1900s, ice dance was popular around the world and was primarily a recreational sport, although during the 1920s, local clubs in Britain and the U.S. conducted informal dance contests in the ten-step, the fourteen-step, and the killian, which were the only three dances used in competition until the 1930s. Recreational skating became more popular during the 1930s in England, and new and more difficult set-pattern dances, which later were used in compulsory dances during competitions, were developed. According to Hines, the development of new ice dances was necessary to expand upon the three dances already developed; three British teams in the 1930s—Erik van der Wyden and Eva Keats, Reginald Wilkie and Daphne B. Wallis, and Robert Dench and Rosemarie Stewart—created one-fourth of the dances used in International Skating Union (ISU) competitions by 2006. In 1933, the Westminster Skating Club conducted a competition encouraging the creation of new dances. Beginning in the mid-1930s, national organizations began to introduce skating proficiency tests in set-pattern dances, improve the judging of dance tests, and oversee competitions. The first national competitions occurred in England in 1934, Canada in 1935, the U.S. in 1936, and Austria in 1937. These competitions included one or more compulsory dances, the original dance, and the free dance. By the late 1930s, ice dancers swelled memberships in skating clubs throughout the world, and in Hines' words \"became the backbone of skating clubs\".\nThe ISU began to develop rules, standards, and international tests for ice dance in the 1950s. The first international ice dance competition occurred as a special event during the 1950 World Figure Skating Championships in London; Lois Waring and Michael McGean of the U.S.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"283f8fe8-a4e5-4eba-9142-43ab096a9623"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"1970s to 1990s","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7wfj3ybf79","content":[{"text":"Ice dance became an Olympic sport in 1976; Lyudmila Pakhomova and Alexandr Gorshkov from the Soviet Union were the first gold medalists. The Soviets dominated ice dance during most of the 1970s, as they did in pair skating. They won every Worlds and Olympic title between 1970 and 1978, and won medals at every competition between 1976 and 1982. In 1984, British dancers Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean, whom Hines calls \"the greatest ice dancers in the history of the sport\", briefly interrupted Soviet domination of ice dance by winning a gold medal at the Olympic Games in Sarajevo. Their free dance to Ravel's Boléro has been called \"probably the most well known single program in the history of ice dance\". Hines asserts that Torvill and Dean, with their innovative choreography, dramatically altered \"established concepts of ice dancing\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"283f8fe8-a4e5-4eba-9142-43ab096a9623"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zeg0zx7bwy","content":[{"text":"During the 1970s, there was a movement in ice dance away from its ballroom roots to a more theatrical style. The top Soviet teams were the first to emphasize the dramatic aspects of ice dance, as well as the first to choreograph their programs around a central theme. They also incorporated elements of ballet techniques, especially \"the classic ballet pas de deux of the high-art instance of a man and woman dancing together\". They performed as predictable characters, included body positions that were no longer rooted in traditional ballroom holds, and used music with less predictable rhythms.\nThe ISU pushed back during the 1980s and 1990s by tightening rules and definitions of ice dance to emphasize its connection to ballroom dancing, especially in the free dance. The restrictions introduced during this period were designed to emphasize skating skills rather than the theatrical and dramatic aspects of ice dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"283f8fe8-a4e5-4eba-9142-43ab096a9623"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"21st century","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rnvzta292g","content":[{"text":"The European dominance of ice dance was interrupted at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver by Canadians Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir and Americans Meryl Davis and Charlie White.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"283f8fe8-a4e5-4eba-9142-43ab096a9623"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b1w93day4f","content":[{"text":"Before the 2010–2011 figure skating season, there were three seg…","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"283f8fe8-a4e5-4eba-9142-43ab096a9623"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2hzb7687f5","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Ice dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"283f8fe8-a4e5-4eba-9142-43ab096a9623"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xgtq0b36n6","content":[{"text":"ice dance is discipline of figure skating that draws from ballroom dancing, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d0abb71d-5486-4211-94f5-8e124bd516e9"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zdbesnn855","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 13 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d0abb71d-5486-4211-94f5-8e124bd516e9"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Carex morrowii 'Ice Dance' in arboretum in Wojsławice","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/55/Carex_morrowii_%27Ice_Dance%27_kz01.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Krzysztof Ziarnek, Kenraiz","height":1791,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Carex morrowii 'Ice Dance' in arboretum in Wojsławice","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/55/Carex_morrowii_%27Ice_Dance%27_kz01.jpg/960px-Carex_morrowii_%27Ice_Dance%27_kz01.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Carex_morrowii_%27Ice_Dance%27_kz01.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/55/Carex_morrowii_%27Ice_Dance%27_kz01.jpg/1280px-Carex_morrowii_%27Ice_Dance%27_kz01.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Carex morrowii 'Ice Dance' in arboretum in Wojsławice","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/97/Carex_morrowii_%27Ice_Dance%27_kz04.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Krzysztof Ziarnek, Kenraiz","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Carex morrowii 'Ice Dance' in arboretum in Wojsławice","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/97/Carex_morrowii_%27Ice_Dance%27_kz04.jpg/960px-Carex_morrowii_%27Ice_Dance%27_kz04.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Carex_morrowii_%27Ice_Dance%27_kz04.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/97/Carex_morrowii_%27Ice_Dance%27_kz04.jpg/1280px-Carex_morrowii_%27Ice_Dance%27_kz04.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Carex morrowii 'Ice Dance' in arboretum in Wojsławice","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/ca/Carex_morrowii_%27Ice_Dance%27_kz02.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Krzysztof Ziarnek, Kenraiz","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Carex morrowii 'Ice Dance' in arboretum in Wojsławice","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/ca/Carex_morrowii_%27Ice_Dance%27_kz02.jpg/960px-Carex_morrowii_%27Ice_Dance%27_kz02.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Carex_morrowii_%27Ice_Dance%27_kz02.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/ca/Carex_morrowii_%27Ice_Dance%27_kz02.jpg/1280px-Carex_morrowii_%27Ice_Dance%27_kz02.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-04T05:47:06.940Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/ice-dance"}
{"id":"558cc854-8900-40eb-83de-f5a75f04eb31","type":"art_form","slug":"indian-classical-dance","title":"Indian classical dance","summary":"Indian classical dance, or Shastriya Nritya, is an umbrella term for different regionally specific Indian classical dance traditions, rooted in predominantly Hindu musical theatre performance, the theory and practice of which can be traced …","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k3be6nmdrj","content":[{"text":"Indian classical dance, or Shastriya Nritya, is an umbrella term for different regionally specific Indian classical dance traditions, rooted in predominantly Hindu musical theatre performance, the theory and practice of which can be traced to the Sanskrit text Natya Shastra.\nThe number of Indian classical dance styles ranges from six to eight to twelve, or more, depending on the source and scholar; the main organisation for Indian arts preservation, the Sangeet Natak Academy recognizes eight: Bharatanatyam, Kathak, Kuchipudi, Odissi, Kathakali, Sattriya, Manipuri and Mohiniyattam. Additionally, the Indian Ministry of Culture includes Chhau and Gaudiya Nritya in its list, recognising ten total styles. Scholars such as Drid Williams add Chhau, Yakshagana and Bhagavata Mela to the list. The ancient Meitei dance forms of Lai Haraoba and the Khamba Thoibi from Manipur, are also considered as \"classical\", in par with their Vaishnav equivalent (Manipuri Raas Leela), with the strong characteristics of abhinaya (histrionic representation). Each dance tradition originates and comes from a different state and/or region of India; for example, Bharatanatyam is from Tamil Nadu in the south of India, Odissi is from the east coast state of Odisha, and Manipuri is from the northeastern state of Manipur.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"554da64a-67b7-47c8-ad90-5f00ca9e3128"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Summary","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s8kxfvzy7j","content":[{"text":"Indian classical dancing started around 200 BCE in India, as a joyful and celebratory activity, often in devotion to Hindu deities. Many of the performances are choreographed to retell stories of the gods and other historical accounts. All styles of Indian classical dance are vibrant, expressive, and spiritual. Dance performances usually take place at festivals, universities, various cultural events, and more. The dancers who perform these styles are usually professionals who have devoted years of study and practice in their respective style of Indian classical dance. In performances, the dancers move to the beat of the song or music that is playing; in some styles, such as Kathak, bells are worn around the ankles at times for added rhythmic effect when the feet are stomped. The dancer takes the role of the character that they are portraying in the performance, the composition being specific, and become emotionally connected with the story and the audience.\nWhen dancers perform classical Indian dancing, they wear traditional clothes including sarees, lehengas, and kurtas. Usually, women are the main performers in Indian classical dancing, though men are not absent from the tradition. The costume for women usually consists of a long, colorful, handmade gown (worn without shoes), with an intricately embroidered pattern(s) and beading on it. For accessories, there is the use of much ornate jewelry, such as necklaces, rings, earrings, nose-rings, bracelets and anklets, sometimes with bells attached which ring each time the dancer stomps their foot in rhythm, these are ankle bells or ghungroos. The costume also includes a head-piece or some form of scarf, depending on the style.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"554da64a-67b7-47c8-ad90-5f00ca9e3128"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Types of classical dances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"y57fje170e","content":[{"text":"The Natya Shastra is the foundational treatise for classical dances of India, and this text is attributed to the ancient scholar Bharata Muni. Its first complete compilation is dated to between 200 BCE and 200 CE, but estimates vary between 500 BCE and 500 CE. The most studied version of the Natya Shastra text consists of about 6000 verses structured into 36 chapters. The text, states Natalia Lidova, describes the theory of Tāṇḍava dance (Shiva), the theory of rasa, of bhāva, expression, gestures, acting techniques, basic steps, standing postures – all of which are part of Indian classical dances. Dance and performance arts, states this ancient text, are a form of expression of spiritual ideas, virtues, and the essence of scriptures.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"554da64a-67b7-47c8-ad90-5f00ca9e3128"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w6rvr52ytq","content":[{"text":"While the Natya Shastra is the revered ancient text in the Hindu tradition, there are numerous other ancient and medieval Sanskrit dance-drama related texts that further discuss and expand on the classical repertoire of performance arts, such as the Abhinaya Darpana, Abhinava Bharati, Natya Darpana, Bhava Prakasa and many others. The term \"classical\" (Sanskrit: \"Shastriya\") denotes the ancient Indian Shastra-based performing arts.\nThe text Natya Shastra describes religious arts as a form as margi, or a \"spiritual traditional path\" that liberates the soul, while the folk entertainment is called desi, or a \"regional popular practice\".\nIndian classical dances are traditionally performed as an expressive drama-dance form of religious performance art, related to Vaishnavism, Shaivism, Shaktism, pan-Hindu Epics and the Vedic literature, or a folksy entertainment that includes story-telling from Sanskrit or regional language plays. As a religious art, they are either performed inside the sanctum of a Hindu temple, or near it.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"554da64a-67b7-47c8-ad90-5f00ca9e3128"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance forms","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"19780fmpb3","content":[{"text":"The Natya Shastra mentions four Pravrittis (traditions, genres) of ancient dance-drama in vogue when it was composed – Avanti (Ujjain, central), Dakshinatya (south), Panchali (north, west) and Odra-Magadhi (east).\nSources differ in their list of Indian classical dance forms. Encyclopædia Britannica mentions six dances. The Sangeet Natak Akademi has given recognition to eight Indian dances. The Indian government's Ministry of Culture includes nine dance forms. Scholars such as Drid Williams and others include Yakshagana and Bhagavata Mela to the list of classical Indian dances.\nDance forms of the Lai Haraoba and the Khamba Thoibi are also considered as \"classical\".\nThe classical dance forms recognised by the Sangeet Natak Akademi and the Ministry of Culture are:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"554da64a-67b7-47c8-ad90-5f00ca9e3128"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Eight classical dances recognised by the Sangeet Natak Academy and the Ministry of Culture","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6kq0ywbmnz","content":[{"text":"Bharatanatyam, from Tamil Nadu\nKathak, from Uttar Pradesh\nKathakali, from Kerala\nKuchipudi, from Andhra Pradesh and Telangana\nManipuri, from Manipur\nMohiniyattam, from Kerala\nOdissi, from Odisha\nSattriya, from Assam","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"554da64a-67b7-47c8-ad90-5f00ca9e3128"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Images","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"42at93kvae","content":[{"text":"Some famous Indian classical dancers are :","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"554da64a-67b7-47c8-ad90-5f00ca9e3128"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yw64bzxkw0","content":[{"text":"Bharatanatyam - Rukmini Devi, Padma Subrahmanyam, Vyjayanthimala, Sheema Kermani, Padmini, Pt. Smt. Swati Daithankar (who was awarded the 'Nritya Alankar' by Akhil Bharatiya Gandharva Mahavidyalaya Mandal)\nKathak - Birju Maharaj, Nahid Siddiqui, Lacchu Maharaj, Gopi Krishna, Saswati Sen, Manjari Chaturvedi\nKathakali - Kalamandalam Krishnan Nair, Guru Kunchu Kurup, Ramankutty Nair, Guru Gopinath\nKuchipudi - Mallika Sarabhai, V. Satyanarayana Sarma, Deepa Shashindran,\nManipuri - Guru Bipin Singh, Darshana Jhaveri, Jhaveri Sisters, Devjani Chaliha, Amala Shankar\nMohiniyattam - Kalamandalam Kalyanikutty Amma, Shobhana, Sunanda Nair, Kalamandalam Radhika, Thankamani, Kalamandalam Hymavathy\nOdissi - Sujata Mohapatra, Madhavi Mudgal, Kelucharan Mohapatra, Surendra Nath Jena, Shobana Sahajananan, Minati Mishra\nSattriya - Jatin Goswami, Indira P. P. Bora, Ghanakanta Bora, Sarodi Saikia, Pushpa Bhuyan,","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"554da64a-67b7-47c8-ad90-5f00ca9e3128"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8wshrcqxaf","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Indian classical dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"554da64a-67b7-47c8-ad90-5f00ca9e3128"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rnvezsb44w","content":[{"text":"Indian classical dance is Performance arts rooted in religious Hindu musical theatre, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3700c6fe-624d-483f-9515-9f70b229d340"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"re68ms5cm0","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 6 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3700c6fe-624d-483f-9515-9f70b229d340"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Bharatanatyam an Indian classical dance originated in Tamil Nadu","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/35/Bharatanatyam_is_a_major_form_of_Indian_classical_dance_that_originated_in_the_state_of_Tamil_Nadu.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Vijay Sundararaman Iyer","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Bharatanatyam an Indian classical dance originated in Tamil Nadu","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/35/Bharatanatyam_is_a_major_form_of_Indian_classical_dance_that_originated_in_the_state_of_Tamil_Nadu.jpg/960px-Bharatanatyam_is_a_major_form_of_Indian_classical_dance_that_originated_in_the_state_of_Tamil_Nadu.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bharatanatyam_is_a_major_form_of_Indian_classical_dance_that_originated_in_the_state_of_Tamil_Nadu.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/35/Bharatanatyam_is_a_major_form_of_Indian_classical_dance_that_originated_in_the_state_of_Tamil_Nadu.jpg/1280px-Bharatanatyam_is_a_major_form_of_Indian_classical_dance_that_originated_in_the_state_of_Tamil_Nadu.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:27.729Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/indian-classical-dance"}
{"id":"5f9caa42-cda4-44cf-aeed-6522ffa7e977","type":"art_form","slug":"indian-dance","title":"Indian dance","summary":"Dance in India comprises numerous styles of dances, generally classified as classical or folk.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9qtjj8vd5g","content":[{"text":"Dance in India comprises numerous styles of dances, generally classified as classical or folk. As with other aspects of Indian culture, different forms of dances originated in different parts of India, developed according to the local traditions and also imbibed elements from other parts of the country.\nSangeet Natak Academy, the national academy for performing arts in India, recognizes eight traditional dances as Indian classical dances, while other sources and scholars recognize more. These have roots in the Sanskrit text Natya Shastra, and the religious performance arts of Hinduism.\nFolk dances are numerous in number and style and vary according to the local tradition of the respective state, ethnic, or geographic region. Contemporary dances include refined and experimental fusions of classical, folk, and Western forms. Dancing traditions of India have influence not only over the dances in the whole of South Asia, but on the dancing forms of Southeast Asia as well. Dances in Indian films, like Bollywood Dance for Hindi films, are often noted for freeform expression of dance and hold a significant presence in the popular culture of the Indian subcontinent.\nIn India, a command over either of Sanskrit, Tamil, Telugu, Oriya, Meitei (Manipuri), Persian, or Arabic, are highly appreciated and respected for learning dances (most significantly Indian Classical Dances) as dancers could have the tools of these languages to go into the primary material texts.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1e06c8e7-d41e-4cc5-920c-b3e3f9fdeafa"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Nomenclature","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0849tn1s66","content":[{"text":"The theory, training, means and rationale for expressive practice in classical dance is documented and traceable to ancient classical texts, particularly the Natya Shastra. Classical Indian dances have historically involved a school or guru-shishya parampara (teacher-disciple tradition) and require studies of the classical texts, physical exercises, and extensive training to systematically synchronize the dance repertoire with underlying play or composition, vocalists and the orchestra.\nA folk Indian dance is one which is largely an oral tradition, whose traditions have been historically learnt and mostly passed down from one generation to the next through word of mouth and casual joint practice. A semi-classical Indian dance is one that contains a classical imprint but has become a folk dance and lost its texts or schools. A tribal dance is a more local form of folk dance, typically found in one tribal population; typically tribal dances evolve into folk dances over a historic period.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1e06c8e7-d41e-4cc5-920c-b3e3f9fdeafa"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origins of dance in India","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k85mm3csyh","content":[{"text":"The origins of dance in India go back to ancient times. The earliest paleolithic and neolithic cave paintings such as the UNESCO world heritage site at Bhimbetka rock shelters in Madhya Pradesh show dance scenes. Several sculptures found at Indus Valley Civilisation archaeological sites, now distributed between Pakistan and India, show dance figures. For example, the Dancing Girl sculpture is dated to about 2500 BCE, showing a 10.5 centimetres (4.1 in) high figurine in a dance pose.\nThe Vedas integrate rituals with performance arts, such as a dramatic play, where not only praises to gods were recited or sung, but the dialogues were part of a dramatic representation and discussion of spiritual themes. The Sanskrit verses in chapter 13.2 of Shatapatha Brahmana (≈800–700 BCE), for example, are written in the form of a play between two actors.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1e06c8e7-d41e-4cc5-920c-b3e3f9fdeafa"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kn5ywdsdxd","content":[{"text":"The Vedic sacrifice (yajna) is presented as a kind of fight, with its actors, its dialogues, its portion to be set to music, its interludes, and its climaxes.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1e06c8e7-d41e-4cc5-920c-b3e3f9fdeafa"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6bq2d8f1ey","content":[{"text":"The evidence of earliest dance-related texts are in Natasutras, which are mentioned in the text of Panini, the sage who wrote the classic on Sanskrit grammar, and who is dated to about 500 BCE. This performance arts related Sutra text is mentioned in other late Vedic texts, are as two scholars names Shilalin (IAST: Śilālin) and Krishashva (Kṛśaśva), credited to be pioneers in the studies of ancient drama, singing, dance and Sanskrit compositions for these arts. Richmond et al. estimate the Natasutras to have been composed around 600 BCE, whose complete manuscript has not survived into the modern age.\nThe classic text of dance and performance arts that has survived is the Hindu text Natya Shastra, attributed to sage Bharata.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1e06c8e7-d41e-4cc5-920c-b3e3f9fdeafa"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Classical dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"eezbwdg1p4","content":[{"text":"Classical dance of India has developed a type of dance-drama that is a form of total theater. The dancer acts out a story almost exclusively through gestures. Most of the classical dances of India enact stories from Hindu mythology. Each form represents the culture and ethos of a particular region or a group of people.\nThe criteria for being considered classical is the style's adherence to the guidelines laid down in Natyashastra, which explains the Indian art of acting. The Sangeet Natak Akademi currently confers classical status on eight Indian classical dance styles: Bharatanatyam (Tamil Nadu), Kathak (North, West and Central India), Kathakali (Kerala), Kuchipudi (Andhra Pradesh and Telangana), Odissi (Odisha), Manipuri (Manipur), Mohiniyattam (Kerala), and Sattriya (Assam). Another Indian classical dance, which is not yet recognized by Government of India, is Gaudiya Nritya (West Bengal). All classical dances of India have roots in Hindu arts and religious practices.\nThe classical dance of India is also common outside it, for example, it was performed on the island of Oahu by their mayor  (Proshakov E.D.) as part of the local folklore festival.\nThe tradition of dance has been codified in the Natyashastra and performance is considered accomplished if it manages to evoke a rasa (emotion) among the audience by invoking a particular bhava(gesture or facial expression). Classical dance is distinguished from folk dance because it has been regulated by the rules of the Natyashastra and all classical dances are performed only in accordance with them.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1e06c8e7-d41e-4cc5-920c-b3e3f9fdeafa"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Bharatanatyam","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xyh6178hta","content":[{"text":"Dating back to 1000 BC, Bharatnatyam is a classical dance from the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu, practiced predominantly in modern times by women. The dance is usually accompanied by classical Carnatic music. Bharatnatyam is a major genre of Indian classical dance that originated in the Hindu temples of Tamil Nadu and neighboring regions. Traditionally, Bharatanatyam has been a solo dance that was performed exclusively by women, and expressed Hindu religious themes and spiritual ideas, particularly of Shaivism, but also of Vaishnavism and Shaktism. The character of the nayika is very important in classical plays, such as varnams. Contemporary Bharata Natyam declines main characters as gods, goddesses or parts of Nature (Creation, Sea, ...). \nBharatanatyam and other classical dances in India were ridiculed and suppressed during the colonial British Raj era. In the post-colonial period, it has grown to become the most popular classical Indian dance style in India and abroad, and is considered to be synonymous with Indian dance by many foreigners unaware of the diversity of dances and performance arts in Indian culture.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1e06c8e7-d41e-4cc5-920c-b3e3f9fdeafa"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Kathakali","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"x2bqw2jpt7","content":[{"text":"Kathakali (katha, \"story\"; kali, \"performance\") is a highly stylized class…","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1e06c8e7-d41e-4cc5-920c-b3e3f9fdeafa"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2h6js7rsam","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Dance in India”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1e06c8e7-d41e-4cc5-920c-b3e3f9fdeafa"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ywaejnmfxr","content":[{"text":"Indian dance is classical to folk dance arts of India, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"121751ea-bf76-463f-9e29-4ae271bafb1d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cehzqnd827","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"121751ea-bf76-463f-9e29-4ae271bafb1d"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-03T05:47:31.876Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/indian-dance"}
{"id":"ce9086b8-7fbc-4b69-b6e5-dcb204f89dec","type":"art_form","slug":"indonesian-dance","title":"Indonesian dance","summary":"Dance in Indonesia  (Indonesian: Tarian Indonesia) reflects the country's diversity of ethnicities and cultures. There are more than 600 ethnic groups in Indonesia.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xa1mpwpx1k","content":[{"text":"Dance in Indonesia  (Indonesian: Tarian Indonesia) reflects the country's diversity of ethnicities and cultures. There are more than 600 ethnic groups in Indonesia. Austronesian roots and Melanesian tribal forms are visible, and influences ranging from neighboring Asian and even western styles through colonization. Each ethnic group has its own dances: there are more than 3,000 original dance forms in Indonesia. The old traditions of dance and drama are being preserved in the numerous dance schools which flourish not only in the courts but also in the modern, government-run or supervised art academies.\nFor classification purposes, the dances of Indonesia can be divided according to several aspects. In the historical aspect it can be divided into three eras; the prehistoric-tribal era, the Hindu-Buddhist era, and the era of Islam. According to its patrons, it can be divided into two genres; court dance and folk dance. In its tradition, Indonesian dances can be divided into two types; traditional dance and contemporary dance.\nUNESCO announced the traditional Saman dance from Aceh province as a world Intangible Cultural Heritage on 19 November, 2011, in Bali. Saman dance is unique due to its speedy movements and the harmony between dancers.\nOn 2 December 2015 UNESCO also announced Three Genres traditional Balinese dances from Bali province as a world Intangible Cultural Heritage.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8fb8d5a8-33e5-4e27-b760-2573d641fd01"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"The Prehistoric Tribal Era","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bwzw0y7pj3","content":[{"text":"Prior to their contact with the outer world the people of the Indonesian archipelago had already developed their own styles of dancing, still somewhat preserved by those who resist outside influences and choose tribal life in the interior of Sumatra (example: Batak, Nias, Mentawai), of Kalimantan/Borneo (example: Dayak, Punan, Iban), of Java (example: Baduy), of Sulawesi (example: Toraja, Minahasa), of the Moluccan Islands and of Papua (example: Dani, Amungme).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8fb8d5a8-33e5-4e27-b760-2573d641fd01"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ybs609htcm","content":[{"text":"Dances in Indonesia are believed by many scholars to have had their beginning in rituals and religious worship. Such dances are usually based on rituals, like the war dances, the dance of witch doctors, and dance to call for rain or any agricultural-related rituals such as Hudoq dance ritual of Dayak people. War dances such as cakalele of Maluku and kabasaran dance of Minahasa, North Sulawesi. Others are inspired by nature, such as the Tari Merak (Peafowl dance) of West Java. Ancient forms are usually characterized by repetitive movements like the Tor-Tor dance of the Batak people of (North Sumatra). The dancing is also meant to let the human's inner spirit come out, and also to calm or appease the spirits. Some of the tribal dances involving trance mental condition, which is interpreted as channelling the spirits through the dancer's body movements. Tari Sanghyang Dedari is a special dance of Bali, in which the dancers are pre-pubescent girls in trance, chasing away bad spirits. The dance of kuda lumping and keris dance also involves trance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8fb8d5a8-33e5-4e27-b760-2573d641fd01"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"The Hindu-Buddhist Era","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cmr0jp3jsy","content":[{"text":"With the advent of Dharmic religions in Indonesia, Hinduism and Buddhism were celebrated in ritual and in art. Although the poem originates in India, Ramayana and Mahabharata epic has long been adopted by the Javanese people. Etchings of the story can be found on temples dating back to the tenth century CE, and have since then played a recurring role in ancient Javanese literature as well as wayang shows.\nThey incorporated stories of the Ramayana, Mahabharata and also Panji cycles into dance-drama, which is called sendratari (dance-drama) or sometimes simply translated as \"ballet\", such as Ramayana Ballet of Java and Bali. Highly stylized methods of dance were developed and are still obvious nowadays, especially in the islands of Java and Bali. The Javanese Ramayana dance-drama is regularly staged and performed in ninth century Prambanan temple compound, Yogyakarta; while its Balinese counterpart is also performed in various Balinese temples throughout the island. The Javanese wayang wong dance-drama took stories from the episodes of the Ramayana or the Mahabharata Hindu epic. However, the dances are distinct from those of India. While hand gestures are still very important, Indonesian dancers do not have the Indian attention to mudra: instead the dances incorporate local forms. Javanese court dances stressed graceful and slow movements, while the dances of the Balinese court are more dynamic and very expressive. The Javanese sacred ritual dance of Bedhaya has very gentle and elegant moves. It is believed to have its root in 14th century Majapahit court or probably earlier, which originated as a ritual dance performed by virgins to worship Indic deities such as Shiva, Brahma, and Vishnu.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8fb8d5a8-33e5-4e27-b760-2573d641fd01"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"e9j4t38xp3","content":[{"text":"In Bali, dances have become an integral part of Hindu Balinese rituals.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8fb8d5a8-33e5-4e27-b760-2573d641fd01"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"The Islamic Era","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wy3f4204hk","content":[{"text":"Even as the new religion of Islam gradually penetrated the region, the native and dharmic dances continued to be popular. Artists and performers would still use the styles of the previous eras, making changes in stories (which took an Islamic turn) and clothing (which became more modest in respect of Islamic teachings). This change is obvious in Tari Persembahan from Jambi. The dancers are still adorned with the intricate gold of the Hindu/Buddhist era, but the clothing is more modest.\nThe new era brought newer styles of dance: Zapin dances of the Malay people and Acehnese Tari Saman adopted dance styles and musics typical of Arabia and Persia, and combined them with indigenous styles to form a newer generation of dance in the era of Islam. The adoption of Persian and Arab musical instruments, such as rebana, tambur, and gendang drums, which have become the main instruments in Islamic dances, as well as chant that often quotes Islamic chants.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8fb8d5a8-33e5-4e27-b760-2573d641fd01"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Contemporary dances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mp4spa93xz","content":[{"text":"Known contemporary dancers from Indonesia were Bagong Kussudiardja, who invented the contemporary dance form inspired by the Javanese classical dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8fb8d5a8-33e5-4e27-b760-2573d641fd01"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"The court dances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mr3t0yntwq","content":[{"text":"The dances in Indonesia reflect its diverse and long history. Several royal houses, the istanas and keratons still survived in some parts of Indonesia and have become the haven of cultural conservation. The obvious difference between courtly dance and common folk dance traditions is most evident in Javanese dance. Javanese stratified social class is reflected in its culture, where the upper noble class are more concentrated and deeply concerned with refinement, spirituality, and sophistication; while the commoners are usually more interested in entertainment and the social value of the dance. As a result, court dances often have strict rules and disciplines preserved through generations, while folk dances are more liberated and open to any influences.\nThe royal patronage of arts and culture is often encouraged by the palace institution as the guardian of their traditions. For example, the Sultans of Yogyakarta Sultanate and Sunans of Surakarta, also nobles of Pakualaman and Mangkunegaran are known to create various Javanese court dances completed with gamelan composition to accompany the dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8fb8d5a8-33e5-4e27-b760-2573d641fd01"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pj50eq3q9p","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Dance in Indonesia”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8fb8d5a8-33e5-4e27-b760-2573d641fd01"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qjwzw8z5xx","content":[{"text":"Indonesian dance is dance of Indonesia, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"20eb499c-e2e9-4040-a183-38aca21db2cb"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7bwj1jr5qb","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"20eb499c-e2e9-4040-a183-38aca21db2cb"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Currently, there are more than 300,000 Indonesian immigrants, migrant workers, and international students in Taiwan. Every year, the \"Indonesia National Day Culture and Art Festival\" is held in Taipei City, inviting Indonesians in Taiwan to celebrate Indonesia's National Day…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/33/Indonesian_dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"彭泰宏(Peng tai hong)","height":907,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Currently, there are more than 300,000 Indonesian immigrants, migrant workers, and international students in Taiwan. Every year, the \"Indonesia National Day Culture and Art Festival\" is held in Taipei City, inviting Indonesians in Taiwan to celebrate Indonesia's National Day…","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/33/Indonesian_dance.jpg/960px-Indonesian_dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Indonesian_dance.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/33/Indonesian_dance.jpg/1280px-Indonesian_dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-06T05:47:40.481Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/indonesian-dance"}
{"id":"66f252aa-5020-4870-8584-18b56aae7841","type":"art_form","slug":"irish-dance","title":"Irish dance","summary":"Irish dance refers to the traditional dance forms that originate in Ireland, including both solo and group dance forms, for social, competitive, and performance purposes.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"25qywx238q","content":[{"text":"Irish dance refers to the traditional dance forms that originate in Ireland, including both solo and group dance forms, for social, competitive, and performance purposes. In the 17th and 18th centuries, dance was taught by \"travelling dance masters\" across Ireland, and separate dance forms developed according to regional practice and differing purposes. Irish dance became a significant part of Irish culture, particularly for Irish nationalist movements. From the early 20th century, a number of organisations promoted and codified the various forms of dance, creating competitive structures and standardised styles.  Irish dancers who compete for competitive reasons dance in a dance style that is more modern than traditional Irish dance. It is mainly done solo, but there is some team dancing in groups of 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 10, 16 or more.\nSolo Irish dance includes the most well-known form of Irish dance, Irish stepdance, which was popularized from 1994 onwards by shows such as Riverdance, and which is practised competitively across not only the Irish diaspora but by many people of disparate cultural backgrounds. Stepdance is characterised by the rigid upper body and intricate footwork of its performers.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"456544ad-e4a0-4611-94c4-b97f7328ac07"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vj3h1bpww9","content":[{"text":"There is very little documentary evidence of dance being practised in Ireland prior to the 7th century; this could be due to the destruction of written records in Ireland during Viking raids. Scholars have hypothesised this is from non-literate nature of the Irish cultural tradition. Indeed, the modern Irish words for \"dance\", rince and damhsa did not develop until the 16th century. The scant evidence available is primarily that of visitors to Ireland, such as a fourteenth-century song written in the South of England, where the poet invites his listeners to \"come ant daunce wyt me in Irlaunde\". The first native Irish documentary evidence of dancing is an account of a Mayor of Waterford's visit to Baltimore, County Cork in 1413, where the attendees \"took to the floor\" to celebrate Christmas Eve. However, the Norman invasion of Ireland in the twelfth century may have brought with it the round dance tradition, as it was contemporaneously performed in British camps while every now and then being seen in a Norman stronghold.\nAccounts of dancing in the 17th century means that dancing was by that time extremely widespread throughout Ireland.  In 1674 Richard Head wrote in reference to Ireland, 'In every field a fiddle, and the lasses footing till they all of a foam,' suggesting some type of Irish dancing or dance with heavy foot movement. There is ample evidence of Irish jigs or Irish dancing in the 16th century, in 1569 Sir Henry Sydney sent a letter to Queen Elizabeth in which he expresses his enthusiasm for the Irish jigs, or fiddle of Galway. A report from 1600 mentions that some forms of Irish dances were similar in form to English country dances, and later references mention the \"rinnce fada\", also known as the \"long dance\" or \"fading\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"456544ad-e4a0-4611-94c4-b97f7328ac07"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Irish dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pmrqwsvaz9","content":[{"text":"Accounts of dancing in the 17th century suggest that dancing was by that time extremely widespread throughout Ireland.  In 1674 Richard Head wrote in reference to Ireland, 'In every field a fiddle, and the lasses footing till they all of a foam,' suggesting some type of Irish dancing or dance with heavy foot movement. There is ample evidence of Irish jigs or Irish dancing in the 16th century, in 1569 Sir Henry Sydney sent a letter to Queen Elizabeth in which he expresses his enthusiasm for the Irish jigs, or fiddle of Galway. A variety of forms of solo Irish Dance have developed which are described as dance. These include the well-known \"modern\" stepdance performed competitively; old-style stepdance, which is closer in style to the dance practised by 19th-century travelling dance masters; and festival dance, which separated from modern stepdance over stylistic and administrative disputes in the mid-20th century.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"456544ad-e4a0-4611-94c4-b97f7328ac07"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Modern dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"p9w8ac1rqf","content":[{"text":"The most predominant form of Irish dance is that popularised by the Broadway show Riverdance, and other Irish dancing stage shows since the late 20th century. Characterised by a rigid torso and dances performed high on the balls of the feet, this style became distinct from the late 19th century when the Gaelic League began efforts to preserve and promote Irish dance as part of a broader nationalist movement concerned with Irish culture. Although a rigid torso may be the initial characterisation of Irish dance, modern soft shoe Irish dancers commonly gracefully use their arms in flowing movements, abandoning the traditional form. It is not uncommon for hard shoe dancers to use their arms in strict hand formations other than arms at sides, though competition dance continues to require the arms be kept by the dancer's sides.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"456544ad-e4a0-4611-94c4-b97f7328ac07"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"q7mhsg12vk","content":[{"text":"This, we think, as we watch Owen's clogs whisk themselves into a buckled blur, is essentially yodelling for feet: a majestic, preposterous lower-body hysteria that should surely be accompanied by its own laughter track. It's magnificent, gasp-inducing stuff. —Sarah Dempsey describing an Irish dancer.\nIn 1929, the League formed An Coimisiún Le Rincí Gaelacha (CLRG, The Irish Dancing Commission) in order to codify and standardise stepdancing competition and education. Over the following decades, CLRG expanded globally, and promoted this particular form of stepdance by developing examinations and qualifications for teachers and competition adjudicators. Today, stepdance in the style codified by the Gaelic League is performed competitively in a number of countries, and under the auspices of a number of organisations which have at various times broken away from CLRG.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"456544ad-e4a0-4611-94c4-b97f7328ac07"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"n9ce928tjw","content":[{"text":"Irish solo dances fall into two broad categories based on the shoes worn: 'hard shoe' (also known as jig shoe or heavy shoe) and 'soft shoe' (or light shoe) dances.\nThere are four soft shoe dance styles: the reel, slip jig,  light jig and 'single jig' (also referred to as 'hop jig'). Reels have a 44 (or sometimes 24 or 22) time signature. Slip jigs are in 98 time. Light and single jigs are in 68 time, with different emphasis within the measure distinguishing the music.\nHard shoe dances include the hornpipe in syncopated 24 or 44 time, the treble jig (also called the 'heavy jig' or 'double jig') in a slow 68, the treble reel (a short sixteen bar hard shoe dance done to reel music) and 'traditional sets', which are a group of dances with set music and steps. Many traditional sets have irregular musical phrasing. There are multiple traditional sets, including St. Patrick's Day, Blackbird, Job of Journeywork, Three Sea Captains, Garden of Daisies, and King of the Fairies. While theoretically standardised, different organisations recognise different traditional sets and slight variations exist between teachers. There are also \"non-traditional sets\" done by advanced dancers. These have set music, but not steps; the steps are choreographed by individual dance schools.\nCompetitive dancers generally dance two or three steps at a time, depending on their dancing level.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"456544ad-e4a0-4611-94c4-b97f7328ac07"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Shoes and costume","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"080czhr82q","content":[{"text":"There ar…","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"456544ad-e4a0-4611-94c4-b97f7328ac07"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b6zzxbgzpz","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Irish dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"456544ad-e4a0-4611-94c4-b97f7328ac07"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"d3fza3fqxn","content":[{"text":"Irish dance is group of traditional dance forms originating from Ireland, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d4d52734-f95c-4767-b349-b350c69c5364"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nx2vyaa95c","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d4d52734-f95c-4767-b349-b350c69c5364"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Dancing in the shadow","src":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1504609813442-a8924e83f76e?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8SXJpc2glMjBkYW5jZXxlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MTE2MzgxfDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1080","kind":"photo","width":6000,"credit":"Ardian Lumi","height":4000,"source":"unsplash","depicts":"Dancing in the shadow","licence":"Unsplash License","thumb640":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1504609813442-a8924e83f76e?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8SXJpc2glMjBkYW5jZXxlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MTE2MzgxfDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=640","sourceUrl":"https://unsplash.com/photos/group-of-people-dancing-6Woj_wozqmA?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral","thumb1280":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1504609813442-a8924e83f76e?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8SXJpc2glMjBkYW5jZXxlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MTE2MzgxfDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1280","attributionUrl":"https://unsplash.com/@ardianlumi?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-04T05:47:21.047Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/irish-dance"}
{"id":"0ce7305f-b701-46de-807f-5bf61766b6e1","type":"art_form","slug":"irish-stepdance","title":"Irish stepdance","summary":"Irish stepdance is a style of performance dance with its roots in traditional Irish dance. It may be generally characterized by a stiff upper body and fast and precise movements of the feet, and can be performed solo or in groups.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zjsd5q9xr4","content":[{"text":"Irish stepdance is a style of performance dance with its roots in traditional Irish dance. It may be generally characterized by a stiff upper body and fast and precise movements of the feet, and can be performed solo or in groups. Aside from public dance performances, there are also stepdance competitions all over the world. These competitions are often called Feiseanna (singular Feis). In Irish dance culture, a Feis is a traditional Gaelic arts and culture festival. Contemporarily, costumes are sometimes considered important in Irish stepdance; costumes are typically designed to attract the judge's eye in competitions and the audience's eye in performance, with widely varying colors and patterns. In many cases, costumes are sold at high prices and can even be custom made. General appearance beside the costume is also equally important, with female dancers typically wearing curly wigs or curling their hair and male dancers often neatly styling their hair to a shape to their liking for competition or performance. Additionally, poodle socks are worn by female dancers while males wear plain black socks. Poodle socks are white socks that have distinctive ribbing, and can be embroidered with gems.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee507e35-56a7-446f-b209-b82975471c80"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Early history (prehistory–1927)","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"91gb879c1g","content":[{"text":"The dancing traditions of Ireland are likely to have grown in tandem with Irish traditional music. Its first roots may have been in Pre-Christian Ireland, but Irish dance was also partially influenced by dance forms on the Continent, especially the quadrille dances. Some of the earliest recorded references to Irish dance are to the Rinnce Fada or \"long dance\", towards the end of the 17th century, which was performed largely during social occasions.  Traveling dancing masters taught all over Ireland beginning around the 1750s and continuing as late as the early 1900s.\nBy the late 19th century, at least three related styles of step dance had developed in Ireland. The style practised in Munster saw dancers on the balls of their feet, using intricate percussive techniques to create complex rhythm. On the other hand, a tradition developed in Ulster saw dancers instead using their heel to create a persistent drumming effect, and primarily performing in pairs. The Connemara style, later described as sean-nós dance, combined heel and ball movements with the swaying of the torso and vigorous movement of the arms.\nThe foundation of the Gaelic League in 1893, an Irish nationalist body formed with the purpose of preserving traditional Irish language and culture, radically altered the cultural status of step dance. Frank Hall has described this as the moment in which \"step-Dancing in Ireland became 'Irish dancing'\", and as therefore the most significant single event in the development of the dance form. Although informal competitions had long been held between towns and students of different dance masters, the first organised feis was held in 1897 by the League. The League began to codify and promote the form of step dance which was practiced in southern areas.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee507e35-56a7-446f-b209-b82975471c80"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Codification and organisation (1927–1994)","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ysnd46nwzm","content":[{"text":"In 1927, the Gaelic League set up An Coimisiún Le Rincí Gaelacha (CLRG, the Irish Dancing Commission), a separate body dedicated to the organisation and standardisation of Irish dance. CLRG created certifications for dance teachers and began to hold examinations for adjudicators of feisanna.\nIn the 19th century, the Irish diaspora had spread Irish dance all over the world, especially to North America and Australia. However, schools and feiseanna were not established until the early 1900s: in America these tended to be created within Irish-American urban communities, notably in Chicago and Massachusetts. The first classes in stepdancing were held there by the Philadelphia-born John McNamara.\nAccording to the BBC's A Short History of Irish Dance, \"The nature of the Irish dance tradition has changed and adapted over the centuries to accommodate and reflect changing populations and the fusion of new cultures.  The history of Irish dancing is as a result a fascinating one.  The popular Irish dance stage shows of the past ten years have reinvigorated this cultural art, and today Irish dancing is healthy, vibrant, and enjoyed by people across the globe.\"\nThe first television broadcast of Irish stepdance, on CBS in 1945, contributed to the increased popularity of a stepdance style originating in Ulster. This style, which incorporated balletic movements and high elevation on the toes, gradually usurped the Munster style with fast, low footwork which had prevailed up to that point.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee507e35-56a7-446f-b209-b82975471c80"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Post-Riverdance era (1994–present)","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"j36w4mx87a","content":[{"text":"The success of Riverdance and other dance shows in the late 20th century influenced the choreography and presentation of stepdance in both competitive and public performance environments. This included the use of simpler costumes and hairstyles for public performance in imitation of the Riverdance styles, and the development of new dance styles, such as hard shoe dances performed to music typically associated with soft shoes. In competitive dance, movements from flamenco and figure skating began to be incorporated into traditional steps, although such developments were criticised by elements of the competitive dancing community.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee507e35-56a7-446f-b209-b82975471c80"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Technique","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mnwhvrcc5p","content":[{"text":"The techniques involved in Irish stepdance are essentially similar across each of the individual dance styles. The basic style of modern step dance used in competitive contexts evolved from the stylistic features of traditional step dance in Munster. This style is largely performed on the balls of the feet with feet turned outwards. Competitive dancers are judged on posture, timing, rhythm and execution, which in practice means a rigid torso, rapid and intricate footwork, and legs and feet crossed over each other, with knees close together.\nIrish stepdances can be placed into two categories: solos, which are danced by a single dancer, and ceilis or teams, which are coordinated with 2 or more dancers.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee507e35-56a7-446f-b209-b82975471c80"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Solo dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c3dwqs30n6","content":[{"text":"Reel, slip jig, hornpipe, and jig are all types of Irish stepdances and are also types of Irish traditional music. These fall into two broad categories based on the shoes worn: 'hard shoe' and 'soft shoe' dances. Reels, which are in 24 or 44 time, and slip jigs, which are in 98 time and sometimes considered to be the lightest and most graceful of the dances, are soft shoe dances. Hornpipes, which can be in 24 or 44 time, are danced in hard shoes. Three jigs are danced in competition: the light jig, the single jig, which is also called the Hop jig, and the treble jig, which is also called double jig. Light and single jigs are in 68 time, and are soft shoes dances, while the treble jig is hard shoe, danced in a slow 68. The last type of jig is the slip jig, which is danced in 98 time. There are many dances, with steps that vary between schools. The traditional set dances (danced in hardshoe) like St. Patrick's Day and the Blackbird, among others, are the only dances that all schools have the same steps.\nThe actual steps in Irish stepdance are usually unique to each school or dance teacher.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee507e35-56a7-446f-b209-b82975471c80"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7s8gvhcnvx","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Irish stepdance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee507e35-56a7-446f-b209-b82975471c80"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ybtkw5xtqg","content":[{"text":"Irish stepdance is style of performance dance with its roots in traditional Irish dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a5fdcf8e-3b74-4ec6-b800-21d17bfee6b1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"na7t78x7m0","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a5fdcf8e-3b74-4ec6-b800-21d17bfee6b1"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Lace with a flatbacked crystal on an Irish stepdance dress","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/82/Lace_on_Irish_stepdance_dress.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"ReelAngelGirl","height":928,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Lace with a flatbacked crystal on an Irish stepdance dress","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/82/Lace_on_Irish_stepdance_dress.JPG/960px-Lace_on_Irish_stepdance_dress.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lace_on_Irish_stepdance_dress.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/82/Lace_on_Irish_stepdance_dress.JPG/1280px-Lace_on_Irish_stepdance_dress.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"},{"alt":"A medal awarded to Irish dancers at the Connacht Championships who qualify for w:Oireachtas Rince na Cruinne .","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/45/Connacht_Championships_Irish_stepdance_medal.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Eoin Gardiner","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"A medal awarded to Irish dancers at the Connacht Championships who qualify for w:Oireachtas Rince na Cruinne .","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/45/Connacht_Championships_Irish_stepdance_medal.jpg/960px-Connacht_Championships_Irish_stepdance_medal.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Connacht_Championships_Irish_stepdance_medal.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/45/Connacht_Championships_Irish_stepdance_medal.jpg/1280px-Connacht_Championships_Irish_stepdance_medal.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"},{"alt":"Close-up of embroidery on an Irish stepdance dress","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ea/Embroidery_on_Irish_dance_dress.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"ReelAngelGirl","height":1345,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Close-up of embroidery on an Irish stepdance dress","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ea/Embroidery_on_Irish_dance_dress.jpg/960px-Embroidery_on_Irish_dance_dress.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Embroidery_on_Irish_dance_dress.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ea/Embroidery_on_Irish_dance_dress.jpg/1280px-Embroidery_on_Irish_dance_dress.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:25.910Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/irish-stepdance"}
{"id":"f049e534-956b-4bcf-b5be-5edaffa2325b","type":"art_form","slug":"israeli-dance","title":"Israeli dance","summary":"Dance in Israel incorporates a wide variety of dance styles, from traditional Israeli folk dancing to ballet, modern dance, ballroom dancing and flamenco.\nContemporary dance in Israel has won international acclaim.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"j86847r1dr","content":[{"text":"Dance in Israel incorporates a wide variety of dance styles, from traditional Israeli folk dancing to ballet, modern dance, ballroom dancing and flamenco.\nContemporary dance in Israel has won international acclaim. Israeli choreographers, among them  Ohad Naharin and Barak Marshall are considered among the most versatile and original international creators working today.\nPeople come from all over Israel and many other nations for the annual dance festival in Karmiel, held in July. First held in 1987, the Karmiel Dance Festival is the largest celebration of dance in Israel, featuring three or four days and nights of dancing with 5,000 or more dancers and a quarter of a million spectators in the capital of the Galilee. Begun as an Israeli folk dance event, the festivities now include performances, workshops, and open dance sessions for a variety of dance forms and nationalities. Choreographer Yonatan Karmon created the Karmiel Dance Festival to continue the tradition of Gurit Kadman's Dalia Festival of Israeli dance, which ended in the 1960s.\nFamous companies and choreographers from all over the world have come to Israel to perform and give master classes.  In July 2010, Mikhail Baryshnikov came to perform in Israel.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ad9eb56c-5892-4f7f-829c-3fff8b5857c5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Folk dancing","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1cqbph3a2c","content":[{"text":"Israeli folk dancing includes folk dances such as the Horah and dances that incorporate the Tza’ad Temani. Israeli folk dance also includes Dabke which is a Middle Eastern dance of the Levant region (Israel, Lebanon, Syria) and is a common dance done by mainly the Arab population of Israel however is a most popular dance among Israeli youth. In Hebrew Dabke is known as דבקה \"Dabka\" which comes from the Arabic term meaning \"stomping of feet\". The Dance is well suited for bringing Israel-Arab culture together.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ad9eb56c-5892-4f7f-829c-3fff8b5857c5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Contemporary dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kjea6j70fc","content":[{"text":"One of the pioneers of modern dance in Israel was Gertrud Kraus, who immigrated to Mandate Palestine in 1935 and formed a modern dance company affiliated with the Tel Aviv Folk Opera. In 1950–1951, she founded the Israel Ballet Theatre, and became its artistic director. Contemporary dance in Israel is influenced by Israeli folk dance and European traditions. Dance companies include the Kibbutz Contemporary Dance Company, Inbal Dance Theater, Vertigo Dance Company, Kolben Dance Company, Bat-Dor Dance Company and Batsheva Dance Company.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ad9eb56c-5892-4f7f-829c-3fff8b5857c5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Flamenco","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3pgwge05wq","content":[{"text":"In 2010, Silvia Duran, an Israeli flamenco dancer, was honored by King Juan Carlos I of Spain for training generations of flamenco dancers at her studio in Tel Aviv, The citation was awarded for her \"contribution to the culture of Spain and the Spanish people.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ad9eb56c-5892-4f7f-829c-3fff8b5857c5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance festivals","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8ab4f3zwsr","content":[{"text":"The Karmiel Dance Festival has been a yearly event since 1987. The festival is usually held for 3 days and nights in July, and includes dance performances, workshops, and open dance sessions. The festival began as a celebration of Israeli folk dance, but today it features many different dance troupes, attracting thousands of dancers and hundreds of thousands of spectators from Israel and overseas. During the festival there are two major competitions: the Eyal ben Yehoshua choreography competition and a folk dance competition in memory of dancer Asheri Hever.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ad9eb56c-5892-4f7f-829c-3fff8b5857c5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance companies","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"checw1ht3d","content":[{"text":"The Batsheva Dance Company is an internationally acclaimed dance company based in Tel Aviv. It was founded by Martha Graham and Baroness Batsheva De Rothschild in 1964. From its inception until 1979, the prima ballerina of Batsheva was Rina Schenfeld; she and Rena Gluck were the company's principal dancers for many years. Ohad Naharin has been artistic director since 1990.\nThe Bat-Dor Dance Company was an Israeli dance company co-founded by Baroness Batsheva de Rothschild and dancer Jeannette Ordman. Bat Dor made its debut in 1968 with Ordman as its leading dancer. The company existed until July 2006.\nThe Inbal Dance Theater focuses on the dance of ethnic communities in Israel, among them Yemenite Jews, Moroccan Jews, Iranian Jews and Kurdish Jews. The group is known for incorporating biblical themes and an ancient dance language into modern dance moves. The group was founded in 1949 by Sara Levi-Tanai, Jerusalem-born of a Yemenite family. The company is currently directed by Barak Marshal.\nThe Kibbutz Contemporary Dance Company, based in Kibbutz Ga'aton, participates in some 200 performances a year in Israel and overseas.\nThe Rina Schoenfeld Dance Theater, founded in 1978, developed an eclectic blend of Bauhaus ideology, theater, modern dance and ballet which used physical objects to \"guide the imagination to places beyond dance.\"\nThe Israel Ballet, which performs classical and neo-classical ballets, was founded in 1967 by Berta Yampolsky and Hillel Markman. In 1975, the troupe performed George Balanchine's Serenade, bringing the company international acclaim.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ad9eb56c-5892-4f7f-829c-3fff8b5857c5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0x69q8repk","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Dance in Israel”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ad9eb56c-5892-4f7f-829c-3fff8b5857c5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"j5rrtqff1s","content":[{"text":"Israeli dance is a tradition recorded in open cultural data, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"946dcfbd-c25d-49f9-a954-5602d02c354b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sbx59jjefc","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"946dcfbd-c25d-49f9-a954-5602d02c354b"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"A photography of the dance \"White Time\" by Zvi Gotheiner","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0e/White_Time_%E2%80%93_a_dance_by_the_Israeli_Dance_Company_%22Tamar_%E2%80%93_Ramla_Dance_Theatre%22%3B_%D7%96%D7%9E%D7%9F_%D7%9C%D7%91%D7%9F%2C_%D7%99%D7%A6%D7%99%D7%A8%D7%AA_%D7%9E%D7%97%D7%95%D7%9C_%D7%A9%D7%9C_%D7%9C%D7%94%D7%A7%D7%AA_%D7%AA%D7%9E%22%D7%A8_%E2%80%93_%D7%AA%D7%99%D7%90%D7%98%D7%A8%D7%95%D7%9F_%D7%9E%D7%97%D7%95%D7%9C_%D7%A8%D7%9E%D7%9C%D7%94.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Boaz Lanir (בועז לניר)","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"A photography of the dance \"White Time\" by Zvi Gotheiner","licence":"CC BY-SA 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photography of the dance \" Wounded Mountain \" by Meir Germanovich","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/04/Wounded_Mountain_%E2%80%93_a_dance_by_the_Israeli_Dance_Company_%22Tamar_%E2%80%93_Ramla_Dance_Theatre%22%3B_%D7%94%D7%A8_%D7%A4%D7%A6%D7%95%D7%A2%2C_%D7%99%D7%A6%D7%99%D7%A8%D7%AA_%D7%9E%D7%97%D7%95%D7%9C_%D7%A9%D7%9C_%D7%9C%D7%94%D7%A7%D7%AA_%D7%AA%D7%9E%22%D7%A8_%E2%80%93_%D7%AA%D7%99%D7%90%D7%98%D7%A8%D7%95%D7%9F_%D7%9E%D7%97%D7%95%D7%9C_%D7%A8%D7%9E%D7%9C%D7%94.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Boaz Lanir (בועז לניר)","height":1920,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"A photography of the dance \" Wounded Mountain \" by Meir Germanovich","licence":"CC BY-SA 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photography from the premier of the dance \"Cinderella\" by Amir Kolben. Dancers: Margalit Be'eri, Amir Kolben, Zvi Gotheiner, Ofra Doudai, Galia Fabin (Lever), Meir Aviram Germanovich","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3c/Cinderella_%E2%80%93_a_dance_by_the_Israeli_Dance_Company_%22Tamar_%E2%80%93_Ramla_Dance_Theatre%22%3B%D7%A1%D7%99%D7%A0%D7%93%D7%A8%D7%9C%D7%94%2C_%D7%99%D7%A6%D7%99%D7%A8%D7%AA_%D7%9E%D7%97%D7%95%D7%9C_%D7%A9%D7%9C_%D7%9C%D7%94%D7%A7%D7%AA_%D7%AA%D7%9E%22%D7%A8_%E2%80%93_%D7%AA%D7%99%D7%90%D7%98%D7%A8%D7%95%D7%9F_%D7%9E%D7%97%D7%95%D7%9C_%D7%A8%D7%9E%D7%9C%D7%94.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Danny Waxman (דני וקסמן)","height":854,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"A photography from the premier of the dance \"Cinderella\" by Amir Kolben. Dancers: Margalit Be'eri, Amir Kolben, Zvi Gotheiner, Ofra Doudai, Galia Fabin (Lever), Meir Aviram Germanovich","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3c/Cinderella_%E2%80%93_a_dance_by_the_Israeli_Dance_Company_%22Tamar_%E2%80%93_Ramla_Dance_Theatre%22%3B%D7%A1%D7%99%D7%A0%D7%93%D7%A8%D7%9C%D7%94%2C_%D7%99%D7%A6%D7%99%D7%A8%D7%AA_%D7%9E%D7%97%D7%95%D7%9C_%D7%A9%D7%9C_%D7%9C%D7%94%D7%A7%D7%AA_%D7%AA%D7%9E%22%D7%A8_%E2%80%93_%D7%AA%D7%99%D7%90%D7%98%D7%A8%D7%95%D7%9F_%D7%9E%D7%97%D7%95%D7%9C_%D7%A8%D7%9E%D7%9C%D7%94.jpg/960px-thumbnail.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cinderella_%E2%80%93_a_dance_by_the_Israeli_Dance_Company_%22Tamar_%E2%80%93_Ramla_Dance_Theatre%22;%D7%A1%D7%99%D7%A0%D7%93%D7%A8%D7%9C%D7%94,_%D7%99%D7%A6%D7%99%D7%A8%D7%AA_%D7%9E%D7%97%D7%95%D7%9C_%D7%A9%D7%9C_%D7%9C%D7%94%D7%A7%D7%AA_%D7%AA%D7%9E%22%D7%A8_%E2%80%93_%D7%AA%D7%99%D7%90%D7%98%D7%A8%D7%95%D7%9F_%D7%9E%D7%97%D7%95%D7%9C_%D7%A8%D7%9E%D7%9C%D7%94.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3c/Cinderella_%E2%80%93_a_dance_by_the_Israeli_Dance_Company_%22Tamar_%E2%80%93_Ramla_Dance_Theatre%22%3B%D7%A1%D7%99%D7%A0%D7%93%D7%A8%D7%9C%D7%94%2C_%D7%99%D7%A6%D7%99%D7%A8%D7%AA_%D7%9E%D7%97%D7%95%D7%9C_%D7%A9%D7%9C_%D7%9C%D7%94%D7%A7%D7%AA_%D7%AA%D7%9E%22%D7%A8_%E2%80%93_%D7%AA%D7%99%D7%90%D7%98%D7%A8%D7%95%D7%9F_%D7%9E%D7%97%D7%95%D7%9C_%D7%A8%D7%9E%D7%9C%D7%94.jpg/1280px-thumbnail.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:08.417Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/israeli-dance"}
{"id":"cce2261f-8d33-404a-8e6e-851759bd2d72","type":"art_form","slug":"italian-folk-dance","title":"Italian folk dance","summary":"Italian folk dance has been an integral part of Italian culture for centuries.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fhy1ca3nqp","content":[{"text":"Italian folk dance has been an integral part of Italian culture for centuries.  Dance has been a continuous thread in Italian life from Dante through the Renaissance, the advent of the tarantella in southern Italy, and the modern revivals of folk music and dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ed7e01d6-fbf4-4ad9-b60b-6af8820f3681"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Middle Ages","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w6cvrfsqb7","content":[{"text":"The carol or carole (carola in Italian), a circle or chain dance which incorporates singing, was the dominant Medieval dance form in Europe from at least the 12th through the 14th centuries. This form of dance was found in Italy as well and although Dante has a few fleeting references to dance, it is Dante's contemporary Giovanni del Virgilio (floruit 1319–1327) who gives us the earliest mention of Italian folk dance. He describes a group of women leaving a church in Bologna at the festa of San Giovanni; they form a circle with the leader singing the first stanza at the end of which the dancers stop and, dropping hands, sing the refrain. The circle then reforms and the leader goes on to the next stanza.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ed7e01d6-fbf4-4ad9-b60b-6af8820f3681"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Boccaccio","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"a44c6q7ete","content":[{"text":"However, it is Giovanni Boccaccio (1313–1375) who illustrates the social function of dance in the Decameron (about 1350–1353). In Boccaccio's masterpiece, a group of men and women have traveled to a countryside villa to escape the Black Death and they tell a series of stories to while away the time. There are also social activities before and after the stories which include song and dance.\nAfter breakfast at the beginning of the first day:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ed7e01d6-fbf4-4ad9-b60b-6af8820f3681"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"syqtae4mtw","content":[{"text":"\"E levate le tavole, con ciò fosse cosa che tutte le donne carolar sapessero e similmente i giovani e parte di loro ottimamente e sonare e cantare, comandò la reina che gli strumenti venissero; e per comandamento di lei, Dioneo preso un liuto e la Fiammetta una viuola, cominciarono soavemente una danza a sonare; [107] per che la reina con l'altre donne insieme co' due giovani presa una carola, con lento passo, mandati i famigliari a mangiare, a carolar cominciarono; e quella finita, canzoni vaghette e liete cominciarono a cantare. [108]\"\n\"Breakfast done, the tables were removed, and the queen bade fetch instruments of music; for all, ladies and young men alike, knew how to tread a measure, and some of them played and sang with great skill: so, at her command, Dioneo having taken a lute, and Fiammetta a viol, they struck up a dance in sweet concert; [107] and, the servants being dismissed to their repast, the queen, attended by the other ladies and the two young men, led off a stately carol; which ended they fell to singing ditties dainty and gay.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ed7e01d6-fbf4-4ad9-b60b-6af8820f3681"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance in the countryside","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c3wv0tkfv4","content":[{"text":"These descriptions from Boccaccio are, of course, all of townsfolk dancing but the Decameron also gives at least a glimpse at peasant dances as well. In the second story of the Eighth Day about the priest and Monna Belcolore, of the latter the story says:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ed7e01d6-fbf4-4ad9-b60b-6af8820f3681"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7vax3nv3xg","content":[{"text":"\"e oltre a ciò era quella che meglio sapeva sonare il cembalo e cantare L'acqua corre la borrana, e menare la ridda e il ballonchio, quando bisogno faceva, che vicina che ella avesse, con bel moccichino e gentile in mano. [010]\"\n\"Moreover she had not her match in playing the tabret and singing: \"The borage is full sappy\", and in leading a brawl or a breakdown, no matter who might be next her, with a fair and dainty kerchief in her hand. [010]\"\nThe two terms for dance that Boccaccio uses, ridda and ballonchio, both refer to round dances with singing. Another variant of the round dance with song is the Righoletto, known from Florence and the surrounding countryside in the 14th and 15th centuries","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ed7e01d6-fbf4-4ad9-b60b-6af8820f3681"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Istanpitta and others","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1mbycscpzn","content":[{"text":"In a 14th-century Italian manuscript in the British Library (Add. 29987), folios 55v-58r and 59v-63v, contain 15 monophonic pieces of music, the first eight of which are labeled istanpitta. Of the next seven pieces, 4 are called saltarello, one trotto, one Lamento di Tristano, and the final one is labeled La Manfredina. These are the only known examples of instrumental dance music from Italy in the Middle Ages and all of them have similarities to earlier French dance pieces called estampie.\nThere is divided opinion on the question of whether the estampie / istanpitta was actually a dance or simply a musical form. Curt Sachs in his World History of the Dance believes the strong rhythm of the music, the name, which he derives from a term \"to stamp\", and literary references point to the estampie definitely being a dance. Vellekoop, on the other hand, looks at the evidence and concludes that estampie was simply a name for early instrumental music.\nThe other seven dances in the manuscript have the same general musical structure as those labeled \"istanpitta\" but are simpler and probably more suitable for dancing. Saltarello is a dance name found in later centuries as well but the later examples may not refer to the same dance as these 14th-century pieces. The last two dances in the manuscript, Lamento di Tristano and La Manfredina are notable as being pairs of related dances, a scheme which became common in Renaissance dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ed7e01d6-fbf4-4ad9-b60b-6af8820f3681"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Depictions of dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7sh8s6x822","content":[{"text":"One of the earliest known depictions of Italian folk dance is part of a set of frescoes at the Palazzo Pubblico in Siena by Ambrogio Lorenzetti (about 1285–1348). Part of his Allegory of Good Government (Effetto del Buon Governo) painted about 1338–40 shows a group of nine dancers, all women and accompanied by another woman singing and playing on the tambourine, executing a \"bridge\" figure where dancers go under the joined hands of the two lead dancers.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ed7e01d6-fbf4-4ad9-b60b-6af8820f3681"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bzger107re","content":[{"text":"Another 14th-century illustration comes from the Florentine painter Andrea Bonaiuti (1343–1377). One of his series of paintings The Church Militant and Triumphant (Chiesa militante e trionfante) done in 1365 at a chapel in the church of Santa Maria Novella in Florence also shows women dancing accompanied by a woman on tambourine.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ed7e01d6-fbf4-4ad9-b60b-6af8820f3681"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8918fg9xda","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Italian folk dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ed7e01d6-fbf4-4ad9-b60b-6af8820f3681"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fck1s8phb5","content":[{"text":"Italian folk dance is part of Italian culture, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a58551dd-5611-4074-95a7-b33b2359f3ad"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b55nrexrxx","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 6 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a58551dd-5611-4074-95a7-b33b2359f3ad"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Title: Italian folk dance at Van Cortl't Park [New York] Abstract/medium: 1 negative : glass ; 5 x 7 in. or smaller.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f3/Italian_folk_dance_at_Van_Cortl%27t_Park_%28New_York%29_LCCN2014682336.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Bain News Service, publisher","height":943,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Title: Italian folk dance at Van Cortl't Park [New York] Abstract/medium: 1 negative : glass ; 5 x 7 in. or smaller.","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f3/Italian_folk_dance_at_Van_Cortl%27t_Park_%28New_York%29_LCCN2014682336.jpg/960px-Italian_folk_dance_at_Van_Cortl%27t_Park_%28New_York%29_LCCN2014682336.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Italian_folk_dance_at_Van_Cortl%27t_Park_(New_York)_LCCN2014682336.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f3/Italian_folk_dance_at_Van_Cortl%27t_Park_%28New_York%29_LCCN2014682336.jpg/1280px-Italian_folk_dance_at_Van_Cortl%27t_Park_%28New_York%29_LCCN2014682336.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:25.564Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/italian-folk-dance"}
{"id":"0cd594df-b6b5-4d50-a4db-f587028c27bc","type":"art_form","slug":"jack-and-jill","title":"Jack and Jill","summary":"Jack and Jill is a format of competition in partner dancing, where the competing couples are the result of random matching of leaders and followers. Rules of matching vary.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"r8r4f74e5k","content":[{"text":"Jack and Jill is a format of competition in partner dancing, where the competing couples are the result of random matching of leaders and followers. Rules of matching vary. \nThe name and format were created by Jack Carey at Hank & Stans in Norwalk, California in the early 1950s to encourage a variety of dancers to enter competitions.\nThe gender-ambiguous term Pat and Chris has been used, particularly in LGBT dance venues, to refer to events where the gender of lead and follow isn't specified. In the swing dance community, the name mix and match is now used as a gender-neutral, more inclusive name.\nIn dance competitions J&J is included as a separate division (or divisions, with additional gradations).\nJ&J is popular at Swing conventions, as well as at ballroom dance competitions in the US.\nJ&J competitions are intended to test social dance skills, whereas fixed partner \"showcase\" competitions test performance dance skills.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"89ed6cbf-52ab-4b91-9a64-76e6281bfcce"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Rules","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1vhgf95f9w","content":[{"text":"Rules vary, depending on country and dance style.\nIn the UK, it is normal to randomly assign fixed couples, and then keep those couples fixed throughout the competition (for example, if there are multiple rounds). Thus, the winner is largely decided by luck of the draw, with the winning couple often being regular dance partners who were lucky enough to be paired together. As a result, DWAS (Dance With A Stranger) competitions are not taken as seriously as fixed partner competitions.\nIn the US, Jack & Jill contests are extremely popular in the national West Coast Swing and Lindy Hop communities.  Rules vary in events across the country but three rules seem to be standard in most Jack & Jill contests:  1) no pre-arranged choreography is allowed (which would generally be impractical anyway, as partners are assigned randomly), 2) no costumes are allowed, and 3) acrobatic elements such as lifts are not allowed, or only allowed when deemed safe by the judges.  However, at the Champion or Invitational level, event organizers will occasionally opt for an \"anything goes\" Jack & Jill in which no rules apply. Music for each dance is selected at random without the participants' prior knowledge, though some competitions will allow them to select the tempo (speed) or a sub-style within their dance's music (e.g. Blues or contemporary within West Coast Swing). \nAlthough it is not the case in every Jack & Jill contest, it is somewhat typical for dancers to be judged individually, then dancers who make any elimination rounds redraw for new partners.  Depending on rules specific to the event/competition, a Jack & Jill competitor may or may not be allowed to dance with their regular competition partner (one that they compete with in a choreographed division).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"89ed6cbf-52ab-4b91-9a64-76e6281bfcce"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kf0a1nft87","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Jack and Jill (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"89ed6cbf-52ab-4b91-9a64-76e6281bfcce"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2hs552jtk2","content":[{"text":"Jack and Jill is format of competition in partner dancing, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"55617491-cc97-4f12-8bcf-60b0c5d60220"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"68714es6gd","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"55617491-cc97-4f12-8bcf-60b0c5d60220"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"This illustration is from the public domain book, The Book of Knowledge, The Children’s Encyclopedia, Edited by Arthur Mee and Holland Thompson, Ph. D., Vol II, Copyright 1912, The Grolier Society of New York. The original copyright for these books was 1899. This is from page…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a8/Jack_and_Jill.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Sue Clark","height":1998,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"This illustration is from the public domain book, The Book of Knowledge, The Children’s Encyclopedia, Edited by Arthur Mee and Holland Thompson, Ph. D., Vol II, Copyright 1912, The Grolier Society of New York. The original copyright for these books was 1899. This is from page…","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a8/Jack_and_Jill.jpg/960px-Jack_and_Jill.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Jack_and_Jill.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a8/Jack_and_Jill.jpg/1280px-Jack_and_Jill.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"Image from the magazine","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/76/St._Nicholas-Vol_1.1-726.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"File:St. Nicholas, vol. 40.1 (1912-1913).djvu","height":1660,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Image from the magazine","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/76/St._Nicholas-Vol_1.1-726.jpg/960px-St._Nicholas-Vol_1.1-726.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:St._Nicholas-Vol_1.1-726.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/76/St._Nicholas-Vol_1.1-726.jpg/1280px-St._Nicholas-Vol_1.1-726.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"Joined facing pages.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8d/Denslow-Mother_Goose-080%26081-Jack_and_Jill_went_up_the_hill.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Anonymous; Illustrator: W. W. Denslow (1856-1915); Hand-lettering: Frederic W. Goudy (1865-1947)","height":813,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Joined facing pages.","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8d/Denslow-Mother_Goose-080%26081-Jack_and_Jill_went_up_the_hill.jpg/960px-Denslow-Mother_Goose-080%26081-Jack_and_Jill_went_up_the_hill.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Denslow-Mother_Goose-080%26081-Jack_and_Jill_went_up_the_hill.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8d/Denslow-Mother_Goose-080%26081-Jack_and_Jill_went_up_the_hill.jpg/1280px-Denslow-Mother_Goose-080%26081-Jack_and_Jill_went_up_the_hill.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:08.320Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/jack-and-jill"}
{"id":"3af4445b-84e0-4673-b1f8-56b251627eb8","type":"art_form","slug":"janger-dance","title":"Janger dance","summary":"Janger (Balinese: ᬚᬗᬾᬃ) is a traditional Balinese and Osing dance drama performance originated from the Indonesian island of Bali, and commonly performed by Balinese in Bali as well as Osing people in the easternmost region of Java.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"z6hhxxckvy","content":[{"text":"Janger (Balinese: ᬚᬗᬾᬃ) is a traditional Balinese and Osing dance drama performance originated from the Indonesian island of Bali, and commonly performed by Balinese in Bali as well as Osing people in the easternmost region of Java. The term roughly translates to '\"infatuation,\" with a connotation of someone who is madly in love\" :97","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9d15a674-d2f0-4906-a81a-f281ac7f9be4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yq760sgm6k","content":[{"text":"Janger is a social dance created in the 1920s, though its exact date of origin is unknown:17, 161 I Madé Kredek claims it 'originated in the village of Menyali, North Bali and the songs featured in it were those of the horse drivers in the area.':101","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9d15a674-d2f0-4906-a81a-f281ac7f9be4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Performance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"p9s0ysdwqt","content":[{"text":"Janger is a 'flirtatious youth group dance':92 which begins with a tableau vivant and a welcoming song.:161 This is followed by 12 male dancers (kecak) who perform an elaborate routine. When finished, they sit in two rows of six facing each other, and then, a female group (janger) enters the area, sings a traditional folk song,:161 and performs a slower dance with an 'emphasis on fluid, undulating, arm movements'.:100 When finished, they form two lines of six, with the male dancers 'forming a boundary around the playing area.':161 This opening is followed by a drama, which usually concerns some sort of domestic theme.:162","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9d15a674-d2f0-4906-a81a-f281ac7f9be4"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"y69x208dbs","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Janger dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9d15a674-d2f0-4906-a81a-f281ac7f9be4"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"g78nytwwbr","content":[{"text":"Janger dance is Indonesian traditional dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"79e88f65-1fe0-4db0-8096-936012c37466"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dtz79c35jj","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"79e88f65-1fe0-4db0-8096-936012c37466"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"A balinese dancer performs with an ensemble","src":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1741272689174-f7f03b09a0ab?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8SmFuZ2VyJTIwZGFuY2V8ZW58MXwwfHx8MTc4ODExNjM4NXww&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1080","kind":"photo","width":3008,"credit":"Didi Paul","height":2000,"source":"unsplash","depicts":"A balinese dancer performs with an ensemble","licence":"Unsplash License","thumb640":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1741272689174-f7f03b09a0ab?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8SmFuZ2VyJTIwZGFuY2V8ZW58MXwwfHx8MTc4ODExNjM4NXww&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=640","sourceUrl":"https://unsplash.com/photos/a-balinese-dancer-performs-with-an-ensemble-fWvv8L9Ann0?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral","thumb1280":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1741272689174-f7f03b09a0ab?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8SmFuZ2VyJTIwZGFuY2V8ZW58MXwwfHx8MTc4ODExNjM4NXww&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1280","attributionUrl":"https://unsplash.com/@didipaul?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:07.990Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/janger-dance"}
{"id":"e66614a1-47e4-48d4-88b6-63e4a36a47e1","type":"art_form","slug":"jangi","title":"Jangi","summary":"Jangi (Azerbaijani: Cəngi) is a national dance of Azerbaijan. The dance is classified as a heroic military dance.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1734ghg1ev","content":[{"text":"Jangi (Azerbaijani: Cəngi) is a national dance of Azerbaijan. The dance is classified as a heroic military dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ba53d357-1740-40f4-965b-6d5b5475ddbe"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origins","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"js1k0dcgw3","content":[{"text":"In translation from Azerbaijani language, with the word being derived through Persian, Jangi means “fighting”.\nThe dance is very ancient. It's a reminder of the Azerbaijani struggle of strong men and was performed in honor of them. The dance expresses a challenge to a battle. This dance of the South Caucasus region is a \"war dance\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ba53d357-1740-40f4-965b-6d5b5475ddbe"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Performance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"japahf4vm4","content":[{"text":"The dance is performed only for men, in holidays or concerts. It is based on the shur music, and is in the 2/4 time signature. Traditional Azerbaijani costumes are used by the dancing men, which includes a colorful long jacket, a trouser, and pair of boots.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ba53d357-1740-40f4-965b-6d5b5475ddbe"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5khpmxw05w","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Jangi (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ba53d357-1740-40f4-965b-6d5b5475ddbe"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cemwg14x3c","content":[{"text":"Jangi is dance of Azerbaijan, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7130ac4d-f2ca-49a5-94ad-e8d38831b6eb"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1kt8jtn460","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7130ac4d-f2ca-49a5-94ad-e8d38831b6eb"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"A government-owned bhang (marijuana) shop in Jangi Road, Mirzapur, Uttar Pradesh, India. The blue sign in Hindi, written in Devanagari, outside of the shop reads \"सरकारी भांग की दुकान\" (lit. government shop for bhang ).","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d2/Government_Bhang_Shop%2C_Jangi_Road%2C_Mirzapur.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Psubhashish","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"A government-owned bhang (marijuana) shop in Jangi Road, Mirzapur, Uttar Pradesh, India. The blue sign in Hindi, written in Devanagari, outside of the shop reads \"सरकारी भांग की दुकान\" (lit. government shop for bhang ).","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d2/Government_Bhang_Shop%2C_Jangi_Road%2C_Mirzapur.jpg/960px-Government_Bhang_Shop%2C_Jangi_Road%2C_Mirzapur.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Government_Bhang_Shop,_Jangi_Road,_Mirzapur.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d2/Government_Bhang_Shop%2C_Jangi_Road%2C_Mirzapur.jpg/1280px-Government_Bhang_Shop%2C_Jangi_Road%2C_Mirzapur.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Jangi receiving an award from Kalim Sharafi for his contribution in music","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c6/Jangi_receiving_an_award_from_Kalim_Sharafi.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Alavee","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Jangi receiving an award from Kalim Sharafi for his contribution in music","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c6/Jangi_receiving_an_award_from_Kalim_Sharafi.jpg/960px-Jangi_receiving_an_award_from_Kalim_Sharafi.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Jangi_receiving_an_award_from_Kalim_Sharafi.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c6/Jangi_receiving_an_award_from_Kalim_Sharafi.jpg/1280px-Jangi_receiving_an_award_from_Kalim_Sharafi.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Jangi Monastery Gompa Himachal Pradesh Jangi Monastery is a Buddhist monastery located in Kinnaur district of Himachal Pradesh. The monastery is also known as the Kinnaur Monastery. It belongs to GelugPa school of Vajrayana Buddhism. Ref:…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/30/Jangi_Monastery_Gompa_Himacha_Pradesh_l_India.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Prof Ranga Sai","height":850,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Jangi Monastery Gompa Himachal Pradesh Jangi Monastery is a Buddhist monastery located in Kinnaur district of Himachal Pradesh. The monastery is also known as the Kinnaur Monastery. It belongs to GelugPa school of Vajrayana Buddhism. Ref:…","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/30/Jangi_Monastery_Gompa_Himacha_Pradesh_l_India.jpg/960px-Jangi_Monastery_Gompa_Himacha_Pradesh_l_India.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Jangi_Monastery_Gompa_Himacha_Pradesh_l_India.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/30/Jangi_Monastery_Gompa_Himacha_Pradesh_l_India.jpg/1280px-Jangi_Monastery_Gompa_Himacha_Pradesh_l_India.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:05.176Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/jangi"}
{"id":"5ec01ade-1928-4d28-a3c1-de8729712418","type":"art_form","slug":"jarabe-tapatio","title":"Jarabe Tapatío","summary":"The Mexican hat dance, also known as Jarabe Tapatío, is the national dance of Mexico.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nwd8dabqgv","content":[{"text":"The Mexican hat dance, also known as Jarabe Tapatío, is the national dance of Mexico. It originated as a courtship dance in Guadalajara, Jalisco, during the 19th century, although its elements can be traced back to the Spanish zambra and jarabe gitano, which were popular during the times of the viceroyalty. Female dancers traditionally wear a china poblana outfit, while the male dancers dress as charros, and their steps are characterized by flirtatiously stepping around the brim of their partner's hat.\nThe standard music of the jarabe tapatío was composed by Jesús González Rubio in the 19th century. However, its more common instrumental arrangement dates from the 1920s. Sometimes it is confused with La Raspa, another Mexican dance. Nowadays, its music is most commonly performed by either mariachi groups or string ensembles.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ecca0808-7695-4536-a10f-cdbadf8ec84d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"21z9gh5yhb","content":[{"text":"The word jarabe (from Arabic šarāb), meaning \"syrup\", denotes the combination of various Mexican musics (sones) and dances (zapateados). The word Tapatío meaning \"someone or something from Guadalajara\" is  the demonym of the city of Guadalajara in Jalisco and reflects the origin of this particular jarabe.  A number of other dances known as jarabes are known to have existed in the 18th and 19th centuries, such as the jarabe de Jalisco, the jarabe de atole and the jarabe moreliano, but the tapatío version is by far the best known. Most of these other jarabes differ from the tapatío in terms of their regional origin throughout Mexico. This is because overall, jarabe is considered much more of a musical and folk dance genre, as opposed to one rigid definition. There is some dispute as to the jarabe tapatío's authenticity as folk dance. Music researcher Nicolás Puentes Macías from Zacatecas states that true jarabes are almost extinct in Mexico, found today only in small fractions of Zacatecas and Jalisco, and that the jarabe tapatío is really a form of a dance called \"tonadilla\". In addition to this, the dance's origins are also somewhat disputed, either being wholly indigenous or Hispanic in nature Some academics tend to stick to one narrative or the other, but across the board the dance is considered a truly Mestizo creation.\nThe earliest evidence of the dance comes from the late 18th century. It was originally danced by female couples in order to avoid the disapproval of the church. Shortly before the Mexican War of Independence, mixed couples began to perform it, with a public performance at the Coliseo Theater in 1790 in Mexico City.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ecca0808-7695-4536-a10f-cdbadf8ec84d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Performance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gjjfr3s69y","content":[{"text":"The dance represents the courtship of a man and a woman, with the woman first rejecting the man's advances, then eventually accepting them. It has a definite sexual component in metaphor, which was the original reason for disapproval by authorities.\nAs the dance has lost its controversial status and gained status as a representative of Mexico, the dancers have come to wear garb that is also highly representative of Mexican women and men. For women, the most traditional outfit is called the \"China Poblana.\" The blouse and skirt combination is named after a woman from India who came to Mexico on the Manila Galleon to work as a servant in the early 19th century. Her Asian dress was copied and then adapted in the State of Puebla, with the skirt now heavily embroidered and otherwise decorated with patriotic images. The traditional outfit for men is that of the charro, generally heavily decorated in silver trim.\nThe music played to accompany the dance was written to be danced to and is played either by mariachi bands or by bands playing only string instruments such as various types of guitars, harps and violin.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ecca0808-7695-4536-a10f-cdbadf8ec84d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Contemporary adaptations","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1h5k6z0ayp","content":[{"text":"Within Mexican communities in the US, troops of Jarabe tapatío performers are becoming more and more common. Dancers are presented with opportunities to reconnect and engage with their Mexican heritage and/or citizenship abroad through the performance of the dance.\nThe popularity of the composition by Jesús González Rubio has led it to be used in many forms of media. For example, in The Simpsons TV series it is used to reference the Bumblebee Man, a stereotypical Mexican character. In the United Kingdom, the tune was used in adverts for Morrisons, primarily in the 1980s and 1990s,  and some adverts in the mid-2000s. The supermarket's slogan and jingle at that time, 'More reasons to shop at Morrisons', had its tune derived from the jarabe's melody, which was used in all adverts in these eras. Morrisons revived the jingle and slogan in their advertising in summer 2023. The tune is also known to be popularly used for Yakko's World, a song from Animaniacs in which the character list countries of the world from the early 1990s  and as a polyphonic ringtone on Nokia mobile phones in the 1990s and 2000s. It is also popularly used in the Looney Tunes cartoon shorts, particularly those featuring Speedy Gonzales.\nA jarabe also appears in Aaron Copland's ballet Billy the Kid, played in 58 time, the tune on a solo trumpet (with orchestral accompaniment).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ecca0808-7695-4536-a10f-cdbadf8ec84d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k2vfgzp6b3","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Mexican hat dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ecca0808-7695-4536-a10f-cdbadf8ec84d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k207dsz3b9","content":[{"text":"Jarabe Tapatío is popular Mexican dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"483302c7-770a-4eaa-b5e7-647b91fc43c3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ag856y31gb","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"483302c7-770a-4eaa-b5e7-647b91fc43c3"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Tomada por Adriana Alonzo el 26 de octubre.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8a/Vallarta_Jarabe_Tapatio_%281805213595%29.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"ego2005 from Guadalajara, Mexico","height":1707,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Tomada por Adriana Alonzo el 26 de octubre.","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8a/Vallarta_Jarabe_Tapatio_%281805213595%29.jpg/960px-Vallarta_Jarabe_Tapatio_%281805213595%29.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Vallarta_Jarabe_Tapatio_(1805213595).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8a/Vallarta_Jarabe_Tapatio_%281805213595%29.jpg/1280px-Vallarta_Jarabe_Tapatio_%281805213595%29.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-08-31T05:47:23.639Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/jarabe-tapatio"}
{"id":"3c5505cd-1cf6-4a3b-a6f3-a3caa755df59","type":"art_form","slug":"java","title":"Java","summary":"Java (French: [ʒa.va]) is a dance which was developed in France in the early part of the 20th century.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tgjhm3gjcv","content":[{"text":"Java (French: [ʒa.va]) is a dance which was developed in France in the early part of the 20th century. The origin of its name is uncertain, but it probably evolved from the valse.\nMainly performed in French bal-musette between 1910 and 1960, the dance was largely conceived due to popular demand for a new type of waltz, in particular, one which was easier, faster, more sensual, and would not require a dance hall as large as those typically used for waltzes.\nJava takes the form of a fast waltz, with the dancers dancing very close to one another, taking small steps to advance. Men will often place both their hands on their partner's buttocks while dancing. Naturally, this led some of the more respectable bal-musette dance halls banning java.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2795e7f5-99f8-4cd7-ad90-baa74a5b1a84"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Titles","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w2nvb2tgb5","content":[{"text":"Mistinguett - La java, 1923\nGeorgius - La plus bath des javas, 1925\nAlibert and Gaby Sims - Un petit cabanon, 1935\nEdith Piaf - La java de cézigue, 1936\nFréhel - La Java bleue, 1938\nDarcelys - Une partie de pétanque, 1941\nEdith Piaf - L'Accordéoniste, 1942\nBoris Vian - La Java des bombes atomiques, 1955\nLéo Ferré - Java partout, 1957\nClaude Nougaro - Le Jazz et la Java, 1962\nSerge Gainsbourg - La Javanaise, 1963\nMichel Sardou - La Java de Broadway, 1977\nTC Matic - Le Java, 1982","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2795e7f5-99f8-4cd7-ad90-baa74a5b1a84"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"On film","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"g9wsjs7ed1","content":[{"text":"A java is danced during a key scene at a working class café in Jean Vigo's film L'Atalante (1934). Composer Maurice Jaubert arranged his java melody for player piano; it recurs later in the soundtrack as a refrain for accordion.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2795e7f5-99f8-4cd7-ad90-baa74a5b1a84"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xck8090a6s","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Java (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2795e7f5-99f8-4cd7-ad90-baa74a5b1a84"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w28tpe69x7","content":[{"text":"Java is dance which was developed in France in the early part of the 20th century, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"753cdfc6-59fa-4d9d-9f95-e3731b1bd953"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"aaazm845t2","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"753cdfc6-59fa-4d9d-9f95-e3731b1bd953"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"This oblique nighttime image, taken by an astronaut aboard the International Space Station, reveals Indonesia's main island chain. With coasts illuminated by city lights, the islands stand out against the darkness of the Indian Ocean. The island of Java is the geographic and…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/23/Lights_of_Java.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"NASA","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"This oblique nighttime image, taken by an astronaut aboard the International Space Station, reveals Indonesia's main island chain. With coasts illuminated by city lights, the islands stand out against the darkness of the Indian Ocean. The island of Java is the geographic and…","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/23/Lights_of_Java.jpg/960px-Lights_of_Java.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lights_of_Java.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/23/Lights_of_Java.jpg/1280px-Lights_of_Java.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"Mount Batok in the early morning light - view from the peak of the volcanic cone of Mount Bromo, East Java, Indonesia","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ee/Batok%2C_view_from_Bromo_volcano%2C_Java%2C_Indonesia%2C_20220820_0539_9409.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Jakub Hałun","height":854,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Mount Batok in the early morning light - view from the peak of the volcanic cone of Mount Bromo, East Java, Indonesia","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ee/Batok%2C_view_from_Bromo_volcano%2C_Java%2C_Indonesia%2C_20220820_0539_9409.jpg/960px-Batok%2C_view_from_Bromo_volcano%2C_Java%2C_Indonesia%2C_20220820_0539_9409.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Batok,_view_from_Bromo_volcano,_Java,_Indonesia,_20220820_0539_9409.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ee/Batok%2C_view_from_Bromo_volcano%2C_Java%2C_Indonesia%2C_20220820_0539_9409.jpg/1280px-Batok%2C_view_from_Bromo_volcano%2C_Java%2C_Indonesia%2C_20220820_0539_9409.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Mendut, Indonesia: Candi Mendut, a ninth-century Buddhist temple, located in Mendut village.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/30/Mendut_Java_Indonesia_Candi-Mendut-02.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"CEphoto, Uwe Aranas","height":810,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Mendut, Indonesia: Candi Mendut, a ninth-century Buddhist temple, located in Mendut village.","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/30/Mendut_Java_Indonesia_Candi-Mendut-02.jpg/960px-Mendut_Java_Indonesia_Candi-Mendut-02.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mendut_Java_Indonesia_Candi-Mendut-02.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/30/Mendut_Java_Indonesia_Candi-Mendut-02.jpg/1280px-Mendut_Java_Indonesia_Candi-Mendut-02.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:14.348Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/java"}
{"id":"777a8736-6cb4-4f10-82b6-24c282f0075f","type":"art_form","slug":"javanese-dance","title":"Javanese dance","summary":"Javanese dance (Indonesian: Tarian Jawa; Javanese: ꦧꦼꦏ꧀ꦱꦤ꧀ꦗꦮ, romanized: Beksan Jawa) is the dances and art forms that were created and influenced by Javanese culture in Indonesia.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"y4mr7yz4t7","content":[{"text":"Javanese dance (Indonesian: Tarian Jawa; Javanese: ꦧꦼꦏ꧀ꦱꦤ꧀ꦗꦮ, romanized: Beksan Jawa) is the dances and art forms that were created and influenced by Javanese culture in Indonesia. Javanese dance movement is controlled, deliberate, and refined. Javanese art often displays finesse, and, at the same time, a serene composure which is elevated far above everything mundane. Javanese dance is usually associated with courtly, refined, and sophisticated culture of the Javanese kratons, such as the bedhaya and srimpi dance. However, in a wider sense, Javanese dance also includes the dances of Javanese commoners and villagers, such as ronggeng, tayub, reog, and jaran kepang.\nJavanese dance and its discipline has different styles and philosophy compared to other Indonesian dance traditions. Unlike vigorous and expressive Balinese dance or cheerful and slightly sensual Sundanese dance, Javanese dance are commonly involving slow movements and graceful poses. Javanese dance have somewhat a meditative quality and tends to be more self-reflective, introspective and more oriented toward self-understanding. Javanese dance is usually associated with Wayang wong, and the palaces of Yogyakarta and Surakarta due to the nature of dance being a pusaka or sacred heirloom from ancestors of the palace rulers. These expressive dances are more than just dances, they are also used for moral education, emotional expression, and spreading of the Javanese culture.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5c929d22-69f7-49e7-b2dc-0488aa1f9d14"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Types of Javanese dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kd01fccw2w","content":[{"text":"Javanese dance reflects the stratified hierarchy of Javanese society, and roughly can be identified within two mainstream of traditions:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5c929d22-69f7-49e7-b2dc-0488aa1f9d14"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5w8fjpkbkb","content":[{"text":"Court dances (tari kraton)\nCommoner dances (tari rakyat)","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5c929d22-69f7-49e7-b2dc-0488aa1f9d14"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Court dances (tari kraton)","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1en1rykc3y","content":[{"text":"The courtly Javanese palace dance is the type of dances that developed, nurtured and fostered by Javanese Kratons, mainly Yogyakarta Sultanate and Surakarta Sunanate, the patrons of Javanese Mataram culture. Javanese sultans are known as the patron and the creator of Javanese court dances.\nKraton dances employs sets of rules about certain dance movements, body and hand gestures that requires discipline to learn. Gamelan orchestra is the prerequisite for Javanese court dance performances as well as for other Javanese art forms such as Wayang performances. The serene elegance, slow pace and constrains of its movements gave Javanese dance a meditative traits. Javanese court dances were heavily influenced by Javanese Hindu-Buddhist legacy. As the result the costumes, jewelry and story, often reflects or based on Hindu epic tales of Ramayana and Mahabharata.\nThere are three basic types of courtly Javanese kraton dance:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5c929d22-69f7-49e7-b2dc-0488aa1f9d14"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bpssevz6nc","content":[{"text":"Beksan putra – These are the dances for men, which serve two purposes: a military close-order drill and highlighting martial skills. Dancers may learn beksan putra dances to familiarize themselves with the movements for narrative dances.\nBeksan putri – Putri is the Javanese word for female, and these dances include courtly dances designed for royal events with very precise movements and distinct staging with subtle layers of meaning. Such dances were often used for entertainment or courtship.\nBeksan wayang – These are narrative dances from epic poems, and usually are named after the characters in them, usually an alus-style hero and a gagah-style villain.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5c929d22-69f7-49e7-b2dc-0488aa1f9d14"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Commoner dances (tari rakyat)","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vncx0gzgzb","content":[{"text":"It's the popular dances of the commoner. This is the type of Javanese dances that developed in villages or cities that located relatively quite far from Javanese kratons as the center of Javanese palace culture. Kawulo dances is lack in Javanese courtly dance discipline, constraints, and refinements. This type of dance relatively more open and adaptive to local preference as well as foreign influences.\nSeveral dance forms function as courtship or social dance such as ronggeng, gandrung and tayub, while others are celebratory dances such as reog and kuda lumping. The movement of social dances, such as ronggeng and tayub are more vigorous and often erotic, closely related to Sundanese jaipongan. Because of the erotic nuances, those who perform this type of dance are sometimes perceived as intentionally being suggestive or even openly advertising sexual favors.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5c929d22-69f7-49e7-b2dc-0488aa1f9d14"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ksg6dwzz28","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Javanese dances”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5c929d22-69f7-49e7-b2dc-0488aa1f9d14"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5ehr1eyy9j","content":[{"text":"Javanese dance is Indonesian traditional dance of Javanese people, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4e42596b-a23e-49df-904f-0bde4e1837cb"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"y2562ddgqt","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4e42596b-a23e-49df-904f-0bde4e1837cb"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Javanese dance reflects the stratified hierarchy of Javanese society, and roughly can be identified within two mainstream of traditions: 1. Tari kraton (palace dances) 2. Tari kawula (commoner dances)","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/74/Javanese_Traditional_Dancer.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"IrmaRosalina","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Javanese dance reflects the stratified hierarchy of Javanese society, and roughly can be identified within two mainstream of traditions: 1. Tari kraton (palace dances) 2. Tari kawula (commoner dances)","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/74/Javanese_Traditional_Dancer.jpg/960px-Javanese_Traditional_Dancer.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Javanese_Traditional_Dancer.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/74/Javanese_Traditional_Dancer.jpg/1280px-Javanese_Traditional_Dancer.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:25.917Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/javanese-dance"}
{"id":"2ea2a49c-2090-4929-b2b6-3c4fe0b12bc9","type":"art_form","slug":"jazz-dance","title":"jazz dance","summary":"Jazz Dance is a performance dance and style that arose in the United States in the early 20th century. Jazz Dance may allude to vernacular Jazz, Broadway or dramatic Jazz.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w07exx3n98","content":[{"text":"Jazz Dance is a performance dance and style that arose in the United States in the early 20th century. Jazz Dance may allude to vernacular Jazz, Broadway or dramatic Jazz. The two types expand on African American vernacular styles of dance that arose with Jazz Music. Vernacular dance refers to dance forms that emerge from everyday life and cultural practices of a specific community, often reflecting the social, cultural, and historical contexts of that community. In the context of African American culture, vernacular dance encompasses styles that developed organically within African American communities, influenced by African traditions, European dance forms, and the unique experiences of African Americans in the United States.\nVernacular Jazz Dance incorporates ragtime moves, Charleston, Lindy hop and mambo. Popular vernacular Jazz Dance performers include The Whitman Sisters, Florence Mills, Ethel Waters, Al Minns and Leon James, Frankie Manning, Norma Miller, Dawn Hampton, and Katherine Dunham. Dramatic Jazz Dance performed on the show stage was promoted by Jack Cole, Bob Fosse, Eugene Louis Faccuito, and Gus Giordano.\nThe term \"Jazz Dance\" has been used in ways that have little or nothing to do with jazz music. Since the 1940s, Hollywood movies and Broadway shows have used the term to describe the choreographies of Bob Fosse and Jerome Robbins.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6ed355d0-621f-4bea-a504-f2c2cf77cecd"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"81427eww3h","content":[{"text":"The history of modern Jazz Dance is intertwined with the cultural and social experiences of African Americans, tracing its roots back to African dance traditions. Key characteristics of traditional African dance included the use of bent knees, complex rhythms, and the isolation of body parts, all of which contributed to a dynamic and expressive form of movement. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, black performance art began to gain visibility in the United States. The emergence of Vaudeville and minstrel shows provided platforms for black entertainers to showcase their talents. These performances often included dance, music, and comedy, reflecting the everyday lives and experiences of black people. Notable shows, such as \"The South Before the War\" and \"The Creole Show,\" featured black performers and contributed to the evolution of dance styles that would later influence Jazz Dance.\nThe Harlem Renaissance of the 1920s marked a significant cultural movement that celebrated black art, literature, and music. Jazz music became increasingly popular. Dance styles evolved, incorporating elements from African traditions, social dances, and Jazz Music. This period saw the rise of iconic figures such as Josephine Baker and the Nicholas Brothers, who brought Jazz Dance to mainstream audiences.\nIn 1931, the New Negro Art Theatre presented a groundbreaking recital that included interpretive dances based on Southern spirituals. This event showcased black life through dance, setting a precedent for future performances. Dancer Hemsley Winfield played a crucial role in this movement, emphasizing the importance of expressing the black experience through the art of dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6ed355d0-621f-4bea-a504-f2c2cf77cecd"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Swing Dancing","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tp4emm3g5m","content":[{"text":"In 1917, Jazz pianist Spencer Williams wrote a song called \"Shim-Me-Sha-Wabble\" which inspired a Jazz Dance called the shimmy. The shimmy is done by holding the body still \"except for the shoulders, which are quickly alternated back and forth\". The dances that emerged during this period were the Charleston and the Lindy hop.The Charleston is \"characterized by its toes-in, heels-out twisting steps\". It can be done as a solo or with any number of people.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6ed355d0-621f-4bea-a504-f2c2cf77cecd"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zpdfgtp2k6","content":[{"text":"The Lindy hop was a wild and spontaneous partner dance that was extremely rhythmically conscious. When the Great Depression began in October 1929, many people turned to dance. Because of this, the Charleston and the Lindy hop are now considered to be under the umbrella term \"swing dance stylized, continuously flowing movements that developed the technique and style for the combinations that followed\". Cole's style has been called hip, hard, and cool\". Fosse combined \"vaudeville, striptease, magic shows, nightclubs, film and Broadway musicals\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6ed355d0-621f-4bea-a504-f2c2cf77cecd"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"The Charleston","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3zswnc69h8","content":[{"text":"The Charleston is a dynamic dance that emerged in the early 20th century, named after the harbor city of Charleston, South Carolina. The Charleston incorporated hand clapping, broad movements, and foot stamping, which were directly linked to the African origins of The Juba, a dance that originated from the Kongo. \nIts popularity surged in the 1920s, particularly following the release of the 1923 song \"The Charleston,\" composed by James P. Johnson for the Broadway show Runnin' Wild. The dance reached its peak between 1926 and 1927, captivating audiences with its energetic and lively movements. The introduction of “The Charleston” in the 1920s evolved Jazz Dance because it could be done alone. At the time, ballroom dance was the norm and required the accompaniment of a partner.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6ed355d0-621f-4bea-a504-f2c2cf77cecd"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Improvisation","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"h1dbjf67ta","content":[{"text":"Improvisation is a spontaneous and structured form of choreography that draws upon a deep understanding of various dance traditions. The act of \"riffing,\" where dancers incorporate personal movements into established patterns, exemplifies how improvisation allows for both innovation and adherence to tradition, showcasing the resilience and adaptability of African-American culture.\nImprovisation in African-American vernacular dancing reflects the cultural identity of its dancers by serving as a dynamic form of expression. It intertwines personal creativity with communal traditions. The practice allows dancers to convey their individual experiences and emotions while simultaneously engaging with the rich historical and cultural narratives of their communities. The improvisational aesthetic is deeply embedded in the ceremonial and communal aspects of African-American life, reflecting values of oral communication and sensory experience.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6ed355d0-621f-4bea-a504-f2c2cf77cecd"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Pop music and television","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2swmympfq3","content":[{"text":"Contemporary jazz became well known because of its television shows unlike So You Think You Can Dance. Mia Michaels's earlier work exemplifies this style. Some other companies and choreographers that create contemporary Jazz Dance are Sonya Tayeh, Mandy Moore, and Hubbard Street Dance Chicago. Commercial Jazz, which has been popular since the 1980s, combines aspects of hip hop and jazz and is often done to pop music. This style can be seen in the music videos of Janet Jackson and Paula Abdul. Commercial Jazz often includes more \"tricks.\" Commercial Jazz and contemporary jazz are both seen at dance competitions. Another variety of jazz is Latin Jazz. \"Maria Torres developed and popularized the fusion at Broadway Dance Center\". Latin jazz has an emphasis on the movement of hips and isolations. It can be seen in the films El Cantante and Dance with Me, as well as on TV dance shows.\nJazz Dance appeared throughout the 20th century and is observable through the media. For example, movies like \"A Chorus Line\" and \"Saturday Night Fever\"  helped re-popularize Jazz Dance and added new styles and combinations.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6ed355d0-621f-4bea-a504-f2c2cf77cecd"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qgzbxvxt2t","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Jazz dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6ed355d0-621f-4bea-a504-f2c2cf77cecd"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0223m7caq5","content":[{"text":"jazz dance is performance dance technique, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a1e17a00-4e8a-4c9e-8d4f-208585bb161c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"a2bjmtcy54","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 26 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a1e17a00-4e8a-4c9e-8d4f-208585bb161c"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"women dancing near mirror","src":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1524594152303-9fd13543fe6e?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8amF6eiUyMGRhbmNlfGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgxMTMwMTh8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1080","kind":"photo","width":4272,"credit":"Danielle Cerullo","height":2848,"source":"unsplash","depicts":"women dancing near mirror","licence":"Unsplash License","thumb640":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1524594152303-9fd13543fe6e?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8amF6eiUyMGRhbmNlfGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgxMTMwMTh8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=640","sourceUrl":"https://unsplash.com/photos/women-dancing-near-mirror-3ckWUnaCxzc?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral","thumb1280":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1524594152303-9fd13543fe6e?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8amF6eiUyMGRhbmNlfGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgxMTMwMTh8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1280","attributionUrl":"https://unsplash.com/@dncerullo?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:27.592Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/jazz-dance"}
{"id":"c0602972-0c91-49ba-8049-82b5dfe9189d","type":"art_form","slug":"jewish-dance","title":"Jewish dance","summary":"Jewish dance is dance associated with Jews and Judaism. Dance has long been used by Jews as a medium for the expression of joy and other communal emotions.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5wh63geggp","content":[{"text":"Jewish dance is dance associated with Jews and Judaism. Dance has long been used by Jews as a medium for the expression of joy and other communal emotions. Dancing is a favorite pastime and plays a role in religious observance.\nDances associated with Ashkenazi and Sephardi traditions, especially Jewish wedding dances, are an integral part of Jewish life  around the world. Folk dances associated with Zionism and the formation of the State of Israel became popular in the 1950s.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5e8eaaf9-e210-4a8e-94ff-7ba97786d104"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Jewish vernacular dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t4xmmbwzqq","content":[{"text":"Among Ashkenazi Jews dancing to klezmer music was an integral part of weddings in shtetls. Jewish dance was influenced by local non-Jewish dance traditions, but there were clear differences, mainly in hand and arm motions, with more intricate legwork by the younger men. Jewish religious law frowned on mixed dancing, dictating separate circles for men and women.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5e8eaaf9-e210-4a8e-94ff-7ba97786d104"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Hasidic dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t208s33fth","content":[{"text":"In Hasidic Judaism, dance is a tool for expressing joy and is believed to  purify the soul, promote spiritual elation and unify the community. It also thought to stimulate joy and therefore to have a therapeutic effect.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5e8eaaf9-e210-4a8e-94ff-7ba97786d104"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Horah","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8nnvkpymnn","content":[{"text":"The Horah is a Jewish circle dance typically danced to the music of Hava Nagila. It is traditionally danced at Jewish weddings and other joyous occasions in the Jewish community. The popularity of Horah in Israel is attributed by some to the Romanian Jewish dancer Baruch Agadati. In 1924, he choreographed a show performed by the workers' theater \"Ohel\", which toured the pioneer settlements of the Jezreel Valley. \"Hora Agadati,\" as the dance was known, became a success there. The dance was influenced by the Romanian one and some features of Russian dances. Over the time the dance evolved, and in mid-1940s its creator said that now it had become a real folk dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5e8eaaf9-e210-4a8e-94ff-7ba97786d104"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Tza'ad Temani","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"psrrx6fd0x","content":[{"text":"The Tza’ad Temani is a form of dancing based on hopping in place. The Tza'ad Temani is frequently incorporated in public dancing at Jewish weddings and celebrations. The Inbal Dance Theater specializes in Temani dancing in Israel.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5e8eaaf9-e210-4a8e-94ff-7ba97786d104"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Ballet","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9n413y7trk","content":[{"text":"In Russia and France, the Ballets Russes was \"primarily a Jewish creation,\" according to Paul Johnson. In the United States, Jewish choreographers and dancers have been leading figures in the dance world, among them Jerome Robbins, Anna Sokolow, Michael Bennett, Michael Kidd, Ron Field, Arthur Murray, Helen Tamiris and Pearl Lang. Lincoln Kirstein was one of the founders of the School of American Ballet, The American Ballet and the New York City Ballet.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5e8eaaf9-e210-4a8e-94ff-7ba97786d104"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sbkz5ghnth","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Jewish dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5e8eaaf9-e210-4a8e-94ff-7ba97786d104"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4f7hcdaqgw","content":[{"text":"Jewish dance is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"200057d5-b095-4c86-a373-5bcd125f21b8"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"h9sezgsz79","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 4 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"200057d5-b095-4c86-a373-5bcd125f21b8"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"A 1908 postcard depicting a traditional dance from an Eastern European Jewish wedding. The caption says: \"A woil Machuntem Tanz. / Taniec weselny rodziców.\" Machtunem Tanz (Mekhutonim tants, in-law's dance) refers to a traditional dance of the bride and groom's in-laws during a…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/76/A_woil_Machtunem_Tanz_postcard.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Unknown author Unknown author","height":815,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"A 1908 postcard depicting a traditional dance from an Eastern European Jewish wedding. The caption says: \"A woil Machuntem Tanz. / Taniec weselny rodziców.\" Machtunem Tanz (Mekhutonim tants, in-law's dance) refers to a traditional dance of the bride and groom's in-laws during a…","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/76/A_woil_Machtunem_Tanz_postcard.png/960px-A_woil_Machtunem_Tanz_postcard.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:A_woil_Machtunem_Tanz_postcard.png","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/76/A_woil_Machtunem_Tanz_postcard.png/1280px-A_woil_Machtunem_Tanz_postcard.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"Description from YIVO Encyclopedia: \"Tanz der Marschelik, Spassmacher (Dance of the Marshelik, Jester). Illustration by an artist identified only as “M.D.,” 1902. Postcard published by A.F.T. Drawing depicting a badkhn (Marshelik) at a Hasidic wedding. (YIVO)\"","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ec/Tanz_des_Marschelik%2C_Spassmacher_%281902_postcard%29.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Unknown artist identified as \"M.D.\"","height":835,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Description from YIVO Encyclopedia: \"Tanz der Marschelik, Spassmacher (Dance of the Marshelik, Jester). Illustration by an artist identified only as “M.D.,” 1902. Postcard published by A.F.T. Drawing depicting a badkhn (Marshelik) at a Hasidic wedding. (YIVO)\"","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ec/Tanz_des_Marschelik%2C_Spassmacher_%281902_postcard%29.png/960px-Tanz_des_Marschelik%2C_Spassmacher_%281902_postcard%29.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tanz_des_Marschelik,_Spassmacher_(1902_postcard).png","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ec/Tanz_des_Marschelik%2C_Spassmacher_%281902_postcard%29.png/1280px-Tanz_des_Marschelik%2C_Spassmacher_%281902_postcard%29.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"Nauka tańca żydowskiego na SLOT Art Festival 2022 r. w pocysterskim opactwie w Lubiążu","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d4/Taniec_%C5%BCydowski_warsztat.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Klara Sielicka-Baryłka (WMPL)","height":2352,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Nauka tańca żydowskiego na SLOT Art Festival 2022 r. w pocysterskim opactwie w Lubiążu","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d4/Taniec_%C5%BCydowski_warsztat.jpg/960px-Taniec_%C5%BCydowski_warsztat.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Taniec_%C5%BCydowski_warsztat.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d4/Taniec_%C5%BCydowski_warsztat.jpg/1280px-Taniec_%C5%BCydowski_warsztat.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:08.933Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/jewish-dance"}
{"id":"78c54a8d-c95d-41c3-b8ee-ba79779793ab","type":"art_form","slug":"jingle-dance","title":"jingle dance","summary":"Jingle dress is a First Nations and Native American women's pow wow regalia and dance.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vv1qeq8z20","content":[{"text":"Jingle dress is a First Nations and Native American women's pow wow regalia and dance. North Central College associate professor Matthew Krystal notes, in his book, Indigenous Dance and Dancing Indian: Contested Representation in the Global Era, that \"Whereas men's styles offer Grass Dance as a healing themed dance, women may select Jingle Dress Dance.\" The regalia worn for the dance is a jingle dress, which includes ornamentation with multiple rows of metal, such as cones, that create a jingling sound as the dancer moves.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0825363c-b1fc-491b-aa81-279da586413c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origins","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6m8rncs0a5","content":[{"text":"Origin of the jingle dress is attributed to three different Ojibwa communities: the Mille Lacs, Red Lake Band of Chippewa and the Whitefish Bay Ojibwe.  In both the Mille Lacs and Whitefish Bay versions, the dress and the dance appeared in a recurring vivid dream that was realized about the year 1900.  In both versions, the dream came to a Midewinini (sometimes translated 'medicine man').  In both dreams, there were four women, each wearing a jingle dress and dancing.  Each dream also gave instructions on how to make the dresses, what types of songs went with them and how the dance was to be performed.  In the Mille Lacs' version, the Midewinini upon awakening, with his wife made four dresses. He showed his wife how to dance in the dress, which he showed to the four women he had dreamed about, by calling the four women who in his dream wore them, dressed them in the dresses, brought them forth at a dance, told the people about the dream, and how the way the Midewikweg were to dress and dance.\nThe Mille Lacs' version of the story continues that the reason for this recurring dream was because the daughter of the Midewinini was gravely ill.  When it came time for the drum ceremony, the man and his wife brought their little girl. They sat at the ceremony, and the girl lay on the floor because she was quite ill.  After the ceremony, the Midewinini got up and told the people about his dream. Then he brought out the four women and said they were going to dance in the style he had dreamed about. The drum started, the people began to sing, and the women danced.  As the evening went on, the daughter was sitting up and watching.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0825363c-b1fc-491b-aa81-279da586413c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Footwork","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jmzehzz6e8","content":[{"text":"The traditional jingle dance is characterized by the jingle dress and light footwork danced close to ground. The dancer dances in a pattern, her feet do not cross, they do not dance backward or turn a complete circle.  Compared to the original dance, the contemporary dance can be fancier, with intricate footwork and the dress design is often cut to accommodate these footwork maneuvers. Contemporary dancers do often cross their feet, turn full circles and dance backwards. Such moves exemplify the differences between contemporary and traditional jingle dress dancing.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0825363c-b1fc-491b-aa81-279da586413c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Regalia","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"585ztw6ayd","content":[{"text":"Jingle dresses were initially made of fabric in solid, \"healthy\" colours – red, green/yellow, black and blue. Each dress was adorned with jingles on the sleeves, the top, and one, two, or three rows of jingles on the bottom. The jingles were made from chewing tobacco can lids, rolled into cones.\nContemporary jingle dresses, introduced in the 1980s, are made from multi-colored fabric decorated with jingles made of tin or other metals. The jingle count on a child's dress is approximately 100 to 130 or 140, and for a woman's size, the amount varies depending on the dress design. The contemporary dancer carries a feather fan, often wearing eagle plumes or feathers in her hair.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0825363c-b1fc-491b-aa81-279da586413c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rbsqsxbhah","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Jingle dress”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0825363c-b1fc-491b-aa81-279da586413c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dg9c8ctbyg","content":[{"text":"jingle dance is woman's powwow dance among Native American and First Nations peoples, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2ee02243-66d9-46fc-8144-aa6d5c7bc69f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"54z1fp9jtz","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2ee02243-66d9-46fc-8144-aa6d5c7bc69f"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Exhibit in the Glenbow Museum, 130 9th Ave S.E., Calgary, Alberta, Canada. This work is old enough so that it is in the public domain. Photography was permitted in the museum without restriction.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/37/Jingle_Dance_Dress%2C_Day_Star_First_Nation%2C_mid_1900s%2C_view_2%2C_cloth%2C_metal_-_Glenbow_Museum_-_DSC00868.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Daderot","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Exhibit in the Glenbow Museum, 130 9th Ave S.E., Calgary, Alberta, Canada. This work is old enough so that it is in the public domain. Photography was permitted in the museum without restriction.","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/37/Jingle_Dance_Dress%2C_Day_Star_First_Nation%2C_mid_1900s%2C_view_2%2C_cloth%2C_metal_-_Glenbow_Museum_-_DSC00868.JPG/960px-Jingle_Dance_Dress%2C_Day_Star_First_Nation%2C_mid_1900s%2C_view_2%2C_cloth%2C_metal_-_Glenbow_Museum_-_DSC00868.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Jingle_Dance_Dress,_Day_Star_First_Nation,_mid_1900s,_view_2,_cloth,_metal_-_Glenbow_Museum_-_DSC00868.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/37/Jingle_Dance_Dress%2C_Day_Star_First_Nation%2C_mid_1900s%2C_view_2%2C_cloth%2C_metal_-_Glenbow_Museum_-_DSC00868.JPG/1280px-Jingle_Dance_Dress%2C_Day_Star_First_Nation%2C_mid_1900s%2C_view_2%2C_cloth%2C_metal_-_Glenbow_Museum_-_DSC00868.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"},{"alt":"Exhibit in the Glenbow Museum, 130 9th Ave S.E., Calgary, Alberta, Canada. This work is old enough so that it is in the public domain. Photography was permitted in the museum without restriction.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d3/Jingle_Dance_Dress%2C_Day_Star_First_Nation%2C_mid_1900s%2C_view_1%2C_cloth%2C_metal_-_Glenbow_Museum_-_DSC00864.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Daderot","height":1920,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Exhibit in the Glenbow Museum, 130 9th Ave S.E., Calgary, Alberta, Canada. This work is old enough so that it is in the public domain. Photography was permitted in the museum without restriction.","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d3/Jingle_Dance_Dress%2C_Day_Star_First_Nation%2C_mid_1900s%2C_view_1%2C_cloth%2C_metal_-_Glenbow_Museum_-_DSC00864.JPG/960px-Jingle_Dance_Dress%2C_Day_Star_First_Nation%2C_mid_1900s%2C_view_1%2C_cloth%2C_metal_-_Glenbow_Museum_-_DSC00864.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Jingle_Dance_Dress,_Day_Star_First_Nation,_mid_1900s,_view_1,_cloth,_metal_-_Glenbow_Museum_-_DSC00864.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d3/Jingle_Dance_Dress%2C_Day_Star_First_Nation%2C_mid_1900s%2C_view_1%2C_cloth%2C_metal_-_Glenbow_Museum_-_DSC00864.JPG/1280px-Jingle_Dance_Dress%2C_Day_Star_First_Nation%2C_mid_1900s%2C_view_1%2C_cloth%2C_metal_-_Glenbow_Museum_-_DSC00864.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"},{"alt":"Jingle Dance story – There was a little girl, who was very ill and could not walk. One night, her grandfather had a dream of the beautiful jingle dress that moved. The next day the ladies of the tribe created the jingle dress. When the grandfather and others sang the song, the…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/98/Jingle_dancers.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Archibucky513","height":1004,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Jingle Dance story – There was a little girl, who was very ill and could not walk. One night, her grandfather had a dream of the beautiful jingle dress that moved. The next day the ladies of the tribe created the jingle dress. When the grandfather and others sang the song, the…","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/98/Jingle_dancers.jpg/960px-Jingle_dancers.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Jingle_dancers.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/98/Jingle_dancers.jpg/1280px-Jingle_dancers.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:26.210Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/jingle-dance"}
{"id":"8898832c-41ba-4c73-894b-d2692b5f7048","type":"art_form","slug":"jitterbug","title":"jitterbug","summary":"Jitterbug is a generalized term used to describe swing dancing.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pb83n8f7dy","content":[{"text":"Jitterbug is a generalized term used to describe swing dancing. It is often synonymous with the lindy hop dance but might include elements of the jive, east coast swing, collegiate shag, charleston, balboa and other swing dances.\nSwing dancing originated in the African-American communities of New York City in the early 20th century. Many nightclubs had a whites-only or blacks-only policy due to racial segregation, however the Savoy Ballroom in Harlem had a no-discrimination policy which allowed whites and blacks to dance together and it was there that the Lindy Hop dance flourished, started by dancers such as George Snowden and Frank Manning. The term jitterbug was originally a ridicule used by black patrons to describe whites who started to dance the Lindy Hop, because they were dancing faster and jumpier than was intended, like \"jittering bugs\", although it quickly lost its negative connotation as the more-erratic version caught on. Both the Lindy Hop and the \"jitterbug\" became popular outside Harlem when the dance was featured in Hollywood films and Broadway theatre, starring the performance group Whitey's Lindy Hoppers.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0e3208ad-dacd-4675-a568-24817f692ecc"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bjb9qhygdk","content":[{"text":"According to the Oxford English Dictionary (OED) the word \"jitterbug\" is a combination of the words \"jitter\" and \"bug\"; both words are of unknown origin.\nThe first use of the word \"jitters\" quoted by the OED is from 1929, Act II of the play Strictly Dishonorable by Preston Sturges where the character Isabelle says: \"Willie's got the jitters\" is answered by a judge \"Jitters?\" to which Isabelle answers \"You know, he makes faces all the time.\" The second quote in the OED is from the N.Y. Press from 2 April 1930: \"The game is played only after the mugs and wenches have taken on too much gin and they arrive at the state of jitters, a disease known among the common herd as heebie jeebies.\" \nThe first quote containing the term “jitter bug” recorded by the OED is from the 1934 Cab Calloway song “Jitter Bug”. The magazine Song Hits, in the 19 November 1939 issue, published the lyrics, including: “They’re four little jitter bugs. He has the jitters ev’ry morn; that’s why jitter sauce was born.”\nAccording to H. W. Fry in his review of Dictionary of Word Origins by Joseph Twadell Shipley in 1945 the word \"jitters\" \"is from a spoonerism ['bin and jitters' for 'gin and bitters']...and originally referred to one under the influence of gin and bitters\".\nWentworth and Flexner explains \"jitterbug\" as \"[o]ne who, though not a musician, enthusiastically likes or understands swing music; a swing fan\" or \"[o]ne who dances frequently to swing music\" or \"[a] devotee of jitterbug music and dancing; one who follows the fashions and fads of the jitterbug devotee... To dance, esp[ecially] to jazz or swing music and usu[ally] in an extremely vigorous and athletic manner\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0e3208ad-dacd-4675-a568-24817f692ecc"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Early history","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wfcr6xr1ps","content":[{"text":"The jitterbug developed from dances performed by African-Americans at juke joints and dance halls. The Carolina shag and single Lindy Hop dances formed the basis of the jitterbug, which gave way to the double Lindy Hop when rock and roll became popular.\nWhite dancers picked up the energetic jitterbug from dancers at black venues. Venues in the Hill District in Pittsburgh were popular places for whites to learn the jitterbug. The Savoy Ballroom, a dance hall in Harlem, was a famous cross-cultural venue, frequented by both black and white dancers. Norma Miller, a former Lindy Hop dancer who regularly performed at the Savoy, noted that the dances performed there were choreographed in advance, which was not always understood by tourists, who sometimes believed the performers were just dancing socially.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0e3208ad-dacd-4675-a568-24817f692ecc"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Popularity","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3k9qnccwmv","content":[{"text":"In 1944, with the United States' continuing involvement in World War II, a 30% federal excise tax was levied against night clubs that featured dancing. Although the tax was later reduced to 20%, \"No Dancing Allowed\" signs went up all over the country. It has been argued that this tax had a significant role in the decline of public dancing as a recreational activity in the United States.\nWorld War II facilitated the spread of jitterbug across the Pacific and the Atlantic Oceans. Across the Atlantic in preparation for D-Day, there were nearly 1.6  million American troops stationed throughout Britain in May 1944. Numbers dwindled thereafter, but as late as April 30, 1945  there were still over 224,000 airmen, 109,000 communications zone troops, and 100,000 in hospitals or preparing to serve as individual replacements.\nDancing was not a popular pastime in Britain before the war, and many ballrooms had been closed for lack of business. In the wake of the arrival of American troops, many of these re-opened, installing jukeboxes rather than hiring live bands. Working class women who had never danced recreationally before made up a large part of the attendees, along with American soldiers and sailors. British Samoans were doing a \"Seabee version\" of the jitterbug by January 1944.  By November 1945 after the departure of the American troops following D-Day, English couples were being warned not to continue doing energetic \"rude American dancing,\" as it was disapproved of by the upper classes. Time reported that American troops stationed in France in 1945 jitterbugged, and by 1946, jitterbug had become a craze in England.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0e3208ad-dacd-4675-a568-24817f692ecc"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"myekhvx3xz","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Jitterbug”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0e3208ad-dacd-4675-a568-24817f692ecc"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"66c3sf54tr","content":[{"text":"jitterbug is dance style associated with swing dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9f3fdcd1-bcd6-4d81-ab7a-ee331ba2533c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"emrb6dqse5","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 10 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9f3fdcd1-bcd6-4d81-ab7a-ee331ba2533c"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"People dancing in a park during daytime","src":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1768390024933-7293bd089f9b?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8aml0dGVyYnVnfGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgxMTMwMjB8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1080","kind":"photo","width":8064,"credit":"Kyle Hinkson","height":6048,"source":"unsplash","depicts":"People dancing in a park during daytime","licence":"Unsplash License","thumb640":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1768390024933-7293bd089f9b?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8aml0dGVyYnVnfGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgxMTMwMjB8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=640","sourceUrl":"https://unsplash.com/photos/people-dancing-in-a-park-during-daytime-TBBW-7RrBjs?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral","thumb1280":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1768390024933-7293bd089f9b?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8aml0dGVyYnVnfGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgxMTMwMjB8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1280","attributionUrl":"https://unsplash.com/@whereiskylenow?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:28.193Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/jitterbug"}
{"id":"beea2fb1-c75c-490f-b739-9871e41b0630","type":"art_form","slug":"jive","title":"jive","summary":"The jive is a dance style that originated in the United States from African Americans in the early 1930s.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nef19pwxbp","content":[{"text":"The jive is a dance style that originated in the United States from African Americans in the early 1930s. The name of the dance comes from the name of a form of African-American vernacular slang, popularized in the 1930s by the publication of a dictionary by Cab Calloway, the famous jazz bandleader and singer. In competition ballroom dancing, the jive is often (mistakenly) grouped with the Latin-inspired ballroom dances, though its roots are based more on swing dancing than Latin dancing.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"53cda73e-cbba-47bf-826d-2c7e4d2cb64e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2kf16w6bgj","content":[{"text":"To the players of swing music in the 1930s and 1940s, jive was an expression denoting glib or foolish talk.\nAmerican soldiers brought lindy hop and jitterbug to Europe around 1940, where this dance swiftly found a following among the young. In the United States, \"swing\" became the most common word for the dance, and the term \"jive\" was adopted in the UK. Variations in technique led to styles such as boogie-woogie and swing boogie, with \"jive\" gradually emerging as the term in the UK.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"53cda73e-cbba-47bf-826d-2c7e4d2cb64e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"v6he7qy69z","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Jive (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"53cda73e-cbba-47bf-826d-2c7e4d2cb64e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nzdm85f5p2","content":[{"text":"jive is dance style, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b82e16ce-5c62-48b3-ae0e-e06e81fb97f1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9w4kgtf89b","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 5 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b82e16ce-5c62-48b3-ae0e-e06e81fb97f1"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:34.188Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/jive"}
{"id":"3febdf84-4cb5-4a06-83eb-25ac80d22df3","type":"art_form","slug":"joropo","title":"joropo","summary":"The joropo, or Música Llanera, is a musical style resembling the fandango, and an accompanying dance. It originated in the Llanos of Colombia and Venezuela 300 years ago and it has African, European and Native South American influences.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ngmsqfc89r","content":[{"text":"The joropo, or Música Llanera, is a musical style resembling the fandango, and an accompanying dance. It originated in the Llanos of Colombia and Venezuela 300 years ago and it has African, European and Native South American influences. There are different joropo variants: tuyero, oriental, and llanero. It is a fundamental genre of Venezuelan música criolla. It is also the most popular \"folk rhythm\": the well-known song \"Alma Llanera\" is a joropo by Pedro Elias Gutierrez, considered the unofficial national anthem of Venezuela. Also, the song “Ay Mi Llanura” by Arnulfo Briceño is considered the most representative of Colombia.\nIn 1882 it became Venezuela's national dance and music. Formerly, the Spanish word joropo meant \"a party\", but now it has come to mean a type of music and dance that identifies Venezuelans. In the 18th century, the llaneros started using the word joropo instead of fandango, which was used at the time for party and dance.\nIn 2025, UNESCO inscribed Venezuelan joropo on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9b60f251-a832-4022-aa48-91c669bb82ff"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Tuyero","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9gnq6gr1cc","content":[{"text":"Central joropo (Spanish: joropo central) is also known as tuyero (\"Tuyan\"), joropo tuyero (\"Tuyan joropo\") or golpe tuyero (\"Tuyan beat\").\nCharacteristic of the central states of Venezuela, like Aragua and Miranda, eastern Carabobo and northern Guárico, central joropo, or tuyero (as practiced in the Valles del Tuy along the Tuy River) is sung accompanied by harp (arpa tuyera, sometimes replaced by guitar) and maracas. Unlike the nylon strings of the llanera harp, the central joropo harp also uses metal strings, which gave its unique sound. The central joropo singer also plays the maracas and dances, requiring just two performers: the harpist, and the singer-maraquero. Joropo harpists prefer the name \"arpisto\" rather than arpista, the usual Spanish word for \"harpist\". The central joropo him the same considerations are applied around the passage and hit burrowing joropo, except speed, which is slightly lower. Another important distinction is that the central joropo revuelta consists of a chain of musical sections of fixed forms, in the same tone as a Baroque suite, without interruption, but with surprising twists. The movements of the revuelta are called passage; input or call Yaguazo, Yaguazo, and Marisela Guabina input. Sometimes they can call Marisela added to them, and even a small coda. The revuelta is thus equivalent to the batch or shift dance, and its length is probably the reason for its gradual decline in use, being replaced by the execution of the parts in isolation. The arrangement of these sections is of sequential nature, unlike golpes of Llanero joropo, having a cyclic condition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9b60f251-a832-4022-aa48-91c669bb82ff"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Eastern joropo","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8wwxxsqbrq","content":[{"text":"Characteristic of the northeastern region of Venezuela, specifically of Sucre, Nueva Esparta and the north of Anzoátegui and Monagas states. In this particular type of joropo, the melodic instrument par excellence is the mandolin. However, the eastern mandolin (eight nylon strings), violin, harmonica and a small accordion called \"cuereta\" also have a major role in the oriental musical folklore. The so-called \"joropo with refrain\" consists of two sections: the first section or \"hit\" is traditionally a fixed melody in 34 rhythm that is repeated two or more times; the second section or \"chorus\" is an improvised melody over a fixed harmonic rhythm cycle is 68. Note that in the eastern joropo, cuatro and maracas are executed in a much freer and more complex than in the rest of Venezuelans joropos way. Likewise, it is important to mention that the musical tradition of the eastern region of Venezuela has many other forms besides the eastern joropo.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9b60f251-a832-4022-aa48-91c669bb82ff"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Guayanés joropo","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yzyd9g0vh2","content":[{"text":"Joropo in the Venezuelan region of Guayana is the product of the interaction of llaneros and eastern Bolivar state, specifically in Ciudad Bolívar. It is executed with the Guayanese mandolin (eight metal strings), cuatro and maracas. The Seis Guayanés, the Josa and Rompeluto highlight among the most famous Guyanese joropos.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9b60f251-a832-4022-aa48-91c669bb82ff"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Golpe tocuyano or larense joropo","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gxgp8yphbr","content":[{"text":"Hailing from the West Central region of Venezuela, mainly the states of Lara, Portuguesa (Sierra de Portuguesa) and Yaracuy. Played by a variety of stringed instruments (Four, Middle Five, Five and Six) together with Tambora and maracas produce a very particular and unique sound among other Venezuelan joropos. Popular tocuyano hits include \"Amalia Rosa\", \"Montilla\", \"Gavilan Tocuyano\" and \"Ah mundo! Barquisimeto\", \"Los Dos Gavilanes\", \"El Espanto\", \"Pajarillo Tocuyano\", \"Garrote Encabullao\", and \"Fuego Fuego\", among many others. Dancing in the number of members is six couples.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9b60f251-a832-4022-aa48-91c669bb82ff"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Quirpa","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"twd6m5pa5h","content":[{"text":"Legend says that this type of joropo is named after Jose Antonio Oquendo, who was nicknamed \"Quirpa\" . Burrowing harpist of the late nineteenth century who died of a stab wound. The quirpa uses ternary and tertiary bars and sometimes combined, with shifts of rhythm and musical accents .","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9b60f251-a832-4022-aa48-91c669bb82ff"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"da7v6k1n40","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Joropo”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9b60f251-a832-4022-aa48-91c669bb82ff"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mjbts5h2r1","content":[{"text":"joropo is folk music genre and traditional dance of Venezuela and Colombia, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0dd6a9cb-742f-411f-a24b-4dfb451c91bd"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"89c7kq4vd2","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 11 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0dd6a9cb-742f-411f-a24b-4dfb451c91bd"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"La Fiesta del Joropo es un evento realizado por el IAEM y el Ministerio para la Cultura; esta es la función realizada en la sala Ríos Reyna del Teatro Teresa Carreño el 2 de noviembre de 2014","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/65/Parejas_bailando_joropo_central.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Luigino Bracci","height":850,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"La Fiesta del Joropo es un evento realizado por el IAEM y el Ministerio para la Cultura; esta es la función realizada en la sala Ríos Reyna del Teatro Teresa Carreño el 2 de noviembre de 2014","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/65/Parejas_bailando_joropo_central.jpg/960px-Parejas_bailando_joropo_central.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Parejas_bailando_joropo_central.jpg","thumb1280":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/65/Parejas_bailando_joropo_central.jpg/1280px-Parejas_bailando_joropo_central.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:25.225Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/joropo"}
{"id":"48296853-9103-4c03-91a8-ddae91e372be","type":"art_form","slug":"juba-dance","title":"Juba dance","summary":"The Juba dance or hambone, originally known as Pattin' Juba (Giouba, Haiti: Djouba), is an African-American style of dance that involves stomping as well as slapping and patting the arms, legs, chest, and cheeks (clapping).","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dhkdgjswdv","content":[{"text":"The Juba dance or hambone, originally known as Pattin' Juba (Giouba, Haiti: Djouba), is an African-American style of dance that involves stomping as well as slapping and patting the arms, legs, chest, and cheeks (clapping). \"Pattin' Juba\" would be used to keep time for other dances during a walkaround. A Juba dance performance could include steps such as the \"Yaller Cat\", \"Pigeon Wing\" and \"Blow That Candle Out\". The dance traditionally ends with a step called the \"Long Dog Scratch\". Today, Juba's rhythm lives on in Bo Diddley's \"Bo Diddley Beat\" and the step-shows of African American Greek organizations.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"10bbd020-144c-4516-a664-4efe73f23e05"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qknw258hwe","content":[{"text":"Juba was derived from the Kikongo and Bantu word diuba, which meant \"to beat (or to pat) the sun or time.\" Because the movement of the sun was an important element of traditional Kongo religion, it became a prominent feature of their spiritual practices. This included a sacred step dance called giouba (also spelled djouba). Thus, the Central African-inspired juba became a dance that enslaved Bakongo in the United States performed to simulate the circle of life and the spirituality of their ancestors.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"10bbd020-144c-4516-a664-4efe73f23e05"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History of the dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"23fa0s15t7","content":[{"text":"The Juba dance was brought by enslaved peoples from the Kongo to Charleston, South Carolina. It became an African-American plantation dance that was performed by slaves during their gatherings when no rhythm instruments were allowed due to fear of secret codes hidden in the drumming.\nAs early as the 18th century, the Juba dance was a vital means of preserving African culture and identity under the oppressive conditions of slavery. Over time, it evolved into a structured performance tradition, often accompanied by call and response chants or songs. Later in the mid-19th century, music and lyrics were added, and there were public performances of the dance. Its popularization played a significant role in the development of modern tap dance. The most famous Juba dancer was William Henry Lane, or Master Juba, one of the first black performers in the United States. It was often danced in minstrel shows, and is mentioned in songs such as \"Christy's New Song\" and \"Juba\", the latter by Nathaniel Dett.\nIn the 1930s and 1940s, African American composer Florence Price drew inspiration from Juba when composing her symphonies. The rhythm and structure of the dance, deeply rooted in African traditions, made its way into informal concert music connecting folk culture and classical composition.\nHambone was famously adopted and adapted in the 1950s by rhythm & blues singer Bo Diddley for his \"Bo Diddley beat\", which was copied by many rock musicians. Today, the remains of the Juba dance are displayed and expressed in African American performance art, examples include stepping, body percussion and contemporary dance forms that honor historical rhythm and resistance to slavery.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"10bbd020-144c-4516-a664-4efe73f23e05"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Related songs","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vxz4e93e8y","content":[{"text":"\"Juba Juba\", a popular song about the Juba:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"10bbd020-144c-4516-a664-4efe73f23e05"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c2vvx61bys","content":[{"text":"Juba dis and Juba dat,\nand Juba killed da yellow cat, for\nYou sift the meal and ya gimme the husk,\nyou bake the bread and ya gimme the crust,\nyou eat the meat and ya gimme the skin,\nand that's the way,\nmy mama's troubles begin\nA song about the hambone from Step it Down (v.s.):","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"10bbd020-144c-4516-a664-4efe73f23e05"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"876jb3hsff","content":[{"text":"Hambone Hambone pat him on the shoulder\nIf you get a pretty girl, I'll show you how to hold her.\nHambone, Hambone, where have you been?\nAll 'round the world and back again.\nHambone, Hambone, what did you do?\nI got a train and I fairly flew.\nHambone, Hambone where did you go?\nI hopped up to Miss Lucy's door.\nI asked Miss Lucy would she marry me.\n(falsetto) \"Well I don't care if Papa don't care!\"\nFirst come in was Mister Snake,\nHe crawled all over that wedding cake.\nNext walked in was Mister Tick,\nHe ate so much it made him sick.\nNext walked in was Mister Coon,\nWe asked him to sing us a wedding tune,\nNow Ham-....\nNow Ham....","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"10bbd020-144c-4516-a664-4efe73f23e05"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2b7c4kg4t3","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Juba dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"10bbd020-144c-4516-a664-4efe73f23e05"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8rdm2698dq","content":[{"text":"Juba dance is dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"327aa172-22d5-41c7-9b61-f8fb83905bb1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7ym1e3nf40","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"327aa172-22d5-41c7-9b61-f8fb83905bb1"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Illustration from The Century .","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/ca/The_Juba_Dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"H. Hemlick","height":876,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Illustration from The Century .","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/ca/The_Juba_Dance.jpg/960px-The_Juba_Dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:The_Juba_Dance.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/ca/The_Juba_Dance.jpg/1280px-The_Juba_Dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:21.021Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/juba-dance"}
{"id":"14dac876-e827-4a96-aa59-0333b252a92f","type":"art_form","slug":"ka-mate","title":"Ka Mate","summary":"Ka Mate ([ˈkaˌmatɛ]) is a Māori haka composed by Te Rauparaha, the historic leader of the iwi of Ngāti Toa of the North Island of New Zealand during the Musket Wars.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b2s08sg5ew","content":[{"text":"Ka Mate ([ˈkaˌmatɛ]) is a Māori haka composed by Te Rauparaha, the historic leader of the iwi of Ngāti Toa of the North Island of New Zealand during the Musket Wars.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4a467c4a-1d83-4908-a6ff-36eaed56190e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Composition","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7t2bpdy06c","content":[{"text":"Te Rauparaha composed Ka Mate around 1820 as a celebration of life over death after his lucky escape from pursuing Ngāti Maniapoto and Waikato enemies. He had hidden from them, on Motuopihi Island in Lake Rotoaira, in a kūmara storage pit while a woman (wāhine) by the name of Rangikoaea straddled the pit to hide and protect him. Upon emerging from the pit and into the sun he was grateful to Rangikoaea and her husband Te Wharerangi, composing the Ka Mate haka as a result.\nThe haka as composed by Te Rauparaha begins with a chant:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4a467c4a-1d83-4908-a6ff-36eaed56190e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4ck84x8mw0","content":[{"text":"Then follows the main body of the haka:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4a467c4a-1d83-4908-a6ff-36eaed56190e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b36njmza2m","content":[{"text":"Ka Mate was conceived as a brief energising haka of the ngeri type, where, in the absence of set movements, the performers are free to extemporise their chanting and movement as they feel fit, without any need for synchronisation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4a467c4a-1d83-4908-a6ff-36eaed56190e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Use in rugby","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"v5m5ej1qkz","content":[{"text":"\"Ka Mate\" is the most widely known haka both New Zealand and worldwide because a choreographed and synchronised version of the chant has traditionally been performed by the All Blacks, New Zealand's international rugby union team, as well as the Kiwis, New Zealand's international rugby league team, immediately prior to test (international) matches until 2013, when a specific haka, \"Te Iwi Kiwi\", was used instead. Since 2005 the All Blacks have occasionally performed another haka, \"Kapa o Pango\". Since the introduction of \"Kapa o Pango\" the longest sequence of \"Ka Mate\" performances by the All Blacks is nine, which has occurred twice between 22 August 2009 and 12 June 2010 and also between 13 August 2022 and 19 November 2022. Before the end of the 2003 Rugby World Cup, the performance of the Ka Mate by the All Blacks usually ended with a mid-air leap.\nPrior to 1985 the All Blacks haka was not performed with the usual performance, as most players of European ancestry had no full training on the ceremony. It took two Māori during this time (Buck Shelford and Hika Reid) to revolutionise the way it was delivered, culminating in a style close to the original haka. The non-Māori players from this point on learnt how to perform.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4a467c4a-1d83-4908-a6ff-36eaed56190e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gsjth2ps03","content":[{"text":"In an interview with ESPN shortly before the 2019 Rugby World Cup, All Blacks scrum-half TJ Perenara, the team's designated haka leader at the time and a Māori who was raised in the region where Te Rauparaha lived, explained the process of selecting which haka will be performed before a given match:There's Ka Mate and there's Kapa O Pango. When we're in Wellington we perform Ka Mate, we're paying respects to Te Rauparaha and the lands that he walked on.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4a467c4a-1d83-4908-a6ff-36eaed56190e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"List of players that have led Ka Mate","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9mz9cp8wk6","content":[{"text":"Incomplete list of All Blacks players that have led the Ka Mate version of the haka:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4a467c4a-1d83-4908-a6ff-36eaed56190e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"h8dn65m316","content":[{"text":"Numbers in brackets indicate how many times each player has led the \"Ka Mate\" haka. (correct as of 8 July 2023)","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4a467c4a-1d83-4908-a6ff-36eaed56190e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Teams who have faced Ka Mate","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fae143qt1n","content":[{"text":"In total all 22 international rugby union sides that have played the All Blacks have faced \"Ka Mate\" at least once before a test match. There are ten teams that have faced either \"Ka Mate\", \"Kapa o Pango\", another haka or no prematch haka:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4a467c4a-1d83-4908-a6ff-36eaed56190e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"94g2q9z1mj","content":[{"text":"There are 12 international rugby union sides who have always faced \"Ka Mate\" before a match against the All Blacks:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4a467c4a-1d83-4908-a6ff-36eaed56190e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rrs9qjjqa6","content":[{"text":"All of the above 60 games were won by the All Blacks except for one against the World XV on 18 April 1992.\nNumbers in brackets indicate how many times each team has faced the \"Ka Mate\" haka.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4a467c4a-1d83-4908-a6ff-36eaed56190e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Use in politics","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w6hv33zgz9","content":[{"text":"On 14 November 2024, lawmaker Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke — representing Te Pāti Māori as a Member of Parliament since 2023 — protested a first reading of the Treaty Principles Bill that attempts to clarify interpretations of an 1840 Treaty of Waitangi between the Māori and The Crown by tearing a copy of the bill in half while leading \"Ka Mate\" with the rest of her party, along with other opposition MPs and even the public gallery. Following this, the Speaker, Gerry Brownlee, suspended Parliament for 20 minutes and called for the gallery to be cleared, as well as naming Maipi-Clarke for her actions, suspending her from Parliament for 24 hours and docking her pay.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4a467c4a-1d83-4908-a6ff-36eaed56190e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5rwa17wc1v","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Ka Mate”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4a467c4a-1d83-4908-a6ff-36eaed56190e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"87jyp9b8gx","content":[{"text":"Ka Mate is Māori haka, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ce18ae1b-0f2c-43e7-b7dd-89ebd69b91d7"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hkqj2zw4t4","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ce18ae1b-0f2c-43e7-b7dd-89ebd69b91d7"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"The All Blacks during their haka, before playing France in Paris.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a5/Haka_in_paris_lillustration_1925.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Unknown author Unknown author","height":845,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"The All Blacks during their haka, before playing France in Paris.","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a5/Haka_in_paris_lillustration_1925.jpg/960px-Haka_in_paris_lillustration_1925.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Haka_in_paris_lillustration_1925.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a5/Haka_in_paris_lillustration_1925.jpg/1280px-Haka_in_paris_lillustration_1925.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"New Zealand Kiwis perform haka before the match, date unknown, by Sam Hood, photoprint, State Library of New South Wales PXE 789 (v.45)","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/82/New_Zealand_Kiwis_perform_haka_before_the_match%2C_n.d._by_Sam_Hood_%286278391329%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Sam Hood","height":959,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"New Zealand Kiwis perform haka before the match, date unknown, by Sam Hood, photoprint, State Library of New South Wales PXE 789 (v.45)","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/82/New_Zealand_Kiwis_perform_haka_before_the_match%2C_n.d._by_Sam_Hood_%286278391329%29.jpg/960px-New_Zealand_Kiwis_perform_haka_before_the_match%2C_n.d._by_Sam_Hood_%286278391329%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:New_Zealand_Kiwis_perform_haka_before_the_match,_n.d._by_Sam_Hood_(6278391329).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/82/New_Zealand_Kiwis_perform_haka_before_the_match%2C_n.d._by_Sam_Hood_%286278391329%29.jpg/1280px-New_Zealand_Kiwis_perform_haka_before_the_match%2C_n.d._by_Sam_Hood_%286278391329%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"The All Blacks performing the Haka before the test match vs Italy at the Olympic Stadium in Rome","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/92/2012-11-17_ITA-NZL_Haka.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Blackcat","height":959,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"The All Blacks performing the Haka before the test match vs Italy at the Olympic Stadium in Rome","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/92/2012-11-17_ITA-NZL_Haka.jpg/960px-2012-11-17_ITA-NZL_Haka.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:2012-11-17_ITA-NZL_Haka.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/92/2012-11-17_ITA-NZL_Haka.jpg/1280px-2012-11-17_ITA-NZL_Haka.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:15.279Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/ka-mate"}
{"id":"87618dc0-54b5-45e0-92d4-5b630280d9b3","type":"art_form","slug":"kabir-panth","title":"Kabir Panth","summary":"Kabir Panth is a Sant tradition based on the teachings of the 15th-century mystic poet Kabir. It emphasizes devotion to a formless God, equality, and rejection of ritualism and social divisions.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"e11r54b816","content":[{"text":"Kabir Panth is a Sant tradition based on the teachings of the 15th-century mystic poet Kabir. It emphasizes devotion to a formless God, equality, and rejection of ritualism and social divisions. The followers of Kabir Panth are spread across India and abroad, and their population is generally considered to be in the millions. \nKabir Panth (transl. Path of Kabir) is a Sant Mat denomination and philosophy based on the teachings of the 15th century saint and poet, Kabir. It is based on devotion to him as one guru as a means to salvation. The adherents of Kabir Panth are from many religious backgrounds as Kabir never advocated change of religions but highlighted their limitations. According to some scholars, this tradition belongs to the Hindu denomination of Vaishnavism with Sufi and universalist leanings. In respect of Kabir, his followers celebrate Kabir Jayanti.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"236aa5fc-1586-459a-8e6b-b2eab8e9f72e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origin","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cy7p3swh74","content":[{"text":"Kabir did not found any distinct sect during his lifetime; however, after his death, two of his disciples, Dharamdas and Suratigopal, established centres (known as maṭh) for the propagation of his teachings. Among these, the lineage associated with Dhani Dharamdas Saheb is regarded as one of the traditions within Kabir Panth. According to traditional accounts, Kabir Saheb is believed to have blessed Dhani Dharamdas Saheb with the continuation of the lineage through forty-two generations (Bayalis Vansh). This lineage, commonly referred to as the Kabir Dharamdas Vanshavali, is associated with a Main guru seat (gaddi) within the Kabir Panth tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"236aa5fc-1586-459a-8e6b-b2eab8e9f72e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Kabir Dharm Nagar Damakheda","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9vgqyb13a8","content":[{"text":"Among its major branches, the lineage of Dhani Dharamdas is regarded as one of the most prominent. Dharamdas, a chief disciple of Kabir, played a central role in organizing and propagating the Kabir Panth tradition. this branch name is Kabir Dharmdas Vanshavali\nAccording to tradition, Kabir blessed Dharamdas with the continuation of “forty-two lineages” (atal bayalis vansh), which became the basis of the Dharamdasi lineage system. \nDhani Dharamdas’ son, Chudamani (Muktamani) Nam Saheb, is regarded as the first lineage guru (Vanshguru) of this tradition. \nThe Kabir Dharm Nagar Damakheda (Dhamkhera) seat in present-day Chhattisgarh serves as a center of the Kabir Dharmdas Vanshavali branch of Kabir Panth. \nAccording to records from the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts, the Dharamdas lineage includes a structured succession of 42 lineages and acharyas, listing spiritual leaders from Muktamani Nam Saheb to currently acharyas such as Grindhmuni nam sahab Prakashmuni Naam Saheb and Udit Muni Naam Saheb .","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"236aa5fc-1586-459a-8e6b-b2eab8e9f72e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Kabir Dharamdas Vanshavali (Damakheda) – Vanshguru List","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7ejh571rzj","content":[{"text":"Chudamani (Muktamani) Naam Saheb – First Vansh Guru\nSudarshan Naam Saheb\nKulpati Naam Saheb\nPramod Guru Balapir Naam Saheb\nKeval Naam Saheb\nAmol Naam Saheb\nSurati Sanehi Naam Saheb\nHakk Naam Saheb\nPaak Naam Saheb\nPragat Naam Saheb\nDheeraj Naam Saheb\nUgra Naam Saheb\nDaya Naam Saheb\nGrindhmuni Naam Saheb\nPrakashmuni Naam Sahab\nUdit Muni Naam sahab(Present) \nDharamdas lineage guru would slightly later found the Damakheda maṭh (also known as māī meaning \"mother) located in modern-day Chhattisgarh. It conducted missionary activities in central India and had branches located in Raipur, Bilaspur, and Chindawara.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"236aa5fc-1586-459a-8e6b-b2eab8e9f72e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Kabir Chaura","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gnx2g71kh1","content":[{"text":"Surat Gopal first founded the Kabir Chaura maṭh (also known as bāp meaning \"father\") in Varanasi. It conducted missionary activities in Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, and Bihar and had a branch located at Magahar.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"236aa5fc-1586-459a-8e6b-b2eab8e9f72e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Practices and beliefs","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"a7b4qq738j","content":[{"text":"Adherents must disavow polytheism, reject the consumption of alcohol, bathe daily whilst praising God, and maintain a strict vegetarian diet. They should allow those who sin against them up to three chances of forgiveness. Kabirpanthis greet with the phrase Bandagī (meaning \"salutation to you\"). Furthermore, followers are instructed to avoid the company of women whom are ill-natured, never disavow their wife from their property, never tell a lie, never steal, never give false testimony against another person, and never negatively gossip about others.\nHindu Kabirpanthis recite the name Raam whilst Muslim Kabirpanthis use the name Khuda as an appellation for God. Lay Kabirpanthis are led by a mahant. A Kabirpanthi mahant is adorned in special garbs, such as a conical cap, a necklace known as a kanthi, a rosary of tulsi (sweet basil), and clothing that is white or brownish-red in colour. Mahants may have a tilak (frontal mark) of the Vaishnavite tradition. The frontal mark may also be a streak along the ridge of their nose using sandal or gopichandan paste. Mahants are not obliged to remain celibate and some marry.\nKabir Panthis  can follow the ethical and social customs of the day according to tradition without hindrance. Lay persons can be cremated according to Hindu law and priests can be buried or cremated depending upon which tradition one wishes to follow. In the Caribbean and across North America, Kabir Panthis may opt for burning or burial.\nKabir Panthis observe sanctity and purity in their daily lives and behavior.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"236aa5fc-1586-459a-8e6b-b2eab8e9f72e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"exh5pa6mjr","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Kabir panth”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"236aa5fc-1586-459a-8e6b-b2eab8e9f72e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"26r1bdvdm0","content":[{"text":"Kabir Panth is vaishnava Hindu sect, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d8252fc9-6ad1-46f2-b750-9f924fcc21e5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rntmqyhfzj","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d8252fc9-6ad1-46f2-b750-9f924fcc21e5"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Dhani Dharamdas Saheb, the chief disciple of Kabir Saheb and the founder of the Kabir Panth.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/90/Dharmdas_sahab_24x30%27.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Jitendra pl","height":1621,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Dhani Dharamdas Saheb, the chief disciple of Kabir Saheb and the founder of the Kabir Panth.","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/90/Dharmdas_sahab_24x30%27.jpg/960px-Dharmdas_sahab_24x30%27.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dharmdas_sahab_24x30%27.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/90/Dharmdas_sahab_24x30%27.jpg/1280px-Dharmdas_sahab_24x30%27.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:26.531Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/kabir-panth"}
{"id":"791f42c6-c725-4fe9-9e62-c7ff966eebe0","type":"art_form","slug":"kachashi","title":"kachāshī","summary":"Kachāshī (カチャーシー), sometimes romanized as katcharsee, is a form of festive Okinawan folk dance. In Okinawa, it is often a feature of celebrations such as weddings and victory festivities after tegumi wrestling matches and public elections.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cbbtdzbvv2","content":[{"text":"Kachāshī (カチャーシー), sometimes romanized as katcharsee, is a form of festive Okinawan folk dance. In Okinawa, it is often a feature of celebrations such as weddings and victory festivities after tegumi wrestling matches and public elections. It is traditionally accompanied by the sanshin and drum, and often punctuated with finger whistling called yubi-bue (指笛).\nThe dance is executed with the hands in the air, palms flat for women and curled (or in fists) for men. The hands alternate pulling and pushing in an up and down elliptical motion, one hand facing outward and up, the other inward and down. The hand movements are difficult to execute without training. The steps are mostly improvised, generally made in a slight bow-legged stance, alternately lifting and lowering the feet to the rhythm.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c9bd7cce-441f-4455-8d80-24e7ad0e2c37"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Songs","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"q0egnke1pf","content":[{"text":"Tooshin dooi (唐船どーい) (\"A Chinese Ship is Coming\"), the most famous\nKaadikuuu (嘉手久), for courtship\nAtchamee-gwaa (アッチャメー小)\nAmakawa bushi (天川節)\nHoonen ondo (豊年音頭)\nTakoo-yama (多幸山)","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c9bd7cce-441f-4455-8d80-24e7ad0e2c37"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vtm3ssfgdj","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Kachāshī”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c9bd7cce-441f-4455-8d80-24e7ad0e2c37"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vs2zc68xnt","content":[{"text":"kachāshī is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7ff3fe8d-d51c-4d26-aa8a-856c1e889168"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b8ynbtv6n9","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7ff3fe8d-d51c-4d26-aa8a-856c1e889168"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"This photo is about Kachāshī , a kind of dance often perfomed in Okinawa Islands, southern part of Japan. Taken on 4th of March, 2007 and at SHINJUKU LOFT PLUS 1, a livehouse in Shinjuku in Tokyo, Japan.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2a/Kacharshe.JPG?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"No machine-readable author provided. コロスケ＠1億円~commonswiki assumed (based on copyright claims).","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"This photo is about Kachāshī , a kind of dance often perfomed in Okinawa Islands, southern part of Japan. Taken on 4th of March, 2007 and at SHINJUKU LOFT PLUS 1, a livehouse in Shinjuku in Tokyo, Japan.","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.5","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2a/Kacharshe.JPG/960px-Kacharshe.JPG?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kacharshe.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2a/Kacharshe.JPG?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail_unscaled","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:27.366Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/kachashi"}
{"id":"3dd9a44f-ecc0-4978-ba33-c143568e90e6","type":"art_form","slug":"kailao","title":"kailao","summary":"The kailao is a cultural dance from the South Pacific country of Tonga. It originates from Wallis and Futuna.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"msmaa3xzrs","content":[{"text":"The kailao is a cultural dance from the South Pacific country of Tonga. It originates from Wallis and Futuna.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"31bb080c-fb17-485c-86c6-83bd35c235e3"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6gs89yvp90","content":[{"text":"The kailao originated on the island collectivity of Wallis and Futuna, where it is still performed in public ceremonies. In Tonga it is performed at public and private ceremonies. The men, bearing stylized clubs (pate kailao), dance in a fierce manner that emulates fighting, to the accompaniment of a beaten slit drum or tin box which sets the tempo. Unlike most other Tongan dances, it is performed without singing. The sequences of movements are called by the lead dancer, who calls out the names of the sequences and signals when to do them. They can involve mock combat between dancers, changes in formation, and tricks involving the pate kailao themselves. The moves display the dancers' discipline, obedience, and skills with their weapons. A similar Rotuman dance, also derived from the 'Uvean original, is similarly called the ka'loa.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"31bb080c-fb17-485c-86c6-83bd35c235e3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2k0benydrd","content":[{"text":"The 'Ikale Tahi, the Tongan national rugby union team, used to perform the kailao with kailao clubs or sticks, as they did against Wales in 1974. In the 1980s, they stopped performing the kailao and switched to the sipi tau, which is performed without sticks, as it was considered more appropriate for the non-ceremonial setting.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"31bb080c-fb17-485c-86c6-83bd35c235e3"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Lyrics (Tongan)","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yr071f4zdw","content":[{"text":"Source:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"31bb080c-fb17-485c-86c6-83bd35c235e3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rtt77dd4wb","content":[{"text":"Ei ʻe! (Leader)\nE!\nEi ʻe! (Leader)\nE!","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"31bb080c-fb17-485c-86c6-83bd35c235e3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5v83bwrtrk","content":[{"text":"(Leader)\nTeu lea pea tala ki mamani katoa\nKo e 'Ikale Tahi kuo halofia.\nKe 'ilo 'e he sola mo e taka\nKo e 'aho ni teu tamate tangata,\n'A e haafe mo e tautua'a\nKuo hu'i hoku anga tangata.\nEi ʻe! (Leader)\nE!\nEi ʻe! (Leader)\nE!\nTeu peluki e molo mo e foueti taka,\nPea ngungu mo ha loto fita'a\nNgungu! (Leader)\nʻIo!\nNgungu! (Leader)\nʻIo!\nNgungu! (Leader)\nʻIo!","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"31bb080c-fb17-485c-86c6-83bd35c235e3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"41hr851fnr","content":[{"text":"Teu inu e 'oseni,\nPea kana mo e afi\nKeu mate ai he ko hoku loto.\nKo Tonga pe mate ki he moto! (Leader)\nKo Tonga pe mate ki he moto!","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"31bb080c-fb17-485c-86c6-83bd35c235e3"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Lyrics (English)","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3ardmbza5a","content":[{"text":"Aye, ay! Aye, ay!","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"31bb080c-fb17-485c-86c6-83bd35c235e3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pa6cnrff29","content":[{"text":"(Leader)\nI shall speak to the whole world\nThe Sea Eagles are famished unfurl.\nLet the foreigner and sojourner beware\nToday, destroyer of souls, I am everywhere\nTo the halfback and backs\nGone has my humanness.\nHey! hey! (Leader)\nAye!\nHey hey!  (Leader)\nAye!\nMaul and loose forwards shall I mow\nAnd crunch any fierce hearts you know\nCrunch! (Leader)\nAye!\nCrunch! (Leader)\nAye!\nCrunch! (Leader)\nAye!","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"31bb080c-fb17-485c-86c6-83bd35c235e3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0f070zjv0z","content":[{"text":"Ocean I drink,\nand fire I dine!\nTo death or victory my will is fine.\nThat's how Tonga dies to her motto! (Leader)\nTo her motto Tonga gives all.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"31bb080c-fb17-485c-86c6-83bd35c235e3"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Sipi Tau (Rugby Union)","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8k4wxhxg4h","content":[{"text":"The Tonga rugby union national team's pre-game challenge, the Sipi Tau was penned by King Tama Tu'i Tāufaʻāhau Tupou IV in 1994, but its origins can be traced back much further. In Tonga in the pre-1800s there were no challenges before war. Indeed, talking was considered a sign of weakness in battle. But in the 19th century a war dance was introduced from the neighbouring Wallis and Futuna Islands and Tonga quickly annexed it.\nThere have been several different Sipi Tau used by the Tongan rugby team over the years, but it is unsure when they were first used in rugby. The latest one was composed in honour of a short, successful tour of New Zealand in 1994. The current words were first used in the 2011 Rugby World Cup.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"31bb080c-fb17-485c-86c6-83bd35c235e3"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Tongan (current words)","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"x42tsvdpdz","content":[{"text":"Source:\nSipi Tau a'e 'Ikale Tahi","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"31bb080c-fb17-485c-86c6-83bd35c235e3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yfgmgy1jnh","content":[{"text":"Teu ke tau! (Leader)\nTonga! (Team)\nTeu lea pea tala ki mamani katoa\nKo e ʻIkale Tahi kuo halofia.\nKe ʻilo ʻe he sola mo e taka\nKo e ʻaho ni te u tamate tangata,\n'A e haafe mo e tautuaʻa\nKuo huʻi hoku anga tangata.\nEi ʻe! (Leader)\nE!\nEi ʻe! (Leader)\nE!\nTe u peluki e molo mo e foueti taka,\nPea ngungu mo ha loto fitaʻa\nNgungu! (Leader)\nʻIo!\nNgungu! (Leader)\nʻIo!\nKo Tonga pe mate ki he moto (Leader)\nOtua mo Tonga ko hoku tofi'a \nEi e! (Leader)\nTONGA!","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"31bb080c-fb17-485c-86c6-83bd35c235e3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sv8hm5phkd","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Kailao”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"31bb080c-fb17-485c-86c6-83bd35c235e3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hh1mkxpsp4","content":[{"text":"kailao is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"93ddc599-0861-4a9f-991d-d7ad7483304a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6syg2abej6","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"93ddc599-0861-4a9f-991d-d7ad7483304a"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Kailao a Mata'utu 2001","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fe/Kailao_a_Mata%27utu.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Lea.fakauvea","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Kailao a Mata'utu 2001","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fe/Kailao_a_Mata%27utu.jpg/960px-Kailao_a_Mata%27utu.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kailao_a_Mata%27utu.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fe/Kailao_a_Mata%27utu.jpg/1280px-Kailao_a_Mata%27utu.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-06T05:47:32.304Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/kailao"}
{"id":"1e0322e7-6f8c-4462-b70d-179216c20b31","type":"art_form","slug":"kalamatianos","title":"Kalamatianos","summary":"The Kalamatianós (Greek: Καλαματιανός, pronounced [kalamati̯aˈnos̠]) is one of the best-known dances of Greece.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"99wap5431k","content":[{"text":"The Kalamatianós (Greek: Καλαματιανός, pronounced [kalamati̯aˈnos̠]) is one of the best-known dances of Greece. It is a popular Greek folk dance throughout Greece, Cyprus and internationally and is often performed at many social gatherings worldwide. As is the case with most Greek folk dances, it is danced in chain with a counterclockwise rotation, the dancers holding hands.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"172b1fd6-5c9e-4052-9f89-b35b8efd8c26"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hb83pca9mx","content":[{"text":"It is a joyous and festive dance; its musical beat is 78, subdivided into of three parts of 3+2+2 beats, corresponding to 3 steps per bar. There are 12 steps in the dance corresponding to 4 bars of music. These steps include 10 steps counterclockwise (\"forward\") followed by 2 steps clockwise (\"backwards\").  Depending on the occasion and the dancers' proficiency, certain steps may be taken as jumps or squats.  \nThe lead dancer usually holds the second dancer by a handkerchief, thus allowing them to perform more elaborate steps and acrobatics.  The steps of the Kalamatianós are the same as those of the Syrtos, but the latter is slower and more stately, its beat being an even 44.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"172b1fd6-5c9e-4052-9f89-b35b8efd8c26"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c3sp1rjamt","content":[{"text":"The roots of the Kalamatianos can be found in antiquity. Homer, in the Iliad, describes three performances made around the spear of Achilles that depict a dance in an open circle. The ancient Spartans had a dance called ὅρμος hórmos, which was a syrto-style dance described in detail by Xenophon where a woman led a male into dance using a handkerchief. Lucian states that the hórmos dance was performed in an open circle and was done by young men and women. The men would dance vigorously while the women danced with modest movements. \nIn the 19th century, this dance was called Συρτός ὁ Πελοποννήσιος Syrtós ho Peloponnḗsios. It is believed to have acquired the name kalamatianos from the town of Kalamata in southern Greece; most Greek dances are commonly named after the villages or areas from which they are considered to have originated. \nKalamatiano songs are many and popular – some of the more traditional kalamatiano songs are Samiotissa (The girl from Samos), Mandili Kalamatiano (Kerchief from Kalamata), Milo Mou Kokkino (My Red Apple), To Papaki (The Duckling), Mou Pariggile To Aidoni (The Nightingale sent me a message), Ola Ta Poulakia (All Birds), Palamakia (Clapping) and more. An especially haunting example of the kalamatianos, Mekapses Yitonissa (Μέκαψες Γειτόνισσα), was recorded for the National Geographic Society's groundbreaking Music of Greece album, released in 1968.\nThe Kalamatiano is played at special occasions, such as Easter and weddings.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"172b1fd6-5c9e-4052-9f89-b35b8efd8c26"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Contemporary influence","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"y9wtahdhp3","content":[{"text":"The American jazz composer, Dave Brubeck, well known for his exploration of asymmetrical rhythms in his own music, used a variant of the rhythm of the Kalamatianos for his Unsquare Dance, though the measures are divided into two groups of 4 followed by 3 beats rather than 3 followed by 4. \nDonald Swann used the rhythm of the Kalamatianos (acknowledged in the score) in the fourth movement of his Requiem for the Living.\nThe 1960s popular singer, formerly known as Cat Stevens, wrote and performed a song, Ruby Love, in 78 time with a distinctive Greek flavour. Stevens, who would later convert to Islam, has paternal Greek Cypriot roots. Near the end of the 2002 film, My Big Fat Greek Wedding, the cast dances the kalamatianos to the song \"Ωραία που είναι η νύφη μας\" (Orea Pou Ine I Nifi Mas/How Wonderful Is Our Bride) at Ian and Toula's wedding reception.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"172b1fd6-5c9e-4052-9f89-b35b8efd8c26"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Song example","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"amxdcqs5gs","content":[{"text":"Milo Mou Kokkino is a traditional kalamatiano song from Western Macedonia.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"172b1fd6-5c9e-4052-9f89-b35b8efd8c26"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Lyrics","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"83rfjvx7hx","content":[{"text":"Μήλο μου κόκκινο, ρόιδο βαμμένο (×2)\nΓιατί με μάρανες το πικραμένο 1\nΠαένω κ’ έρχομαι μα δεν σε βρίσκω (×2)\nΒρίσκω την πόρτα σου μανταλομένη 1 \nΤα παραθυρούδια σου φεγγοβολούνε (×2)\nΡωτάω την πόρτα σου, που πάει η κυρά σου; 1\nΚυρά μ’ δεν είναι ‘δώ, πάησε στην βρύση (×2)\nΠάησε να βρει νερό και να γεμίσει 1","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"172b1fd6-5c9e-4052-9f89-b35b8efd8c26"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Translation","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jbfqxn61kn","content":[{"text":"My red apple, painted (like a) pomegranate,\nwhy have you wilted me, the bitter one?\nI come and go, but cannot find you\nI try your door, and it's locked.\nYour windows are always lighted\nI ask your door, \"Where has your lady gone?\"\n\"My lady is not here, she is at the wellspring\nShe's gone to find water and to fill (her bucket)\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"172b1fd6-5c9e-4052-9f89-b35b8efd8c26"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dq1mpxza2r","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Kalamatianos”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"172b1fd6-5c9e-4052-9f89-b35b8efd8c26"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1bze533zx1","content":[{"text":"Kalamatianos is Greek folk dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6d244847-8e24-40de-b4b1-6446e173b86d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6vemwka1xt","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6d244847-8e24-40de-b4b1-6446e173b86d"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"カラマティアノス /東京競馬場","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7b/Kalamatianos_92nd_Tokyo_Yushun.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"nakashi","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"カラマティアノス /東京競馬場","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7b/Kalamatianos_92nd_Tokyo_Yushun.jpg/960px-Kalamatianos_92nd_Tokyo_Yushun.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kalamatianos_92nd_Tokyo_Yushun.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7b/Kalamatianos_92nd_Tokyo_Yushun.jpg/1280px-Kalamatianos_92nd_Tokyo_Yushun.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-06T05:47:10.957Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/kalamatianos"}
{"id":"925ae63a-d8f4-41e0-a977-ac67eb3d77e9","type":"art_form","slug":"kalbelia","title":"Kalbelia","summary":"The Kalbelia are a snake charming tribe from the Thar Desert in Rajasthan, India.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1x4pw9da3r","content":[{"text":"The Kalbelia are a snake charming tribe from the Thar Desert in Rajasthan, India. Dance is an integral part of their culture and performed by men and women.\nKalbelias belong to the Nath Shaiva sect and are followers of Sage Kanifnath, who according to a legend, drank a bowl of poison and was blessed with control over venomous snakes and animals.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7492cca8-e796-43f9-9d86-3c3f187e3786"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3aajtewb1k","content":[{"text":"One translation of the name \"Kalbelia\" is a combination of the words \"Kal\" meaning snake, and \"Beliya\", meaning friend.\nAnother translates the name as \"bowl of death\", with kaal meaning death and belia meaning bowl. This latter meaning refers to a foundational myth involving the sage Kanifnath, a prominent figure in their belief system, who is said to have consumed a bowl of poison. Consequently, his followers adopted the name Kalbelia to signify their devotion to the sage who mastered death.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7492cca8-e796-43f9-9d86-3c3f187e3786"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kaqffnfr7b","content":[{"text":"The Kalbelia call the 12th and 13th centuries as their golden age. But after the defeat of the Rajput king Prithviraj Chauhan to Muhammad Ghori, their fortunes declined. In the 14th century, they migrated out of present day Rajasthan to areas in Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra due to persecution and forced conversions by Islamic rulers. They were later invited to the Mughal courts to entertain with snake tricks and their traditional Kalbeliya dance.\nDuring the British rule, they participated in the freedom movement by transferring secret messages and providing safe passage and guides for revolutionaries who needed to cross the harsh desert to reach different states or the border, away from British-monitored roads. Due to this and that they are nomads and therefore did not fall under any administrative framework, the British included the Kalbelia under the Criminal Tribes Act, designating them ‘habitual criminals’, resulting in social stigmatisation. After Indian independence, the Criminal Tribes Act was repealed in 1952 and the tribe was \"denotified\". However, the social and economic marginalisation by other communities continues even today due to the stigma of the past.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7492cca8-e796-43f9-9d86-3c3f187e3786"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Cultural practices","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xxbjt4dp7h","content":[{"text":"Kalbelias are divided into two main groups, the Daliwal and Mewara. The Kalbelias moved frequently from one place to another in ancient times. Their traditional occupation is catching snakes and trading snake venom. They rear snakes, dogs, hens, horses, donkeys, pigs and goats. Hence, the dance movements and the costumes of their community bear a resemblance to those of the serpents. They are also called Sapera and Jogira, Gattiwala and Poogiwara. The largest cluster of the Kalbelias is in Pali district, followed by significant other groups in Ajmer, Chittorgarh and Udaipur district. They live a nomadic life and belong to the scheduled tribes.\nTraditionally, Kalbelia men carried cobras in cane baskets from door to door in villages while their women sang, danced and begged for alms. They revere the cobra and advocate the non-killing of such reptiles. In the villages, if a snake inadvertently happened to enter a home, a Kalbelia would be summoned to catch the serpent and to take it away without killing it. Kalbelias have traditionally been a fringe group in the society, living in spaces outside the village where they reside. They live in  makeshift camps called deras. The Kalbelias move their deras from one place to another in a circuitous route repeated over time. Over the generations, the Kalbelias acquired a unique understanding of the local flora and fauna, and are aware of herbal remedies for various diseases which, in turn, is an alternative source of income for them.\nSince the enactment of the Wildlife Act of 1972, the Kalbelias have been pushed out of their traditional profession of snake handling. Now performing arts are a major source of income for them and these have received widespread recognition within and outside India.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7492cca8-e796-43f9-9d86-3c3f187e3786"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Religion","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ym1y9a106q","content":[{"text":"The Kalbelias are Hindus and dedicated followers of the Nath (a Shaiva sub-tradition) tradition, and the Kalbelias center their spiritual life around Lord Shiva and the sacred Nāgas. This deep-rooted connection to serpents is expressed through the worship of deities like Manasa and the observance of Naga Panchami, a day dedicated to honoring the cobra as a divine entity.\nSimilar to another Shaivist tradition the Lingayats, the Kalbelias also bury their dead, instead of cremating them (as is common with most Hindus), and place an idol of Lord Shiva's Nandi Bull over the graves.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7492cca8-e796-43f9-9d86-3c3f187e3786"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Kalbelia dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nndkmaf085","content":[{"text":"The Kalbelia dance, folk dance of rajasthan performed as a celebration, is an integral part of Kalbelia culture. Their dances and songs are a matter of pride and a marker of identity for the Kalbelias, as they represent the creative adaptation of this community of snake charmers to changing socio-economic conditions and their own role in rural Rajasthani society.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7492cca8-e796-43f9-9d86-3c3f187e3786"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1rrg0w5w8h","content":[{"text":"The dancers are women in flowing black skirts who dance and twirl, replicating the movements of a serpent. They wear an upper body cloth called an angrakhi and a headcloth known as the odhani; the lower body cloth is called a lehenga. All these clothes are of mixed red and black hues and embroidered.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7492cca8-e796-43f9-9d86-3c3f187e3786"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4p20c8rahf","content":[{"text":"The male participants play musical instruments, such as the pungi, a woodwind instrument traditionally played to capture snakes, the dufli, been, the khanjari - a percussion instrument, morchang, khuralio and the dholak to create the rhythm on which the dancers perform. The dancers are tattooed in traditional designs and wear jewelry and garments richly embroidered with small mirrors and silver threads. As the performance progresses, the rhythm becomes faster and faster and so does the dance.\nKalbelia songs are based on stories taken from folklore and mythology and special dances are performed during Holi. The Kalbelias have a reputation for composing lyrics spontaneously and improvising songs during performances. These songs and dances are part of an oral tradition that is handed down generations and for which there are neither texts nor any training manuals. In 2010, the Kalbelia folk songs and dances of Rajasthan were declared a part of its Intangible Heritage List by the UNESCO.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7492cca8-e796-43f9-9d86-3c3f187e3786"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ggck4s7m7f","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Kalbelia”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7492cca8-e796-43f9-9d86-3c3f187e3786"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7gqfe6387t","content":[{"text":"Kalbelia is tribe from Rajasthan, India, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2f09a7c3-fda9-4c04-b563-101264a64cfd"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gwkhc3w49g","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2f09a7c3-fda9-4c04-b563-101264a64cfd"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Rajasthani Kalbelia dancer performing at Khajuraho Dance Festival 2026","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/36/Rajasthani_Kalbelia_dancer_performing_at_Khajuraho_Dance_Festival_2026_%2822%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Suyash Dwivedi","height":1920,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Rajasthani Kalbelia dancer performing at Khajuraho Dance Festival 2026","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/36/Rajasthani_Kalbelia_dancer_performing_at_Khajuraho_Dance_Festival_2026_%2822%29.jpg/960px-Rajasthani_Kalbelia_dancer_performing_at_Khajuraho_Dance_Festival_2026_%2822%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Rajasthani_Kalbelia_dancer_performing_at_Khajuraho_Dance_Festival_2026_(22).jpg","thumb1280":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/36/Rajasthani_Kalbelia_dancer_performing_at_Khajuraho_Dance_Festival_2026_%2822%29.jpg/1280px-Rajasthani_Kalbelia_dancer_performing_at_Khajuraho_Dance_Festival_2026_%2822%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Rajasthani Kalbelia dancer performing at Khajuraho Dance Festival 2026","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1e/Rajasthani_Kalbelia_dancer_performing_at_Khajuraho_Dance_Festival_2026_%286%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Suyash Dwivedi","height":1920,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Rajasthani Kalbelia dancer performing at Khajuraho Dance Festival 2026","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1e/Rajasthani_Kalbelia_dancer_performing_at_Khajuraho_Dance_Festival_2026_%286%29.jpg/960px-Rajasthani_Kalbelia_dancer_performing_at_Khajuraho_Dance_Festival_2026_%286%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Rajasthani_Kalbelia_dancer_performing_at_Khajuraho_Dance_Festival_2026_(6).jpg","thumb1280":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1e/Rajasthani_Kalbelia_dancer_performing_at_Khajuraho_Dance_Festival_2026_%286%29.jpg/1280px-Rajasthani_Kalbelia_dancer_performing_at_Khajuraho_Dance_Festival_2026_%286%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Rajasthani Kalbelia dancer performing at Khajuraho Dance Festival 2026","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/02/Rajasthani_Kalbelia_dancer_performing_at_Khajuraho_Dance_Festival_2026_%2813%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Suyash Dwivedi","height":1920,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Rajasthani Kalbelia dancer performing at Khajuraho Dance Festival 2026","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/02/Rajasthani_Kalbelia_dancer_performing_at_Khajuraho_Dance_Festival_2026_%2813%29.jpg/960px-Rajasthani_Kalbelia_dancer_performing_at_Khajuraho_Dance_Festival_2026_%2813%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Rajasthani_Kalbelia_dancer_performing_at_Khajuraho_Dance_Festival_2026_(13).jpg","thumb1280":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/02/Rajasthani_Kalbelia_dancer_performing_at_Khajuraho_Dance_Festival_2026_%2813%29.jpg/1280px-Rajasthani_Kalbelia_dancer_performing_at_Khajuraho_Dance_Festival_2026_%2813%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:22.066Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/kalbelia"}
{"id":"4d2392ba-8a37-4813-bf38-6b0ceb3ba75f","type":"art_form","slug":"kalela","title":"Kalela","summary":"Kalela is type of dance. This page is a machine-generated stub awaiting review by someone who knows the tradition.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"arpgj171wz","content":[{"text":"Kalela is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"84c30428-d627-48f8-b4cc-b28085397445"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ve38vceqj5","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"84c30428-d627-48f8-b4cc-b28085397445"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T07:23:11.455Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/kalela"}
{"id":"1db591e6-5790-4e1a-aaf3-42380274160b","type":"art_form","slug":"kalinka","title":"Kalinka","summary":"\"Kalinka\" (Russian: Калинка) is a Russian folk-style song written in 1860 by the composer and folklorist Ivan Larionov and first performed in Saratov as part of a theatrical entertainment that he had composed.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"v73sd85wn1","content":[{"text":"\"Kalinka\" (Russian: Калинка) is a Russian folk-style song written in 1860 by the composer and folklorist Ivan Larionov and first performed in Saratov as part of a theatrical entertainment that he had composed. Soon it was added to the repertoire of the folk choral group. Since the end of World War II, the song has been popularized by the Alexandrov Ensemble, the official army choir group of the Russian Armed Forces.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0ba2357a-adbb-4f55-b3b8-dc4d6ce6b588"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Song","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3knatb0fda","content":[{"text":"The refrain of the song  refers to the kalinka, which is the snowball tree (Viburnum opulus). The song has a speedy tempo and light-hearted lyrics. The main refrain (Калинка, калинка, калинка моя!) increases in tempo each time it is sung.  One of the best-known singers of this song was Evgeny Belyaev (1926–1994).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0ba2357a-adbb-4f55-b3b8-dc4d6ce6b588"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Recordings and cultural influence","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0apmfpd1fw","content":[{"text":"Kalinka is considered one of the most famous Russian folk and folk-style songs in Russia, and all over the world.\nIt appeared in the 1953 film Tonight We Sing, performed by Italian-American operatic bass and actor Ezio Pinza. The film was a semi-biography of the Russian bass Feodor Chaliapin who famously sang and, during the early days of recording, recorded the song for His Master's Voice and Victor. Pinza's recording was included on the 10-inch LP soundtrack album release of the same year, coincidentally from RCA Victor.\nIn Atari's 1988 version of Tetris, Kalinka is featured as one of its theme songs; however, it is labelled \"KARINKA\" in the NES version. Since then, Kalinka has often been included in licensed Tetris games, alongside Korobeiniki and Troika, the former of which is now commonly known as \"the Tetris theme\".\nThe 2011 Hindi film 7 Khoon Maaf directed by Vishal Bhardwaj features a track called 'Darling' and 'Doosri Darling' which is a cover with its own lyrics in Hindi. \nIn the video game Payday 2, released in 2013, \"Kalinka\" is sometimes sung by Vlad after completing the Four Stores heist.\nIn the video game Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Siege, released in 2015, \"Kalinka\" is used in the introductory video of Tachanka.\nIn the video game Civilization VI, released in 2016, \"Kalinka\" is the theme of the Russian civilization, played when the civilization is present in a game. As the player progresses throughout the different civilization eras, additional complexity and layers are added.\n\"Kalinka\" has been played during the closing ceremony of the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia by Russian soprano singer Aida Garifullina, featuring the famous former football player Ronaldinho.\n\"Kalinka\" is sung by train passengers in Doctor Zhivago at 1:53:30.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0ba2357a-adbb-4f55-b3b8-dc4d6ce6b588"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Mr. Kalinka","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gszzcpw4h8","content":[{"text":"The arrangement of Kalinka which is traditionally performed by the Alexandrov Ensemble turned the frivolous song into an operatic aria. The first ensemble soloist to perform this was Pyotr Tverdokhlebov, but the first to earn the title of Mr. Kalinka was Viktor Nikitin at the Berlin peace concert in August 1948, where he sang three encores of the song. The title is unofficial and awarded by the audience and journalists present at successful ensemble concerts where Kalinka earns numerous encores.  A definitive recording of Kalinka was made in 1963 at the Abbey Road Studios, London by the lyric tenor Evgeny Belyaev, with the Alexandrov Ensemble, under the direction of Boris Alexandrovich Alexandrov. Belyaev earned the Mr. Kalinka title at the London concerts of 1956 and 1963. Since then there have been several Mr. Kalinkas, including Vasily Ivanovich Shtefutsa and Vadim Petrovich Ananyev.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0ba2357a-adbb-4f55-b3b8-dc4d6ce6b588"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"71bt4ecqj5","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Kalinka (1860 song)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0ba2357a-adbb-4f55-b3b8-dc4d6ce6b588"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ed0a1p8jqs","content":[{"text":"Kalinka is Russian song and Russian concert folk dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f55c6f3e-9a6f-41be-965c-80fb83138e07"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zwwswghemx","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f55c6f3e-9a6f-41be-965c-80fb83138e07"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:11.155Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/kalinka"}
{"id":"65e2534a-c759-40d5-9e41-025ee1c37a52","type":"art_form","slug":"kamarinskaya","title":"Kamarinskaya","summary":"Kamarinskaya (Russian: камаринская) is a traditional Russian folk dance, which is mostly known today as the Russian composer Mikhail Glinka's composition of the same name.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gmm4yy22se","content":[{"text":"Kamarinskaya (Russian: камаринская) is a traditional Russian folk dance, which is mostly known today as the Russian composer Mikhail Glinka's composition of the same name. Glinka's Kamarinskaya, written in 1848, was the first orchestral work based entirely on Russian folk song and to use the compositional principles of that genre to dictate the form of the music. It premiered on 15 March 1850. It became a touchstone for the following generation of Russian composers ranging from the Western-oriented Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky to the group of nationalists known collectively as The Five and was also lauded abroad, most notably by French composer Hector Berlioz.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cdbd1547-f27a-4ee2-9fa9-ae50bf9bec17"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Traditional Kamarinskaya","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"h9699122dq","content":[{"text":"According to musicologist Richard Taruskin, the traditional Kamarinskaya is \"a quick dance tune\" otherwise known as a naigrish, distinctive for its three-bar phrase lengths, which are played in an endless number of variations in moto perpetuo fashion by an instrumentalist. This tune usually accompanies a squatting dance often called a Kazatsky (especially since in the West it has been associated in romantic fashion with Cossacks) and is played traditionally by a fiddler, a balalika player or a concertina player","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cdbd1547-f27a-4ee2-9fa9-ae50bf9bec17"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Kamarinskaya by Glinka","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0tf749hksv","content":[{"text":"Mikhail Glinka composed his Kamarinskaya in 1848. It became famous as the first orchestral work based entirely on Russian folk song.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cdbd1547-f27a-4ee2-9fa9-ae50bf9bec17"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Composition","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5b1ssf0q7c","content":[{"text":"Glinka's Kamarinskaya is based on two themes, a slow bridal song, \"Iz-za gor\" (From beyond the mountains), and the title song, a naigrïsh. This second song is actually an instrumental dance played to an ostinato melody. This melody is repeated for as long as the dancers can move to it. Glinka begins with \"Iz-za gor,\" then introduces Kamarinskaya as a contrasting theme. He uses a transition to return to the bridal song and show the contrast between the two themes. Another transition, this time using motifs from the bridal song, leads to the dance theme and the piece ends with the Kamarinskaya dance. As in traditional nagriish songs, Glinka uses three-bar phrase lengths throughout the fast sections of his composition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cdbd1547-f27a-4ee2-9fa9-ae50bf9bec17"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"87hdjrwy7j","content":[{"text":"The structure and mechanics of Kamarinskaya differ markedly from Western European compositional principles and in some ways are diametrically opposed to them. In a Western piece, after the first theme is introduced and harmony propels the music forward, it modulates to introduce a second theme in a contrasting musical key. The two themes then interact and the composition grows as an organic creation. Tension continues building as this thematic dialogue becomes increasingly complex. This dialogue or interchange eventually propels the piece to a climactic point of resolution. Kamarinskaya does not follow this pattern. Nor can it. The ostinato melody of the second song will not allow any motivic development without distorting the character of the piece. Glinka therefore uses the principle of repetition from folk song to allowing the musical structure to unfold. He repeats the theme 75 times, all the while varying the background material—the instrumental timbres, harmonization and counterpoint.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cdbd1547-f27a-4ee2-9fa9-ae50bf9bec17"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Influence on Tchaikovsky","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"a4j63x2rwr","content":[{"text":"Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, who had received Western-oriented musical instruction from the Saint Petersburg Conservatory, had used folk songs in his student overture The Storm. However, in the early 1870s he became interested in using folk songs as valid symphonic material. Tchaikovsky's greatest debt in this regard was to Glinka's Kamarinskaya. He believed fervently that in Kamarinskaya lay the core of the entire school of Russian symphonic music, \"just as the whole oak is in the acorn\", as he would write in his diary in 1888.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cdbd1547-f27a-4ee2-9fa9-ae50bf9bec17"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"eyva8wcszm","content":[{"text":"Tchaikovsky's interest resulted in his Second Symphony, composed in 1872. Because Tchaikovsky used three Ukrainian folk songs to great effect in this work, it was nicknamed the \"Little Russian\" (Russian: Малороссийская, Malorossiyskaya) by Nikolay Kashkin, a friend of the composer as well as a well-known musical critic of Moscow. Ukraine was at that time frequently called \"Little Russia\". Successful upon its premiere, the symphony also won the favor of the group of nationalistic Russian composers known as The Five, led by Mily Balakirev. \nFor Tchaikovsky, Kamarinskaya offered a viable example of the creative possibilities of folk songs in a symphonic structure, using a variety of harmonic and contrapuntal combinations. It also offered a blueprint on how such a structure could be made to work, barring the potential for inertia or over-repetition. The development of the folk material, according to one biographer, is \"the most heady potion Tchaikovsky ever brewed\". Without Kamarinskaya, however, Tchaikovsky knew he would not have had a foundation upon which to build that finale.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cdbd1547-f27a-4ee2-9fa9-ae50bf9bec17"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vgr5bh3rbb","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Kamarinskaya”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cdbd1547-f27a-4ee2-9fa9-ae50bf9bec17"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"q5jpqq0hag","content":[{"text":"Kamarinskaya is Russian folk dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"756e0b70-e068-44e2-8094-798eb250d0a2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ndb622pd5k","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 6 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"756e0b70-e068-44e2-8094-798eb250d0a2"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"«Камаринский мужик» — Москва: Лит. П. В. Пурецкого, 1890","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b2/%D0%9A%D0%B0%D0%BC%D0%B0%D1%80%D0%B8%D0%BD%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%B8%D0%B9_%D0%BC%D1%83%D0%B6%D0%B8%D0%BA_-_%D0%9B%D1%83%D0%B1%D0%BE%D0%BA.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Unknown author Unknown author","height":968,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"«Камаринский мужик» — Москва: Лит. П. В. Пурецкого, 1890","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b2/%D0%9A%D0%B0%D0%BC%D0%B0%D1%80%D0%B8%D0%BD%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%B8%D0%B9_%D0%BC%D1%83%D0%B6%D0%B8%D0%BA_-_%D0%9B%D1%83%D0%B1%D0%BE%D0%BA.jpg/960px-%D0%9A%D0%B0%D0%BC%D0%B0%D1%80%D0%B8%D0%BD%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%B8%D0%B9_%D0%BC%D1%83%D0%B6%D0%B8%D0%BA_-_%D0%9B%D1%83%D0%B1%D0%BE%D0%BA.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:%D0%9A%D0%B0%D0%BC%D0%B0%D1%80%D0%B8%D0%BD%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%B8%D0%B9_%D0%BC%D1%83%D0%B6%D0%B8%D0%BA_-_%D0%9B%D1%83%D0%B1%D0%BE%D0%BA.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b2/%D0%9A%D0%B0%D0%BC%D0%B0%D1%80%D0%B8%D0%BD%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%B8%D0%B9_%D0%BC%D1%83%D0%B6%D0%B8%D0%BA_-_%D0%9B%D1%83%D0%B1%D0%BE%D0%BA.jpg/1280px-%D0%9A%D0%B0%D0%BC%D0%B0%D1%80%D0%B8%D0%BD%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%B8%D0%B9_%D0%BC%D1%83%D0%B6%D0%B8%D0%BA_-_%D0%9B%D1%83%D0%B1%D0%BE%D0%BA.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"Песня «Камаринской мужик» — Москва: Хромо-Литография В. В. Пономарева, 1887","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/44/%D0%9F%D0%B5%D1%81%D0%BD%D1%8F_%D0%9A%D0%B0%D0%BC%D0%B0%D1%80%D0%B8%D0%BD%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%BE%D0%B9_%D0%BC%D1%83%D0%B6%D0%B8%D0%BA_-_%D0%BB%D1%83%D0%B1%D0%BE%D0%BA.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Unknown author Unknown author","height":959,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Песня «Камаринской мужик» — Москва: Хромо-Литография В. В. Пономарева, 1887","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/44/%D0%9F%D0%B5%D1%81%D0%BD%D1%8F_%D0%9A%D0%B0%D0%BC%D0%B0%D1%80%D0%B8%D0%BD%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%BE%D0%B9_%D0%BC%D1%83%D0%B6%D0%B8%D0%BA_-_%D0%BB%D1%83%D0%B1%D0%BE%D0%BA.jpg/960px-%D0%9F%D0%B5%D1%81%D0%BD%D1%8F_%D0%9A%D0%B0%D0%BC%D0%B0%D1%80%D0%B8%D0%BD%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%BE%D0%B9_%D0%BC%D1%83%D0%B6%D0%B8%D0%BA_-_%D0%BB%D1%83%D0%B1%D0%BE%D0%BA.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:%D0%9F%D0%B5%D1%81%D0%BD%D1%8F_%D0%9A%D0%B0%D0%BC%D0%B0%D1%80%D0%B8%D0%BD%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%BE%D0%B9_%D0%BC%D1%83%D0%B6%D0%B8%D0%BA_-_%D0%BB%D1%83%D0%B1%D0%BE%D0%BA.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/44/%D0%9F%D0%B5%D1%81%D0%BD%D1%8F_%D0%9A%D0%B0%D0%BC%D0%B0%D1%80%D0%B8%D0%BD%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%BE%D0%B9_%D0%BC%D1%83%D0%B6%D0%B8%D0%BA_-_%D0%BB%D1%83%D0%B1%D0%BE%D0%BA.jpg/1280px-%D0%9F%D0%B5%D1%81%D0%BD%D1%8F_%D0%9A%D0%B0%D0%BC%D0%B0%D1%80%D0%B8%D0%BD%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%BE%D0%B9_%D0%BC%D1%83%D0%B6%D0%B8%D0%BA_-_%D0%BB%D1%83%D0%B1%D0%BE%D0%BA.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"Камаринская (Владимирский наигрыш). Переложение Смирнова","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/79/Kamarinskaya_notes_1.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Unknown author Unknown author","height":1758,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Камаринская (Владимирский наигрыш). Переложение Смирнова","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/79/Kamarinskaya_notes_1.png/960px-Kamarinskaya_notes_1.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kamarinskaya_notes_1.png","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/79/Kamarinskaya_notes_1.png/1280px-Kamarinskaya_notes_1.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:03.984Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/kamarinskaya"}
{"id":"582a30ac-d9fd-4e21-a243-fe2db6892810","type":"art_form","slug":"kandyan-dance","title":"Kandyan dance","summary":"Kandyan dance (Sinhala: උඩරට නැටුම්) encompasses various dance forms popular and native to the area called Kandy of the Central Hills region known as Udarata in Sri Lanka, which have today spread to other parts of the country.\nIt is an exam…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2z2dy11z26","content":[{"text":"Kandyan dance (Sinhala: උඩරට නැටුම්) encompasses various dance forms popular and native to the area called Kandy of the Central Hills region known as Udarata in Sri Lanka, which have today spread to other parts of the country.\nIt is an example and considered a masterpiece and a sacred artwork in Sri Lanka.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"291ef660-9fa6-42b2-862d-9ad3f19d0e9f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Ves Dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1dz1wr5pmb","content":[{"text":"According to the legend the origin of the dance lies in a dance ritual known as the Kohomba kankariya (named for the deity Kohomba), which is also known as Kohomba yak kankariya or kankariya. Traditional dance masters believe that originally the king of a place referred to as \"Malaya Rata\", and his two brothers performed the first Kohomba kankariya. Some believe that this \"Malaya Rata\" was located in India.\nAccording to legend, King Malaya came to the island as a result of a trick of the god Śakra in order to cure the king, Panduwasdev, who was suffering from a mysterious illness. The king was said to be suffering from a recurring dream in which a leopard was directing its tongue towards the king, believed to be as black magic of Kuveni, the first wife of King Vijaya. After the performance of the Kohomba kankariya the illness vanished, and many natives adopted the dance.\nIt was originally performed by dancers who were identified as a separate caste under the Kandyan feudal system. They were aligned to the Temple of the Tooth and had a significant role to play in the Dalada Perahera procession held each year by the temple.\nThe dance waned in popularity as the support for the dancers from the Kandyan kings ended during the British period. It has now been revived and adapted for the stage and is Sri Lanka's primary cultural export.\nVes dance, the most popular, originated from an ancient purification ritual, the Kohomba yakuma or Kohomba kankariya. The dance was propitiatory, never secular, and performed only by males.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"291ef660-9fa6-42b2-862d-9ad3f19d0e9f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Naiyandi dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2evdpmpbgg","content":[{"text":"Dancers in Naiyandi costume perform during the initial preparations of the Kohomba Kankariya festival, during the lighting of the lamps and the preparation of foods for the demons. The dancer wears a white cloth and white turban, beadwork decorations on his chest, a waistband, rows of beads around his neck, silver chains, brass shoulder plates, anklets, and jingles; same as the costume of the Ves dancer except for the head-dress. This is a graceful dance, also performed in Maha Visnu (Vishnu) and Kataragama Devales temples on ceremonial occasions.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"291ef660-9fa6-42b2-862d-9ad3f19d0e9f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Udekki dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qavk4vmpgs","content":[{"text":"The Udekki dance is a very prestigious performance. Its name comes from the Udekki, a small lacquered hand drum in the shape of an hourglass, about 7.5 inches (18 cm) high, believed to have been given to people by the gods. The two drum skins are believed to have been given by the god Iswara, and the sound by Visnu; the instrument is said to have been constructed according to the instructions of Sakra and was played in the heavenly palace of the gods. It is a very difficult instrument to play. The dancer sings as he plays, tightening the strings to obtain variations of pitch.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"291ef660-9fa6-42b2-862d-9ad3f19d0e9f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Pantheru dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cbwf3scge3","content":[{"text":"The Pantheruwa is an instrument dedicated to the goddess Pattini. It resembles a tambourine (without the skin) and has small cymbals attached at intervals around its circumference. The dance is said to have originated in the days of Prince Siddhartha, who became Buddha. The gods were believed to use this instrument to celebrate victories in war, and Sinhala kings employed Pantheru dancers to celebrate victories on the battlefield. The costume is similar to that of the udarata dancer, but the Pantheru dancer wears no beaded jacket and substitutes a silk handkerchief at the waist for the elaborate frills of the udarata dancer.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"291ef660-9fa6-42b2-862d-9ad3f19d0e9f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Weeramunda Kankariya","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1etwwarq4r","content":[{"text":"Weeramunda Kankariya and Kande Deviyan Pidima (the evening ritual for the god of the mountain) could be identified as the ceremonial dances rooted in folk beliefs of Kandyan  Dewa (people)","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"291ef660-9fa6-42b2-862d-9ad3f19d0e9f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4b0qxrnrxz","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Kandyan dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"291ef660-9fa6-42b2-862d-9ad3f19d0e9f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"n14qvpkh30","content":[{"text":"Kandyan dance is Dance of Sri Lanka, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"45dcbbf5-a6e7-436c-a9bd-12427bf2cb69"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mmpq41zgqx","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 4 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"45dcbbf5-a6e7-436c-a9bd-12427bf2cb69"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Oak- Ray Kadyan Dance à Kandy Sri Lanka .- Asie du Sud , la Ves Natuma est la danse traditionnelle la plus importante de Kandy. Elle symbolise les rayons du soleil et demande des années de formation pour que les danseurs l’interprètent correctement","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6b/Kandy_danses_sri_lankaises_Ves_Natuma_%282%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"PIERRE ANDRE LECLERCQ","height":886,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Oak- Ray Kadyan Dance à Kandy Sri Lanka .- Asie du Sud , la Ves Natuma est la danse traditionnelle la plus importante de Kandy. Elle symbolise les rayons du soleil et demande des années de formation pour que les danseurs l’interprètent correctement","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6b/Kandy_danses_sri_lankaises_Ves_Natuma_%282%29.jpg/960px-Kandy_danses_sri_lankaises_Ves_Natuma_%282%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kandy_danses_sri_lankaises_Ves_Natuma_(2).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6b/Kandy_danses_sri_lankaises_Ves_Natuma_%282%29.jpg/1280px-Kandy_danses_sri_lankaises_Ves_Natuma_%282%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:30.442Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/kandyan-dance"}
{"id":"2fa77b5a-e848-41f2-b79a-3e5ef7de6563","type":"art_form","slug":"kanjeevaram-silk-weaving","title":"Kanjeevaram Silk Weaving","summary":"Handloom silk-weaving tradition of Kanchipuram, Tamil Nadu, combining mulberry silk with gold or silver zari; GI-tagged 2005-06.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","content":[{"text":"Kanjeevaram (Kanchipuram) silk weaving traces its roots to the Pallava dynasty of the 7th century CE, when Kanchipuram grew into a major silk-weaving centre. Tradition credits the Devanga and Saligar communities, who relocated from Andhra Pradesh at the invitation of King Raja Raja Chola, with establishing the craft in the town.","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","content":[{"text":"Sarees are handwoven in mulberry silk with pure gold or silver zari, with motifs — including the yali and ganda berunda — drawn from the temple architecture surrounding Kanchipuram. The craft received a Geographical Indication tag in 2005-06.","type":"text"}]}],"media":[{"kind":"placeholder","tone":"indigo","caption":"Kanjeevaram silk weaving — photography pending rights clearance"}],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-05T01:44:20.947Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/kanjeevaram-silk-weaving"}
{"id":"385cfafa-7a55-4d70-99af-c07018726093","type":"art_form","slug":"kanyarkali","title":"Kanyarkali","summary":"Kanniyar Kali is a folk dance ritual performed in the temples of villages in the taluks of Alathur and Chittur, Palakkad district, Kerala, India.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xe0c1trpv7","content":[{"text":"Kanniyar Kali is a folk dance ritual performed in the temples of villages in the taluks of Alathur and Chittur, Palakkad district, Kerala, India. The event is usually a part of Vishu celebrations, occurring after the Vela (village fair) in the months of April and May. It is an agricultural festival dance of the Nair castes. Kanniyar Kali, despite the name of the Virgin, does not have anything to do with the Kannaki cult.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e6463747-464e-4d5c-a639-adf789467eec"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ke32681q8j","content":[{"text":"Kanniyar Kali is in no way connected with the Kaniyar community, a community of authentic astrologers of Kerala.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e6463747-464e-4d5c-a639-adf789467eec"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Performance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k0300k08cp","content":[{"text":"The dance is performed at night and ends at dawn, and is conducted for four consecutive nights. In certain villages it is conducted only for three consecutive nights.\nThe dance starts with the men of the community gathering in the temples and performing a rhythmic circular dance called vattakali (literally meaning \"a circular dance\"). The vattakali is followed by several puraattu, which literally means farce. The purattu does not have a standard format, but each lasts for about an hour. The purattu depict the life and social customs of various castes and tribes of medieval Kerala and Tamil Nadu. Since the purattu depict various heterogeneous castes and tribes, the various purattus have different costumes, style of dancing and songs with different tempos. Certain purattu which depict fierce tribes or warrior tribes have performances resembling stick fights and martial movements whereas certain other purattus have slow and rhythmic movements. Certain purattus are laced with humor and depict a scenario wherein a long lost husband and wife have a reunion.\nIt is performed in a specially made square stage called a pandal. The pandal is located in front of the temple or its premises. It consists of a lighted lamp in the centre and consists of a roof supported by nine pillars. The singers occupy the central position of the stage and the dancers dance along the periphery of the pandal in a circular manner.\nThe songs are mostly in Malayalam and certain purattus have songs in which there is a heavy influence of Tamil.\nThe accompanying instruments are the elatalam, chenda and the chengalam.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e6463747-464e-4d5c-a639-adf789467eec"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9kyrwws8h6","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Kanyarkali”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e6463747-464e-4d5c-a639-adf789467eec"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k6rgcgwkdr","content":[{"text":"Kanyarkali is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"21a9ae21-a899-4d0e-bd95-18fc0bdc965c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"26k5jsfh93","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"21a9ae21-a899-4d0e-bd95-18fc0bdc965c"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"this is erattakudan purattu of kanyarkali in pallassana village","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/30/Erattakudan2.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Surajme23","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"this is erattakudan purattu of kanyarkali in pallassana village","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/30/Erattakudan2.JPG/960px-Erattakudan2.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Erattakudan2.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/30/Erattakudan2.JPG/1280px-Erattakudan2.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"this is vattakali of kanyarkali in pallassana village","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/33/Vattakalipallassana.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Surajme23","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"this is vattakali of kanyarkali in pallassana village","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/33/Vattakalipallassana.JPG/960px-Vattakalipallassana.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Vattakalipallassana.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/33/Vattakalipallassana.JPG/1280px-Vattakalipallassana.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"this is vattakali of kanyarkali in pallassana village","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cb/Vattakali2.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Surajme23","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"this is vattakali of kanyarkali in pallassana village","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cb/Vattakali2.JPG/960px-Vattakali2.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Vattakali2.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cb/Vattakali2.JPG/1280px-Vattakali2.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:27.481Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/kanyarkali"}
{"id":"edbb9486-c5c1-4474-b3fa-07e4041220f7","type":"art_form","slug":"kapa-o-pango","title":"Kapa o Pango","summary":"Kapa o Pango is a pre-match haka, or challenge, composed by Derek Lardelli, which is unique to the New Zealand national rugby union team, the All Blacks.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"szmpd7p200","content":[{"text":"Kapa o Pango is a pre-match haka, or challenge, composed by Derek Lardelli, which is unique to the New Zealand national rugby union team, the All Blacks. Since 2005, the \"Kapa o Pango\" haka has been performed a total of 98 times before rugby test matches by the All Blacks as an alternative to the usual \"Ka Mate\" haka. \"Kapa o Pango\" is a Māori phrase which translates to \"Team in Black\" in English.\nIn all the eleven tests against an international rugby team \"Kapa o Pango\" has been performed for the first time the All Blacks have gone on to win the match. Only five sides have ever beaten the All Blacks in a match in which \"Kapa o Pango\" occurred. They are: South Africa (2006), Australia (2007), England (2012), Ireland (2016) and France (2023). The year in brackets is the first time a loss occurred against this team with this version of the haka.\nWhen \"Kapa o Pango\" has been performed the All Blacks have won 75 tests, lost 20 tests and have drawn three times. The biggest winning margin to the All Blacks for a test involving the \"Kapa o Pango\" haka was 57 points and occurred on 16 September 2017 against South Africa at North Harbour Stadium Albany, Auckland, New Zealand where the score was 57–0.\nThe biggest losing margin involving the All Blacks for a test with the \"Kapa o Pango\" haka is 28 points which occurred in a test against South Africa at Twickenham Stadium on 25 August 2023, final score 35–7.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dfecbac4-ae02-436f-8435-53d3b5003515"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"2005–2009","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ksrcqhmejq","content":[{"text":"In August 2005, before the Tri-Nations test match between New Zealand and South Africa at Carisbrook stadium in Dunedin, the All Blacks performed a new haka, \"Kapa o Pango\", specially composed by Derek Lardelli and \"...designed to reflect the multi-cultural make-up of contemporary New Zealand – in particular the influence of Polynesian cultures\". This new haka was to be reserved for special occasions and was not intended to replace \"Ka Mate\".\nJohn Smit, the Springbok captain who faced the debut performance of \"Kapa o Pango\", said after the match: \"To stand there and watch it for the first time was a privilege.\" The Daily Telegraph columnist Mick Cleary criticised the new haka as \"unmistakably provocative\", adding: \"There is a fine line and the All Blacks crossed it. Carisbrook is a rugby field not a back-street alley.\"\nEngland became the second team to face \"Kapa o Pango\" when it was performed before a test match at Twickenham on 19 November 2005. The All Blacks performed \"Kapa o Pango\" on 8 July 2006 in Christchurch against Australia, making the Wallabies the third team to face this version of the haka. The first time the All Blacks went on to lose a match after performing \"Kapa o Pango\" was on 2 September 2006 in a game against South Africa in Newlands, Cape Town, which the Springboks won 22–16.\nFrance's head coach Bernard Laporte requested New Zealand not to perform \"Kapa o Pango\" during their November 2006 tour of France, claiming \"It's no good for the promotion of our sport.\"\nDespite this complaint, the following year in Auckland on 2 June 2007, France faced \"Kapa o Pango\" for the first time and became the fourth rugby side to do so.\nAt the 2007 Rugby World Cup, the All Blacks did not perform \"Kapa o Pango\" before their quarter-final against France.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dfecbac4-ae02-436f-8435-53d3b5003515"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"2010–2019","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7gwkncs0w7","content":[{"text":"On 24 September 2011, the All Blacks performed \"Kapa o Pango\" before their Pool A match against France at Eden Park, which included the act of drawing the thumb across the throat at the end. At the knockout stage of the previous World Cup, the French team had eliminated New Zealand in the quarter-finals. The new haka became a fixture during the 2011 World Cup knockout stage, before the All Blacks met France again (and defeated them) in the final. Argentina were the eighth national team to witness their first \"Kapa o Pango\" when the All Blacks performed it before the World Cup quarter-final in Auckland on 9 October 2011.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dfecbac4-ae02-436f-8435-53d3b5003515"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m5abf299v5","content":[{"text":"The All Blacks performed \"Kapa o Pango\" eight times during 2014, the highest number of performances in any one year since its inception. Also in 2014, there occurred the longest streak of four consecutive \"Kapa o Pango\" performances. At the 2015 Rugby World Cup, the All Blacks performed the new haka before all of their knockout round matches; however, following their victory in the final against Australia, an additional \"Ka Mate\" haka was performed post match.\nAs a mark of respect for Anthony Foley, the Ireland team formed a 'Figure 8' response when they faced the \"Kapa o Pango\" on 5 November 2016 at Soldier Field stadium in Chicago. The Irish team went on to win the match. When the British & Irish Lions toured New Zealand in 2017, the All Blacks performed \"Kapa o Pango\" ahead of the first and third tests, making the Lions the ninth side to face the new haka.\nFor the 2019 Rugby World Cup, \"Kapa o Pango\" was used against South Africa in the pool stages and Ireland in the quarter-finals, as well as Wales in the bronze play-off match.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dfecbac4-ae02-436f-8435-53d3b5003515"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"2020–2023","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wvh9bgqk0f","content":[{"text":"In a test against Argentina on 28 November 2020, the All Blacks presented a shirt before the \"Kapa o Pango\" haka in honour of Diego Maradona, who had just died.\nIn 2022, \"Kapa o Pango\" was only performed once which is the least in a season since inception (the game was against South Africa on 6 August 2022 in Nelspruit).\nIn the test against Australia at the MCG on 29 July 2023, Australia captain Allan Alaalatoa presented a boomerang before the \"Kapa o Pango\" haka. Australia wore their first nations jerseys for the match. After the haka the captain for the All Blacks Ardie Savea accepted the gift and picked it up.\nIn a rare non-match \"Kapa o Pango\" haka the All Blacks performed one at Caterpillar Valley Cemetery in honour of the fallen New Zealand soldiers there before the start of the 2023 Rugby World Cup. They also placed a jersey in honour of a fallen All Black Stanley Black.\nFor the duration of the 2023 Rugby World Cup the leader held a hoe (canoe paddle) which according to Aaron Smith was something special for our group during their time in France that added to the performance of the haka. It was first displayed against France in the first game of the cup in which the All Blacks lost. This was the first time France had beaten the All Blacks in a match which involved the \"Kapa o Pango\" haka.\nOn 15 September 2023 in a pool match of the Rugby World Cup 2023 the All Blacks performed \"Kapa o Pango\" versus Namibia which was the first so called tier 2 nation to witness it. In doing so Namibia became the tenth side to see it, New Zealand won the match 71–3.\nOn the 5 October 2023 in a pool match of the Rugby World Cup 2023 the All Blacks again performed \"Kapa o Pango\" against Uruguay.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dfecbac4-ae02-436f-8435-53d3b5003515"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Players who have led performances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0eg3jz8z68","content":[{"text":"For each New Zealand test match, one All Blacks player is assigned to lead the haka, kaea in Māori.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dfecbac4-ae02-436f-8435-53d3b5003515"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Teams who have faced Kapa o Pango","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dd0hgpc5gv","content":[{"text":"Three sides Argentina, Wales and the British and Irish Lions are yet to beat the All Blacks in a \"Kapa o Pango\" test match while three sides Scotland, Namibia and Uruguay are yet to beat them in any of the test matches they have played.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dfecbac4-ae02-436f-8435-53d3b5003515"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"20h1snb3p7","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Kapa o Pango”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dfecbac4-ae02-436f-8435-53d3b5003515"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"efsacb10x0","content":[{"text":"Kapa o Pango is prematch haka or challenge unique to the New Zealand national rugby union team, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a64eaaa3-8f11-4906-960d-124742b72fb0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xr04bysveh","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a64eaaa3-8f11-4906-960d-124742b72fb0"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"2024 Autumn Nations Series France vs New Zealand","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7d/Autumn_Nations_Series_2024_-_France_vs_New_Zealand_%28194%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Like tears in rain","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"2024 Autumn Nations Series France vs New Zealand","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7d/Autumn_Nations_Series_2024_-_France_vs_New_Zealand_%28194%29.jpg/960px-Autumn_Nations_Series_2024_-_France_vs_New_Zealand_%28194%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Autumn_Nations_Series_2024_-_France_vs_New_Zealand_(194).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7d/Autumn_Nations_Series_2024_-_France_vs_New_Zealand_%28194%29.jpg/1280px-Autumn_Nations_Series_2024_-_France_vs_New_Zealand_%28194%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"2024 Autumn Nations Series France vs New Zealand","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/80/Autumn_Nations_Series_2024_-_France_vs_New_Zealand_%28205%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Like tears in rain","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"2024 Autumn Nations Series France vs New Zealand","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/80/Autumn_Nations_Series_2024_-_France_vs_New_Zealand_%28205%29.jpg/960px-Autumn_Nations_Series_2024_-_France_vs_New_Zealand_%28205%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Autumn_Nations_Series_2024_-_France_vs_New_Zealand_(205).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/80/Autumn_Nations_Series_2024_-_France_vs_New_Zealand_%28205%29.jpg/1280px-Autumn_Nations_Series_2024_-_France_vs_New_Zealand_%28205%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"2024 Autumn Nations Series France vs New Zealand","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c0/Autumn_Nations_Series_2024_-_France_vs_New_Zealand_%28188%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Like tears in rain","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"2024 Autumn Nations Series France vs New Zealand","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c0/Autumn_Nations_Series_2024_-_France_vs_New_Zealand_%28188%29.jpg/960px-Autumn_Nations_Series_2024_-_France_vs_New_Zealand_%28188%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Autumn_Nations_Series_2024_-_France_vs_New_Zealand_(188).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c0/Autumn_Nations_Series_2024_-_France_vs_New_Zealand_%28188%29.jpg/1280px-Autumn_Nations_Series_2024_-_France_vs_New_Zealand_%28188%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:24.880Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/kapa-o-pango"}
{"id":"b94c1bbb-b4c2-48b5-b05d-312e9190b2f7","type":"art_form","slug":"karakattam","title":"Karakattam","summary":"Karakattam is an ancient folk dance of Tamil Nadu usually dedicated to goddess Mariamman. As per Tamil literature, the dance form originated from a mix of Bharatham and other folk dance forms.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bzerrpvykd","content":[{"text":"Karakattam is an ancient folk dance of Tamil Nadu usually dedicated to goddess Mariamman. As per Tamil literature, the dance form originated from a mix of Bharatham and other folk dance forms. It was often performed in festivals and fairs, and used as a means to pray for rain. Different variations of the dance form exists, including Karagam Puja, performed in the Caribbean.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ff606440-9336-4e86-8f25-a5650479922a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Description","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w9zny3k07z","content":[{"text":"Karakattam is an ancient folk dance of Tamil Nadu which involves balancing clay or metal pot(s) on the head while making movements with the body. It is derived from the combination of the Tamil words karakram (water pot), and attam (dance). This dance is usually associated with the worship of Mariamman and played in festivals and fairs, and to pray for rain. As per Tamil literature, the dance form originated from a mix of Bharatham and other folk dance forms.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ff606440-9336-4e86-8f25-a5650479922a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Performance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dzxgkjg4e7","content":[{"text":"The dancers balance pots on the head while making various movements with the hands and body. The pots may be empty or sometimes filled with water and are decorated with colorful flowers and leaves mostly neem, which is of medicinal and religious importance to the Tamils. The performer may sometimes carry multiple pots layered on top of one another. The art form was traditionally practiced by women, who wore saris. Men wearing make-up may join them sometimes as a part of the story line. In the 21st century, the dance has been subjected to significant changes. It has sometimes obtained a reputation for vulgarity with women wearing short skirts, showing of their midriff and bright make-up.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ff606440-9336-4e86-8f25-a5650479922a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Variations","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b1exryrzyh","content":[{"text":"Different variations of the dance form exist. Sakthi Karakam is performed only in temples as a spiritual offering. Aatta Karakam symbolizes joy and happiness, and is mainly performed as entertainment.\nIn Caribbean Shaktism, a tradition found among the Indo-Caribbeans of Tamil origin, Karakattam is known as Karagam Puja or Kalasa Puja. The tradition was brought by the Girmityas, indentured servants from the Indian subcontinent. The practice takes place over three consecutive days and done as a dedication to the gods Kamakshi and Meenakshi. The festival also involves honouring other gods such as a puja for Mariamman before the procession, a river procession where offerings on a board are thrown into water as a tribute to Ganga Amman, and Kaateri Maa. \nThe pujaris (priests) enter a trance state and honour the village gods Sangili Karuppu and Madurai Veeran through processions with various stunts such as whipping, putting hot camphor inside the mouth, and walking on hot coals before running to a pool made of milk. Other stunts can include piercing of the tongues and cheeks, dancing on sharpened machetes, and animal sacrifices are also made. The lotas are kept in the temple and consecrated accordingly, before being built with a coconut, several layers of neem and oleander flowers. Three participants enter the Sami Aduthal stage and then two of them carry the Karagams (usually these two participants being boys before hitting puberty or women), and the other one receives the god Madurai Veeran and is dressed with a garland of oleander flowers and carries a staff topped with neem leaves.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ff606440-9336-4e86-8f25-a5650479922a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"In popular culture","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4y6edn5fk5","content":[{"text":"Various Tamil films such as Karakattakkaran (1989), which featured a song \"Maanguyilae Poonguyile\" based on the dance form, and Padai Veetu Amman (2001) and Sri Bannari Amman (2002) showcase karakattam.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ff606440-9336-4e86-8f25-a5650479922a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6bpv87mhmr","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Karakattam”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ff606440-9336-4e86-8f25-a5650479922a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rr95d1n5fz","content":[{"text":"Karakattam is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"49a4430a-13d2-4f65-a349-b0c611b28be1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0kfs6cg33y","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"49a4430a-13d2-4f65-a349-b0c611b28be1"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"கரகாட்ட கலைஞர், சென்னைச் சங்கமம் நிகழ்ச்சி","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3c/Dancers%2CKarakattam%2CTamil_Nadu358.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Jayanth Vincent","height":851,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"கரகாட்ட கலைஞர், சென்னைச் சங்கமம் நிகழ்ச்சி","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3c/Dancers%2CKarakattam%2CTamil_Nadu358.jpg/960px-Dancers%2CKarakattam%2CTamil_Nadu358.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dancers,Karakattam,Tamil_Nadu358.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3c/Dancers%2CKarakattam%2CTamil_Nadu358.jpg/1280px-Dancers%2CKarakattam%2CTamil_Nadu358.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"},{"alt":"கரகாட்ட கலைஞர், சென்னைச் சங்கமம் நிகழ்ச்சி","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2b/Dancers%2CKarakattam%2CTamil_Nadu359.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Jayanth Vincent","height":851,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"கரகாட்ட கலைஞர், சென்னைச் சங்கமம் நிகழ்ச்சி","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2b/Dancers%2CKarakattam%2CTamil_Nadu359.jpg/960px-Dancers%2CKarakattam%2CTamil_Nadu359.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dancers,Karakattam,Tamil_Nadu359.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2b/Dancers%2CKarakattam%2CTamil_Nadu359.jpg/1280px-Dancers%2CKarakattam%2CTamil_Nadu359.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"},{"alt":"குழுக் கரகாட்ட நடனம்,பெண்காவலர் சிறப்புப் படை, உளுந்தூர் பேட்டை,தமிழ்நாடு","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0d/Dancers%2CKarakattam%2CTamil_Nadu357.jpeg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"தகவலுழவன்","height":713,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"குழுக் கரகாட்ட நடனம்,பெண்காவலர் சிறப்புப் படை, உளுந்தூர் பேட்டை,தமிழ்நாடு","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0d/Dancers%2CKarakattam%2CTamil_Nadu357.jpeg/960px-Dancers%2CKarakattam%2CTamil_Nadu357.jpeg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dancers,Karakattam,Tamil_Nadu357.jpeg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0d/Dancers%2CKarakattam%2CTamil_Nadu357.jpeg/1280px-Dancers%2CKarakattam%2CTamil_Nadu357.jpeg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:29.125Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/karakattam"}
{"id":"769faaf4-85e7-4b93-a6fb-f40093df7e3c","type":"art_form","slug":"kathak","title":"Kathak","summary":"Kathak is one of the eight major forms of Indian classical dance.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8kxx6x1zzf","content":[{"text":"Kathak is one of the eight major forms of Indian classical dance. Its origin is attributed to the traveling bards in ancient northern India known as Kathakaar (\"storyteller\"), who communicated stories from the Hindu epics through dance, songs, and music. Its name derives from the Sanskrit word kathaa which means \"story\", and kathakaar which means \"the one who tells a story\" or \"to do with stories\". As time went on the dance-form acquired aspects of technical movement expertise in addition to the story-telling features, so nowadays performers usually give equal emphasis to both.\nKathak evolved during the Bhakti movement, particularly by incorporating the childhood stories of the Hindu deity Krishna, as well as independently in the courts of North India. Especially during the Mughal rule, the emperors were patrons of Kathak dance and actively promoted it in their royal courts. The Nawab of Awadh, Emperor Wajid Ali Shah himself was a practitioner of Kathak. Kathak performances include Urdu ghazal and commonly used instruments brought during the Mughal period. As a result, it is the only Indian classical dance form to feature Persian elements.\nStylistically, the Kathak dance form emphasizes rhythmic foot movements, with the ankles adorned with small bells (Ghungroo) and the movement harmonized to the music and especially its rhythm.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a463c71f-6587-4583-a47c-56d9515ec862"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology and nomenclature","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qfhn0ma7zw","content":[{"text":"The term Kathak is rooted in the Vedic term Katha (Sanskrit: कथा) which means \"story, conversation, traditional tale\". It differs from the numerous folk dance forms found in the north and other parts of the Indian subcontinent.\nThe Kathak dancers in ancient India were traveling bards and were known as Kathakas or Kathakar.\nKathak has inspired simplified regional variants, such as the Bhavai – a form of rural theatre focusing on the tales of Hindu people (Shakti) – and one which emerged in the medieval era, and is presently found in Gujarat, Rajasthan, and Madhya Pradesh. Another variant that emerged from ancient Kathak is Thumri.\nThumri was developed by the tawaif community who were called \"nautch\" dancers by the British. Their history as Kathak dancers have been erased in modern India. Pallabi Chakravorty. (2008).\"Bells Of Change: Kathak Dance, Women And Modernity In India\", also see \"The Tawaif And The Item Girl: A Struggle For Identity\"","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a463c71f-6587-4583-a47c-56d9515ec862"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t8y3xqc9mw","content":[{"text":"According to Mary Snodgrass, the Kathak tradition of India is traceable to 400 BCE. The earliest surviving text with Kathak roots is the Natya Shastra, attributed to sage Bharata. Its first complete compilation is dated to between 200 BCE and 200 CE, but estimates vary between 500 BCE and 500 CE.\nThe most studied version of the Natya Shastra text consists of about 6000 verses structured into 36 chapters. Natalia Lidova states that the text describes the theory of Tāṇḍava dance (Shiva), the theory of rasa, of bhāva, expression, gestures, acting techniques, basic steps, and standing postures – all of which are part of Indian classical dances, including Kathak. Dance and performance arts, states this ancient Hindu text, are a form of expression of spiritual ideas, virtues, and the essence of scriptures.\nThe 2nd century BCE panels found in Bharhut show the dancers in a vertical stance with their arms' positions already suggesting today's Kathak movements. Most of the dancers have one arm near the ear in a ''pataka hasta'' (mudra). In subsequent years, the hasta was lowered to the bust level.\nThe term Kathakas in the sense of \"storytellers\" appears in ancient Hindu texts, such as the Mahabharata:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a463c71f-6587-4583-a47c-56d9515ec862"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"a497vxpx6j","content":[{"text":"Bards, actors, dancers, songsters, and musical reciters of legends and stories are mentioned hundreds of times in the Hindu Epics.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a463c71f-6587-4583-a47c-56d9515ec862"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Bhakti movement era","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f1n2hscb8b","content":[{"text":"Textual studies suggest that Kathak as a classical dance form likely started in Banares (Varanasi) and from there migrated northwest to Lucknow, Jaipur, and other parts of north and northwest India. The Lucknow tradition of Kathak dance attributes the style to a Bhakti movement devotee named Ishwari from the Handia village in Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh, who credited Hindu god Krishna appearing in his dream and asking him to develop \"dance as a form of worship\". Ishwari taught his descendants, who in turn preserved the learning and developments through an oral tradition over six generations, ultimately yielding the Lucknow version of the Kathak dance – a family tree that is acknowledged in both Hindu and Muslim music-related Indian literature.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a463c71f-6587-4583-a47c-56d9515ec862"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dpehg6jz4z","content":[{"text":"The evolution in Kathak dance theme during the Bhakti movement centered primarily around divine Krishna, his lover Radha, and milkmaids (gopis) – around legends and texts such as the Bhagavata Purana found in the Vaishnavism tradition of Hinduism. The love between Radha and Krishna became symbolism for the love between Atman (soul within) and the supreme source (Cosmic soul everywhere), a theme that dance ballet and mimetic plays of Kathak artists expressed. Although central Asian influence of Kathak rapid whirls has been proposed, Sangitaratnakara, a 13th-century Sanskrit text on Indian classical music and dance in Chapter 4 mentions a dance movement with rapid whirling around like a wheel keeping the arms in the Dola pose and bending the body inwards called 'Cakramandala'. It is employed in worshipping gods and in vigorous movement.\nThe emergence of Raslila, mainly in the Braj region (Mathura in Western U.P.) was an important development. It combined in itself music, dance, and the narrative.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a463c71f-6587-4583-a47c-56d9515ec862"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Mughal era","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pdrsvjx8hg","content":[{"text":"With the coming of the Mughals, this dance form received a new impetus. A transition from the temple courtyard to the palace durbar took place which necessitated changes in presentation. In both Hindu and Muslim courts, Kathak became highly stylized and came to be regarded as a sophisticated Islamic form of entertainment. Under the Muslims, there was a greater stress on nritya and bhavag - the dance's graceful, expressive, and sensuous dimensions.\nThe Mughal era courts and nobles accepted Kathak as a form of aristocratic entertainment, which low income families were willing to provide. According to Drid Williams:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a463c71f-6587-4583-a47c-56d9515ec862"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hzwn7b8d2z","content":[{"text":"It should be remembered that the first Kathak dancers were, after all, Hindus who danced for Moghul overlords. Too much outward expression of religious belief was without doubt undesirable. It is therefore reasonable to assume that the wide use of 'abstract' dancing, intricate bell work (tatkar), dazzling turns and the fleeting, transient, glimpses of Radha and Krishna in Kathak arose both to remind the dancers about their reasons for dancing and (gently, unobtrusively) to deceive their courtly Moghul audiences. Perhaps tatkar and tukras formed the bulk of these first dancers' performances. Gradually more and more images, then stories of Krishna and Radha crept in.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a463c71f-6587-4583-a47c-56d9515ec862"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8kcs7jamdx","content":[{"text":"Over time, the Kathak repertoire added Persian and Central Asian themes, such as the whirling of Sufi dance. The dress replaced sari with items that bared midriff and included a transparent veil of the type common with medieval Harem dancers.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a463c71f-6587-4583-a47c-56d9515ec862"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"British Raj era","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9jck16c9r5","content":[{"text":"With the expansion of British colonial rule in 19th-century Ind…","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a463c71f-6587-4583-a47c-56d9515ec862"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mdww5nnjtp","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Kathak”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a463c71f-6587-4583-a47c-56d9515ec862"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"63kfwt8km8","content":[{"text":"Kathak is One of the Indian classical dances, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"47c9469c-7c1a-49dd-9530-fddb971e7d6a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1v09hrqed4","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 10 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"47c9469c-7c1a-49dd-9530-fddb971e7d6a"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Famous Kathak Dancer Namrata Rai clicked by Padma Shri Avinash Pasricha.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8e/Namrata_Rai_Kathak_Dancer.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Nishasinghrai","height":1920,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Famous Kathak Dancer Namrata Rai clicked by Padma Shri Avinash Pasricha.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8e/Namrata_Rai_Kathak_Dancer.jpg/960px-Namrata_Rai_Kathak_Dancer.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Namrata_Rai_Kathak_Dancer.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8e/Namrata_Rai_Kathak_Dancer.jpg/1280px-Namrata_Rai_Kathak_Dancer.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-08-31T05:47:17.481Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/kathak"}
{"id":"5aa81398-de0a-483f-a739-7a2b915d5445","type":"art_form","slug":"kathakali","title":"Kathakali","summary":"Classical dance-drama of Kerala combining elaborate costume and face paint, percussion, and codified gesture to stage episodes from the Mahabharata, Ramayana, and Puranas.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","content":[{"text":"Kathakali (\"katha\" = story, \"kali\" = play, in Malayalam) fuses dance, elaborate costume and facial makeup, hand-gesture vocabulary (mudra), and live percussion to stage narrative episodes, almost always drawn from the Mahabharata, Ramayana, and Puranas.","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","content":[{"text":"It evolved in the 17th century from Ramanattam — created in Kottarakkara to stage the Ramayana — itself shaped by the older Krishnanattam (patronised by the Zamorin rulers of north Kerala) and Koodiyattam traditions, along with elements of the martial art Kalaripayattu.","type":"text"}]}],"media":[{"kind":"placeholder","tone":"madder","caption":"Kathakali performer — photography pending rights clearance"}],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-08-23T12:43:16.557Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/kathakali"}
{"id":"c900c6ab-5d5f-4e71-925d-9202595ba590","type":"art_form","slug":"kerala-natanam","title":"Kerala Natanam","summary":"Kerala Natanam (Kerala Dance) is a new style of dance that is now recognised as a distinct art form evolved from Kathakali, a form of Indian dance-drama.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"080xvfr3xt","content":[{"text":"Kerala Natanam (Kerala Dance) is a new style of dance that is now recognised as a distinct art form evolved from Kathakali, a form of Indian dance-drama. The Indian dancer Guru Gopinath, a well-trained Kathakali artist, and his wife Thankamani Gopinath who was the first student of Mohiniyattam in Kerala Kalamandalam, developed a unique structure for teaching and performing classical dance forms of India whose origins are from Kathakali. Solo, duets, dance dramas and traditional folk dances were the material they chose.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bf5d2228-1d82-4625-a698-9d71eef5c1ec"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Style","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5eb8ea87em","content":[{"text":"Guru Gopinath and Thankamani's dance programs found traditional pieces existing side by side with those modified to present a variety of themes. Their style relied heavily on the angika abhinaya (body movements and gestures) and  satvika abhinaya (facial expressions) from Kathakali. The major stance of Kathakali was changed by Gopinath to a more convenient pose that could rest well with the tribhanga concept.\nAnother significant deviation was in aharya abhinaya (costume mode), where they adopted costumes and facial makeup to suit the role. Thus, in a dance on Jesus Christ, the dancer dressed like Christ. In social dances the artists wore the dress of labourers, peasants, folk, etc. Likewise roles of Srikrishna, king, snake charmer, hunter had the appropriate attire. For the first time Carnatic music compositions used for concerts were rendered into dance forms by Gopinath. Unlike traditional Kathakali and Mohini attam, a variety of musical instruments were added to his presentations.\nEven though during his lifetime Guru Gopinath did not give a name to his style, after his death the movement to give his style a name gained momentum. In 1993, during the Global Conference on Guru Gopinath and Kerala Nadanam held in Trivandrum, a Sanskrit definition was given to this style by his students: Keraleeya Shaastriya Sargaathmaka Nrittham — \"A traditional creative dance style originating from Kerala.\"\nKerala Nadanam can be performed in three ways: Ekamga Nadanam (solo), Samgha Nadanam (group), Nataka Nadanam (dance drama enacting a story). Male–female pair dancing is a distinct style in Kerala Nadanam. So also he has extended the dance drama to five or six hours long performance called Indian ballets.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bf5d2228-1d82-4625-a698-9d71eef5c1ec"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"51p2zntvcn","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Kerala Natanam”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bf5d2228-1d82-4625-a698-9d71eef5c1ec"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ysnveak28t","content":[{"text":"Kerala Natanam is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a2ae9c05-548d-4e79-b546-0989f3726f76"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2cgh43srg4","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a2ae9c05-548d-4e79-b546-0989f3726f76"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"kerala school kalolsavam","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3c/Keralanadanam_hs_boys_5.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Shagil Kannur","height":1919,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"kerala school kalolsavam","licence":"CC BY 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3c/Keralanadanam_hs_boys_5.jpg/960px-Keralanadanam_hs_boys_5.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Keralanadanam_hs_boys_5.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3c/Keralanadanam_hs_boys_5.jpg/1280px-Keralanadanam_hs_boys_5.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:18.227Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/kerala-natanam"}
{"id":"f249fb91-8fc0-4162-a410-e4b7f7caed3f","type":"art_form","slug":"khattak","title":"Khattak","summary":"The Khattak (Pashto: خټک اتڼ [xaˈʈak], Urdu: رقص خٹک   Khattak attan) is a swift martial attan dance usually performed while carrying a sword and a handkerchief (while not always are they holding a sword and handkerchief) by the tribesmen f…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vmn66qak4w","content":[{"text":"The Khattak (Pashto: خټک اتڼ [xaˈʈak], Urdu: رقص خٹک   Khattak attan) is a swift martial attan dance usually performed while carrying a sword and a handkerchief (while not always are they holding a sword and handkerchief) by the tribesmen from the agile Khattak tribe of Pashtuns. Khattak dance is also a national dance of Pakistan.\nIt was performed by Khattak warriors before going to wars in the time of Malik Shahbaz Khan Khattak and then Khushal Khan Khattak. It was used as a war-preparation exercise and is known to be the only dance with swordplay. Aside from the Pashtun's classical literature, popular ballads, the Pashtunwali (the common code of social values), the khattak is part of the group's collective identify.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"01358fee-efa9-4175-b250-fc17641c2e27"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hqtt3n60m6","content":[{"text":"It originated in the Pashtun regions of present-day Pakistan amongst the Khattak tribe of Pashtuns. It is a varied form of Athan, or Attan, which has been preserved in one of its earliest forms by members of the Khattak and other Pashtun tribes, including the Ghilzais. There are many regional variations of Athan. In traditional Pashtun areas, the dance Athena had the same definition and reverence attached to it as Pashtuns accord to Athan. Athena seems to appeared era while Athan survived in present eastern Afghanistan and north western Pakistan amongst Pashtuns.\nA journalist of Pashtun origin, Amanullah Ghilzai, traced the roots of Khattak to an ancient Greek dance. According to his theory, Khatak, or Athan, is one of the earliest forms of the ancient Greek dance dedicated to Athena. The Greeks had bequeathed the conventional dance for ancient Pashtun-dominated regions when they had colonised this region for several centuries ago. In ancient Greece, Athena had the same definition and reverence attached to it as Pashtuns accord to Athan. Athena seems to have disappeared in Greece during the Christian era while Athan survived in Afghanistan and Pashtun parts of Pakistan.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"01358fee-efa9-4175-b250-fc17641c2e27"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Details","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1wa2719qm8","content":[{"text":"Khattak style is men performing this dance with their weapons in their hands.  A Khattak dancer performs with the zeal of a hero, displaying his physical fitness through body movements while holding one, two or even three swords at a time. Each sword weighs about 1+1⁄2 kilograms. The dance is a 5-step routine involving spins, with the swords crossed over their backs and elbows outward, or it can be performed with the swords out to the sides and typically attain half spin in place leading to a full spin. Depending on the rhythm of the beat, this spin can be completely reversed in full synchronicity. This dance is performed with the musician tuning the beat to the technique of the performers. It is performed very quickly, set to uptempo music featuring the piper, Clarion, and drums beaten with sticks. Up to forty men dance together wielding swords or handkerchiefs and performing acrobatic feats. The fast tempo of Khattak distinguishes it from other attan, which start slowly and pick up speed as the dance progresses.\nA khattak dance performed at night begins with an introductory music, dominated by the slow and irregular beating of the drum called dhol, as the dancers begin to circle a couple of lanterns placed at the center. In some cases, the dancers perform around a bonfire. The steps could appear strange for an onlooker since they involve exaggerated backward and forward strides, punctuated by swordplays such as air thrusts and parries. The pace of the dance quickens along with the beat. The rhythm transitions are often accompanied by hand movements while the finale features the continuous twirling on the dancers' toes until they were completely exhausted. At this point, the dance resembled the Sufi's whirling dervishes in that it goes on until no one is left dancing.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"01358fee-efa9-4175-b250-fc17641c2e27"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Various forms","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9fgzr4pff0","content":[{"text":"The Khattak dance and individual performance.\nBangrai is derived from word Bangrai or Bhangrai (Bangle). This dance has to be performed in circle. A bird's view of the performance looks like a bangle so this is why it is called Bangra or Bhangra. This is merely an exercise to warm up body muscles it is slow in rhythm and with pauses to hold sword like today soldiers hold rifle in Musketry. In the Bangra, every member swirls while carrying swords. In 1–3 circles, an unlimited number of elders, young, and children, each carrying a sword and a handkerchief, start dancing in a circle having band and surnai in the centre. At the beginning of Bhangra, few performers turn by turn sing love songs or quotations which is called \"Takkay\" (5-7 Takkay by each, Takkay is commonly popular in sheep herders, they sit on the hills and sing on the top of hill with high pitch, if someone there on other hill he will reply the Takkay in return and some play it with their floats), at a high pitch, which is meant to convey to the audience that they would like to be tipped for their performance. At the end of the song, the drumbeat increases and the dance goes on.\nBalbala is performed immediately by the same group stage with fast rhythm to sweat up the body. Balballa is staged without swords. Qamar balbala is exercise to get control on stepping and stable body balance at the top of hill and it is performed with swords. A sword is used to keep balance while moving quickly on the uneven surface of the hill.\nIndividual performance of Khattak dance comprises 12 steps, which require great skill on the part of the dancers. The dancer alternates between performing solo and synchronizing with the rest of the troupe.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"01358fee-efa9-4175-b250-fc17641c2e27"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"seq3bky896","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Khattak dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"01358fee-efa9-4175-b250-fc17641c2e27"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pj0khdbj0y","content":[{"text":"Khattak is Tribal dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b549406b-8e0f-4e83-9d08-5e92689151c7"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t3ekjwsj6f","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b549406b-8e0f-4e83-9d08-5e92689151c7"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Khushal Khan Khattak Akora","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ec/Khushal_Khan_Khattak_Akora.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Prince Waqar Jalbai","height":848,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Khushal Khan Khattak Akora","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ec/Khushal_Khan_Khattak_Akora.jpg/960px-Khushal_Khan_Khattak_Akora.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Khushal_Khan_Khattak_Akora.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ec/Khushal_Khan_Khattak_Akora.jpg/1280px-Khushal_Khan_Khattak_Akora.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"beautiful view of Akora Khattak Pakistan","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f0/Akora_Khattak_Nowshera.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Ersal Khan","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"beautiful view of Akora Khattak Pakistan","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f0/Akora_Khattak_Nowshera.jpg/960px-Akora_Khattak_Nowshera.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Akora_Khattak_Nowshera.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f0/Akora_Khattak_Nowshera.jpg/1280px-Akora_Khattak_Nowshera.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Sunset view, Akora Khattak, Pakistan","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b7/Akora_Khattak_Sunset_View_Pakistan.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Prince Waqar Jalbai","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Sunset view, Akora Khattak, Pakistan","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b7/Akora_Khattak_Sunset_View_Pakistan.jpg/960px-Akora_Khattak_Sunset_View_Pakistan.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Akora_Khattak_Sunset_View_Pakistan.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b7/Akora_Khattak_Sunset_View_Pakistan.jpg/1280px-Akora_Khattak_Sunset_View_Pakistan.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:28.266Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/khattak"}
{"id":"ccd98ad3-ee1b-4a39-9199-ef1a507ca414","type":"art_form","slug":"khigga","title":"Khigga","summary":"Khigga is a style of Assyrian folk dance in which multiple dancers hold each other's hands and form a semi-circle or a curved line. There are multiple foot patterns that dancers perform.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"x1vfhbn53a","content":[{"text":"Khigga is a style of Assyrian folk dance in which multiple dancers hold each other's hands and form a semi-circle or a curved line. There are multiple foot patterns that dancers perform. Its thought to have been danced for thousands of years. It is one of the most common and simplest Assyrian folk dances, generally performed at weddings, baptisms, confirmations and other joyous occasions. Set in common time, khigga is accompanied by a moderate dance beat and is usually performed to Assyrian folk and pop music. \nTo note, the term Khigga is occasionally used to denote all the Assyrian folk circle dances, i.e. \"Khigga'd Belaty\" (\"Khigga of Belaty\"), \"Khigga'd Gubareh\", etc.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d05b34c4-b252-409f-99ef-05a09933f4c3"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Background","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b54r1e5pyc","content":[{"text":"The word 'khigga' comes from Classical Syriac ܚܳܓ (ḥāgg, “to go around”) and is a cognate of Arabic haj (حج). \nKhigga is traditionally danced with music played on the zurna, supported by a davul, but in recent years, both acoustic and electronic instruments have started to replace them. The khigga has spread from Anatolia to many other regions, such as Armenia and the Balkans. The khigga is a group of traditional hand-holding dances similar to those from the Balkans and Eastern European countries, with a single or a couple of figure dancers often added to the geometrical centre of the dancing circle. \nIn Assyrian weddings, as well as parties and other various social gatherings, people may dance khigga for hours. Every region has its own style and forms. Khigga is simple to dance and it is the first beat that is played in welcoming the bride and groom to the reception hall.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d05b34c4-b252-409f-99ef-05a09933f4c3"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Technique","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hxv3jn1mmq","content":[{"text":"As with most Assyrian folk dances, khigga assumes an open circular shape and is open-ended, where more and more participants can join throughout the dance session. In a restricted floor space (e.g. a lot of tables), the dance would tend to vine around the room and assume spiral, circular and curvy shapes. Arms are predominantly used which usually move independently of the legs. Arm motions include bouncing, swinging forward and back, moving side-to-side. The torso, along with the shoulders and arms, bounces up and down rhythmically, often independently of the legs. Stomps and stamps are also present. Khigga goes by the time signature of 44 and tempo between 100 and 115. \nConnection can also be made by pinkies, such as in the variant danced by Assyrians from Syria (\"khigga'd suria\" or \"beriye\"), which is accompanied by a faster beat, usually at around 115-120bpm, where the dancers wave their connected pinkies whilst taking a few steps forward and one step backwards in a brisk manner. This Syrian khigga form is generally danced from left to right and it also is the first beat danced in a Syrian-Assyrian wedding when the married couple are welcomed in the reception. \nKhigga has other varieties such as \"Heavy Khigga\" or \"Normal/Standard Khigga\". With Heavy Khigga (or \"Khigga Yaqoora\" in Assyrian), the tempo is 'heavier', as its title suggests, where the participants would make more ardent and exaggerated moves, such as knee bending and rhythmical shoulder motions. It is not to be confused with Siskani, as that dance beat is faster and has distinguishing techniques.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d05b34c4-b252-409f-99ef-05a09933f4c3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ywx12qmnrj","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Khigga”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d05b34c4-b252-409f-99ef-05a09933f4c3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"n1kznm524g","content":[{"text":"Khigga is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6daff1f4-1c60-45a0-8220-77e4fd2f9947"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vshaxfgte3","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6daff1f4-1c60-45a0-8220-77e4fd2f9947"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"A picture of a musical performance by Assyrian musician Julie Yousif at the 92nd Assyrian National Convention in Anaheim, California. Attendees perform Khigga while Yousif sings a medly of songs.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/89/Julie_Yousif_Khigga_Performance_at_the_2025_Assyrian_Convention.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Surayeproject3","height":1707,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"A picture of a musical performance by Assyrian musician Julie Yousif at the 92nd Assyrian National Convention in Anaheim, California. Attendees perform Khigga while Yousif sings a medly of songs.","licence":"CC BY 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/89/Julie_Yousif_Khigga_Performance_at_the_2025_Assyrian_Convention.jpg/960px-Julie_Yousif_Khigga_Performance_at_the_2025_Assyrian_Convention.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Julie_Yousif_Khigga_Performance_at_the_2025_Assyrian_Convention.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/89/Julie_Yousif_Khigga_Performance_at_the_2025_Assyrian_Convention.jpg/1280px-Julie_Yousif_Khigga_Performance_at_the_2025_Assyrian_Convention.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0"},{"alt":"A far-away photo of Assyrian musician Ramsen Sheeno performing at the 92nd Assyrian National Convention. Attendees perform Assyrian folk dance while he sings music.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8c/Ramsen_Sheeno_Khigga_Performance_at_the_2025_Assyrian_Convention.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Surayeproject3","height":1707,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"A far-away photo of Assyrian musician Ramsen Sheeno performing at the 92nd Assyrian National Convention. Attendees perform Assyrian folk dance while he sings music.","licence":"CC BY 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8c/Ramsen_Sheeno_Khigga_Performance_at_the_2025_Assyrian_Convention.jpg/960px-Ramsen_Sheeno_Khigga_Performance_at_the_2025_Assyrian_Convention.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ramsen_Sheeno_Khigga_Performance_at_the_2025_Assyrian_Convention.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8c/Ramsen_Sheeno_Khigga_Performance_at_the_2025_Assyrian_Convention.jpg/1280px-Ramsen_Sheeno_Khigga_Performance_at_the_2025_Assyrian_Convention.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0"},{"alt":"A picture of Assyrians forming a Khigga dance line while wearing traditional Khomala","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a6/Shlama_Foundation_Khomala_Khigga.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Noor Matti","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"A picture of Assyrians forming a Khigga dance line while wearing traditional Khomala","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a6/Shlama_Foundation_Khomala_Khigga.jpg/960px-Shlama_Foundation_Khomala_Khigga.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Shlama_Foundation_Khomala_Khigga.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a6/Shlama_Foundation_Khomala_Khigga.jpg/1280px-Shlama_Foundation_Khomala_Khigga.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:28.561Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/khigga"}
{"id":"955b0e71-94ed-4784-b4e3-829837bc2d9f","type":"art_form","slug":"khon","title":"Khon","summary":"Khon (Thai: โขน, pronounced [kʰǒːn]) is a dance drama genre from Thailand. Khon has been performed since the Ayutthaya Kingdom.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"p5zakxr97m","content":[{"text":"Khon (Thai: โขน, pronounced [kʰǒːn]) is a dance drama genre from Thailand. Khon has been performed since the Ayutthaya Kingdom. Born from the harmonious blend of traditional Thai performing arts, Khon has flourished into a distinctive cultural treasure of Thailand.\nIt is traditionally performed solely in the royal court by men in masks accompanied by narrators and a traditional piphat ensemble. A variation of this genre with female performers is called khon phu ying (โขนผู้หญิง).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aaf3812d-a464-4d4b-ab6b-2924b485e077"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rspqvmqyv2","content":[{"text":"Khon is a Thai traditional dance which combines many arts like dance and drama. The provenance of Khon was based on Ramayana and later developed to Ramakien in the Thai style. Moreover it is mentioned in Thai literature's Lilit Phra Lo (c. 1529) which was written before the reign of King Narai.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aaf3812d-a464-4d4b-ab6b-2924b485e077"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"p4rv6w2w6n","content":[{"text":"Historical evidence shows that the Thai art of stage plays must have already been highly evolved by the 17th century. In 1687, King Louis XIV of France sent a diplomat Simon de la Loubère to record all that he saw in the Ayutthaya Kingdom. In his famous account Du Royaume de Siam, La Loubère carefully observed the classic 17th century theatre of Siam, including an epic battle scene from a Khon performance, and recorded what he saw in great detail:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aaf3812d-a464-4d4b-ab6b-2924b485e077"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bwamq3gqtz","content":[{"text":"The Siamese have three sorts of Stage Plays: That which they call Cone [khôn] is a figure dance, to the sound of the violin and some other instruments. The dancers are masked and armed, and represent rather a combat than a dance. And though every one runs into high motions, and extravagant postures, they cease not continually to intermix some word. Most of their masks are hideous, and represent either monstrous Beasts, or kinds of Devils. The Show which they call Lacone is a poem intermix with Epic and Dramatic, which lasts three days, from eight in the morning till seven at night. They are histories in verse, serious, and sung by several actors always present, and which do only sing reciprocally .... The Rabam is a double dance of men and women, which is not martial, but gallant ...","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aaf3812d-a464-4d4b-ab6b-2924b485e077"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Characters","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"24f3k0h5ep","content":[{"text":"Khon roles are dictated by long-standing tradition. The principal characters are the heroes, the heroines, the ogres, and the monkeys. The monkeys are some of the most important roles in Khon. The best-known monkey characters in the story is the monkey warrior Hanuman.\nModern Khon contains many elements from the lakhon nai and today, includes female performers playing female characters, formerly performed by men. While the ogre and monkey characters wear masks, most of the human characters do not.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aaf3812d-a464-4d4b-ab6b-2924b485e077"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Khon language","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"r9z5s2hhhn","content":[{"text":"Khon language is the use of various dance and gesture movements by performers to convey their roles to the audience and to create enjoyment. In general, Khon language resembles everyday language, but it cannot be expressed through vocal tones. Instead, it employs bodily gestures and movements using the torso, hands, arms, legs, feet, shoulders, neck, face, and head to represent meaning. Some gestures in Khon can communicate meaning even more effectively than spoken words. For example, shaking the head is used to signify refusal.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aaf3812d-a464-4d4b-ab6b-2924b485e077"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Performances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"aynvgk3h4h","content":[{"text":"Khon is based on the tales of the epic Ramakien (Thai adaptation of Indian Hindu epic Ramayana), as Thai literature and drama draws great inspiration from Indian arts and legend. Khon Ramakien originally could be performed by men only. Women performed only as angels and goddesses. Today women perform as monkeys and demons. In the past, Khon was performed only by the royal family, with the sons of the king performing as monkeys and demons. Thai Khon stresses realistic dance moves, especially the monkey, which focuses on beauty and fine monkey-like dancing postures. Khon training is begun at a very young age, so that the performer can become flexible enough to do back flips, especially by the Vanara (forest dwellers or monkey) character.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aaf3812d-a464-4d4b-ab6b-2924b485e077"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kfqeyeqkh2","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Khon”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aaf3812d-a464-4d4b-ab6b-2924b485e077"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nrz3yxk43f","content":[{"text":"Khon is Thai theatrical performance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"52bb8554-7819-4d04-b000-d005ecac5537"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f37dkrn4ye","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 5 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"52bb8554-7819-4d04-b000-d005ecac5537"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"The Atthami Bucha Festival is held each year at \"Wat Phra Borom That Thung Yang\" in Thung Yang village, along road 102, just a few kilometres west of Uttaradit, commemorating the cremation of the Buddha.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/16/Atthami_Bucha_Festival_Laplae_Uttaradit_02.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Takeaway","height":1281,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"The Atthami Bucha Festival is held each year at \"Wat Phra Borom That Thung Yang\" in Thung Yang village, along road 102, just a few kilometres west of Uttaradit, commemorating the cremation of the Buddha.","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/16/Atthami_Bucha_Festival_Laplae_Uttaradit_02.jpg/960px-Atthami_Bucha_Festival_Laplae_Uttaradit_02.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Atthami_Bucha_Festival_Laplae_Uttaradit_02.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/16/Atthami_Bucha_Festival_Laplae_Uttaradit_02.jpg/1280px-Atthami_Bucha_Festival_Laplae_Uttaradit_02.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:26.921Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/khon"}
{"id":"13a0c889-60f0-4116-b13a-8ba90a106ac7","type":"art_form","slug":"khorovod","title":"khorovod","summary":"The khorovod or horovod (Russian: хоровод, Ukrainian: хоровод, корогод, Polish: korowód) is the Slavic name for a folk dance combining circle dance and chorus singing, similar to the choreia of ancient Greece.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dgsrhh83w8","content":[{"text":"The khorovod or horovod (Russian: хоровод, Ukrainian: хоровод, корогод, Polish: korowód) is the Slavic name for a folk dance combining circle dance and chorus singing, similar to the choreia of ancient Greece.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7e6e7ffb-c815-4894-95c2-d4dcb6355bc1"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"879qq5dpc6","content":[{"text":"The term khorovod likely descends from the Greek Choreia (Ancient Greek: χορεία); Rus' culture was heavily influenced by Greek culture. Khorovod is related to choreia ( a Greek circle dance), kolo (a South Slavic circle dance originating in Serbia, Croatia and Bosnia), hora (Balkans), and kochari (Armenian and Azerbaijani folk dance).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7e6e7ffb-c815-4894-95c2-d4dcb6355bc1"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origin and characteristics","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tne70x7ttf","content":[{"text":"The participants of the dance hold the hand or the little finger of their dance partners while dancing in a circle.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7e6e7ffb-c815-4894-95c2-d4dcb6355bc1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ysthgr9f2e","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Khorovod”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7e6e7ffb-c815-4894-95c2-d4dcb6355bc1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jh2xn11hmr","content":[{"text":"khorovod is East-Slavic massive circular ritual dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7b050450-5e20-4689-939e-cc6fb7876074"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8p4fj0f3j6","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7b050450-5e20-4689-939e-cc6fb7876074"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Хоровод в родовом экопоселении «Кореньские родники». Белгородская область 2014.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8e/Khorovod_in_KR_may_2014_18.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Лобачев Владимир","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Хоровод в родовом экопоселении «Кореньские родники». Белгородская область 2014.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8e/Khorovod_in_KR_may_2014_18.JPG/960px-Khorovod_in_KR_may_2014_18.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Khorovod_in_KR_may_2014_18.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8e/Khorovod_in_KR_may_2014_18.JPG/1280px-Khorovod_in_KR_may_2014_18.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Хоровод в родовом экопоселении «Кореньские родники». Белгородская область 2014.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7e/Khorovod_in_KR_may_2014_09.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Лобачев Владимир","height":857,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Хоровод в родовом экопоселении «Кореньские родники». Белгородская область 2014.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7e/Khorovod_in_KR_may_2014_09.JPG/960px-Khorovod_in_KR_may_2014_09.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Khorovod_in_KR_may_2014_09.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7e/Khorovod_in_KR_may_2014_09.JPG/1280px-Khorovod_in_KR_may_2014_09.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Хоровод в родовом экопоселении «Кореньские родники». Белгородская область 2014.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/29/Khorovod_in_KR_may_2014_08.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Лобачев Владимир","height":857,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Хоровод в родовом экопоселении «Кореньские родники». Белгородская область 2014.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/29/Khorovod_in_KR_may_2014_08.JPG/960px-Khorovod_in_KR_may_2014_08.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Khorovod_in_KR_may_2014_08.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/29/Khorovod_in_KR_may_2014_08.JPG/1280px-Khorovod_in_KR_may_2014_08.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:05.022Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/khorovod"}
{"id":"5eb280f4-d9a0-4c8a-8c19-a56bbfe09be4","type":"art_form","slug":"khorumi","title":"Khorumi","summary":"The Khorumi (Georgian: ხორუმი) is a war dance that originated in the region of Adjara, which is located in the southwestern region of Georgia. The dance was originally performed by only a few men. However, over time it has grown in scale.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"961vhwnzky","content":[{"text":"The Khorumi (Georgian: ხორუმი) is a war dance that originated in the region of Adjara, which is located in the southwestern region of Georgia. The dance was originally performed by only a few men. However, over time it has grown in scale. In today's version of the Khorumi, 30 to 40 dancers can participate. The dance was inscribed on the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Georgia list in 2013.\nAlthough the number of performers changed, the content of the dance is still the same. The dance brings to life the Georgian army of the past centuries. A few men who are searching the area for a campsite and enemy camps perform the initial \"prelude\" to the dance. Afterwards, they call the army onto the battlefield. The exit of the army is quite breathtaking. Its strength, simple but distinctive movements and the precision of lines create a sense of awe on stage. The dance incorporates in itself the themes of search, war, and the celebration of victory as well as courage and glory of Georgian soldiers. Since Georgia has seen many wars throughout its history, Khorumi is a call from the past and reminds us that in order to have peace, we must be ready for war.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8a54df42-f31f-4f30-b2b1-609d08299a2a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Musical features","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6tg09fzn40","content":[{"text":"Unlike the bulk of Georgian traditional dances, which are usually accompanied by choral polyphonic singing and clapping, Khorumi is traditionally accompanied by instruments, and is not accompanied by clapping. Drum (doli) and the bagpipe (chiboni) are two key instruments to  accompany Khorumi. Another unique element of Khorumi is that it has a specific rhythm, based on five beat meter (3+2).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8a54df42-f31f-4f30-b2b1-609d08299a2a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"aj903kxgkp","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Khorumi”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8a54df42-f31f-4f30-b2b1-609d08299a2a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xsc6skfhxk","content":[{"text":"Khorumi is type of Georgian dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d832f7f6-e63c-4914-b9b8-6ad5f941ab65"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"d3z6kkpetr","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d832f7f6-e63c-4914-b9b8-6ad5f941ab65"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"BETUMI, Georgia (April 30, 2007) – Sailors aboard the guided missile destroyer USS The Sullivans (DDG 68) watch local Georgian dancer perform a Khorumi dance. The Sullivans is operating in the 6th Fleet area of responsibility as a part of Commander, Naval Forces Europe-Commander…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4e/US_Navy_070430-N-7434C-006_Sailors_aboard_the_guided_missile_destroyer_USS_The_Sullivans_%28DDG_68%29_watch_local_Georgian_dancer_perform_a_Khorumi_dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Michael S. Campbell","height":914,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"BETUMI, Georgia (April 30, 2007) – Sailors aboard the guided missile destroyer USS The Sullivans (DDG 68) watch local Georgian dancer perform a Khorumi dance. The Sullivans is operating in the 6th Fleet area of responsibility as a part of Commander, Naval Forces Europe-Commander…","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4e/US_Navy_070430-N-7434C-006_Sailors_aboard_the_guided_missile_destroyer_USS_The_Sullivans_%28DDG_68%29_watch_local_Georgian_dancer_perform_a_Khorumi_dance.jpg/960px-US_Navy_070430-N-7434C-006_Sailors_aboard_the_guided_missile_destroyer_USS_The_Sullivans_%28DDG_68%29_watch_local_Georgian_dancer_perform_a_Khorumi_dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:US_Navy_070430-N-7434C-006_Sailors_aboard_the_guided_missile_destroyer_USS_The_Sullivans_(DDG_68)_watch_local_Georgian_dancer_perform_a_Khorumi_dance.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4e/US_Navy_070430-N-7434C-006_Sailors_aboard_the_guided_missile_destroyer_USS_The_Sullivans_%28DDG_68%29_watch_local_Georgian_dancer_perform_a_Khorumi_dance.jpg/1280px-US_Navy_070430-N-7434C-006_Sailors_aboard_the_guided_missile_destroyer_USS_The_Sullivans_%28DDG_68%29_watch_local_Georgian_dancer_perform_a_Khorumi_dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"The Georgian Dance Khorumi","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e5/The_Georgians_Dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Levan Totosashvili","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"The Georgian Dance Khorumi","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e5/The_Georgians_Dance.jpg/960px-The_Georgians_Dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:The_Georgians_Dance.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e5/The_Georgians_Dance.jpg/1280px-The_Georgians_Dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:16.676Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/khorumi"}
{"id":"9a8aaff8-486d-444d-a194-03641660966c","type":"art_form","slug":"kikkli","title":"Kikkli","summary":"Kikkli (pronounced: kick-lee), also spelled as Kikli, is one of the folk dances of Punjabi women and girls performed by two girls holding hands and twirling each other in circle and balancing their positions in circular motions.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0z5t88rhpd","content":[{"text":"Kikkli (pronounced: kick-lee), also spelled as Kikli, is one of the folk dances of Punjabi women and girls performed by two girls holding hands and twirling each other in circle and balancing their positions in circular motions. It is generally popular in young girls and performed in pairs. A variety of songs are used with clapping.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6527d005-429f-4455-ac28-ab337c1b2b09"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dancing style","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"baw8mqekv8","content":[{"text":"It is more of a sport than a dance for young girls. Two girls stand face to face close to each other and hold their hands crossing arms with their bodies inclined back; in this position their arms are stretched to the maximum and hands interlock firmly. Then they wheel round fast continuously with their dupattas floating in the air and anklets making tinkling sound. The other ladies encourages them to go faster and faster by singing songs with clapping. Sometimes it is done by four girls. The folk song related to the dance has much variety.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6527d005-429f-4455-ac28-ab337c1b2b09"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"19gtqvpt6j","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Kikkli”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6527d005-429f-4455-ac28-ab337c1b2b09"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zsah25grvg","content":[{"text":"Kikkli is Indian folk dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e085dbea-9748-47f7-a9bd-d805079c2ffc"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cq6hyfmka9","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e085dbea-9748-47f7-a9bd-d805079c2ffc"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Punjabi folk Dance","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/20/Kikkli.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Dr. Manavpreet Kaur","height":857,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Punjabi folk Dance","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/20/Kikkli.jpg/960px-Kikkli.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kikkli.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/20/Kikkli.jpg/1280px-Kikkli.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:30.406Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/kikkli"}
{"id":"17428a80-37c7-4f9b-a2d8-94344b771894","type":"art_form","slug":"kochari","title":"Kochari","summary":"Kochari (Armenian: Քոչարի, romanized: K'očari; Azerbaijani: Köçəri; Greek: Κότσαρι, romanized: Kótsari; Turkish: Koçari) is an Armenian folk dance originating in the Armenian Highlands.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9hvc1hn1wr","content":[{"text":"Kochari (Armenian: Քոչարի, romanized: K'očari; Azerbaijani: Köçəri; Greek: Κότσαρι, romanized: Kótsari; Turkish: Koçari) is an Armenian folk dance originating in the Armenian Highlands. It is performed today by Armenians, while variants are performed by Assyrians, Azerbaijanis, and Pontic Greeks. It is a form of circle dance.\nEach region in the Armenian Highlands had its own Kochari, with its unique way of both dancing and music.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cbaac517-97e4-4a30-99e1-814b29a9ce53"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s8hth1ahqf","content":[{"text":"In Armenian, \"Kochari\" literally means \"knee-come\". Գուճ (gudj or goudj) means \"knee\" and արի (ari) means \"come\".\nIn Azerbaijani Turkish, \"köç\" means \"to move\" used both as a verb and as a noun, with the latter used more in the context of nomads' travelling. \"Köçəri\" is also both an adjective and a noun, meaning a \"nomad\" and \"nomadic\" simultaneously.\nIn Pontic Greek, from the Greek \"κότσι\" (in Pontic Greek \"κοτς\") meaning \"heel\" (from Medieval Greek \"κόττιον\" meaning the same) and \"αίρω\" meaning \"raise\", all together \"raising the heel\", since the Greeks consider the heel to be the main part of the foot which the dancer uses.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cbaac517-97e4-4a30-99e1-814b29a9ce53"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Versions","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nr84af7f6n","content":[{"text":"John Blacking describes Kochari as follows:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cbaac517-97e4-4a30-99e1-814b29a9ce53"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jpp9age9v9","content":[{"text":"Group dancing, when dancers imitate jumping goats, is known as kochari. Dancers stand abreast, holding each other's hands, The tempo of the dance ranges from moderate to fast. Squatting and butting an imagined opponent are followed by high jumps.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cbaac517-97e4-4a30-99e1-814b29a9ce53"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Armenian","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1ww8ezjvk4","content":[{"text":"Armenians have been dancing Kochari for over a thousand years. The dance is danced by both men and women and is intended to be intimidating. More modern forms of Kochari have added a \"tremolo step\", which involves shaking the whole body. It spread to the eastern part of Armenia after the Armenian genocide. The Armenian Kochari has been included to the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding of UNESCO in 2017.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cbaac517-97e4-4a30-99e1-814b29a9ce53"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Azerbaijani","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7vgmec4c4y","content":[{"text":"Today this dancing is played in the Nakhchivan land of which Sharur, Sadarak, Kangarli, Julfa and Shahbuz regions' folklore collectives and it is performed at weddings. Kochari along with tenzere has been included to the list of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding of UNESCO in November 2018 as versions of Yalli dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cbaac517-97e4-4a30-99e1-814b29a9ce53"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Pontic Greek Kόtsari","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"exgft0064m","content":[{"text":"The Pontic Greeks and Armenians have many vigorous warlike dances such as the Kochari.\nUnlike most Pontic dances, the Kotsari is in an even rhythm (24), originally danced in a closed circle.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cbaac517-97e4-4a30-99e1-814b29a9ce53"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yn7xnxadtg","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Kochari”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cbaac517-97e4-4a30-99e1-814b29a9ce53"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9c10rhcqwp","content":[{"text":"Kochari is type of folk dance in various cultures or regions, mostly known for Armenian, Azerbaijani, Greek, Assyrian version, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"03b95411-8e3a-4733-b8c5-54d7727b466d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jhvk9vd6fc","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"03b95411-8e3a-4733-b8c5-54d7727b466d"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Kochari dance - Yerevan","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8c/Kochari_-_Armenian_folk_dance.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Hayordi","height":865,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Kochari dance - Yerevan","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8c/Kochari_-_Armenian_folk_dance.png/960px-Kochari_-_Armenian_folk_dance.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kochari_-_Armenian_folk_dance.png","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8c/Kochari_-_Armenian_folk_dance.png/1280px-Kochari_-_Armenian_folk_dance.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:08.618Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/kochari"}
{"id":"5ad46e46-e9ef-4cf3-8317-714ee2785f3f","type":"art_form","slug":"kolo","title":"kolo","summary":"Kolo (Serbian Cyrillic: Коло) is a South Slavic circle dance, found under this name in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, and Serbia. It is inscribed on the UNESCO List of Intangible Cultural Heritage for Serbia.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m20jydaany","content":[{"text":"Kolo (Serbian Cyrillic: Коло) is a South Slavic circle dance, found under this name in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, and Serbia. It is inscribed on the UNESCO List of Intangible Cultural Heritage for Serbia.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e74b489e-8e1f-4663-97d8-a6964127c39e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Description","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fwpqj239hp","content":[{"text":"The circle dance is usually performed amongst groups of at least three people and up to several dozen people. Dancers hold each other's hands or each other's waists. They form a circle, a single chain or multiple parallel lines.\nKolo requires almost no movement above the waist. The basic steps are easy to learn. Experienced dancers demonstrate virtuosity by adding different ornamental elements, such as syncopated steps. Each region has at least one unique kolo. It is difficult to master the dance and even most experienced dancers cannot master all of them.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e74b489e-8e1f-4663-97d8-a6964127c39e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jhezsxwfy1","content":[{"text":"Kolo is performed at weddings, social, cultural, and religious ceremonies. Some dances require both men and women to dance together, others require only the men or only the women.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e74b489e-8e1f-4663-97d8-a6964127c39e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Music","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mkp3h6p5m8","content":[{"text":"The music is generally fast-paced. The dance was used by Antonín Dvořák in his Slavonic Dances – the Serbian kolo is the seventh dance from opus 72.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e74b489e-8e1f-4663-97d8-a6964127c39e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Traditional dance costume","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"83xgkk71xk","content":[{"text":"Traditional dance costumes vary from region to region. Bordering regions are mostly more similar to each other.\nVarious kolos are performed at social ceremonies. Often traditional clothing, which is unique to a region, is worn. The most common kolo is the narodno kolo or drmeš; a standard step followed by accordion music.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e74b489e-8e1f-4663-97d8-a6964127c39e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Other South Slavic circle dances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s0cnf9ytaz","content":[{"text":"Elsewhere in South Slavic countries, there is horo (Bulgarian: хоро) in Bulgaria and oro (Macedonian: оро) in North Macedonia and Montenegro.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e74b489e-8e1f-4663-97d8-a6964127c39e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Influence","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0ds4jnhv3x","content":[{"text":"Hungarian communities were also influenced by the tradition, where a similar dance is known as Kalala in Laslovo. Also, north of the Croatian border in Hungary, at the area of Mohács, where many ethnic Croats used to live, the tradition still lives on amongst the general population.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e74b489e-8e1f-4663-97d8-a6964127c39e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wmkf53pa15","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Kolo (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e74b489e-8e1f-4663-97d8-a6964127c39e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cvak386gez","content":[{"text":"kolo is a traditional South Slavic collective folk dance performed by dancers linked in a chain, usually forming a circle; it is performed to musical accompaniment at private and public gatherings, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"385932de-6ff1-4c2e-ac6e-ac87815c6ebf"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rfxd68e8qj","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 5 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"385932de-6ff1-4c2e-ac6e-ac87815c6ebf"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Budapest, XVIII. Danube carnival - The Southern Slavic Dance Ensemble (Tököl) and the Kóló Band","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/aa/%C5%A0opsko_kolo%2C_XVIII_Duna.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Wilfredor","height":850,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Budapest, XVIII. Danube carnival - The Southern Slavic Dance Ensemble (Tököl) and the Kóló Band","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/aa/%C5%A0opsko_kolo%2C_XVIII_Duna.jpg/960px-%C5%A0opsko_kolo%2C_XVIII_Duna.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:%C5%A0opsko_kolo,_XVIII_Duna.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/aa/%C5%A0opsko_kolo%2C_XVIII_Duna.jpg/1280px-%C5%A0opsko_kolo%2C_XVIII_Duna.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"},{"alt":"The Serbian National Folk Dance Ensemble Kolo presents Dances from Gnjilane. Hamilton, Canada - 2011. Choreographer Dejan Milosavljevic","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d6/Ensemble_%22Kolo%22_dancing_folk_dance_of_Gnjilane.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Laslovarga","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"The Serbian National Folk Dance Ensemble Kolo presents Dances from Gnjilane. Hamilton, Canada - 2011. Choreographer Dejan Milosavljevic","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d6/Ensemble_%22Kolo%22_dancing_folk_dance_of_Gnjilane.jpg/960px-Ensemble_%22Kolo%22_dancing_folk_dance_of_Gnjilane.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ensemble_%22Kolo%22_dancing_folk_dance_of_Gnjilane.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d6/Ensemble_%22Kolo%22_dancing_folk_dance_of_Gnjilane.jpg/1280px-Ensemble_%22Kolo%22_dancing_folk_dance_of_Gnjilane.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"},{"alt":"Detail from traditional Serbian dance \"kolo\". In 2017, UNESCO included \"kolo\" in the world list of intangible cultural heritage.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f0/%22Srpsko_kolo%22.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"BrankaVV","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Detail from traditional Serbian dance \"kolo\". In 2017, UNESCO included \"kolo\" in the world list of intangible cultural heritage.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f0/%22Srpsko_kolo%22.jpg/960px-%22Srpsko_kolo%22.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:%22Srpsko_kolo%22.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f0/%22Srpsko_kolo%22.jpg/1280px-%22Srpsko_kolo%22.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:04.766Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/kolo"}
{"id":"d179daba-1c1e-48c1-97c2-d7cbb89a65e9","type":"art_form","slug":"konpa","title":"konpa","summary":"Compas (French pronunciation: [kɔ̃pa]; Haitian Creole: konpa dirèk; French: compas direct), also known as konpa or kompa, is a modern méringue dance music genre of Haiti.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k5w5k4xtbf","content":[{"text":"Compas (French pronunciation: [kɔ̃pa]; Haitian Creole: konpa dirèk; French: compas direct), also known as konpa or kompa, is a modern méringue dance music genre of Haiti. The genre was created by Nemours Jean-Baptiste following the creation of Ensemble Aux Callebasses in 1955, which became Ensemble Nemours Jean-Baptiste in 1957. The frequent tours of the many Haitian bands have cemented the style in all the Caribbean. Therefore, compas is the main music of several countries such as Dominica and the French Antilles. Whether it is called zouk, where French Antilles artists of Martinique and Guadeloupe have taken it, or compas in places where Haitian artists have toured, this méringue style is influential in part of the Caribbean, Portugal, Cape Verde, France, part of Canada, and South and North America.\nNemours Jean-Baptiste (1918–1985) was an important figure in the creation and popularization of konpa dirèk. Born in Port-au-Prince, Jean-Baptiste grew up in a musically inclined family, and his early exposure to various forms of music shaped his later innovations. In the 1950s, Haiti's music scene was heavily influenced by traditional meringue, but Jean-Baptiste wanted to modernize this sound by incorporating elements of Latin and jazz music, which were becoming popular across the Caribbean at the time. The Ensemble Aux Callebasses, later became the Ensemble Nemours Jean-Baptiste.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cce8a7c5-c414-4296-859e-22998fd8952f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology and characteristics","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"10tgytmd5a","content":[{"text":"The word \"compas\" means \"measure\" or \"rhythm\" in Spanish, and one of the most distinctive characteristics of compas is the consistent pulsating tanbou beat, a trait common to many styles of Caribbean music. Compas Direct (which is a trademark registered in the United States by Nemours Jean-Baptiste's heirs Dr Yves Nemours Jean-Baptiste and Mrs. Yvrose Jean-Baptiste) translates as direct beat. In Creole, it is officially spelled as konpa, but it is most popularly spelled with an \"m\" in place of the \"n\" (as in kompa) even though it is considered a botched spelling translation that resulted from a phonetic misunderstanding between French and Haitian Creole, the latter with a newly standardized orthography which has only been established since 1979 that contains no m-sounding consonants before b's and p's unlike in French.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cce8a7c5-c414-4296-859e-22998fd8952f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tpp1jhm9nr","content":[{"text":"Konpa (compas) emerged in Haiti during the mid-20th century, a time of significant cultural and political change. The genre was created and popularized by Nemours Jean-Baptiste, who founded Ensemble Aux Callebasses in 1955. Two years later, the group became Ensemble Nemours Jean-Baptiste, solidifying its place in Haitian music history. Before konpa's creation, traditional Haitian meringue dominated the local music scene. However, Jean-Baptiste sought to modernize this style by incorporating elements of Latin and jazz music, which were gaining traction across the Caribbean. This new approach added structure to the rhythms and harmonies, characterized by the use of electric guitars, saxophones, and brass instruments, creating a danceable and accessible sound.\nKonpa's rise coincided with the presidency of François \"Papa Doc\" Duvalier in the late 1950s and 1960s. Duvalier's administration emphasized promoting Haitian culture to foster national unity, and konpa became a symbol of modern Haitian identity. Its rhythm and broad appeal allowed it to remove social barriers, becoming popular among both the Haitian elite and working-class communities. This unique ability to bring people together through music helped konpa cement its place as Haiti's leading musical genre.\nAs konpa gained popularity in Haiti, it began to spread internationally, especially during the 1960s and 1970s. Haitian immigrants carried the genre to places like the United States, Canada, France, and the Dominican Republic, where it influenced and blended with other styles of music. For example, konpa played a significant role in shaping zouk music in the French Antilles, as well as influencing Dominican merengue.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cce8a7c5-c414-4296-859e-22998fd8952f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Rise in Popularity: Regional Growth","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tmkavmykcz","content":[{"text":"In the early 1960s, konpa began spreading beyond Haiti through the efforts of Nemours Jean-Baptiste and other Haitian musicians like Webert Sicot. They toured the Caribbean extensively, visiting countries such as Curaçao, Aruba, Saint Lucia, Dominica, and particularly the French islands of Martinique and Guadeloupe. These tours helped introduce the Caribbean to the sounds of meringue-compas and cadence rampa, styles pioneered in Haiti. Webert Sicot, a saxophonist and creator of cadence rampa, collaborated with producers in Martinique and Guadeloupe, recording multiple albums that further popularized the genre in the region.\nAs Haitian bands gained popularity in the French Antilles, local musicians began adopting the style, incorporating elements of konpa into their music. Influential groups like Les Guais Troubadours, featuring the singer Louis Lahens, played a key role in teaching Antillean musicians the rhythms of meringue-compas and cadence rampa. This exchange helped create a strong connection between Haiti and the French Antilles, turning konpa into one of the most loved music genres in the region. By the late 1960s, nearly all prominent Haitian bands had performed in these islands, solidifying konpa's influence throughout the Caribbean.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cce8a7c5-c414-4296-859e-22998fd8952f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Rise in Popularity: Global Expansion","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8vxm9pa0m2","content":[{"text":"In the 1970s and 1980s, konpa reached new heights as Haitian bands toured extensively, gaining fans across the Caribbean, Europe, Africa, and the Americas. Legendary groups such as Tabou Combo, Les Freres Dejean, and Les Shleu-Shleu brought konpa to an international stage. Tabou Combo, in particular, became one of the most recognized konpa bands. Their music gained immense popularity in Panama, where locals embraced konpa as part of their cultural identity, calling it \"reggae haitiano.\" The band's world tours also brought Haitian music to Senegal, Japan, and other countries, earning them global recognition.\nDuring this period, konpa also became a staple in New York City's Haitian community, with performances in venues like Central Park drawing large crowds. Artists like Coupe Cloue, known for his humorous lyrics and laid-back style, expanded konpa's reach to West Africa, where he was crowned \"king\" during his tours. Meanwhile, groups like Orchestre Septentrional D'Haiti preserved the tradition of large orchestras, representing the northern style of konpa. These tours and performances cemented konpa's status as a global genre, deeply connected to Haiti's culture and diaspora.\nAs konpa continued to evolve and gain popularity on a global scale, it also underwent significant transformations within Haiti itself. While large orchestras like Orchestre Septentrional upheld the traditional style of konpa, a new wave of smaller, more intimate bands began to emerge. This shift marked the rise of the mini-jazz movement, which reflected changing tastes and the influence of urban culture in Haiti during the mid-20th century. These smaller bands brought innovation to konpa, blending its established rhythms with fresh elements to create a more modern and accessible sound.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cce8a7c5-c414-4296-859e-22998fd8952f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Mini-jazz and small bands","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2w137dyc45","content":[{"text":"During and after the…","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cce8a7c5-c414-4296-859e-22998fd8952f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"59d906pc2r","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Compas”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cce8a7c5-c414-4296-859e-22998fd8952f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"g3msp2rf5m","content":[{"text":"konpa is modern méringue, the national music genre and dance style of Haiti, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b2a7bc5a-3fe5-4316-b7a2-312def2c7a86"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nt98hnqfza","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 8 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b2a7bc5a-3fe5-4316-b7a2-312def2c7a86"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Konpa","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/58/Konpa_%287394758586%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Yuya Tamai from Chiba, Japan","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Konpa","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/58/Konpa_%287394758586%29.jpg/960px-Konpa_%287394758586%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Konpa_(7394758586).jpg","thumb1280":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/58/Konpa_%287394758586%29.jpg/1280px-Konpa_%287394758586%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:26.928Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/konpa"}
{"id":"057fac02-c256-4778-83ac-707fefb2e159","type":"art_form","slug":"koodiyattam","title":"Koodiyattam","summary":"Koodiyattam (Malayalam: കൂടിയാട്ടം; IAST: kūṭiyāṭṭaṁ; lit. 'combined act') is a traditional performing art form in the state of Kerala, India.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w5a4mn44m1","content":[{"text":"Koodiyattam (Malayalam: കൂടിയാട്ടം; IAST: kūṭiyāṭṭaṁ; lit. 'combined act') is a traditional performing art form in the state of Kerala, India. It is a combination of ancient Sanskrit theatre with elements of Koothu, an ancient performing art from the Sangam era. It is officially recognised by UNESCO as a Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7c48b5fc-3e0b-4a5d-8b98-0944ad184aa5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origin","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6bfr0cwn9a","content":[{"text":"Koodiyattam, which means \"mixed acting\" in Malayalam, blends Sanskrit theatre performance with features of koothu. It is traditionally played in temple theatres called koothambalams. It is the only surviving art form that incorporates drama from ancient Sanskrit theater. It originated over two thousand years prior. Koodiyattam and Chakyar Koothu were among the dramatic dance worship rites performed in ancient Indian temples, particularly in Kerala. Both Koodiyattam and Chakyar Koothu originated from the ancient art form koothu, which appears multiple times in Sangam literature and epigraphs from the Pallava, Pandiyan, Chera, and Chola periods. Inscriptions about koothu are found in temples in Tanjore, Tiruvidaimaruthur, Vedaranyam, Tiruvarur, and Omampuliyur. They were viewed as an essential component of worship services, alongside the singing of Tevaram and Prabandam hymns.\nAncient kings are among those mentioned as creators of works for these services. There is evidence of these throughout the ancient subcontinent during the Chola and Pallava dynasties. Rajasimha, a Pallava king, is credited with writing the Tamil play \"Kailasodharanam,\" which tells the story of Ravana becoming the target of Siva's wrath and being neutralized without mercy as a result.\nKulasekhara Varma, a medieval ruler of the Chera Perumal dynasty, is believed to have reformed koodiyattam by bringing Vidusaka to the local language and organizing the play's presentation into well-defined sections. He authored two plays, Subhadradhananjayam and Tapatisamvarana, and arranged for their theater performance with the assistance of a Brahmin friend Thozhan. These plays are still being performed.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7c48b5fc-3e0b-4a5d-8b98-0944ad184aa5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Instruments","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"x0078etjje","content":[{"text":"Traditionally, the main musical instruments used in koodiyattam are the mizhavu, kuzhitalam, edakka, kurumkuzhal, and sankhu. The mizhavu, the most prominent of these, is a percussion instrument that is played by a person of the Ambalavas Nambiar caste, accompanied by Nangyaramma playing the kuzhithalam (a type of cymbal).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7c48b5fc-3e0b-4a5d-8b98-0944ad184aa5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Performance style","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gq078hkgfw","content":[{"text":"Traditionally, koodiyattam has been performed by Chakyars (a subcaste of Kerala Hindus) and by Nangyaramma (women of the Ambalavasi Nambiar caste). The name \"koodiyattam\", meaning playing or performing together, is thought to refer to the presence of multiple actors on stage who act in rhythm with the beats of the mizhavu drummers. Alternatively, it may also be a reference to a common practice in Sanskrit drama where a single actor who has performed solo for several nights is joined by another.\nThe main actor is a Chakyar who performs the ritualistic koothu and koodiyattam inside the temple or in the koothambalam. Chakyar women, Illotammas, are not allowed to participate. Instead, the female roles are played by Nangyaramma. Koodiyattam performances are often lengthy and elaborate, ranging from 12 to 150 hours spread across several nights. A complete Koodiyattam performance consists of three parts. The first of these is the purappadu where an actor performs a verse along with the nritta aspect of dance. Following this is the nirvahanam where the actor, using abhinaya, presents the mood of the main character of the play. Then there is the nirvahanam, a retrospective, which takes the audience up to the point where the actual play begins. The final part of the performance is the koodiyattam, which is the play itself. While the first two parts are solo acts, koodiyattam can have as many characters as are required to perform on the stage.\nThe elders of the Chakyar community traditionally taught the artform to their youngsters. It was performed only by Chakyars until the 1950s. In 1955, Guru Mani Madhava Chakyar performed Kutiyattam outside the temple for the first time, for which he faced many problems from the hardline Chakyar community.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7c48b5fc-3e0b-4a5d-8b98-0944ad184aa5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Noted artists","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1edmyswm1b","content":[{"text":"Mani Madhava Chakyar\nAmmannur Madhava Chakyar, who in the 1980s became one of the first koodiyattam performers to present this art to an international audience.\nMoozhikkulam Kochukuttan Chakyar, who in 1981 became the first Residential Guru at Margi, an institution promoting traditional art forms of Kerala. He was a cousin of Ammannur Madhava Chakyar.\nMani Damodara Chakyar, who is Mani Madhava Chakkiar's disciple and nephew, is also a performer of traditional devotional koodiyattams.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7c48b5fc-3e0b-4a5d-8b98-0944ad184aa5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Decline","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"r56snmggcp","content":[{"text":"Koodiyattam traditionally was an exclusive art form performed in special venues called koothambalams in Hindu temples and access to these performances was restricted to only caste Hindus. Also, performances can take up to forty days to complete. The collapse of the feudal order in the nineteenth century in Kerala curtailed the patronage of koodiyattam artists, and they faced serious financial difficulties. Following a revival in the early twentieth century, Koodiyattam is once again facing a lack of funding, leading to a crisis in the profession. \nUNESCO has called for the creation of a network of koodiyattam institutions and gurukalams to promote the transmission of the art form to future generations and for the development of new audiences besides fostering greater academic research in it. Natanakairali in Irinjalakuda is one of the most prominent institutions in the field of koodiyattam revival. The Margi Theatre Group in Thiruvananthapuram is another organisation dedicated to the revival of kathakali and koodiyattom in Kerala.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7c48b5fc-3e0b-4a5d-8b98-0944ad184aa5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ce5xb3d0rj","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Koodiyattam”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7c48b5fc-3e0b-4a5d-8b98-0944ad184aa5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9y9646fz2t","content":[{"text":"Koodiyattam is traditional performing art form in Kerala, India, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ff407091-3bda-4f9f-8751-9ab30726feb3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7b80yz879k","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 5 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ff407091-3bda-4f9f-8751-9ab30726feb3"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Kalamandalam Girija - Nangiarkooth- Trivandrum","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/00/Kalamandalam_Girija_2.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Orbismedia","height":1920,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Kalamandalam Girija - Nangiarkooth- Trivandrum","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/00/Kalamandalam_Girija_2.jpg/960px-Kalamandalam_Girija_2.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kalamandalam_Girija_2.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/00/Kalamandalam_Girija_2.jpg/1280px-Kalamandalam_Girija_2.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-08-31T05:47:23.949Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/koodiyattam"}
{"id":"ffb6dc4a-e30f-40a6-a01f-797a222fcdbd","type":"art_form","slug":"kopacka","title":"kopačka","summary":"Kopačka (Macedonian: Копачка; English: The farmers dance) is a traditional Macedonian oro, folk dance, from the region of Pijanec, a range of mountains in the eastern part of North Macedonia.\nKopačka is traditionally performed by male dance…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1hevjmmrvk","content":[{"text":"Kopačka (Macedonian: Копачка; English: The farmers dance) is a traditional Macedonian oro, folk dance, from the region of Pijanec, a range of mountains in the eastern part of North Macedonia.\nKopačka is traditionally performed by male dancers. It is a fast-paced dance with fast movements on half feet, featuring extensive jumping, side movements and scissors movements. The dancers hold their belts with their left hand over the right one and begin their dance in a position of a half circle. The dance rhythm is 24.\nThe dance was first introduced to Tanec (the national folklore performance group in North Macedonia) by the village dancers. The original name for the dance was Sitnata (Macedonian: Ситната; English: The small/fine one). Tanec changed the name to Kopačka and the dance subsequently became so famous that the villagers adopted this name of Kopačka for both the dance and the name of their group, to remind everyone whence this dance originally came.\nThe dance is based on a combination of two songs: Dimna Juda for the slow, walking part of the dance, and Derviško Dušo (Viško) for the fast part of the dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"616f33c9-cf7e-4a85-abcd-a2e48801140c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rvdtam4sdw","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Kopačka (folk dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"616f33c9-cf7e-4a85-abcd-a2e48801140c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"20capgmpfy","content":[{"text":"kopačka is Macedonian oro, folk dance, from the Republic of Macedonia, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4534ef07-1e97-46c8-b18e-1c84f04cc1ab"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4as496ewhx","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4534ef07-1e97-46c8-b18e-1c84f04cc1ab"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T07:23:07.761Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/kopacka"}
{"id":"96f809ce-906d-4a53-8a49-897a93c2479c","type":"art_form","slug":"kopanitsa","title":"Kopanitsa","summary":"Kopanitsa or kopanica (called in some regions Gankino) is the name for a family of lively folk dances from western Bulgaria done to music in 118 meter, and also sometimes for the accompanying music.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"aaf5g0yys9","content":[{"text":"Kopanitsa or kopanica (called in some regions Gankino) is the name for a family of lively folk dances from western Bulgaria done to music in 118 meter, and also sometimes for the accompanying music. Some sources describe the rhythm in terms of \"quick\" and \"slow\" beats, the pattern being quick-quick-slow-quick-quick (counted as 2-2-3-2-2 metric beats). The name comes from the verb kopam, which means \"to dig\" or \"to hoe\", so the name is sometimes translated as \"little digging dance\".  As with other Balkan dances, different regions and even different villages have their own variations of the dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5c1ecd5c-93f8-467b-aac6-521cfdfe0be7"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Description","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ta7mad2swb","content":[{"text":"Kopanitsas and gankinos are line dances done with dancers in a curved line facing in, either holding hands with arms down or (in kopanitsas) holding the belts of the neighboring dancers.  Many of them are \"called\" dances, with several patterns of steps.  Dancers repeat one pattern until the leader on the right end of the line calls another pattern.\nThe term kopanitsa seems to be especially used in the Shopluk region of western Bulgaria, which includes the towns of Sofia, Pernik, Radomir and Kyustendil. Some common names are Shopska kopanitsa, Graovska kopanitsa, and Divotinka kopanitsa (from the village of Divotino). There is even a village named Kopanitsa not far from the town of Pernik.\nThe term kopanitsa is also found in western Thrace and the Sredna Gora regions east of Sofia (Ihtiman, Panagyurishte, Pazardzhik) and even as far east as Plovdiv. The term gankino (Ganka's dance) seems to be used mostly in northern Bulgaria (particularly in the western and central parts) and also refers to dances in 1116. In western Thrace, dances in 1116 meter are often called Krivo (or Krivata), a term which means \"crooked\" or \"uneven\".\nDances in 1116 similar to kopanitsa or gankino can also be found in North Macedonia (Sedenka, Pletenica, Skopsko, etc.) and Serbia (Kopačka) using other names. The Serbian Kopačka, in 1116, is not the same as the Macedonian Kopačka, which is in 24.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5c1ecd5c-93f8-467b-aac6-521cfdfe0be7"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Basic Gankino step","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ha11xax5fk","content":[{"text":"As an example of the form, the basic gankino is the most widespread of the dances in the group, and is done by international folk dance groups as \"kopanitsa\".  The step is three measures, consisting of two grapevine steps to the right and one to the left:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5c1ecd5c-93f8-467b-aac6-521cfdfe0be7"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dy7n9cqsq1","content":[{"text":"Measure 1: 1.(quick) Step right on right foot, 2.(quick) Step behind right on left foot, 3.(slow) Step right on right foot, 4.(quick)  Step left in front of right on left foot, 5.(quick) Pause;\nMeasure 2: 1.(quick) Step right on right foot, 2.(quick) Step behind right on left foot, 3.(slow) Step right on right foot, 4.(quick)  Close left foot next to right, 5.(quick) pause;\nMeasure 3: 1.(quick) Step left on left foot, 2.(quick) Step behind left on right foot, 3.(slow) Step right on right foot, 4.(quick)  Close right foot next to left, 5.(quick) pause;\nIndividual dancers are free to improvise variations to the basic step, mostly during the fourth and fifth beats of measures 2 and 3, for example replacing the pause with a foot slap (plesni) or a jump apart and then jump together (hlopchi).  The musicians often speed up the music during the dance as a challenge to the dancers.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5c1ecd5c-93f8-467b-aac6-521cfdfe0be7"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Musical influence","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9ed0pg79tn","content":[{"text":"The music accompanying the kopanitsa has spread beyond its original homeland; kopanitsas having been recorded by Irish musician Andy Irvine and Davy Spillane on their 1992 album EastWind and on the 2004 album Live from the Powerhouse by Mozaik.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5c1ecd5c-93f8-467b-aac6-521cfdfe0be7"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"e622p4ry0t","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Kopanitsa”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5c1ecd5c-93f8-467b-aac6-521cfdfe0be7"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1g6gcw1bs8","content":[{"text":"Kopanitsa is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0fd4cb5c-c7e8-48f3-a449-85fea566fa05"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"snxh3d8pse","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0fd4cb5c-c7e8-48f3-a449-85fea566fa05"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Село Копаница","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/68/Kopanica.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Suvorov at Bulgarian Wikipedia","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Село Копаница","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/68/Kopanica.JPG/960px-Kopanica.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kopanica.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/68/Kopanica.JPG/1280px-Kopanica.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:06.056Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/kopanitsa"}
{"id":"fc46ec72-dc14-4107-b872-cba98f79e3d1","type":"art_form","slug":"korean-dance","title":"Korean dance","summary":"Dance in Korea began with shamanistic early rituals five thousand years ago and now ranges from folk dance to newly created and adopted contemporary dance.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hq24qxeb3a","content":[{"text":"Dance in Korea began with shamanistic early rituals five thousand years ago and now ranges from folk dance to newly created and adopted contemporary dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"09c8ebe4-8544-4301-ae8e-dc904d8a8150"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Overview","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1pxbx8ep27","content":[{"text":"Korean traditional dance originated in ancient shamanistic rituals thousands of years ago. By the time of the later Korean kingdoms, Goryeo and Joseon, in the 2nd millennium AD, Korean traditional dance benefited from regular support of the royal court, numerous academies, and even an official ministry of the government.\nA number of different dances gained permanent high status, including the hermit dance, the ghost dance, buchaechum (fan dance), sengmu (monk dance), the oudong (entertainer dance) and others, despite the fact that many had humble origins.  For example, the Fan dance is believed to have originated with shamans performing nature rites with leaves but evolved into one of the most highly refined Korean dances.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"09c8ebe4-8544-4301-ae8e-dc904d8a8150"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0ybam5y6gs","content":[{"text":"Other Korean dances remained and remain to this day under the ambit of farmers and folk dance groups. Props used in the dances include the long billowing silk scarf of pure white used in the Salpuri dance, drums, hats, swords and others.  The props may be peripheral or central to the story of the dance.  In the Ghost dance, the entertainer has a joyous reunion with a deceased spouse, only to endure the heartbreak  of reseparation, and there may few or no props.  On the other hand, the Great Drum dance (one of several forms of drum dances) features a gaudy drum which may be taller than the performer.  The drum tempts a monk until finally he succumbs to it and performs a rolling drum.\nDue to the cultural suppression by Imperial Japan, arguably considered cultural genocide during Korea's Annexation to Japan, most of the dance academies died out and some dances were lost as well as some of dance forms were distorted.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"09c8ebe4-8544-4301-ae8e-dc904d8a8150"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Types","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"px35rsaxnz","content":[{"text":"Korean traditional dance shares some similarity with form of dance known as contemporary and lyrical. Moves follow a curvilinear path with little short term repetition.  The dancer's legs and feet are often entirely concealed by billowing Hanbok.  Emotional attributes of the dances include both somberness and joy. The dancer must embody the fluid motion that surges through the traditional music that the dancers perform to. Korean traditional dance is often performed to Korean traditional music, which includes traditional drums, flutes, and more. The music is what upholds the dance and the dancer is the tool that shows the music in physical form.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"09c8ebe4-8544-4301-ae8e-dc904d8a8150"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Court dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k1yrrg2w8x","content":[{"text":"Korean court dances is called \"jee\" (정재; 呈才) which originally referred to \"display of all talent\" including not only dance but also other performing arts such as jultagi (줄타기 tightrope walking), gong deonjigi (공던지기), and mokmatagi (목마타기) but gradually only denoted \"court dance\". The term has been used since the early period of Joseon dynasty.\nJeongjae were used to perform for the royal family, court officials, and foreign envoys or for festive occasions sponsored by the state. Jeongjae is divided into the two categories, \"Hyangak jeongjae\" (향악정재) and \"Dangak jeongjae\" (당악정재). Hyangak consists of the indigenous court dances originated in Korea, whereas Dangak are the dances derived from court dances of Tang China during the Goryeo period.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"09c8ebe4-8544-4301-ae8e-dc904d8a8150"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Hyangak jeongjae","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"x6q76e6ewd","content":[{"text":"Ahbakmu (아박무), Ivory clappers dance\nBakjeopmu (박접무), fluttering butterfly wings dance\nBonglaeui (봉래의), phoenix dance\nCheoyongmu (처용무), dance of Cheoyong, Dragon King's son which is the oldest jeongjae originated in the Silla periodHeo, Young-Il. \"Cheoyong-mu\". Asia/Pacific Cultural Centre for UNESCO.\nChunaengjeon (춘앵전) dance of the spring nightingales\nGainjeonmokdan (가인전목단), dance depicting beautiful women picking peonies\nGeommu (검무), sword dance\nJinju geomu\nHakyeon hwadaemu (학연화대무), Crane and lotus pedestal dance\nGoguryeomu (고구려무), Goguryeo dance\nMuaemu (무애무)\nMusanhyang (무산향), fragrance of dancing mountain dance\nMugo (무고), drum dance\nGyobang mugo (교방무고)\nSajamu (사자무), lion dance\nSeonyurak (선유락), boating party dance","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"09c8ebe4-8544-4301-ae8e-dc904d8a8150"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dangak jeongjae","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"y6dkpxgb2h","content":[{"text":"Monggeumcheok (몽금척), dream of golden ruler dance\nPogurak (포구락) ball game dance\nHeonseondo (헌선도), peach-offering dance","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"09c8ebe4-8544-4301-ae8e-dc904d8a8150"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3qabta21qe","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Korean dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"09c8ebe4-8544-4301-ae8e-dc904d8a8150"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rpwwyqz7b0","content":[{"text":"Korean dance is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5e0bf4da-49b7-457a-8a6a-9822ae3365fd"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jda2q5bcak","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5e0bf4da-49b7-457a-8a6a-9822ae3365fd"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"The scene of the drum dance titled \"Grand Drum Ensemble\" performed by the National Dance Company of Korea for the World Library and Information Congress took a place on August 22 2006 at Sejong Center, Seoul, South Korea","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d2/Korean_dance-Grand_Drum_Ensemble-02.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"by bdnegin (Brian Negin)","height":854,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"The scene of the drum dance titled \"Grand Drum Ensemble\" performed by the National Dance Company of Korea for the World Library and Information Congress took a place on August 22 2006 at Sejong Center, Seoul, South Korea","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d2/Korean_dance-Grand_Drum_Ensemble-02.jpg/960px-Korean_dance-Grand_Drum_Ensemble-02.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Korean_dance-Grand_Drum_Ensemble-02.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d2/Korean_dance-Grand_Drum_Ensemble-02.jpg/1280px-Korean_dance-Grand_Drum_Ensemble-02.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"},{"alt":"2008년 2월 탐라국 입춘 굿 놀이 중 오방각시춤","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/05/Korean_dance-Jeju-Obbanggaksi_chum-02.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"leigh cooper","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"2008년 2월 탐라국 입춘 굿 놀이 중 오방각시춤","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/05/Korean_dance-Jeju-Obbanggaksi_chum-02.jpg/960px-Korean_dance-Jeju-Obbanggaksi_chum-02.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Korean_dance-Jeju-Obbanggaksi_chum-02.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/05/Korean_dance-Jeju-Obbanggaksi_chum-02.jpg/1280px-Korean_dance-Jeju-Obbanggaksi_chum-02.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:04.513Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/korean-dance"}
{"id":"1c92a89b-7167-4349-827e-840af9e4b42a","type":"art_form","slug":"krishnanattam","title":"Krishnanattam","summary":"Dance-drama depicting the life of Krishna, patronised by the Zamorin rulers of north Kerala; an ancestor tradition of Kathakali.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","content":[{"text":"Krishnanattam is a temple dance-drama tradition depicting the life of Krishna, historically patronised by the Zamorin (Samoothiri) rulers of Calicut. It is one of the theatrical traditions that shaped the development of Kathakali.","type":"text"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:15.862Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/krishnanattam"}
{"id":"2d48b3a4-5eae-4d42-a279-6eae32b11631","type":"art_form","slug":"krumping","title":"Krumping","summary":"Krump is a type of dance culture that evolved through African-American street dancing popularized in the United States during the early 2000s, characterized by free, expressive, exaggerated, and highly energetic movement.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c8jq9kmqt7","content":[{"text":"Krump is a type of dance culture that evolved through African-American street dancing popularized in the United States during the early 2000s, characterized by free, expressive, exaggerated, and highly energetic movement. The people who originated krumping saw the dance as a means for them to escape gang life.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a5ac5b06-af85-4089-9bef-f125c9600398"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origins","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wf89nygyn3","content":[{"text":"The root word krump came from the lyrics of a 1990 song and is sometimes explained as a backronym for Kingdom Radically Uplifted Mighty Praise, which presents krumping as a faith-based art form. Krumping was created by dancers: Ceasare \"Tight Eyez\" Willis, Marquisa \"Miss Prissy\" Gardner, Christopher \"Lil' C\" Toler and Jo'Artis \"Big Mijo\" Ratti in South Central, Los Angeles, during the early 2000s. Clowning is the less aggressive predecessor to krumping and was created in 1992 by Thomas \"Tommy the Clown\" Johnson in Compton, California.\nIn the 1990s, Johnson and his dancers—known as the Hip Hop Clowns—performed clowning for children's’ birthday parties and other general-public functions. In contrast, krumping focuses on highly-energetic battles and dramatic movements which Tommy the Clown describes as intense, fast-paced, and sharp. CBS News compared the intensity of krumping to that of moshing. Although krumping was not directly created by Tommy, it was inspired by his “clowning”. Originally, Willis and Ratti were clown dancers for Tommy, but as their dancing was considered too \"rugged\" and \"raw\" for clowning, they left and developed krumping.  Tommy eventually opened a clown-dancing academy and started the Battle Zone competition at the Great Western Forum where krump crews and clown crews could come together and battle each other in front of an audience of their peers.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a5ac5b06-af85-4089-9bef-f125c9600398"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Spread and influence","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sb38msyqa6","content":[{"text":"David LaChapelle's documentary, Rize, explores the clowning and krumping subculture in Los Angeles. He says of the movement: \"What Nirvana was to rock-and-roll in the early '90s is what these kids are to hip-hop. It's the alternative to the bling-bling, tie-in-with-a-designer corporate hip-hop thing.\" LaChapelle was first introduced to krumping when he was directing Christina Aguilera's music video \"Dirrty\". After deciding to make a documentary about krumping, LaChapelle produced a short film titled Krumped, which was screened at the 2004 Aspen Shortsfest, and gained more funding to produce a longer version as a result of the positive response. In 2005, the longer version was released as Rize and screened at the Sundance Film Festival, the Auckland International Film Festival, and several other film festivals outside the United States.\nAside from Rize, krumping appeared in several music videos including Missy Elliott's \"I'm Really Hot”, The Black Eyed Peas' \"Hey Mama\", Chemical Brothers' \"Galvanize\" and Madonna's \"Hung Up\". Krumping is also demonstrated in Skinny Puppy's \"Pro-Test\" video, and displays several other aspects of krumping.\nKrumping has also appeared in the movies Bring It On: All or Nothing, Step Up, Stomp the Yard and Climax; the television series Community; and the reality dance competitions So You Think You Can Dance, Street Dance of China, and America's Best Dance Crew. Russell Ferguson.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a5ac5b06-af85-4089-9bef-f125c9600398"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Style","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8m2gf15g1q","content":[{"text":"There are five basic moves in krumping: stomps, jabs, chest pops, Buck hop, and arm swings. Krumping is rarely choreographed; it is almost entirely freestyle to a song (improvisational) and is danced most frequently in battles or sessions rather than on a stage. Krump is stylistically different from other hip-hop dance styles such as breaking and turfing. Krumping is very aggressive and is danced upright to upbeat and fast-paced music, but it does not promote aggression or fighting – moves are meant to take up space and challenge other dancers to feed off and return the energy, whereas breaking is more acrobatic and is danced on the floor to break beats. The Oakland dance style turfing is a fusion of popping and miming that incorporates storytelling and illusion. Krump is less precise, and more freestyle, than turfing. Thematically, all these dance styles align under the term street dance as they all share common attributes of their street origins, their freestyle nature and the use of battling.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a5ac5b06-af85-4089-9bef-f125c9600398"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Vocabulary","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sg7r5qabg8","content":[{"text":"Battle: A direct dance competition often featuring concepts, materials, combos, and get-offs.\nBiter: Someone who attends sessions or watches battles in order to feed on others' styles and originality, so that they can mimic those moves later at another battle and pass them off as their own inventions, i.e. plagiarism.\nSession: When a group of krumpers form a semi-circle, or cypher in hip-hop context, and, one by one, go into the middle and freestyle.\nBuck: An adjective used to describe someone who excels in krump, as well as high-quality adherence to the tenets of the Krump ethos.\nLive: An adjective used to describe someone raising the energy in the session or battle.\nCall-out: A krumper's initiation or request for battle with another krumper.\nLab: Deliberate experimentation by krumpers, either by themselves or with other krumpers, to create new concepts and/or advance their style.\nGet-off: A set of movements that determines that a krumper's round is over, usually a pattern consisting solely of foundations, bang-outs, or arm-swings.\nKill-off: A set of movements that excites the crowd to the point where the battle is over and the crowd surrounds the krumper; the opponent is \"killed off\", hence the name.\nKrumper: A dancer who specializes in krumping.\nKrumpography: Krump used as a choreography.\nConcept: An abstract movement that helps krumpers tell a story.\nMaterial: A material movement krumpers use to show a random item to further storytelling, e.g. pouring water on the ground and slipping.\nJab: A short, sharp, staccato movement of the arms.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a5ac5b06-af85-4089-9bef-f125c9600398"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Round storyline terminology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8ynq7z64f9","content":[{"text":"Atmosphere: Feeling the vibe of the environment and having the environment feel the krumpers' presence.\nIntro: Starting one's rounds; usually with small movements, sometimes used to introduce a krumper's character or concept.\nRounds: A set of combos, materials, concepts, and foundations taken together.\nBuckness: The part of the storyline where krumpers are already hyped up with their rounds, showing a series of heavy and/or fast movements; usually done with a stance of the knees slightly bent, while the arms and feet are moved far out in front of the lower extremities of the body.\nKrump: The part of the storyline where the krumper is doing a series of foundations, concepts, and materials while standing upright, while the arms and feet are moving in front of the upper extremities of the body.\nLiveness: The part of the storyline where the krumper is doing a series of foundations, concepts, and materials, with the body bent upward, while the arms and feet are moving outside of the body, either upwards or to the sides.\nGet-off: The part of the storyline where the krumper is expressing feelings most intensely, letting out by rapidly showing repetitive movements such as bang-outs, jabs and redundancy.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a5ac5b06-af85-4089-9bef-f125c9600398"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6y1ha5tzmd","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Krumping”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a5ac5b06-af85-4089-9bef-f125c9600398"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8wc9m60wr8","content":[{"text":"Krumping is Type of street dance originating from the United States, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c06dd2da-9a7f-4955-8568-ae8fe761d306"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gk4tjxja6r","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c06dd2da-9a7f-4955-8568-ae8fe761d306"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Krumper from Grrilla Step, Dexter (ex Avalanches) new band. Performing at SoCo Cargo shipping container club - St. Kilda, VIC, Australia Read the back story of this photo on my blog","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/16/GrrillaStep-Krump.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Andrew Braithwaite from Melbourne, Australia","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Krumper from Grrilla Step, Dexter (ex Avalanches) new band. Performing at SoCo Cargo shipping container club - St. Kilda, VIC, Australia Read the back story of this photo on my blog","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/16/GrrillaStep-Krump.jpg/960px-GrrillaStep-Krump.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:GrrillaStep-Krump.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/16/GrrillaStep-Krump.jpg/1280px-GrrillaStep-Krump.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:22.772Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/krumping"}
{"id":"cc4e9cb8-630d-4cf3-bcac-3167564f52a9","type":"art_form","slug":"kuchipudi","title":"kuchipudi","summary":"Kuchipudi ( KOO-chih-POO-dee) is one of the eight major Indian classical dance forms. It originated in Kuchipudi, a village in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5apg1w0e21","content":[{"text":"Kuchipudi ( KOO-chih-POO-dee) is one of the eight major Indian classical dance forms. It originated in Kuchipudi, a village in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. Kuchipudi is a dance-drama performance, with its roots in the ancient Hindu Sanskrit text of Natya Shastra (c. 500 BCE—500 CE). It developed as a religious art linked to traveling bards, temples and spiritual beliefs, like all major classical dances of India.\nEvidence of Kuchipudi's existence in an older version is found in copper inscriptions of the 10th century, and by the 15th century in texts such as the Machupalli Kaifat. Kuchipudi tradition holds that Narahari Tirtha – a sanyassin of Dvaita Vedanta persuasion, and his disciple, an orphan named Siddhendra Yogi, founded and systematized the modern version of Kuchipudi in the 17th century. Kuchipudi largely developed as a Krishna-oriented Vaishnavism tradition, and it is known by the name of Bhagavata Mela in Thanjavur.\nIn the past, an all male troupe performed the traditional Kuchipudi. A dancer in a male role would be in Agnivastra, also known as Bagalbandi, wear a dhoti (a single pleated piece of cloth hanging down from the waist). A dancer in a female role would wear a Sari with light makeup. The Kuchipudi performance usually begins with an invocation. Then, each costumed actor is introduced, their role stated, and they perform a short preliminary dance set to music (daravu). Next, the performance presents pure dance (nritta).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2219128f-44b5-4a9b-936d-26a4e2dcf17a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Nomenclature, orthography and etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fz9tr0es1x","content":[{"text":"Kuchipudi is named after the village in Krishna district of Andhra Pradesh named Kuchipudi – shortened form of the full name Kuchelapuram or Kuchilapuri – where it developed. The name of the village, states Ragini Devi, is itself derived from Sanskrit Kusilava-puram, which means \"the village of actors\". Kusilava is a term found in ancient Sanskrit texts and refers to \"traveling bard, dancer, newsmonger\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2219128f-44b5-4a9b-936d-26a4e2dcf17a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"y65n22w07d","content":[{"text":"Like other classical dance forms in India, Kuchipudi traces its roots to the Sanskrit Natya Shastra, a foundational treatise on the performing arts. Its first complete compilation is dated to between 200 BCE and 200 CE, but estimates vary between 500 BCE and 500 CE. The most studied version of the Natya Shastra text consists of about 6000 verses structured into 36 chapters. The text, states Natalia Lidova, describes the theory of Tāṇḍava dance (Shiva), the theory of rasa, of bhāva, expression, gestures, acting techniques, basic steps, standing postures – all of which are part of Indian classical dances. Dance and performance arts, states this ancient text, are a form of expression of spiritual ideas, virtues, and the essence of scriptures.\nThe dance-drama tradition in Andhra Pradesh is of ancient origins, and the region is mentioned in the Natya Shastra. Bharata Muni credits a graceful movement to the Andhra region and discusses it as Kaishiki vritti. The pre-2nd century CE text calls one raga Andhri, which is from Andhra. The Andhri, is related to Gandhari and Arsabhi, and is discussed in many other 1st millennium Sanskrit texts. Some, state Bruno Nettle and others, place the origins of Kuchipudi to 3rd-century BCE.\nDance-drama performance arts related to Shaivism, in Telugu-speaking parts of South India, are evidenced in 10th-century copper inscriptions, and these were called Brāhmana Mēlamulu or Brahma Mēlamulu. The medieval era dance-drama performance artists were Brahmins. This art was likely adopted by the musical and dancing Bhakti traditions of Vaishnavism which grew in the 2nd millennium, whose devotees were called Bhāgavatulu in Andhra region and Bhāgavatār in Tamil region of south India.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2219128f-44b5-4a9b-936d-26a4e2dcf17a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Late medieval period","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dp1esd4bj0","content":[{"text":"Kuchipudi enjoyed support from medieval era rulers. Copper inscriptions suggest that the dance-drama was seen by the royalty and was influential by 1502 and through the late 16th century. The court records of the Vijayanagara Empire – known for its patronage of the arts – indicate that drama-dance troupes of Bhagavatas from Kuchipudi village performed at the royal court. However, various historical inscriptions often indicate that this dance form can be tracked back to the first century BCE.\nThe region saw wars and political turmoil with Islamic invasions and the formation of Deccan Sultanates in the 16th century. With the fall of Vijayanagara Empire and the destruction of temples and Deccan cities by the Muslim army around 1565, musicians and dance-drama artists migrated south, and Tanjore kingdom records suggest some 500 such Kuchipudi artist families arrived from Andhra, were welcomed and granted land by the Hindu king Achyutappa Nayak, a settlement that grew to become modern Melattur near Tanjore (also called Thanjavur). Not everyone left the old Andhra village of Kuchipudi, and those remaining became the sole custodians of its tradition in Andhra.\nKuchipudi declined and was a dying art in 17th-century Andhra, but in 1678, the last Shia Muslim Sultan of Golkonda, Abul Hasan Tana Shah, saw a Kuchipudi performance and was so pleased that he granted the dancers lands around the Kuchipudi village, with the stipulation that they continue the dance-drama. The Shia Sultanate was overthrown in 1687 by the Sunni Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2219128f-44b5-4a9b-936d-26a4e2dcf17a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Colonial rule period","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zja2p2dck4","content":[{"text":"After the death of Aurangzeb in 1707, the Mughal Empire collapsed, Hindu rebellion sprouted in many parts of India, including the Deccan region. In the second half of the 18th century, during this period of political turmoil, the colonial Europeans arrived, the Madras Presidency was formed by the East India Company officials and became a part of the British Empire. Andhra was a part of the Madras Presidency. During the colonial era, Hindu arts and traditions such as dance-drama were ridiculed. Christian missionaries and British officials stereotyped and denigrated dancers, calling Indian classical dances as evidence of a tradition of \"harlots, debased erotic culture, slavery to idols and priests\". Christian missionaries launched the \"anti-dance movement\" in 1892, to ban all such dance forms. The anti-dance camp accused the various classical Indian dance forms as a front for prostitution, while revivalists questioned the constructed histories by the colonial writers.\nIn 1910, the Madras Presidency of the British Empire altogether banned temple dancing. Kuchipudi, which was traditionally staged at night on a stage attached to a Hindu temple, was impacted and like all classical Indian dances declined during the colonial rule period.\nAfter the ban, many Indians protested against the caricature and cultural discrimination, launching their efforts to preserve and reinvigorate their culture. Due to these efforts from 1920s onwards, the classical Indian dances witnessed a period of renaissance. Vedantam Lakshminarayana Sastri (1886–1956) was the influential figure who led the effort to save, reconstruct and revive Kuchipudi performance art.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2219128f-44b5-4a9b-936d-26a4e2dcf17a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Modern period","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"faqh8d701a","content":[{"text":"The three influential figures in Kuchipudi, during the first half of twentieth century, were Vedantam Lakshminarayana Sastri, Vempati Venkatanarayana Sastri and Chinta Venkataramayy…","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2219128f-44b5-4a9b-936d-26a4e2dcf17a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tc3gdym9r1","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Kuchipudi”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2219128f-44b5-4a9b-936d-26a4e2dcf17a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k1xgzx9b1e","content":[{"text":"kuchipudi is form of the classical dances of India, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2faec26e-de9a-44b3-8df6-bb9253fc6e1f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xn7c1b36k8","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 8 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2faec26e-de9a-44b3-8df6-bb9253fc6e1f"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Kuchipudi performer","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ae/Kuchipudi_Performer_DS.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Augustus Binu / facebook","height":1811,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Kuchipudi performer","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/ae/Kuchipudi_Performer_DS.jpg/960px-Kuchipudi_Performer_DS.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kuchipudi_Performer_DS.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/ae/Kuchipudi_Performer_DS.jpg/1280px-Kuchipudi_Performer_DS.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-08-31T05:47:20.903Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/kuchipudi"}
{"id":"b247961b-5035-4f11-bcc5-babf8ba7ff06","type":"art_form","slug":"kullawada","title":"kullawada","summary":"The kullawada, also spelled kullahuada, cullaguada, or kullawa, is a dance practiced in Bolivia and Peru. Its name is derived from the Aymara word kullawa (\"sister\"), referring to its dancers.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s5kt43bmce","content":[{"text":"The kullawada, also spelled kullahuada, cullaguada, or kullawa, is a dance practiced in Bolivia and Peru. Its name is derived from the Aymara word kullawa (\"sister\"), referring to its dancers. In Bolivia, the kullawada is primarily performed during the Fiesta del Gran Poder, the Carnival of Oruro, the Festival of the Virgin of Urkupiña, and the Festival of Chutillos.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"761144ea-1fb4-439e-9f80-5dbfc75e0667"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origin","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6g6jh0q8yh","content":[{"text":"The Kullawada originated in the Community of San Vicente de Collagua, in the municipality of Viacha, Ingavi Province, Department of La Paz, Bolivia, deriving its name from the Aymara \"Kullawas\" (spinners/weavers) who practiced this craft in the Andean region, representing the pre-Hispanic textile activity, although its history dates back to the Inca era and is linked to the colonial workshops and the textile tradition of the area.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"761144ea-1fb4-439e-9f80-5dbfc75e0667"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Bolivian arguments","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"10j2k81w19","content":[{"text":"According to the Bolivian position, the Kullawada dance originated exclusively in Bolivia in the city of La Paz. The name Kullawada, derives from the San Vicente de Collagua Community (kullawa in Aymara) of the Viacha municipality of the Ingavi Province of the Department of La Paz.\nThe Kullawada dance originated in the city of La Paz as an allegory to spinners who worked in the Obrajes textile factories located in the city of La Paz.\nKullawada dance is practiced in Puno, Peru due to the Bolivian influence in said Peruvian region. The copying of Bolivian dances in Puno was due to a complex social and economic process. Peruvian researcher Americo Valencia Chacon argues that due to Puno being a far away region, forgotten by its capital Lima, and for its proximity to the city of La Paz, the seat of the government of Bolivia, the people there imitated and copied Bolivian traditions, including Bolivian dances. The Bolivian influence in Puno has been documented since the end of the 19th century. The dances called De Traje de Luces, including the kullawada that is danced in Puno, are of Bolivian origin. This fact was highly criticized in Peru due to the preference for Bolivian dances, causing a process of extinction of the authentic dances of Puno. For the registration of the Fiesta de la Candelaria of Peru in UNESCO in the official documents it is written verbatim: \"the dances, music and costumes of the people of Puno are accompanied by the dances, music and costumes of the people of Bolivia\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"761144ea-1fb4-439e-9f80-5dbfc75e0667"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Peruvian arguments","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"a1e68kjp10","content":[{"text":"According to the Peruvian version, the dance of the \"Kullawas\", also known as \"Kullawada\", dates before the formation of the current countries to Inca times and is linked to the activity of ancient spinners and weavers. Some historians maintain that this dance belonged to the Inca nobility, danced by the ñustas and authorities of the empire. Other researchers maintain that several Aymara couples brought to the capital of the empire danced ceremonially to the delight of the Inca and the orejones (noble cusqueños) led by a guide, carrying a large spinning wheel with wool tufts, to represent their ethnic group, their trade, and its importance to the Aymara economy, culture and communication. These peoples were settled on the shores around of Lake Titicaca.\nIt is documented that these spinners and embroiderers had a presence in Puno, and that part of this community migrated to Lima: \"... the characteristic hat of that time had a rectangular shape, there was the Kullawa Achachi, later these embroiderers went to Lima and not I know more about them\".\nInitially the costumes were simple,  with silver embroidery touches that made them look very elegant. In colonial times Westerners persecuted Andean culture in a war against idolaters. Later, under the republican, kullawas were reborn again as a dance of spinners and became a ritual dance. Centuries later it became a dance of ostentation and economic power, turning the costume even more pompous, including pearls, gold leaf, silver and gold threads.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"761144ea-1fb4-439e-9f80-5dbfc75e0667"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4aj1c34d4m","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Kullawada”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"761144ea-1fb4-439e-9f80-5dbfc75e0667"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yn0gstbytk","content":[{"text":"kullawada is dance practiced in Bolivia and Peru, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"23dcdfed-eacc-48c1-a233-2070006db000"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k26pcb2q9r","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"23dcdfed-eacc-48c1-a233-2070006db000"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Bailarines de Kullawada en Tiquina 2023","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bb/Bailarina_de_Kullawada_en_Tiquina2.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Das Morton","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Bailarines de Kullawada en Tiquina 2023","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bb/Bailarina_de_Kullawada_en_Tiquina2.jpg/960px-Bailarina_de_Kullawada_en_Tiquina2.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bailarina_de_Kullawada_en_Tiquina2.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bb/Bailarina_de_Kullawada_en_Tiquina2.jpg/1280px-Bailarina_de_Kullawada_en_Tiquina2.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:22.689Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/kullawada"}
{"id":"49435d1d-0feb-47bd-ac25-293c7b835860","type":"art_form","slug":"kumi-odori","title":"Kumi Odori","summary":"Kumi odori (組踊; Okinawan: Kumi wudui) is a form of narrative traditional Ryūkyūan dance.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rkaj0njxvd","content":[{"text":"Kumi odori (組踊; Okinawan: Kumi wudui) is a form of narrative traditional Ryūkyūan dance. Kumi odori or Kumi wudui means \"combination dance\" or \"ensemble dance\".\nOriginating in the Ryūkyūan capital of Shuri, Okinawa in 1719, the original purpose of this dance was to provide amusement and diversions, which were termed ukwanshin, for the Chinese diplomats who traveled to Ryūkyū. Tamagusuku Chokun, a Ryūkyūan courtier who lived from 1684 to 1734, is credited with the establishment of kumi odori as a frequently presented court demonstration. An amalgamation of several different types of East Asian dance, the kumi odori has continued to hold a place in Okinawan culture, and is now recognized by the Japanese government as an  Important Intangible Cultural Property.  In 2010 it was inscribed on the UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. It remains today a prime example of native art sustained by the people of Okinawa.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"80ab6691-14f9-4c99-948e-bdfcc9bb3a89"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Historical and political background","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"prnmw1m79j","content":[{"text":"The Ryūkyū Islands are composed of more than 140 islands, 40 of which inhabited, that lie beneath the southernmost Japanese main islands. A point of contention throughout the years, ownership of Ryūkyū was often disputed by major powers. The island of Okinawa was first ruled by warlords, called either aji or anji, and was unified under the rule of Shō Hashi in the early fifteenth century (Smits 90). Eventually Okinawa conquered the rest of the Ryūkyū Islands, expanding its small kingdom. Trade was booming in East Asia in the late fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries and Ryūkyū's position as a middleman helped foster relationships with Japan and China. Once trade diminished, Ryūkyū faced the threat of invasion by Japan. In 1609, the Satsuma domain invaded the Ryūkyū Kingdom and forced the King to become their vassal in order to take advantage of its connections with China, and ruled only indirectly until the 1872 (Smits 91). Coincidentally, this actually served to promote Chinese culture. The ambiguity of Ryūkyū's political status while under Japanese control was a debate that concerned most of the elite. Even though it was under Japanese domination and its leaders were aware of this, it maintained its autonomy until 1879 (Smits 107). By this time, Ryūkyū began to come under more formal Japanese control. Emperor Meiji forced the Kingdom to become a Japanese feudal domain in 1872, and in 1879 it was made a prefecture of Japan, and then it was occupied by the United States from 1945 to 1972 following World War II and the Battle of Okinawa. In 1972 it was finally returned to Japan as a result of years of friction between the Okinawans and the U.S. military.\nKumi odori was born out of the necessity of diplomatic acts.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"80ab6691-14f9-4c99-948e-bdfcc9bb3a89"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Elements of style","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t4kc2xx0aq","content":[{"text":"Kumi odori is a mixture of dance styles that has its roots in Okinawan, Chinese, and Japanese methods. In addition to this, it incorporates qualities from religious dances, kami ashibi or chondara, and chants, umui, which were prevalent in villages of the past (Foley 2). A true conglomerate, it merges music, song, narrative, and dance all for a dramatic effect. Originally performed by completely male casts of aristocratic origin, today it is also performed by women who typically take on the roles of females or young males. In the past, casting was dependent greatly on body type, and smaller males would perform these parts.\nThe movements of the kumi odori are very slow and deliberate. There are no shows of bravura nor are there any obvious feats of difficulty, rather the complexity of the steps lies in its restrained simplicity (Foley 6).  Highly stylized, its characteristic gliding walk is said to be one of the hardest steps to master. In classical ballet, it is said that it is more difficult to truly master bourrees (tiny connected steps en pointe which travel across the floor) than it is to complete multiple pirouettes, although the latter may look more impressive, and the same notion applies here. Generally speaking, the easier a step may seem, the harder it is to perfect. There are three levels of odori (dance): realistic actions, emotional actions, and dances within a dance. The characteristic walk discussed earlier would be an example of a realistic action, meant to tell a story. The addition of dance steps to these actions would comprise the second level, and the inclusion of travel dances, or michiyuki, within the storyline would fulfill the third (Foley 7).  This is common in many forms of dance, especially in the classical ballet.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"80ab6691-14f9-4c99-948e-bdfcc9bb3a89"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Music","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mmq5j20gec","content":[{"text":"Chokun used ryuka, the classical poetry of Okinawa, and classical music for his songs. Instruments typically included three stringed instruments: the sanshin (brought from China), the kutu, and the kucho; the hanso, a flute; and two drums, the odaiko and the kodaiko. The lyrics were usually sung by the sanshin players, who were the most important instrumental component, and songs were used to heighten the mood in intense situations. These songs were crucial to the performance, and often replaced dialogue much like in Broadway musicals (Foley 8).  And as opposed to the spirited music of Okinawa's common folk, this music was formal and somewhat austere, projecting the idea of nobility through the music. Delivery is formal and full of metaphors just as in Japanese literature of the time. Two styles were applied: strong singing, or kyogin, which was reserved for powerful male roles, and soft singing, known as wagin or yuwajin, which was used for female or young male roles (Foley 8).  Most of the important singing was done by the musicians. The musicians either sat onstage or stage left during the performances, or sat behind a drop since the stage was ordinarily an eighteen-foot platform, much like that of the no (Foley 9).  When performed in the present day, the musicians will sit either stage left or in the wings, preserving the uncluttered look of the original, and at no time are there more than six actors on stage (Thornbury 231).  It is said that the essence of the action holds the importance, rather than the action or peripheral elements themselves. Similarly, realistic props were avoided, and would rather symbolize ideas instead of being taken literally.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"80ab6691-14f9-4c99-948e-bdfcc9bb3a89"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Repertory","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t31dac1zy6","content":[{"text":"Although approximately sixty kumi odori pieces have been accounted for, Chokun remains the most influential figure. Not surprisingly, all of his pieces were related to no in some way, which is understandable given the success of kabuki theater's adaptation of the same. His presentations were roughly half an hour long, unlike the two-hour-and-forty-minute performances that would come later (Foley 3).  These works are generally categorized into two groups by subject matter: domestic plays, called sewa mono and historical plays, or jidai mono. Jidai mono, or vendetta plays as they are often called (kataki-uchi mono) are frequently based on revenge, while love and filial devotion and piety are the main focus of the sewa mono (Foley 8).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"80ab6691-14f9-4c99-948e-bdfcc9bb3a89"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Kumi odori today","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8xvh15eyaa","content":[{"text":"The future of the kumi odori revival is up in the air, as the average performer is around the age of…","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"80ab6691-14f9-4c99-948e-bdfcc9bb3a89"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jb04f5r1p4","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Kumi Odori”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"80ab6691-14f9-4c99-948e-bdfcc9bb3a89"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zp8c7hfvnj","content":[{"text":"Kumi Odori is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"95296399-79b0-47a9-8b73-f3118f88b74b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c3yn14vzjv","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"95296399-79b0-47a9-8b73-f3118f88b74b"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"A woman in bingata kimono performing some Okinawan dance","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ee/Dancer_in_bingata_2.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Sara Cimino","height":1920,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"A woman in bingata kimono performing some Okinawan dance","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ee/Dancer_in_bingata_2.jpg/960px-Dancer_in_bingata_2.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dancer_in_bingata_2.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ee/Dancer_in_bingata_2.jpg/1280px-Dancer_in_bingata_2.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"},{"alt":"Monument of Heshikiya Chōbin's 300th Birth Anniversary (center of the image), his Kumiodori work Temizu no In (left), poem Nakafū Bushi (right), in Senaga Island.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/60/Monument_of_Heshikiya_Chobin_in_Senaga_Island.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Kugel~commonswiki","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Monument of Heshikiya Chōbin's 300th Birth Anniversary (center of the image), his Kumiodori work Temizu no In (left), poem Nakafū Bushi (right), in Senaga Island.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/60/Monument_of_Heshikiya_Chobin_in_Senaga_Island.JPG/960px-Monument_of_Heshikiya_Chobin_in_Senaga_Island.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Monument_of_Heshikiya_Chobin_in_Senaga_Island.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/60/Monument_of_Heshikiya_Chobin_in_Senaga_Island.JPG/1280px-Monument_of_Heshikiya_Chobin_in_Senaga_Island.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:14.958Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/kumi-odori"}
{"id":"b2875c90-1af5-48c6-96f0-3eb4c3d5ffd7","type":"art_form","slug":"kummattikali","title":"Kummattikali","summary":"Kummattikali or Kummatti Kali is the famous colorful mask-dance of Kerala, prevalent in Thrissur District, Palakkad District and parts of South Malabar.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dnhw207wxf","content":[{"text":"Kummattikali or Kummatti Kali is the famous colorful mask-dance of Kerala, prevalent in Thrissur District, Palakkad District and parts of South Malabar. During the festival of Onam, Kummattikali performers move from house to house collecting small gifts and entertaining people. Kummatti dances are rampant in the Thrissur district during Onam. Pristine or original form of Kummattikali can be seen in the Bhadrakali temple in Palakkad district.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0bdc621d-663b-45a2-b94c-ba3f238e1c20"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Costumes","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t5jedyymza","content":[{"text":"The costumes are a most interesting fact of Kummattikali. The dancers don a heavily painted colourful wooden mask depicting faces of Krishna, Narada, Kiratha, Darika, or hunters. These masks are usually made out of saprophyte, jack fruit tree, Alstonia scholaris, Hog Plum tree or the Coral tree. \nThe dancers wear skirts woven out of plaited grass. Some cover their whole body with bunches of grass for a bushier appearance. The semblance is made more joyful with the 'talla' attached externally to the mask giving the appearance of a toothless open mouth. Dancers also hold and manipulate long sticks of residuary agricultural produce called 'Kummattikali': it is from this that the dance derives its name. Their dance is related to Shaiva myth. 'Thamma' (an old woman) walks in front with the help of a stick. Thamma is symbolic of mother of every being and everything.\nKummatti dancers are a sight to watch as they move around from house to house collecting jaggery, rice, or small amounts of cash. Onlookers, especially children, take great delight in their performance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0bdc621d-663b-45a2-b94c-ba3f238e1c20"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Performance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vxnv9ycddn","content":[{"text":"The rhythm for the dance movements is provided by vibrating the string of a bow like instrument called an Onavillu. Areca nut wood is used to make the bow and the strings are beaten with a narrow bamboo stick.\nThe themes of Kummattikali are mostly taken from the stories of Ramayana, Darika Vadham, the story of Shiva and folk tales like Manjan Nayare Pattu.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0bdc621d-663b-45a2-b94c-ba3f238e1c20"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"10gty6q0xz","content":[{"text":"It may be noted that folk art of Kerala can be classified into two broad categories - ritualistic and non-ritualistic. Ritualistic can be further divided into - Devotional, performed to please a particular god and goddess and Magical Art Forms. Theyyam, Thirra, Poothamthira, Kannyar Kali, Kummattikali, etc. are some of devotional art forms.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0bdc621d-663b-45a2-b94c-ba3f238e1c20"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"In popular culture","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"13c337ka7h","content":[{"text":"In the 2020 Malayalam action film Ayyappanum Koshiyum, the character Ayyappan's past as a vigilante assassin disguised as a Kummatti performer is a central plot point. Ayyappan's mastery of Kalari martial arts skills enabled him to kill 13 assassins in Kummatti disguise sent by evil landlords to eliminate worker's union members.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0bdc621d-663b-45a2-b94c-ba3f238e1c20"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vneftm919x","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Kummattikali”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0bdc621d-663b-45a2-b94c-ba3f238e1c20"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"z5ra808t5f","content":[{"text":"Kummattikali is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a233005d-4ced-4ba2-ad2c-4631b2326ccb"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k36zen7wnc","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a233005d-4ced-4ba2-ad2c-4631b2326ccb"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"നാലോണം നാളിലെ കുമ്മാട്ടി മഹോത്സവം. തൃശ്ശൂര്‍ ഊരകം ഗ്രാമത്തിലെ കുമ്മാട്ടിക്കൂട്ടങ്ങളില്‍ നിന്നുള്ള ചിത്രങ്ങള്‍, 2011","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/68/%E0%B4%95%E0%B5%81%E0%B4%AE%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%AE%E0%B4%BE%E0%B4%9F%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%9F%E0%B4%BF_Kummattikali_2011_DSC_2644.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Sooraj Kenoth","height":1920,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"നാലോണം നാളിലെ കുമ്മാട്ടി മഹോത്സവം. തൃശ്ശൂര്‍ ഊരകം ഗ്രാമത്തിലെ കുമ്മാട്ടിക്കൂട്ടങ്ങളില്‍ നിന്നുള്ള ചിത്രങ്ങള്‍, 2011","licence":"CC BY-SA 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നാളിലെ കുമ്മാട്ടി മഹോത്സവം. തൃശ്ശൂര്‍ ഊരകം ഗ്രാമത്തിലെ കുമ്മാട്ടിക്കൂട്ടങ്ങളില്‍ നിന്നുള്ള ചിത്രങ്ങള്‍, 2011","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/68/%E0%B4%95%E0%B5%81%E0%B4%AE%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%AE%E0%B4%BE%E0%B4%9F%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%9F%E0%B4%BF_Kummattikali_2011_DSC_2622.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Sooraj Kenoth","height":1920,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"നാലോണം നാളിലെ കുമ്മാട്ടി മഹോത്സവം. തൃശ്ശൂര്‍ ഊരകം ഗ്രാമത്തിലെ കുമ്മാട്ടിക്കൂട്ടങ്ങളില്‍ നിന്നുള്ള ചിത്രങ്ങള്‍, 2011","licence":"CC BY-SA 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നാളിലെ കുമ്മാട്ടി മഹോത്സവം. തൃശ്ശൂര്‍ ഊരകം ഗ്രാമത്തിലെ കുമ്മാട്ടിക്കൂട്ടങ്ങളില്‍ നിന്നുള്ള ചിത്രങ്ങള്‍, 2011","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/86/%E0%B4%95%E0%B5%81%E0%B4%AE%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%AE%E0%B4%BE%E0%B4%9F%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%9F%E0%B4%BF_Kummattikali_2011_DSC_2769.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Sooraj Kenoth","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"നാലോണം നാളിലെ കുമ്മാട്ടി മഹോത്സവം. തൃശ്ശൂര്‍ ഊരകം ഗ്രാമത്തിലെ കുമ്മാട്ടിക്കൂട്ടങ്ങളില്‍ നിന്നുള്ള ചിത്രങ്ങള്‍, 2011","licence":"CC BY-SA 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{"id":"ecfeae00-0aec-4072-bde0-6e813ed42993","type":"art_form","slug":"kurdish-dance","title":"Kurdish dance","summary":"Kurdish dances (Kurdish: Govend, Dîlan, Dawet, Helperkê, Şayî; دیلان, گۆڤەند, داوەت, ھەڵپەڕکێ, شایی) are a group of traditional dances among Kurds.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2r93ke2fn0","content":[{"text":"Kurdish dances (Kurdish: Govend, Dîlan, Dawet, Helperkê, Şayî; دیلان, گۆڤەند, داوەت, ھەڵپەڕکێ, شایی) are a group of traditional dances among Kurds. It is a form of a circle dance, with a single or a couple of figure dancers often added to the geometrical center of the dancing circle. At times musicians playing on a drum or a double reed wind instrument known as a zurna, accompany the dancers. Often there are dancers twirling handkerchiefs who lead the half-circled group of dancers. The dancers, generally women, but also, on occasions, men, wear traditional Kurdish clothes. The Kurds dance on several occasions such as Kurdish festivals, birthdays, New Years, Newroz, marriage, and other ceremonies and the dances have several names which often relate to local names and traditions. Its noteworthy that these folkloric dances are typically mixed-gender which distinguishes the Kurds from other neighbouring Muslim populations. On March 3, 2023, Iranian police shut down a sports centre over mixed-gender Kurdish dances.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3a979ca0-4f67-4fe8-a1fa-c78f5876be59"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Types and styles","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dnpb7xhcdw","content":[{"text":"Kurdish dances are each performed with a specific melody and style, some of which are named as follows:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3a979ca0-4f67-4fe8-a1fa-c78f5876be59"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"126s0jac41","content":[{"text":"Şêxanî\nBagiyê\nŞamîranê\nTil Mercan\nLorke\nEvdîşo\nKoçerî\nRewendî\nBêriyokê\nMilanê\nAxişte (Serhed Region)\nDim Dime (Urmia to Duhok)\nAkmelî\nLo Mîro\nBaso\nLê Gulê\nHicrokê\nNavçeliyê\nÇoxo\nEyşokê\nMîrkut\nGeliyê Başkala (Suka Hewlêrê)\nZêrînê\nReyhanî\nSûrçiyanî\nHerkiyanî\nHey Borî\nWelato\nEmer Axayo\nSiyarkî (Swarkî)\nHoy Narê\nHey Dîlan\nMeraan Axa\nKurtê\nHelize\nNalbendan\nSê pê\nRoyne\nDaxe\nGeryan\nÇepî\nSê car","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3a979ca0-4f67-4fe8-a1fa-c78f5876be59"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zjtnv7dtwz","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Kurdish dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3a979ca0-4f67-4fe8-a1fa-c78f5876be59"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"d72ngvd4nh","content":[{"text":"Kurdish dance is group of dances among Kurds, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"83b3e597-5a6e-4b93-a342-e39ef761fd52"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fg8psv5wgc","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"83b3e597-5a6e-4b93-a342-e39ef761fd52"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:11.479Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/kurdish-dance"}
{"id":"0a672f33-900d-4313-9681-689c6860374d","type":"art_form","slug":"la-bamba","title":"La Bamba","summary":"\"La Bamba\" (pronounced [la ˈβamba]) is a Mexican folk song, originally from the state of Veracruz. The song is best known from a 1958 adaptation by Ritchie Valens, a top 40 hit on the U.S. charts.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"41873bcdas","content":[{"text":"\"La Bamba\" (pronounced [la ˈβamba]) is a Mexican folk song, originally from the state of Veracruz. The song is best known from a 1958 adaptation by Ritchie Valens, a top 40 hit on the U.S. charts. Valens's version is ranked number 345 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of \"The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time\" and is the only song on the list not written or sung in English.\nThe oldest recorded version known is that of Álvaro Hernández Ortiz, who recorded the song in 1938 under the name El Jarocho.\n\"La Bamba\" has been recorded by numerous other artists, most notably by Los Lobos, whose rendition was the title track of the soundtrack to the 1987 film La Bamba, a biopic about Valens; their version topped many charts in the same year.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"27d68975-a464-4528-83dc-5ef9a3c6cfa2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Traditional versions","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m8atv0hv3m","content":[{"text":"\"La Bamba\" is an example of the son jarocho musical style, which originated in the Mexican state of Veracruz and combines Spanish (Andalusian), indigenous, Afro-Mexican and Afro-Caribbean musical elements. \"La Bamba\" is typically played on one or two arpa jarochas (harps) along with the string instruments jarana jarocha and requinto jarocho. Though the song's tune remains the same, the lyrics vary greatly, as performers often improvise verses while performing. However, versions such as those by musical groups Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlan and Los Pregoneros del Puerto have survived because of the artists' popularity.\nThe name of the dance \"Bamba\" has no direct English translation and its origin is uncertain, though there are a few possibilities. It may be connected with the Spanish verb \"bambolear\", meaning \"to sway\", \"to shake\" or \"to wobble\". Alternatively, there are many that believe it is linked to Africa via the slave trade, specifically from either Central Africa in the Bamba people, or West Africa in the Bambara people. It could also come from the first name Bamba, according to Ritchie Valens biographer Beverly Mendheim, who said in an interview with NPR, \"It is an African name. The word itself meant `wood,' and it had to do with the people dancing on a wooden floor.\"\nIn one traditional version of this dance performed at weddings and ballet folklórico shows, couples use intricate footwork to create a bow signifying their union. This is also were the tradition of improvising lyrics originates, with wedding guests being encouraged to personalise the song to the newlyweds.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"27d68975-a464-4528-83dc-5ef9a3c6cfa2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Early recordings","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"n6w2fkdbq1","content":[{"text":"\"La Bamba\" has its origin in the state of Veracruz, Mexico. The oldest recorded version known is that of Alvaro Hernández Ortiz, who recorded the song under the name El Jarocho. His recording was released by Victor Records in Mexico in 1938 or 1939, and was reissued on a 1997 compilation by Yazoo Records, The Secret Museum of Mankind Vol. 4.\nAccording to a 1945 article in Life, the song and associated dance were brought \"out of the jungle\" at Veracruz by American bandleader Everett Hoagland, who introduced it at Ciro's nightclub in Mexico City. It became popular, and the song was adopted by Mexican presidential candidate Miguel Alemán Valdés who used it in his successful campaign. Later in 1945, the music and dance were introduced at the Stork Club in New York City by Arthur Murray. A popular version by Andrés Huesca (1917–1957) and his brother Victor, billed as Hermanos Huesca, was issued on Peerless Records in Mexico around 1945–46. Huesca re-recorded the song for RCA Victor in 1947, and the same year the song featured as a production number in the MGM musical film Fiesta, performed by a group called Los Bocheros. The song was featured in the 1946 Mexican movie Rayando el Sol starring Pedro Armendáriz.\nThe Swedish-American folk singer William Clauson recorded the song in several languages in the early and mid-1950s. He claimed to have heard the song in Veracruz, and in performance slowed down the tempo to encourage audience participation. Another version, \"somewhat bowdlerized\", was recorded by Cynthia Gooding on her 1953 Elektra album, Mexican Folk Songs.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"27d68975-a464-4528-83dc-5ef9a3c6cfa2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Ritchie Valens version","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pprpxsj97m","content":[{"text":"Ritchie Valens learned the song in his youth, from his cousin Dickie Cota. In 1958 he recorded a rock and roll flavored version of \"La Bamba\", together with session musicians Buddy Clark (string bass); Ernie Freeman (piano); Carol Kaye (acoustic rhythm guitar); René Hall (Danelectro six-string baritone guitar); and Earl Palmer (drums and claves). It was originally released as the B-side of \"Donna\", on the Del-Fi label.\nThe song features a simple verse-chorus form. Valens, who was proud of his Mexican heritage, was hesitant at first to merge \"La Bamba\" with rock and roll, but subsequently agreed to do so. The song ranked No. 98 on VH1's 100 Greatest Songs of Rock and Roll in 1999, and No. 59 on VH1's 100 Greatest Dance Songs in 2000. Furthermore, Valens' recording of the song was inducted into the Latin Grammy Hall of Fame and the Grammy Hall of Fame.\nThe song was listed at number 354 in the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time by Rolling Stone magazine, being the only non-English language song included in the list. It was also included in Robert Christgau's \"Basic Record Library\" of 1950s and 1960s recordings published in Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies (1981). Valens was inducted posthumously into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2001. In 2018, Valens' version was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the National Recording Registry for being \"culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant\". It is also included in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's list of 500 songs that were influential in shaping rock and roll.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"27d68975-a464-4528-83dc-5ef9a3c6cfa2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Los Lobos version","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3za7pf30ck","content":[{"text":"American rock group Los Lobos recorded a version of the song for the 1987 biopic La Bamba inspired by Valens's life. The Los Lobos version is closely modeled on Valens's version, other than a short coda which finds the band performing an acoustic interpretation of \"La Bamba\" with traditional instrumentation and rhythms intended to show its roots in the folk music of Veracruz.\nThe music video directed by Sherman Halsey won the 1988 MTV Video Music Award for Best Video from a Film. The video featured Lou Diamond Phillips, the actor who played Valens in the 1987 film La Bamba. The song was also the fourth wholly non-English language song to top the Billboard Hot 100.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"27d68975-a464-4528-83dc-5ef9a3c6cfa2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Other notable versions","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"aqzkmtw27n","content":[{"text":"In 1960, Harry Belafonte's live version of the song was released on his album Belafonte Returns to Carnegie Hall. His previously recorded but unreleased studio version from 1958 was included in a 2001 compilation, Very Best of Harry Belafonte, under the title \"Bam Bam Bamba\".\nIn 1978, Spanish singer Antonia Rodriguez released a disco version of the song.\nIn 1979, Starland Vocal Band covered the song (titled as \"Everybody La Bamba\") on their album 4 X 4.\nIn 1985, Canadian children's singer Charlotte Diamond included her version of the song on her Juno Award-winning debut album 10 Carrot Diamond.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"27d68975-a464-4528-83dc-5ef9a3c6cfa2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"asm47yqt8t","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “La Bamba (song)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"27d68975-a464-4528-83dc-5ef9a3c6cfa2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3rdqbd499k","content":[{"text":"La Bamba is traditional Mexican folk song and dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d6921b9d-56f3-442f-ba6e-c66ccd6f7ebe"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ph82zd6gtk","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 6 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d6921b9d-56f3-442f-ba6e-c66ccd6f7ebe"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:15.996Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/la-bamba"}
{"id":"6df60de0-8d0e-4bb2-b572-512afe4bd4c6","type":"art_form","slug":"lakalaka","title":"lakalaka","summary":"The lakalaka (walking briskly) is a Tongan group dance where the performers are largely standing still and make gestures with their arms only. It is considered as the national dance of Tonga and part of the intangible human heritage.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ab4v0534ka","content":[{"text":"The lakalaka (walking briskly) is a Tongan group dance where the performers are largely standing still and make gestures with their arms only. It is considered as the national dance of Tonga and part of the intangible human heritage. It is the ideal dance at formal occasions, like the birthday of the king or the opening of a church.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5c9f29b1-a86f-47d1-b3fa-78c8cbd644e7"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2k1ma7dvjn","content":[{"text":"The current lakalaka seems to be quite equal to the ancient meʻelaufola (outstretched arms dance), of which descriptions exist from early European explorers, but the dance was forbidden by the missionaries for being too 'heathen'. This was confirmed in the 1850 code of King Tāufaʻāhau Tupou I. Notably, an article to that effect was absent from the 1862 code, although it was reinserted by 1885. In any case, none of these laws specified exactly what was meant by 'heathen dance'. There are reports of some huge dance festivals during these times, and no reports of any arrests. Admittedly, the pre-missionary pōmeʻe (night dances), after which couples disappeared into the bushes, did not occur anymore.\nThe lakalaka as it is known nowadays is usually accredited to have been invented towards the end of the 19th century by a high chief, who was a Methodist preacher as well: Tukuʻaho (1858—1897), from Tatakamotonga. Considering that the dance had never stopped being practiced, it would probably be better to say that he revitalised it. Tuku used missionary-approved nursery rhymes and added some simple gestures and steps. People agreed, and they came with their own suggestions, which were quite the same as those of the not-yet-forgotten meʻelaufola. Thus, a new dance was born, but still retained many of its original characteristics, and was approved by the missionaries.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5c9f29b1-a86f-47d1-b3fa-78c8cbd644e7"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Choreography","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yh1m2zc2hj","content":[{"text":"The lakalaka is a living dance in the sense that new compositions are still daily made. Often when a celebration is coming up, a punake (poet) will write the lyrics to the occasion, assign music to the stanzas from a pool of typical tunes and then choreograph the haka (dance movements). Nevertheless, there are lakalaka which have become so famous that they can generally be used at any occasion. Among them several made by Queen Sālote, like Takafalu, Nailasikau, Sāngone, ʻOtu langi, Tuaikaepau, and so forth.\nThe dance movements of men and women are different. Most of the time the women make small steps to the left and right only, and their arm movements are small and fluid. Nevertheless, the arm movements are farther away from the body (laufola, outstretched arms) than for example with the māʻuluʻulu. The movements of the men are wilder and more vigorous. In addition to small steps, they may at times turn around, sit down or even lie down. In any case, how different their haka on first glance may be, both men and women interpret the words of the songs, but in a symbolic, allusive way as so typical for Tongan dance.\nThe dancers are standing in one or more rows, depending on the number of participants. 2 dozen per row is about fine. The men to the right, the women to the left as seen from the public. Behind them the chorus; the lakalaka is a sung dance, there is none or very little instrumental accompaniment. Sometimes in the middle of some lakalaka there are stanzas with a different type of lyrics and music than the rest, called the sipa. During the sipa the men move to the left, the women to the right, the two groups passing through each other, until their order is reversed.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5c9f29b1-a86f-47d1-b3fa-78c8cbd644e7"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Performers","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c7bdgemp8w","content":[{"text":"The persons in the middle of the front row, on the division line between the two gender are known as the vāhenga (central performer). These are the persons with the highest rank of the group, often a prince or princess. The one who is perceived as really the most important, either the male or female vāhenga usually is also wearing a uniform different from the rest. The other vāhenga is then dressed the same as the other performers. The two last positions, that is at the very ends of the frontrow, the fakapotu, are also reserved for high-ranking persons. The second positions, beside the vāhenga are known as tāʻofi vāhenga and are for the next ranking persons. The third positions are filled with the best dancer of the male and female group respectively, the mālie taha. All the other positions can be filled up at the wish of the dancemaster.\nIt is for a dance group a high honour if a prince or princess or noble will participate as vāhenga. This can only be done on occasions where the king is the guest of honour, like his birthday or the centenary of a church and the like. Because all Tongan dances, especially formal ones like the lakalaka are in fact a deference to the chiefs. Tongan society is very stratified. Everybody has a particular rank. The royal family on top, the chiefs below it, and so forth. One cannot pay homage to someone lower in rank. Therefore, people higher in rank than the guest of honour at a particular celebration cannot dance. A king or queen can never dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5c9f29b1-a86f-47d1-b3fa-78c8cbd644e7"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dress","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"p3t1fz25zf","content":[{"text":"The normal dress of the dancers is as formal as the dance. Often an either white or black tupenu with shirt and a taʻovala loukeha, although this all may be largely covered by a sisi an ornamental girdle of leaves and fragrant flowers and/or a manafau a grassskirt, but in reality made of hibiscus fibers. In addition likewise made anklets, wristlets and neck garlands are worn too. The dancers from the village of Kanokupolu, however, always perform in their traditional folaʻosi, an about 2 meter piece of ngatu. The dancers of Tatakamotonga, who often perform last on big occasions, because they are claimed to be the best, always dress in black, as whether they still mourn for Tukuʻaho (see below) and his son Tungī Mailefihi, the consort of Queen Salote Tupou III.\nAlso worn is a tekiteki a little bunch of chicken feathers stuck in the hair. For the women the feathers are usually glued to one or two small sticks, pointing up, while for the men it is a soft tuft hanging down. Especially the women's tekiteki enhances the small, left-right head nods teki, they make from time to time on the beat of the music. A proper teki is considered as one of the most important actions in order to be classified as a good dancer.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5c9f29b1-a86f-47d1-b3fa-78c8cbd644e7"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s8jcxryn4s","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Lakalaka”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5c9f29b1-a86f-47d1-b3fa-78c8cbd644e7"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t4we8t22d3","content":[{"text":"lakalaka is Tongan national group dance of estades unides, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fd438455-ca1d-49ca-9a33-63ca74e1e180"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jbwm9f12n7","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fd438455-ca1d-49ca-9a33-63ca74e1e180"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"women wearing red-and-yellow traditional dresses with man playing instrument nearby","src":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1551940882-507e20a50f29?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8bGFrYWxha2F8ZW58MXwwfHx8MTc4ODExMjU0NXww&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1080","kind":"photo","width":3793,"credit":"SHATABDI ROY","height":2134,"source":"unsplash","depicts":"women wearing red-and-yellow traditional dresses with man playing instrument nearby","licence":"Unsplash License","thumb640":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1551940882-507e20a50f29?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8bGFrYWxha2F8ZW58MXwwfHx8MTc4ODExMjU0NXww&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=640","sourceUrl":"https://unsplash.com/photos/women-wearing-red-and-yellow-traditional-dresses-with-man-playing-instrument-nearby-Yby9eYd6owA?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral","thumb1280":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1551940882-507e20a50f29?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8bGFrYWxha2F8ZW58MXwwfHx8MTc4ODExMjU0NXww&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1280","attributionUrl":"https://unsplash.com/@shatabdir0y?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:21.392Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/lakalaka"}
{"id":"00e20492-9698-440f-a804-399f7cd52b67","type":"art_form","slug":"landler","title":"Ländler","summary":"The Ländler (German pronunciation: [ˈlɛntlɐ]) is a European folk dance in 34 time.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t5hy79rw3t","content":[{"text":"The Ländler (German pronunciation: [ˈlɛntlɐ]) is a European folk dance in 34 time. Along with the waltz and allemande, the ländler was sometimes referred to by the generic term German Dance in publications during the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Despite its association with Germany, the ländler was danced in many European countries. Composers from a variety of European nations wrote music for the ländler dance; including Austria, Switzerland, Bohemia, Moravia, Slovenia and northern Italy in addition to Germany.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"642d19e5-26df-409d-a910-a56f5a3168fb"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3n0d587dtb","content":[{"text":"The ländler is a partner dance that strongly features hopping and stamping. It might be purely instrumental or have a vocal part, sometimes featuring yodeling.\nWhen dance halls became popular in Europe in the 19th century, the Ländler was made quicker and more elegant, and the men shed the hobnail boots that they wore to dance it. Along with a number of other folk dances from Germany and Bohemia, it is thought to have influenced the development of the waltz.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"642d19e5-26df-409d-a910-a56f5a3168fb"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nfhws69det","content":[{"text":"A number of classical composers wrote or included Ländler in their music, including Ludwig van Beethoven, Franz Schubert and Anton Bruckner. In several of his symphonies, Gustav Mahler replaced the menuet with a Ländler. The Carinthian folk tune quoted in Alban Berg's Violin Concerto is a Ländler, and another features in Act II of his opera Wozzeck. The \"German Dances\" of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Joseph Haydn also resemble Ländler. Josef Lanner (1801–1843) wrote several Ländlers. He, along with Johann Strauss I and Johann Strauss II, helped popularize the waltz in Vienna and elsewhere. The Johann Strauss II waltz Tales from the Vienna Woods features a zither playing in the style of a Ländler. Britten's Peter Grimes features a Ländler in the scene where a dance night is occurring in the hall.\nThe Sound of Music Broadway musical, the film, and the American and British live TV broadcasts (The Sound of Music Live! (2013) and The Sound of Music Live (2015)) all feature a scene where the protagonists Maria and Captain von Trapp dance a Ländler. The instrumental tune used in that sequence is a 34-time rearrangement of the more polka-like \"The Lonely Goatherd\". Compare this one to the \"Dornbacher\" Ländler by Lanner, and one will hear many similarities.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"642d19e5-26df-409d-a910-a56f5a3168fb"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zhyh5t9mn1","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Ländler”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"642d19e5-26df-409d-a910-a56f5a3168fb"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5nhzyrc3t0","content":[{"text":"Ländler is folk dance, prevalent in Southern Germany, Switzerland, and Austria, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5fb23e95-bf42-488b-93af-f30a675b72b0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qwdc0x19dx","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 15 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5fb23e95-bf42-488b-93af-f30a675b72b0"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:05.323Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/landler"}
{"id":"8ee3fb33-04a9-4bb7-b743-a5cf5076c96c","type":"art_form","slug":"lap-dance","title":"lap dance","summary":"A lap dance (or contact dance) is a type of erotic dance performance offered in many strip clubs in which the dancer typically has body contact with a seated patron.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"a223svk6tb","content":[{"text":"A lap dance (or contact dance) is a type of erotic dance performance offered in many strip clubs in which the dancer typically has body contact with a seated patron. Lap dancing is different from table dancing, in which the dancer is close to a seated patron, but without body contact. Variant terms include couch dance, which is a lap dance where the recipient is seated on a couch.\nWith full-contact lap dances, the dancer may engage in non-penetrative sexual contact with the patron, such as \"grinding\" or \"twerking\" their body against the patron. Depending on the local jurisdiction and community standards, the participants in lap dancing are sometimes allowed to touch or be touched by each other. In some clubs any touching by the patron is forbidden. In others there is no oversight by the club and various levels of contact are negotiable between the participants. Clubs vary widely with regard to their enforcement of rules, and some turn a blind eye to any violations.\nLap dancing usually occurs with both participants being either clothed to more or less the same degree, or naked, or the dancer being partially or fully naked, depending on the laws of the jurisdiction and the club's policies. Some jurisdictions require a prohibition on alcohol if various degrees of nudity are allowed. In other jurisdictions nudity is only allowed where skin contact does not occur between the dancer and the patron, requiring at least one of them to wear clothing.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1c5be8ea-cb19-4ae0-a4a4-e21a42e9d7a2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Controversy","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6bxx0pckfr","content":[{"text":"There is some debate as to whether lap dancing is entertainment or a type of sex work. Critics of lap dancing allege that some club owners, by installing dark private booths and charging dancers steep stage fees, are covertly condoning and encouraging the sale of sexual acts between customers and dancers. This can be a concern if, as for instance in the United Kingdom, the club has a public entertainment licence rather than a sex establishment licence, and in jurisdictions where brothels are illegal.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1c5be8ea-cb19-4ae0-a4a4-e21a42e9d7a2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History and legal issues","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s98654wp7z","content":[{"text":"Lap dancing clubs, are a later development of earlier strip clubs, where strippers danced on stage and were paid a wage. In the 1970s, New York's Melody Theater introduced audience participation and called it \"Mardi Gras\". The Melody Theater became the Harmony Theater and operated in two locations in Manhattan for over 20 years until it was closed down in 1998.\nAlso during the 1970s, adult film makers Jim and Artie Mitchell had been running an adult movie house, called the O'Farrell Theatre, in San Francisco to feature their films. But in the second half of the 1970s, with the invention of the videocassette recorder and a proliferation of video cassette rental stores, the demand for adult movie theaters began to plummet. Realizing that they needed a new business model for their building, the Mitchell brothers sent manager Vince Stanich around the country to explore customer-contact shows in sex clubs. After Stanich reported back, the Mitchell brothers responded in 1977 by opening three new rooms at their O'Farrell Theatre featuring customer-contact shows: The Ultra Room, The Kopenhagen, and New York Live. The Kopenhagen's shows were performed by a pair of naked women in a small room with about twenty men. However the club's most profitable new venue was New York Live, which was a cabaret-style strip club act with women dancing three song sets upon a stage, while usually being totally nude for the final song.\nMost of the strippers who were not dancing were sitting naked on customers' laps for tips. The amount of tipping rapidly increased and was then marketed as a \"lap dance\", and its popularity caused lines of men to regularly appear outside the theater's doors.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1c5be8ea-cb19-4ae0-a4a4-e21a42e9d7a2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Canada","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tn916bh3c0","content":[{"text":"In 1973, an upmarket Vancouver bar called \"Gary Taylor's Show Lounge\" employed showgirls and strippers as waitresses who gave a free dance with every drink. The club was raided by the police under the guise of obscenity legislation, but, in 1974, Judge Jack McGivern ruled that dancer nudity was not obscene, which started a trend of nude dancing in bars. No contact between dancers and patrons was allowed at the club, but Gary Taylor's had a boxing ring where the girls performed revealing acrobatics after stripping off and then earned tips. Americans from Washington state made the trip to the club from the United States, which at the time had stricter laws.\nIn a landmark ruling regarding the 1994 case of Pat Mara and Allan East (the owner and manager of Cheaters Tavern), Judge E. Gordon Hachborn legally defined lap dancing and ruled that it did not contravene Canadian public decency statutes. A number of conflicting judgements were issued in the years that followed, including decisions to close certain bars in which sex acts took place on the floor of the club and other rulings in which patrons were allowed to touch the dancers, as long as an actual sex act did not take place.\nIn 1999, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled that a typical lap dance did not constitute an \"obscene\" act within the meaning of the Criminal Code. The Crown did not argue that lap dances constituted \"prostitution\", and therefore the court did not address the possible issue that the typical lap dance may contravene one or more anti-prostitution laws. This led to the displacement of strip clubs and table dancing clubs in Canada by lap dancing clubs.\nIn 2005, two Supreme Court of Canada rulings (R. v. Labaye and R. v. Kouri) decriminalized private sex clubs in Canada.\nOn 20 December 2013, (in Bedford v.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1c5be8ea-cb19-4ae0-a4a4-e21a42e9d7a2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Ireland","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"p141029r5s","content":[{"text":"In the early 2000s, lap dancing expanded rapidly in the Republic of Ireland, building on an existing strip pub industry. A number of lap-dancing clubs were opened in Dublin, including one by the English nightclub owner Peter Stringfellow. Lap-dancing clubs were also opened across the country.  Many of Ireland's lap-dancing clubs have subsequently closed as a result of the worsened economic climate and changes to Ireland's licensing laws in 2008. Reputational issues have also played a part in the decline of Ireland's lap-dancing clubs.\nPolice raids took place on Irish lap-dancing clubs in 2003 in search of criminal activity as part of Operation Quest. Efforts to distance Irish lap dancing from the sex industry were hampered by the UK's decision in 2010 to classify its lap dancing clubs as sex establishments. Ireland's lap-dancing clubs became viewed as more expensive than their rivals overseas and more restricted in terms of the entertainment on offer. By 2012 there were five or six clubs operating in Dublin, one in Galway and one in Cork. Most lap-dancing clubs in Ireland operate a no-touching rule, and typically do not charge dancers a \"house fee\" to perform, instead taking a proportion of the dancer's earnings.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1c5be8ea-cb19-4ae0-a4a4-e21a42e9d7a2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"United Kingdom","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jhcqwbzn5k","content":[{"text":"The first lap dancing club in the UK was opened in 1995. During the 2000s the lap dancing industry grew quickly, with the Licensing Act 2003 as the only legislation in England and Wales regulating lap dancing clubs.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1c5be8ea-cb19-4ae0-a4a4-e21a42e9d7a2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mdg77pnwnh","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Lap dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1c5be8ea-cb19-4ae0-a4a4-e21a42e9d7a2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hdssrp388d","content":[{"text":"lap dance is type of erotic dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"979a3376-25d3-41a9-bcf8-0d15636fd05c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2hz9mnsq51","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 7 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"979a3376-25d3-41a9-bcf8-0d15636fd05c"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-02T05:48:47.373Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/lap-dance"}
{"id":"27265d44-7080-4692-9b3c-788980fb39dd","type":"art_form","slug":"latin-dance","title":"Latin dance","summary":"Latin dance is a general label, and a term in partner dance competition jargon.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wffax62wqk","content":[{"text":"Latin dance is a general label, and a term in partner dance competition jargon. It refers to types of ballroom dance and folk dance that mainly originated in Latin America, though a few styles originated elsewhere.\nThe category of Latin dances in the international dancesport competitions consists of the Cha-cha-cha, Rumba, Samba, Paso Doble, and Jive.\nSocial Latin dances (Street Latin) include salsa, mambo, merengue, rumba, bachata, bomba and plena. There are many dances which were popular in the first part of the 20th century, but which are now of only historical interest. The Cuban danzón is a good example.\nPerreo is a Puerto Rican dance associated with reggaeton music with Jamaican and Caribbean influences. Argentinian folk dances are chacarera, escondido and zamba, also tango used to be a popular dance until the mid-20th century. Cueca is Chilean folk dance. Uruguayan folk dances are pericón, polka, ranchera, etc, also candombe is a common street and parade dance in the cities. Typical Bolivian folk dances are the morenada, kullawada, caporales and the recently created tinku. In Colombia, one of the typical dances is the cumbia.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1ab4c0c4-0e54-4718-810f-e5cbc5084d7e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origin","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ns2cw3s513","content":[{"text":"Latin dance draws from Indigenous American, European, and African influences. The earliest native roots for Latin dance came from the Aztecs, Guarani, Aymara,  Incas and Tehuelches among others. When sixteenth-century seagoing explorers returned home to Portugal and Spain, they brought along tales of the native peoples. According to Rachel Hanson, no one knows how long these dance traditions were established, but they were already being developed and ritualized when they were observed by the Europeans. This suggests that these Native influences became the foundation for Latin dancing. Indigenous dance often told stories of everyday activities such as hunting, agriculture, or astronomy.  When European settlers and conquistadors began to colonize South America in the early sixteenth century, they reinvented the local dance traditions, but still kept the styles of the natives. Catholic settlers merged the native culture with their own and incorporated catholic saints and stories to the dance. The Europeans were captivated by the highly structured, large member dance working together in a precise manner.\nAfter the Europeans brought home the Aztec/Inca influences in the sixteenth century, they incorporated their own styles to the dance. Since the Aztec/Inca dances were performed in a group, many of the European dances were performed by a male and female. This was a new practice because European dances prohibited male and female dance partners from touching each other. The benefits of such a dance style allowed musical appreciation and social integration, which became the form of Latin dance. However, “much of the storytelling element disappeared from the genre as the focus moved toward the rhythm and steps,” Hanson explains.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1ab4c0c4-0e54-4718-810f-e5cbc5084d7e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Development","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wm6xvak71t","content":[{"text":"Latin dance is a mix of various dance styles from cultures around the world, creating a dance style encompassing this new age of Latin culture. Influences deriving from West African, African American, and European dance styles were all comprised in the making of many of these Latin dances such as:  Salsa, Mambo, Merengue, Rumba, Cha-cha-cha, Bachata, and Samba. Not only have these cultures shaped this style of dance, they've also shaped the music made in Latin America. Music became the engine for Latin dancing because it guided the dance steps with its measure, speed, and the feeling it evoked, from energetic to sensual. Many of these beats come from European folk music, West African beats, and African American jazz. Various Latin American regions developed independent styles, and from each genre, or combination of styles, a different genre was born. For example, the Mambo which was created in the 1940s emerged through the combination of American swing and Cuban Son music. Another example is the Romania and Egyptian cultural dance of belly dancing, which has traveled its way to Spain and gained its influence in the repertoire of the Latin dance known as flamenco due to the Moorish conquest of Iberia (Spain) in the Eighth-Century. Though Latin dance is a social dance that can be seen in Quinceañeras, parties, and in other social gatherings, there is no required cultural clothing required for this style of dancing. However, in the dance sport competition world of \"Latin dance\" each category in Latin dance has its own unique styled costumes along with it. Short rimmed dresses, fringe hems, a skirt or dress, braided hems, and boa feathers and flowers can be seen throughout costume designs.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1ab4c0c4-0e54-4718-810f-e5cbc5084d7e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"The modernization of Latin dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"02312j4rp9","content":[{"text":"Following the music, movement history, and the rhythms, Latin dance evolved over time and individual steps slowly shifted the repertoire of each dance. It has several different forms and many modernized styles which creates a problem because it is shifting away from its Native, European, and African roots. A popular aerobic dance class known as Zumba is said to be influenced by Latin rhythm and steps. However, there are disagreements among Latin dancers about whether Zumba is a true Latin dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1ab4c0c4-0e54-4718-810f-e5cbc5084d7e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1kn41ys0f2","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Latin dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1ab4c0c4-0e54-4718-810f-e5cbc5084d7e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"j6vzmcw0ss","content":[{"text":"Latin dance is wide range of dances originating in Latin America, Cuba and Puerto Rico, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f7aaad67-3805-4516-abd3-ee4cb5e4021d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b61ynsy90h","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 17 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f7aaad67-3805-4516-abd3-ee4cb5e4021d"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Latin Dance Night","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7b/Latin_Dance_Night_%2821554307484%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Memorial Student Center Texas A&M University","height":848,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Latin Dance Night","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7b/Latin_Dance_Night_%2821554307484%29.jpg/960px-Latin_Dance_Night_%2821554307484%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Latin_Dance_Night_(21554307484).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7b/Latin_Dance_Night_%2821554307484%29.jpg/1280px-Latin_Dance_Night_%2821554307484%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"},{"alt":"Latin Dance Night","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f8/Latin_Dance_Night_%2822177067915%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Memorial Student Center Texas A&M University","height":848,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Latin Dance Night","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f8/Latin_Dance_Night_%2822177067915%29.jpg/960px-Latin_Dance_Night_%2822177067915%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Latin_Dance_Night_(22177067915).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f8/Latin_Dance_Night_%2822177067915%29.jpg/1280px-Latin_Dance_Night_%2822177067915%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"},{"alt":"Latin Dance Night","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fc/Latin_Dance_Night_%2821990340039%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Memorial Student Center Texas A&M University","height":848,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Latin Dance Night","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fc/Latin_Dance_Night_%2821990340039%29.jpg/960px-Latin_Dance_Night_%2821990340039%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Latin_Dance_Night_(21990340039).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fc/Latin_Dance_Night_%2821990340039%29.jpg/1280px-Latin_Dance_Night_%2821990340039%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-04T05:47:37.127Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/latin-dance"}
{"id":"a4ddef91-f9c7-4f71-aa91-1a7558cac178","type":"art_form","slug":"lavolta","title":"Lavolta","summary":"The volta (plural: voltas) (Italian: \"the turn\" or \"turning\") is an anglicised name for a dance for couples that was popular during the later Renaissance period.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ky2f9f1150","content":[{"text":"The volta (plural: voltas) (Italian: \"the turn\" or \"turning\") is an anglicised name for a dance for couples that was popular during the later Renaissance period. This dance was associated with the galliard and done to the same kind of music. Its main figure consisted of a turn and lift in a sort of closed position, which could be done either to the right or to the left. It is also called La volta, Volta, Volte.  Spelling variants include la volta and levolto; its name is la volte in French and la volta in Italian. It was considered at first to be risque and controversial.  Although the dance was known at the court of Elizabeth I, the popular notion (much portrayed in film and television) that Elizabeth and her favourite Lord Robert Dudley regularly performed the volta is unknown.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f48f2046-787f-4c08-b862-8b0e4d98f11e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Description","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ndemyb4hs2","content":[{"text":"Detailed instructions for voltas were written by Thoinot Arbeau; some brief notes appear in MS Douce 280. (about 1606)  These instructions are open to some interpretation, but seem to indicate something like the following.\nThe dance begins with a galliard. Then the couple makes a transition to a closed position. The leader (the man, according to period custom) lets go of his partner's hand and takes hold of her below her busk with one hand, and places the other hand on her back above the far hip. The follower places her near hand on top of her partner's near shoulder. Now the leader is  facing his partner while she faces to one side; both will do the turn with forward steps, and both step with the same foot at the same time.\nThe turn begins with a small step, springing onto the outside foot and lifting the inside foot forward. On the second beat there is a longer step, stepping smoothly onto the inside foot and staying close to the ground. During this step the follower poises herself for a spring, and just after it she springs up into the air. The leader lifts her with his hands, then holds her up with his hands and with the thigh of his free leg under her thighs. He lets her down to land on both feet on the last beat of the measure. The couple makes an approximate 3⁄4 turn during each measure. The turn is repeated ad lib for several measures, and then the galliard is resumed in an open position.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f48f2046-787f-4c08-b862-8b0e4d98f11e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Relations to other dances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4vjndzzv94","content":[{"text":"It is sometimes hypothesized that the volta was the direct ancestor of the waltz. However, with experience, it can be seen from the above instructions (or from Thoinot Arbeau's instructions) that the dances are fundamentally different. The volta is more similar to the polska, though there again the differences remain large. The most that might reasonably be assumed is that the development of either the waltz or the polska might have been influenced in some way by the volta.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f48f2046-787f-4c08-b862-8b0e4d98f11e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"References in modern culture","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vekwfsqv92","content":[{"text":"An inaccurate example of this dance in the movie Elizabeth (1998), where Cate Blanchett (Queen Elizabeth I) and Joseph Fiennes (Lord Robert Dudley) dance it on two occasions.\nA somewhat more accurate version of the volta can be seen in the movie Shakespeare in Love (1998), this time with Joseph Fiennes playing William Shakespeare and Gwyneth Paltrow as Viola De Lesseps.\nA very accurate version can be seen in Elizabeth: The Golden Age (sequel to Elizabeth) between Elizabeth \"Bess\" Throckmorton and Sir Walter Raleigh.\nIn the second season's seventh episode of Showtime's original series The Tudors, Jonathan Rhys Meyers playing Henry VIII and Natalie Dormer as Anne Boleyn perform a dance that is said to be a Volta; but is actually a fragment of the Canticles of Holy Mary, a Spanish medieval compliance of religious hymns.\nA version of volta can be seen performed in the 1953 film The Sword and the Rose.\nThis dance is also performed in the third episode of 1971's Elizabeth R, \"Shadow in the Sun\" between Queen Elizabeth (Glenda Jackson) and Robert Dudley (Robert Hardy).\nOn 23 June 2009 the contestants on Big Brother 10 (UK Channel 4) were given the task to perform The Volta, with the performance shown the following evening.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f48f2046-787f-4c08-b862-8b0e4d98f11e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"68vw88dtyy","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Volta (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f48f2046-787f-4c08-b862-8b0e4d98f11e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8gvz2dfw5y","content":[{"text":"Lavolta is Type of dance popularised during the late Renaissance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6c100438-59a7-4801-acc1-976950a9b54e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"h793gv4r0h","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 5 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6c100438-59a7-4801-acc1-976950a9b54e"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Spartito in notazione mensurale tratto dall'Orchésographie di Arbeau .","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/76/Spartito_de_%22La_Volte%22.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Thoinot Arbeau","height":144,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Spartito in notazione mensurale tratto dall'Orchésographie di Arbeau .","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/76/Spartito_de_%22La_Volte%22.jpg/960px-Spartito_de_%22La_Volte%22.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Spartito_de_%22La_Volte%22.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/76/Spartito_de_%22La_Volte%22.jpg/1280px-Spartito_de_%22La_Volte%22.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"A bench power supply (LodeStar LP3005D) - standalone power supply unit used to provide power to electronic circuits for testing and development. This power supply is badge-engineered, as other nearly identical models with other brand names exist: \"Double Power PA305D3\" (10A…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/90/Bench_power_supply.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Derrick Parker","height":1707,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"A bench power supply (LodeStar LP3005D) - standalone power supply unit used to provide power to electronic circuits for testing and development. This power supply is badge-engineered, as other nearly identical models with other brand names exist: \"Double Power PA305D3\" (10A…","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/90/Bench_power_supply.jpg/960px-Bench_power_supply.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bench_power_supply.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/90/Bench_power_supply.jpg/1280px-Bench_power_supply.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:15.732Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/lavolta"}
{"id":"5f3d0b7e-3797-492e-9820-bc98c6e7828f","type":"art_form","slug":"legong","title":"Legong","summary":"Legong (Balinese: ᬮᬾᬕᭀᬂ, légong) is a form of Balinese dance. It is a refined dance form characterized by intricate finger movements, complicated footwork, and expressive gestures and facial expressions.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ct3f3n8kt2","content":[{"text":"Legong (Balinese: ᬮᬾᬕᭀᬂ, légong) is a form of Balinese dance. It is a refined dance form characterized by intricate finger movements, complicated footwork, and expressive gestures and facial expressions.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2a61a9a9-ef4b-4534-87bd-8e1384396578"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origins","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zx5hffjspz","content":[{"text":"Legong probably originated in the 19th century as royal entertainment. Legend has it that a prince of Sukawati fell ill and had a vivid dream in which two maidens danced to gamelan music. When he recovered, he arranged for such dances to be performed in reality. Others believe that the Legong originated with the sanghyang dedari, a ceremony involving voluntary possession of two little girls by beneficent spirits. Legong is also danced at public festivals. Excerpts from Legong dance dramas are put on for tourists.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2a61a9a9-ef4b-4534-87bd-8e1384396578"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dancers","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6q8pbf3vkv","content":[{"text":"Traditionally, legong dancers were girls who had not yet reached puberty. They began rigorous training at about the age of five. These dancers were regarded highly in the society and usually became wives of royal personages or wealthy merchants. They would usually stop dancing after marriage. However, in present, Indonesia dancers may be of all ages; performances by men in women's costumes are also recorded.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2a61a9a9-ef4b-4534-87bd-8e1384396578"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Story","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8zvsf5c651","content":[{"text":"Classical Legong enacts several traditional stories. The most common is the tale of the East Javanese king of Lasem from the Malat, a collection of heroic romances. He is at war with another king, the father (or brother) of Princess Rangkesari. Lasem wants to marry the girl, but she detests him and tries to run away. Becoming lost in the forest, she is captured by Lasem, who imprisons her and goes out for a final assault against her family. He is attacked by a monstrous raven, which foretells his death.\nThe dramatics are enacted in elaborate and stylized pantomime. The two little actresses are accompanied by a third dancer called a condong or attendant. She sets the scene, presents the dancers with their fans and later plays the part of the raven.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2a61a9a9-ef4b-4534-87bd-8e1384396578"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Types","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yvwmacvkq0","content":[{"text":"Traditionally, fifteen types of legong dance were known. The duration, movement, and narrative of each type differed. Some, for instance, could last for an hour. These types included:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2a61a9a9-ef4b-4534-87bd-8e1384396578"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qb4ea84sa0","content":[{"text":"Legong Bapang Sabab\nLegong Jebog\nLegong Kraton\nLegong Kuntir\nLegong Lasem\nLegong Raja Cina\nLegong Semarandana\nLegong Sudasarna","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2a61a9a9-ef4b-4534-87bd-8e1384396578"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"In popular culture","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0z93mzwjry","content":[{"text":"Legong is mentioned in \"I've Been To Bali Too\", the single by Australian folk-rock band Redgum from their 1984 album Frontline.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2a61a9a9-ef4b-4534-87bd-8e1384396578"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6026j25dfe","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Legong”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2a61a9a9-ef4b-4534-87bd-8e1384396578"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3kjfr1rwr8","content":[{"text":"Legong is Indonesian traditional dance, form of Balinese dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2f663489-194d-490b-a0ca-db710f25f099"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fertah3zab","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2f663489-194d-490b-a0ca-db710f25f099"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Traditionally, legong dancers were young girls. These dancers are regarded highly in society and usually become wives of royal men or wealthy merchants. After marriage, they would stop dancing. However, in present Bali, dancers may be of all ages.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9e/Legong_Dance_Indonesia_1.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Philip Nalangan","height":889,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Traditionally, legong dancers were young girls. These dancers are regarded highly in society and usually become wives of royal men or wealthy merchants. After marriage, they would stop dancing. However, in present Bali, dancers may be of all ages.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9e/Legong_Dance_Indonesia_1.jpg/960px-Legong_Dance_Indonesia_1.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Legong_Dance_Indonesia_1.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9e/Legong_Dance_Indonesia_1.jpg/1280px-Legong_Dance_Indonesia_1.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Legong is the dance of divine nymphs. Of all classical Balinese dances, it remains the quintessence of femininity and grace.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cc/Legong_Dance_Indonesia_2.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Philip Nalangan","height":1002,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Legong is the dance of divine nymphs. Of all classical Balinese dances, it remains the quintessence of femininity and grace.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cc/Legong_Dance_Indonesia_2.jpg/960px-Legong_Dance_Indonesia_2.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Legong_Dance_Indonesia_2.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cc/Legong_Dance_Indonesia_2.jpg/1280px-Legong_Dance_Indonesia_2.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:08.640Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/legong"}
{"id":"ee7f730d-173d-45a3-a433-aa5d791c56bf","type":"art_form","slug":"letkajenkka","title":"letkajenkka","summary":"Letkajenkka (Finnish pronunciation: [ˈletkɑˌjeŋkːɑ]), is a Finnish dance.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wgkptrv7e0","content":[{"text":"Letkajenkka (Finnish pronunciation: [ˈletkɑˌjeŋkːɑ]), is a Finnish dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"943c9aac-53ed-481f-bd0d-c4730552e259"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History of the music genre letkajenkka/letkis","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kj17qkahfb","content":[{"text":"Letkajenkka / letkis is a music genre and a general noun as well as two songs by the same name (\"Letkajenkka\" and \"Letkis\") as proper nouns, after which the genre got its name; jenkka, on the other hand, is a general noun, a music and dance genre like waltz.\nThe popular music genre and the ensuing dance craze were at their hottest during 1963–1965. Letkajenkka is based on the idea of performing Jenkka music using non-traditional instruments. Traditional instruments for playing the jenkka, a Finnish traditional folk dance, are instruments such as the violin and accordion. In the early 1960s some composers thought of writing jenkka tunes for more contemporary bands with more modern instruments, such as wind instruments (for a more swing-like jenkka) and amplified instruments like electric guitars, basses, and drums (a more rock 'n' roll or boogie woogie-like sound). The form of the letkajenkka songs is consistent with traditional jenkka, but where the music is distinctively jenkka, the dance steps are not. Both dances are based on a lightly bouncing and skipping step. A rhythmic component that contributes towards the feel of a letkajenkka and distinguishes a letkajenkka from a regular jenkka tune is a distinctive pattern of either three crotchets / quarter notes followed by a quarter rest or two crotchets / quarter notes followed by a third dotted one in the end of its musical phrases that more or less coincide with the three consecutive hops of the dance steps. Regular jenkkas do not typically feature this rhythm pattern, at least not repeatedly.\nErik Lindström introduced the genre with his song Letkajenkka. A Swedish band called the Adventurers recorded it, and it immediately topped the charts in Finland.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"943c9aac-53ed-481f-bd0d-c4730552e259"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Description","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pwbqg8z93c","content":[{"text":"The steps of Letkajenkka are like the steps of Bunny Hop, a novelty dance from the 1950s. It has been proposed that exchange students returning from the United States to Finland would have imported the steps of the Bunny Hop to Finland, as they had seen them on the TV show Bandstand. Whereas the Bunny Hop starts with a right foot lead, the Letkajenkka / letkajenkka transformed into a dance based on the same step, but starting with a left leg lead. This can be seen from the early recordings for TV and in some movies made during the hottest craze. Also many translated lyrics include advice on the steps: \"left kick, left kick, right kick, right kick, forward jump, backward jump, hop, hop, hop\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"943c9aac-53ed-481f-bd0d-c4730552e259"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Steps","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rnnp01rf68","content":[{"text":"The people participating in the dance form a Conga-like line (that can also be a circle) so that everyone holds the person in front of themselves by the shoulders or the waist. The steps go as follows (everybody does the same thing):","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"943c9aac-53ed-481f-bd0d-c4730552e259"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"60mcvnkd14","content":[{"text":"kick to the left with the left foot & step back into the middle,\nkick to the left with the left foot & step back into the middle,\nkick to the right with the right foot & step back into the middle,\nkick to the right with the right foot & step back into the middle,\njump forwards with both feet together (for only a few inches),\njump backwards with both feet,\njump forwards three times with both feet,\n(repeat).\n1–4 may be enhanced by bouncing with the leg opposite to the kicking side.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"943c9aac-53ed-481f-bd0d-c4730552e259"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"International letkajenkka songs","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cs5ekva6rf","content":[{"text":"The music genre became popular, and many composers around the world started writing letkis music. Examples of non-Finnish letkis music include \"La Yenka\" (performed by Johnny & Charley Kurt, 1965), the Kessler Twins' Lasciati Baciare Col Letkis, \"Leaf Fall\" (Russian: Листопад) by David Tukhmanov and Ploem Ploem Jenka by Pieter Goemans. Lehtinen's Letkis was translated and covered in Japanese as Retto Kisu (Jenka) / レット・キス（ジェンカ）, performed by Kyu Sakamoto.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"943c9aac-53ed-481f-bd0d-c4730552e259"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Original Finnish songs","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yxjdedwmvv","content":[{"text":"In Finland, the most well-known letkajenkka songs include","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"943c9aac-53ed-481f-bd0d-c4730552e259"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5cmqas5zym","content":[{"text":"Letkajenkka by Erik Lindström\nLetkis by Rauno Lehtinen\nDoin' the Jenka (trad.)\nAt the Jenka Show by Georg Malmstén\nHelsinki-letkis by Toivo Kärki\nMinne tuuli kuljettaa by Toivo Kärki\nPuhelinlangat laulaa","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"943c9aac-53ed-481f-bd0d-c4730552e259"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5nf6san28v","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Letkajenkka”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"943c9aac-53ed-481f-bd0d-c4730552e259"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"49cg4gmcaj","content":[{"text":"letkajenkka is Finnish dance; international dance craze, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"36c1fcb1-12a5-4cda-8e3b-20a964d81f18"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wganq6cc0h","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"36c1fcb1-12a5-4cda-8e3b-20a964d81f18"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Finnish Broadcasting Company announcer Teija Sopanen in the television program \"Letkajenkka. The Jenka. Le letkis\".","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/71/Teija_Sopanen_7.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Erkki Suonio","height":1300,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Finnish Broadcasting Company announcer Teija Sopanen in the television program \"Letkajenkka. The Jenka. Le letkis\".","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/71/Teija_Sopanen_7.jpg/960px-Teija_Sopanen_7.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Teija_Sopanen_7.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/71/Teija_Sopanen_7.jpg/1280px-Teija_Sopanen_7.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:25.466Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/letkajenkka"}
{"id":"0a193f7f-6792-456b-ba72-23a56ce71811","type":"art_form","slug":"lhamo","title":"lhamo","summary":"Lhamo (Standard Tibetan: ལྷ་མོ, romanized: Lha mo), or Ache Lhamo, is a classical secular theatre of Tibet with music and dance that has been performed for centuries, whose nearest western equivalent is opera.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"p0g675gska","content":[{"text":"Lhamo (Standard Tibetan: ལྷ་མོ, romanized: Lha mo), or Ache Lhamo, is a classical secular theatre of Tibet with music and dance that has been performed for centuries, whose nearest western equivalent is opera. Performances have a narrative and simple dialogue interspersed with comedy and satire; characters wear colorful masks. The core stories of these theatrical plays are drawn mostly from ancient Indian Buddhist folk tales, lives of important people and historical events from Tibetan civilization. However the ceremonial, dance and ritual spectacles strongly reflects the Tibetan Royal Dynastic period.\nVery similar traditions are found in Bhutan and other regions influenced by Tibetan Buddhism and Tibetan culture. There are at least three unique schools of Lhamo: Kyimulunga, Gyangara, and Chungba.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5cd856ad-5568-4f2b-9813-c171d7647caa"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"msy3c49yze","content":[{"text":"Oral accounts credited the foundation of Ache Lhamo tradition to 14th-century mystic Thang Tong Gyalpo. Lhamo is considered to have both spiritual and non-spiritual roots. The procedure and style in which Ache Lhamo are performed has changed little since the time of inception in the 14th-15th centuries. Today, the same opening rituals are enacted prior to the commencement of every performance, authentic costumes are worn, singing, dance and musical tradition are strictly adhered to.\nLittle is known about the  development of Lhamo troupes until the time of fifth Dalai Lama, Ngawang Lobsang Gyatso (1617-1682 A.D). There are murals of lhamo stories on the walls of the Potala Palace that are believed to have been painted between 1695 and 1705.  According to some oral narratives, the costumes and mask of Hunter or Fisherman (Tibetan: Ngonpa) were designed by the fifth Dalai Lama, based on his personal dream.  By the turn of the 19th century, Ache Lhamo performances were found throughout Tibet, each major district having a permanent amateur troupe performing for the local community at various formal occasions throughout the year.\nSome notable troupes including Tashi Sholpa,  Chongye Phundun, Shangpa, Gyalkhara, Chungpa and Kyormulung are much sought after and are always a regular part of the official festivals at Norbu Lhingkha, Drepung Monastery and Sera Monastery.  The performers are monks and lay people who love lhamo. Many Tibetans are familiar with and frequently sing the arias (Tib. namthars) for themselves or for entertainment at social gatherings.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5cd856ad-5568-4f2b-9813-c171d7647caa"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Thang Tong Gyalpo","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pe82y2tp7r","content":[{"text":"It is popularly believed that the tradition of performing Ache Lhamo or Tibetan Opera was started by 14th-century mystic Thang Tong Gyalpo, who was born in the family of a peasant in the Shigatse county of Tibet in 1361. When he was a child, his parents gave him the name Trowobendon and sent him to the local monastery to learn cultural knowledge. He spent years in monastic study and became very clever so was named Tsuendue Sangpo. Then he came to Lhasa in order to acquire more knowledge. One day in the harbour of Lhasa river he saw a lot of people unable to cross the river because they did not have enough money. He requested the captain to let them cross the river free of charge. Instead, he was beaten by the captain, following which he resolved to build a bridge on the river.\nSeeking to construct bridges, he needed labor and resources. Thus, during the construction of the bridge at Chowo Ri, from his labor team he picked seven sisters from Lhoka county of Tibet and taught them some dances and songs. They made up the chorus and adorned them with beautiful costumes; they traveled around towns and villages performing dances to raise resources. The yogi beat drums and cymbal while the girls danced and sang. Audiences, impressed, hailed the performers as \"goddesses\" (Tibetan: Lhamo); since then they were known as Goddess Sisters. (Tibetan: Ache Lhamo); the tradition of Ache Lhamo developed from this beginning.\nOver a period of years, Thang Tong Gyalpo was able to build 58 iron bridges and 60 wooden bridges across towns and villages. He died at an advanced age in Toe Riwoche in 1485.\nThe remnants of some of his iron chain bridges still stand today in places in Tibet and Bhutan. It became customary for Tibetans to install images and statues of him when occupying a new home.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5cd856ad-5568-4f2b-9813-c171d7647caa"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Notable performers","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ftyk033h9z","content":[{"text":"Namgyal Lhamo","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5cd856ad-5568-4f2b-9813-c171d7647caa"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2bm1za4ja3","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Lhamo”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5cd856ad-5568-4f2b-9813-c171d7647caa"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9twke1jxc5","content":[{"text":"lhamo is classical theatre of Tibet, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3e84f26c-f8c8-4c18-bd8a-b350295b6464"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gw085j7984","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 5 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3e84f26c-f8c8-4c18-bd8a-b350295b6464"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Tibetan Opera","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1a/Tibetan_Opera_%287285170172%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Gunther Hagleitner","height":857,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Tibetan Opera","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1a/Tibetan_Opera_%287285170172%29.jpg/960px-Tibetan_Opera_%287285170172%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tibetan_Opera_(7285170172).jpg","thumb1280":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1a/Tibetan_Opera_%287285170172%29.jpg/1280px-Tibetan_Opera_%287285170172%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"},{"alt":"Tibetan Opera","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c1/Tibetan_Opera_%287285168416%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Gunther Hagleitner","height":1912,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Tibetan Opera","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c1/Tibetan_Opera_%287285168416%29.jpg/960px-Tibetan_Opera_%287285168416%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tibetan_Opera_(7285168416).jpg","thumb1280":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c1/Tibetan_Opera_%287285168416%29.jpg/1280px-Tibetan_Opera_%287285168416%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"},{"alt":"Tibetan Opera","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b1/Tibetan_Opera_%287285170754%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Gunther Hagleitner","height":857,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Tibetan Opera","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b1/Tibetan_Opera_%287285170754%29.jpg/960px-Tibetan_Opera_%287285170754%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tibetan_Opera_(7285170754).jpg","thumb1280":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b1/Tibetan_Opera_%287285170754%29.jpg/1280px-Tibetan_Opera_%287285170754%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:24.921Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/lhamo"}
{"id":"6778f5a1-5030-4674-9528-129a76480c09","type":"art_form","slug":"limbo","title":"Limbo","summary":"Limbo is a game, based on traditions that originated in Trinidad and Tobago. The aim is to pass forwards under a low bar without falling or dislodging the bar.\nThe dance originated as an event that took place at wakes in Tobago.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2bed87m5ye","content":[{"text":"Limbo is a game, based on traditions that originated in Trinidad and Tobago. The aim is to pass forwards under a low bar without falling or dislodging the bar.\nThe dance originated as an event that took place at wakes in Tobago. It was popularized in the 1950s by dance pioneer Julia Edwards (known as the First Lady of Limbo) and her company which appeared in several films, in particular Fire Down Below (1957), and toured widely in the Caribbean, Europe, North America, South America, Asia, and Africa in the 1960s and later.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"62466867-216b-4a3e-958d-365b1afe0b5b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Rules","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"e8kzy9fqeh","content":[{"text":"A horizontal bar, known as the limbo bar, is supported by two vertical bars. All contestants must attempt to go under the bar with their backs facing toward the floor. When passing under the bar, players must bend backwards. No part of their body is allowed to touch the bar, and no part other than their feet may touch the ground. They must not turn their head or neck to the side. Whoever knocks the bar off or falls is eliminated. After everyone has passed under the bar in this manner, the bar is lowered slightly and the contest continues. The contest ends when only one person can pass under the bar.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"62466867-216b-4a3e-958d-365b1afe0b5b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gbbr09bqy0","content":[{"text":"The word 'limbo' dates back to the 1950s. It is conjectured that limbo is a Trinidadian English derivative of limbus.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"62466867-216b-4a3e-958d-365b1afe0b5b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8q463p6chq","content":[{"text":"This dance is also used at funerals. It is believed it may be related to the African legba or legua game.Consistent with certain African beliefs, the game reflects the whole cycle of life....The players move under a pole that is gradually lowered from chest level and they emerge on the other side as their heads clear the pole as in the triumph of life over death.\nThe limbo dates back to the mid to late 1800s in Tobago. It achieved mainstream popularity during the 1950s. An alternative explanation of the name is suggested; that the version of the limbo performed in nineteenth century Tobago was meant to symbolize slaves entering the galleys of a slave ship, or a spirit crossing over into the afterworld, or \"limbo\", but no literary reference is known to substantiate this postulated linkage.\nDr Alan Rice elaborates on the supposed link the game has with the slave trade: \"Africans were forced to game on deck for exercise. Many took advantage of this to bond and communicate with their shipmates by dancing steps remembered from their past in Africa. This was to continue in the Americas in games, religious ceremonies and other musical forms that used cultural traditions from Africa. One such game was the limbo in the Caribbean. The limbo spoke directly of the limited space in the slaving ships and the African ability to escape it.\"","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"62466867-216b-4a3e-958d-365b1afe0b5b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Popularization","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mx8s0aymf2","content":[{"text":"Traditionally, the limbo game began at the lowest possible bar height and the bar was gradually raised, signifying an emergence from death into life. In its adaptation to the world of entertainment, troupes began reversing the traditional order. According to a 1956 newspaper report, the game was revived in 1944 by Edric Connor. It became a popular entertainment in Trinidad and was adopted as a physical fitness exercise by American troops. In the 1950s, choreographer and player Julia Edwards added a number of features that are now considered standard, such as human 'bars' formed by the limbs of other players and the use of fire in the performance of limbo. A film, Julia and Joyce, by Trinidadian-American Sonja Dumas, was released in 2010. It traces the evolution of limbo dancing and the contribution of Edwards to its popularity.\nLimbo players generally move and respond to a number of specific Afro-Caribbean drum patterns. As Limbo gained popularity as a tourist activity and a form of entertainment, pop music began using Caribbean rhythms to respond to the emerging craze in the United States. One example is the song \"Limbo Rock\" (recorded by Chubby Checker), which became a number 2 charted hit on the Billboard Top 100, from which emerged the popular quote/chant that is associated with limbo which Checker also helped to popularize: \"How low can you go?\" Limbo was brought into the mainstream by Trinidadian Calypsonian Brigo (Samuel Abrahams) with his popular Soca song \"Limbo Break\". A version of the game is also popular in skating rinks.\nLimbo is considered the unofficial national game of Trinidad and Tobago, which refers to itself as the land of limbo, steelpan (steel drums), and calypso.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"62466867-216b-4a3e-958d-365b1afe0b5b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"World record","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jxzmndq8zg","content":[{"text":"The world record for lowest limbo game is held by Dennis Walston, who successfully attempted a 6-inch (15 cm) bar in March 1991.\nThe world record for lowest female limbo game is held by Shemika Charles, a 26-year-old woman from Trinidad who lives in Buffalo, NY. On 16 September 2010, she successfully played under a bar 8.5 inches (22 cm) above the ground.\nShemika Charles-Campbell also holds her second world record for the Farthest Distance Limbo Under 12 inches. The record setting limbo was completed under vehicles and measured a distance of 12.67 ft (3.8 meters). The record was attained on 9 October 2020 in her home country Trinidad and Tobago.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"62466867-216b-4a3e-958d-365b1afe0b5b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"aj738x6f8q","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Limbo (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"62466867-216b-4a3e-958d-365b1afe0b5b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pks2dnahk2","content":[{"text":"Limbo is traditional popular dance contest that originated on the island of Tobago, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"99e181ae-831a-44aa-b266-85965dedf09e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nh6m0dy76p","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"99e181ae-831a-44aa-b266-85965dedf09e"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Folk Music and Limbo Dance Performance at The Cityhall of Port of Spain in Trinidad","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e7/Folk_Music_%26_Limbo_Dance_C_IMG_2636.JPG?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Anneli Salo","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Folk Music and Limbo Dance Performance at The Cityhall of Port of Spain in Trinidad","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e7/Folk_Music_%26_Limbo_Dance_C_IMG_2636.JPG/960px-Folk_Music_%26_Limbo_Dance_C_IMG_2636.JPG?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Folk_Music_%26_Limbo_Dance_C_IMG_2636.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e7/Folk_Music_%26_Limbo_Dance_C_IMG_2636.JPG/1280px-Folk_Music_%26_Limbo_Dance_C_IMG_2636.JPG?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:04.396Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/limbo"}
{"id":"50435cdd-556e-4b8b-a62d-4374ef1fec01","type":"art_form","slug":"lindy-hop","title":"lindy hop","summary":"The Lindy Hop is an American dance which was born in the African-American communities of Harlem, New York City, in 1928 and has evolved since then. It was very popular during the swing era of the late 1930s and early 1940s.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3c8mcge0ge","content":[{"text":"The Lindy Hop is an American dance which was born in the African-American communities of Harlem, New York City, in 1928 and has evolved since then. It was very popular during the swing era of the late 1930s and early 1940s. Lindy is a fusion of many dances that preceded it or were popular during its development but is mainly based on jazz, tap, breakaway, and Charleston. It is frequently described as a jazz dance and is a member of the swing dance family.\nIn its development, the Lindy Hop combined elements of both partnered and solo dancing by using the movements and improvisation of African-American dances along with the formal eight-count structure of European partner dances – most clearly illustrated in the Lindy's defining move, the swingout. In this step's open position, each dancer is generally connected hand-to-hand; in its closed position, leads and follows are connected as though in an embrace on one side and holding hands on the other.\nThere was renewed interest in the dance in the 1980s from American, Swedish, and British dancers and the Lindy Hop is now represented by dancers and loosely affiliated grass-roots organizations in North America, South America, Europe, Asia, and Oceania.\nLindy Hop today is danced as a social dance, as a competitive dance, as a performance dance, and in classes, workshops, and camps.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"219a0bb4-2b22-481e-8a83-6afedf13aa45"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Name origins","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"q757spxgg6","content":[{"text":"The first dances named as lindy hop were born around the time the aviator Charles Lindbergh made his groundbreaking flight across the Atlantic Ocean in May 1927. The most famous lindy hop dance, which is not connected to the other lindy hop dances, was born in the Harlem dance marathon in 1928 where George Snowden and Mattie Purnell reinvented the breakaway pattern by accident. That started a process in which their invention became bigger than it initially suggested. The Harlem dance is the only one of the lindy hop dances that survived in the long run.\nThe Harlem lindy hop developed probably from four possible sources, or some combination thereof: the breakaway, the Charleston, the Texas Tommy, and the hop.\nA recorded source of the non-Harlem-connected lindy hop dances is the famed aviator Charles Lindbergh, nicknamed \"Lucky Lindy\", who \"hopped the Atlantic\" in 1927. After Lindbergh's solo non-stop flight from New York to Paris in 1927 he became incredibly popular and many people named songs, recipes and businesses among several other things, after him. Te Roy Williams and His Orchestra recorded the song \"Lindbergh Hop\", written by Ted Nixon and Elmer Snowden, on May 25, 1927 (Harmony Records). The Memphis Jug Band on September 13, 1928 recorded \"Lindberg Hop- Overseas stomp,\" written by Jab Jones and Will Shade (on Victor Records).\nThe first of the lindy hop-named dances was probably the \"Lindbergh Hop\" which was referred to as lindy hop in the headline of an article in Pittsburgh Gazette Times on May 25, 1927, just four days after Lindbergh landed at Le Bourget. The dance was reported to be Broadway's tribute to Lindbergh, and it included six basic steps.\nLater, a \"lindy hop\" dance was described by columnist Gilbert Swan.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"219a0bb4-2b22-481e-8a83-6afedf13aa45"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Aerial creation","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"63gfx9eqse","content":[{"text":"When by 1936 \"air steps\" or \"aerials\" such as the Hip to Hip, Side Flip, and Over the Back (the names describe the motion of the follow in the air) began to appear, the old guard of dancers such as Leon James, Leroy Jones, and Shorty Snowden disapproved of the new moves.\nYounger dancers fresh out of high school (Al Minns, Joe Daniels, Russell Williams, and Pepsi Bethel) worked out the Back Flip, \"Over the head\", and \"the Snatch\".\nFrankie Manning was part of a new generation of lindy hoppers, and is the most celebrated lindy hopper in history. Al Minns and Pepsi Bethel, Leon James, and Norma Miller are also featured prominently in contemporary histories of lindy hop. Some sources credit Manning, working with his partner Freida Washington, for inventing the ground-breaking \"air step\" or \"aerial\" in 1935. One source credits Minns and Bethel as among those who refined the air step. However, early versions of air steps in the lindy hop were performed already from the very beginning of the 1930s. An air step is a dance move in which at least one of the partners' two feet leave the ground in a dramatic, acrobatic style. Most importantly, it is done in time with the music. Air steps are now widely associated with the characterization of lindy hop, despite being generally reserved for competition or performance dancing, and not generally being executed on any social dance floor.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"219a0bb4-2b22-481e-8a83-6afedf13aa45"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Mainstream culture","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dkknvcf9hf","content":[{"text":"Lindy hop entered mainstream American culture in the 1930s, gaining popularity through multiple sources. Dance troupes, including the Whitey's Lindy Hoppers (also known as the Harlem Congaroos), Hot Chocolates and Big Apple Dancers exhibited the lindy hop.  Hollywood films, such as A Day at the Races (1937) and Hellzapoppin' (1941) began featuring the lindy hop in dance sequences. Dance studios such as those of Arthur Murray  began teaching lindy hop. By the early 1940s the dance was known as \"New Yorker\" on the West Coast.\nJazz-loving youths were enamored with the bands of the time, influenced by radio stations and the film industry showcasing clips. In Nazi Germany, the Swingjugend, young rebels, defied the regime's cultural restrictions by embracing banned swing music. Similarly, in California and other parts of the country, Mexican-Americans, Japanese-heritage individuals, black, and white youth all adored jazz music and wanted to learn the new dance steps.\nThis African American dance would be integral in shaping the aesthetics of contemporary African American culture and tradition. The swing dance was influenced by a variety of other different dances during the time like the Charleston, jazz and tap. It would soon be influential in overall pop-culture and dance at the time. During the creation of this dance, segregation was in place. Even with these limitations the African American community is still able to celebrate their heritage and black musical traditions with a dance that embodies elements of improvisations and musicality, while surviving as a reminder of the historical context from which black art forms emerged.\nIn 1943, lindy hop was featured on the cover of Life magazine, becoming America's National Folk Dance and a recruitment tool for the military.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"219a0bb4-2b22-481e-8a83-6afedf13aa45"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Savoy-style Lindy Hop","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sww3a8v8s0","content":[{"text":"Savoy-style Lindy Hop is characterized by a high energy, circular, rotating style. This particular style of lindy hop was most frequently associated with dancers from the 1930s, such as Frankie Manning.\nThe term \"Savoy-style lindy hop\" applies a generic relationship between all African American lindy hoppers (and aficionados of their styles) which ignores the variety and diversity of lindy hop in the 1930s and 1940s.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"219a0bb4-2b22-481e-8a83-6afedf13aa45"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Features","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3kyxn2cc9c","content":[{"text":"In describing Savoy style lindy hop, observers note that the follower is led out of the basic swingout sideways as a default. This is not the case, however, as leading a follow out backwards or forwards is just as likely.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"219a0bb4-2b22-481e-8a83-6afedf13aa45"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1vc7yvhkmz","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Lindy Hop”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"219a0bb4-2b22-481e-8a83-6afedf13aa45"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hfjasg2ykh","content":[{"text":"lindy hop is American dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"66c58348-640f-4910-96d5-6c7fe3aa95f2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9wm6r1fnjq","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 10 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"66c58348-640f-4910-96d5-6c7fe3aa95f2"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"A long-exposure photograph of the main dance floor of Beantown Camp in the Callahan Center at Endicott College. The camp is a week-long annual session with Lindy Hop social dance classes, socials, competitions, and related activities.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0b/Beantown_Lindy_Hop_Dance_Camp_2023_long_exposure_2.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Sdkb","height":719,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"A long-exposure photograph of the main dance floor of Beantown Camp in the Callahan Center at Endicott College. The camp is a week-long annual session with Lindy Hop social dance classes, socials, competitions, and related activities.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0b/Beantown_Lindy_Hop_Dance_Camp_2023_long_exposure_2.jpg/960px-Beantown_Lindy_Hop_Dance_Camp_2023_long_exposure_2.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Beantown_Lindy_Hop_Dance_Camp_2023_long_exposure_2.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0b/Beantown_Lindy_Hop_Dance_Camp_2023_long_exposure_2.jpg/1280px-Beantown_Lindy_Hop_Dance_Camp_2023_long_exposure_2.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"A long-exposure photograph of the main dance floor of Beantown Camp in the Callahan Center at Endicott College. The camp is a week-long annual session with Lindy Hop social dance classes, socials, competitions, and related activities.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/30/Beantown_Lindy_Hop_Dance_Camp_2023_long_exposure_1.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Sdkb","height":719,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"A long-exposure photograph of the main dance floor of Beantown Camp in the Callahan Center at Endicott College. The camp is a week-long annual session with Lindy Hop social dance classes, socials, competitions, and related activities.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/30/Beantown_Lindy_Hop_Dance_Camp_2023_long_exposure_1.jpg/960px-Beantown_Lindy_Hop_Dance_Camp_2023_long_exposure_1.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Beantown_Lindy_Hop_Dance_Camp_2023_long_exposure_1.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/30/Beantown_Lindy_Hop_Dance_Camp_2023_long_exposure_1.jpg/1280px-Beantown_Lindy_Hop_Dance_Camp_2023_long_exposure_1.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"A long-exposure photograph of the main dance floor of Beantown Camp in the Callahan Center at Endicott College. The camp is a week-long annual session with Lindy Hop social dance classes, socials, competitions, and related activities.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/94/Beantown_Lindy_Hop_Dance_Camp_2023_long_exposure_3.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Sdkb","height":852,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"A long-exposure photograph of the main dance floor of Beantown Camp in the Callahan Center at Endicott College. The camp is a week-long annual session with Lindy Hop social dance classes, socials, competitions, and related activities.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/94/Beantown_Lindy_Hop_Dance_Camp_2023_long_exposure_3.jpg/960px-Beantown_Lindy_Hop_Dance_Camp_2023_long_exposure_3.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Beantown_Lindy_Hop_Dance_Camp_2023_long_exposure_3.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/94/Beantown_Lindy_Hop_Dance_Camp_2023_long_exposure_3.jpg/1280px-Beantown_Lindy_Hop_Dance_Camp_2023_long_exposure_3.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-04T05:47:20.098Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/lindy-hop"}
{"id":"2bd55662-958c-42d8-adf7-96388e7807a7","type":"art_form","slug":"line-dance","title":"line dance","summary":"A line dance is a choreographed dance in which a group of people dance along to a repeating sequence of steps while arranged in one or more lines or rows.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"a7nhp1m1zr","content":[{"text":"A line dance is a choreographed dance in which a group of people dance along to a repeating sequence of steps while arranged in one or more lines or rows. These lines usually face all in the same direction, or less commonly face each other. Unlike circle dancing, line dancers are not in physical contact with each other. Each dance is usually associated with, and named for, a specific song, such as the Macarena or the Electric Slide (associated with the 1982 single \"Electric Boogie\") which are a few of the line dances that have consistently remained part of modern American culture for years.\nLine dancing is practiced and learned in country-western dance bars, social clubs, dance clubs and ballrooms. It is sometimes combined on dance programs with other forms of country-western dance, such as two-step, western promenade dances, as well as western-style variants of the waltz, polka and swing. Line dances have accompanied many popular music styles since the early 1970s including pop, swing, rock and roll, disco, Latin (salsa suelta), rhythm and blues and jazz.\nThe term \"modern line dance\" is now used in many line dance clubs around the world to indicate dance styles that combine many genres, including pop, Latin, Irish, big band and country. Rather than wearing Western-style clothing or boots, participants dress in casual clothing and often wear dance trainers.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0da8734d-4cac-48e6-9302-651ccf412510"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"g8wrr3mh6b","content":[{"text":"The precise origins of line dancing are not entirely clear. Of the confusion, music historian Christy Lane has stated that \"If you were to ask 10 people with some knowledge of when line dancing began, you'd probably get 10 different answers\". By and large, the growth and popularity of line dancing has mainly been tied to country and western music.\nIt is likely that at least some of the steps and terminology used in modern line dancing originated from the dances brought to North America by European immigrants in the 1800s. Throughout the 1860s–1890s, the style that would later be known as country–western dance began to emerge from these dances. Schools in the United States began to incorporate dancing, particularly folk dancing, into physical education classes in the 1900s, which popularized folk and country dancing as a social activity. Finally, servicemen returning from World War I and World War II sometimes brought European dances back to the United States, incorporating elements into American dance styles.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0da8734d-4cac-48e6-9302-651ccf412510"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"1950s–1970s: development of style","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qs9a1nqgxj","content":[{"text":"One of the first true line dances was the Madison, a novelty dance created and first performed in Columbus, Ohio, in 1957. The dance and its accompanying record became locally popular in Baltimore, Maryland, attracting the attention of the producers of The Buddy Deane Show in 1960 and leading other dance shows to feature it. The 1961 \"San Francisco Stomp\" meets the definition of a line dance.\nDuring the disco music era of the 1970s, numerous new dance styles emerged, including many line dances choreographed to disco songs. The \"L.A. Hustle\", a modified version of the Madison, began in a small Los Angeles disco in the summer of 1975 and reached the East Coast, with modified steps, in the spring of 1976 as the \"Bus Stop\". Another line dance from the 1970s is the Nutbush, performed to Tina Turner's song \"Nutbush City Limits\".\nThe Electric Slide, associated with the song \"Electric Boogie\", was created in 1976. \"Electric Boogie\", written by Bunny Wailer for Marcia Griffiths, was originally released in December 1982. It became popular in Jamaica in early 1983 and achieved moderate international success. A remixed version was released in 1989 and gained broader popularity. It reached number 51 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States, becoming Griffiths' most successful single and helping to popularize the Electric Slide.\nThe release of the film Saturday Night Fever in 1977 took disco and its associated dance styles to a new height of popularity.\nLine dancing to country music also became popular during this era. Two notable dances date to 1972: the Walkin' Wazi and the Cowboy Boogie.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0da8734d-4cac-48e6-9302-651ccf412510"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"1980s–present","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qv063fyn10","content":[{"text":"The 1980 film Urban Cowboy caused a trend for country and western culture, particularly the associated dance, music, and clothing. Over a dozen line dances were created for country songs during the 1980s. Many other early line dances were adaptations of disco line dance. The Chicken Dance is an example of a line dance adopted by the Mod revival during the 1980s.\nThe music video for the 1990 Billy Ray Cyrus song \"Achy Breaky Heart\" has been credited for launching line dancing into the mainstream.\nIn the 1990s, the hit Spanish dance song \"Macarena\" inspired a popular line dance.\nA line dance for the 1990 Asleep at the Wheel single \"Boot Scootin' Boogie\" was choreographed by Bill Bader. The 1992 Brooks & Dunn cover of the song has resulted in there being at least 16 line dances with \"Boot Scootin' Boogie\" in the title. Billy Ray Cyrus' 1992 hit \"Achy Breaky Heart\" helped catapult western line dancing into the mainstream public consciousness.  In 1994 choreographer Max Perry had a worldwide dance hit with \"Swamp Thang\" for the song \"Swamp Thing\" by The Grid. This was a techno song that fused banjo sounds in the melody line and helped to start a trend of line dancing to forms of music other than country. In this mid-1990s period, country western music was significantly influenced by the popularity of line dancing.\nMax Perry, along with Jo Thompson Szymanski, Scott Blevins and several others, began to use ballroom rhythms and technique to take line dancing to the next level. In 1997, the band Steps created further interest outside of the U.S. with the techno dance song \"5,6,7,8\". In 1999, American retailer Gap Inc.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0da8734d-4cac-48e6-9302-651ccf412510"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Wall","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9hmnzhkwg9","content":[{"text":"Line dances are commonly described by their number of walls. A wall is the direction in which the dancers face at any given time: the front (the direction faced at the beginning of the dance), the back, or either side. Dancers may change direction several times during a sequence and may face a direction halfway between two walls. At the end of the sequence, they face the original wall or one of the other three. The next iteration of the sequence uses that wall as its new frame of reference.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0da8734d-4cac-48e6-9302-651ccf412510"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"chffzp9t4s","content":[{"text":"In a one-wall dance, the dancers face the same direction at the end of the sequence as at the beginning (either no turn or a full turn of 360 degrees).\nIn a two-wall dance, repetitions of the sequence end alternately at the back and front walls. In other words, the dancers turn through 180 degrees during one set (a half turn). The samba line dance is an example of a two-wall dance. While doing the \"volte\" step, the dancers turn 180 degrees to face a new wall.\nIn a four-wall dance, the direction faced at the end of the sequence is 90 degrees to the right or left of the direction faced at the beginning (a quarter turn). As a result, the dancers face each of the four walls in turn at the end of four consecutive repetitions of the sequence before returning to the original wall.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0da8734d-4cac-48e6-9302-651ccf412510"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"52zzcnw6ww","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Line dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0da8734d-4cac-48e6-9302-651ccf412510"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vcjvn84r72","content":[{"text":"line dance is choreographed dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"82f180af-1a42-450d-9541-3e184ebc2c00"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9ncjh8geqn","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 10 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"82f180af-1a42-450d-9541-3e184ebc2c00"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"The optoelectronic devices are smaller than a pixel in the photo. This is early in the 12 hour night shift.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/26/Assembly_Line_Dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Steve Jurvetson","height":1097,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"The optoelectronic devices are smaller than a pixel in the photo. This is early in the 12 hour night shift.","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/26/Assembly_Line_Dance.jpg/960px-Assembly_Line_Dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Assembly_Line_Dance.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/26/Assembly_Line_Dance.jpg/1280px-Assembly_Line_Dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"},{"alt":"1998 Line Dance Male Newcomer UCWDC World Championships Belt Buckle","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cd/1998_Line_Dance_Male_Newcomer.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Jennifer Egl, UCWDC Marketing Chair","height":1011,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"1998 Line Dance Male Newcomer UCWDC World Championships Belt Buckle","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cd/1998_Line_Dance_Male_Newcomer.png/960px-1998_Line_Dance_Male_Newcomer.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:1998_Line_Dance_Male_Newcomer.png","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cd/1998_Line_Dance_Male_Newcomer.png/1280px-1998_Line_Dance_Male_Newcomer.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Line Dance Challenge","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e0/Billy_Bobs_Texas_Country_Line_Dancers.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Wikiicaro","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Line Dance Challenge","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e0/Billy_Bobs_Texas_Country_Line_Dancers.jpg/960px-Billy_Bobs_Texas_Country_Line_Dancers.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Billy_Bobs_Texas_Country_Line_Dancers.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e0/Billy_Bobs_Texas_Country_Line_Dancers.jpg/1280px-Billy_Bobs_Texas_Country_Line_Dancers.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:26.753Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/line-dance"}
{"id":"3418051e-cdfd-471a-a50f-98e479cf034d","type":"art_form","slug":"lion-dance","title":"lion dance","summary":"Lion dance (traditional Chinese: 舞獅; simplified Chinese: 舞狮; pinyin: wǔshī) is a form of traditional dance in Chinese culture and other Asian countries in which performers mimic a lion's movements in a lion costume to bring good luck and fo…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wm4jevj3bk","content":[{"text":"Lion dance (traditional Chinese: 舞獅; simplified Chinese: 舞狮; pinyin: wǔshī) is a form of traditional dance in Chinese culture and other Asian countries in which performers mimic a lion's movements in a lion costume to bring good luck and fortune and to ward off evil. The lion dance is usually performed during the Lunar New Year and other traditional, cultural and religious festivals. It may also be performed at important occasions such as business opening events, special celebrations or wedding ceremonies, or may be used to honor special guests by the Chinese communities.\nThe Chinese lion dance is normally performed by two dancers, one of whom manipulates the head while the other manipulates the tail of the lion. It is distinguishable from the dragon dance which is performed by many people who hold the long sinuous body of the dragon on poles. Some fundamental movements of the lion dance can be found in Chinese martial arts, and it is commonly performed to a vigorous drumbeat with gongs and cymbals.\nThere are many forms of lion dance in China, but two main forms of the lion dance are the Northern Lion and the Southern Lion. Around the world, especially in Southeast Asia, the Southern Lion predominates as it was spread by Chinese diaspora communities who are historically mostly of Southern Chinese origin. Versions of lion dance related to the Chinese lion are also found in Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, and Vietnam.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8be068cc-a136-484d-9d4e-cfcf47955f5e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"289erwvnf0","content":[{"text":"There has been an old tradition in China of dancers wearing masks to resemble animals or mythical beasts since antiquity, and performances described in ancient texts such as Shujing in which wild beasts and phoenixes danced may have been masked dances. In Qin dynasty sources, dancers performing exorcism rituals were described as wearing bearskin masks, and it was also mentioned in Han dynasty texts that \"mime people\" (象人) performed as fish, dragons, and phoenixes.\nHowever, the lion is not native to China (a species found in Northeast China, Panthera youngi, had long become extinct), and the lion dance therefore has been suggested to have originated outside of China from countries such as India or Persia, and introduced via Central Asia. According to ethnomusicologist Laurence Picken, the Chinese word for lion itself, shi (獅, written as 師 in the early periods), may have been derived from the Persian word šer. The earliest use of the word shizi to mean \"lion\" was in Han dynasty texts and had strong associations with Central Asia (an even earlier but obsolete term for lion was suanni (狻麑 or 狻猊), and lions were presented to the Han court by emissaries from Central Asia and the Parthian Empire.\nDetailed descriptions of lion dance appeared during the Tang dynasty and it was already recognized by writers and poets then as a foreign dance. However, lion dance may have been recorded in China as early as the third century AD where \"lion acts\" were referred to by a Three Kingdoms scholar Meng Kang in a commentary on Hanshu. In the early periods, it was associated with Buddhism: it was recorded in a Northern Wei text, Description of Buddhist Temples in Luoyang (洛陽伽藍記), that a parade for a statue of Buddha of a temple was led by a lion to drive away evil spirits.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8be068cc-a136-484d-9d4e-cfcf47955f5e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Chinese styles","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t0xcrc2cdk","content":[{"text":"The two main types of lion dance in China are the Northern and Southern Lions. There are however also a number of local forms of lion dance in different regions of China, and some of these lions may have significant differences in appearance, for example the Green or Hokkien Lion (青獅, Qing Shi) and the Taiwanese or Yutien Lion (明獅, Ming Shi), popular with the Hokkien and the Taiwanese people.\nOther ethnic minority groups in China also have their own lion dances: for example, the lion dance of the Muslim minority in Shenqiu County in Henan called the Wen Lion, the lion dance in Yongdeng County, Gansu, and others. There are other related forms of dances with mask figures that represent mythical creatures such as the Qilin and the Pixiu. The Qilin dance and the Pixiu dance are most commonly performed by the Hakka people who were originally from Central China, but have largely settled in the south of China and southeast Asia in modern times.\nChinese lion dances usually involve two dancers but may also be performed by one. The larger lions manipulated by two persons may be referred to as great lions (太獅), and those manipulated by one person little lions (少獅). The performances may also be broadly divided into civil (文獅) and martial (武獅) styles. The civil style emphasizes the character and behaviour of the lion, while the martial style is focused on acrobatics and energetic movements. Various forms of lion dance are also widely found in East Asian countries such as Japan, Korea, Vietnam, as well as in communities in the Himalayas region.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8be068cc-a136-484d-9d4e-cfcf47955f5e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Northern Lion","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wmageknqqq","content":[{"text":"The Chinese Northern Lion (simplified Chinese: 北狮; traditional Chinese: 北獅; pinyin: Běi shī) dance is often performed as a pair of male and female lions in the north of China. Northern lions may have a gold-painted wooden head and shaggy red and yellow hair with a red bow on its head to indicate a male lion, or a green bow (sometimes green hair) to represent a female. There are however regional variations of the lion. Regions with lion dance troupes include Ninghai in Ningbo, Xushui in Hebei province, Dalian in Liaoning province, and Beijing. There are a number of variations of the lion dance performance, for example the Heavenly Tower Lion dance (simplified Chinese: 天塔狮舞; traditional Chinese: 天塔獅舞; pinyin: Tiān tǎ shī wǔ) from Xiangfen County in Shanxi is a performance whereby a number of lions climb up a tall tower structure constructed out of wooden stools, and there are also high-wire acts involving lions.\nIt is said that the Northern Lion may have originated from Northern Wei, when Hu dancers performed the dance for the emperor, and it was referred to as Northern Lion by the Song dynasty. Northern lions resemble Pekingese or Foo Dogs/Fu Dogs, and their movements are lifelike during a performance. Acrobatics is very common, with stunts like lifts, or balancing on a tiered platform or on a giant ball. Northern lions sometimes appear as a family, with two large \"adult\" lions and a pair of small \"young\" lions. There are usually two performers in one adult lion, and one in the young lion. There may also be a \"warrior\" character who holds a spherical object and leads the lions.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8be068cc-a136-484d-9d4e-cfcf47955f5e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Southern Lion","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"es7p2ck2wc","content":[{"text":"The Chinese Southern Lion (simplified Chinese: 南狮; traditional Chinese: 南獅; pinyin: Nán shī) or Cantonese Lion dance originated from Guangdong and is the best known lion outside of China. The Southern lion has a single horn, and is associated with the legend of a mythical monster called Nian. The lion's head is traditionally constructed using papier-mâché over a bamboo frame covered with gauze, then painted and decorated with fur. Its body is made of durable layered cloth also trimmed with fur. Newer lions, however, may be made with modern materials such as aluminium instead of bamboo and are lighter.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8be068cc-a136-484d-9d4e-cfcf47955f5e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Fut San (Fo Shan) style","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7y45kz09hh","content":[{"text":"Fo Shan is the sty…","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8be068cc-a136-484d-9d4e-cfcf47955f5e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s9h4xrwscc","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Lion dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8be068cc-a136-484d-9d4e-cfcf47955f5e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zk8b6yfbmh","content":[{"text":"lion dance is traditional Chinese dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7ff0a286-9c5f-4241-9c72-8e960c2be5ff"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1ks6q8qpv7","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 6 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7ff0a286-9c5f-4241-9c72-8e960c2be5ff"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Lion Dancer with first dragon in Central Florida Dragon Parade","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/31/Lion_Dance_2.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Pisanond01","height":1490,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Lion Dancer with first dragon in Central Florida Dragon Parade","licence":"CC BY 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/31/Lion_Dance_2.jpg/960px-Lion_Dance_2.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lion_Dance_2.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/31/Lion_Dance_2.jpg/1280px-Lion_Dance_2.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0"},{"alt":"An image depicting a lion dance group.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/13/Awaiting_Lion_Dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Brandon2097","height":1707,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"An image depicting a lion dance group.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/13/Awaiting_Lion_Dance.jpg/960px-Awaiting_Lion_Dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Awaiting_Lion_Dance.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/13/Awaiting_Lion_Dance.jpg/1280px-Awaiting_Lion_Dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Lanterns depicting a lion dance during the Kitamon festival in Yokohama, Japan.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/dd/Lion_dance_art_object.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Captain76 .","height":897,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Lanterns depicting a lion dance during the Kitamon festival in Yokohama, Japan.","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/dd/Lion_dance_art_object.JPG/960px-Lion_dance_art_object.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lion_dance_art_object.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/dd/Lion_dance_art_object.JPG/1280px-Lion_dance_art_object.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-03T05:48:14.202Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/lion-dance"}
{"id":"8c9d0752-7ddb-41c6-9d22-afc21dd1f4e8","type":"art_form","slug":"locking","title":"Locking","summary":"Locking is a style of funk dance. The name is based on the concept of locking movements, which means freezing from a fast movement and \"locking\" in a certain position, holding that position for a short while and then continuing at the same …","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cdn31prty6","content":[{"text":"Locking is a style of funk dance. The name is based on the concept of locking movements, which means freezing from a fast movement and \"locking\" in a certain position, holding that position for a short while and then continuing at the same speed as before. It relies on fast and distinct arm and hand movements combined with more relaxed hips and legs. The movements are generally large and exaggerated, and often very rhythmic and tightly synced with the music. Locking is performance oriented, often interacting with the audience by smiling or giving them a high five, and some moves are quite comical.\nLocking was originally danced to traditional funk music, such as that produced or performed by James Brown. Funk music is still commonly favored by locking dancers and used by many competitions such as the locking divisions of Juste Debout and Summer Dance Forever. Locking movements create a strong contrast towards the many fast moves that are otherwise performed quite continuously, combined with mime style performance and acting and other dancers. Locking includes many acrobatics and physically demanding moves, such as landing on one's knees and the split. These moves often require knee protection.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f218be13-5f3a-454e-a41a-a46d9aba1513"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rm2c41c3h6","content":[{"text":"The beginning of locking can be traced to Don Campbell. In the late 1960s he put together several fad dances adding moves of his own (known as the \"Lock\") when performing. The original lock was created by accident: Campbell couldn't do a move called the \"funky chicken\" and stopped at a particular point whilst moving his arms, creating a 'locking' effect. He wasn't able to perform it fluently, for he couldn't remember which step to take next. (Even the acting towards the audience was spontaneous: when people started laughing at Don because of his unfamiliar moves, he responded by pointing at them.) These halts soon became popular as Don added them into his performances. The resulting dance was called Campbellocking, which was later shortened to Locking. In the early 1970s this set off a movement of locking dance groups, notably Campbell's group The Lockers. Other lockers Jimmy \"Scoo B Doo\" Foster, Greggory \"Campbellock Jr.\" Pope, Tony \"GoGo\" Lewis, Fred \"Mr Penguin\" Berry (a.k.a. Rerun), Leo \"Fluky Luke\" Williamson, Damita Jo Freeman and others also helped set the foundation for the locking dance and clothes style.\nClothes style can consist of loud striped socks, pegged pants that stop at the knees, bright colorful satin shirts with big collars, big colorful bow ties, gigantic Apple Boy hats, and white gloves.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f218be13-5f3a-454e-a41a-a46d9aba1513"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Moves","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"re1pm9g0rj","content":[{"text":"Locking may be done in solo or with two or more dancers doing steps or handshakes together. A locker may smile while performing to emphasize the comical nature of the dance; other times, a serious demeanor will be maintained to place emphasis on technique. Other important stylistic features are waving of arms, pointing, walking stationary and grabbing and rotating the cap or hat. Don Campbell created the original freezes, incorporating his unique rhythm and adding gestures such as points and handclaps. Other dancers also adapted this style while creating other steps and moves.\nLocking is by nature an improvisational dance but also consists of a set of signature moves of locking pioneers, However, many lockers alter or blend these with other moves or create their own variations. In general, lockers will often put a small pause and move up on the second and fourth beats to emphasize the locking.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f218be13-5f3a-454e-a41a-a46d9aba1513"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f6hr6petpr","content":[{"text":"Alpha\nCreated by Alpha Anderson. One leg is kicked forward from a crouching position while the upper body is leaned backwards. The upper body can be supported by both hands or no hands at all.\nBreak down/Rocksteady\nIn the squatting position, shift the pelvis to the side, then back to the center. Stand up, then return to the squatting position again and repeat the movement for the other side.\nJazz split\nA semi-split done with one leg bent, enabling the dancer to get up again in one swift movement\nWhichaway\nAltering twirl kicks to the sides first, starting with one leg and using the momentum to \"kick\" the other out like a pendulum.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f218be13-5f3a-454e-a41a-a46d9aba1513"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jrkxw56cwn","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Locking (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f218be13-5f3a-454e-a41a-a46d9aba1513"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tex4jp2sb3","content":[{"text":"Locking is type of dance step, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"26f9bb34-423c-431f-9259-6f9a0ccd1cfa"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0n0cd2rvba","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"26f9bb34-423c-431f-9259-6f9a0ccd1cfa"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Locking village hall","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b9/Locking_village_hall.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Rodw","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Locking village hall","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b9/Locking_village_hall.jpg/960px-Locking_village_hall.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Locking_village_hall.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b9/Locking_village_hall.jpg/1280px-Locking_village_hall.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"Locking Head Drove-Looking SW towards Locking Head Cottages","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f6/Locking_Head_Drove-Looking_SW_towards_Locking_Head_Cottages_-_geograph.org.uk_-_2420018.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Dr Duncan Pepper","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Locking Head Drove-Looking SW towards Locking Head Cottages","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f6/Locking_Head_Drove-Looking_SW_towards_Locking_Head_Cottages_-_geograph.org.uk_-_2420018.jpg/960px-Locking_Head_Drove-Looking_SW_towards_Locking_Head_Cottages_-_geograph.org.uk_-_2420018.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Locking_Head_Drove-Looking_SW_towards_Locking_Head_Cottages_-_geograph.org.uk_-_2420018.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f6/Locking_Head_Drove-Looking_SW_towards_Locking_Head_Cottages_-_geograph.org.uk_-_2420018.jpg/1280px-Locking_Head_Drove-Looking_SW_towards_Locking_Head_Cottages_-_geograph.org.uk_-_2420018.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"},{"alt":"Posting in Locking","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ef/Posting_in_Locking_-_geograph.org.uk_-_7015611.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Neil Owen","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Posting in Locking","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ef/Posting_in_Locking_-_geograph.org.uk_-_7015611.jpg/960px-Posting_in_Locking_-_geograph.org.uk_-_7015611.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Posting_in_Locking_-_geograph.org.uk_-_7015611.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ef/Posting_in_Locking_-_geograph.org.uk_-_7015611.jpg/1280px-Posting_in_Locking_-_geograph.org.uk_-_7015611.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:17.773Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/locking"}
{"id":"4fd6196e-8dbb-4db3-8736-b8aadea7fd22","type":"art_form","slug":"maculele","title":"Maculelê","summary":"Maculelê (Portuguese pronunciation: [makuleˈle]) is an Afro-Brazilian stick-dance from Bahia.\nMaculele, a stick fighting dance from Santo Amaro, was introduced to a wider audience by Viva Bahia, a capoeira theater group founded in 1963.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2dhezsex4p","content":[{"text":"Maculelê (Portuguese pronunciation: [makuleˈle]) is an Afro-Brazilian stick-dance from Bahia.\nMaculele, a stick fighting dance from Santo Amaro, was introduced to a wider audience by Viva Bahia, a capoeira theater group founded in 1963. Viva Bahia's founder, Emília Biancardi, had researched Bahian folklore for many years and integrated maculele into her group's performances. Major capoeira groups, such as those led by mestres Bimba, Pastinha, and Canjiquinha, soon adopted maculele as well.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aec7f433-943c-421d-81bc-78488b6ffa99"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origins","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m0qy0bxdxh","content":[{"text":"The German painter Rugendas observed African slaves stick fighting during the 1820s in Brazil:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aec7f433-943c-421d-81bc-78488b6ffa99"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jtn7n3ffa2","content":[{"text":"It is also necessary to mention a sort of military dance: two troops armed with poles stand in front of each other, and the skill consists for each to avoid the thrusts that the adversary strikes at him.\nThat stick fighting and dancing have endured into the twentieth century through forms like maculêlê.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aec7f433-943c-421d-81bc-78488b6ffa99"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Form","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gng2cvp2yz","content":[{"text":"In the roda, one or more atabaques positioned at the entrance of the circle. Each person brandishes a pair of long sticks, traditionally made from biriba, canzi, or pitia wood from Brazil. The sticks, called grimas, traditionally measure 20–24 inches (50–60 cm) long by 1+1⁄8 inches (3 cm) thick. As the Maculelê rhythm plays on the atabaque, the people in the circle begin rhythmically striking the sticks together. The leader sings, and the people in the circle respond by singing the chorus of the songs. When the leader gives the signal to begin playing Maculelê, two people enter the circle, and to the rhythm of the atabaque, they begin striking their own and each other's sticks together. On the first three beats, they strike their own sticks together, making expressive and athletic dance movements, and on each fourth beat, they strike each other's respective right-hand stick together. This makes for a dance that looks like \"mock stick combat\". (Also, traditionally in Maculelê, the players wear dried grass skirts).\nMaculelê has steps similar to many other Brazilian dances such as \"frevo\" from Pernambuco, \"Moçambique\" from São Paulo, \"Cana-verde\" from Vassouras-RJ, \"Bate-pau\" from Mato Grosso, \"Tudundun\" from Pará among others.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aec7f433-943c-421d-81bc-78488b6ffa99"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Capoeira","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mdegrgtf2n","content":[{"text":"In some capoeira schools, students perform maculelê using a pair of machetes or facones (facão in Portuguese; plural: facões).  These large knives are associated with the tools used by slaves in plantations. The knives spark as they strike in the air, and the sparks along with the sounds of the knives striking one another make this performance particularly impressive. Because a fast moving dance with large knives is dangerous, only very experienced capoeiristas will use knives.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aec7f433-943c-421d-81bc-78488b6ffa99"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"In popular culture","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cmfj49490j","content":[{"text":"Maculelê was performed as a group dance in the Canadian version of So You Think You Can Dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aec7f433-943c-421d-81bc-78488b6ffa99"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Literature","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"33zspkwt7k","content":[{"text":"Assunção, Matthias Röhrig (2002). Capoeira: The History of an Afro-Brazilian Martial Art. Routledge. ISBN 978-0-7146-8086-6.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aec7f433-943c-421d-81bc-78488b6ffa99"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1ytfad8av3","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Maculelê (stick dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aec7f433-943c-421d-81bc-78488b6ffa99"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pm0gkwt6mj","content":[{"text":"Maculelê is Brazilian folk dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"770f289d-dbbf-468a-919a-662d163cbca0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w6d6yz6r66","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"770f289d-dbbf-468a-919a-662d163cbca0"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"A group of people performing Maculelê in New York.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/38/Maculele_in_New_York.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Joel Zimmer","height":850,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"A group of people performing Maculelê in New York.","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/38/Maculele_in_New_York.jpg/960px-Maculele_in_New_York.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Maculele_in_New_York.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/38/Maculele_in_New_York.jpg/1280px-Maculele_in_New_York.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:21.591Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/maculele"}
{"id":"23b43413-f116-4a00-9298-8363a672e8bd","type":"art_form","slug":"madison","title":"Madison","summary":"The Madison is a novelty dance that was popular in the late 1950s to mid-1960s.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6p174m7fdg","content":[{"text":"The Madison is a novelty dance that was popular in the late 1950s to mid-1960s.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fc760843-3c23-49d0-a227-5649895dbfd6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Description and history","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gg0k8wh6p0","content":[{"text":"It was created and first danced in Columbus, Ohio, in 1957. The local popularity of the dance and record in Baltimore, Maryland, came to the attention of the producers of The Buddy Deane Show in 1960, which led to other dance shows picking it up.\nThe Madison is a line dance that features a regular back-and-forth pattern interspersed with called steps. Its popularity inspired dance teams and competitions, as well as various recordings, and today it is still sometimes performed as a nostalgic dance. The Madison is featured in the John Waters movie Hairspray (1988), and it continues to be performed in the Broadway musical Hairspray. Both the film and the musical feature one of many songs released during the Madison \"craze\" in the US.\nThe jazz pianist Ray Bryant recorded \"Madison Time\" for Columbia Records in 1959. Billboard stated that \"The footwork for the Madison dance is carefully and clearly diagrammed for the terpers.\"  The Ray Bryant version was the version featured in the film Hairspray.  The other popular version was by Al Brown & The Tunetoppers.  Another version was recorded by radio presenter Alan Freeman for Decca Records in 1962.\nAn example of an album featuring music for the Madison is The Madison Dance Party (1960) by Al Brown's Tunetoppers with calls by Al Brown.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fc760843-3c23-49d0-a227-5649895dbfd6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Examples in motion pictures","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"x6m02g4jye","content":[{"text":"The dance is performed by a large group in the original (non-musical) version of John Waters' Hairspray (1988).\nIn Monsieur Ibrahim (2003), Lola Naymark does a Madison-like dance at 42 minutes and at 1 hour 18 minutes a group of Turkish youth appears to be doing a facsimile of the dance as well.   The song by Olivier Despax and the Gamblers is featured.\nIn The Go-Getter (2007), Lou Taylor Pucci, Zooey Deschanel and Jena Malone all dance the \"Madison\" as an homage to Godard's Bande à part.\nThe film Le Week-End (2013) ends with the main characters Nick and Morgan dancing in the midst of the café recreating the scene from Bande à part.\nEpisode 3, \"Other People, Other Rooms\", of the Hulu miniseries 11.22.63 (2016) (based on the 2011 Stephen King novel 11/22/63) features students and Sadie Dunhill doing The Madison.\nIn the Netflix series Maniac (2018) episode 5, the characters played by Rome Kanda, Emma Stone, and Jonah Hill dance the Madison.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fc760843-3c23-49d0-a227-5649895dbfd6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nqzgcg5zed","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Madison (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fc760843-3c23-49d0-a227-5649895dbfd6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2cm5ggyd3c","content":[{"text":"Madison is novelty dance that was popular in the late 1950s to mid-1960s, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"68ce29cd-e01e-407b-a68e-4a83df199612"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s06vgbk2vn","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"68ce29cd-e01e-407b-a68e-4a83df199612"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"An adult Eastern Phoebe in Madison, Wisconsin, USA.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b6/Sayornis_phoebe_-Madison%2C_Wisconsin%2C_USA-8.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"John Benson","height":959,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"An adult Eastern Phoebe in Madison, Wisconsin, USA.","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b6/Sayornis_phoebe_-Madison%2C_Wisconsin%2C_USA-8.jpg/960px-Sayornis_phoebe_-Madison%2C_Wisconsin%2C_USA-8.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sayornis_phoebe_-Madison,_Wisconsin,_USA-8.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b6/Sayornis_phoebe_-Madison%2C_Wisconsin%2C_USA-8.jpg/1280px-Sayornis_phoebe_-Madison%2C_Wisconsin%2C_USA-8.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"},{"alt":"Eastern phoebe ( Sayornis phoebe ), Owen Conservation Park, Madison, Wisconsin","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ae/Sayornis_phoebe%2C_Owen_Conservation_Park%2C_Madison%2C_Wisconsin_May_2016.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"John Benson","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Eastern phoebe ( Sayornis phoebe ), Owen Conservation Park, Madison, Wisconsin","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/ae/Sayornis_phoebe%2C_Owen_Conservation_Park%2C_Madison%2C_Wisconsin_May_2016.jpg/960px-Sayornis_phoebe%2C_Owen_Conservation_Park%2C_Madison%2C_Wisconsin_May_2016.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sayornis_phoebe,_Owen_Conservation_Park,_Madison,_Wisconsin_May_2016.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/ae/Sayornis_phoebe%2C_Owen_Conservation_Park%2C_Madison%2C_Wisconsin_May_2016.jpg/1280px-Sayornis_phoebe%2C_Owen_Conservation_Park%2C_Madison%2C_Wisconsin_May_2016.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"},{"alt":"A Eastern Phoebe at Owen Conservation Park, Madison, Wisconsin, USA.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d0/Sayornis_phoebe_-Owen_Conservation_Park%2C_Madison%2C_Wisconsin%2C_USA-8.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"John Benson","height":1006,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"A Eastern Phoebe at Owen Conservation Park, Madison, Wisconsin, USA.","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d0/Sayornis_phoebe_-Owen_Conservation_Park%2C_Madison%2C_Wisconsin%2C_USA-8.jpg/960px-Sayornis_phoebe_-Owen_Conservation_Park%2C_Madison%2C_Wisconsin%2C_USA-8.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sayornis_phoebe_-Owen_Conservation_Park,_Madison,_Wisconsin,_USA-8.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d0/Sayornis_phoebe_-Owen_Conservation_Park%2C_Madison%2C_Wisconsin%2C_USA-8.jpg/1280px-Sayornis_phoebe_-Owen_Conservation_Park%2C_Madison%2C_Wisconsin%2C_USA-8.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:25.697Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/madison"}
{"id":"334f94bb-1abf-41c0-9a8c-12379e4bb4a5","type":"art_form","slug":"mahari-dance","title":"Mahari dance","summary":"Mahari is a ritualistic dance form from the eastern Indian state of Odisha that used to be performed at the temple of Lord Jagannatha at Puri by devadasi dancers called mahari.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ezj66axhgw","content":[{"text":"Mahari is a ritualistic dance form from the eastern Indian state of Odisha that used to be performed at the temple of Lord Jagannatha at Puri by devadasi dancers called mahari. Following the abolition of the devadasi system, the dance has been discontinued at the Jagannatha Temple but is now performed on stage at many venues. The Mahari dance spurred the development of both Odissi and the Gotipua dance forms of Odisha. The Maharis have been among the foremost exponents of both traditional Odia dance and Odissi music.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"50f92e0d-f0a6-4007-858c-43529abb472e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2ne8xrfv4n","content":[{"text":"Mahari dance is nearly thousand years old with dance having been an integral part of the daily rituals at the Jagannath temple of Puri since the time of Ganga rulers of Utkala. In the twelfth century, Chodaganga Deva gave the dance a legal status, establishing new localities for the maharis to stay and introduced new ceremonies for the deity. The classical dance form of Odissi has its roots in the Mahari dance while the Gotipua dance originated as an offshoot of the Mahari tradition when it went into decline in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. The Gotipua and the Mahari dances were patronized by Ramachandra, the Raja of Khurda and it is from his time that the devadasis who until then were attached only to temples came to be patronized by royal courts. With the abolition of the devadasi system in independent India, Mahari dance entered a period of steady decline. Its revival and adaptation for stage performances are credited to the late Odissi doyen Guru Pankaj Charan Das. The Odissi dancer Rupashri Mohapatra, a disciple of Pankaj Das, has also played a notable role in reviving Mahari. The dance was once taught exclusively to the maharis of the Jagannath Temple. The last of the professional maharis was Sashimani Devi.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"50f92e0d-f0a6-4007-858c-43529abb472e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Maharis","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wkc9wndcfd","content":[{"text":"Maharis were the temple dancers or devadasis of the Jagannath Temple at Puri and the dance takes its name after them. According to legend, Lord Jagannath enjoys a mahari dance recital before retiring to bed at night and the dancers performed the dance for his satisfaction. The maharis were given grants of land for their sustenance and they in turn behaved as the deity's spouse, singing and dancing the Gita Govinda of Jayadeva to please him. The Gita Govinda is ritually sung according to traditional ragas & talas of Odissi music, the traditional classical music of the state of Odisha. The deity himself used to be dressed up in specially woven saris containing verses from the Govinda weaved into them and the mahari, dressed in special jewelry and decked with flowers, performed exclusively for the deity. The term mahari stands for maha-nari meaning 'great lady'. The Maharis performed exclusively for the deity in the sanctum sanctorum as part of the daily rituals at the temple and occasionally at temple processions. In earlier times the maharis enjoyed a place of esteem in society and girls from elite families took it up as a respectable profession. The Maharis belonged to six groups namely Bhitara Gauni, Bahara Gauni, Nachuani, Patuari, Raj Angila, Gahana Mahari and Rudra Ganika. Since the abolition of the devadasi system, the dance has been discontinued at the Jagannath Temple.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"50f92e0d-f0a6-4007-858c-43529abb472e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Mahari Award","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b2bhk7z5re","content":[{"text":"The Mahari Award is an award instituted by Guru Pankaj Charan Odissi Research Foundation. In 2012, it was awarded to the Odissi dancer Minati Pradhan.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"50f92e0d-f0a6-4007-858c-43529abb472e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cy7d6avdgd","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Mahari dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"50f92e0d-f0a6-4007-858c-43529abb472e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hpmt7v4stb","content":[{"text":"Mahari dance is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"680766be-9498-4470-b971-15dfe8b8ba06"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"38yjma7vm4","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"680766be-9498-4470-b971-15dfe8b8ba06"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Mahari Dancer Guru Rupashree Mohapatra has performed Mahari Dance on the occasion of Bhaja Govindam classical & folk singing festival 2016 at Muktakash Rangamancha, Puri Odisha. Maharis were the temple dancers or devadasis of the Jagannath Temple at Puri and the dance takes its…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/ff/Guru_Rupashree_Mohapatra_Mahari_Dancer.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Rajeswarmohanty","height":1920,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Mahari Dancer Guru Rupashree Mohapatra has performed Mahari Dance on the occasion of Bhaja Govindam classical & folk singing festival 2016 at Muktakash Rangamancha, Puri Odisha. Maharis were the temple dancers or devadasis of the Jagannath Temple at Puri and the dance takes its…","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/ff/Guru_Rupashree_Mohapatra_Mahari_Dancer.jpg/960px-Guru_Rupashree_Mohapatra_Mahari_Dancer.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Guru_Rupashree_Mohapatra_Mahari_Dancer.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/ff/Guru_Rupashree_Mohapatra_Mahari_Dancer.jpg/1280px-Guru_Rupashree_Mohapatra_Mahari_Dancer.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Maharis were the temple dancers or devadasis of the Jagannath Temple at Puri and the dance takes its name after them. Mahari dance is nearly a millennium old with dance having been an integral part of the daily rituals at the Jagannath temple of Puri since the time of Ganga…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7a/Guru_Rupashree_Mohapatra.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Rajeswarmohanty","height":1920,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Maharis were the temple dancers or devadasis of the Jagannath Temple at Puri and the dance takes its name after them. Mahari dance is nearly a millennium old with dance having been an integral part of the daily rituals at the Jagannath temple of Puri since the time of Ganga…","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7a/Guru_Rupashree_Mohapatra.jpg/960px-Guru_Rupashree_Mohapatra.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Guru_Rupashree_Mohapatra.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7a/Guru_Rupashree_Mohapatra.jpg/1280px-Guru_Rupashree_Mohapatra.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Mahari Dance is one of the important dance forms of Orissa. In fact; it can be safely termed as the dance form which gave birth to the present day classical dance of Odissi. Mahari Dance originated in the temples of Orissa. History provides ample evidence of the 'Devadasi' cult…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e8/Kaustavi_Sarkar_performing_at_Mahari_Dance_festival%2C_2012.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Madhumay Mallik","height":838,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Mahari Dance is one of the important dance forms of Orissa. In fact; it can be safely termed as the dance form which gave birth to the present day classical dance of Odissi. Mahari Dance originated in the temples of Orissa. History provides ample evidence of the 'Devadasi' cult…","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e8/Kaustavi_Sarkar_performing_at_Mahari_Dance_festival%2C_2012.jpg/960px-Kaustavi_Sarkar_performing_at_Mahari_Dance_festival%2C_2012.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kaustavi_Sarkar_performing_at_Mahari_Dance_festival,_2012.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e8/Kaustavi_Sarkar_performing_at_Mahari_Dance_festival%2C_2012.jpg/1280px-Kaustavi_Sarkar_performing_at_Mahari_Dance_festival%2C_2012.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:32.363Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/mahari-dance"}
{"id":"fe5c6fe2-2573-4dcf-8928-7b569e71e27d","type":"art_form","slug":"mak-yong","title":"Mak yong","summary":"Mak yong (Jawi: مق يوڠ; Thai: มะโย่ง, RTGS: ma yong) is a traditional form of dance-drama from northern Malaysia, particularly the state of Kelantan.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"q95nww63bn","content":[{"text":"Mak yong (Jawi: مق يوڠ; Thai: มะโย่ง, RTGS: ma yong) is a traditional form of dance-drama from northern Malaysia, particularly the state of Kelantan. It was banned by the Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party because of its animist and Hindu-Buddhist roots which pre-date Islam in the Asian region by far, but the ban was uplifted in 2019. The late Cik Ning was a leading mak yong performer in the 1980s. In 2005, UNESCO declared mak yong theatre a \"Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity\". \nAlthough most traditional Malay dances were influenced by India, Java, and other parts of Southeast Asia, Mak yong's singing and musical repertoire are unique to the region. Of the major stories performed in Mak yong, most are derived from Kelantan-Patani mythology. Some of those obtained from outside the Malayan-Thai region have now died out elsewhere, such as Anak Raja Gondang, a story originally from the Buddhist Jataka tales but now almost unknown in India.\nA performance begins by paying respect to the spirits (semah kumpung) with an offering. This is followed by dancing, acting, and improvised dialogues. Stories were presented in a series of three-hour performances over several nights. The lead dancer is called the Pak Yong and dresses like a king. The cast usually includes a queen in second lead, palace girls, and jesters. Traditionally, all performers were female except for the clowns who are always male.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"42297b95-33b5-48dd-afe6-04d811cace65"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"j9s4b6mkqj","content":[{"text":"Mak yong was originally a form of folk theatre involving rituals connected with propitiation as well as healing. It is believed to have come into being in the Pattani Kingdom, which is now a province of Thailand. Because it was passed down orally among villagers, mak yong's exact age is uncertain. However, the fact that it is mostly free of outside influence would make it 800 years old at the very least and almost certainly much older. Legend generally credits the dance to a rice spirit called Mak Hiang. Certain observers connected mak yong with the palace, especially in Patani, but there is no evidence for this. It was patronized by all layers of society to pay respect to spirits, give thanks for the harvest, or to cure a person of various illnesses. \nMak yong was brought to Kelantan more than 200 years ago. From there, it also spread to Kedah and existed as folk theatre. From the 1920s, some support was given to mak yong in Kelantan and attempts were made to refine it. In 1923, the king's youngest son, Long Abdul Ghaffar, was in favour of mak yong and built a cultural precinct called Kampung Temenggung on his palace grounds to lend his support to the arts. During this time, it became conventional to have a lead female. His death in 1935 was followed by World War II. Mak yong once again became a folk tradition. In the 1970s, an attempt was made to create a refined version of mak yong, supposedly carrying on the efforts of Long Abdul Ghaffar. For this purpose, a group called Seri Temenggong was established under Khatijah Awang. Performances were done in major towns and cities, and mak yong also found a place in academic institutions. \nThe traditional mak yong continued into the 1960s and 1970s but was later impeded by the Islamic revival.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"42297b95-33b5-48dd-afe6-04d811cace65"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Ritual performance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nr6qavf6kx","content":[{"text":"As with many other ancient Malay forms of theatre, mak yong was once used for healing purposes. Healing mak yong is called mak yong mak puteri and involves trance dancing and spirit possession through the use of the traditional healing ritual called main puteri. These healing rituals are still practiced in the villages as well as in some more traditional cities but they are largely frowned upon today.\nRitual performances are more elaborate than those staged for entertainment, combining shamanism, feasting the spirits, and dance theatre. It reflects the deep, mystical significance of mak yong's stories and dances and its original aim to serve as a conduit to the spirit world. Ritual performances are enacted for spiritual healing, to pay homage to a teacher and for the graduation of a performer.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"42297b95-33b5-48dd-afe6-04d811cace65"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Indonesia","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sy8carwbv4","content":[{"text":"In Indonesia, mak yong performance found in Riau and North Sumatra, spread from South Thailand via Singapore. In the Riau Islands, mak yong is performed in Batam and Bintan, by groups from Pulau Panjang, Kecamatan Kijang and Pulau Mantang Arang.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"42297b95-33b5-48dd-afe6-04d811cace65"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Thailand","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"g68g4az9zn","content":[{"text":"Mak yong was also widely spread in Patani, former Pattani city during the Pattani Kingdom era and it is still being practiced in several locations, such as Yala.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"42297b95-33b5-48dd-afe6-04d811cace65"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w3ajqe97tx","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Mak yong”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"42297b95-33b5-48dd-afe6-04d811cace65"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"497qqh1tyj","content":[{"text":"Mak yong is performing art originating from Malaysia, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aedb6089-68f7-4530-afa0-759d90e3a658"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ewvqzn5v1a","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 5 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aedb6089-68f7-4530-afa0-759d90e3a658"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Kostum Mak Yong Muzium Negeri Kelantan","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8f/Kostum_Mak_Yong_Muzium_Negeri_Kelantan.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Taufik","height":1707,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Kostum Mak Yong Muzium Negeri Kelantan","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8f/Kostum_Mak_Yong_Muzium_Negeri_Kelantan.jpg/960px-Kostum_Mak_Yong_Muzium_Negeri_Kelantan.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kostum_Mak_Yong_Muzium_Negeri_Kelantan.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8f/Kostum_Mak_Yong_Muzium_Negeri_Kelantan.jpg/1280px-Kostum_Mak_Yong_Muzium_Negeri_Kelantan.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Ma Yong or Mak Yong dance drama","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b4/Ma_Yong.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Unknown author Unknown author","height":927,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Ma Yong or Mak Yong dance drama","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b4/Ma_Yong.jpg/960px-Ma_Yong.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ma_Yong.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b4/Ma_Yong.jpg/1280px-Ma_Yong.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"MAK Yong adalah seni tradisi Melayu yang menggabungkan unsur tari dan musik (disertai nyanyian pelakonnya), serta tutur cerita. Kesenian ini dimulai dengan ritus sakral yang disebut upacara ‘buka tanah’ dan diakhiri dengan ritual serupa. Mak Yong konon berasal dari Nara Yala,…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/56/Mak_Yong_Bintan.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Amriyadibahar","height":872,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"MAK Yong adalah seni tradisi Melayu yang menggabungkan unsur tari dan musik (disertai nyanyian pelakonnya), serta tutur cerita. Kesenian ini dimulai dengan ritus sakral yang disebut upacara ‘buka tanah’ dan diakhiri dengan ritual serupa. Mak Yong konon berasal dari Nara Yala,…","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/56/Mak_Yong_Bintan.jpg/960px-Mak_Yong_Bintan.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mak_Yong_Bintan.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/56/Mak_Yong_Bintan.jpg/1280px-Mak_Yong_Bintan.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:26.368Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/mak-yong"}
{"id":"3e9768bf-d17c-4700-8645-307b98ce9692","type":"art_form","slug":"mako","title":"mako","summary":"The Mako is a fast-paced dance from Tonga which is performed by young men.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"03cvcee74z","content":[{"text":"The Mako is a fast-paced dance from Tonga which is performed by young men. Accompanied by an extremely fast rhythm on a drum or tin can, dancers perform wild gestures involving their entire bodies; they point in various directions, run, sit, roll, or lie down repeatedly and in quick succession. The dance originated in ʻUvea and is only rarely performed in Tonga.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e5b4fa33-4f9d-43c5-80a2-be5e4ca9417e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Musical themes","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f8rb0tj24m","content":[{"text":"The songs used with the Mako feature lyrics in Tongan. Their themes are most often drawn from nature and daily life or occasionally from the Bible. Additionally, one of the best-known refrains, toli he siale, is a double entendre; it can mean \"picking flowers\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e5b4fa33-4f9d-43c5-80a2-be5e4ca9417e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"q2kkekwp4b","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Mako (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e5b4fa33-4f9d-43c5-80a2-be5e4ca9417e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"aetkxmh6rf","content":[{"text":"mako is dance of Tonga, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"35233b39-53e5-4d8a-8463-acf11e6b5272"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7381qz0g8r","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"35233b39-53e5-4d8a-8463-acf11e6b5272"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Mako","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/61/Mako_%2838327155394%29_%28cropped%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"elisfkc from Orlando, FL, United States","height":1608,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Mako","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/61/Mako_%2838327155394%29_%28cropped%29.jpg/960px-Mako_%2838327155394%29_%28cropped%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mako_(38327155394)_(cropped).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/61/Mako_%2838327155394%29_%28cropped%29.jpg/1280px-Mako_%2838327155394%29_%28cropped%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"},{"alt":"Mako's lakeside view.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7c/Mako_%28SeaWorld_Orlando%29_1.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Jeremy Thompson","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Mako's lakeside view.","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7c/Mako_%28SeaWorld_Orlando%29_1.jpg/960px-Mako_%28SeaWorld_Orlando%29_1.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mako_(SeaWorld_Orlando)_1.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7c/Mako_%28SeaWorld_Orlando%29_1.jpg/1280px-Mako_%28SeaWorld_Orlando%29_1.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"},{"alt":"View of Mako roller coaster from across park's lake showing lift hill and end of layout.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b6/Mako_roller_coaster_end.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Adog104","height":1707,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"View of Mako roller coaster from across park's lake showing lift hill and end of layout.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b6/Mako_roller_coaster_end.jpg/960px-Mako_roller_coaster_end.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mako_roller_coaster_end.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b6/Mako_roller_coaster_end.jpg/1280px-Mako_roller_coaster_end.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:32.967Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/mako"}
{"id":"c100952c-4c02-4db3-aa34-2b3de6475390","type":"art_form","slug":"malaguenas","title":"Malagueñas","summary":"Malagueñas (Spanish pronunciation: [malaˈɣeɲas]) is one of the traditional styles of Andalusian music (flamenco), derived from earlier types of fandango from the area of Málaga, classified among the Cantes de Levante.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ajbeh21efj","content":[{"text":"Malagueñas (Spanish pronunciation: [malaˈɣeɲas]) is one of the traditional styles of Andalusian music (flamenco), derived from earlier types of fandango from the area of Málaga, classified among the Cantes de Levante. Originally a folk-song type, it became a flamenco style in the 19th century. It is not normally used for dance, as it is generally interpreted with no regular rhythmic pattern, as a \"cante libre.\" It has a very rich melody with virtuous flourishes and use of microtones. Its guitar accompaniment is normally played in open position first inversion giving E for the tonic, which can be transposed by using a capo.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7254d73c-88da-42ec-88c0-54e040a006bd"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origins","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tf5aaadvc6","content":[{"text":"Malagueñas derive from local variety of the Fandangos, a type of dance that, with different regional variations and even different names, became very popular in great part of Spain in the 18th century. Although nowadays malagueñas are a typical instance of \"cante libre\", performed at libitum and normally not used for the dance, folkloric fandangos were originally sung and played at a fast speed, with a rhythmic pattern in 68, to accompany dance. Some of these primitive fandangos from Málaga, called Verdiales are still performed nowadays at folkloric gatherings by large non-professional groups called \"Pandas\", which use a high number of guitars, \"bandurrias\" (a sort of mandoline), violins, and tambourines.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7254d73c-88da-42ec-88c0-54e040a006bd"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Malagueña styles","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wqpmwze9s4","content":[{"text":"Some of the traditional malagueña styles (melodic schemes) more frequently performed are listed below. Many though, have been omitted as they are rarely performed or are just variations of other main styles.\n1. Juan Breva. He recorded three of his malagueña styles personally in the early 20th century.\n2. Enrique el Mellizo. It is often said that he derived his malagueña from the preface to the catholic mass. After his influence, the rhythmic pattern of the malagueña guitar accompaniment was lost and it became a \"cante libre\". Among the interpreters of this style who helped to establish it we may mention El Niño de la Isla, Aurelio Sellé, Manolo Caracol and Pericón de Cádiz. Each of them has added personal touches to the Malagueña, so it is difficult to know which one resembles the original model most.\n3. José Alberto \"El Canario\". He created one style of Malagueña.\n4. Antonio Chacón. He was the most prolific creator of malagueñas and the styles he created are probably the most frequent in recordings. The number of the malagueñas he created varies, though, as some have been attributed to him only by tradition. Some of these styles can often be seen as simple variations. Most of these styles were already recorded by him between 1909 and 1928.\n5. La Trini. Her legacy was preserved by singers like Sebastián el Pena. Antonio Chacón created a personal variation of one of her styles.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7254d73c-88da-42ec-88c0-54e040a006bd"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"The guitar in the malagueña","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jh7dv9mvhf","content":[{"text":"Originally the guitar was, together with other instruments, already part of the accompaniment of folkloric fandango of Málaga. At that time its function was merely rhythmic and limited to the use of one technique, the strumming pattern called \"abandolao\".  As malagueñas slowed down their tempo and professional guitarists came into place, short solos and ornaments were incorporated. The great revolution of the malagueña guitar playing came together with its transformation into a \"cante libre\": flamenco virtuosos like Ramón Montoya started introducing classical guitar techniques like arpeggio, scales, tremolo, and enriched it with a wider variety of chord positions. They also started introducing short guitar solos in between verses, called falsetas in the flamenco jargon, following the model of other flamenco songs.\nMalagueña is rarely performed as a guitar instrumental piece and very rarely danced.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7254d73c-88da-42ec-88c0-54e040a006bd"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Musical analysis","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5qsj1h9cvr","content":[{"text":"The singing develops on a major mode (tonic, subdominant, dominant), resolving in the corresponding Phrygian mode of the same scale. The Phrygian mode is used for the short interludes after of before verses. The usual progression is the typical of all fandangos:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7254d73c-88da-42ec-88c0-54e040a006bd"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qqm1r3t32j","content":[{"text":"First line of singing: G7, C Major\nSecond line: C Major, C7, F Major\nThird line is just a repetition of the first\nFourth line: C Major, G7\nFifth line: G7, C Major\nSixth line: C Major, C7, F Major, G Major, F Major, E Major\nTo this typical progression other transition chords can be added. For example, D7 is often used in the transition to G Major. A minor often appears in guitar interludes (or even during the singing, as in the case of the Malagueña del Mellizo). These chords can also be transported by using a capo on the guitar, maintaining the same chord positions.\nIts melodies are normally lyric in style and very ornate. Malagueña has traditionally been favoured by mellow voices, but there are many exceptions to this rule. Quite often, flamenco singers, after singing several verses of malagueña in \"cante libre\" style, link directly with the more vivid styles of Fandangos abandolaos.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7254d73c-88da-42ec-88c0-54e040a006bd"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nbzw97c2n7","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Malagueñas (flamenco style)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7254d73c-88da-42ec-88c0-54e040a006bd"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3a8b6dh4z5","content":[{"text":"Malagueñas is musical form and style of flamenco, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b3a236c2-8c0b-445a-8b90-11a51a640ee9"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k9ct05php9","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b3a236c2-8c0b-445a-8b90-11a51a640ee9"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:16.551Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/malaguenas"}
{"id":"ae36eeaa-cf66-4844-9596-eac8365d2575","type":"art_form","slug":"maloya","title":"maloya","summary":"Maloya is a musical genre of Reunion island, usually sung in Reunionese Creole, and traditionally accompanied by percussion and a musical bow.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0anzr21qfa","content":[{"text":"Maloya is a musical genre of Reunion island, usually sung in Reunionese Creole, and traditionally accompanied by percussion and a musical bow. Maloya is a new form that has origins in the music of African and Malagasy slaves and Indian indentured workers on the island, as has the other folk music of Reunion, séga. World music journalists and non-specialist scholars sometimes compare maloya to the American music, the blues, though they have little in common. Maloya was considered such a threat to the French state that it was banned in the 1970s.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0fc5dfec-c802-4e33-ba8e-9e232c1d60fc"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Description","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tdx3rkfn02","content":[{"text":"Compared to séga, which employs numerous string and wind European instruments, traditional maloya uses only percussion and the musical bow. Maloya songs employ a call-response structure.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0fc5dfec-c802-4e33-ba8e-9e232c1d60fc"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Instruments","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"58cdby5se6","content":[{"text":"Traditional instruments include:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0fc5dfec-c802-4e33-ba8e-9e232c1d60fc"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s5vmtqmcvv","content":[{"text":"roulér – a low-tuned barrel drum played with the hands\nkayamb – a flat rattle made from sugar cane tubes and seeds\npikér – a bamboo idiophone played with sticks\nsati – a flat metal idiophone played with sticks\nbob – a braced, struck musical bow","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0fc5dfec-c802-4e33-ba8e-9e232c1d60fc"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Themes","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hrrzm5td5c","content":[{"text":"Maloya songs are often politically oriented and their lyrical themes are often slavery and poverty.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0fc5dfec-c802-4e33-ba8e-9e232c1d60fc"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origins","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ntxdrq3hy5","content":[{"text":"The indigenous music and dance form of maloya was often presented as a style of purely African origin, linked ancestral rituals from Africa (\"service Kaf\" and Madagascar (the \"servis kabaré\"), and as such a musical inheritance of the early slave population of the island. More recently, however, the possible influence of the sacred drumming of the Tamil religious rituals has been introduced by Danyèl Waro, which makes Maloya' heterogeneous African Malagasy and Indian influences more explicit.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0fc5dfec-c802-4e33-ba8e-9e232c1d60fc"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zwaperynjm","content":[{"text":"Maloya was banned until the sixties because of its strong association with creole culture. Performances by some maloya groups were banned until the eighties, partly because of their autonomist beliefs and association with the Communist Party of Réunion\nNowadays, one of the most famous maloya musicians is Danyèl Waro. His mentor, Firmin Viry, is credited as having rescued maloya from extinction. According to Françoise Vergès, the first public performance of maloya was by Firmin Viry in 1959 at the founding of the Communist Party. Maloya was adopted as a medium for political and social protest by Creole poets such as Waro, and later by groups such as Ziskakan. Since the start of the 1980s, maloya groups, such as Ziskakan, Baster, Firmin Viry, Granmoun Baba, Rwa Kaff and Ti Fock, some mixing maloya with other genres such as séga, zouk, reggae, samba, afrobeat, jazz and rock, have had recognition outside the island.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0fc5dfec-c802-4e33-ba8e-9e232c1d60fc"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ntwtkb771j","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Maloya”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0fc5dfec-c802-4e33-ba8e-9e232c1d60fc"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yhpdjcdk33","content":[{"text":"maloya is music genre of Réunion, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"12c69f1a-32a6-4d0f-b28b-dba999b63197"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"v2x3v31fx3","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 8 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"12c69f1a-32a6-4d0f-b28b-dba999b63197"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Le Maloya est la danse locale de l'île de la Réunion","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/50/LE_MALOYA-06304.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Tchaosy","height":1600,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Le Maloya est la danse locale de l'île de la Réunion","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/50/LE_MALOYA-06304.jpg/960px-LE_MALOYA-06304.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:LE_MALOYA-06304.jpg","thumb1280":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/50/LE_MALOYA-06304.jpg/1280px-LE_MALOYA-06304.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Le Maloya est la danse locale de l'île de la Réunion","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7f/LE_MALOYA-06296.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Tchaosy","height":1600,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Le Maloya est la danse locale de l'île de la Réunion","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7f/LE_MALOYA-06296.jpg/960px-LE_MALOYA-06296.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:LE_MALOYA-06296.jpg","thumb1280":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7f/LE_MALOYA-06296.jpg/1280px-LE_MALOYA-06296.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Le Maloya est la danse locale de l'île de la Réunion","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f7/LE_MALOYA-06294.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Tchaosy","height":1600,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Le Maloya est la danse locale de l'île de la Réunion","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f7/LE_MALOYA-06294.jpg/960px-LE_MALOYA-06294.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:LE_MALOYA-06294.jpg","thumb1280":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f7/LE_MALOYA-06294.jpg/1280px-LE_MALOYA-06294.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:28.426Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/maloya"}
{"id":"a47a619b-43ba-453d-8e97-c1cd760425da","type":"art_form","slug":"mambo","title":"mambo","summary":"Mambo is a Latin dance of Cuba which was developed in the 1940s when the music genre of the same name became popular throughout Latin America.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"25qd6hph1c","content":[{"text":"Mambo is a Latin dance of Cuba which was developed in the 1940s when the music genre of the same name became popular throughout Latin America. The original ballroom dance which emerged in Cuba and Mexico was related to the danzón, albeit faster and less rigid. In the United States, it replaced rhumba as the most fashionable Latin dance. Later on, with the advent of salsa and its more sophisticated dance, a new type of mambo dance including breaking steps was popularized in New York. This form received the name of \"salsa on 2\", \"mambo on 2\" or \"modern mambo\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9ff14647-3139-43fc-bb00-bdb3ae743c25"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origins","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1ddyaeyh9n","content":[{"text":"In the mid-1940s, bandleaders devised a dance for a new form of music known as mambo, taking its name from the 1938 song Mambo, a charanga composed by Orestes Lopez which had popularized a new form of danzon which later was known as danzon mambo. This style was a syncopated, less rigid form of the danzón which allowed the dancers to more freely express themselves during the last section, known as the mambo section.\nFrom Havana Pérez Prado moved his music to Mexico, where his music and the dance were adopted. The original mambo dance was characterized by freedom and complicated foot-steps. This style was prominent in the Rumberas films. Popular dancers of the era include Ninon Sevilla, Maria Antonieta Pons, Tongolele, Meche Barba, and Resortes.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9ff14647-3139-43fc-bb00-bdb3ae743c25"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Americanisation","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sq9v85qj2k","content":[{"text":"The mambo dance that was spearheaded by Pérez Prado and was popular in the 1940s and 1950s in Cuba, Mexico, and New York is completely different from the modern dance that New Yorkers now call \"mambo\" and which is also known as salsa \"on 2\". The original mambo dance contains no breaking steps or basic steps at all. The Cuban dance was not accepted by many professional dance teachers. Cuban dancers would describe mambo as \"feeling the music\", in which sound and movement were merged through the body. Professional dance teachers in the US saw this approach to dancing as \"extreme\", \"undisciplined\", and thus deemed it necessary to standardize the dance to present it as a salable commodity for the social and ballroom market.\nIn the 1940s, Puerto Rican dancer Pedro Aguilar, known as \"Cuban Pete\", and his wife became popular as the top mambo dancers of the time, dancing regularly at The Palladium in NY. \"Cuban Pete\" was named \"the greatest Mambo dancer ever\" by Life magazine and the legendary Tito Puente. Pedro Aguilar was also nicknamed el cuchillo (\"The knife\") for his mambo dance style.\nThe modern mambo dance from New York was popularized in the late 1960s into the 1970s by George Vascones, president of a dance group known as the Latin Symbolics, from the Bronx, New York. George Vascones continued the mambo dance tradition which started two decades earlier during the \"Palladium era\". It was followed in the 1980s by Eddie Torres, Angel Rodriguez of RazzM'Tazz Mambo Dance Company, and others, many of whom were 2nd generation New York Puerto Ricans. This style is sometimes danced to mambo music, but more often to salsa dura (old-school salsa). It is termed \"mambo on 2\" because the break, or direction change, in the basic step occurs on count 2.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9ff14647-3139-43fc-bb00-bdb3ae743c25"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s7v108vx5b","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Mambo (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9ff14647-3139-43fc-bb00-bdb3ae743c25"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hqbefaqb6c","content":[{"text":"mambo is Latin dance from Cuba, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"64852fcf-4f41-4df1-8bc0-7b8c9a04079a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5vnc5zb33b","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 17 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"64852fcf-4f41-4df1-8bc0-7b8c9a04079a"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Mambo dancers of the representative group at ITESM, CCM","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/96/CCMDonation28.JPG?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Angélica Martínez","height":1928,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Mambo dancers of the representative group at ITESM, CCM","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/96/CCMDonation28.JPG/960px-CCMDonation28.JPG?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:CCMDonation28.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/96/CCMDonation28.JPG/1280px-CCMDonation28.JPG?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:18.606Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/mambo"}
{"id":"f45606ad-5446-4819-afdb-7cb03ad354f6","type":"art_form","slug":"manipuri-dance","title":"Manipuri dance","summary":"Manipuri dance, sometimes also referred to as the Manipuri Raas Leela (Meitei: Jagoi Raas/Raas Jagoi), is a jagoi and is one of the major Indian classical dance forms, originating from the state of Manipur.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"d5vfkhjaqb","content":[{"text":"Manipuri dance, sometimes also referred to as the Manipuri Raas Leela (Meitei: Jagoi Raas/Raas Jagoi), is a jagoi and is one of the major Indian classical dance forms, originating from the state of Manipur. It is one of the Meitei intangible cultural heritage. The \"Manipuri dance\" is a confluence of four ritualistic traditions – Lai Haraoba, Huyen Langlon, Meitei Nata Sankirtana and Raaslila. Owing to the Meitei civilization, the classical dance form, first formally developed by Meitei Hindu king Ching Thang Khomba (Meitei for 'Rajarshi Bhagyachandra') of the Kingdom of Manipur, is considered to be the highest spiritual expression of the worship of Hindu deity Krishna. The themes of this dance are generally taken from episodes in the life of Krishna. \nOwing to its huge influences on the diverse cultural heritages across the Indian subcontinent, it is recognised by the Sangeet Natak Akademi of the Ministry of Culture of the Government of India as one of the few primary classical dance forms of the Republic of India, and is honoured with the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award for Manipuri annually.\nIt is referred to as the \"national dance\" during the Armenia-India joint issue of postage stamps, as a part of the Armenia-India international relations. This dance form was patronized by many Manipuri rulers.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"91dd5fde-bc60-4f33-96d5-f904a1f42f0e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Identity","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"010d60m2ht","content":[{"text":"Though the term Manipuri Dance is more commonly associated with the Raslila, its identity is also related to the Jagoi (the Raas and the Lai Haraoba), the Pung Cholom and the Thang Ta (a combat form of Huiyen Lallong). To certain extent, Meitei Nat Sankirtana, a traditional Meitei form of Kirtan, is also related to its identity.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"91dd5fde-bc60-4f33-96d5-f904a1f42f0e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hmtb4wh4kw","content":[{"text":"The first reliably dated written texts describing the art of Manipuri dance are from the early 18th century.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"91dd5fde-bc60-4f33-96d5-f904a1f42f0e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Medieval period","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ymmxjnq0db","content":[{"text":"Historical texts of Manipur have not survived into the modern era, and reliable records trace to the early 18th century. Theories about the antiquity of Manipuri Raas Leela dance rely on the oral tradition, archaeological discoveries and references about Manipur in Asian manuscripts whose date can be better established.\nThe Meitei language text Bamon Khunthok, which literally means \"Brahmin migration\", states that Vaishnavism practices were adopted by the king of Manipur in the 15th century CE, arriving from Shan Kingdom of Pong. Further waves of Buddhists and Hindus arrived from Assam and Bengal, after mid 16th-century during Hindu-Muslim wars of Bengal Sultanate, and were welcomed in Manipur. In 1704, the Meitei King Pitambar Charairongba (Meitei: Charairongba) adopted Vaishnavism, and declared it to be the state religion. In 1717, the Meitei King Gareeb Nawaz (Meitei: Pamheiba) converted to Chaitanya style devotional Vaishnavism, which emphasized singing, dancing and religious performance arts centered around Hindu god Krishna. In 1734, devotional dance drama centered around Hindu god Rama expanded Manipuri dance tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"91dd5fde-bc60-4f33-96d5-f904a1f42f0e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ex7z0gagdw","content":[{"text":"Meitei King Rajarshi Bhagyachandra (Meitei: Ching-Thang Khomba) (r. 1759–1798 CE) of Manipur State adopted Gaudiya Vaishnavism (Krishna oriented), documented and codified the Manipuri dance style, launching the golden era of its development and refinement. He composed three of the five types of Raas Leelas, the Maha Raas, the Basanta Raas and the Kunja Raas, performed at the Sri Sri Govindaji temple in Imphal during his reign and also the Achouba Bhangi Pareng dance. He designed an elaborate costume known as Kumil (the cylindrical long mini-mirror-embellished stiff skirt costume, that makes the dancer appear to be floating).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"91dd5fde-bc60-4f33-96d5-f904a1f42f0e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"British ruling period","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sp60zntvv9","content":[{"text":"In 1891, the British colonial government annexed Manipur into its Empire, marking an end to its golden era of creative systematization and expansion of Manipuri dance. The Manipuri Raas Leela dance was thereafter ridiculed as immoral, ignorant and old-fashioned, like all other classical Hindu performance arts. The dance and artists survived only in temples, such as in Imphal's Shree Govindajee Temple. The cultural discrimination was resisted and the dance revived by Indian independence movement activists and scholars.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"91dd5fde-bc60-4f33-96d5-f904a1f42f0e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Modern era","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mjby9zwjrk","content":[{"text":"The classical Manipuri Raas Leela dance genre got a second life through the efforts of the Noble Laureate Rabindranath Tagore. In 1919, he was impressed after seeing a dance composition of Goshtha Lila in Sylhet (in present-day Bangladesh). He invited Guru Budhimantra Singh who had trained in Manipuri Raas Leela dance, as faculty to the Indian culture and studies center named Shantiniketan. In 1926, Guru Naba Kumar joined the faculty to teach the Raas Leela. Other celebrated Gurus, Senarik Singh Rajkumar, Nileshwar Mukherji and Atomba Singh were also invited to teach there and assisted Tagore with the choreography of several of his dance-dramas.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"91dd5fde-bc60-4f33-96d5-f904a1f42f0e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qt3jc9kxjs","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Manipuri dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"91dd5fde-bc60-4f33-96d5-f904a1f42f0e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zyfx137w95","content":[{"text":"Manipuri dance is one of officially eight classical Indian dances, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e2ecb79c-2cd3-4a6d-ae04-48682cd71664"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hw23j8vhn2","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 7 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e2ecb79c-2cd3-4a6d-ae04-48682cd71664"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-03T05:47:34.682Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/manipuri-dance"}
{"id":"86bf248d-6df1-4953-be2a-2df6cfa7411a","type":"art_form","slug":"marathukali","title":"Marathukali","summary":"Poorakkali (meaning Festival Performance) is a traditional dance ritual performed by men during the nine-day Pooram Thiyya festival in Bhagavathy temples across North Malabar in Kerala State of south India.\nThe Pooram festival begins with t…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jtwcx4pwsw","content":[{"text":"Poorakkali (meaning Festival Performance) is a traditional dance ritual performed by men during the nine-day Pooram Thiyya festival in Bhagavathy temples across North Malabar in Kerala State of south India.\nThe Pooram festival begins with the Karthika asterism and concludes with the Pooram asterism of the month of Meenam according to the Malayalam calendar (corresponding to the sun sign Pisces according to the Julian Calendar) to honour Kamadeva, the god of love.\nThe performers come from different sects like Thiyya, Maniyani, Nambiar etc.  The basis of Poorakkali essentially is the memories of Vasanthapooja performed by inmates of different worlds like heaven, earth etc. Poorakkali spreads knowledge and entertainment. The show steals the hearts of audience with melodious songs and befitting body movements. The Panickers are well-known names in the world of Poorakkali and have contributed much to the survival and expansion of this art form.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"30b4d635-ab11-4d85-be21-5c8e1c13d6b5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Story","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ay7ejckstk","content":[{"text":"Kamadeva (the Hindu god of love), tries to awaken Shiva to the amorous advances of Parvati. He is burned to ashes by the fire emanating from Shiva's third eye. To bring love and joy back to the earth, that is left barren after Kama’s death, Vishnu instructs heavenly goddesses Rambha to create Kama’s figure with flowers and to sing and dance. Women on earth continued to sing and dance to celebrate Kama’s reincarnation. In the course of time, men took charge of the festivities, though young girls continue to play an integral role in the rituals.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"30b4d635-ab11-4d85-be21-5c8e1c13d6b5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Style","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c05xee8gvm","content":[{"text":"The Poorakkali dance itself is performed by a troop of young men decked in lion costumes around a huge, multi-tiered, lit lamp, also known as a \"nilavilukku.\" The dance involves masculine movements and acrobatic, martial art steps. No singers or musicians accompany the dance; instead, the dancers themselves keep rhythm by singing, clapping and executing synchronised foot-thumping movements. The dancers usually observe a month of abstinence and undergo strenuous practice before the performance. Most of the songs sung are hymns from Ramayana, Mahabharata or Bhagavata. The leader of the group, known by the name Panicker, sings the song, and the lines are repeated in chorus by the other dancers. Certain rituals are performed before the dance starts.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"30b4d635-ab11-4d85-be21-5c8e1c13d6b5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Variants of Poorakkali","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dq3h8fkx1s","content":[{"text":"Marathukali is a variant of Poorakkali. This is a form performed by two parties competently. The ordinary play lacks the competent mood displayed in Marathukali. Big disputes ensue between two parties while performance is on and learned people dissuade both parties from further confrontation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"30b4d635-ab11-4d85-be21-5c8e1c13d6b5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Further Study","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vb7h0hdwxx","content":[{"text":"Video of Poorakkali","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"30b4d635-ab11-4d85-be21-5c8e1c13d6b5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nnhvsd1zss","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Poorakkali”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"30b4d635-ab11-4d85-be21-5c8e1c13d6b5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nz04v1rth9","content":[{"text":"Marathukali is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"888a4ab8-9c8a-4387-abe4-35d713e002a2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4km9eyt5tr","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"888a4ab8-9c8a-4387-abe4-35d713e002a2"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Performers are of Thiyya and Maniyani castes","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/57/Marathukali_at_Annur_Poomalakkav_-_%E0%B4%85%E0%B4%A8%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%A8%E0%B5%82%E0%B5%BC_%E0%B4%AA%E0%B5%82%E0%B4%AE%E0%B4%BE%E0%B4%B2%E0%B4%95%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%95%E0%B4%BE%E0%B4%B5%E0%B5%8D_%E0%B4%AE%E0%B4%B1%E0%B4%A4%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%A4%E0%B5%81%E0%B4%95%E0%B4%B3%E0%B4%BF_19.3.2019.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"FarEnd2018","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Performers are of Thiyya and Maniyani castes","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/57/Marathukali_at_Annur_Poomalakkav_-_%E0%B4%85%E0%B4%A8%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%A8%E0%B5%82%E0%B5%BC_%E0%B4%AA%E0%B5%82%E0%B4%AE%E0%B4%BE%E0%B4%B2%E0%B4%95%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%95%E0%B4%BE%E0%B4%B5%E0%B5%8D_%E0%B4%AE%E0%B4%B1%E0%B4%A4%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%A4%E0%B5%81%E0%B4%95%E0%B4%B3%E0%B4%BF_19.3.2019.jpg/960px-Marathukali_at_Annur_Poomalakkav_-_%E0%B4%85%E0%B4%A8%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%A8%E0%B5%82%E0%B5%BC_%E0%B4%AA%E0%B5%82%E0%B4%AE%E0%B4%BE%E0%B4%B2%E0%B4%95%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%95%E0%B4%BE%E0%B4%B5%E0%B5%8D_%E0%B4%AE%E0%B4%B1%E0%B4%A4%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%A4%E0%B5%81%E0%B4%95%E0%B4%B3%E0%B4%BF_19.3.2019.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Marathukali_at_Annur_Poomalakkav_-_%E0%B4%85%E0%B4%A8%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%A8%E0%B5%82%E0%B5%BC_%E0%B4%AA%E0%B5%82%E0%B4%AE%E0%B4%BE%E0%B4%B2%E0%B4%95%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%95%E0%B4%BE%E0%B4%B5%E0%B5%8D_%E0%B4%AE%E0%B4%B1%E0%B4%A4%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%A4%E0%B5%81%E0%B4%95%E0%B4%B3%E0%B4%BF_19.3.2019.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/57/Marathukali_at_Annur_Poomalakkav_-_%E0%B4%85%E0%B4%A8%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%A8%E0%B5%82%E0%B5%BC_%E0%B4%AA%E0%B5%82%E0%B4%AE%E0%B4%BE%E0%B4%B2%E0%B4%95%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%95%E0%B4%BE%E0%B4%B5%E0%B5%8D_%E0%B4%AE%E0%B4%B1%E0%B4%A4%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%A4%E0%B5%81%E0%B4%95%E0%B4%B3%E0%B4%BF_19.3.2019.jpg/1280px-Marathukali_at_Annur_Poomalakkav_-_%E0%B4%85%E0%B4%A8%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%A8%E0%B5%82%E0%B5%BC_%E0%B4%AA%E0%B5%82%E0%B4%AE%E0%B4%BE%E0%B4%B2%E0%B4%95%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%95%E0%B4%BE%E0%B4%B5%E0%B5%8D_%E0%B4%AE%E0%B4%B1%E0%B4%A4%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%A4%E0%B5%81%E0%B4%95%E0%B4%B3%E0%B4%BF_19.3.2019.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:33.307Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/marathukali"}
{"id":"e5bdee9d-62ec-4a0e-8e9c-f31c448a8b8f","type":"art_form","slug":"margamkali","title":"Margamkali","summary":"Margamkali (Malayalam: മാർഗ്ഗംകളി) is an ancient Indian round dance of the Saint Thomas Christian community based in the state of Kerala.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"se13vn9t9q","content":[{"text":"Margamkali (Malayalam: മാർഗ്ഗംകളി) is an ancient Indian round dance of the Saint Thomas Christian community based in the state of Kerala. The dance is mainly practised and propagated by the endogamous sub-ethnic group known as the Knanaya or Southist Christians. The Margam Kali retells the life and missionary work of Thomas the Apostle, based on the 3rd-century apocryphal Acts of Thomas.\nHistorically different forms of the Margam Kali existed in practice among the Kerala Syrian Christians, a Saint Thomas Christian or Northist version and a Knanaya or Southist version. Historian Dr. Istvan Perczel notes that only the Knanaya version is in existence today, with its 14 stanza form written by the Knanaya priest Anjilimootil Itti Thomman in the 17th century. The prototype of Margamkali is composed of 14 stanzas (padas) which are derived from Syrian and Tamil words, and they got to be included in its composition. Until the ninth century AD., Keralam was a part of Tamilakam and the language of the Kerala region was Tamil or Middle Tamil. Gradually Malayalam came under the influence of Sanskrit and Prakrit with the spread of Aryan influence. But some scholars states that those songs are written in a language which is neither pure Malayalam of today  nor the spoken Tamil of today, and this language is absolutely free of any Sanskrit terms,it might be Middle Tamil spoken in Chera Kingdom or Chentamil.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"13e38c96-8f8a-441d-aa55-4ebaa8df5fad"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0wd4q8mrvy","content":[{"text":"There are several opinions on the potential origin of Margamkali. They are:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"13e38c96-8f8a-441d-aa55-4ebaa8df5fad"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"n47yk6w091","content":[{"text":"It is traced back to Jewish wedding songs and dance from the diaspora. Scholars have found common origin among Malabar Jewish dance and songs and the dance form of Margamkali. In addition, scholars like P.M. Jussay and Dr Shalva Weil have found many similarities in the customs and rituals of Knanaya Christians and Malabar Jews.\nIt is derived from Sangam kali, a performance dance form of Brahmins.\nIt is derived from the Yathra Kali, a performance art of Nambudiri Brahmins in Kerala.\n\"Margam\" means path or way or solution in Malayalam, but in the religious context it is known as the path to attain salvation.  The process of conversion to Christianity was known as \"Margam Koodal\" until recently in Kerala. Much of this folk art is woven around the mission of St. Thomas, the Apostle. The original Margam Kali describes the arrival of St. Thomas in Malabar, the miracles he performed, the friendship as well as the hostility of the people among whom he worked, the persecution he suffered, the churches and crosses he put up in various places, etc.  These details are incorporated in the various stanzas of the Margam Kali songs. Kerala's Margam Kali is an important element in the age-old and hallowed tradition of St Thomas among the Syrian Christians of Malabar Coast.\nThe disparity between the present condition of this form and the early days leads one to assume three important phases in the history of Margamkali. The first phase was the pre-colonization one in which this semi-theatrical form was performed by the Saint Thomas Christians during special occasions. Parichamuttukali (The sword and shield dance) was also a part of it. Later Synod of Diamper curbed and suppressed this native form.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"13e38c96-8f8a-441d-aa55-4ebaa8df5fad"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Performance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zdhehda3wh","content":[{"text":"Typically, a dozen dancers sing and dance clapping around a Nilavilakku wearing the traditional \"Chattayum Mundum\". The lamp represents Christ and the performers his disciples. The performance is usually held in two parts (\"padham\") and begins with songs and dances narrating the life of Saint Thomas, the apostle. It then takes a striking turn with a martial play of artificial swords and shields. Margamkali does not use any instruments other than two small palm size cymbals played by the same person who sings the song.\nIt was originally played by men and afterwards by boys, but nowadays women also perform the dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"13e38c96-8f8a-441d-aa55-4ebaa8df5fad"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Today","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sk5e8zsv93","content":[{"text":"Currently both Margamkali and Parichamuttukali are included in the State Youth Festival of Kerala. This makes these art forms a competitive item in the Four-tier system (i.e. School, Sub District, Revenue and State level) Youth festival. Margam Kali is performed mainly by women in cultural shows and by school children in a variety of competitions.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"13e38c96-8f8a-441d-aa55-4ebaa8df5fad"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cchec1wd9v","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Margamkali”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"13e38c96-8f8a-441d-aa55-4ebaa8df5fad"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fpctv3a1pj","content":[{"text":"Margamkali is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6ecaa269-5e2d-471c-aa31-4942e140dfef"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cb430kvrk5","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6ecaa269-5e2d-471c-aa31-4942e140dfef"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"മാർഗ്ഗംകളി അവതരണം","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/03/Margamkali.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Fotokannan at Malayalam Wikipedia","height":847,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"മാർഗ്ഗംകളി അവതരണം","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/03/Margamkali.jpg/960px-Margamkali.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Margamkali.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/03/Margamkali.jpg/1280px-Margamkali.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-01T05:47:16.168Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/margamkali"}
{"id":"63f60741-b7b4-4410-8d55-9a9952737f0b","type":"art_form","slug":"mariachi","title":"mariachi","summary":"Mariachi (US: , UK: , Spanish: [maˈɾiaʧi]) is a genre of regional Mexican music dating back to at least the 18th century, evolving over time in the countryside of various regions of western Mexico.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1x66gfp52n","content":[{"text":"Mariachi (US: , UK: , Spanish: [maˈɾiaʧi]) is a genre of regional Mexican music dating back to at least the 18th century, evolving over time in the countryside of various regions of western Mexico. The usual mariachi group today consists of as many as eight violins, two trumpets and at least one guitar, including a high-pitched Mexican Vihuela and an acoustic bass guitar called a guitarrón, and all players take turns singing lead and doing backup vocals.\nDuring the 19th- and 20th-century migrations from rural areas into Guadalajara, along with the Mexican government's promotion of national culture, mariachi came to be recognized as a distinctly Mexican son. Modifications of the music include influences from other music, such as polkas and waltzes, the addition of trumpets, and the use of charro outfits by mariachi musicians. The musical style began to take on national prominence in the first half of the 20th century, with its promotion at presidential inaugurations and on the radio in the 1920s. In 2011, UNESCO recognized mariachi as an Intangible Cultural Heritage; it joins six other entries on the Mexican list.\nSong genres performed by mariachi ensembles include rancheras, corridos, cumbias, boleros, ballads, sones, huapangos, jarabes, danzones, joropos, pasodobles, marches, polkas, waltzes and chotís. Most song lyrics are about machismo, love, betrayal, death, politics, revolutionary heroes, and country life.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aeffd9d2-e058-48ca-b64c-52aa73982bda"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Name","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xmydtwmz85","content":[{"text":"The origin of the word is disputed, but prominent theories attribute it to deep roots. One states that it comes from the name of the wood used to make the dance platform. Another states that mariachi comes from the indigenous name of a tree called pilla or cirimo; yet another states that it came from an image locally called María H (pronounced Mari-Ache).\nIt is possible to use the terms mariachi and ranchera interchangeably. Although they have different meanings, one can describe mariachi music as ranchera music and vice versa. Mariachi refers to a Mexican folk music tradition within a larger genre called ranchera music (music from the ranch). Mariachi refers to many things: a certain body of repertoire, a musical style, a robust singing style, a solo singer or performer in a charro suit, and/ or an ensemble.\nThe oldest references to mariachi documented are more than 100 certificates of baptisms, burials and marriages in which the Mariachi ranch appears, between 1832 and 1850. It was located near the river Santiago, in Nayarit.\nThe word mariachi was once thought to have derived from the French word mariage ('marriage'), dating from the French intervention in Mexico in the 1860s, related to the music's appearance at weddings. This was a common explanation on record jackets and travel brochures but was disproven with the appearance of documents that showed that the word existed before this invasion: In 1981, a letter written by Catholic priest Cosme Santa Ana to the archbishop in 1852 was discovered in the archives of a church, where he complains about the noise as well as the drinking and gambling antics of the \"mariachis,\" long before the French occupation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aeffd9d2-e058-48ca-b64c-52aa73982bda"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origins","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rg2pr8v8ad","content":[{"text":"Prior to the arrival of the Spanish, indigenous music in Mexico was played with rattles, drums, flutes, and conch-shell horns as part of religious celebrations. The Spanish introduced violins, guitars, harps, brass instruments, and woodwinds, which mostly replaced native instruments. The Europeans introduced their instruments to use during Mass, but they were quickly adapted to secular events. Indigenous and mestizo peoples learned to play and make these instruments, often giving them modified shapes and tunings.\nIn addition to instruments, the Spanish introduced the concept of musical ensembles—which, in the colonial period, generally consisted of two violins, a harp, and various guitars. These groups were based upon mestizaje culture and gave rise to a number of folk musical styles in Mexico.\nOne of these folk musical styles was the son. This music featured string instruments. Son music divided into various regional varieties; the variety popular in the Jalisco area was called son jalisciense, whose best known song, also referred to as \"the mariachi national anthem,\" is \"La Negra\". Modern mariachi music developed from this son style, with mariachi as an alternative name for son jalisciense. Early mariachi players did not look like those of today; they played only string instruments such as guitars and harps and dressed in typical peasant clothing: white pants and shirts with huarache sandals. Those who could play the son jalisciense/mariachi music could find work at haciendas at a higher rate than those who could not.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aeffd9d2-e058-48ca-b64c-52aa73982bda"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6apgfdzpr1","content":[{"text":"The distinction of mariachi from the older son jalisciense occurred slowly sometime during the 19th century. The music originated in the center-west of Mexico.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aeffd9d2-e058-48ca-b64c-52aa73982bda"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Modern development","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6bbyyed8r4","content":[{"text":"The common perception of the music and look of mariachi developed in the 20th century, as the music was transformed from a regional rural folk music to an urban phenomenon that came to represent Mexico.\nThe music was first introduced to Mexico City in 1905. During this time, many farm workers moved to the city, including those from Jalisco, which settled around Plaza Garibaldi. These mariachi musicians developed new practices, such as performances in plazas and restaurants. However, it also continued its more traditional venues such as serenades, and performances at major family events.\nDuring this time, the Mexican government was heavily involved in cultural promotion as a way to create a unified Mexican identity after the end of the Mexican Revolution. One of these efforts was the promotion of mariachi as an international symbol of Mexican identity, first with radio and sound recordings and later with films.\nMexico built a nationwide radio broadcasting network in the 1920s such as XEB and XEW, which began broadcasting mariachi music as a media production, rather than as a music for social events. This music was already being modified in part due to the advent of sound recording. For example, most son jaliscense songs were longer than the standard three-and-a-half minutes of the then-standard 78 rpm record, forcing the shortening of tunes. Around the same time, the popularity of jazz and Cuban music introduced the trumpet into mariachi, pushing the violins into a secondary role, and in some cases, replacing the harp.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aeffd9d2-e058-48ca-b64c-52aa73982bda"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"x7phe196s5","content":[{"text":"Trumpets gained popularity when mariachi was commercialized in the 1930s and was played for wealthy people. But this is how they got to hear the trumpet more in the ensembles and it became a regular thing.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aeffd9d2-e058-48ca-b64c-52aa73982bda"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Groups","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xzx0t1d3x2","content":[{"text":"The size of a mariachi group varies depending on the availability of musicians. The usual mariachi group today consists of as many as eight violins, two trumpets and at least one guitar. Traditional mariachi guitars include the vihuela, a high-pitched, round-backed guitar that provides rhythm, and a bass guitar called a guitarrón, which also provides rhythm.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aeffd9d2-e058-48ca-b64c-52aa73982bda"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Mariachi Vargas","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6wmy1bgqqt","content":[{"text":"Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlán is recognized as the oldest mariachi e…","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aeffd9d2-e058-48ca-b64c-52aa73982bda"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"q9jwb1pt44","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Mariachi”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aeffd9d2-e058-48ca-b64c-52aa73982bda"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"avyeqc6v9z","content":[{"text":"mariachi is form of traditional music from Mexico, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7bd4252d-bc48-4a5f-8b91-f58ec8eab28c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"j1917qbqj9","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 23 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7bd4252d-bc48-4a5f-8b91-f58ec8eab28c"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-09-17T05:47:15.575Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/mariachi"}
{"id":"c66e81f8-4ab6-40c7-bb64-0016f27fd38d","type":"art_form","slug":"maruni","title":"Maruni","summary":"Maruni is a Nepalese folk dance of the Magar community. It is popular in Nepal and among Nepalese diasporic communities in Bhutan, India (Darjeeling, Assam, Sikkim) and Myanmar.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3adhf5syfw","content":[{"text":"Maruni is a Nepalese folk dance of the Magar community. It is popular in Nepal and among Nepalese diasporic communities in Bhutan, India (Darjeeling, Assam, Sikkim) and Myanmar. It is one of the oldest and most famous dances of the Nepalese community residing in these regions, originally performed as part of Dashain and Tihar festival. Dressed colorfully with rich ornaments, the dancers dance to commemorate \"the victory of good over evil\", accompanied by the traditional Nepali Naumati Baja orchestra.\nMaruni Nach has been one of the significant identity of the Magar community since from the distant past until the present moment. In recent years, the dance has become in danger of extinction, due to lack of interest by young people in learning it. That fear has begun to mobilize some communities. Today, the community is pushing its young people to preserve the Maruni Nach.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"733d9dae-ec93-49a8-8697-a5af7995a331"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7msc2n9dqm","content":[{"text":"The dance originated with the Magar community, and later on, people from the various communities started adopting it. Maruni as danced in Western Nepal is different than in other places. Maruni and Sorathi dances were created in Western Nepal by the Magar community, and Magars who migrated to Eastern Nepal started to make small changes as they performed it there too.  Nowadays other communities like Gurung, Kirat, and Khas also dance the Maruni dance on various occasions.\nIn the Balihang festival, Maruni, Sorathi, and Hurra (dances performed by the eastern Magars also known as Deusi Nach) are performed. It is believed to be originated from Magar Army during the 14th century on the behalf of sick King Balihang Rana Magar of Palpa, Pokhara Butwal. Balihang Rana Magar was a king during the 15th century (of Palpa, Pokhara, Baldeng, Butwal & Gorkhapur) during which the kingdom was extended from Palpa to Butwal and Gorakhpur. Deusi Re means \"Priest-King\" and Bahilo means \"Let us help\" which are related to the Balihang Rana Magar.\nWith time, Maruni was performed even during many personal events, especially marriages. Maruni is performed by both men and women who dress in colorful clothes, shining ornaments, and nose rings. Maruni performed by the Eastern Magars goes through several parts, like \"Jhyaure, Saran Maruni, Sorathi Garra, Khyali, Maruni performed for the welfare of the danced house and at the last Maruni performed for accomplishing the dance. The dancers are usually accompanied by a clown who is called 'Dhatu Waray' which means liar but acts as comedian/joker. In the many forms of Maruni, nine unique instruments are used with the dance and this is called the Naumati Baja.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"733d9dae-ec93-49a8-8697-a5af7995a331"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b65whygdsw","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Maruni”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"733d9dae-ec93-49a8-8697-a5af7995a331"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8t4vrj125s","content":[{"text":"Maruni is Nepalese folk dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6fe0c187-4c07-4f73-8364-6a332b0052b8"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m5e9dg929d","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6fe0c187-4c07-4f73-8364-6a332b0052b8"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Maruni Kitchenware Store, Edo-Tokyo Open Air Museum, Tokyo","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cd/Tokyo_Maruni_Kitchenware_Store.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Ymblanter","height":1920,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Maruni Kitchenware Store, Edo-Tokyo Open Air Museum, Tokyo","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cd/Tokyo_Maruni_Kitchenware_Store.jpg/960px-Tokyo_Maruni_Kitchenware_Store.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tokyo_Maruni_Kitchenware_Store.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cd/Tokyo_Maruni_Kitchenware_Store.jpg/1280px-Tokyo_Maruni_Kitchenware_Store.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"​マルニ味噌らーめん","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b3/Maruni_Miso_Ramen_04.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Higa4","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"​マルニ味噌らーめん","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b3/Maruni_Miso_Ramen_04.jpg/960px-Maruni_Miso_Ramen_04.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Maruni_Miso_Ramen_04.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b3/Maruni_Miso_Ramen_04.jpg/1280px-Maruni_Miso_Ramen_04.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"},{"alt":"​マルニ味噌らーめん","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3d/Maruni_Miso_Ramen_06.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Higa4","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"​マルニ味噌らーめん","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3d/Maruni_Miso_Ramen_06.jpg/960px-Maruni_Miso_Ramen_06.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Maruni_Miso_Ramen_06.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3d/Maruni_Miso_Ramen_06.jpg/1280px-Maruni_Miso_Ramen_06.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:34.142Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/maruni"}
{"id":"a8e9d9d9-e6c7-4531-aab9-497be5f5f88e","type":"art_form","slug":"mascherata","title":"Mascherata","summary":"A mascherata (Italian f., literally 'masquerade') is a dance from the sixteenth century and was particularly popular in Florence. It was performed by costumed dancers, and frequently pantomimed Roman and Greek themes in them.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"x6qj8da4e8","content":[{"text":"A mascherata (Italian f., literally 'masquerade') is a dance from the sixteenth century and was particularly popular in Florence. It was performed by costumed dancers, and frequently pantomimed Roman and Greek themes in them. At the time, it was often associated with  villanella, and performed at carnivals with the musicians and singers atop floats.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c5aa7d44-454d-4708-8773-3e1537b5eba2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Content","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"62jmt861vt","content":[{"text":"Frequently the performance was satirical, and many times there were racist undertones in the archetypes or costumes. Generally there wasn't much dramatic content, and most were meant to be humorous.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c5aa7d44-454d-4708-8773-3e1537b5eba2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"11rdajsspw","content":[{"text":"The term mascherata is the past, plural, and feminine version of mascherare which means to mask or hide.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c5aa7d44-454d-4708-8773-3e1537b5eba2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Lassus","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wcar5c385g","content":[{"text":"Orlande de Lassus was considered the master of mascheratas, and he wrote many of his pieces (mostly madrigals) while in Rome, which saw the birth of madrigals, and more specifically mascheratas.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c5aa7d44-454d-4708-8773-3e1537b5eba2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8t023e1k54","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Mascherata”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c5aa7d44-454d-4708-8773-3e1537b5eba2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dkg4zz34vw","content":[{"text":"Mascherata is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1d9f0e61-dd9e-409d-be4a-05159ab16fbb"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b5j7kc8h4r","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1d9f0e61-dd9e-409d-be4a-05159ab16fbb"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Titre uniforme : Gastoldi, Giovanni Giacomo (1554?-1609). Compositeur. [Balletti. Voix (5)] Appartient à l’ensemble documentaire : Chambure1 Appartient à l’ensemble documentaire : RISMImp Éditeur : P. Phalèse (Anvers)","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d2/Balletti_a_cinque_voci_con_li_suoi_versi_per_cantare%2C_sonare_e_ballare_con_una_mascherata_de_cacciatori_a_sei_voci_e_un_concerto_de_pastori_a_otto..._-_btv1b8426014h_%28138_of_164%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Gastoldi, Giovanni Giacomo (1554?-1609). Compositeur","height":1035,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Titre uniforme : Gastoldi, Giovanni Giacomo (1554?-1609). Compositeur. [Balletti. Voix (5)] Appartient à l’ensemble documentaire : Chambure1 Appartient à l’ensemble documentaire : RISMImp Éditeur : P. Phalèse (Anvers)","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d2/Balletti_a_cinque_voci_con_li_suoi_versi_per_cantare%2C_sonare_e_ballare_con_una_mascherata_de_cacciatori_a_sei_voci_e_un_concerto_de_pastori_a_otto..._-_btv1b8426014h_%28138_of_164%29.jpg/960px-thumbnail.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Balletti_a_cinque_voci_con_li_suoi_versi_per_cantare,_sonare_e_ballare_con_una_mascherata_de_cacciatori_a_sei_voci_e_un_concerto_de_pastori_a_otto..._-_btv1b8426014h_(138_of_164).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d2/Balletti_a_cinque_voci_con_li_suoi_versi_per_cantare%2C_sonare_e_ballare_con_una_mascherata_de_cacciatori_a_sei_voci_e_un_concerto_de_pastori_a_otto..._-_btv1b8426014h_%28138_of_164%29.jpg/1280px-thumbnail.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"Titre uniforme : Gastoldi, Giovanni Giacomo (1554?-1609). Compositeur. [Balletti. Voix (5)] Appartient à l’ensemble documentaire : Chambure1 Appartient à l’ensemble documentaire : RISMImp Éditeur : P. Phalèse (Anvers)","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bc/Balletti_a_cinque_voci_con_li_suoi_versi_per_cantare%2C_sonare_e_ballare_con_una_mascherata_de_cacciatori_a_sei_voci_e_un_concerto_de_pastori_a_otto..._-_btv1b8426014h_%28069_of_164%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Gastoldi, Giovanni Giacomo (1554?-1609). Compositeur","height":1059,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Titre uniforme : Gastoldi, Giovanni Giacomo (1554?-1609). Compositeur. [Balletti. Voix (5)] Appartient à l’ensemble documentaire : Chambure1 Appartient à l’ensemble documentaire : RISMImp Éditeur : P. Phalèse (Anvers)","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bc/Balletti_a_cinque_voci_con_li_suoi_versi_per_cantare%2C_sonare_e_ballare_con_una_mascherata_de_cacciatori_a_sei_voci_e_un_concerto_de_pastori_a_otto..._-_btv1b8426014h_%28069_of_164%29.jpg/960px-thumbnail.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Balletti_a_cinque_voci_con_li_suoi_versi_per_cantare,_sonare_e_ballare_con_una_mascherata_de_cacciatori_a_sei_voci_e_un_concerto_de_pastori_a_otto..._-_btv1b8426014h_(069_of_164).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bc/Balletti_a_cinque_voci_con_li_suoi_versi_per_cantare%2C_sonare_e_ballare_con_una_mascherata_de_cacciatori_a_sei_voci_e_un_concerto_de_pastori_a_otto..._-_btv1b8426014h_%28069_of_164%29.jpg/1280px-thumbnail.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"Titre uniforme : Gastoldi, Giovanni Giacomo (1554?-1609). Compositeur. [Balletti. Voix (5)] Appartient à l’ensemble documentaire : Chambure1 Appartient à l’ensemble documentaire : RISMImp Éditeur : P. Phalèse (Anvers)","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/07/Balletti_a_cinque_voci_con_li_suoi_versi_per_cantare%2C_sonare_e_ballare_con_una_mascherata_de_cacciatori_a_sei_voci_e_un_concerto_de_pastori_a_otto..._-_btv1b8426014h_%28067_of_164%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Gastoldi, Giovanni Giacomo (1554?-1609). Compositeur","height":1026,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Titre uniforme : Gastoldi, Giovanni Giacomo (1554?-1609). Compositeur. [Balletti. Voix (5)] Appartient à l’ensemble documentaire : Chambure1 Appartient à l’ensemble documentaire : RISMImp Éditeur : P. Phalèse (Anvers)","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/07/Balletti_a_cinque_voci_con_li_suoi_versi_per_cantare%2C_sonare_e_ballare_con_una_mascherata_de_cacciatori_a_sei_voci_e_un_concerto_de_pastori_a_otto..._-_btv1b8426014h_%28067_of_164%29.jpg/960px-thumbnail.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Balletti_a_cinque_voci_con_li_suoi_versi_per_cantare,_sonare_e_ballare_con_una_mascherata_de_cacciatori_a_sei_voci_e_un_concerto_de_pastori_a_otto..._-_btv1b8426014h_(067_of_164).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/07/Balletti_a_cinque_voci_con_li_suoi_versi_per_cantare%2C_sonare_e_ballare_con_una_mascherata_de_cacciatori_a_sei_voci_e_un_concerto_de_pastori_a_otto..._-_btv1b8426014h_%28067_of_164%29.jpg/1280px-thumbnail.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:34.459Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/mascherata"}
{"id":"713ffe51-8f51-4ed2-b29e-f28a7064b958","type":"art_form","slug":"mashed-potato","title":"mashed potato","summary":"The Mashed Potato is a dance move which was a popular dance craze of 1962. The dance move and mashed potato song were first made famous by James Brown in 1959 and used in his concerts regularly.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dfxddqrfjq","content":[{"text":"The Mashed Potato is a dance move which was a popular dance craze of 1962. The dance move and mashed potato song were first made famous by James Brown in 1959 and used in his concerts regularly. It was also a dance done to songs such as Dee Dee Sharp's \"Mashed Potato Time\". The move vaguely resembles that of the twist, by Sharp's fellow Philadelphian Chubby Checker. The dance was first popularized internationally after being named in the lyrics of Motown's first mega-hit in the song \"Do You Love Me\" written by Berry Gordy Jr. and performed by The Contours in 1962.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bfccb887-54df-4168-bc0e-853d78397fd9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance movement","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7w6rxeyb2y","content":[{"text":"The dance move begins by stepping backward with one foot with that heel tilted inward. The foot is positioned slightly behind the other stationary foot. With the weight on the ball of the starting foot, the heel is then swiveled outward. The same process is repeated with the other foot: step back and behind with heel inward, pivot heel out, and so on. The pattern is continued for as many repetitions as desired. The step may be incorporated in various dances either as a separate routine or as a styling of standard steps.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bfccb887-54df-4168-bc0e-853d78397fd9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Songs","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"atdv68tbck","content":[{"text":"Several songs inspired by the dance were hits, including \"(Do the) Mashed Potatoes\" by Nat Kendrick and the Swans (with vocals by King Coleman), \"Mashed Potatoes U.S.A.\" by James Brown, and \"Mashed Potato Time\" and \"Gravy (For My Mashed Potatoes)\", both by Dee Dee Sharp.\nIn Australia the dance underwent a revival with Billy Thorpe and the Aztecs' version of \"Mashed Potato\" in 1964 and in France a song called \"C'est le mashed potatoes\" was performed by Johnny Hallyday in the early 1960s.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bfccb887-54df-4168-bc0e-853d78397fd9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance variations and cultural references","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dd91044zbj","content":[{"text":"The dance was referred to in Connie Francis' 1962 hit \"V-A-C-A-T-I-O-N\" (\"...we'll Mashed Potato to a jukebox tune...\"), \"Do You Love Me\" by the Contours, \"Let's Dance\" by Chris Montez, \"Harry the Hairy Ape\" a 1963 Top-20 pop and R&B novelty hit by Ray Stevens, \"Land of a Thousand Dances\", \"Having a Party\" by Sam Cooke, \"Do the Strand\" by Roxy Music and in Ray Charles' version of \"Shake a Tail Feather\".\nThe dance is also referenced in The Orlons 1962 song \"Wah Watusi\".\nA variation on the Mashed Potato was danced to Bobby \"Boris\" Pickett's novelty hit \"Monster Mash\", in which the footwork was the same, but \"monster gestures\" were made with the arms and hands.\nThe dance was one of the inspirations for the Exodus song \"The Toxic Waltz\", from their 1989 album Fabulous Disaster.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bfccb887-54df-4168-bc0e-853d78397fd9"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"031rnw181y","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Mashed Potato (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bfccb887-54df-4168-bc0e-853d78397fd9"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xy1v8r7hft","content":[{"text":"mashed potato is dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"71a9bc5b-97e5-48d8-bfef-254899db62d0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kfby0hqy8j","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"71a9bc5b-97e5-48d8-bfef-254899db62d0"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Bangladeshi spicy mashed potato which is known as alu bharta","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fa/Meshed_potato_%28alu_bharta%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Ferdous","height":1280,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Bangladeshi spicy mashed potato which is known as alu bharta","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fa/Meshed_potato_%28alu_bharta%29.jpg/960px-Meshed_potato_%28alu_bharta%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Meshed_potato_(alu_bharta).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fa/Meshed_potato_%28alu_bharta%29.jpg/1280px-Meshed_potato_%28alu_bharta%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Alu vorta is a popular Bengali cuisine both in Bangladesh and India. It is made of boiled potato mash, chilli, onion and mustard oil.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f6/Home_made_Alu_vorta_%28Bengali_mashed_potato%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Sm faysal","height":981,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Alu vorta is a popular Bengali cuisine both in Bangladesh and India. It is made of boiled potato mash, chilli, onion and mustard oil.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f6/Home_made_Alu_vorta_%28Bengali_mashed_potato%29.jpg/960px-Home_made_Alu_vorta_%28Bengali_mashed_potato%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Home_made_Alu_vorta_(Bengali_mashed_potato).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f6/Home_made_Alu_vorta_%28Bengali_mashed_potato%29.jpg/1280px-Home_made_Alu_vorta_%28Bengali_mashed_potato%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Photo of Mashed Potato taken ar Wikimedia Photowalk, Proshika HRDC Campus, 2024","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/56/Potato_mash_at_Proshika_HRDC_Dinning.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Rocky Masum","height":964,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Photo of Mashed Potato taken ar Wikimedia Photowalk, Proshika HRDC Campus, 2024","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/56/Potato_mash_at_Proshika_HRDC_Dinning.jpg/960px-Potato_mash_at_Proshika_HRDC_Dinning.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Potato_mash_at_Proshika_HRDC_Dinning.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/56/Potato_mash_at_Proshika_HRDC_Dinning.jpg/1280px-Potato_mash_at_Proshika_HRDC_Dinning.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:28.020Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/mashed-potato"}
{"id":"210da9a4-2e3b-4f82-823e-0374aa83322a","type":"art_form","slug":"maskarada-of-soule","title":"Maskarada of Soule","summary":"The maskarada [mas̺ˈkaɾada] is an itinerant set of traditional dances, theatre acts, and parades that take place annually in different towns and villages across the Basque region of Soule, France (Zuberoa in Basque), during the time of carn…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sv5rp331j0","content":[{"text":"The maskarada [mas̺ˈkaɾada] is an itinerant set of traditional dances, theatre acts, and parades that take place annually in different towns and villages across the Basque region of Soule, France (Zuberoa in Basque), during the time of carnival.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e2155040-d857-40ea-9a0d-ac58fb45c4c2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Background","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k3t70a6jb3","content":[{"text":"It is generally referred to in the plural (maskaradak) as it is repeated across the region on the streets of villages (one day per village) over the span of a month or two in late winter through spring. The plays are performed by the villages' (usually younger) inhabitants, and the arrangements for each maskarada are the responsibility of each participating village, sometimes sharing arrangements with other villages.\nThough naturally the actors change from year to year, a friendly air of informality, formed of deep familiarity, pervades throughout. The Maskaradak follow variations on very traditional themes that make use of time-honoured sets and age-old, immutable characters. A motley parade of musicians (atabal, ttun-ttun and xirula players), traditional dancers, and assorted actors, villagers, and visitors walk merrily along a route that meanders up and down the village's streets.\nAt particular points of the parade, the barrikadak take place, where the marchers stop in front of a stall put there by the villagers, and bestow on them a dance, sometimes even a song, in exchange for snacks (biscuits, crisps, and the like), and refreshments (wine and liquor), which are then shared with bystanders. The process is repeated over and over, lasting all day, from early in the morning till afternoon (with a popular lunch in the middle), until the end of the final performance at the parade terminus – usually the village market place or Basque pelota court.\nMaskaradas represent a genuine example of traditional popular carnival theatre struggling to survive, much in step with the modest revival of the Basque language.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e2155040-d857-40ea-9a0d-ac58fb45c4c2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b60btret7n","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Maskarada (carnival of Soule)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e2155040-d857-40ea-9a0d-ac58fb45c4c2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wbkd8vpsds","content":[{"text":"Maskarada of Soule is itinerant set of traditional dances, theatre acts and parades, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8aedf991-1bdd-4197-b459-811ae1fa4aa6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4m1g7rc53v","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8aedf991-1bdd-4197-b459-811ae1fa4aa6"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"2009ko Masakaradak Barkoxen.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a5/2009ko_Maskaradak_Barkoxen.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"https://www.flickr.com/people/dantzan/","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"2009ko Masakaradak Barkoxen.","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a5/2009ko_Maskaradak_Barkoxen.jpg/960px-2009ko_Maskaradak_Barkoxen.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:2009ko_Maskaradak_Barkoxen.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a5/2009ko_Maskaradak_Barkoxen.jpg/1280px-2009ko_Maskaradak_Barkoxen.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:28.176Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/maskarada-of-soule"}
{"id":"ac7f7b7c-1d41-469d-82f2-a21e46b9f4b1","type":"art_form","slug":"matachines","title":"Matachines","summary":"Matachines (Spanish singular matachín; sword dancers dressed in ritual attire called bouffon) are a carnivalesque dancers performing a dance that emerged in Spain in the early 17th century, inspired by similar European traditions such as th…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ex2r348kd2","content":[{"text":"Matachines (Spanish singular matachín; sword dancers dressed in ritual attire called bouffon) are a carnivalesque dancers performing a dance that emerged in Spain in the early 17th century, inspired by similar European traditions such as the moresca. The term danza de matachines refers to their characteristic dance and music. The dance was documented in the 1642 treatise Discursos sobre el arte del dançado by Juan de Esquivel Navarro. The tradition was imported into Latin American countries such as Mexico and Peru and into the Southwestern United States.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"de11d419-3af4-4612-96ee-125697b398c8"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Name","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9n5f6e47ka","content":[{"text":"Matachines is also written as matlachines and matlatzines in central Mexico. The term matachines has been ascribed to Spanish, Italic, or Arabic origins.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"de11d419-3af4-4612-96ee-125697b398c8"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"In the Americas","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0mn17v4b7y","content":[{"text":"Currently, the matachines are societies of North and South American Native dancers who perform ritual dances. They are found from Peru up to northern New Mexico where the Spanish first influenced the New World and introduced Christianity. In Bernalillo, New Mexico, the Matachines de San Lorenzo have been performing for more than 300 years.\nThe Danza de Matachines is explained by oral history among most Pueblo tribes as the Dance of the Moors and Christians and is the first masked dance introduced by the Spaniards, though its practice outside of the Iberian peninsula changed its cultural and spiritual significance. The dance was adopted by the people, and today many forms of this dance still exist — though the dance steps vary among peoples, the dance formations are all similar. Masks continue to be used, but the style changes from village to village, or people to people.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"de11d419-3af4-4612-96ee-125697b398c8"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Hampton Court, 1604","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"y4yp0z59r7","content":[{"text":"A sword dance was performed at Hampton Court on 6 January 1604 by Scottish courtiers for Anne of Denmark in her presence chamber, before James VI and I, and the French ambassador, the Comte de Beaumont. Dudley Carleton wrote that the Scottish masquerade resembled a matachin and was \"cleanly\" performed.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"de11d419-3af4-4612-96ee-125697b398c8"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"968qavazaw","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Matachines”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"de11d419-3af4-4612-96ee-125697b398c8"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fw20s7m36b","content":[{"text":"Matachines is ritual dancers, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e96c83e8-0c8a-403e-849b-dfe1c645402f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"h8ngrn0hz0","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e96c83e8-0c8a-403e-849b-dfe1c645402f"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Mexican matachines from Zacatecas getting ready for a street performance at the World Folkloriada","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ed/Mexican_dancers_Zacatecas_Mexico_Matachines.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Dziulita05","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Mexican matachines from Zacatecas getting ready for a street performance at the World Folkloriada","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ed/Mexican_dancers_Zacatecas_Mexico_Matachines.jpg/960px-Mexican_dancers_Zacatecas_Mexico_Matachines.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mexican_dancers_Zacatecas_Mexico_Matachines.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ed/Mexican_dancers_Zacatecas_Mexico_Matachines.jpg/1280px-Mexican_dancers_Zacatecas_Mexico_Matachines.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"La cultura se preserva por generaciones, los matachines representan una figura importante en México.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cd/Matach%C3%ADn_en_el_siglo_XXI.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"jose maria gonzalez","height":1920,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"La cultura se preserva por generaciones, los matachines representan una figura importante en México.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cd/Matach%C3%ADn_en_el_siglo_XXI.jpg/960px-Matach%C3%ADn_en_el_siglo_XXI.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Matach%C3%ADn_en_el_siglo_XXI.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cd/Matach%C3%ADn_en_el_siglo_XXI.jpg/1280px-Matach%C3%ADn_en_el_siglo_XXI.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Ohkay Owingeh Pueblo - Xmas Day","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/49/Los_Matachines_de_Ohkay_Owingeh.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Larry Lamsa","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Ohkay Owingeh Pueblo - Xmas Day","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/49/Los_Matachines_de_Ohkay_Owingeh.jpg/960px-Los_Matachines_de_Ohkay_Owingeh.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Los_Matachines_de_Ohkay_Owingeh.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/49/Los_Matachines_de_Ohkay_Owingeh.jpg/1280px-Los_Matachines_de_Ohkay_Owingeh.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:34.733Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/matachines"}
{"id":"cde2983c-fb8a-4cf0-b23c-c7bce71d70d8","type":"art_form","slug":"mayilattam","title":"Mayilattam","summary":"Mayilattam is an artistic and religious form of dance performed in the Hindu temples of Tamil Nadu and Kerala in reverence to Murugan, a regional form of the Hindu deity Kartikeya. Mayilattam literally translates as the \"peacock dance\".","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8s8t49d09n","content":[{"text":"Mayilattam is an artistic and religious form of dance performed in the Hindu temples of Tamil Nadu and Kerala in reverence to Murugan, a regional form of the Hindu deity Kartikeya. Mayilattam literally translates as the \"peacock dance\". During the dance, the performers seat themselves upon a peacock replica, which is the mount of the deity.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fdb01cea-9741-4a3f-834d-00b8ad6f8599"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Description","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xs5c7brtmq","content":[{"text":"Mayilattam performers wear costumes from head to toe with headdresses and peacock feathers, that can be opened and closed using a thread, and perform specific dances. The performers dance on tall pieces of wood attached to the ends of their feet. This dance is performed in all Murugan temples as a tradition during festivals. \nThe Mayilattam dance is thought to have originated in Tamil Nadu, where ladies used to perform it to honor Lord Subrahmanya, also known as Kartikeya or Murugan, the son of Shiva and Parvati. This dance is typically performed by females dressed in peacock forms.\nThis art needs a lot of practice and training. During festivals, this dance is performed in all Murugan (Lord Subrahmanya) temples as a custom.\nMayilattam dance isn't complete without the appropriate attire. Along with the show, the dress code adds to the allure. Imitating the movement and style of a peacock is part of the dance movement. The dancer demonstrates how the bird cleans its feathers with its beak and legs, with meticulous planning and execution. The melody is then followed by close steps going at a slow rhythmic speed. As the time and rhythm speed, each movement follows a circular pattern. Finally, when the music reaches its height, the circular pattern's order is shattered. However, because of difficulty in practising and lower pay for dancers, the number of Mayilattam performers is dwindling.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fdb01cea-9741-4a3f-834d-00b8ad6f8599"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Costume","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0ne5qj7dw1","content":[{"text":"The outfit is built up from a headdress, ornaments, and a skirt of iridescent peacock feathers. A dancer may spend two to three weeks gathering the feathers and putting the costume together.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fdb01cea-9741-4a3f-834d-00b8ad6f8599"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Contemporary practice","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2qxmam9mn4","content":[{"text":"The dance honours Murugan, and in some traditions Krishna, and is performed during the Thaipusam festival. Among the Tamil diaspora in Malaysia it is danced at the Batu Caves temple, where performers keep the tradition going at Thaipusam even as the number of dancers and teachers falls.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fdb01cea-9741-4a3f-834d-00b8ad6f8599"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3qt72zhryc","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Mayilattam”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fdb01cea-9741-4a3f-834d-00b8ad6f8599"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mg3hpjvvq3","content":[{"text":"Mayilattam is South Indian dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0c0aeb5b-1497-421a-95bc-f597de9eae83"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ega5fm2nw7","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0c0aeb5b-1497-421a-95bc-f597de9eae83"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Mayilattam performed at Koovery","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d1/Mayilattam_%282%29.JPG?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Vaikoovery","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Mayilattam performed at Koovery","licence":"CC BY 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d1/Mayilattam_%282%29.JPG/960px-Mayilattam_%282%29.JPG?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mayilattam_(2).JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d1/Mayilattam_%282%29.JPG/1280px-Mayilattam_%282%29.JPG?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:17.879Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/mayilattam"}
{"id":"f5ea1693-1d93-444e-8020-1fcbec73eb68","type":"art_form","slug":"mbende-jerusarema","title":"Mbende-Jerusarema","summary":"Mbende Jerusarema dance is a prominent dance style among the Zezuru Shona of eastern Zimbabwe, particularly in the Murewa and Uzumba-Maramba-Pfungwe districts.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"87n0w82ajs","content":[{"text":"Mbende Jerusarema dance is a prominent dance style among the Zezuru Shona of eastern Zimbabwe, particularly in the Murewa and Uzumba-Maramba-Pfungwe districts. Traditional dances and performances, such as Jerusarema, are still vital living traditions in Zimbabwe, performed in a variety of settings and respected by local communities. Traditional dances are done for a variety of reasons, including entertainment, ritual, festivals, and memorial and celebration. The Shona used Jerusarema as a battle dance and a diversionary technique during military encounters, according to popular belief. Weddings, festivities, recreational competitions, funerals, and political meetings are all occasions for Jerusarema to be performed.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b930d3b2-c433-4317-ad3d-1d24401d76d5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6w7avd6wvs","content":[{"text":"The dance was originally known as Mbende, which means \"fast-running mouse\". It got its name from the fast striking movement done by dancers when they heard the Jerusarema's melody.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b930d3b2-c433-4317-ad3d-1d24401d76d5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7v4ymdxqn7","content":[{"text":"The Zezuru people of Murehwa and Uzumba-Maramba-Pfungwe (UPM) districts created the Jerusarema/Mbende dance. The Zezuru people, who make up a quarter of all Shona speakers, are traditionally the dancers of Jerusarema/Mbende, according to these districts of Zimbabwe's Mashonaland East province. The dance has been performed in three eras of Zimbabwean culture: pre-colonial before 1890, colonial from 1890 to 1980, and post-colonial from 1980 to now. It is believed that Jerusarema/Mbende began as a military dance, fertility dance, hunting dance, and death dance. This demonstrates that the Zezuru community used Jerusarema dancing for ritual purposes. Its original name was Mbende, which is the name of a burrowing and extremely fast-running mouse. Mbende refers to the dancers' mimicking and copying of the rodent's darting motions. Mbende is a curious name that has revealed a lot about the dance's evolution through the years.\nThe name of the dance was changed to Jerusarema, derived from the Shona adaption of the name of the city of Jerusalem, to give it with a religious connotation, under the influence of Christian missionaries who severely disapproved of this sexually explicit dance. Today, both names are regularly used. Despite the missionaries' censure, the dance remained popular and became a source of pride and identity in the resistance to colonial power.\nThe second history explains that the missionaries were informed by village chiefs that all significant events in their territory had to be remembered by their people utilizing the Zezuru traditional dances. The chiefs demanded that Mbende dance be allowed in the celebration of Jesus Christ's birth, and that it be renamed Jerusarema. Mbende dance became known as Jerusarema when the request was granted.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b930d3b2-c433-4317-ad3d-1d24401d76d5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Description","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fmx2vmx5ke","content":[{"text":"The dance is characterized by seductive, acrobatic waist-shaking and hip motions by women in sync with males, with both dancers culminating with intense pelvic thrusts directed towards each other, causing audience ecstasy. These movements made the dance controversial among missionaries, who mistook them for sexually graphic and suggestive moves. One master drummer performs the music, which is accompanied by clappers, rattles, and costumes. Drumming, singing, clapping, and rattle playing combine to create a polyrhythmic sound that propels the dancers forward. During the dance, there are two main areas of activity: a line of musicians who are constantly playing the beats, and a group of ladies and men who take turns dancing.\nAsante's (1985) assessment of Jerusarema as an 'image dance,' in the sense that it imitates an animal, sheds light on the dance. However, in the instance of mbende (mouse/mole), the goal is to use the mouse as a symbol of rapidity, fertility, sexuality, and family, rather than just imitating it. While the picture and characteristics of a mouse are projected, there is minimal actual imitating or caricaturing of a mouse. The men, on the other hand, frequently crouch while jerking both arms and forcefully kicking the ground with the right leg, as if imitating a tunneling mole kicking soil to the surface, throughout the dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b930d3b2-c433-4317-ad3d-1d24401d76d5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Mbende Jerusarema struggle and survival","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w5z48yzfx0","content":[{"text":"The singularity of Jerusarema, as well as its dramatic impact and meaning, made it open to a variety of interpretations, which persist to this day. The dance's aim and meaning are frequently misconstrued; it is denounced for being too seductive and sensual, and its widespread popularity was considered as a threat to the Christian Church's efforts to gain disciples. Dance has been commercialized in the city, and new twisted versions have evolved, which have been widely criticized. The post-colonial administration has recently modified and adapted the dance in order to establish a 'acceptable' form for usage during official political events. The Mbende traditional dance, now known by its Christian name, Jerusarema, is distinctive not just for the people of Murehwa, but for the entire nation, as it is featured prominently at all national occasions. The traditional name of Jerusarema was Mbende, with the former being a scriptural derivative from Israel's holy city of Jerusalem, reportedly to make the dance more palatable to Christian missionaries. Both the rural and urban districts continue to practice Jerusarema. There are numerous Jerusarema dance clubs in Murehwa and beyond, and the dance continues to be performed during festive occasions, funerals, political rallies, and weddings, with Jerusarema being one of their main performances.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b930d3b2-c433-4317-ad3d-1d24401d76d5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Cultural materials used","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"z4yxszf0r1","content":[{"text":"The dance and its important material culture are linked to the history, culture, and identity of the indigenous people. The majority of the material objects used by the dancers fall into two categories: clothing and musical instruments. The most prominent tangible component of Jerusarema is a range of musical instruments and dancing attire. The most noticeable instrument is the \"mutumba\", or drum. The \"mutiti\" tree (erythrina abyssinia) or the \"mutsvanzwa\" tree (pseodolanchnostylisis maprouneifolia) are used to make it due to its size . This is a rare yet well-protected indigenous tree that was chosen for its high quality wood, strength and hardness, and excellent resonance capabilities. Wooden clappers (maja/manja) are another musical instrument used to create a well-coordinated beat with the singing and drumming. The strength of hard wood trees like the mutara tree (Gardenia spaturiflora) is chosen. This is necessary to endure the constant impact of clapping on the wood.\nThe dancing outfits are the second most important type of Mbende Jerusarema material items. These were traditionally made of animal skins, but due to the influence of western attire, they have been modernized, and today's dancers generally wear textile costumes with animal skins. Leopard, monkey, cheetah, and wild cat skins were used, as their leather is flexible, comfortable to wear, and easy to work with. Other domestic animals' skins, such as cattle, goats, and sheep, are occasionally used, but the quality of these garments is far inferior to that of those produced from wild animal skins.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b930d3b2-c433-4317-ad3d-1d24401d76d5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c5r5m4yqh8","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Mbende Jerusarema dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b930d3b2-c433-4317-ad3d-1d24401d76d5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0mgaaqe5sn","content":[{"text":"Mbende-Jerusarema is traditional dance of the Zezuru Shona people, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7bca7d04-d3d0-4674-a066-170ca1981bbe"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w3ddrncfrw","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7bca7d04-d3d0-4674-a066-170ca1981bbe"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Ndị na-agba egwu ọdịnala na-eme egwu a na-akpọ Mbende ma ọ bụ Jerusarema na Murehwa, Zimbabwe","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/ce/Mbende_Dance.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Fidelis Manyange aka manfidza","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Ndị na-agba egwu ọdịnala na-eme egwu a na-akpọ Mbende ma ọ bụ Jerusarema na Murehwa, Zimbabwe","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/ce/Mbende_Dance.jpg/960px-Mbende_Dance.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mbende_Dance.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/ce/Mbende_Dance.jpg/1280px-Mbende_Dance.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:05.383Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/mbende-jerusarema"}
{"id":"c3621469-c262-4a65-8eec-85a0a76fe124","type":"art_form","slug":"medieval-dance","title":"Medieval dance","summary":"Sources for an understanding of dance in Europe in the Middle Ages are limited and fragmentary, being composed of some interesting depictions in paintings and illuminations, a few musical examples of what may be dances, and scattered allusi…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"r5k2xmna1e","content":[{"text":"Sources for an understanding of dance in Europe in the Middle Ages are limited and fragmentary, being composed of some interesting depictions in paintings and illuminations, a few musical examples of what may be dances, and scattered allusions in literary texts. The first detailed descriptions of dancing only date from 1451 in Italy, which is after the start of the Renaissance in Western Europe.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ce8dba86-f7fc-4eed-80bd-47cb4acafff2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Carole","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kbj9d7h6an","content":[{"text":"The most documented form of secular dance during the Middle Ages is the carol also called the \"carole\" or \"carola\" and known from the 12th and 13th centuries in Western Europe in rural and court settings. It consisted of a group of dancers holding hands usually in a circle, with the dancers singing in a leader and refrain style while dancing. No surviving lyrics or music for the carol have been identified. In northern France, other terms for this type of dance included \"ronde\" and its diminutives \"rondet\", \"rondel\", and \"rondelet\" from which the more modern music term \"rondeau\" derives. In the German-speaking areas, this same type of choral dance was known as \"reigen\".\nMullally in his book on the carole makes the case that the dance, at least in France, was done in a closed circle with the dancers, usually men and women interspersed, holding hands. He adduces evidence that the general progression of the dance was to the left (clockwise) and that the steps probably were very simple consisting of a step to the left with the left foot followed by a step on the right foot closing to the left foot.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ce8dba86-f7fc-4eed-80bd-47cb4acafff2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Chretien de Troyes","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zszgvsmfjf","content":[{"text":"Some of the earliest mentions of the carol occur in the works of the French poet Chrétien de Troyes in his series of Arthurian romances. In the wedding scene in Erec and Enide (about 1170)","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ce8dba86-f7fc-4eed-80bd-47cb4acafff2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vfmnjmhvs1","content":[{"text":"In The Knight of the Cart (probably late 1170s) at a meadow where there are knights and ladies, various games are played while:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ce8dba86-f7fc-4eed-80bd-47cb4acafff2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sf321rt66c","content":[{"text":"In what is probably Chretien's last work, Perceval, the Story of the Grail, probably written 1181–1191, we find:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ce8dba86-f7fc-4eed-80bd-47cb4acafff2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2wy6aacvcm","content":[{"text":"Men and women danced rounds through every street and square\nand later at a court setting:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ce8dba86-f7fc-4eed-80bd-47cb4acafff2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"e5q77d3f7s","content":[{"text":"The queen ... had all her maidens join hands together to dance and begin the merry-making. In his honour they began their singing, dances, and rounds","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ce8dba86-f7fc-4eed-80bd-47cb4acafff2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Italy","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7kw57jraam","content":[{"text":"Dante (1265–1321) has a few minor references to dance in his works but a more substantive description of the round dance with song from Bologna comes from Giovanni del Virgilio (floruit 1319–1327).\nLater in the 14th century Giovanni Boccaccio (1313–1375) shows us the \"carola\" in Florence in the Decameron (about 1350–1353) which has several passages describing men and women dancing to their own singing or accompanied by musicians. Boccaccio also uses two other terms for contemporary dances, ridda and ballonchio, both of which refer to round dances with singing.\nApproximately contemporary with the Decameron are a series of frescos in Siena by Ambrogio Lorenzetti painted about 1338–40, one of which shows a group of women doing a \"bridge\" figure while accompanied by another woman playing the tambourine.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ce8dba86-f7fc-4eed-80bd-47cb4acafff2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"England","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4gk54rn9cz","content":[{"text":"In a life of Saint Dunstan composed about 1000, the author tells how Dunstan, going into a church, found maidens dancing in a ring and singing a hymn. According to the Oxford English Dictionary (1933) the term \"carol\" was first used in England for this type of circle dance accompanied by singing in manuscripts dating to as early as 1300. The word was used as both a noun and a verb and the usage of carol for a dance form persisted well into the 16th century. One of the earliest references is in Robert of Brunne's early 14th century Handlyng Synne (Handling Sin) where it occurs as a verb.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ce8dba86-f7fc-4eed-80bd-47cb4acafff2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Other chain dances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jtv72fpnm5","content":[{"text":"Circle or line dances also existed in other parts of Europe outside England, France and Italy where the term carol was best known. These dances were of the same type with dancers hand-in-hand and a leader who sang the ballad.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ce8dba86-f7fc-4eed-80bd-47cb4acafff2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ndat0w0m1c","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Medieval dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ce8dba86-f7fc-4eed-80bd-47cb4acafff2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s0djh51r50","content":[{"text":"Medieval dance is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2e7ad3b8-2562-4004-9cb6-b19720de2f07"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qes5ty5m5e","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2e7ad3b8-2562-4004-9cb6-b19720de2f07"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Medieval dances Reenactment (association 8cento APS - Bologna, Italy)","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b7/Medieval_dances_Reenactment_%28association_8cento_APS_-_Bologna%2C_Italy%29_2018_%281%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"EvelinaRibarova","height":945,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Medieval dances Reenactment (association 8cento APS - Bologna, Italy)","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b7/Medieval_dances_Reenactment_%28association_8cento_APS_-_Bologna%2C_Italy%29_2018_%281%29.jpg/960px-Medieval_dances_Reenactment_%28association_8cento_APS_-_Bologna%2C_Italy%29_2018_%281%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Medieval_dances_Reenactment_(association_8cento_APS_-_Bologna,_Italy)_2018_(1).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b7/Medieval_dances_Reenactment_%28association_8cento_APS_-_Bologna%2C_Italy%29_2018_%281%29.jpg/1280px-Medieval_dances_Reenactment_%28association_8cento_APS_-_Bologna%2C_Italy%29_2018_%281%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Medieval dances Reenactment (association 8cento APS - Bologna, Italy)","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/64/Medieval_dances_Reenactment_%28association_8cento_APS_-_Bologna%2C_Italy%29_2018_%282%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"EvelinaRibarova","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Medieval dances Reenactment (association 8cento APS - Bologna, Italy)","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/64/Medieval_dances_Reenactment_%28association_8cento_APS_-_Bologna%2C_Italy%29_2018_%282%29.jpg/960px-Medieval_dances_Reenactment_%28association_8cento_APS_-_Bologna%2C_Italy%29_2018_%282%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Medieval_dances_Reenactment_(association_8cento_APS_-_Bologna,_Italy)_2018_(2).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/64/Medieval_dances_Reenactment_%28association_8cento_APS_-_Bologna%2C_Italy%29_2018_%282%29.jpg/1280px-Medieval_dances_Reenactment_%28association_8cento_APS_-_Bologna%2C_Italy%29_2018_%282%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Medieval dances Reenactment (association 8cento APS - Bologna, Italy)","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/45/Medieval_dances_Reenactment_%28association_8cento_APS_-_Bologna%2C_Italy%29_2018_%284%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"EvelinaRibarova","height":988,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Medieval dances Reenactment (association 8cento APS - Bologna, Italy)","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/45/Medieval_dances_Reenactment_%28association_8cento_APS_-_Bologna%2C_Italy%29_2018_%284%29.jpg/960px-Medieval_dances_Reenactment_%28association_8cento_APS_-_Bologna%2C_Italy%29_2018_%284%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Medieval_dances_Reenactment_(association_8cento_APS_-_Bologna,_Italy)_2018_(4).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/45/Medieval_dances_Reenactment_%28association_8cento_APS_-_Bologna%2C_Italy%29_2018_%284%29.jpg/1280px-Medieval_dances_Reenactment_%28association_8cento_APS_-_Bologna%2C_Italy%29_2018_%284%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:10.530Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/medieval-dance"}
{"id":"0af7ba63-036e-4842-bf4e-aecb6714b7c2","type":"art_form","slug":"mek-mulung","title":"Mek Mulung","summary":"Mek Mulung (Jawi: مق مولوڠ) is a traditional Malay theatre that is unique to the northwest state of Kedah in Malaysia. It became popular since the late 18th century and incorporates most elements of Mak Yong, Menora and Hadrah.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ghberen0ew","content":[{"text":"Mek Mulung (Jawi: مق مولوڠ) is a traditional Malay theatre that is unique to the northwest state of Kedah in Malaysia. It became popular since the late 18th century and incorporates most elements of Mak Yong, Menora and Hadrah. The theatre features a repertoire of stories from local legends, which according to a source, amounted about 20 original stories, with few of them survived today. Similar to Mak Yong, the stories are presented through dialogue, song and dance.\nThe musicians and actors of the theatre are exclusively male, playing both male and female roles. The basic dance movements are limited, abbreviated, crude and mainly focus on the arms, especially the to-and-fro, and up and down swinging.\nThe orchestra of Mek Mulung is predominantly percussive and consists of rebana, gong and kecerek (concussion sticks). A small oboe, the only melodic instruments in the orchestra, complements other instruments. The musicians also do the singing, typically in syllabic style, with little vocal ornamentation.\nThe performance normally begins with a ritual known as bertabuh where all musical instruments will be played simultaneously. Then, an opening song called bertabik will be sung in group and accompanied by dancing movements. There are up to 7 types of dance in Mek Mulung:\n1. Tarian Sembah\n2. Tarian Gambang\n3. Tarian Puteri Mabuk\n4. Tarian Anak Menora \n5. Tarian Sirama \n6. Tarian Puteri Masuk Bilik Air\n7.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e111017d-4280-44ea-84d4-199bd1e27f70"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mf12pa7745","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Mek Mulung”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e111017d-4280-44ea-84d4-199bd1e27f70"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kv6j39mvrx","content":[{"text":"Mek Mulung is traditional Malaysian performance involving acting, dialogue, singing and dancing, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"619756f9-fa74-486b-8989-9a7e6e6745f0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b1ray4d91f","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"619756f9-fa74-486b-8989-9a7e6e6745f0"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-05T02:44:20.684Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/mek-mulung"}
{"id":"8007c3f6-69ac-4792-9de7-fbcb44234e15","type":"art_form","slug":"meke","title":"meke","summary":"Meke, in the Fijian language, is all traditional style of dance. It is a cognate of the words \"me’e\" (Tongan) and mē in Samoan). It is typically performed during celebrations and festivals.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1z665dbka4","content":[{"text":"Meke, in the Fijian language, is all traditional style of dance. It is a cognate of the words \"me’e\" (Tongan) and mē in Samoan). It is typically performed during celebrations and festivals. Traditionally the dances that comprise the meke art form are performed by groups of men only or women only, however, foreign influences, such as the male/female Tongan ma'ulu'ulu becoming the Fijian vakamalolo, are evident throughout.\nFriedrich Ratzel in his 1896 publication The History of Mankind, writes about the Fijian meke as both song and dance, which only a few are given to invent and which those who do, allege that they do so in the spirit world where divine beings teach them the song and the appropriate dance. He wrote that the ideal of the Fijian poet is poetry with every verse ending with the same vowel of regular measure, which in practice is often achieved with poetic license through the use of arbitrary abbreviations or lengthenings, and omission of articles.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"615915f8-229e-4a8a-8db8-59d0c99acafa"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"In popular culture","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"thnsjjcxkr","content":[{"text":"A meke was performed by contestants for a reward challenge in Survivor: Fiji.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"615915f8-229e-4a8a-8db8-59d0c99acafa"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s9pas91fp6","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Meke”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"615915f8-229e-4a8a-8db8-59d0c99acafa"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5jtbgrredp","content":[{"text":"meke is term in the Fijian language, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"341fffd5-3310-4c6d-bdf3-069b7cfeca1a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yy6wqk5c6b","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"341fffd5-3310-4c6d-bdf3-069b7cfeca1a"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Meke I Wau Fijian Club Dance","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/73/Meke_I_Wau_Fijian_Club_Dance.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Vernon, R","height":763,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Meke I Wau Fijian Club Dance","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/73/Meke_I_Wau_Fijian_Club_Dance.png/960px-Meke_I_Wau_Fijian_Club_Dance.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Meke_I_Wau_Fijian_Club_Dance.png","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/73/Meke_I_Wau_Fijian_Club_Dance.png/1280px-Meke_I_Wau_Fijian_Club_Dance.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"Lake Meke at Night","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/df/Lake_Meke_at_Night.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"4burakfe","height":915,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Lake Meke at Night","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/df/Lake_Meke_at_Night.jpg/960px-Lake_Meke_at_Night.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lake_Meke_at_Night.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/df/Lake_Meke_at_Night.jpg/1280px-Lake_Meke_at_Night.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"View of Lake Meke from down in the crater. on the right is the cone , on the left you can see the curve of the cliffs that make up the main crater.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/80/Meke_Lake_Shore.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Josh.artofwayfaring","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"View of Lake Meke from down in the crater. on the right is the cone , on the left you can see the curve of the cliffs that make up the main crater.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/80/Meke_Lake_Shore.jpg/960px-Meke_Lake_Shore.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Meke_Lake_Shore.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/80/Meke_Lake_Shore.jpg/1280px-Meke_Lake_Shore.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:05.173Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/meke"}
{"id":"eb5fdead-05c0-4712-b395-96a2c3a3c197","type":"art_form","slug":"melbourne-shuffle","title":"Melbourne shuffle","summary":"The Melbourne shuffle is a rave dance that developed in Melbourne, Australia, in the late 1980s and early 1990s.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"v5jsgtjh75","content":[{"text":"The Melbourne shuffle is a rave dance that developed in Melbourne, Australia, in the late 1980s and early 1990s. It is characterised by the T-step (a variation of the jazz tick-tock) combined with a variation of the running man, performed with coordinated arm movements. The dance is typically improvised and performed to electronic dance music.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"495f1031-171d-4523-9092-fdcd718adcda"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jhbtxwzztf","content":[{"text":"The Melbourne shuffle emerged within Melbourne’s late-1980s rave and club scene. During the 1990s and 2000s, it became closely associated with local clubs including Hard Kandy, Bubble, Xpress at Chasers, Heat, Mercury Lounge, Viper, Two Tribes at Chasers and PHD. Early Melbourne techno events such as Biology, Hardware, and Every Picture Tells a Story were also popular with shuffle dancers.\nAs electronic dance music gained wider exposure, the shuffle spread beyond Melbourne through club culture, media coverage, and online video sharing.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"495f1031-171d-4523-9092-fdcd718adcda"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Technique","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vrsfced02d","content":[{"text":"The dance involves repeatedly shuffling the feet inward and outward while moving the arms up and down or side to side in time with the beat. Additional elements may include 360-degree spins, jumps, and slides. As described by Vice Media, the core movements combine the T-step with a variation of the running man.\nIt is often associated with another dance style known as \"cutting shapes\". Some dancers use talcum powder or apply liquid to the floor to facilitate sliding movements.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"495f1031-171d-4523-9092-fdcd718adcda"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"International influence","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0a1y83v3g6","content":[{"text":"In 2009, the German hard dance group Scooter released the single \"J'adore Hardcore\", whose music video featured dancers Pae (Missaghi Peyman) and Sarah Miatt performing the Melbourne shuffle in Melbourne. In 2011, American dance music duo LMFAO referenced the shuffle in their hit \"Party Rock Anthem\".\nA related style of shuffling developed in the United Kingdom and by 2012 was widely referred to as \"cutting shapes\".\nIn 2014, researchers at Brown University named a computer security algorithm after the Melbourne shuffle. The algorithm deletes traces of users' access on cloud servers by shuffling the location of data on those servers.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"495f1031-171d-4523-9092-fdcd718adcda"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kd2y7ek4ct","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Melbourne shuffle”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"495f1031-171d-4523-9092-fdcd718adcda"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fzz5m2eegy","content":[{"text":"Melbourne shuffle is rave dance from the 1980s, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"817b6e99-8c9f-4bf8-9d28-1c406f523a01"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"909y8wnxn4","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"817b6e99-8c9f-4bf8-9d28-1c406f523a01"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-05T02:44:23.376Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/melbourne-shuffle"}
{"id":"f5fa206b-10a4-4a0d-9f22-d49729775585","type":"art_form","slug":"menora","title":"Menora","summary":"Menora or Manora (มโนราห์, pronounced [mā.nōː.rāː]), sometimes shortened as Nora (โนรา, pronounced [nōː.rāː]) is a traditional Thai theatrical, musical, and acrobatic dance performance originated from the southern regions of Thailand.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"apyk377t85","content":[{"text":"Menora or Manora (มโนราห์, pronounced [mā.nōː.rāː]), sometimes shortened as Nora (โนรา, pronounced [nōː.rāː]) is a traditional Thai theatrical, musical, and acrobatic dance performance originated from the southern regions of Thailand. Having similar plots adopted from Jataka tales of Manohara, this kind of performance is related to the Lakhon chatri (ละครชาตรี), another Siamese arts performance originating from central Thailand. Over five hundred years old, Nora is performed in Thailand's local community centres and at temple fairs and cultural events, and is passed on through training by masters in homes, community organizations and educational institutions. In Malaysia, the practice of Menora has significantly declined since it has been banned by the government of Kelantan, which considers this kind of cultural performance illegal on religious grounds for polytheism.\nIn 2021, Nora was officially recognized by UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b8f5c32f-adad-423f-895c-cc99997a9ddc"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Mythology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gm97803gfx","content":[{"text":"One of the notable legends associated with the origins of Menora is a narrative attributed to the National Artist in Performing Arts (Thai dance), Yok Choobua (Thai: ยก ชูบัว) from Songkhla. The story was documented through oral history by Asst. Prof. Saroch Nakavirot (Thai: ผศ.สาโรช นาคะวิโรจน์) and provides insight into the mythological foundations of the Nora tradition.\nAccording to the legend, there once existed a kingdom of Wiang Bang Kaew ruled by a monarch named King Saifa Fat (Thai: พระยาสายฟ้าฟาด). His consort was Queen Si Mala (Thai: แม่ศรีมาลา), and together they had a daughter named Princess Nuanthong Samli (Thai: นางนวลทองสำลี), who was raised under the care of four attendants: Mother Khaen-on (Thai: แม่แขนอ่อน), Mother Phao (Thai: แม่เภา), Mother Mao Khluen (Thai: แม่เมาคลื่น) and Mother Yod Tong (Thai: แม่ยอดทอง).\nAs Nuanthong Samli matured into a young woman, the deity Indra dispatched a celestial being to be incarnated in her womb. When her pregnancy became visibly apparent, King Fat imprisoned her within the palace in an attempt to conceal the situation. However, when this was no longer possible, he ordered that she and her four attendants be cast adrift on a raft. The raft eventually came ashore at Kachang island (Thai: เกาะกะชัง), where the group took refuge.\nIn due time, Nuanthong Samli gave birth to a son, whom she named Ajit Kumar. As Ajit Kumar grew older he began to learn the art of dance by himself, often practicing alone by the water, using his reflection as a guide. He eventually got quite good and with his mother's consent he left the island to tour his dances in various places.\nHis talent gained widespread acclaim and eventually came to the attention of King Fat, who summoned the young dancer to the royal court.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b8f5c32f-adad-423f-895c-cc99997a9ddc"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xwjzsh637b","content":[{"text":"The origin of Nora can be traced back to the Malay Peninsula during the Tambralinga period or the Srivijaya era, approximately between the 6th–11th centuries. This was a time when the city of Sathing Phra experienced its height of prosperity, with densely populated communities scattered along the eastern coastline, from Chumphon and Chaiya down to Kelantan, Terengganu, and other coastal towns engaged in maritime trade, extending as far as Sumatra. \nDuring this period, as there were no strict territorial boundaries, the people shared the same religion and ethnic roots, facilitating the transmission of performing arts across the region. Therefore, it is difficult to pinpoint the exact place of origin of traditional Nora. However, according to the legend of Manora Chatri, the dance-drama is believed to have originated in ancient Phatthalung (known as Sathing Paranasi). \nInitially, Nora performances were performed exclusively at royal courts before becoming popular among the general populace. The probable birthplace of Nora is thought to be among the group of cities known as the \"Twelve Zodiac Cities\" (Mueang 12 Naksat/Nakhon Si Thammarat Kingdom), beginning during the Tambralinga era. Over time, the art form spread to Central Thailand and evolved into a genre known as Lakhon chatri.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b8f5c32f-adad-423f-895c-cc99997a9ddc"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Costume","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"se8qs3h5sn","content":[{"text":"The Nora costume is the traditional attire worn in the Nora dance, a classical Southern Thai performance art. The outfit is ornate, colorful, and designed to enhance the visual impact of the dance. It is worn by both male and female performers, though some elements are reserved specifically for the main performer (ตัวยืนเครื่อง or นายโรง).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b8f5c32f-adad-423f-895c-cc99997a9ddc"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Serd (เทริด)","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3gbmgaycne","content":[{"text":"A low crown-like headpiece worn by the main performer. It features a decorated front frame and often includes sacred thread (ด้ายมงคล). Traditionally, female dancers do not wear the serd.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b8f5c32f-adad-423f-895c-cc99997a9ddc"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Beaded costume (เครื่องรูปปัด)","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xz19n7y3hq","content":[{"text":"A decorative upper-body garment made entirely from colorful beads. It replaces the shirt and consists of five main parts:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b8f5c32f-adad-423f-895c-cc99997a9ddc"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hn2g4bw39y","content":[{"text":"Shoulder straps (บ่า) – Worn over each shoulder (2 pieces)\nNeck bands (ปิ้งคอ) – Worn around the neck, front and back (2 pieces)\nChest panel (พานอก / พานโครง / รอบอก) – Rectangular beaded cloth wrapped around the chest.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b8f5c32f-adad-423f-895c-cc99997a9ddc"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"d9wmsmrtv2","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Menora (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b8f5c32f-adad-423f-895c-cc99997a9ddc"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xyj41yqjdk","content":[{"text":"Menora is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1269f48e-0b5a-4f2f-a1f5-a6b93cc0a8e4"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3fdz0318w2","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1269f48e-0b5a-4f2f-a1f5-a6b93cc0a8e4"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Heritage listed house at 1 Hill Street, Menora, Western Australia","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8e/OIC_menora_2_hill_st.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"User:Orderinchaos","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Heritage listed house at 1 Hill Street, Menora, Western Australia","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8e/OIC_menora_2_hill_st.jpg/960px-OIC_menora_2_hill_st.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:OIC_menora_2_hill_st.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8e/OIC_menora_2_hill_st.jpg/1280px-OIC_menora_2_hill_st.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"},{"alt":"Menora ; Die Stätte zum Gedenken an die bei den Novemberpogromen in Jahr 1938 zerstörte Poppelsdorfer Synagoge ist 1963 eingeweiht worden. Sie wurde am 9. November 1988 um die Nachbildung der Menora erweitert, die von dem Bonner Kunstschmied Hans Wolfgang Delfosse geschaffen…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/72/2018-08-13-bonn-bennauerstrasse-1-menora-poppelsdorf-01.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Axel Kirch","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Menora ; Die Stätte zum Gedenken an die bei den Novemberpogromen in Jahr 1938 zerstörte Poppelsdorfer Synagoge ist 1963 eingeweiht worden. Sie wurde am 9. November 1988 um die Nachbildung der Menora erweitert, die von dem Bonner Kunstschmied Hans Wolfgang Delfosse geschaffen…","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/72/2018-08-13-bonn-bennauerstrasse-1-menora-poppelsdorf-01.jpg/960px-2018-08-13-bonn-bennauerstrasse-1-menora-poppelsdorf-01.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:2018-08-13-bonn-bennauerstrasse-1-menora-poppelsdorf-01.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/72/2018-08-13-bonn-bennauerstrasse-1-menora-poppelsdorf-01.jpg/1280px-2018-08-13-bonn-bennauerstrasse-1-menora-poppelsdorf-01.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Menora ; Die Stätte zum Gedenken an die bei den Novemberpogromen in Jahr 1938 zerstörte Poppelsdorfer Synagoge ist 1963 eingeweiht worden. Sie wurde am 9. November 1988 um die Nachbildung der Menora erweitert, die von dem Bonner Kunstschmied Hans Wolfgang Delfosse geschaffen…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/31/2018-08-13-bonn-bennauerstrasse-1-menora-poppelsdorf-03.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Axel Kirch","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Menora ; Die Stätte zum Gedenken an die bei den Novemberpogromen in Jahr 1938 zerstörte Poppelsdorfer Synagoge ist 1963 eingeweiht worden. Sie wurde am 9. November 1988 um die Nachbildung der Menora erweitert, die von dem Bonner Kunstschmied Hans Wolfgang Delfosse geschaffen…","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/31/2018-08-13-bonn-bennauerstrasse-1-menora-poppelsdorf-03.jpg/960px-2018-08-13-bonn-bennauerstrasse-1-menora-poppelsdorf-03.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:2018-08-13-bonn-bennauerstrasse-1-menora-poppelsdorf-03.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/31/2018-08-13-bonn-bennauerstrasse-1-menora-poppelsdorf-03.jpg/1280px-2018-08-13-bonn-bennauerstrasse-1-menora-poppelsdorf-03.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:05.691Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/menora"}
{"id":"847b811b-0518-4d0b-baff-fdd10a273a16","type":"art_form","slug":"merengue","title":"merengue","summary":"Dominican Merengue (Spanish pronunciation: [meˈɾeŋge]) is a type of music and dance originating in present-day Dominican Republic which has become a very popular genre throughout Latin America, and also in several major cities in the United…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"z1sj5wzwpb","content":[{"text":"Dominican Merengue (Spanish pronunciation: [meˈɾeŋge]) is a type of music and dance originating in present-day Dominican Republic which has become a very popular genre throughout Latin America, and also in several major cities in the United States with Latino communities. Merengue was inscribed on November 30, 2016, in the representative list of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity of UNESCO.\nDominican Merengue was developed in the middle of the 19th century, originally played with European stringed instruments (bandurria and guitar). Years later, the stringed instruments were replaced by the accordion, thus conforming, together with the güira and the tambora, the instrumental structure of the typical merengue ensemble. This set, with its three instruments, represents the synthesis of the three cultures that made up the idiosyncrasy of Dominican culture. The European influence is represented by the accordion, the African by the tambora, which is a two-head drum, and the Taíno or indigenous by the güira.\nThe genre was later promoted by Rafael Trujillo, the dictator from 1930 to 1961, who turned it into the national music and dance style of the Dominican Republic. In the United States it was first popularized by New York–based groups and bandleaders like Rafael Petiton Guzman, beginning in the 1930s, and Angel Viloria y su Conjunto Típico Cibaeño in the 1950s.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"94801272-895f-43c0-b08a-b7149518e221"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"n0nmpwrega","content":[{"text":"The origins of the music are traced to the land of El Cibao, where merengue cibaeño and merengue típico are the terms most musicians use to refer to classical merengue. The word Cibao was a native name for the island, although the Spanish used it in their conquest to refer to a specific part of the island, the highest mountainous range. The term merengue cibaeño is therefore partially native and so merengue might also be a derivation of a native word related to song, music, dance, or festival.\nMerengue was first mentioned in the mid-19th century with the earliest documented evidence being newspaper articles. Some of the articles inform about a \"lascivious\" dance, and also highlight merengue displacing the Tumba. The genre had originated within the rural, northern valley region around the city of Santiago called the Cibao. It later spread throughout the country and became popular among the urban population.\nThe oldest form of merengue was typically played on string instruments. When the accordion came to the island in the 1880s, introduced by German traders, it quickly became the primary instrument, and to this day is still the instrument of choice in merengue típico. Later, the piano and brass instruments were introduced to the genre.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"94801272-895f-43c0-b08a-b7149518e221"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Musical style","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s401ajjarv","content":[{"text":"Three main types of merengue are played in the Dominican Republic today. Merengue típico, which is usually called perico ripiao, is the oldest style commonly played. The other two types are merengue de orquesta (big-band merengue) and merengue de guitarra (guitar merengue).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"94801272-895f-43c0-b08a-b7149518e221"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Rhythm","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"annk629kv3","content":[{"text":"Merengues are fast arrangements with a 24 beat. The traditional instrumentation for a conjunto típico (traditional band), the usual performing group of folk merengue, is a diatonic accordion, a two–sided drum, called a tambora, held on the lap, and a güira. A güira is a percussion instrument that sounds like a maraca. It is a sheet of metal with small bumps on it (created with hammer and nail), shaped into a cylinder, and played with a stiff brush. The güira is brushed steadily on the downbeat with an \"and-a\" thrown in at certain points, or played in more complex patterns that generally mark the time. Caballito rhythm, or a quarter and two eighths, is also common. The double-headed drum is played on one side with a stick syncopation and on the other side with the palm of the hand.\nThe traditional (some say fundamental) signature rhythm figure of merengue is the quintillo (similar to the Cuban cinquillo, which is essentially a syncopated motif whose pattern is broken by five successive drumhead hits at the transition between every second and third beat, alternating between the hand and the stick. To purists, a merengue without quintillo is not truly a merengue, a viewpoint that has gradually disappeared as other alternate figures are used more frequently (as the one traditionally called jaleo, also known as merengue bomba, wrongly identified as a mixture of merengue and Puerto Rican bomba music, and which actually also has its roots in traditional merengue).\nThree main types of merengue are played in the Dominican Republic today. Merengue típico, which is usually called perico ripiao, is the oldest style commonly played.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"94801272-895f-43c0-b08a-b7149518e221"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Stylistic changes","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w5yf3fhz4m","content":[{"text":"At first, merengue típico was played on stringed instruments like the tres and cuatro, but when Germans came to the island in the late 19th century trading their instruments for tobacco, the accordion quickly replaced the strings as lead instrument. Típico groups play a variety of rhythms, but most common are the merengue and the pambiche. In the 1930s–1950s, a bass instrument was also often used. Called marimba, it resembles the Cuban marímbula, and is a large box-shaped thumb piano with 3-6 metal keys. The main percussion instruments, güira and tambora, have been a part of the ensemble since the music's inception, and are so important that they are often considered symbolic of the whole country. The güira is a metal scraper believed to be of native Taíno origin, while the tambora is a two-headed drum of African origin. Together with the European accordion, the típico group symbolizes the three cultures that combined to make today's Dominican Republic.\nOne important figure in early merengue was Francisco \"Ñico\" Lora (1880–1971), who is often credited for quickly popularizing the accordion at the turn of the 20th century. Lora was once asked how many merengues he had composed in his lifetime and he answered \"thousands\", probably without much exaggeration, and many of these compositions are still a standard part of the típico repertoire. He was a skilled improviser who could compose songs on the spot, by request. But he has also been likened to a journalist, since in his precomposed songs \"he commented on everything with his accordion\" (Pichardo, in Austerlitz 1997:35). His compositions discussed current events such as Cuban independence, World War I, the arrival of the airplane, and US occupation of the Dominican Republic.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"94801272-895f-43c0-b08a-b7149518e221"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Arrangements","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6qe1vs3vg8","content":[{"text":"In the 1990s, most groups maintained the five-man lineup of accordion, sax, tambora, güira, and bass guitar, though a few new innovations have been made. Some modern band leaders have also added congas, timbales (played by the tamborero), and keyboards to their groups in an attempt to reach a wider audience and narrow the gap between the típico and orquesta styles. The most popular artist at present is El Prodigio, a young accordionist who is respected among típico musicians of all ages.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"94801272-895f-43c0-b08a-b7149518e221"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xtqssyg6p7","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Merengue music”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"94801272-895f-43c0-b08a-b7149518e221"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"35jkzqrjsh","content":[{"text":"merengue is music genre originating in the Dominican Republic, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4c55048a-5770-4022-b5bd-408fb4dc3571"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"54mfy4wppa","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 15 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4c55048a-5770-4022-b5bd-408fb4dc3571"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Jonathan Moly en Miami, E.E.U.U.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/34/Jonathan_Moly_Miami_2024.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Ven-Lib","height":1135,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Jonathan Moly en Miami, E.E.U.U.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/34/Jonathan_Moly_Miami_2024.jpg/960px-Jonathan_Moly_Miami_2024.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Jonathan_Moly_Miami_2024.jpg","thumb1280":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/34/Jonathan_Moly_Miami_2024.jpg/1280px-Jonathan_Moly_Miami_2024.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Merengue in an Italian pastry shop","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fd/Merengue_shop.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Cliomd1","height":1707,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Merengue in an Italian pastry shop","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fd/Merengue_shop.jpg/960px-Merengue_shop.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Merengue_shop.jpg","thumb1280":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fd/Merengue_shop.jpg/1280px-Merengue_shop.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Trinxeres al Tossal del Deu (\"El Merengue\"), Camarasa (gener 2012)","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/80/Trinxeres_al_Tossal_del_Deu_%28%22El_Merengue%22%29%2C_Camarasa_%28gener_2012%29_-_panoramio.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"EliziR","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Trinxeres al Tossal del Deu (\"El Merengue\"), Camarasa (gener 2012)","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/80/Trinxeres_al_Tossal_del_Deu_%28%22El_Merengue%22%29%2C_Camarasa_%28gener_2012%29_-_panoramio.jpg/960px-Trinxeres_al_Tossal_del_Deu_%28%22El_Merengue%22%29%2C_Camarasa_%28gener_2012%29_-_panoramio.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Trinxeres_al_Tossal_del_Deu_(%22El_Merengue%22),_Camarasa_(gener_2012)_-_panoramio.jpg","thumb1280":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/80/Trinxeres_al_Tossal_del_Deu_%28%22El_Merengue%22%29%2C_Camarasa_%28gener_2012%29_-_panoramio.jpg/1280px-Trinxeres_al_Tossal_del_Deu_%28%22El_Merengue%22%29%2C_Camarasa_%28gener_2012%29_-_panoramio.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:27.737Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/merengue"}
{"id":"71fd25d9-c4a3-40c6-8598-60336bda00c5","type":"art_form","slug":"middle-eastern-dance","title":"Middle Eastern dance","summary":"Middle Eastern dance, sometimes called oriental dance, comprises a variety of dancing styles historically associated with ethnic groups in the Middle East.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4ngmz38993","content":[{"text":"Middle Eastern dance, sometimes called oriental dance, comprises a variety of dancing styles historically associated with ethnic groups in the Middle East. It may include influences from other parts of the world, such as Western dance, and may also be present in regions that have overlapping or shared ethnic or cultural demographics with the Middle East (namely North Africa, which is part of the Arab world)  per se. The Middle East is generally understood as a region that comprises the majority of West Asia, albeit including Egypt and excluding the Caucasus.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e9f21a54-af24-48da-901d-d986a0116eeb"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Arab","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"g4h03d7vwe","content":[{"text":"Middle Eastern Arab dance encompasses historical dancing styles among Arabs in the Arabian Peninsula and the Levant, as well as Iraq and Egypt. It includes the following: ardah, baladi, belly dancing, dabke, deheyeh, Fann at-Tanbura, hosa, khaleegy, mizmar, raqs sharqi, shamadan, tahtib, tanoura, and yowlah.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e9f21a54-af24-48da-901d-d986a0116eeb"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Armenian","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9sba65keja","content":[{"text":"The Armenians are an ethnic group who, while indigenous to the Armenian highlands, have historically inhabited and culturally impacted parts of modern-day Turkey, Lebanon, and Iran, among other countries. Consequently, Armenian dance has been present in the Middle East for centuries, including: berd, kochari, shalakho, tamzara, and yarkhushta.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e9f21a54-af24-48da-901d-d986a0116eeb"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Assyrian","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f2a6n80a2p","content":[{"text":"Assyrian folk dance: khigga.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e9f21a54-af24-48da-901d-d986a0116eeb"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Cypriot","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k6950ve57j","content":[{"text":"See: Greek Cypriot dance and Turkish Cypriot dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e9f21a54-af24-48da-901d-d986a0116eeb"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Kurdish","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"z6w7bfv8rj","content":[{"text":"Kurdish dance: dilan.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e9f21a54-af24-48da-901d-d986a0116eeb"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"06gc8fh5wz","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Middle Eastern dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e9f21a54-af24-48da-901d-d986a0116eeb"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"en3q7q52m6","content":[{"text":"Middle Eastern dance is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"80a1290e-2d6f-4d6a-b601-9228b5d614c5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ge39b737n5","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 5 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"80a1290e-2d6f-4d6a-b601-9228b5d614c5"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Harvest Faire is a modern interpretation of a late 15th century European fall harvest celebration and tournament. Entertainers and a market mix with the sounds of good-natured martial competition and the smells of period cooking. Watch a craftsperson plying their trade, try your…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/43/Harvest_Faire_Endview_Plantation_-_Newport_News_Virginia_Lapis_Moon_Middle_eastern_dance_troupe.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"watts_photos","height":931,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Harvest Faire is a modern interpretation of a late 15th century European fall harvest celebration and tournament. Entertainers and a market mix with the sounds of good-natured martial competition and the smells of period cooking. Watch a craftsperson plying their trade, try your…","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/43/Harvest_Faire_Endview_Plantation_-_Newport_News_Virginia_Lapis_Moon_Middle_eastern_dance_troupe.jpg/960px-Harvest_Faire_Endview_Plantation_-_Newport_News_Virginia_Lapis_Moon_Middle_eastern_dance_troupe.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Harvest_Faire_Endview_Plantation_-_Newport_News_Virginia_Lapis_Moon_Middle_eastern_dance_troupe.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/43/Harvest_Faire_Endview_Plantation_-_Newport_News_Virginia_Lapis_Moon_Middle_eastern_dance_troupe.jpg/1280px-Harvest_Faire_Endview_Plantation_-_Newport_News_Virginia_Lapis_Moon_Middle_eastern_dance_troupe.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"},{"alt":"Harvest Faire is a modern interpretation of a late 15th century European fall harvest celebration and tournament. Entertainers and a market mix with the sounds of good-natured martial competition and the smells of period cooking. Watch a craftsperson plying their trade, try your…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/05/Harvest_Faire_Endview_Plantation_-_Newport_News_Virginia_Lapis_Moon_Middle_eastern_dance_troup.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"watts_photos","height":1410,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Harvest Faire is a modern interpretation of a late 15th century European fall harvest celebration and tournament. Entertainers and a market mix with the sounds of good-natured martial competition and the smells of period cooking. Watch a craftsperson plying their trade, try your…","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/05/Harvest_Faire_Endview_Plantation_-_Newport_News_Virginia_Lapis_Moon_Middle_eastern_dance_troup.jpg/960px-Harvest_Faire_Endview_Plantation_-_Newport_News_Virginia_Lapis_Moon_Middle_eastern_dance_troup.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Harvest_Faire_Endview_Plantation_-_Newport_News_Virginia_Lapis_Moon_Middle_eastern_dance_troup.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/05/Harvest_Faire_Endview_Plantation_-_Newport_News_Virginia_Lapis_Moon_Middle_eastern_dance_troup.jpg/1280px-Harvest_Faire_Endview_Plantation_-_Newport_News_Virginia_Lapis_Moon_Middle_eastern_dance_troup.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"},{"alt":"Harvest Faire is a modern interpretation of a late 15th century European fall harvest celebration and tournament. Entertainers and a market mix with the sounds of good-natured martial competition and the smells of period cooking. Watch a craftsperson plying their trade, try your…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/72/Harvest_Faire_Endview_Plantation_-_Newport_News_Virginia_Lapis_Moon_Renaissance_Middle_eastern_dance_troupe.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"watts_photos","height":907,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Harvest Faire is a modern interpretation of a late 15th century European fall harvest celebration and tournament. Entertainers and a market mix with the sounds of good-natured martial competition and the smells of period cooking. Watch a craftsperson plying their trade, try your…","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/72/Harvest_Faire_Endview_Plantation_-_Newport_News_Virginia_Lapis_Moon_Renaissance_Middle_eastern_dance_troupe.jpg/960px-Harvest_Faire_Endview_Plantation_-_Newport_News_Virginia_Lapis_Moon_Renaissance_Middle_eastern_dance_troupe.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Harvest_Faire_Endview_Plantation_-_Newport_News_Virginia_Lapis_Moon_Renaissance_Middle_eastern_dance_troupe.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/72/Harvest_Faire_Endview_Plantation_-_Newport_News_Virginia_Lapis_Moon_Renaissance_Middle_eastern_dance_troupe.jpg/1280px-Harvest_Faire_Endview_Plantation_-_Newport_News_Virginia_Lapis_Moon_Renaissance_Middle_eastern_dance_troupe.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:06.980Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/middle-eastern-dance"}
{"id":"8993ce07-8b88-46ab-8359-8705f4a520e8","type":"art_form","slug":"milonguero-style","title":"Milonguero style","summary":"Milonguero is a style of close-embrace tango dancing, the name coined by Susana Miller and Oscar \"Cacho\" Dante from the Argentine word  \"milonguero\".","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"p1rgeghfd3","content":[{"text":"Milonguero is a style of close-embrace tango dancing, the name coined by Susana Miller and Oscar \"Cacho\" Dante from the Argentine word  \"milonguero\". Milonguero is a term for a skillful and respectful tango dancer who holds a reverence for the type of traditional social tango that is danced at milongas in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The two uses of the term do not coincide: many dancers who are considered to be milongueros do not dance milonguero-style tango.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0712e7b2-c401-44f1-943b-92f881ba39fc"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origin","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qcax8dy53t","content":[{"text":"Milonguero-style tango, also known as estilo milonguero (in Buenos Aires, known by name Estilo del centro because it originates from downtown milongas where dance floors were crowded) or apilado (piled up, stacked), is a close-embrace style of social tango dancing in which the focus is inward and the leg and arm movements are kept small. The style developed from and is appropriate to crowded dance floors. The term was coined by Buenos Aires-born tango dancer Susana Miller in the 1990s in the process of teaching others the kind of inwardly focused tango dancing that was practiced by veteran dancers in the social dance venues of central Buenos Aires, differentiating it from the more pronounced movements of outer Buenos Aires and other less crowded milongas, and especially to separate it from choreographed stage tango.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0712e7b2-c401-44f1-943b-92f881ba39fc"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Style","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"034qk01w95","content":[{"text":"In the milonguero-style embrace, the woman moves her left hand past her partner's right shoulder (where it would be in open embrace) around his neck and back to end up near his left shoulder, depending on the relative heights of the dancers. Her left arm will lie above the man's right arm with no space between them, but she will not hold tension in that arm—he should barely feel the weight of her arm. The two faces may touch, they will at least be very close. With a straight back she leans against her partner at a more pronounced angle than his, he leans slightly toward her but may appear to be standing upright. Rhythmically, the two will indulge in small adornments with the feet until just before the next beat, changing weight at the last possible moment.\nBarbara Garvey, the co-founder of the Bay Area Tango Association based in San Francisco, said that she and her husband Al saw in 1987 that \"a very simple form of close embrace was prevalent in the center of [Buenos Aires], but not in other barrios.\" This style was expanded upon by Pedro \"Tete\" Rusconi who was the first to teach close embrace in the US, joined by Susana Miller who gave the style its name. In 1994, Daniel Trenner taught at Stanford University's Tango Week, describing the Rusconi/Miller milonguero style as the only authentic Buenos Aires tango. From the late 1980s, a sense of tango community had been growing in the San Francisco Bay Area, and after '94 it adopted an emphasis on milonguero style, along with other forms of close embrace. By the late-1990s a milonga could be found in San Francisco on any night of the week. Traveling tango performers would appear at the dance venues after their shows, but they would change from show attire and style to salon-style dancing and more conservative clothing.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0712e7b2-c401-44f1-943b-92f881ba39fc"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"External links / sources","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4ka9fzqb0n","content":[{"text":"Tango and Chaos in Buenos Aires: online book about tango culture and tango dancing in Buenos Aires of 2000s","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0712e7b2-c401-44f1-943b-92f881ba39fc"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"y33s15kbz0","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Milonguero style”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0712e7b2-c401-44f1-943b-92f881ba39fc"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zj1jwr81xp","content":[{"text":"Milonguero style is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"de7e122b-993e-4f26-ac67-7e900ddb790c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1w3gce79cn","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"de7e122b-993e-4f26-ac67-7e900ddb790c"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Closeup of the milonguero style embrace. Tango instructors Homer and Cristina Ladas at Stanford in February 2011.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c2/Homer2_tango_milonguero_part.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Pcirrus2 Piotr Cirrus","height":907,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Closeup of the milonguero style embrace. Tango instructors Homer and Cristina Ladas at Stanford in February 2011.","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c2/Homer2_tango_milonguero_part.JPG/960px-Homer2_tango_milonguero_part.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Homer2_tango_milonguero_part.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c2/Homer2_tango_milonguero_part.JPG/1280px-Homer2_tango_milonguero_part.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:05.989Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/milonguero-style"}
{"id":"589328d9-79d0-4b62-9ab8-7c6d618bdec1","type":"art_form","slug":"minuet","title":"minuet","summary":"A minuet (; also spelled menuet) is a social dance of French origin for two people, usually written in 34 time. The English word was adapted from the Italian minuetto and the French menuet.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"d91r23148n","content":[{"text":"A minuet (; also spelled menuet) is a social dance of French origin for two people, usually written in 34 time. The English word was adapted from the Italian minuetto and the French menuet. \nThe term also describes the musical form that accompanies the dance, which subsequently developed more fully, often with a longer musical form called the minuet and trio, and was much used as a movement in the early classical symphony. While often stylized in instrumental forms, composers of the period would have been familiar with the popular dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"99e4ab8c-0957-4e0a-81cb-401a1f4bdf28"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f0qcnnj810","content":[{"text":"The name may refer to the short steps, pas menus, taken in the dance, or else be derived from the branle à mener or amener, popular group dances in early 17th-century France. The minuet was traditionally said to have descended from the bransle de Poitou, though there is no evidence making a clear connection between these two dances. The earliest treatise to mention the possible connection of the name to the expression pas menus is Gottfried Taubert's Rechtschaffener Tantzmeister, published in Leipzig in 1717, but this source does not describe the steps as being particularly small or dainty. At the period when it was most fashionable it was controlled, ceremonious and graceful.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"99e4ab8c-0957-4e0a-81cb-401a1f4bdf28"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Rhythm and form","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6wd7710my6","content":[{"text":"The name of this dance is also given to a musical composition written in the same time and rhythm, though when not accompanying an actual dance the pace was quicker. Stylistically refined minuets, apart from the social dance context, were introduced—to opera at first—by Jean-Baptiste Lully, who included no fewer than 92 of them in his theatrical works and in the late 17th century the minuet was adopted into the suite, such as some of the suites of Johann Sebastian Bach and George Frideric Handel. Among Italian and some French composers the minuet was often considerably quicker and livelier and was sometimes written in 38 or 68 time Because the tempo of a minuet was not standard, the tempo direction tempo di minuetto was ambiguous unless qualified by another direction, as it sometimes was.\nInitially, before its adoption in contexts other than social dance, the minuet was usually in binary form, with two repeated sections of usually eight bars each. But the second section eventually expanded, resulting in a kind of ternary form. The second (or middle) minuet provided a form of contrast by means of different key (although in many works, the second minuet stayed in the same key as the first minuet), orchestration, and thematic material. On a larger scale, two such minuets might be further combined, so that the first minuet was followed by a second one and then by a repetition of the first. The whole form might in any case be repeated as long as the dance lasted.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"99e4ab8c-0957-4e0a-81cb-401a1f4bdf28"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Minuet and trio","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nrzygykjj5","content":[{"text":"Around the time of Jean-Baptiste Lully, it became a common practice to score this middle section for a trio (such as two oboes and a bassoon, as is common in Lully). As a result, this middle section came to be called the minuet's trio, even when no trace of such an orchestration remains. The overall structure is called rounded binary or minuet form:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"99e4ab8c-0957-4e0a-81cb-401a1f4bdf28"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bh8htm21cf","content":[{"text":"After these developments by Lully, composers occasionally inserted a modified repetition of the first (A) section or a section that contrasted with both the A section and what was thereby rendered the third or C section, yielding the form A–A′–B–A or A–B–C–A, respectively; an example of the latter is the third movement of Mozart's Serenade No. 13 in G major, K. 525, popularly known under the title Eine kleine Nachtmusik.\nA livelier form of the minuet simultaneously developed into the scherzo (which was generally also coupled with a trio). This term came into existence approximately from Beethoven onwards, but the form itself can be traced back to Haydn.\nThe minuet and trio eventually became the standard third movement in the four-movement classical symphony, Johann Stamitz being the first to employ it thus with regularity.\nAn example of the true form of the minuet is to be found in Don Giovanni.\nA famous example of a more recent instrumental work in minuet form is Ignacy Jan Paderewski's Minuet in G.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"99e4ab8c-0957-4e0a-81cb-401a1f4bdf28"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c8gp7a65kg","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Minuet”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"99e4ab8c-0957-4e0a-81cb-401a1f4bdf28"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f1mz2g62hs","content":[{"text":"minuet is French folk dance, which over time became a court dance, in 3/4 meter and moderate tempo, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"457cab06-74fb-4dde-a67e-2635992434f5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8afpg21crc","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 28 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"457cab06-74fb-4dde-a67e-2635992434f5"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:06.527Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/minuet"}
{"id":"9aa415e2-2606-4bfa-b6ee-e725eb8e01a4","type":"art_form","slug":"mirzayi","title":"Mirzayi","summary":"Mirzayi (Armenian: Միրզաի or Միրզեի; Azerbaijani: Mirzəyi) is an Armenian and Azerbaijani female dance of Iranian origin.\nTraditionally, it is performed in weddings. It can be performed both by women and men.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ahp9b3ca7a","content":[{"text":"Mirzayi (Armenian: Միրզաի or Միրզեի; Azerbaijani: Mirzəyi) is an Armenian and Azerbaijani female dance of Iranian origin.\nTraditionally, it is performed in weddings. It can be performed both by women and men. Different Armenian varieties of the dance recorded in Shirak region are also known as Old Mirzayi (Armenian: Հին Միրզայի) and Tarakyama-Mirzayi (Armenian: Թարաքյամա-Միրզայի). In Azerbaijan, the dance is called \"Vagzaly\" (Azerbaijani: Vağzalı).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"89f12c67-ba39-4566-ad45-14f5eb3a2afa"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"The dance in culture","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qnnvqvnjnn","content":[{"text":"The dance was performed in the Soviet Armenian drama film Pepo, which was considered the 'most outstanding' film in Soviet cinema before the outbreak of World War II. Uzeyir Hajibeyov used this dance in \"If Not That One, Then This One\" operetta composed by him. Mashadi Ibad, a main hero of the comedy, performs \"Mirzayi\"  in his wedding, in the fourth act of the comedy.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"89f12c67-ba39-4566-ad45-14f5eb3a2afa"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0nmf83nj4n","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Mirzayi”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"89f12c67-ba39-4566-ad45-14f5eb3a2afa"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mz06x3b340","content":[{"text":"Mirzayi is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"60b7a9ab-89d1-4ccf-bcaa-95ecff20e058"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jf641jqrvm","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"60b7a9ab-89d1-4ccf-bcaa-95ecff20e058"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"behrooz mirzayi shirmard iranan jurnalist","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/34/Behroozmirzaeishirmard.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"بهروز میرزایی شیرمرد","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"behrooz mirzayi shirmard iranan jurnalist","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/34/Behroozmirzaeishirmard.jpg/960px-Behroozmirzaeishirmard.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Behroozmirzaeishirmard.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/34/Behroozmirzaeishirmard.jpg/1280px-Behroozmirzaeishirmard.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:05.499Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/mirzayi"}
{"id":"3b1f2a96-ffff-4181-becd-212b065bfcd7","type":"art_form","slug":"mizmar","title":"Mizmar","summary":"Mezmar or mizmar (Arabic: مزمار al-mizmar) is a traditional group performance and stick song-dance that is performed by in the Hejaz region in western Saudi Arabia for festive occasions such as wedding and national events.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5gb9mpy5ys","content":[{"text":"Mezmar or mizmar (Arabic: مزمار al-mizmar) is a traditional group performance and stick song-dance that is performed by in the Hejaz region in western Saudi Arabia for festive occasions such as wedding and national events. Almezmar is performed by about 15–100 practitioners in festive occasions such as wedding and national events, they twirl long sticks (bamboo cane), beat drums and clap to songs that can pertain to a variety of topics such as heroism, praise, chivalry, love and generosity. In the past, the ritual was associated with battle or competition. It closely resembles the tahtib dance practiced in Egypt and Sudan.\n'Mizmar' is actually the generic term for almost any wind instrument found in the Hejaz or Asir, from the end-blown flute to the dual-piped boos. But the name of the art mizmar is confusing because the mizmar song-dance does not call for any wind instrument—there is no mizmar in mizmar, just drums.\"\nIn 2016, Almezmar was inscribed on the UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, considered as cultural expression representing the community identity.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"55ff65ba-027a-4dab-90fb-f6ad633aa2ac"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2jkw9des9q","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Mezmar”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"55ff65ba-027a-4dab-90fb-f6ad633aa2ac"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"42dyefac54","content":[{"text":"Mizmar is folkloric dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7ba987f2-41ff-457a-bf8e-af99a9158b2f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2gvvyvgnt0","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7ba987f2-41ff-457a-bf8e-af99a9158b2f"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T07:23:11.450Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/mizmar"}
{"id":"ad3c00bb-33d7-4a50-b348-1d208b6df4d7","type":"art_form","slug":"modern-dance","title":"modern dance","summary":"Modern dance is a broad genre of western concert or theatrical dance which includes dance styles such as ballet, folk, ethnic, religious, and social dancing; and primarily arose out of Europe and the United States in the late 19th and early…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"51rb9tb5df","content":[{"text":"Modern dance is a broad genre of western concert or theatrical dance which includes dance styles such as ballet, folk, ethnic, religious, and social dancing; and primarily arose out of Europe and the United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It was considered to have been developed as a rejection of, or rebellion against, classical ballet, and also a way to express social concerns like socioeconomic and cultural factors.\nIn the late 19th century, modern dance artists such as Isadora Duncan, Maud Allan, and Loie Fuller were pioneering new forms and practices in what is now called improvisational or free dance. These dancers disregarded ballet's strict movement vocabulary (the particular, limited set of movements that were considered proper to ballet) and stopped wearing corsets and pointe shoes in the search for greater freedom of movement.\nThroughout the 20th century, sociopolitical concerns, major historical events, and the development of other art forms contributed to the continued development of modern dance in the United States and Europe. Moving into the 1960s, new ideas about dance began to emerge as a response to earlier dance forms and to social changes. Eventually, postmodern dance artists would reject the formalism of modern dance, and include elements such as performance art, contact improvisation, release technique, and improvisation.\nAmerican modern dance can be divided (roughly) into three periods or eras. In the Early Modern period (c.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2f72b3ba-b339-4273-8a97-361a70173bf2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Background","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cr63nbk927","content":[{"text":"Modern dance is often considered to have emerged as a rejection of, or rebellion against, classical ballet, although historians have suggested that socioeconomic changes in both the United States and Europe helped to initiate shifts in the dance world. In America, increasing industrialization, the rise of a middle class (which had more disposable income and free time), and the decline of Victorian social strictures led to, among other changes, a new interest in health and physical fitness. \"It was in this atmosphere that a 'new dance' was emerging as much from a rejection of social structures as from a dissatisfaction with ballet.\" During that same period, \"the champions of physical education helped to prepare the way for modern dance, and gymnastic exercises served as technical starting points for young women who longed to dance.\" Women's colleges began offering \"aesthetic dance\" courses by the end of the 1880s. Emil Rath, who wrote at length about this emerging art form at the time stated, \"Music and rhythmic bodily movement are twin sisters of art, as they have come into existence simultaneously...today we see in the artistic work of Isadora Duncan, Maud Allan, and others the use of a form of dancing which strives to portray in movements what the music master expresses in his compositions—interpretative dancing.\"","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2f72b3ba-b339-4273-8a97-361a70173bf2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Free dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pwk4g0r96d","content":[{"text":"Isadora Duncan (born in 1877) was a predecessor of modern dance with her stress on the center or torso, bare feet, loose hair, free-flowing costumes, and incorporation of humor into emotional expression. She was inspired by classical Greek arts, folk dances, social dances, nature, natural forces, and new American athleticism such as skipping, running, jumping, leaping, and abrupt movements. She thought that ballet was ugly and meaningless gymnastics. Although she returned to the United States at various points in her life, her work was not well received there. She returned to Europe and died in Nice in 1927.\nLoie Fuller (born in 1862) was a burlesque \"skirt\" dancer experimenting with the effect that gas lighting had on her silk costumes. Fuller developed a form of natural movement and improvisation techniques that were used in conjunction with her revolutionary lighting equipment and translucent silk costumes. She patented her apparatus and methods of stage lighting, that included the use of coloured gels and burning chemicals for luminescence, and her voluminous silk stage costumes.\nRuth St. Denis (born in 1879) influenced by the actress Sarah Bernhardt and Japanese dancer Sada Yacco, developed her translations of Indian culture and mythology. Her performances quickly became popular and she toured extensively while researching Asian culture and arts.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2f72b3ba-b339-4273-8a97-361a70173bf2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Expressionist and early modern dance in Europe","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ev7kcfrj92","content":[{"text":"In Europe, Mary Wigman in Germany, Francois Delsarte, Émile Jaques-Dalcroze (Eurhythmics), and Rudolf Laban developed theories of human movement and expression, and methods of instruction that led to the development of European modern and Expressionist dance. Other pioneers included Kurt Jooss (Ausdruckstanz) and Harald Kreutzberg.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2f72b3ba-b339-4273-8a97-361a70173bf2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Radical dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zkk6rxdxzb","content":[{"text":"Disturbed by the Great Depression and the rising threat of fascism in Europe, the radical dancers tried to raise consciousness by dramatizing the economic, social, ethnic and political crises of their time.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2f72b3ba-b339-4273-8a97-361a70173bf2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vynghbet4m","content":[{"text":"Hanya Holm – A student of Mary Wigman and an instructor at the Wigman School in Dresden, founded the New York Wigman School of Dance in 1931 (which became the Hanya Holm Studio in 1936) introducing Wigman technique, Rudolf Laban's theories of spatial dynamics, and later her own dance techniques to American modern dance. An accomplished choreographer, she was a founding artist of the first American Dance Festival in Bennington (1934). Holm's dance work Metropolitan Daily was the first modern dance composition to be televised on NBC and her labanotation score for Kiss Me, Kate (1948) was the first choreography to be copyrighted in the United States. Holm choreographed extensively in the fields of concert dance and musical theater.\nAnna Sokolow – A student of Martha Graham and Louis Horst, Sokolow created her own dance company (c. 1930). Presenting dramatic contemporary imagery, Sokolow's compositions were generally abstract, often revealing the full spectrum of human experience reflecting the tension and alienation of the time and the truth of human movement.\nJosé Limón – In 1946, after studying and performing with Doris Humphrey and Charles Weidman, Limón established his own company with Humphrey as artistic director. It was under her mentorship that Limón created his signature dance The Moor's Pavane (1949). Limón's choreographic works and technique remain a strong influence on contemporary dance practice.\nMerce Cunningham – A former ballet student and performer with Martha Graham, he presented his first New York solo concert with John Cage in 1944.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2f72b3ba-b339-4273-8a97-361a70173bf2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Early modern dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ejvypednn0","content":[{"text":"In 1915, Ruth St. Denis founded the Denishawn school and dance company with her husband Ted Shawn. Martha Graham, Doris Humphrey, and Charles Weidman were pupils at the school and members of the dance company. Seeking a wider and more accepting audience for their work, Duncan, Fuller, and Ruth St. Denis toured Europe. Martha Graham is often regarded as the founding mother of modern 20th-century concert dance.\nGraham viewed ballet as too one-sided: European, imperialistic, and un-American. She became a student at the Denishawn school in 1916 and then moved to New York City in 1923, where she performed in musical comedies, music halls, and worked on her own choreography.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2f72b3ba-b339-4273-8a97-361a70173bf2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tvnz966w7v","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Modern dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2f72b3ba-b339-4273-8a97-361a70173bf2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1erm4jsgwe","content":[{"text":"modern dance is genre of western concert or theatrical dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"eba1a529-5163-4a90-901c-43b478d75d77"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8cy1hdxv5p","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 23 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"eba1a529-5163-4a90-901c-43b478d75d77"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Dance of soul","src":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1511715282680-fbf93a50e721?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8bW9kZXJuJTIwZGFuY2V8ZW58MXwwfHx8MTc4ODExMjU0OXww&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1080","kind":"photo","width":4788,"credit":"Ahmad Odeh","height":3192,"source":"unsplash","depicts":"Dance of soul","licence":"Unsplash License","thumb640":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1511715282680-fbf93a50e721?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8bW9kZXJuJTIwZGFuY2V8ZW58MXwwfHx8MTc4ODExMjU0OXww&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=640","sourceUrl":"https://unsplash.com/photos/dancing-woman-on-concrete-pavement-JhqhGfX_Wd8?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral","thumb1280":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1511715282680-fbf93a50e721?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8bW9kZXJuJTIwZGFuY2V8ZW58MXwwfHx8MTc4ODExMjU0OXww&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1280","attributionUrl":"https://unsplash.com/@aoddeh?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:22.269Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/modern-dance"}
{"id":"1b279266-fc95-44a4-98ff-f59d49c5ef15","type":"art_form","slug":"modern-dance-in-the-united-states","title":"modern dance in the United States","summary":"Modern dance in the United States is a form of contemporary dance that was developed in the United States in the 20th century. African American modern dance also developed a distinct style.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6agmhfwwr8","content":[{"text":"Modern dance in the United States is a form of contemporary dance that was developed in the United States in the 20th century. African American modern dance also developed a distinct style.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0fdeff8d-8bfe-4e23-a0ea-777935b8bb57"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w5z43gqp8w","content":[{"text":"Closely related to the development of American music in the early 20th century was the emergence of a new, and distinctively American, art form – modern dance. Among the early innovators was Isadora Duncan (1878–1927), who stressed pure, unstructured movement in lieu of the positions of classical ballet. Duncan said \"from early childhood I have considered the freedom of my body essential to rhythm of movement\". Her emphasis on the natural world and body in  the context of concert dance influenced the ideas of the modern dancers who succeed her in America.\nThe main line of development, however, runs from the dance company of Ruth St. Denis (1878–1968) and her husband-partner, Ted Shawn (1891–1972), which produced work exploring images from other countries that were considered exotic by American audiences. St. Denis' pupil Doris Humphrey (1895–1958) looked outward for inspiration, to society and human conflict. Another pupil of St. Denis, Martha Graham (1893–1991), whose New York-based company became perhaps the best known in modern dance, sought to express an inward-based passion. Many of Graham's most popular works were produced in collaboration with leading American composers, such as \"Appalachian Spring\" with Aaron Copland.\nA significant contributing factor to the development and spread of Modern Dance in the United States in the 20th century was the establishment of Bennington College's Summer School of Dance. The program was established in 1934 and led by dancer/educator Martha Hill. Students attended classes in dance techniques, dance composition, music for dance, teaching methods, production, dance history and critical theory.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0fdeff8d-8bfe-4e23-a0ea-777935b8bb57"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"African American modern dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qw5rcnjxe6","content":[{"text":"African American modern dance blends modern dance with African and Caribbean movement (flexible torso and spine, articulated pelvis, isolation of the limbs, and polyrhythmic movement). Notable people included:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0fdeff8d-8bfe-4e23-a0ea-777935b8bb57"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"azq1nbyrxf","content":[{"text":"Katherine Dunham (1909-2006) trained in ballet, founded Ballet Negre in 1936 and then the Katherine Dunham Dance Company based in Chicago. In 1945, she opened a school in New York City, teaching Katherine Dunham Technique, African and Caribbean movement integrated with ballet and modern dance.\nPearl Primus (1919-1994), born in Trinidad, drew on African and Caribbean dances to create strong dramatic works characterized by large leaps. She often based her dances on the work of black writers and on racial issues, such as Langston Hughes's 1944 The Negro Speaks of Rivers, and Lewis Allan's 1945 Strange Fruit (1945). Her dance company developed into the Pearl Primus Dance Language Institute.\nAlvin Ailey (1931-1989) studied under Lester Horton, Bella Lewitzky, and later Martha Graham. He spent several years working in both concert and theater dance. In 1958, Ailey and a group of young African-American dancers performed as the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater in New York. He drew upon his \"blood memories\" of Texas, the blues, spirituals and gospel as inspiration. His most popular and critically acclaimed work is Revelations (1960).\nEleo Pomare (1937–2008)  was born in Columbia, but moved to New York as a child, and later founded the Eleo Pomare Dance Company. With Carole Johnson, Rod Rodgers, Gus Solomon and Pearl Reynolds, he co-founded the Association of Black Choreographers, which was the predecessor to the Modern Organization for Dance Evolvement, or MODE.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0fdeff8d-8bfe-4e23-a0ea-777935b8bb57"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7zavxen8xz","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Modern dance in the United States”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0fdeff8d-8bfe-4e23-a0ea-777935b8bb57"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"83v2j0vg3r","content":[{"text":"modern dance in the United States is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"70e1d3cb-99a4-4833-9cf0-4a4d57501927"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bh086tn914","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"70e1d3cb-99a4-4833-9cf0-4a4d57501927"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Four principals of the Boston Ballet in Earl Kim's \"Exercises en Route\" including Anamarie Sarazin, Eileen O'Reilly, Robert Steele, and Anthony Williams (1970–1971?) caught during a moment of contemplation, rehearsing for their roles in. Photo credit to be researched.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2b/Four_dancers.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"LISgirl","height":1019,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Four principals of the Boston Ballet in Earl Kim's \"Exercises en Route\" including Anamarie Sarazin, Eileen O'Reilly, Robert Steele, and Anthony Williams (1970–1971?) caught during a moment of contemplation, rehearsing for their roles in. Photo credit to be researched.","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2b/Four_dancers.jpg/960px-Four_dancers.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Four_dancers.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2b/Four_dancers.jpg/1280px-Four_dancers.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-09T05:47:25.449Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/modern-dance-in-the-united-states"}
{"id":"6a1ea1ae-059b-457c-825e-3b72e99d8e10","type":"art_form","slug":"modern-jive","title":"Modern Jive","summary":"Modern Jive is a dance style derived from swing, Lindy Hop, rock and roll, salsa and various other dance styles, the main difference being the simplification of footwork by removing syncopation such as chassé.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ae5q19bgkp","content":[{"text":"Modern Jive is a dance style derived from swing, Lindy Hop, rock and roll, salsa and various other dance styles, the main difference being the simplification of footwork by removing syncopation such as chassé. The term \"French Jive\" is occasionally used instead, reflecting the origins of the style, as is the term \"Smooth Jive\". The word \"modern\" distinguishes it from ballroom Jive.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7e981fde-2087-4a06-8e12-50ad7846e8f9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2cqm4p2bqy","content":[{"text":"Modern Jive was developed in the United Kingdom during the 1980s at three London clubs: Ceroc, LeRoc, and Cosmopolitan Jive. The style was based on a type of Jive that evolved in France after World War II when American dances such as the jitterbug were popular due to the presence of the American military.\nModern Jive was not created in France, but its origin owes something to the French version of Le Bop. The dance commonly known as Modern Jive is different from Le Bop, a high tempo dance. Michel Ange Lau played a major role in the change from Le Bop to Modern Jive at a club called Centre Charles Peguy). Two British people, James Cronin and Christine Keeble, saw Le Bop in France and wanted to learn the dance when they returned to London. They were among Lau's students. The style of music played at discos was changing, and high tempo dances like Rock and Roll and Le Bop were becoming less popular.\nThe change in music prompted the birth of Modern Jive; in 1980 Lau and the Le Bop dancers changed the timing of Le Bop, causing a revolution in the dance. This change in timing not only allowed Lau and his students to dance to a much larger variety of music but also to create more intricate moves.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7e981fde-2087-4a06-8e12-50ad7846e8f9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"What is Modern Jive?","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"n77j0yyz4r","content":[{"text":"Modern Jive adapts moves from other dance styles such as West Coast Swing, Salsa, Ballroom and Latin. The key to understanding Modern Jive is the beginner moves. These 60-plus moves continually reinforce the absolutes to the dance. The consistencies allow modern jive dancers to dance together, despite their preferences.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7e981fde-2087-4a06-8e12-50ad7846e8f9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Modern Jive absolutes and consistencies","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pyy6fkmgh0","content":[{"text":"Due to Modern Jive's unique timing it has the ability to be danced to a wide variety of tempos (extremes 60bpm - 180bpm, typically 110bpm - 140bpm, although this varies considerably with geography), and the dance is generally danced to 2 beats in 4. It's danced to the stressed beats 1, 3, 5, & 7; it's on these beats the dancers are in position (moving through the less-stressed beats 2, 4, 6, & 8), e.g. a classical Yo Yo has 8 positions danced to 16 beats of music.\nThe step back at the start of each move: this was derived from the Rock Step and changed to a simple step back when the timing changed. The step back creates the in & out or concertina motion that many people consider to be an essential part of the dance style; both dancers step away from each other at the start of a move / pattern, to achieve tension and compression/extension in the connection point. This extension assists lead and follow technique, but perhaps more importantly the step back into extension is the consistent part that allows an infinite number of moves to be joined in any order, depending on which handhold or other connection the lead is using.\nThe follow's right hand is key to the dance, each beginner move starts with the follow's right hand (sometimes both hands), whenever the follow spins or the hand is released it's the right hand that they need to offer.\nThe motion of the dance: for the majority of the beginner moves the follow steps in to the lead's right side on count two (this is not always consistent at intermediate level moves, and the lead often signals with their right hand behind their back to bring the follow down the left side) e.g. Pretzel.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7e981fde-2087-4a06-8e12-50ad7846e8f9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dancing to slower tempos","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"01nbjkd2b2","content":[{"text":"Slower tempos in Modern Jive (in some groups referred to as Modern Jive Blues) allows for more styling and musical interpretation. The slower tempo allows the follower to indicate when they want freestyle time, the dance can also use body leads at slower tempos and dancers often dance a lot closer. Dancing to slower music allows for a lot more two way communication, allowing more freedom, and music interpretation, however good Modern Jive dancers should be able to adapt their dancing and dance to a full spectrum of tempos. At higher tempos timing becomes more of a skill, where two way communication is reduced, at higher tempos musicality (e.g. hitting the music phrasing / breaks and interpreting the music), is more difficult to achieve as both dancers have to be in tune together but also with the music. Most dancers dancing Modern Jive Blues originate from Modern Jive and are familiar with Modern Jive Beginners moves and associated absolutes.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7e981fde-2087-4a06-8e12-50ad7846e8f9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Rotating slot","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nnsa9saezg","content":[{"text":"In the classical form, Modern Jive naturally rotates (normally clockwise). This is due to 2 or 3 consistencies that can be seen in the beginner moves and more often than not in the intermediate moves. a) the follow continually steps into the leads right side, causing a clockwise rotation – rarely to the leads left side, b) Often on count three the follow is turned or spun clockwise (1st move basic, Yo Yo, Hatchback.....), c) a lot of the beginner moves finish with an anti clockwise return – causing the follow to stabilise on the left foot stepping slightly to her left (clockwise), instead of directly back. This is Modern Jive danced in its natural form, and should not be confused with a really bad technique where the follow continually skips around the lead (also known as 'Roundy Roundy' in the UK), despite his lead. This 'Roundy Roundy' style is often found at higher tempos by inexperienced follow dancers and is totally different from the slightly rotating slot (of the natural dance).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7e981fde-2087-4a06-8e12-50ad7846e8f9"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ks2krm3f4f","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Modern Jive”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7e981fde-2087-4a06-8e12-50ad7846e8f9"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tvwgdx999r","content":[{"text":"Modern Jive is couple dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8cb207e3-d36e-4b40-9ee1-d76cf7eb62d1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2za6jm1n80","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8cb207e3-d36e-4b40-9ee1-d76cf7eb62d1"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Three mannequins display fashionable clothing in a store window","src":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1779641012397-0976e45704bb?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8TW9kZXJuJTIwSml2ZXxlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4OTc2MDkzfDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1080","kind":"photo","width":5568,"credit":"Sou Jest","height":3712,"source":"unsplash","depicts":"Three mannequins display fashionable clothing in a store window","licence":"Unsplash License","thumb640":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1779641012397-0976e45704bb?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8TW9kZXJuJTIwSml2ZXxlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4OTc2MDkzfDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=640","sourceUrl":"https://unsplash.com/photos/three-mannequins-display-fashionable-clothing-in-a-store-window-Dw4UH40yeQU?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral","thumb1280":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1779641012397-0976e45704bb?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8TW9kZXJuJTIwSml2ZXxlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4OTc2MDkzfDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1280","attributionUrl":"https://unsplash.com/@soujest?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-20T05:47:40.962Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/modern-jive"}
{"id":"6c6a25d9-1b17-4ca2-be48-cd2626def4d8","type":"art_form","slug":"mohiniyattam","title":"Mohiniyattam","summary":"Mohiniyattam is an Indian classical dance form originating from the state of Kerala.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"30n0jrms2h","content":[{"text":"Mohiniyattam is an Indian classical dance form originating from the state of Kerala. The dance gets its name from Mohini—the female enchantress avatar of the Hindu deity Vishnu, who helps the devas prevail over the asuras using her feminine charm.\nMohiniyattam's roots, like all classical Indian dances, are in the Natya Shastra—the ancient Hindu Sanskrit text on performance arts. However, it follows the Lasya style described in Natya Shastra, that is a dance which is delicate, eros-filled and feminine. It is traditionally a solo dance performed by women after extensive training, though men also perform the dance in the contemporary period. The repertoire of Mohiniyattam includes music in the Carnatic style, singing, and acting a play through the dance, where the recitation may be either by a separate vocalist or the dancer themselves. The song is typically in Malayalam-Sanskrit hybrid called Manipravalam.\nThe earliest mention of the word is found in the 16th-century legal text Vyavahāramālā, but the likely roots of the dance are older. The dance was systematized in the 18th century, but was then ridiculed as a Devadasi prostitution system during the colonial British Raj; it was banned by a series of laws from 1931 through 1938, which was protested and partially repealed in 1940. The socio-political conflict ultimately led to the renewed interest in and the revival and reconstruction of Mohiniyattam by the people of Kerala, particularly the poet Vallathol Narayana Menon.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"960ac653-c587-4942-bbc0-e8c237324f32"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mg2ta59apk","content":[{"text":"Mohiniyattam, also referred to as Mohini-attam, is derived from \"Mohini\" – a famous female avatar of the Hindu god Vishnu in Indian mythology.\nMohini refers to a divine enchantress or a supreme seductress. She appears in Hindu mythologies during a battle between Devas (good) and Asuras (evil), after the evil had won control of Amrita (nectar of immortality). Appearing in her youthful bloom, dressed rapturously she uses her charms to seduce the Asuras, who seeking her favors, give her the Amrita to distribute among the evil forces. Mohini after gaining the Amrita gives it to the good instead, depriving the evil from gaining immortality.\nThe details of the Mohini story varies by the Purana and region, but she is consistently an enchantress avatar of the supreme in Vaishnavism. Aattam is a Malayalam language word, and means rhythmic motion or dance. Mohiniyattam thus connotes \"a dance of an enchantress, a beautiful woman\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"960ac653-c587-4942-bbc0-e8c237324f32"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t9h8w53pzn","content":[{"text":"Mohiniyattam is a classical Indian dance, which by definition traces its repertoire to the foundational text Natya Shastra. The Natya Shastra text is attributed to the ancient scholar Bharata Muni. Its first complete compilation is dated to between 200 BCE and 200 CE, but estimates vary between 500 BCE and 500 CE. The text describes the basic elements and the structure of two types of dance: the vigorous, high energy Tāṇḍava dance (Shiva) and the gentle, calmingly graceful Lāsyā dance (Parvati, Shiva's lover). Mohiniyāttam follows the structure and aims of the Lāsyā dance in Natya Shastra.\nAccording to Reginald Massey, Mohiniyattam's history is unclear. Kerala, the region where this dance genre developed and is popular, has a long tradition of lasya style dances whose basics and structure may be at the root. The earliest evidence of Mohiniyattam, or a Mohiniyattam-like dance tradition is found in temple sculpture of Kerala. The 11th century Vishnu temple at Trikodithanam, and the Kidangur Subramanya temple, have several sculptures of female dancers in Mohiniyattam pose. The textual evidence from 12th century onwards suggest that Malayalam poets and playwrights included Lāsyā themes. The 16th century Vyavaharamala by Nambootiri contains the first known mention of the term Mohiniyattam, in the context of a payment to be made to a Mohiniyattam dancer. Another text, Gosha Yatra, from the 17th century too mentions the term. The 18th century Balarama Bharatam, a major secondary work on Natya Shastra composed in Kerala, mentions many dance styles including Mohini Natana.\nIn the 18th and 19th century, Mohiniyattam grew as dance arts received patronage of competing princely states.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"960ac653-c587-4942-bbc0-e8c237324f32"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Colonial era","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"594y2yq6ey","content":[{"text":"With the spread of colonial British rule in the 19th century India, all classical dance forms of India were ridiculed and discouraged, leading to their severe decline. This was in part the result of the Victorian morality of sexual repressiveness along with Anglican missionaries who criticized Hinduism.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"960ac653-c587-4942-bbc0-e8c237324f32"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"exs150phrw","content":[{"text":"The seductive gestures and facial expressions during temple dances were caricatured in The Wrongs of Indian Womanhood, published at the start of the 20th century, as evidence of \"harlots, debased erotic culture, slavery to idols and priests\" tradition, and Christian missionaries demanded that this must be stopped, launching the \"anti-dance movement\" or \"anti-nautch movement\" in 1892. This movement affected all classical dances in India and contributed to their decline, including the stigmatization of Mohiniyattam in the princely states of Travancore and Cochin in the British Empire.\nAccording to Justine Lemos, the conventional stereotype has been to label the temple dancers as prostitutes and that Mohiniyattam was banned by the Maharaja under pressure from the British rule and his citizens, but an examination of historical evidence suggests that neither did any law or proclamation ban Mohiniyattam nor is there any evidence that dancing girls of Mohiniyattam were devadasis, temple prostitutes or even menial servants of the temple.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"960ac653-c587-4942-bbc0-e8c237324f32"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Modern era","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"eewwmqvvwc","content":[{"text":"The ridicule and bans enacted during the British colonial era contributed to nationalist sentiments, and impacted all Hindu performance arts including Mohiniyattam. It too was revived and reconstructed, particularly in the 1930s by the nationalist Malayalam poet Vallathol Narayana Menon, who helped repeal the ban on temple dancing in Kerala, as well as established the Kerala Kalamandalam dance school and encouraged Mohiniattam studies, training and practice.\nOther significant champions of Mohiniyattam in the 20th century have been Mukundraja, Appiradeth Krishna Panicker, Harichand and guys from Vishnavam, Thankamony, as well as the guru and dancer Kalamandalam Kalyanikutty Amma.\nKalamandalam is a very known institution for teaching and learning the art form Mohiniyattam, but notorious for the discriminations faced by the artists and students based on their caste and colour. Adding spice to this, Kalamandalam Sathyabhama Jr entered the media scope recently with racist and gender slam statement against male and coloured artists earning their space in the art form gala of Mohiniyattam.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"960ac653-c587-4942-bbc0-e8c237324f32"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Repertoire","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b3g8cx6hww","content":[{"text":"Mohiniyattam is a lasya subgenre of dance, performed in the Kaisiki vritti (graceful style), as discussed in ancient Indian performance arts texts such as the Natya Shastra. More specifically, it is a dance that excels in Ekaharya Abhinaya form, that is a solo expressive dance performance aided by singing and music.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"960ac653-c587-4942-bbc0-e8c237324f32"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"r51r7q5hdt","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Mohiniyattam”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"960ac653-c587-4942-bbc0-e8c237324f32"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zfnyzex0ye","content":[{"text":"Mohiniyattam is a classical Indian dance, found in Kerala, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f2759804-d813-4f52-b719-2d8e5d5e94b0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ej318rcykh","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 4 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f2759804-d813-4f52-b719-2d8e5d5e94b0"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Mohiniyattam, (Malayalam: മോഹിനിയാട്ടം), is one of the famous classical dances of India that developed and remained popular in the state of Kerala.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e0/Mohiniyattam_at_Kerala_state_school_kalothsavam_2019.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Shagil Kannur","height":854,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Mohiniyattam, (Malayalam: മോഹിനിയാട്ടം), is one of the famous classical dances of India that developed and remained popular in the state of Kerala.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e0/Mohiniyattam_at_Kerala_state_school_kalothsavam_2019.jpg/960px-Mohiniyattam_at_Kerala_state_school_kalothsavam_2019.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mohiniyattam_at_Kerala_state_school_kalothsavam_2019.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e0/Mohiniyattam_at_Kerala_state_school_kalothsavam_2019.jpg/1280px-Mohiniyattam_at_Kerala_state_school_kalothsavam_2019.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-08-31T05:47:16.999Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/mohiniyattam"}
{"id":"f116e2ae-a243-4b17-a5c1-64663012897a","type":"art_form","slug":"molly-dance","title":"Molly dance","summary":"Molly dancing is a form of English Morris dance from East Anglia, traditionally performed by out-of-work ploughboys over the winter. It was especially associated with Boxing Day and Plough Monday.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"q8d6wt259j","content":[{"text":"Molly dancing is a form of English Morris dance from East Anglia, traditionally performed by out-of-work ploughboys over the winter. It was especially associated with Boxing Day and Plough Monday. Cross-dressing was a characteristic feature of the dance: at least one, and in some accounts as many as half, of the men performing the dance dressed in women's clothing. First attested in the 1820s, the tradition continued in a few villages into the 1930s; by 1940 it had died out entirely. \nMolly dance was largely ignored by folk dance collectors, who did not consider it worthy of study; they collected only a handful of dances before the practice died out.  From the 1970s, there was a revival of interest in Molly dancing. In 1977 two Cambridgeshire teams resumed dancing on Plough Monday and many other dance teams have since included Molly dance in their repertoire, of which the Kent-based Seven Champions have been particularly influential.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8561d0b2-dec2-45c6-ab99-650f9cf0252d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wbyj5qnyd5","content":[{"text":"Molly dancing is a dance tradition from East Anglia, traditionally performed on Boxing Day (26 December) and Plough Monday (the Monday after 6 January). Plough Monday has long been an important date in the East Anglian calendar, and its celebration can be traced back to the fifteenth century; Molly dancing is first attested in the 1820s.\nThe earliest known use of the term Molly dance in relation to this tradition was in 1850.   It probably derives from the word molly meaning an effeminate, homosexual, or cross-dressing man, referring to the invariable presence of men dressed in women's clothing among the dancers; an alternative possibility is that it is a corruption of Morris dance.\nIn 1911 Cecil Sharp interviewed a man from Little Downham about Plough Monday dancing, but he did not consider it worthy of further study. The practice was largely ignored by collectors of folk dances until the 1930s, by which time Molly dancing continued in only a few villages. In 1930, Joseph Needham and Arthur Peck collected four Molly dances from a dancer from Girton and a concertina player from Histon, two villages near Cambridge; they continued to collect information about Molly dancing over the following three years. William Palmer recorded a broom dance performed by the Little Downham dancers in 1933.  The tradition had died out by 1940. In 1978, Russell Wortley and Cyril Papworth published four dances collected from the Comberton Molly dancers. \nThe recorded dances are largely ordinary social dances of the period, rather than special Molly dances.  Needham and Peck proposed that a previous dance tradition, perhaps a kind of sword dance, had at some point been lost, and Molly dancing had been revived using social dances.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8561d0b2-dec2-45c6-ab99-650f9cf0252d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Traditions","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hktz42d18j","content":[{"text":"Traditionally, Molly dancing took place over the Christmas season, particularly on Boxing Day and Plough Monday (the first Monday after Epiphany). Pre-revival Molly dancing was an all-male tradition; though women sometimes joined in the dancing they were not part of the Molly teams. Unemployed farmworkers danced both to entertain themselves and as a way of making some money in a season where there was little demand for agricultural labour. In some cases, the money raised was used for charity – as for instance in Brandon Creek, near Littleport, where until the 1850s it was used to buy food for local widows. In the late-nineteenth and early-twentieth centuries, groups of children were also known to go Molly dancing.\nMolly dancers dressed in ordinary clothes decorated with ribbons and rosettes, wore top hats, and blacked their faces as a form of disguise.  Some wore sashes in a particular colour to denote their village. One or more dancers dressed in women's clothing – in some accounts half of the dancers were dressed as women. Along with the dancers, Molly teams were accompanied by various other men who performed specific roles, including an umbrella man, to protect the musician from the weather; a sweeper, who carried a broom and would clear a space for the dancers; and the man responsible for the money box.  The Molly team seen by William Palmer at Little Downham in 1933 consisted of six men, one dressed as a woman; of the remaining five, one carried a broom and money box, and one played the accordion.  The musician wore ordinary clothes, while the other men wore frock coats and top hats; all five had blackened faces and wore ribbons on their clothes.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8561d0b2-dec2-45c6-ab99-650f9cf0252d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Revival","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1xx7nsjqh4","content":[{"text":"Molly dancing was revived in the late 1970s, when teams began to once again perform the preserved dances. At this time, Cotswold-style morris dancing was the most common type of display dance performed by folk dancers; a growing number of people who disliked Cotswold morris were looking for alternatives. In 1976, Ashley Hutchings (who had been a founding member of the British folk-rock bands Fairport Convention and Steeleye Span) released Rattlebone and Ploughjack, a compilation of recordings related to Molly and border morris dance, helping to revive interest in both styles.\nBy 1976, Russell Wortley was teaching Molly dance based on the material he had collected, and in 1977 the Cambridge Morris Men resumed Molly dancing on Plough Monday. The Mepal Molly Men, who based their dancing off of the recollection of two of the dancers from Little Downham in the 1930s, also began to perform in 1977.   Another early side, the Seven Champions, was founded in 1977 by members of Headcorn morris in Kent, having been to one of Wortley's workshops. Their first performance, in December 1977, featured a Molly dance alongside a Kentish mummers' play. In 1983 they taught their own Molly dancing workshop for the first time. The Champions, who were inspired by the style of the Shropshire Bedlams border morris side, became one of the most influential teams in the Molly dance revival.  By the year 2000, over 20 dance teams included Molly dancing in their repertoire. \nModern Molly groups tend to reject many of the conventions of Cotswold morris (e.g. the white clothes, bells and handkerchiefs); stylistically they favour more simple choreography, heavier stepping, and are described by Elaine Bradtke as \"more rough and wild than graceful\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8561d0b2-dec2-45c6-ab99-650f9cf0252d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"45hyqvmysr","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Molly dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8561d0b2-dec2-45c6-ab99-650f9cf0252d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"y6c7qqak3c","content":[{"text":"Molly dance is Morris dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"388a3a9c-bb2f-468e-9634-e6918e8d564e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m4zhm5p613","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"388a3a9c-bb2f-468e-9634-e6918e8d564e"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Old Glory Molly dance round straw bear - Whittlesea Straw Bear Festival 2014","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/45/Old_Glory_Molly_dance_round_straw_bear_-_Whittlesea_Straw_Bear_Festival_2014_-_geograph.org.uk_-_3813444.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Richard Humphrey","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Old Glory Molly dance round straw bear - Whittlesea Straw Bear Festival 2014","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/45/Old_Glory_Molly_dance_round_straw_bear_-_Whittlesea_Straw_Bear_Festival_2014_-_geograph.org.uk_-_3813444.jpg/960px-Old_Glory_Molly_dance_round_straw_bear_-_Whittlesea_Straw_Bear_Festival_2014_-_geograph.org.uk_-_3813444.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Old_Glory_Molly_dance_round_straw_bear_-_Whittlesea_Straw_Bear_Festival_2014_-_geograph.org.uk_-_3813444.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/45/Old_Glory_Molly_dance_round_straw_bear_-_Whittlesea_Straw_Bear_Festival_2014_-_geograph.org.uk_-_3813444.jpg/1280px-Old_Glory_Molly_dance_round_straw_bear_-_Whittlesea_Straw_Bear_Festival_2014_-_geograph.org.uk_-_3813444.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"},{"alt":"Ox Blood Molly Dancers take a break - Whittlesea Straw Bear Festival 2014","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8c/Ox_Blood_Molly_Dancers_take_a_break_-_Whittlesea_Straw_Bear_Festival_2014_-_geograph.org.uk_-_3811530.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Richard Humphrey","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Ox Blood Molly Dancers take a break - Whittlesea Straw Bear Festival 2014","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8c/Ox_Blood_Molly_Dancers_take_a_break_-_Whittlesea_Straw_Bear_Festival_2014_-_geograph.org.uk_-_3811530.jpg/960px-Ox_Blood_Molly_Dancers_take_a_break_-_Whittlesea_Straw_Bear_Festival_2014_-_geograph.org.uk_-_3811530.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ox_Blood_Molly_Dancers_take_a_break_-_Whittlesea_Straw_Bear_Festival_2014_-_geograph.org.uk_-_3811530.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8c/Ox_Blood_Molly_Dancers_take_a_break_-_Whittlesea_Straw_Bear_Festival_2014_-_geograph.org.uk_-_3811530.jpg/1280px-Ox_Blood_Molly_Dancers_take_a_break_-_Whittlesea_Straw_Bear_Festival_2014_-_geograph.org.uk_-_3811530.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"},{"alt":"Seven Champions Molly Dancers in Market Street - Whittlesea Straw Bear Festival 2014","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/45/Seven_Champions_Molly_Dancers_in_Market_Street_-_Whittlesea_Straw_Bear_Festival_2014_-_geograph.org.uk_-_3812370.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Richard Humphrey","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Seven Champions Molly Dancers in Market Street - Whittlesea Straw Bear Festival 2014","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/45/Seven_Champions_Molly_Dancers_in_Market_Street_-_Whittlesea_Straw_Bear_Festival_2014_-_geograph.org.uk_-_3812370.jpg/960px-Seven_Champions_Molly_Dancers_in_Market_Street_-_Whittlesea_Straw_Bear_Festival_2014_-_geograph.org.uk_-_3812370.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Seven_Champions_Molly_Dancers_in_Market_Street_-_Whittlesea_Straw_Bear_Festival_2014_-_geograph.org.uk_-_3812370.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/45/Seven_Champions_Molly_Dancers_in_Market_Street_-_Whittlesea_Straw_Bear_Festival_2014_-_geograph.org.uk_-_3812370.jpg/1280px-Seven_Champions_Molly_Dancers_in_Market_Street_-_Whittlesea_Straw_Bear_Festival_2014_-_geograph.org.uk_-_3812370.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-09T05:47:25.793Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/molly-dance"}
{"id":"c92cb7cd-21f8-4c87-952d-890ce4407fda","type":"art_form","slug":"money-dance","title":"Money dance","summary":"The money dance, dollar dance, and apron dance are wedding traditions found in multiple cultures where guests give money to the newlyweds during the reception celebration.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"982p2k03y0","content":[{"text":"The money dance, dollar dance, and apron dance are wedding traditions found in multiple cultures where guests give money to the newlyweds during the reception celebration. The specific practices vary significantly across cultures, ranging from guests paying to dance briefly with the bride or groom, to showering the couple with cash, to pinning banknotes on the couple's clothing. These traditions serve as a way for guests to show support for the marriage, provide financial assistance to help the couple start their new life together, and symbolize wishes for future prosperity.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1c9fe19c-2fc8-4fe2-b9c0-1145a88f013f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Poland","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m2b44t1tvs","content":[{"text":"The money dance may have originated in Poland around the beginning of the 20th century. The dance takes place some time after the first dance, often once guests have had a chance to have a few drinks. The best man or MC or the disc jockey announces the event. Customarily, the best man begins dancing with the bride, pinning money onto her wedding gown or putting it into a purse, which she carries especially for the purpose, or into the pockets of an apron she dons over her gown, especially for this dance. In a more contemporary version of this custom, the dance includes bridesmaids and other ladies who dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1c9fe19c-2fc8-4fe2-b9c0-1145a88f013f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Ukraine","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b4j83zywst","content":[{"text":"At Ukrainian weddings, the father of the bride usually begins pinning money on her dress. He is followed by the best man and groomsmen, and, finally, by the remainder of the male guests. Another variation is where the bride's veil is removed and given to the maid of honor and an apron is placed on the bride. Money is then placed into her apron during the dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1c9fe19c-2fc8-4fe2-b9c0-1145a88f013f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Balkan","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nfhhj2tkab","content":[{"text":"In Balkan (Albania, Bosnia, Serbia, etc...) weddings, close relatives throw and shower money on the couple while they’re dancing.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1c9fe19c-2fc8-4fe2-b9c0-1145a88f013f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Hungary","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kn1wz7r6cq","content":[{"text":"At Hungarian weddings, the bride takes off her shoes and puts them in the middle of the dance floor. Then her shoes are passed around from guest to guest and each deposits a contribution.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1c9fe19c-2fc8-4fe2-b9c0-1145a88f013f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Nigeria","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3a525xg6b2","content":[{"text":"In Nigeria, particularly among the Yoruba people, the tradition is known as money spraying and involves guests throwing naira notes at celebrants during weddings and other social events. This practice originated in the 1940s when families would discreetly place money in a groom's pocket to assist newlyweds with expenses.\nDuring Nigeria's oil boom in the 1960s and 1970s, the practice evolved into a public display of throwing crisp naira notes at dancing celebrants, symbolizing wealth, status, and generosity. The practice is tied to Yoruba culture's Owanbe (lavish parties) and Juju music traditions, where guests shower musicians and praise singers with cash as appreciation.\nGuests typically toss money in the air, place it on the celebrant's forehead, or pin it to their clothing during events like a wedding's first dance. The cash is collected by designated assistants and helps cover event costs or supports the couple's future endeavors. Despite its cultural significance, money spraying faces legal challenges under Nigerian currency abuse laws, leading to various enforcement actions by authorities.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1c9fe19c-2fc8-4fe2-b9c0-1145a88f013f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wry8dwamcn","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Money dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1c9fe19c-2fc8-4fe2-b9c0-1145a88f013f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cmvpvqfwcq","content":[{"text":"Money dance is event at some wedding receptions in various cultures, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3eaa424c-1de2-4309-873c-7f0c7f5d7ef6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wj25a6dbpj","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3eaa424c-1de2-4309-873c-7f0c7f5d7ef6"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Mardi Gras in New Orleans. Street revelers on Royal Street in the French Quarter.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/97/Mardi_Gras_Money_Dance_on_Royal_Street.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Mark Gstohl","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Mardi Gras in New Orleans. Street revelers on Royal Street in the French Quarter.","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/97/Mardi_Gras_Money_Dance_on_Royal_Street.jpg/960px-Mardi_Gras_Money_Dance_on_Royal_Street.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mardi_Gras_Money_Dance_on_Royal_Street.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/97/Mardi_Gras_Money_Dance_on_Royal_Street.jpg/1280px-Mardi_Gras_Money_Dance_on_Royal_Street.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:31.999Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/money-dance"}
{"id":"e4dc6504-ee11-42ba-8026-5d87da375735","type":"art_form","slug":"monferrina","title":"monferrina","summary":"Monferrina is a lively Italian folk dance in 68 time named after the place of its origin, Montferrat, in the Italian region of Piedmont.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tv5bag9hfp","content":[{"text":"Monferrina is a lively Italian folk dance in 68 time named after the place of its origin, Montferrat, in the Italian region of Piedmont. It has spread from Piedmont throughout Northern Italy, in Lombardy, Emilia-Romagna, Friuli-Venezia Giulia and even into Switzerland. It also became popular in late 18th-century England as a country dance, under the names monfrina, monfreda, and manfredina, being included in Wheatstone's Country Dances for 1810. In Piedmont, it is usually accompanied by singing and it is danced by several couples.\nThe dance goes under several different names: monferrina di Friuli, manfréṅna bulgnaiṡa, monfrénna mudnésa, giardiniera (or jardinière) and baragazzina.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f98a8cbb-5c78-4a02-a487-98ff315004d4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Execution and background","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1zvkvkgk6m","content":[{"text":"The dance starts with two circular promenades by couples arm-in-arm using a lively march step. The individual couples then join both hands for a cross-step with bent knees. The dance often contains bows and mimed teasing and coaxing.\nCurt Sachs takes the two part structure of the dance, a procession followed by a couple figure, as indicative of its antiquity along with other Italian folk dances of this type such as the trescone, giga and bergamesco.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f98a8cbb-5c78-4a02-a487-98ff315004d4"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"n9h9k2rg8j","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Monferrina”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f98a8cbb-5c78-4a02-a487-98ff315004d4"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nv96qdc58w","content":[{"text":"monferrina is Italian folk dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"eaa6cab2-1936-46e4-870d-f2d91786033c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"y349tct4w1","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 4 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"eaa6cab2-1936-46e4-870d-f2d91786033c"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Sfilata delle Sagre 2016. La bellezza monferrina in sella ad una bicicletta","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2b/Ma_dove_vai_bellezza_in_bicicletta.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Marco Lodi","height":1831,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Sfilata delle Sagre 2016. La bellezza monferrina in sella ad una bicicletta","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2b/Ma_dove_vai_bellezza_in_bicicletta.jpg/960px-Ma_dove_vai_bellezza_in_bicicletta.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ma_dove_vai_bellezza_in_bicicletta.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2b/Ma_dove_vai_bellezza_in_bicicletta.jpg/1280px-Ma_dove_vai_bellezza_in_bicicletta.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:28.292Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/monferrina"}
{"id":"606b61c0-b546-4a0c-88d4-9526a5de6fa8","type":"art_form","slug":"monkey","title":"monkey","summary":"The twist is a dance that was inspired by rock and roll music. From 1959 to the early sixties it became a worldwide dance craze, enjoying immense popularity while drawing controversies from critics who felt it was too provocative.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w7dd7qzvrq","content":[{"text":"The twist is a dance that was inspired by rock and roll music. From 1959 to the early sixties it became a worldwide dance craze, enjoying immense popularity while drawing controversies from critics who felt it was too provocative. It inspired dances such as the Jerk, the Pony, the Watusi, the Mashed Potato, the Monkey, and the Funky Chicken, but none were as popular.\nHaving seen teenagers in Tampa, Florida, doing the dance, Hank Ballard wrote \"The Twist\", which became the B-side of Hank Ballard and the Midnighters' 1959 single \"Teardrops on Your Letter\". Dick Clark, having noticed the dance becoming popular among teenagers, recommended to Cameo Records that the more wholesome Chubby Checker rerecord the song, which was released in 1959 and became a number one hit in 1960. The dance became passé among teenagers as it became acceptable among adults and the song was re-released, becoming a number one hit again in 1962.\nA world record was set in DeLand, Florida, on October 11, 2012, when Chubby Checker sang the song live and the crowd danced. An estimated 4,000 people twisted along with Checker, surpassing the previous Guinness World Record for most people twisting in the streets at once.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"002d2f1f-1377-46e5-bd0a-168d8d832c24"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Steps","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"errz5bfq7q","content":[{"text":"The twist is performed by standing with the feet approximately shoulder width apart. The torso may be squared to the knees and hips, or turned at an angle so one foot is farther forward than the other. The arms are held out from the body, bent at the elbow. The hips, torso, and legs rotate on the balls of the feet as a single unit, with the arms staying more or less stationary. The feet grind back and forth on the floor, and the dance can be varied in speed, intensity, and vertical height as necessary. Occasionally one leg is lifted off the floor for styling, but generally the dance posture is low and with the feet in contact with the floor with very little vertical motion. The moves include the mashed potato, swimming, drowning, twisting, arm swing and single leg twist.\nAnother description of the moves popularized by Chubby Checker:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"002d2f1f-1377-46e5-bd0a-168d8d832c24"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"trxq254yc9","content":[{"text":"1. STANCE: Prizefighter position, one leg extended forward, and arms extended forward from the elbow.\n2. MOVEMENT: Hips swivel from side to side as if rubbing oneself with a towel. Knees are bent slightly. As hips move left, arms move to the right, and vice versa.\n3. FOOT MOVEMENT: Twist feet as if putting out a cigarette. Entire body moving forward and back and from side to side.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"002d2f1f-1377-46e5-bd0a-168d8d832c24"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dsrsywm06m","content":[{"text":"According to Time magazine, \"the dancers barely ever touch each other or move their feet. Everything else, however, moves. The upper body sways forward and backward and the hips and shoulders twirl erotically, while the arms thrust in, out, up and down with the pistonlike motions of baffled bird keepers fighting off a flock of attack blue jays.\"","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"002d2f1f-1377-46e5-bd0a-168d8d832c24"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qm87d5sjze","content":[{"text":"The use of the name \"twist\" for dancing goes back to the nineteenth century. According to Marshall and Jean Stearns in Jazz Dance, a pelvic dance motion called the twist came to America from the Congo during slavery. One of the hit songs of early blackface minstrelsy was banjo player Joel Walker Sweeney's \"Vine Twist\". One of the early black dance crazes of the early twentieth century was the \"Mess Around\", described by songwriter Perry Bradford in his 1912 hit \"Messin' Around\" as: \"Now anybody can learn the knack, put your hands on your hips and bend your back; stand in one spot nice and tight, and twist around, twist around with all of your might\". But the twist at this point was basically grinding the hips.  Blues singer Bo Carter recorded \"Twist It Babe\" in 1931, the reference in the lyrics apparently being a metaphor for sex.   In his \"Winin' Boy Blues\" in the late 1930s, Jelly Roll Morton sang, \"Mama, mama, look at sis, she's out on the levee doing the double twist\". In the 1953 song \"Let the Boogie Woogie Roll\", Clyde McPhatter and the Drifters sang, \"When she looked at me her eyes just shined like gold, and when she did the twist she bopped me to my soul\".\nBut the simple dance that we now know as the Twist originates in the late fifties among teenagers, and was popularized by Chubby Checker in his preparation to debut the song to a national audience on August 6, 1960, on The Dick Clark Show, a Saturday night program that, unlike disc jockey Clark's daytime American Bandstand, was a stage show with a sitting audience.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"002d2f1f-1377-46e5-bd0a-168d8d832c24"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origin","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ab3h4f6a5b","content":[{"text":"Dick Clark was a powerhouse in music at the time, thanks to American Bandstand, which ran five times a week in the afternoons, showcasing local dancers and visiting performers who lip-synched along with their recordings. Clark saw the song's potential when he heard Hank Ballard's original version, but Ballard and his group, whose greatest hit had been \"Work With Me Annie\" in 1954, was considered too raunchy to appeal to Clark's teenage audience. He urged Philadelphia record label Cameo/Parkway to record a new version of \"The Twist\" with young, wholesome Chubby Checker, who had displayed his talent for copying other artists on an earlier novelty hit, \"The Class\". Released in summer 1960, Checker's rendition of \"The Twist\" became number one on the singles chart in the United States in 1960 and then again in 1962.\nIn 1961, at the height of the craze, patrons at New York City's Peppermint Lounge on West 45th Street were twisting to the house band, a local group from New Jersey, Joey Dee and the Starliters. Their song, \"Peppermint Twist (Part 1)\" became number one in the United States for three weeks in January 1962. In 1962 Bo Diddley released his album Bo Diddley's a Twister. He recorded several twist tracks, including \"The Twister\", \"Bo's Twist\", and \"Mama Don't Allow No Twistin'\", which referenced the objections many parents had to the pelvic motions of the dance.\nIn Latin America, the twist caught fire in the early 1960s, fueled by Bill Haley & His Comets. Their recordings of \"The Spanish Twist\" and \"Florida Twist\" were successes, particularly in Mexico. Haley, in interviews, credited Checker and Ballard.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"002d2f1f-1377-46e5-bd0a-168d8d832c24"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Twist hits on Billboard","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7yvp6kmdrx","content":[{"text":"\"The Twist\" by Hank Ballard and the Midnighters (No. 28, 1959)\n\"The Twist\" by Chubby Checker (No. 1, 1960; No. 1, 1962)\n\"Let's Twist Again\" by Chubby Checker (No. 8, 1961)\n\"Twistin' U.S.A.\" by Danny & the Juniors (No. 20, 1961)\n\"Slow Twistin'\" by Chubby Checker (No. 3, 1962)\n\"Peppermint Twist – Part 1\" by Joey Dee and the Starliters (No. 1, 1962)\n\"Hey, Let's Twist\" by Joey Dee and the Starliters (No. 20, 1962)\n\"Dear Lady Twist\" by Gary U.S. Bonds (No. 9, 1962)\n\"Twist, Twist Senora\" by Gary U.S. Bonds (No. 9, 1962)\n\"Twistin' Postman\" by the Marvelettes (No. 34, 1962)\n\"Twistin' the Night Away\" by Sam Cooke (No. 9, 1962)\n\"Twist and Shout\" by the Isley Brothers (No. 17, 1962)\n\"Twist-Her\" by Bill Black's Combo (No. 26, 1962)\n\"Soul Twist\" by King Curtis & His Noble Knights (No. 17, 1962)\n\"Bristol Twistin\" Annie\" by the Dovells (No. 27, 1962)\n\"Percolator (Twist)\" by Billy Joe & the Checkmates (No. 10, 1962)\n\"Do You Know How To Twist\" by Hank Ballard and the Midnighters (No. 87, 1962)\n\"Twist It Up\" by Chubby Checker (No.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"002d2f1f-1377-46e5-bd0a-168d8d832c24"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Twist films","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pc7fe8spws","content":[{"text":"Twist Around…","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"002d2f1f-1377-46e5-bd0a-168d8d832c24"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"53r5ha9adv","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Twist (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"002d2f1f-1377-46e5-bd0a-168d8d832c24"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9qy1vg15hq","content":[{"text":"monkey is dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"33cc35ab-36e8-4e9b-8c07-54ada1d32254"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dgm7beb6vd","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"33cc35ab-36e8-4e9b-8c07-54ada1d32254"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Golden monkey ( Cercopithecus kandti ) eating bamboo, Volcanoes National Park, Rwanda","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1e/Golden_monkey_%28Cercopithecus_kandti%29_eating.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Charles J. Sharp","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Golden monkey ( Cercopithecus kandti ) eating bamboo, Volcanoes National Park, Rwanda","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1e/Golden_monkey_%28Cercopithecus_kandti%29_eating.jpg/960px-Golden_monkey_%28Cercopithecus_kandti%29_eating.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Golden_monkey_(Cercopithecus_kandti)_eating.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1e/Golden_monkey_%28Cercopithecus_kandti%29_eating.jpg/1280px-Golden_monkey_%28Cercopithecus_kandti%29_eating.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Green monkey ( Chlorocebus sabaeus ), juvenile, The Gambia","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fc/Green_monkey_%28Chlorocebus_sabaeus%29_juvenile_head.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Charles J. Sharp","height":1184,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Green monkey ( Chlorocebus sabaeus ), juvenile, The Gambia","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fc/Green_monkey_%28Chlorocebus_sabaeus%29_juvenile_head.jpg/960px-Green_monkey_%28Chlorocebus_sabaeus%29_juvenile_head.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Green_monkey_(Chlorocebus_sabaeus)_juvenile_head.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fc/Green_monkey_%28Chlorocebus_sabaeus%29_juvenile_head.jpg/1280px-Green_monkey_%28Chlorocebus_sabaeus%29_juvenile_head.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"A young female of White-fronted Capuchi Monkey (Cebus albifrons).","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/64/Cebus_albifrons_edit.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Photo by Whaldener Endo (Edit: Noise reduction and sharpening by User:Diliff .","height":1706,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"A young female of White-fronted Capuchi Monkey (Cebus albifrons).","licence":"CC BY 2.5","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/64/Cebus_albifrons_edit.jpg/960px-Cebus_albifrons_edit.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cebus_albifrons_edit.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/64/Cebus_albifrons_edit.jpg/1280px-Cebus_albifrons_edit.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.5"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:06.278Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/monkey"}
{"id":"02283618-ab4a-4aca-808d-dbdaad55e7c2","type":"art_form","slug":"moreska","title":"Moreška","summary":"Moreška  is a traditional sword dance from the town of Korčula, on the Croatian island of the same name in the Adriatic.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2yw8tpyrmv","content":[{"text":"Moreška  is a traditional sword dance from the town of Korčula, on the Croatian island of the same name in the Adriatic. Dating back hundreds of years, the Moreška is an elaborate production involving two groups of dancers, engaging in a mock battle over the fate of a veiled young woman.  Originally performed rarely on special occasions, in modern times the Moreška is performed weekly for visiting tourists. The two sides of battling dancers were originally Moors and Christians, recalling the Spanish battles of the Reconquista in the Middle Ages. However, at some point in the 19th century in Korčula, the sides changed from Christians vs. Moors, to Croats vs. Moors, Turks vs. Moors or simply \"White\" and \"Black\", with the non-Moor side emerging victorious.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2f21e29b-2182-43ab-baaa-f425821c892c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2ezejj2kde","content":[{"text":"The Moreška in Korčula dates back to at least the mid-17th century, with its roots in the Middle Ages, from the several hundred years of battle between Muslims and Christians (Moros y cristianos) in Spain, specially in Catalonia where exist a traditional dance called La Morisca de Gerri de la Sal, during the Reconquista.  Multiple European festivals and pageants have their roots from that period. By the 16th century the conquest theme with mock battles was introduced into the Americas and other world areas administered or culturally influenced by Spain. The version that is danced in Korčula appears to be the only one in modern times which uses two swords held by each soldier (Moreškanti) in the elaborate mock battles.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2f21e29b-2182-43ab-baaa-f425821c892c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Performances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"td4twt1tt6","content":[{"text":"The Moreška was originally performed on special occasions only, perhaps once every few years, especially on the Feast Day of \"Sveti Todor\" (Saint Theodore, Korčula's patron saint) in July, in a lavish presentation which could last for up to two hours. In modern times there are abbreviated performances of 20–30 minutes which occur weekly in the summer for visiting tourists. Performers must be native to Korčula, and local families take great pride in their participation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2f21e29b-2182-43ab-baaa-f425821c892c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Primary characters","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fb71gsz50y","content":[{"text":"Bula: The captured maiden\nMoro: The Black King\nOsman: The White King (who wears red)\nOtmanović: The Black King's father","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2f21e29b-2182-43ab-baaa-f425821c892c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Plot","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5n6sbeyfsk","content":[{"text":"The Black King enters dragging the captured Bula maiden in chains. He tries to persuade her to respond to his advances, but she replies that she is in love with the White King. The two kings and their armies confront each other, and battle escalates from taunts, to the kings in battle, to both armies clashing, with a mixture of solos and varying rhythms through seven different dances. The Black soldiers are eventually surrounded and defeated, and the White King rescues the Bula.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2f21e29b-2182-43ab-baaa-f425821c892c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Sword dance societies","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xvwk8yvp1m","content":[{"text":"There are two societies (groups) which perform the Moreška in the town of Korčula, and other societies on the island which perform another variant of sword dance, known as the Kumpanija. Certain towns and villages have Kumpanija groups, which perform on the respective village feast day, as well as on other festive dates during the summer tourist season:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2f21e29b-2182-43ab-baaa-f425821c892c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ncx6syacbs","content":[{"text":"Vela Luka, performed March 19, St. Joseph\nBlato, performed on April 28, the day of Saint Vincenca and during the summer months\nČara, performed a few times per year, including June 29, Saint Peter's Day\nPupnat, August 5, on the Feast of Our Lady of the Snow\nSmokvica, performed on August 14, the Feast of the Assumption\nŽrnovo, August 16, on Saint Roch's Day","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2f21e29b-2182-43ab-baaa-f425821c892c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kdr7tcjx54","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Moreška”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2f21e29b-2182-43ab-baaa-f425821c892c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"r5h46wmzgf","content":[{"text":"Moreška is Croatian traditional dance re-enactment of a war, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c05faeb2-2798-49ed-ae51-148068810689"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fjjx5fy1bd","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c05faeb2-2798-49ed-ae51-148068810689"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Moreška in Korčula .","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d9/More%C5%A1ka_in_Kor%C4%8Dula.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Luka Jačov","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Moreška in Korčula .","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d9/More%C5%A1ka_in_Kor%C4%8Dula.jpg/960px-More%C5%A1ka_in_Kor%C4%8Dula.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:More%C5%A1ka_in_Kor%C4%8Dula.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d9/More%C5%A1ka_in_Kor%C4%8Dula.jpg/1280px-More%C5%A1ka_in_Kor%C4%8Dula.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:29.353Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/moreska"}
{"id":"bacb3263-b53d-47e8-a929-394ddca52013","type":"art_form","slug":"morna","title":"morna","summary":"The morna (pronunciation in both Portuguese and Cape Verdean Creole: [ˈmɔɾnɐ]) is a music and dance genre from Cape Verde.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1htc1ggv1x","content":[{"text":"The morna (pronunciation in both Portuguese and Cape Verdean Creole: [ˈmɔɾnɐ]) is a music and dance genre from Cape Verde. It was proclaimed Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO on December 11, 2019.\nLyrics are usually in Cape Verdean Creole, and instrumentation often includes cavaquinho, clarinet, accordion, violin, piano and guitar.\nMorna is widely considered the national music of Cape Verde, as is the fado for Portugal, the tango for Argentina, the merengue for Dominican Republic, the rumba for Cuba, and so on.\nThe best internationally known morna singer was Cesária Évora. Morna and other genres of Cape Verdean music are also played in Cape Verdean migrant communities abroad, especially in New England in the US, Portugal, the Netherlands, France, West Africa and parts of Latin America.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fab1a2cc-9e2b-425f-b517-0e5ca366d8f0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"As a music genre","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zkt73f5q3g","content":[{"text":"As a music genre, the morna is characterized by having a lento tempo, a 2-beat bar (sometimes 4) and in its most traditional form by having a harmonic structure based on a cycle of fifths, while the lyrics structure is organized by musical strophes that alternate with a refrain. The morna is almost always monotonic, i.e., it is composed in just one tonality. Compositions that use more than one tonality are rare and generally they are cases of passing from a minor to major tonality or vice versa.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fab1a2cc-9e2b-425f-b517-0e5ca366d8f0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Harmonic structure","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m5y1n0xcy6","content":[{"text":"In its most traditional form, the morna obeys a cycle of fifths. The harmonic progression starts in a chord (the tonic) of a certain tonality, the second chord is the lower fifth (the subdominant), the third chord is the same as the first and the fourth chord is the upper fifth (the dominant seventh). These chords — tonic, dominant seventh, subdominant — have in Cape Verde the popular names of “primeira”, “segunda” and “terceira” (first, second and third) respectively of the tonality in question. For example, if the music is being performed in an A minor tonality, the A minor chord has the name “primeira de Lá menor” (A minor's first), the E 7th chord has the name of “segunda de Lá menor” (A minor's second) and the D minor chord has the name of “terceira de Lá menor” (A minor's third).\nHowever, this structure corresponds to the most basic and most primary harmonic sequence of the morna. First, this structure has been enriched later with the so-called passing chords (see below under History). Second, this structure is by no means mandatory. Several composers, especially recent composers, employ different chord progressions.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fab1a2cc-9e2b-425f-b517-0e5ca366d8f0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Melodic structure","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fq5qxkpv82","content":[{"text":"The melodic line of the morna varies a lot through the song, with ascending and descending note sequences, and within a bar the notes generally do not have the same length. One frequent characteristic of the morna is the syncopation, more precisely, one note at the end of a bar is extended to the strong beat of the next bar. The melody is accentuated on the first beat and the last half-beat of the bar.\nThe melody is structured in verses that in turn are organized in strophes. The main strophes alternate with a refrain strophe, and this alternation can have several models: ABABAB..., ABCBABCB..., ACBACB..., AABCCB..., etc. The melody of the refrain is never the same as the melody of the other strophes.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fab1a2cc-9e2b-425f-b517-0e5ca366d8f0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Themes","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"e4qb8a21fq","content":[{"text":"The theme of the morna is varied, but there are certain subjects that are approached with more frequency. Besides universal subjects like love, typically Cape Verdean subjects are talked about, such as departure abroad, the return, the saudade, love for the homeland and the sea. One of the great performers responsible for this thematic was the poet/composer Eugénio Tavares who introduced in the beginning of the 20th century the lyricism and the exploration of typical romanticism still used today.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fab1a2cc-9e2b-425f-b517-0e5ca366d8f0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Instrumentation","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ae10604cj5","content":[{"text":"The main instrument associated with the morna is the guitar, popularly called “violão” in Cape Verde. In its most simple form, a guitar is enough to provide the accompaniment for another solo instrument that can be another guitar, a violin (popularly called “rabeca” in Cape Verde), the singer's voice or any other melodic instrument. The specific way of strumming the strings in a guitar is popularly called “mãozada” in Cape Verde. The strumming of the morna articulates a bass (played with the thumb, marking the accentuation of the rhythm) with chords (played with the other fingers, either in an arpeggio, rhythmically, or in a combination of both). The morna can also be performed on a piano, with the left hand providing the bass and the accompaniment and the right hand providing the accompaniment and the melody.\nThe composition of a morna band is not rigid. A medium-sized band may have, besides the aforementioned guitar, a cavaquinho (that plays the chords rhythmically), a ten or twelve string guitar (popularly called “viola” in Cape Verde, that provides an harmonic support), a solo instrument besides the singer's voice and some percussion instrument. A bigger band may have another guitar, an acoustic bass guitar, more than one solo instrument (violin, clarinet, trumpet, etc.) and several percussion instruments (shaker, güiro, bongos, etc.).\nFrom the 1960s, morna began electrification, with the percussion instruments being replaced by a drum kit and the bass / accompaniment play performed on the guitar replaced by a bass guitar and an electric guitar.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fab1a2cc-9e2b-425f-b517-0e5ca366d8f0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jkqv8fk8wf","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Morna (music)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fab1a2cc-9e2b-425f-b517-0e5ca366d8f0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bx0mhbtgek","content":[{"text":"morna is musical practice of Cabo Verde, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7545ce3c-b6b5-415f-9a4f-89c7f7bc5abd"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ekyh6jrn71","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 10 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7545ce3c-b6b5-415f-9a4f-89c7f7bc5abd"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Morna õnne talu peamaja ja veinikelder kirdesuunast.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/95/Morna_%C3%B5nne_talu_peamaja_ja_veinikelder.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"AntsJoh","height":720,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Morna õnne talu peamaja ja veinikelder kirdesuunast.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/95/Morna_%C3%B5nne_talu_peamaja_ja_veinikelder.jpg/960px-Morna_%C3%B5nne_talu_peamaja_ja_veinikelder.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Morna_%C3%B5nne_talu_peamaja_ja_veinikelder.jpg","thumb1280":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/95/Morna_%C3%B5nne_talu_peamaja_ja_veinikelder.jpg/1280px-Morna_%C3%B5nne_talu_peamaja_ja_veinikelder.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Named person engaging in named action at Adelaide Oval nets/training ground","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/34/Morna_Nielsen.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"YellowMonkey","height":1220,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Named person engaging in named action at Adelaide Oval nets/training ground","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/34/Morna_Nielsen.jpg/960px-Morna_Nielsen.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Morna_Nielsen.jpg","thumb1280":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/34/Morna_Nielsen.jpg/1280px-Morna_Nielsen.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"},{"alt":"Named person engaging in named action at Adelaide Oval nets/training ground","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1a/Morna_Nielsen_batting.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"YellowMonkey","height":1573,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Named person engaging in named action at Adelaide Oval nets/training ground","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1a/Morna_Nielsen_batting.jpg/960px-Morna_Nielsen_batting.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Morna_Nielsen_batting.jpg","thumb1280":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1a/Morna_Nielsen_batting.jpg/1280px-Morna_Nielsen_batting.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:26.048Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/morna"}
{"id":"046371fd-8adf-4889-9452-1758a16a15fc","type":"art_form","slug":"morris-dance","title":"Morris dance","summary":"Morris dancing is a form of English folk dance. It is based on rhythmic stepping and the execution of choreographed figures by a group of dancers in costume, usually wearing bell pads on their shins, their shoes or both.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s1v9p25hn6","content":[{"text":"Morris dancing is a form of English folk dance. It is based on rhythmic stepping and the execution of choreographed figures by a group of dancers in costume, usually wearing bell pads on their shins, their shoes or both. A band or single musician, also costumed, will accompany them. Sticks, swords, handkerchiefs, and a variety of other implements may be wielded by the dancers.\nMorris dancing first appeared in England in the 15th century. Its earliest surviving mention dates to 1448 and records the payment of seven shillings to Morris dancers by the Goldsmiths' Company in London.\nThree prominent groups organise and support Morris in England: Morris Ring, Morris Federation and Open Morris; all three organisations have members from other countries as well.\nThere are around 150 Morris sides (or teams) in the United States. English immigrants form a large part of the Morris tradition in Australia, Canada, New Zealand and Hong Kong. There are relatively isolated groups in other countries, for example those in Utrecht and Helmond, Netherlands; the Arctic Morris Group of Helsinki, Finland and Stockholm, Sweden; as well as in Cyprus,  St Petersburg, Russia, and in the Alsace-Basel region at the border of France and Switzerland.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f0ab09a3-641a-4386-9f92-f2c02d1364ea"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Name and origins","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"shb814ertg","content":[{"text":"Throughout its history, the Morris seems to have been common. It was imported from village festivities into popular entertainment after the invention of the court masque by Henry VIII. The word Morris apparently derived from morisco, meaning 'Moorish'. Cecil Sharp, whose collecting of Morris dances preserved many from extinction, suggested that it might have arisen from the dancers' blacking their faces as part of the necessary ritual disguise.\nThe name is first recorded in English in the mid-15th century as Morisk dance, moreys daunce, morisse daunce, i.e. 'Moorish dance'. The term entered English via Flemish mooriske danse. Comparable terms in other languages include German Moriskentanz (also from the 15th century), French morisques, Croatian moreška, and moresco, moresca or morisca in Italy and Spain. The modern spelling Morris-dance first appeared in the 17th century. In Edward Phillips's The New World of English Words, first published in 1658, the term morisco was referenced as both \"a Moor\" and \"the Morris dance, as it were the Moorish dance\", while John Bullokar defined it in 1695 as \"a certain dance used among the Moors; whence our Morris dance\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f0ab09a3-641a-4386-9f92-f2c02d1364ea"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wvgg9nwazn","content":[{"text":"It is unclear how the dance came to be referred to as Moorish, \"unless in reference to fantastic dancing or costumes\", i.e. the deliberately \"exotic\" flavour of the performance. The English dance thus apparently arose as part of a wider 15th-century European fashion for supposedly \"Moorish\" spectacle, which also left traces in Spanish and Italian folk dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f0ab09a3-641a-4386-9f92-f2c02d1364ea"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History in England","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"d8vsqkehd4","content":[{"text":"The earliest (15th-century) references place the Morris dance in a courtly setting. The dance became part of performances for the lower classes by the later 16th century. Henry VIII owned a gold salt cellar which depicted a Morris dance with five dancers and a \"tabrett\". A \"tabret\" is a small tabor drum. On 4 January 1552, George Ferrers, the Lord of Misrule of Edward VI, put on a show in London which included \"mores danse, dansyng with a tabret\". In 1600, the Shakespearean actor William Kempe Morris danced from London to Norwich, an event chronicled in his Nine Daies Wonder (1600).\nAlmost nothing is known about the folk dances of England before the mid-17th century. While it is possible to speculate on the transition of \"Morris dancing\" from the courtly to a rural setting (it may have acquired elements of pre-Elizabethan (medieval) folk dance), such proposals will always be based on an argument from silence as there is no direct record of what such elements would have looked like. In the Elizabethan era, there was significant cultural contact between Italy and England, and it has been suggested that much of what is now considered traditional English folk dance, and especially English country dance, is descended from Italian dances imported in the 16th century.\nBy the mid-17th century, the working peasantry took part in Morris dances, especially at Whitsun. The Puritan government of Oliver Cromwell, however, suppressed Whitsun ales and other such festivities. When the crown was restored by Charles II, the springtime festivals were restored.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f0ab09a3-641a-4386-9f92-f2c02d1364ea"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Revival","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"a4rcbv6vq8","content":[{"text":"Boxing Day 1899 is widely regarded as the starting point for the Morris revival. Cecil Sharp was visiting a friend's house in Headington, near Oxford, when the Headington Quarry Morris side arrived to perform. Sharp was intrigued by the music and collected several tunes from the side's musician, William Kimber, including \"Country Gardens\". A decade later he began collecting the dances, spurred and at first assisted by Mary Neal, a founder of the Espérance Club (a dressmaking co-operative and club for young working women in London), and Herbert MacIlwaine, musical director of the Espérance Club. Neal was looking for dances for her girls to perform, and so the first revival performance was by young women in London.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f0ab09a3-641a-4386-9f92-f2c02d1364ea"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Organisations","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"74r6p950z3","content":[{"text":"In the first few decades of the 20th century, several men's sides were formed, and in 1934 the Morris Ring was founded by six revival sides:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f0ab09a3-641a-4386-9f92-f2c02d1364ea"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"egc2zt9p9q","content":[{"text":"Cambridge Morris Men\nLetchworth Morris\nThaxted Morris Men\nEast Surrey Morris Men\nGreensleeves Morris Men (based in Wimbledon)\nOxford Morris (which was not at the initial ring meeting at Thaxted but was influential in the creation of the Ring's constitution).\nIn the 1950s and especially the 1960s, there was an explosion of new dance teams, some of them women's or mixed sides. At the time, there was often heated debate over the propriety and even legitimacy of women dancing the Morris, even though there is evidence as far back as the 16th century that there were female Morris dancers. There are now male, female and mixed sides to be found.\nPartly because women's and mixed sides were not eligible for full membership of the Morris Ring (this has now changed), two other national (and international) bodies were formed, the Morris Federation and Open Morris. All three bodies provide communication, advice, insurance, instructionals (teaching sessions) and social and dancing opportunities to their members. The three bodies co-operate on some issues, while maintaining their distinct identities. An umbrella body that includes all three, the Joint Morris Organisation, organises joint events and discusses issues that affect all members, such as access to both public liability and personal insurance cover.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f0ab09a3-641a-4386-9f92-f2c02d1364ea"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Morris dancing in Wales","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"p9e5r7453n","content":[{"text":"Traditional Welsh dance experienced a revival in the early twentieth century, and while these dances were commonly performed as progressive longways display dances, Lois Blake noted that the Llanover Dances displayed \"the influence of the Morris, both in form and movements\". \nWhile these traditions that had been recorded by Ceinwen Thomas and Catherine Margretta Thomas were not specifically Morris dances as recognised today, they were interpreted in new ways by Morris men.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f0ab09a3-641a-4386-9f92-f2c02d1364ea"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"000sv1cm7f","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Morris dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f0ab09a3-641a-4386-9f92-f2c02d1364ea"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jn96pdqa8m","content":[{"text":"Morris dance is English performance folk dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"720669c8-b950-44cb-84f5-c7504413efb0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"j9xnc3v29p","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 9 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"720669c8-b950-44cb-84f5-c7504413efb0"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Leicester Morris (also known as Red Leicester) is a Morris Dancing team based in Leicester in England. In this image, they are performing at the Whittlesea Straw Bear Festival in January 2024","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/68/Leicester_Morris_Dancers.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Whn64","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Leicester Morris (also known as Red Leicester) is a Morris Dancing team based in Leicester in England. In this image, they are performing at the Whittlesea Straw Bear Festival in January 2024","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/68/Leicester_Morris_Dancers.jpg/960px-Leicester_Morris_Dancers.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Leicester_Morris_Dancers.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/68/Leicester_Morris_Dancers.jpg/1280px-Leicester_Morris_Dancers.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Performed by Cuckoo's Nest Morris Dancers. Apple Blossom Day was organised by Brighton Permaculture Trust.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/66/Morris_dance_at_Apple_Blossom_Day%2C_Stanmer_2024-04-28.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Andy Li","height":1707,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Performed by Cuckoo's Nest Morris Dancers. Apple Blossom Day was organised by Brighton Permaculture Trust.","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/66/Morris_dance_at_Apple_Blossom_Day%2C_Stanmer_2024-04-28.jpg/960px-Morris_dance_at_Apple_Blossom_Day%2C_Stanmer_2024-04-28.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Morris_dance_at_Apple_Blossom_Day,_Stanmer_2024-04-28.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/66/Morris_dance_at_Apple_Blossom_Day%2C_Stanmer_2024-04-28.jpg/1280px-Morris_dance_at_Apple_Blossom_Day%2C_Stanmer_2024-04-28.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"},{"alt":"In old district of Hastings","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d9/Morris_Dancing.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Peter Broster","height":844,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"In old district of Hastings","licence":"CC BY 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d9/Morris_Dancing.jpg/960px-Morris_Dancing.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Morris_Dancing.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d9/Morris_Dancing.jpg/1280px-Morris_Dancing.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-06T05:47:16.822Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/morris-dance"}
{"id":"bf833cc6-06ef-4918-83df-bd1465307476","type":"art_form","slug":"moshing","title":"moshing","summary":"Moshing (also known as slam dancing or simply slamming) is a style of dancing in which participants push or slam into each other.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"v58xt1r6e5","content":[{"text":"Moshing (also known as slam dancing or simply slamming) is a style of dancing in which participants push or slam into each other. Taking place in an area called the mosh pit (often simply the pit), it is typically performed to aggressive styles of live music such as punk rock and heavy metal.\nThe dance style originated in the southern California hardcore punk scene, particularly Huntington Beach and Long Beach around 1978. Through the 1980s it spread to the hardcore scenes of Washington, D.C., Boston and New York where it developed local variants. In New York, the crossover between the city's hardcore scene and its metal scene led to moshing incorporating itself into metal beginning around 1985. In the 1990s, the success of grunge music led to moshing entering mainstream understanding and soon being incorporated into genres like electronic dance music and hip hop.\nDue to its violence, moshing has been subject to controversy, with a number of concert venues banning the practice, and some musicians being arrested for encouraging it and concertgoers for participating.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"74429075-a5f4-413b-9f05-02fc6a2aa7a4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3w638hvsw6","content":[{"text":"The name \"mosh\" originates from the word \"mash\". While performing their song \"Banned in D.C.\" in either 1979 or 1980, H.R., vocalist of Washington D.C. hardcore band the Bad Brains, shouted \"mash it—mash down Babylon!\" Because of his Jamaican accent, some audience members heard this as \"mosh it—mosh down Babylon\". Beginning around 1983, metalheads began to refer to the slower sections of hardcore songs as \"mosh parts\", while hardcore musicians had called them \"skank parts\". Once Stormtroopers of Death released their debut album Speak English or Die in 1985, which included the track \"Milano Mosh\", the term began being applied to the style of dance. The term was then further popularised by Anthrax's 1987 song \"Caught in a Mosh\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"74429075-a5f4-413b-9f05-02fc6a2aa7a4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origins and early developments (1970s–1980s)","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kdhacn59qh","content":[{"text":"The direct predecessor to moshing was the pogo, a style of dance done in the 1970s English punk rock scene, in which crowds members would jump up and down while holding their arms beside them. According to British rockumentary The Filth and the Fury, it was invented by Sex Pistols bassist Sid Vicious in 1976.\nAs a prominent punk rock scene in Southern California began to form in the late 1970s and early 1980s with early hardcore punk groups like Fear and Black Flag, moshing as it is understood today began to develop, originally termed \"slam dancing\". Participants in slam dancing at this time modified the pogo by bringing additional physical contact to those around them by pushing and running, as well introducing the idea of a recognised area where it takes place called a \"pit\". According to Steven Blush's book American Hardcore: A Tribal History (2001), there is a common belief amongst those involved in this scene that the dance was invented by former US marine Mike Marine in 1978. His specific style, involving \"strutting around in a circle, swinging your arms and hitting everyone within reach\", would go on to be termed \"the Huntington Beach Strut\". The Orange County Register writer Tom Berg credited, Costa Mesa venue, the Cuckoo's Nest (1976–1981) as the \"birthplace of slam dancing\". Examples of this early moshing were featured in the documentaries Another State of Mind, Urban Struggle, the Decline of Western Civilization, and American Hardcore. Fear's 1981 musical performance on Saturday Night Live also helped to expose moshing to a much wider audience.\nBy 1981, slam dancing had become the predominant style of crowd interaction in the southern California scene, as Huntington Beach and Long Beach became the scene's heart.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"74429075-a5f4-413b-9f05-02fc6a2aa7a4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Mainstream crossover (1990s–present)","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f93rf6cd46","content":[{"text":"Moshing entered mainstream consciousness with the rise of grunge in the early 1990s. Grunge becoming the dominant force in rock music, brought with it aspects of genres like hardcore, punk and ska, and in turn, pop culture became aware of the mosh pit. This was exacerbated by the success of Lollapalooza, which began in 1991 as a touring festival. In his book Festivals: A Music Lover's Guide to the Festivals You Need To Know, writer Oliver Keens stated that \"Lollapalooza's greatest impact was to expose Middle America to the joys of stage-diving and moshing...You can see Lollapalooza's legacy in the way mosh pits have become an integral part of youth culture; beyond rock and metal\". By 1992, the practice had become so common that concertgoers began to mosh to non-aggressive rock bands like the Cranberries.\nMoshing slowly entered hip hop during live performances by the Beastie Boys, who began as a hardcore punk band before adopting the hip hop style they became known for. During Public Enemy and Ice-T's European tour in the late 1980s, the artists witnessed moshing during their performances, which was still not commonplace during hip hop concerts. The 1991 collaboration song Bring the Noise by thrash metal band Anthrax and hip hop group Public Enemy led to a number of mixed genre tours, which brought metal's moshing to the attention of hip hop fans. This was solidified as a part of hip hop by Onyx's 1993 single \"Slam\", a song which alluded to slam dancing and had a music video featuring moshing. Following the video's release, pits became increasingly common during performances by hip hop artists including Busta Rhymes, M.O.P.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"74429075-a5f4-413b-9f05-02fc6a2aa7a4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Variations","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gr7py1w4re","content":[{"text":"The Huntington Beach strut or simply the HB Strut is the original style of slam dancing which was popular the Southern California hardcore in the late 1970s and 1980s. It involves \"strutting around in a circle, swinging your arms and hitting everyone within reach\".\nThe Boston thrash or punching penguins is Boston's more violent development upon the Huntington Beach strut, which incorporates punching below the neck.\nA pig pile is a style moshing popular amongst the Boston hardcore scene in the 1980s. It involved one person being pushed to the ground and others beginning to pile on top of them.\nWrecking is a style of moshing that is prevalent in the psychobilly scene. It involves standing in one spot with arms flailing in order to make contact with those around. The practice was originated by fans of the Meteors and named in reference to the band's fanbase being called the \"Wrecking Crew\". Meteors drummer Mark Robertson specifically cited wrecking as beginning with Adam and the Ants, when they become involved in the psychobilly scene.\nA circle pit is a form of moshing in which participants run in a circular motion around the edges of the pit, often leaving an open space in the centre.\nA wall of death is a form of moshing which sees the audience divide down the middle into two halves either side of the venue, before each side runs towards the other, slamming the two sides together. According to Noisecreep, the consensus is that it was invented by American hardcore punk band Sick of it All. However, the band's vocalist Lou Koller has stated that he merely revived the practice in 1996, as he often saw a similar act performed in the 1980s New York hardcore scene.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"74429075-a5f4-413b-9f05-02fc6a2aa7a4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Physical properties of emergent behavior","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s4w2xwyk4r","content":[{"text":"Researchers from Cornell University studied the emergent behavior of crowds at mosh pits by anal…","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"74429075-a5f4-413b-9f05-02fc6a2aa7a4"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fx0dqkdw4v","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Moshing”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"74429075-a5f4-413b-9f05-02fc6a2aa7a4"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"38t7yw5x2q","content":[{"text":"moshing is dance that is part of heavy music, often featuring certain levels of violence, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"58759b04-fa89-4391-9841-3dfb23d46613"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w2k8q4w6wq","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"58759b04-fa89-4391-9841-3dfb23d46613"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Moshing at the Måkeskrik festival in Kristiansand, Norway, 2026","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/39/Moshing_%E2%80%93_M%C3%A5keskrik_2026_01.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Birgit Fostervold","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Moshing at the Måkeskrik festival in Kristiansand, Norway, 2026","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/39/Moshing_%E2%80%93_M%C3%A5keskrik_2026_01.png/960px-Moshing_%E2%80%93_M%C3%A5keskrik_2026_01.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Moshing_%E2%80%93_M%C3%A5keskrik_2026_01.png","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/39/Moshing_%E2%80%93_M%C3%A5keskrik_2026_01.png/1280px-Moshing_%E2%80%93_M%C3%A5keskrik_2026_01.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Moshing at the Måkeskrik festival in Kristiansand, Norway, 2026","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/42/Moshing_%E2%80%93_M%C3%A5keskrik_2026_02.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Birgit Fostervold","height":1920,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Moshing at the Måkeskrik festival in Kristiansand, Norway, 2026","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/42/Moshing_%E2%80%93_M%C3%A5keskrik_2026_02.png/960px-Moshing_%E2%80%93_M%C3%A5keskrik_2026_02.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Moshing_%E2%80%93_M%C3%A5keskrik_2026_02.png","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/42/Moshing_%E2%80%93_M%C3%A5keskrik_2026_02.png/1280px-Moshing_%E2%80%93_M%C3%A5keskrik_2026_02.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Moshing.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/27/Moshing_%281%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Tayuya Karin","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Moshing.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/27/Moshing_%281%29.jpg/960px-Moshing_%281%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Moshing_(1).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/27/Moshing_%281%29.jpg/1280px-Moshing_%281%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:15.170Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/moshing"}
{"id":"2bbf6a74-87c2-4053-963c-6057462942c7","type":"art_form","slug":"mudiyettu","title":"Mudiyettu","summary":"Mudiyettu is a traditional ritual theatre and folk dance drama from Kerala that enacts the mythological tale of a battle between the goddess Kali and the demon Darika. The ritual is a part of the Bhagavathi or Bhadrakali cult.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c2q4gw2vx2","content":[{"text":"Mudiyettu is a traditional ritual theatre and folk dance drama from Kerala that enacts the mythological tale of a battle between the goddess Kali and the demon Darika. The ritual is a part of the Bhagavathi or Bhadrakali cult. The dance is performed in Bhadrakali temples, the temples of the Mother Goddess, between February and May after the harvesting season.\nIn 2010 Mudiyettu was inscribed in the UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, becoming the second art form from Kerala after Koodiyattam.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d606fd21-109c-485c-8fb5-52557d3aa2f5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Kali-Darika myth","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"a3tw7k3h8a","content":[{"text":"Darika was a demon who received a boon from Brahma which granted that he would never be defeated by any man living in any of the fourteen worlds of Hindu mythology. This made Darika immensely powerful and arrogant. Armed with this boon, Darika went on to conquer the world defeating even Indra, the king of the gods. As his atrocities became intolerable, the sage Narada requested Shiva to contain Darika. Shiva agreed, circumventing Brahma's boon by declaring that Darika would be killed by the goddess Kali, she being a woman and one not to be counted among men from fourteen worlds.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d606fd21-109c-485c-8fb5-52557d3aa2f5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Features of Mudiyettu","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fyedtpnb63","content":[{"text":"Mudiyettu is a village ritual performed by members of the Marar and Kuruppu communities in Thrissur, Ernakulam, Kottayam and Idukki districts of Kerala. However, the entire community contributes to and participates in it. Mudiyettu is performed annually in ‘Bhagavati Kavus’, the temples of the goddess, in different villages along the rivers Chalakkudy Puzha, Periyar and Moovattupuzha.\nThere is no rehearsal or preparation involved in playing Kali. The performance is a natural progression from Shiva, Narada, demons Danavan and Darikan to Kali. A complete Mudiyettu performance requires a total of 16 persons— including percussionists, Kalamezhuthu artists, vocalists. There are also evident regional differences in the attire and performance styles of Mudiyettu. Thus, in the Koratty style, Kali  exhibits a bare torso, covered only by a breast-shaped plank while in the Kunnayckal, Keezhillam and the Pazhoor styles, she wears a full upper body dress. Similarly, in the Koratty style, Darika's mudi resembles the Kathakali crown and his face paint the Kathi Veshas of Kathakali. This points to how the two forms have become interlinked even though Mudiyettu predates Kathakali, with epigraphists tracing its evolution as an art to even the 9th or 10th century AD.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d606fd21-109c-485c-8fb5-52557d3aa2f5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"The role of the community","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"avsapf4kr1","content":[{"text":"Mudiyettu is a communal undertaking in which each caste of the village plays a specific role. The bamboo artefacts and leather hides for drums are provided by the Parayan caste while the Thandan caste brings the areca nut fronds that are required for the masks and headgears. The Ganakan community paints the masks while the Kuruvan community keeps the country torches burning. It is the Veluthedan (Patiyan) caste that washes the clothes used for making the deity’'s dress while the Maran caste readies the torches and keeps them supplied with oil.\nThus each caste in the village contributes to the festival according to its traditional caste role. Mutual cooperation and collective participation of each caste in the ritual instills and strengthens common identity and mutual bonding in the community.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d606fd21-109c-485c-8fb5-52557d3aa2f5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Transmitting and conserving Mudiyettu","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"p0fybb08ye","content":[{"text":"Being a community based art form it is the community that has traditionally encouraged and trained the next generation to preserve the art form. There is no school or institution to give training in this art form and its survival depends almost exclusively on direct transmission through the Guru-Shishya Parampara. In 2010 Mudiyettu was inscribed in the UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity due to its role in \"transmission of traditional values, ethics, moral codes and aesthetic norms of the community to the next generation.\"","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d606fd21-109c-485c-8fb5-52557d3aa2f5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rtbf96z2z8","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Mudiyettu”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d606fd21-109c-485c-8fb5-52557d3aa2f5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qnzreapzf6","content":[{"text":"Mudiyettu is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bb5a6aae-633c-42cb-b94b-c423c35adca5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"y81sp3zexa","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bb5a6aae-633c-42cb-b94b-c423c35adca5"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Mudiyettu is a ritual art originated years before kathakali and many other classical art forms of kerala,it has it’s deep roots in Kerala folklore.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e3/Mudiyettu.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Rajiv samoohamadom","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Mudiyettu is a ritual art originated years before kathakali and many other classical art forms of kerala,it has it’s deep roots in Kerala folklore.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e3/Mudiyettu.jpg/960px-Mudiyettu.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mudiyettu.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e3/Mudiyettu.jpg/1280px-Mudiyettu.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Mudiyettu is a folk art form performing in central part of Kerala, in connection with temple festivals. The performance was based on the Kaali - Darika war. Image was taken from a portion of the performance called Kaali purappadu.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/66/Mudiyettu_-_Kaalipurappadu.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Akhilesh Prabhakar","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Mudiyettu is a folk art form performing in central part of Kerala, in connection with temple festivals. The performance was based on the Kaali - Darika war. Image was taken from a portion of the performance called Kaali purappadu.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/66/Mudiyettu_-_Kaalipurappadu.jpg/960px-Mudiyettu_-_Kaalipurappadu.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mudiyettu_-_Kaalipurappadu.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/66/Mudiyettu_-_Kaalipurappadu.jpg/1280px-Mudiyettu_-_Kaalipurappadu.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"This is a Hindu art form in Central Kerala","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c6/Mudiyettu_Kozhippilly_04.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Arjunpssaji2002","height":1600,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"This is a Hindu art form in Central Kerala","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c6/Mudiyettu_Kozhippilly_04.jpg/960px-Mudiyettu_Kozhippilly_04.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mudiyettu_Kozhippilly_04.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c6/Mudiyettu_Kozhippilly_04.jpg/1280px-Mudiyettu_Kozhippilly_04.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:15.462Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/mudiyettu"}
{"id":"db25a37f-0ed2-4a4f-b1e2-3bd21e5b7eea","type":"art_form","slug":"mugo","title":"Mugo","summary":"Mugo (Korean: 무고) is a jeongjae (정재; 呈才): a Korean court dance performed using drums. It was created in the Goryeo period. It also practiced in ritual dance of Seungjeonmu.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"p24h1jyxc3","content":[{"text":"Mugo (Korean: 무고) is a jeongjae (정재; 呈才): a Korean court dance performed using drums. It was created in the Goryeo period. It also practiced in ritual dance of Seungjeonmu. Its name comprises the two words, mu (무, 舞) and go (고, 鼓) literally meaning dance and drum in Korean respectively.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d2190fad-a474-4c8c-948a-81bfc8ccc10c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origins","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"727zqgpx0x","content":[{"text":"According to \"Akji\" (악지, 樂志), two books from \"Goryeosa\" (고려사 高麗史) which describe the music of Goryeo dynasty, mugo originated from a government officer, Lee Hon (hangul:이혼, Hanja:李混) during the reign of King Chungnyeol (reign. 1274 – 1308). While being exiled to Yonghae (영해, 寧海), a coastal region in North Gyeongsang Province, Lee Hon one day made a large drum of a log raft and played it while dancing. Later this dance was transmitted to the Joseon dynasty and was performed at various events of the Korean palaces and local government offices.\nThere has always been changes in the performance of \"Mugo\" per each time period since the Goryeo dynasty. The performance was played by Gisaeng who was hitting the drum and singing the song of Jeongeupsa (정읍사 井邑詞). As the number of drums changes, the number of Gisaeng also changes. Depending on the number of drums, the name also changed to two-drum dance, four-drum dance and eight-drum dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d2190fad-a474-4c8c-948a-81bfc8ccc10c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Forms","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"epqx7ejedb","content":[{"text":"Eight dancers perform with one large drum placed on the center of the stage. The main dancers called wonmu (원무), and the assisting dancers called hyeopmu (협무). Four dancers hold a drumstick in each hand, surround and play the drum; the others, holding a flower-shaped stick in each hand, form an outer circle. The dancers wear a jacket of which the color represents a certain direction: black-north, red-south, blue-east, and white-west.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d2190fad-a474-4c8c-948a-81bfc8ccc10c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Music","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kwnjw8cm9j","content":[{"text":"Mugo is accompanied with court music Dongdongok (동돈곡) and Muaegok (무애곡) during the Goryeo period.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d2190fad-a474-4c8c-948a-81bfc8ccc10c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8ktjtetzkc","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Mugo”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d2190fad-a474-4c8c-948a-81bfc8ccc10c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"d3xt8shenz","content":[{"text":"Mugo is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f1e1a18f-98d8-4f5d-b7db-84a7a3a7b858"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9n8cg77vnr","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f1e1a18f-98d8-4f5d-b7db-84a7a3a7b858"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Pinus mugo in Belmeken near Yakoruda in Bulgaria","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/49/Pinus_mugo_kz10.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Krzysztof Ziarnek, Kenraiz","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Pinus mugo in Belmeken near Yakoruda in Bulgaria","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/49/Pinus_mugo_kz10.jpg/960px-Pinus_mugo_kz10.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pinus_mugo_kz10.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/49/Pinus_mugo_kz10.jpg/1280px-Pinus_mugo_kz10.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Pinus mugo in Bansko in Bulgaria","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/57/Pinus_mugo_kz06.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Krzysztof Ziarnek, Kenraiz","height":1707,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Pinus mugo in Bansko in Bulgaria","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/57/Pinus_mugo_kz06.jpg/960px-Pinus_mugo_kz06.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pinus_mugo_kz06.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/57/Pinus_mugo_kz06.jpg/1280px-Pinus_mugo_kz06.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Pinus mugo in Belmeken near Yakoruda in Bulgaria","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bd/Pinus_mugo_kz09.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Krzysztof Ziarnek, Kenraiz","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Pinus mugo in Belmeken near Yakoruda in Bulgaria","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bd/Pinus_mugo_kz09.jpg/960px-Pinus_mugo_kz09.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pinus_mugo_kz09.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bd/Pinus_mugo_kz09.jpg/1280px-Pinus_mugo_kz09.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:06.589Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/mugo"}
{"id":"a2240f3c-4c81-42ee-ab86-1d2e3bd7d9ce","type":"art_form","slug":"mujra","title":"Mujra","summary":"Mujra is a dance performance that emerged during Mughal rule in Indian subcontinent, where the elite class and local rulers like the nawabs (often connected to the Mughal emperor's court) used to frequent tawaifs (courtesans) for entertainm…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tf6nxn4vhm","content":[{"text":"Mujra is a dance performance that emerged during Mughal rule in Indian subcontinent, where the elite class and local rulers like the nawabs (often connected to the Mughal emperor's court) used to frequent tawaifs (courtesans) for entertainment.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"19e1bcb5-68e8-4636-bf25-96c27267422c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Background and history","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0wbk7vesy6","content":[{"text":"It combines elements of the Indian classical Kathak dance with Hindustani classical music including thumris and ghazals. It also includes poems from other Mughal periods like the emperors from Akbar to Bahadur Shah Zafar's ruling periods. Mujra was traditionally performed at mehfils and in special houses called kothas. During Mughal rule in the subcontinent, in places such as Delhi, Lucknow, Jaipur, Lahore the tradition of performing mujra was a family art and often passed down from mother to daughter. These courtesans or tawaifs had some power and prestige due to their access to the elite class and some of them came to be known as authorities on culture. Some noble families would send their sons to them to learn etiquette and the art of conversation from them. They were sometimes called Nautch girls which included dancers, singers and playmates of their patron nawabs.\nIn Lahore, Mughal Empire's Heera Mandi neighbourhood, the profession was a cross between art and exotic dance, with the performers often serving as courtesans amongst Mughal royalty or wealthy patrons. \"The wealthy even sent their sons to the salons of tawaifs, high-class courtesans that have been likened to Japanese geishas, to study etiquette.\"\nMujra dance consolidates elements of classical Kathak dance with local music, including thumris and ghazals. It also incorporates poetry from the Mughal era. True mujra is elegant, sophisticated and artistic, presented with taste and elegance. In the past, tawaifs would also be invited to perform mujra on important occasions such as marriage or the birth of a male heir. During the British colonial period, some tawaifs became prostitute and some prostitutes also called their erotic dances mujra dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"19e1bcb5-68e8-4636-bf25-96c27267422c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Present day","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"e20nj2f6e8","content":[{"text":"Modern Mujra dancers perform at events like weddings, birthday and bachelor parties in countries where traditional Mughal culture is prevalent, such as Pakistan. To a lesser extent, dancers in Pakistan often perform a modern form of mujra along with popular local music.\nIn 2005, when dance bars were closed across Maharashtra state, many former bar girls moved to 'Congress House' near Kennedy Bridge on Grant Road area in Mumbai, the city's oldest hub for mujra, and started performing mujra there. The women are trained in mujra in Agra of India and Lahore and Karachi of Pakistan. Dawn newspaper, Karachi, describes Lahore's Heera Mandi area as, \"Pakistan's oldest red light district was for centuries, a hub of traditional erotic dancers, musicians and prostitutes.\"\nIn many areas of the Indian subcontinent, they are called by different names – for example they are called tawaifs in North India and Pakistan (in Hindi and Urdu-speaking areas), baijis in Bengal, and naikins in Goa.\nMost women hope for an international dance career or South Asian dance career at a film studio.\nMujra in the Marathi, Urdu and Hindi languages means:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"19e1bcb5-68e8-4636-bf25-96c27267422c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ms5r7pjy9t","content":[{"text":"Payment of respects\nMusical performance by a dancing-girl\nTo salute deferentially","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"19e1bcb5-68e8-4636-bf25-96c27267422c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"In popular culture","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pxt9a5kywe","content":[{"text":"Mujra has been depicted in Bollywood films like Mehndi (1958), Mughal-e-Azam (1960), Pakeezah (1972), Umrao Jaan (1981), Zindagi Ya Toofan (1958) and Devdas (1955), or in other films that show the past Mughal rule and its culture. The dance is upscaled and taught with more dance choreography to make the female dancer more fluent in her moves and to be more artistic and feminine. The women are usually the center of the public eye and can dance and entertain the audience for a long time.\nIt has also been depicted in the Indian television series Heeramandi.\nIn Pakistan's Lollywood films like Anjuman (1970), one can see many mujra dances being performed before the movie is over while in Pakistani dramas such as Deewar-e-Shab (2019) and Umrao Jaan Ada (2003), there were also several Mujra performances.\nA documentary about mujra dancers called Showgirls of Pakistan was released globally in 2021. It is a feature-length documentary directed by Pakistani film maker Saad Khan.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"19e1bcb5-68e8-4636-bf25-96c27267422c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6vrvg02efq","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Mujra”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"19e1bcb5-68e8-4636-bf25-96c27267422c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kscf08zgz8","content":[{"text":"Mujra is Indian Dance Form, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"86a91b9b-9800-4ac9-a53b-12b71ef39664"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jhkx4crdqw","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"86a91b9b-9800-4ac9-a53b-12b71ef39664"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Mujra is the Talk of the Town because it is a captivating blend of classical dance and storytelling ,a deep-rooted art form that resonates with Indian culture. & an unparalleled sensory experience that leaves guests in awe.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cd/Mujra_%28Classical_%29_Dancer.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"TAPAS KUMAR HALDER","height":937,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Mujra is the Talk of the Town because it is a captivating blend of classical dance and storytelling ,a deep-rooted art form that resonates with Indian culture. & an unparalleled sensory experience that leaves guests in awe.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cd/Mujra_%28Classical_%29_Dancer.jpg/960px-Mujra_%28Classical_%29_Dancer.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mujra_(Classical_)_Dancer.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cd/Mujra_%28Classical_%29_Dancer.jpg/1280px-Mujra_%28Classical_%29_Dancer.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Mujra is the Talk of the Town because it is a captivating blend of classical dance and storytelling ,a deep-rooted art form that resonates with Indian culture. & an unparalleled sensory experience that leaves guests in awe.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c4/Mujra_Dancer_look.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"TAPAS KUMAR HALDER","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Mujra is the Talk of the Town because it is a captivating blend of classical dance and storytelling ,a deep-rooted art form that resonates with Indian culture. & an unparalleled sensory experience that leaves guests in awe.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c4/Mujra_Dancer_look.jpg/960px-Mujra_Dancer_look.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mujra_Dancer_look.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c4/Mujra_Dancer_look.jpg/1280px-Mujra_Dancer_look.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Baradari also Bara Dari (Urdu: بارہ دری‬‎) is a building or pavilion with 12 doors designed to allow free flow of air. The structure has three doorways on every side of the square-shaped structure. Because of their outstanding acoustic features, these buildings were particularly…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/33/Inner_view_of_Baraari%28bara_dari%29_Sheranwala_Garden%2CGujranwala%2CPunjab_%2CPakistan.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Muhammad Zubair Zaibi","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Baradari also Bara Dari (Urdu: بارہ دری‬‎) is a building or pavilion with 12 doors designed to allow free flow of air. The structure has three doorways on every side of the square-shaped structure. Because of their outstanding acoustic features, these buildings were particularly…","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/33/Inner_view_of_Baraari%28bara_dari%29_Sheranwala_Garden%2CGujranwala%2CPunjab_%2CPakistan.jpg/960px-Inner_view_of_Baraari%28bara_dari%29_Sheranwala_Garden%2CGujranwala%2CPunjab_%2CPakistan.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Inner_view_of_Baraari(bara_dari)_Sheranwala_Garden,Gujranwala,Punjab_,Pakistan.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/33/Inner_view_of_Baraari%28bara_dari%29_Sheranwala_Garden%2CGujranwala%2CPunjab_%2CPakistan.jpg/1280px-Inner_view_of_Baraari%28bara_dari%29_Sheranwala_Garden%2CGujranwala%2CPunjab_%2CPakistan.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-09T05:47:26.730Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/mujra"}
{"id":"319284c1-f735-4dfa-bed7-d99d85f45ed6","type":"art_form","slug":"mushono-dainembutsu-dance","title":"Mushono-Dainembutsu dance","summary":"Mushono-Dainembutsu dance is type of dance. This page is a machine-generated stub awaiting review by someone who knows the tradition.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"my1gsz047b","content":[{"text":"Mushono-Dainembutsu dance is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bae4bcbb-5fb4-45af-bb53-0a085ac0711d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nrtvymeb7p","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 4 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bae4bcbb-5fb4-45af-bb53-0a085ac0711d"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T07:23:11.466Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/mushono-dainembutsu-dance"}
{"id":"f4b98904-b47c-4b9d-83e9-8c0fbae77c08","type":"art_form","slug":"muthappan","title":"Muthappan","summary":"Muthappan  is a deity commonly worshipped in the Northern Region of Kerala in India.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vafka3syr6","content":[{"text":"Muthappan  is a deity commonly worshipped in the Northern Region of Kerala in India. Muthappan is considered as the personification of two gods Thirvappan or Valiya Muthapan  and the  Vellatom or Cheriya Muthapan worshipped in ancestral form. All the puja rituals and rites for Muthappan are performed by the Thiyyar community of Malabar, as Muthappan is regarded as the Kulapoorvikan (clan ancestor) of the Thiyyar community in Malabar.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"113b10cc-7115-434a-9577-2c82ea3c8bf7"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ssf5txp3wa","content":[{"text":"A shrine where Muthappan is worshipped is known as a Madappura. \nThe Parassinikadavu Madappura is the most important temple to the deity.\nPractices in Muthappan temples are quite distinct from those in other Hindu temples of Kerala.The rituals are related to Shakteyam where Panja-ma-kara are offered, sometimes including madyam (in this case, Toddy) and mamsam (generally flesh, in this case fish). Muthappan is worshipped in the form of Theyyam and is not represented through a traditional prathishta (consecrated idol). As such, Madappuras, the shrines dedicated to Muthappan, do not contain idol forms or structures such as the kodimaram (temple flagstaff), which are commonly found in conventional Hindu temples.\nWhile most temples in Kerala traditionally restrict entry to non-Hindus, Muthappan temples are known for their inclusivity, allowing entry to devotees regardless of caste or religion.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"113b10cc-7115-434a-9577-2c82ea3c8bf7"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Myths and legends","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jqkjrmh0e7","content":[{"text":"Muthappan is believed to be the personification of two divine figures: Thiruvappana and Vellatom. The dual divine figures, Thiruvappana and Vellatom, are similar to those of the Theyyamkaliyattem of the northern Malabar region. Though worshipped as a single deity, they represent an integrated or unified form of two gods: Shiva, during the creation of Kaalabhairavan (static) and Kaalabhairavan, the fierce form of Shiva (kinetic).\nSri Muthappan's Theyyams are performed year-round whereas other Theyyams are seasonal (lasting October to May).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"113b10cc-7115-434a-9577-2c82ea3c8bf7"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Parassinikkadavu Muthappan","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"stwk2255j5","content":[{"text":"The Muthappan cult is believed to have originated in Eruvessy, a village located in the hilly eastern region of Kannur district, in northern Kerala. Eruvessy lies in the remote valley hills of the Kodagu (Coorg) mountains in the Western Ghats. A significant site associated with the origin of the cult is the Paddikutty Devi Temple, where the goddess is revered as the foster mother of Sree Muthappan. This temple is situated near the palaces of Mutedath Aramana and Elayidath Aramana, which belonged to the anjaramanakkal (of 5 aramanas or royal house) Mannanar dynasty of Eruvessy, believed to be the last Thiyya dynasty in Kerala. Ruins of this palace are still visible today along the banks of the Eruvessy River.\nThe traditional narrative associated with Parassinikkadavu Muthappan, one of the most prominent shrines dedicated to the deity, recounts the divine origin of Muthappan. Ayyankara Vazhunavar, a nobleman, was distressed by the absence of a child. His wife, Padikuttyamma, was a devout follower of Lord Shiva.\nAyyankara Vazhunavar, was unhappy, as he had no child. His wife, Padikutty Antharjanam, was a devotee of Lord Shiva. She made a sacrifice to Shiva for children. One day in her dream she saw the Lord. The very next day, while she was returning after a bath from a nearby river, she saw a pretty child lying on a rock nearby. She took the child home and she and her husband brought Him up as their own son.\nThe boy used to visit the jungle near their house for hunting with His bow and arrows. He would then take food to the poor and mingle with local communities. As these acts were against the way of brahmin life, his parents earnestly requested he stop this practice, but the boy turned a deaf ear to their warnings.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"113b10cc-7115-434a-9577-2c82ea3c8bf7"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Sree Muthappan and dogs","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9qtsffqm57","content":[{"text":"Sree Muthappan is always accompanied by a dog and large numbers of dogs reside in and around the temple.\nThere are two carved bronze dogs at the entrance of the temple that are believed to symbolize the bodyguards of the God. When the Prasad is ready, it is first served to a dog that is always ready inside the temple complex.\nLocal legends enhance the importance of dogs to Sree Muthappan, such as the story that follows:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"113b10cc-7115-434a-9577-2c82ea3c8bf7"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3n692nxpmk","content":[{"text":"A few years ago, temple authorities decided to reduce the number of dogs inside the temple; so they took some dogs and puppies away. From that very day, the performer of the Sree Muthappan Theyyam was unable to perform; it is said that the spirit of Sree Muthappan enters the performer's body for the duration of the ceremony. But he probably refused to enter the Theyyam performer's body because the dogs had been removed. Realizing their mistake, the dogs were brought back to the temple by the temple authorities. From that day onwards, Theyyam performances returned to normal.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"113b10cc-7115-434a-9577-2c82ea3c8bf7"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Festival procession","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6pq14kf9sz","content":[{"text":"Tradition requires that the annual Ulsavam festival of the Muthappan Temple at Parassinikkadavu start by a procession led by a male member of the Thayyil clan of Thayyil from Thiyya community, Kannur from the family home to the main altar of the temple, where he offers a 'Pooja' (prayer) to the God.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"113b10cc-7115-434a-9577-2c82ea3c8bf7"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Local traditions in Kannur and Kasaragod","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"32hakk7a2a","content":[{"text":"Several Muthappan temples exist in Kannur and Kasaragod districts in Kerala and Coorg district in Karnataka and several temples have been built by migrated devotees in Coimbatore Bangalore, Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Delhi, Chennai, and also in the Gulf countries due to the popularity of the god among the people of North Malabar, Kerala and Coorg. Each Madappura has its own traditions.\nOne notable local tradition relating to God Muthappan is about the construction of the Nileshwar Muthappan Madappura. An elder member of the Koroth family regularly visited the site that now houses the Muthappan temple and drank madhu (toddy). He was a famous scholar and held the title of Ezhuthachan for his achievements as a teacher. Before drinking madhu, he would often pour a few drops on the nearby jackfruit tree as an offering for Muthappan. Several years after the death of the scholar, the locals experienced serious problems and called upon an astrologer for assistance in finding out the cause. The astrologer concluded that, as a result of the regular practice of giving madhu to God Muthappan, the God had started residing there. After the death of the scholar, he no longer got madhu and, in a fit of pique, began creating disturbances. Thus, the locals erected a Muthappan temple on the site with the Koroth family as the patrons of the temple.\nThe temple has developed as a famous centre of pilgrimage and hundreds of people visit it daily. There is a strong belief that the God can cure all diseases and will bestow prosperity on his devotees. The devotees get Payakutti from the temple, and it continues to develop as a great centre of pilgrimage like the Sree Muthappan temple at Parassinikadavu.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"113b10cc-7115-434a-9577-2c82ea3c8bf7"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ddnq3fqm8d","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Muthappan”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"113b10cc-7115-434a-9577-2c82ea3c8bf7"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ye90hrgxqb","content":[{"text":"Muthappan is Hindu deity, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"61844783-28a5-423b-bc72-43e7ac3c6a71"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pm3a1a01pj","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"61844783-28a5-423b-bc72-43e7ac3c6a71"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"പറശ്ശിനിക്കടവ് ശ്രീ മുത്തപ്പൻ","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/21/%E0%B4%AE%E0%B5%81%E0%B4%A4%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%A4%E0%B4%AA%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%AA%E0%B5%BB.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Kuttappan Chettan","height":1920,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"പറശ്ശിനിക്കടവ് ശ്രീ മുത്തപ്പൻ","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/21/%E0%B4%AE%E0%B5%81%E0%B4%A4%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%A4%E0%B4%AA%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%AA%E0%B5%BB.jpg/960px-%E0%B4%AE%E0%B5%81%E0%B4%A4%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%A4%E0%B4%AA%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%AA%E0%B5%BB.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:%E0%B4%AE%E0%B5%81%E0%B4%A4%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%A4%E0%B4%AA%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%AA%E0%B5%BB.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/21/%E0%B4%AE%E0%B5%81%E0%B4%A4%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%A4%E0%B4%AA%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%AA%E0%B5%BB.jpg/1280px-%E0%B4%AE%E0%B5%81%E0%B4%A4%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%A4%E0%B4%AA%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%AA%E0%B5%BB.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Snap from Muthappan Temple, Parassinikkadavu, Kannur, Kerala","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/69/Snap_from_Parassinikkadavu_Muthappan_Temple_1406.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Rameshng","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Snap from Muthappan Temple, Parassinikkadavu, Kannur, Kerala","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/69/Snap_from_Parassinikkadavu_Muthappan_Temple_1406.jpg/960px-Snap_from_Parassinikkadavu_Muthappan_Temple_1406.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Snap_from_Parassinikkadavu_Muthappan_Temple_1406.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/69/Snap_from_Parassinikkadavu_Muthappan_Temple_1406.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail_unscaled","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"},{"alt":"മുത്തപ്പൻ മല രാജപുരം","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d8/%E0%B4%AE%E0%B5%81%E0%B4%A4%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%A4%E0%B4%AA%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%AA%E0%B5%BB._%E0%B4%97%E0%B5%81%E0%B4%B3%E0%B4%BF%E0%B4%95%E0%B5%BB.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Kuttappan Chettan","height":1920,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"മുത്തപ്പൻ മല രാജപുരം","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d8/%E0%B4%AE%E0%B5%81%E0%B4%A4%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%A4%E0%B4%AA%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%AA%E0%B5%BB._%E0%B4%97%E0%B5%81%E0%B4%B3%E0%B4%BF%E0%B4%95%E0%B5%BB.jpg/960px-%E0%B4%AE%E0%B5%81%E0%B4%A4%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%A4%E0%B4%AA%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%AA%E0%B5%BB._%E0%B4%97%E0%B5%81%E0%B4%B3%E0%B4%BF%E0%B4%95%E0%B5%BB.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:%E0%B4%AE%E0%B5%81%E0%B4%A4%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%A4%E0%B4%AA%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%AA%E0%B5%BB._%E0%B4%97%E0%B5%81%E0%B4%B3%E0%B4%BF%E0%B4%95%E0%B5%BB.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d8/%E0%B4%AE%E0%B5%81%E0%B4%A4%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%A4%E0%B4%AA%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%AA%E0%B5%BB._%E0%B4%97%E0%B5%81%E0%B4%B3%E0%B4%BF%E0%B4%95%E0%B5%BB.jpg/1280px-%E0%B4%AE%E0%B5%81%E0%B4%A4%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%A4%E0%B4%AA%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%AA%E0%B5%BB._%E0%B4%97%E0%B5%81%E0%B4%B3%E0%B4%BF%E0%B4%95%E0%B5%BB.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:26.930Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/muthappan"}
{"id":"1ec21ae2-e581-417b-bcf0-21dafc2080be","type":"art_form","slug":"nati","title":"Nati","summary":"Nati (नाटी) is a traditional folk dance in the Western and Central Hills of the Indian subcontinent. It is primarily native to the states of Himachal Pradesh.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xhjjhqqzc9","content":[{"text":"Nati (नाटी) is a traditional folk dance in the Western and Central Hills of the Indian subcontinent. It is primarily native to the states of Himachal Pradesh. Nati is traditionally performed in the  Kullu, Mandi,  Shimla, Sirmaur, Chamba, Kinnaur. Due to high immigration of ethnic paharis in the plainlands, this has been made popular in the plainlands too. Traditionally, locals dance to the beats of percussion instruments called Dhol-Damau. Nati dance is listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as the largest folk dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aa3a5456-4183-470d-8985-120de3ff7ee5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Varieties","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"spzzkr9c4d","content":[{"text":"There are several varieties of Nati performed like  Kullvi Nati, Mahasuvi Nati, Sirmauri Nati, Kinnauri Nati, Jaunpuri Nati, Barada Nati, Bangani Nati. It is also sometimes called Tandi, specially in Jaunsar-Bawar. People of Lahaul district have their own distinct dance called \"Garphi\" and Nati is not a part of Lahauli culture. The Kinnauri Nati dance is mime-like and includes languid sequences.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aa3a5456-4183-470d-8985-120de3ff7ee5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Performance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bmjekvj13j","content":[{"text":"The various Nati dance variations are inspired from the stories of Raaslila and Chandravali. The dance is associated with Hindu deities, and is performed on almost all joyous occasions such as birth, weddings, crop harvest, and religious festivals such as Dussehra and Diwali. \nNati used to be performed by males in the past; however, women are mostly involved in taking the traditional dance form ahead. There are no restrictions on the number of people who can perform Nati. It is performed in circles or semi-circles, and the line moves forward and backward depending upon the steps. The group is usually led by male dancers carrying a fly whisk (locally chowrie) or Axe (locally Dangru). The dancers hold hands of alternate person which makes a ‘criss-cross’ visual of hands and arrange themselves in one of the two patterns, either men and women standing alternatively or a whole line of men and then women or vice versa, and move in a circle or semi-circle with simple dance steps consisting mainly of coordinated footsteps. These footsteps variates as per the location where Nati is being performed, but has one basic set of 8 steps that is followed everywhere with basic (slow) tempo of Nati. Talking about the variation, as differing footsteps, arrangement of hands can also differ. Nati is also performed without knitting hands, where hands are swayed free in air with coordinated footsteps, palm folding in a manner which makes a horizontal ‘8’.  The dance tempo varies with the music; it usually starts slowly and picks up pace as the tempo of musical beats increase. The songs are woven with stories of old folklore. \nIf Nati is performed in a sacred occasion, a yagna is performed in the end to pay homage to the deities.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aa3a5456-4183-470d-8985-120de3ff7ee5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Costumes","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3cdsy29zx8","content":[{"text":"Costumes for Nati differ as per districts of Himachal Pradesh.\nMale performers of Nati usually wear Himachali topi (caps), suthan (tight woollen pants), kurta, Nehru Jacket with muffler or Gachi (long muffler like cloth draped around the waist). The topis are often adorned with flowers and/or seeds of Indian Trumpet in Kinnaur. Though different regions have variations to this general costume, for example in Kullu, men have special headwear made up of flower garlands, and in Sirmaur, men wear special choltu (swirling tunics). \nWomen performers of Nati usually wear vibrant suit-salwar, Sadri (traditional women’s jacket), Dhattu (traditional head scarf), jewellery with Gachi. Though again this costume differ as per region of Himachal, for example, in Kullu, women are seen wearing a shirt which is adorned with a one-piece drape known as Pattu, along with traditional jewelleries like Chandrahaar, bumni, jhanjhar etc. Kinnauri dress of women is entirely different, worn with traditional heavy jewellery and multiple draping clothes. In Shimla District, Rezta/Rejta which is a two-piece apparel with a skirt and a blouse (or it can be made into a one-piece garment) is worn by women along with Sadri and Dhattu. Now Reztas are famous amongst women performers all over Himachal and outside Himachal. \nBoth men & women performers dance with a handkerchief tied to their right hand index finger (varies), and wear handmade traditional footwear known as pullas.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aa3a5456-4183-470d-8985-120de3ff7ee5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Musical instruments","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"51064cx751","content":[{"text":"Some of the musical instruments used in Nati dances are dhol (drums), karnal (a longish horn), narsingha or narsinghe (a horn), shehnai, and nagara (drums). In the local language, the musicians are known as tunis.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aa3a5456-4183-470d-8985-120de3ff7ee5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Records","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"75th124rh0","content":[{"text":"Sirmouri Natti has been entered in India Books of Record, Asia Book of Records and in the world book of records. Under the leadership and directions of Dr. Joginder Singh Habbi from Sirmour District cultural Group has made a World record by winning folk dance competition 10 times consecutively.\nThe Nati Dance in the second week of January 2016 was listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as the largest folk dance in the world. Nati entered in the book as the largest folk dance in terms of participants’ number. Total 9892 women participated in this folk dance in their traditional colourful Kullvi dress on 26 October 2015 during International Dussehra festival.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aa3a5456-4183-470d-8985-120de3ff7ee5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kk262mjeaj","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Nati (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aa3a5456-4183-470d-8985-120de3ff7ee5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gmpa0q1a3e","content":[{"text":"Nati is historical folk dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1f18a241-134e-4727-b9a9-13d16cc9a3c5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4274cwhyc1","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1f18a241-134e-4727-b9a9-13d16cc9a3c5"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Memorial Cross at Punta Nati","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/ca/Memorial_Cross_-_Punta_Nati_2.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Jokulhlaup","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Memorial Cross at Punta Nati","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/ca/Memorial_Cross_-_Punta_Nati_2.jpg/960px-Memorial_Cross_-_Punta_Nati_2.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Memorial_Cross_-_Punta_Nati_2.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/ca/Memorial_Cross_-_Punta_Nati_2.jpg/1280px-Memorial_Cross_-_Punta_Nati_2.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Memorial Cross at Punta Nati","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a7/Memorial_Cross_-_Punta_Nati_1.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Jokulhlaup","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Memorial Cross at Punta Nati","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a7/Memorial_Cross_-_Punta_Nati_1.jpg/960px-Memorial_Cross_-_Punta_Nati_1.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Memorial_Cross_-_Punta_Nati_1.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a7/Memorial_Cross_-_Punta_Nati_1.jpg/1280px-Memorial_Cross_-_Punta_Nati_1.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Nati Mistral","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c3/Nati_Mistral_01.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Unknown author Unknown author","height":1453,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Nati Mistral","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c3/Nati_Mistral_01.JPG/960px-Nati_Mistral_01.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Nati_Mistral_01.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c3/Nati_Mistral_01.JPG/1280px-Nati_Mistral_01.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:30.708Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/nati"}
{"id":"2a18298c-c81d-4117-a470-8b101caeb546","type":"art_form","slug":"national-football-league-cheerleading","title":"National Football League Cheerleading","summary":"Twenty-five of the thirty-two National Football League (NFL) teams have cheerleading squads who perform on the sideline during games. In 1954, the Baltimore Colts became the first NFL team to have cheerleaders.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"h7a9dfrjrg","content":[{"text":"Twenty-five of the thirty-two National Football League (NFL) teams have cheerleading squads who perform on the sideline during games. In 1954, the Baltimore Colts became the first NFL team to have cheerleaders. Apart from the New York Giants, every current NFL franchise has had cheerleaders at some point in its history.\nCheerleading in the NFL is a part-time job. In addition to their main duties of cheering during football games, cheerleaders may have other responsibilities related to marketing the team for which they cheer, such as paid appearances, photoshoots, and charity events.\nAs well as being a mainstay of American football culture, cheerleaders are one of the biggest entertainment groups to regularly perform for the United States Armed Forces overseas with performances and tours being enlisted by the United Service Organizations (USO). Teams send their variety show, an elite group of their best members, to perform combination shows of dance, music, baton twirling, acrobatics, gymnastics, and more. In 1996, the San Francisco 49ers Cheerleaders and their director helicoptered into Bosnia and Herzegovina during the Bosnian War with the USO and the U.S. Army. In February 2007, the Buffalo Bills sent a squad of eight along with their choreographer into the warzone of Iraq. The U.S. troops in Korea have been entertained during the holiday season with the USO's Bob Hope Tour.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"504ed6d7-aa6b-4592-8b16-af4985697836"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Teams without cheerleaders","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"x08x0k7w2g","content":[{"text":"As of 2025, seven teams do not have cheerleading squads: the Buffalo Bills, Chicago Bears, Cleveland Browns, Los Angeles Chargers, New York Giants, New York Jets, and Pittsburgh Steelers. The Giants are the only existing NFL franchise that has never had cheerleaders.\nThe Buffalo Bills endorsed the officially independent Buffalo Jills from 1966 to 2013; when several cheerleaders sued both the Bills and the Jills organizations, the Jills suspended operations.\nBecause the Packers' cheerleading squads only perform at home games, Super Bowl XLV between the Steelers and the Packers was the first Super Bowl to not feature cheerleaders.\nTeams of \"unofficial\" cheerleaders began emerging in 2010 for NFL teams that did not have their own dance squad. These unofficial cheerleaders are not sanctioned by the NFL or any franchise in the NFL and therefore are not allowed to perform at games, represent the football team at any outside functions, or use any of the team's branding or trademarked colors on their uniforms. The teams are sponsored by local businesses, and the cheerleaders perform prior to the game, at tailgate parties, and at other local events. Some also attend the local NFL games in uniform, and sit together in their block of season ticket seats. Their audition process, costuming, and choreography are very similar to official NFL cheer teams. Some also produce an annual swimsuit calendar, just like the official cheerleaders. All of the independent teams hope at some point to be embraced by the NFL as \"official\" cheerleaders of their local teams.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"504ed6d7-aa6b-4592-8b16-af4985697836"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fwtz9a82xp","content":[{"text":"The Detroit Pride Cheerleaders were the first independent professional team, put together in August 2010 to support the Lions.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"504ed6d7-aa6b-4592-8b16-af4985697836"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Male and transgender cheerleaders","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sy6tvgdge0","content":[{"text":"Glenn Welt was the first male to try out as an NFL cheerleader, doing so on May 20, 1978. The Miami Dolphins would not let him compete when he arrived at the Orange Bowl in Miami. The incident later became a nationwide news story, led to a federal anti-discrimination case, and was spoofed on a November 1979 episode of Mork & Mindy. The episode caused plans for a CBS made-for-TV movie starring Robin Williams as Welt to be scrapped, while also misrepresenting Welt and male cheerleaders in general when Williams pranced onto a football field dressed in a female outfit.\nMale NFL cheerleaders as dancers for the past few decades have been rare due to social norms and marketability. However, in 1998 the Baltimore Ravens Cheerleaders were the first squad to start using male stuntmen.\nFollowing trends in dance with popular summer dance series such as the Strictly Come Dancing franchise, So You Think You Can Dance, and World of Dance, where competitions are co-ed, in 2009, the first male dancers were added to the National Football League by the Dallas Cowboys. The Cowboys introduced the Rhythm & Blue Dancers, founded by Charlotte Jones and directed by Jenny Durbin Smith, becoming the first co-ed dance team in NFL history. They perform at every home game on stage, at halftime, and on the sidelines, with their dynamic hip-hop dancing, stunting, freestyle, and tumbling. They are also responsible for the first NFL drum corps and in 2017 created a 7–16 year old co-ed hip-hop dance team called the Dallas Cowboys Rookie Squad.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"504ed6d7-aa6b-4592-8b16-af4985697836"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Cheerleader competitions","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xpng39bcwk","content":[{"text":"The first \"Battle of the NFL Cheerleaders\" was held in 1979 in Hollywood, Florida. Two cheerleaders from each cheerleading team compete against other mini-teams in various athletic events. The events include kayaking, swimming 100-yard dash, obstacle courses, and jet skiing. The Minnesota Vikings Cheerleaders took home the title in 1979. \nIn 1980, it was held in Atlantic City, New Jersey, and the Washington Redskinettes were the champions. The winners were Shiona Baum and Jeannie Fritz, and each received a car as the grand prize. \nThe competition was resurrected in 2006 by the NFL Network and was called the NFL Cheerleader Playoffs. The playoffs were taped between July 17 and July 21, 2006, at Six Flags New England in Agawam, Massachusetts. Two-person teams of cheerleaders from 25 of the NFL's 32 teams participated in a four-event series of competitions. The first two events tested the cheerleaders' athletic abilities in events like the 100-yard dash, kayaking, tandem cycling, and the obstacle course. The third event was a trivia challenge called \"Know Your NFL.\" The final competition was a one-minute dance routine, similar to what they normally perform on NFL sidelines. The San Diego Chargers team (Casie and Shantel) defeated the Atlanta Falcons and St. Louis Rams squads to win the overall championship. The three teams finished in a three-way tie, with 210 points. The Chargers were declared the winners based on winning the dance competition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"504ed6d7-aa6b-4592-8b16-af4985697836"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Criticism and controversies","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6vbbwy638q","content":[{"text":"There have been criticisms that NFL cheerleading is sexist, is objectifying women, exploitative, and outdated.\nIn addition, several cheerleaders have sued their respective teams for violating minimum wage laws, mistreatment from management, exploitative rules and behaviors, sexual harassment, and groping. Such injustices regarding the pay and employment treatment of NFL cheerleaders were highlighted in the 2019 documentary film A Woman's Work: The NFL's Cheerleader Problem. Dallas Cowboys brand officer Charlotte Jones Anderson has acknowledged that the cheerleaders' pay was low but suggested that being part of the cheerleaders was “about being a part of something bigger than themselves. . . .","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"504ed6d7-aa6b-4592-8b16-af4985697836"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Pro Bowl","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k1rqpj2da7","content":[{"text":"A top honor for an NFL cheerleader is to be selected as a Pro Bowl cheerleader, with one from each team attending.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"504ed6d7-aa6b-4592-8b16-af4985697836"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t6nkq6s5r7","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “NFL cheerleading”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"504ed6d7-aa6b-4592-8b16-af4985697836"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pktmd8sb7z","content":[{"text":"National Football League Cheerleading is professional cheerleading organization for the NFL, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c52a1a61-7ed1-4ba2-b2cc-541d2b9cefa0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"x0sbxm83fr","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c52a1a61-7ed1-4ba2-b2cc-541d2b9cefa0"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"The Oakland Raiderettes and Junior Raiderettes at a Raiders home game against the Atlanta Falcons. The Falcons won 24-0.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f5/Raiderettes_%26_Jr._Raiderettes_at_Falcons_at_Raiders_2008-11-02_2.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"BrokenSphere","height":958,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"The Oakland Raiderettes and Junior Raiderettes at a Raiders home game against the Atlanta Falcons. The Falcons won 24-0.","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f5/Raiderettes_%26_Jr._Raiderettes_at_Falcons_at_Raiders_2008-11-02_2.JPG/960px-Raiderettes_%26_Jr._Raiderettes_at_Falcons_at_Raiders_2008-11-02_2.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Raiderettes_%26_Jr._Raiderettes_at_Falcons_at_Raiders_2008-11-02_2.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f5/Raiderettes_%26_Jr._Raiderettes_at_Falcons_at_Raiders_2008-11-02_2.JPG/1280px-Raiderettes_%26_Jr._Raiderettes_at_Falcons_at_Raiders_2008-11-02_2.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:27.265Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/national-football-league-cheerleading"}
{"id":"8e6a32de-0289-4009-b745-68a92cfdd2b0","type":"art_form","slug":"neo-burlesque","title":"neo-burlesque","summary":"Neo-burlesque, or new burlesque, is the revival and updating of the traditional American burlesque performance.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c0gwfg2hjn","content":[{"text":"Neo-burlesque, or new burlesque, is the revival and updating of the traditional American burlesque performance. Though based on the traditional burlesque art, the new form encompasses a wider range of performance styles; neo-burlesque can include anything ranging from classic striptease to modern dance to theatrical mini-dramas to comedic mayhem.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6542fd84-c584-450c-8c07-31fddc15bec6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Burlesque history","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w64e191q54","content":[{"text":"Burlesque was taken to America from Britain in the late 1860s by Lydia Thompson and her British Blondes, a troupe who spoofed traditional theatrical productions and featured ladies performing men's roles, in costumes considered revealing for the time period. American burlesque soon assimilated music hall, minstrel shows, striptease, comedy and cabaret styles to evolve from the follies of the twenties and thirties to the girlie shows of the 40s and 50s, which eventually gave way to the modern strip club. The striptease element of burlesque became subject to extensive local legislation, leading to a theatrical form that titillated without falling foul of censors.\nBy the late 1930s, a social crackdown on burlesque shows began their gradual decline. The shows had slowly changed from ensemble ribald variety performances to simple performances focusing mostly on the striptease.  In New York, Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia clamped down on burlesque, effectively putting it out of business by the early 1940s. Burlesque lingered on elsewhere in the U.S., increasingly neglected, and by the 1970s, with nudity commonplace in theatres, American burlesque reached \"its final, shabby demise\".\nDuring its declining years and afterwards, films sought to capture the spirit of American burlesque. For example, in I'm No Angel (1933), Mae West performed a burlesque act. The 1943 film Lady of Burlesque depicts the back-stage life of burlesque performers.  Pin-up girl Bettie Page's most famous features included Striporama (1953).  In such films, the girls wore revealing costumes, but there was never any nudity. The Night They Raided Minsky's (1968) celebrates classic American burlesque.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6542fd84-c584-450c-8c07-31fddc15bec6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Revival","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ggnjhgcdmq","content":[{"text":"A new generation nostalgic for the spectacle and glamour of the old times was determined to bring burlesque back. The first neo-burlesque club in NYC was the Blue Angel Cabaret, 1994. The Red Vixen Burlesque, which followed in 1998, served as a launchpad for some of the better known neo-burlesque dancers working today, including Dirty Martini and Julie Atlas Muz. Le Scandal Cabaret, founded in 2001, is a direct offshoot of the Blue Angel, and is still currently running in NYC in 2018. This revival was originally pioneered independently in the mid-1990s by Billie Madley (e.g., \"Cinema\", Tony Marando's \"Dutch Weismanns' Follies\" revue) in New York and Michelle Carr's \"The Velvet Hammer Burlesque\" troupe in Los Angeles. In addition, and throughout the country, many individual performers were incorporating aspects of burlesque in their acts. These productions, inspired by Sally Rand, Tempest Storm, Gypsy Rose Lee, Dixie Evans and Lili St. Cyr amongst others have themselves gone on to inspire a new generation of performers.\nModern burlesque has taken on many forms, but it has the common trait of honoring one or more of burlesque's previous incarnations. The acts tend to put emphasis on style and are sexy rather than sexual. A typical burlesque act usually includes striptease, expensive or garish costumes, and bawdy humor, and may incorporate elements of cabaret, circus skills, aerial silk, and more; sensuality, performance, and humor are kept in balance. Unlike professional strippers, burlesque performers often perform for fun and spend more money on costumes, rehearsal, and props than they are compensated.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6542fd84-c584-450c-8c07-31fddc15bec6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Burlesque scenes","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mbhrtxh2t2","content":[{"text":"There are modern burlesque performers, shows and festivals in many countries throughout the world as well as annual conventions such as the Miss Exotic World Pageant. Today's burlesque revival has found homes throughout the United States (with the largest communities located on its East and West Coasts) and in Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, France, Germany and Japan. The revival has also occurred in New Orleans, Dallas, and Denver. Performances take place in various venues including theaters; as well as the burlesque dancers there are emcees to introduce them and stage kittens who act as stagehands.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6542fd84-c584-450c-8c07-31fddc15bec6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Boylesque","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1pd6rjxeaz","content":[{"text":"Neo-burlesque shows that feature male-body roles have been dubbed as boylesque. The introduction of boylesque elements can be seen as a key difference between neo-burlesque and earlier, exclusively female-body forms of burlesque, which sometimes incorporated drag-queen roles (i.e. male impersonators of female bodies) but did not directly represent masculinity. Boylesque within the neo-burlesque scene can be traced back to the early 1980s with performers like John Sex.\nAs a result of the emergence of boylesque, transvestites also found a permanent place in the burlesque. While the struggle for emancipation, independence, self-confidence in body shape and demeanor was superficial for burlesque artists, the male part dealt with other issues. Burlesque artists from the LGBT scene (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) fought for equality and against the exclusion of HIV and people with AIDS. In the burlesque revues in New York was active for this purpose in the 1990s, including the Broadway Bears bar on Broadway. Millions of dollars have been donated to the aid organization Broadway Cares / Equity Fights AIDS (BCEFA). By changing gender roles this decade, boylesque artists, like burlesque artists, wanted to be independent.\nThere are annual boylesque festivals in New York, Seattle, and New Orleans, produced by Jen Gapay and Daniel Nardicio.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6542fd84-c584-450c-8c07-31fddc15bec6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Neo-burlesque organizations","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"j12c4ws8e2","content":[{"text":"Burlesque Hall of Fame (formerly the Exotic World Burlesque Museum), which hosts the annual Miss Exotic World Pageant.\nConey Island USA","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6542fd84-c584-450c-8c07-31fddc15bec6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5tqgde5e77","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Neo-burlesque”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6542fd84-c584-450c-8c07-31fddc15bec6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"09fcv1cbpn","content":[{"text":"neo-burlesque is performing arts genre, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"517b8144-2058-4652-88d4-5ef18e6c9a64"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7m163bff4g","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"517b8144-2058-4652-88d4-5ef18e6c9a64"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Male performer at the 2011 Vancouver international burlesque festival.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/34/Sex_At_The_Circus_Burlesque_04.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Brendan","height":1928,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Male performer at the 2011 Vancouver international burlesque festival.","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/34/Sex_At_The_Circus_Burlesque_04.jpg/960px-Sex_At_The_Circus_Burlesque_04.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sex_At_The_Circus_Burlesque_04.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/34/Sex_At_The_Circus_Burlesque_04.jpg/1280px-Sex_At_The_Circus_Burlesque_04.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"},{"alt":"Neo-Burlesque in New Orleans","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/92/Bounce-33_New_Orleans.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Caitlyn Ridenour","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Neo-Burlesque in New Orleans","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/92/Bounce-33_New_Orleans.jpg/960px-Bounce-33_New_Orleans.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bounce-33_New_Orleans.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/92/Bounce-33_New_Orleans.jpg/1280px-Bounce-33_New_Orleans.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"},{"alt":"Bustout Burlesque with Coco Lectric, New Orleans","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/29/Kaylin_Idora_Photography_-_Bustout_Burlesque_New_Orleans_Feb_2011.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Kaylin Idora Photography","height":1928,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Bustout Burlesque with Coco Lectric, New Orleans","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/29/Kaylin_Idora_Photography_-_Bustout_Burlesque_New_Orleans_Feb_2011.jpg/960px-Kaylin_Idora_Photography_-_Bustout_Burlesque_New_Orleans_Feb_2011.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kaylin_Idora_Photography_-_Bustout_Burlesque_New_Orleans_Feb_2011.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/29/Kaylin_Idora_Photography_-_Bustout_Burlesque_New_Orleans_Feb_2011.jpg/1280px-Kaylin_Idora_Photography_-_Bustout_Burlesque_New_Orleans_Feb_2011.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-06T05:47:18.541Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/neo-burlesque"}
{"id":"dc6e5564-7897-4a67-8c90-3f2ec1b8ec1c","type":"art_form","slug":"neoclassical-ballet","title":"neoclassical ballet","summary":"Neoclassical ballet is the style of 20th-century classical ballet exemplified by the works of George Balanchine.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6j164bs05f","content":[{"text":"Neoclassical ballet is the style of 20th-century classical ballet exemplified by the works of George Balanchine. The term \"neoclassical ballet\" appears in the 1920s with Sergei Diaghilev's Ballets Russes, in response to the  excesses of romanticism and post-romantic modernism. It draws on the advanced technique of 19th-century Russian Imperial dance, but strips it of its detailed narrative and heavy theatrical setting while retaining many key techniques, such as pointe technique.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"77af7771-17bd-4b6f-94a6-57620aa629dd"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History and development","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gv0wtepbd6","content":[{"text":"Neoclassical ballet is a genre of dance that emerged in the 1920s and evolved throughout the 20th century.  Artists of many disciplines in the early 1900s began to rebel against the overly dramatized style of the Romantic Period.  As a result, art returned to a more simplistic style reminiscent of the Classical Period, except bolder, more assertive and free of distractions.  This artistic trend came to be known as Neoclassicism.  The ballet choreographer who most exemplified this new, clean aesthetic, was George Balanchine.  As a child, the importance of classicism was imprinted on him when he was a student at the famed Imperial Ballet School, which was (and remains) steadfast in its firm commitment to classical ballet technique.  Upon his graduation, Balanchine earned the privilege of choreographing for the Ballets Russes, where he had the opportunity to collaborate with Picasso, Matisse, Chanel, Debussy, Stravinsky and Prokofiev, who were all at the forefront of Neoclassicism.  Rather than turning away from his classical training, Balanchine built upon the traditional ballet vocabulary. He extended traditional ballet positions, played with speed and freedom of movement, and incorporated new positions not traditionally seen in ballet.  Balanchine's first foray into the neoclassical style was Apollon Musegete, choreographed in 1928 for the Ballets Russes, and set to a score by Stravinsky.  Unlike many of his later neoclassical works, this ballet tells a story, which indicates that Balanchine had not yet completely broken free from the Romantic tradition.  Moreover, when this ballet first premiered it featured large sets, costumes and props.  However, Balanchine continually revised it as his neoclassical style evolved.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"77af7771-17bd-4b6f-94a6-57620aa629dd"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Significant choreographers and works","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"aec9kv16jb","content":[{"text":"Although much of Balanchine's work epitomized the genre, some choreographers like the British Frederick Ashton and Kenneth MacMillan were also great neoclassical choreographers.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"77af7771-17bd-4b6f-94a6-57620aa629dd"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mqheqcecay","content":[{"text":"George Balanchine\nApollo (1928)\nThe Prodigal Son (1929)\nSerenade (1934)\nConcerto Barocco (1941)\nSymphony in C (1947)\nAgon (1957)\nJewels (1967)\nSerge Lifar\nLes Créatures de Prométhée (1929)\nLe Spectre de la rose (personal version) (1931)\nL'Après-midi d'un faune (personal version) (1935)\nIcare (1935)\nIstar (1941)\nSuite en Blanc (1943)\nFrederick Ashton\nSymphonic Variations (1946)\nCinderella (1948)\nSylvia (1952)\nRomeo and Juliet (1956)\nOndine (1958)\nLa Fille Mal Gardee (1960)\nThe Dream (1964)\nRoland Petit\nLe jeune homme et la mort (1946)\nCarmen (1949)\nNotre-Dame de Paris (1965)\nProust, ou Les intermittences du coeur (1974)\nClavigo (1999)\nKenneth MacMillan\nRomeo and Juliet (1965)\nAnastasia (1967)\nL'histoire de Manon (1974)\nJerome Robbins\nDances at a Gathering (1969)\nJohn Cranko\nOnegin (1965)\nThe Taming of the Shrew (1969)","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"77af7771-17bd-4b6f-94a6-57620aa629dd"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1hbb852zs4","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Neoclassical ballet”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"77af7771-17bd-4b6f-94a6-57620aa629dd"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7yndwqrf42","content":[{"text":"neoclassical ballet is style of 20th-century classical ballet exemplified by the works of George Balanchine, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b5eedf7f-a716-408d-8cdf-897bda888856"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"z5tyr203jc","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 4 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b5eedf7f-a716-408d-8cdf-897bda888856"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:13.015Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/neoclassical-ballet"}
{"id":"8bc22497-0183-40c2-872d-7c5311413858","type":"art_form","slug":"new-vogue","title":"New Vogue","summary":"The New Vogue dance style is an Australian form of ballroom sequence dancing that originated in the 1930s.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c9fg9g3gys","content":[{"text":"The New Vogue dance style is an Australian form of ballroom sequence dancing that originated in the 1930s. It has since become an important part in the Australian and New Zealand ballroom scene and is one of the three Dancesport styles in Australia, alongside traditional Ballroom and Latin American.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f4b86ee2-c116-4f87-ad2b-0d9b30a9b2f9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"The Dances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vctx8cep0d","content":[{"text":"There are a large number of New Vogue dances, although only a handful are common. All New Vogue dances are based on a sequence of dance steps which are continually repeated, usually until the music ends. These sequences are always either 16 or 32 bars long, and require music that is in turn \"sequenced\" (composed of verses that are either 16 or 32 bars long). Due to the nature of the dances they are much easier to pick up by beginners than, say, Latin dances (which have numerous types of steps that are combined into custom routines) and as such, beginner dancers are less likely to feel overwhelmed when learning them and can perform the dances to a respectable level within a short time of learning. New Vogue dances can be danced at different levels, with higher levels requiring more precise steps and the addition of arm and torso movement, known as \"styling\". This in a nutshell makes the dances easy to pick up but hard to master. New Vogue Dances are based on one of several sub categories, including Viennese Waltz Rhythm, Slow Foxtrot Rhythm, March Rhythm and Tango Rhythm.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f4b86ee2-c116-4f87-ad2b-0d9b30a9b2f9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Competition New Vogue","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tx6pswwmph","content":[{"text":"Out of the many New Vogue Dances, fifteen are recognised by Dancesport Australia for use in DanceSport competitions. These, and their rhythms, are listed below.\nDancesport Championship Competition Dances","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f4b86ee2-c116-4f87-ad2b-0d9b30a9b2f9"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hy162xameb","content":[{"text":"Barclay Blues  -  Slow Foxtrot Rhythm\nCarousel  -  Slow Foxtrot Rhythm\nCharmaine  -  Slow Foxtrot Rhythm\nEvening Three Step  -  March Rhythm\nExcelsior Schottische  -  Slow Foxtrot Rhythm\nGypsy Tap  -  March Rhythm\nLa Bomba  -  Tango Rhythm\nLucille Waltz  -  Viennese Waltz Rhythm\nMerrilyn  -  Slow Foxtrot Rhythm\nParma Waltz  -  Viennese Waltz Rhythm\nSwing Waltz  -  Viennese Waltz Rhythm\nTangoette  -  Tango Rhythm\nTango Terrific  -  Tango Rhythm\nTracie Leigh Waltz  -  Viennese Waltz Rhythm\nTwilight Waltz  -  Viennese Waltz Rhythm\nThese dances vary in length and difficulty, and as such, the harder dances are performed at higher levels.\nThe New Vogue Dances are competed in all DanceSport divisions, including:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f4b86ee2-c116-4f87-ad2b-0d9b30a9b2f9"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8veetvtqw8","content":[{"text":"Recreational\nAmateur\nProfessional\nAbility Dance/ Special Dance\nVision Impaired Dance\nPara Dance","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f4b86ee2-c116-4f87-ad2b-0d9b30a9b2f9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"New Vogue Events","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bz7n0zyxqc","content":[{"text":"Since 2019 the Services Club in Canowindra, NSW, hosts in late June a 12-hour event that features only Australian New Vogue Dances to live music. The event attracts participants from all over Australia.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f4b86ee2-c116-4f87-ad2b-0d9b30a9b2f9"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vjyjtdm31p","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “New Vogue”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f4b86ee2-c116-4f87-ad2b-0d9b30a9b2f9"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"03fv4e7rsz","content":[{"text":"New Vogue is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9e364eca-afba-431d-8242-4b0b627563a1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"x6f0bd275b","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9e364eca-afba-431d-8242-4b0b627563a1"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"CARnivale, Australia Day, Sydney 2015","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/47/Singer_New_Vogue_%2816193263889%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Jeremy from Sydney, Australia","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"CARnivale, Australia Day, Sydney 2015","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/47/Singer_New_Vogue_%2816193263889%29.jpg/960px-Singer_New_Vogue_%2816193263889%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Singer_New_Vogue_(16193263889).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/47/Singer_New_Vogue_%2816193263889%29.jpg/1280px-Singer_New_Vogue_%2816193263889%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"},{"alt":"CARnivale, Australia Day, Sydney 2015","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1b/Singer_New_Vogue_%2816193268799%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Jeremy from Sydney, Australia","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"CARnivale, Australia Day, Sydney 2015","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1b/Singer_New_Vogue_%2816193268799%29.jpg/960px-Singer_New_Vogue_%2816193268799%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Singer_New_Vogue_(16193268799).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1b/Singer_New_Vogue_%2816193268799%29.jpg/1280px-Singer_New_Vogue_%2816193268799%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"},{"alt":"Weymouth Vehicle Preservation Society's Dorset Tour, 24th May 2015","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/54/Singer_Vogue_1967-68_%2818015979236%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Andrew Bone from Weymouth, England","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Weymouth Vehicle Preservation Society's Dorset Tour, 24th May 2015","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/54/Singer_Vogue_1967-68_%2818015979236%29.jpg/960px-Singer_Vogue_1967-68_%2818015979236%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Singer_Vogue_1967-68_(18015979236).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/54/Singer_Vogue_1967-68_%2818015979236%29.jpg/1280px-Singer_Vogue_1967-68_%2818015979236%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:06.881Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/new-vogue"}
{"id":"9c1cbfa8-ed2b-416b-8786-061d3953b6e7","type":"art_form","slug":"nihon-buyo","title":"nihon-buyō","summary":"Nihon-buyō (日本舞踊, lit. 'Japanese dance') refers to the classical Japanese performing art of dance.\nNihon-buyō developed from earlier dance traditions such as mai and odori, and was further developed during the early Edo period (1603–1867), …","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gav2ygfqbx","content":[{"text":"Nihon-buyō (日本舞踊, lit. 'Japanese dance') refers to the classical Japanese performing art of dance.\nNihon-buyō developed from earlier dance traditions such as mai and odori, and was further developed during the early Edo period (1603–1867), through the medium of kabuki dances, which often incorporated elements from the older dance genres. Although the term nihon-buyō means \"Japanese dance\", it is not meant to refer to Japanese dance in general, and instead refers to a few dance genres such as kabuki buyō, which are performed in theatre. Nihon-buyō differs from other varieties of Japanese traditional dance, in that it is a refined style intended as entertainment on a public stage.\nThe term buyō is a modern term coined during the Meiji period (1868–1911) as a term for \"dance\", and the writer Tsubouchi Shōyō is believed to have been the first to use the term nihon-buyō. Prior to this, dance was generally referred according to its particular dance genre, such as mai and odori. The term is a combination of the characters mai (舞), which can also be pronounced bu, and odori (踊), which can also be pronounced yō. Shōyō intended nihon-buyō to be a term for Furigoto Geki (振事劇), a form of dance drama in kabuki plays, but the term has now grown to cover several Japanese dance styles, including the modern dance form sosaku buyō.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a1ac6aec-ac3e-4404-a50e-c346b67251d3"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Wider definition","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t43j1xr1fs","content":[{"text":"In the broad sense, nihon-buyō refers to the dances kabuki-buyō, kamigata-mai and shin-buyō.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a1ac6aec-ac3e-4404-a50e-c346b67251d3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"r0ykkhhm6j","content":[{"text":"Kabuki buyō (歌舞伎舞踊) - nihon-buyō in the exact definition refers solely to kabuki-buyō alone\nKamigata-mai (上方舞) or jiuta-mai (地唄舞) - dance born and developed in the region of Kyoto and Osaka (the Kamigata region). Kamigata-mai developed during the Edo period, and would be performed at private parties on a relatively small surface, such as the surface of one tatami mat. Its movements are slow and gentle. It can be accompanied by music (jiuta), composed for a shamisen soloist. It is also called zashiki-mai (座敷舞), referring to the name of the room (zashiki) where it is practiced.\nShin-buyō (新舞踊) or sōsaku-buyō (創作舞踊) – nihon-buyō has known European and American influences during the 20th century. In the Taishō period (1912–1926), Western arts-inspired writer Tsubouchi Shōyō proposed changes to the performance of kabuki theater, resulting in a new style of dance known as shin-buyō (lit. 'new dance'), performed by artists wanting to experiment with a new form of expression.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a1ac6aec-ac3e-4404-a50e-c346b67251d3"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Narrower definition","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7be037etmz","content":[{"text":"In the narrow sense, nihon-buyō (日本舞踊) refers solely to kabuki-buyō (歌舞伎舞踊).\nThe term nihon-buyō dates to the Meiji period. Until then, kabuki-buyō was referred to by various names such as shosagoto (所作事), keigoto (景事), furigoto (振事) or more simply odori (踊).\nThe choreographers of shosagoto, whose first appearance dates back to around 1673, founded schools to teach this dance to amateurs. Kabuki-buyō, listed as an important intangible cultural property since 1955, is performed by both a kabuki actor and a nihon-buyō dancer.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a1ac6aec-ac3e-4404-a50e-c346b67251d3"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance styles and elements","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3ddwrhg2bk","content":[{"text":"Unlike Noh, kyōgen, kabuki and bunraku theater, which feature male performers, nihon-buyō is also performed by women. There are two different dance styles taught in nihon-buyō: onnagata, \"female roles\", and tachiyaku, \"male roles\". Thus, a woman can play a male role, and a man can play a female role.\nNihon-buyō has three main elements: mai, odori and furi. Mai is a static and abstract movement with an emphasis on the ritual aspect, which is often present in the adaptation sequences of the nô theater; odori is a dynamic and rhythmic movement resulting from nenbutsu-odori, a dance invented by a Buddhist monk around the 10th century; furi includes theatrical, dramatic and figurative body language (such as writing a letter, drinking sake, etc.), representing the actions of everyday life in the Edo period.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a1ac6aec-ac3e-4404-a50e-c346b67251d3"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Kabuki","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hnpgxpd4ck","content":[{"text":"Nihon-buyō schools were founded by choreographers (who were originally kabuki musicians or actors), or by actors. These two backgrounds mean that both still share the same dance repertoire.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a1ac6aec-ac3e-4404-a50e-c346b67251d3"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Noh","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"revh8cqwwa","content":[{"text":"There are many nihon-buyō plays which are inspired by Noh theater plays. The three major series of nihon-buyō - sanbasō mono, dōjōji mono and shakkyō mono - are adapted from the Noh plays Okina, Dōjōji and Shakkyō, as well as the matsubame mono repertoire series, adapted from Noh during the Meiji period, with inspiration taken from the approach of kabuki adapting Noh dramas. For these plays, Noh dance (mai) is integrated into the choreography.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a1ac6aec-ac3e-4404-a50e-c346b67251d3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mn7579x2xz","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Nihon-buyō”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a1ac6aec-ac3e-4404-a50e-c346b67251d3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tpenvjyh5y","content":[{"text":"nihon-buyō is classical Japanese performing art, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3f246a5d-6fc6-4f35-8efc-0d81c31c088a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"21qhffpkec","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3f246a5d-6fc6-4f35-8efc-0d81c31c088a"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Toshimana, a geiko (geisha) from the Kyoto Miyagawachō district, Komaya okiya, on the Kawamura Noh Stage. Toshimana is standing up in a long trailing hikizuri kimono, taikomusubi knot of her obi sash tying a short-sleeved kimono as well as her takashimada katsura (wig). She is…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/dc/Toshimana_dancing_04.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Sawai Susao","height":720,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Toshimana, a geiko (geisha) from the Kyoto Miyagawachō district, Komaya okiya, on the Kawamura Noh Stage. Toshimana is standing up in a long trailing hikizuri kimono, taikomusubi knot of her obi sash tying a short-sleeved kimono as well as her takashimada katsura (wig). She is…","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/dc/Toshimana_dancing_04.jpg/960px-Toshimana_dancing_04.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Toshimana_dancing_04.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/dc/Toshimana_dancing_04.jpg/1280px-Toshimana_dancing_04.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"},{"alt":"Toshimana, a geiko (geisha) from the Kyoto Miyagawachō district, Komaya okiya, on the Kawamura Noh Stage. Toshimana is bending back in her trailing hikizuri kimono with short sleeves, held by the taikomusubi knot of her obi sash as well as her takashimada katsura (wig).","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/74/Toshimana_dancing_03.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Sawai Susao","height":855,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Toshimana, a geiko (geisha) from the Kyoto Miyagawachō district, Komaya okiya, on the Kawamura Noh Stage. Toshimana is bending back in her trailing hikizuri kimono with short sleeves, held by the taikomusubi knot of her obi sash as well as her takashimada katsura (wig).","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/74/Toshimana_dancing_03.jpg/960px-Toshimana_dancing_03.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Toshimana_dancing_03.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/74/Toshimana_dancing_03.jpg/1280px-Toshimana_dancing_03.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"},{"alt":"Spectacle de l'Atelier Nihon-Buyô de Genève (Suisse), danse traditionnelle japonaise, Théâtre de l'Espérance. 22 septembre 2018. Senzaï. Photo: Stéphane Gallay, sous licence Creative Commons (CC-BY)","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/09/Nihon-Buyo_Gen%C3%A8ve_2018_%2844681090345%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Stéphane Gallay from Laconnex, Switzerland","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Spectacle de l'Atelier Nihon-Buyô de Genève (Suisse), danse traditionnelle japonaise, Théâtre de l'Espérance. 22 septembre 2018. Senzaï. Photo: Stéphane Gallay, sous licence Creative Commons (CC-BY)","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/09/Nihon-Buyo_Gen%C3%A8ve_2018_%2844681090345%29.jpg/960px-Nihon-Buyo_Gen%C3%A8ve_2018_%2844681090345%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Nihon-Buyo_Gen%C3%A8ve_2018_(44681090345).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/09/Nihon-Buyo_Gen%C3%A8ve_2018_%2844681090345%29.jpg/1280px-Nihon-Buyo_Gen%C3%A8ve_2018_%2844681090345%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:10.240Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/nihon-buyo"}
{"id":"41a0e122-96a5-41f3-85e1-90a1c213e16c","type":"art_form","slug":"nijemo-kolo","title":"nijemo kolo","summary":"Nijemo kolo (pronounced [nijêːmo kôlo]) is a silent dance originating from the Dalmatian hinterland in southern Croatia. In 2011 it was inscribed on the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage Lists.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jj1j3x4557","content":[{"text":"Nijemo kolo (pronounced [nijêːmo kôlo]) is a silent dance originating from the Dalmatian hinterland in southern Croatia. In 2011 it was inscribed on the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage Lists.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7ad34544-a09a-46dd-a505-3cc80a5aaa29"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Description","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1wzprvshqj","content":[{"text":"Nijemo kolo is performed by a group forming a closed circle with the men leading their female partners in quick steps, which are often vigorous and daunting. The most noticeable aspect of the dance is that it performed entirely without music.\nToday, Nijemo kolo continues to be performed by local village groups and can be seen in festivals, competitions, fairs, church celebrations, and weddings.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7ad34544-a09a-46dd-a505-3cc80a5aaa29"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cejmdbp0rx","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Nijemo kolo”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7ad34544-a09a-46dd-a505-3cc80a5aaa29"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cyxx9x5mn7","content":[{"text":"nijemo kolo is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e8f30f88-3e47-4fc6-a64d-402b9cf78fcf"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"r9dh0p07nf","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e8f30f88-3e47-4fc6-a64d-402b9cf78fcf"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-05T01:44:18.068Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/nijemo-kolo"}
{"id":"e8018d0d-e551-4dca-b1dd-344f9c2aada1","type":"art_form","slug":"novelty-dance","title":"novelty dance","summary":"Novelty and fad dances are dances which are typically characterized by a short burst of popularity. Some of them, like the Twist, Y.M.C.A. and the Hokey Pokey, have shown much longer-lasting popularity.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ffreavyven","content":[{"text":"Novelty and fad dances are dances which are typically characterized by a short burst of popularity. Some of them, like the Twist, Y.M.C.A. and the Hokey Pokey, have shown much longer-lasting popularity. They are also called dance fads or dance crazes.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7afbbba4-7df5-4e29-8c08-9bd54cb27ef2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Fad dances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0gx532ntx0","content":[{"text":"As the pop music market exploded in the late 1950s, dance fads were commercialized and exploited. From the 1950s to the 1970s, new dance fads appeared almost every week. Many were popularized (or commercialized) versions of new styles or steps created by African-American dancers who frequented the clubs and discothèques in major U.S. cities like New York, Philadelphia and Detroit. Among these were the Madison, \"The Swim\", the \"Mashed Potato\", \"The Twist\", \"The Frug\" (pronounced ), \"The Watusi\", \"The Shake\" and \"The Hitch hike\". Many 1950s and 1960s dance crazes had animal names, including \"The Chicken\" (not to be confused with the Chicken Dance), \"The Pony\" and \"The Dog\".\nIn 1965, Latin group Cannibal and the Headhunters had a hit with the 1962 Chris Kenner song \"Land of a Thousand Dances\" which included the names of such dances. One list of Fad Dances compiled in 1971 named over ninety dances. Standardized versions of dance moves were published in dance and teen magazines, often choreographed to popular songs. Songs such as \"The Loco-Motion\" were specifically written with the intention of creating a new dance and many more pop hits, such as \"Mashed Potato Time\" by Dee Dee Sharp, were written to cash in recent successful novelties.\nIn the early 1970s, disco spawned a succession of dance fads including the Bump, the Hustle, and the Y.M.C.A. This continued in the 1980s with the popular song \"Walk like an Egyptian\", in the 1990s with the \"Macarena\", in the 2000s with \"The Ketchup Song\" and in the 2010s with \"Gangnam Style\". Contemporary sources for dance crazes include music videos and movies.\nThere are fad dances which are meant to be danced individually as solo, others are partner dances, and yet others are danced in groups.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7afbbba4-7df5-4e29-8c08-9bd54cb27ef2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nzs1g3cn8q","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Dance crazes”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7afbbba4-7df5-4e29-8c08-9bd54cb27ef2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"r86z6xwtwc","content":[{"text":"novelty dance is humorous type of dance, often enjoying short burst of popularity, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ec782180-a0ba-4491-9b3b-30b1ab36e304"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4cq4n0r3wm","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ec782180-a0ba-4491-9b3b-30b1ab36e304"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"This was taken at Immerse, in Orlando, Florida. This crew had a bunch of epic moves and movements and this one was taken just in time.","src":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1508700929628-666bc8bd84ea?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8bm92ZWx0eSUyMGRhbmNlfGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODg5NzYwOTZ8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1080","kind":"photo","width":7952,"credit":"Michael Afonso","height":5304,"source":"unsplash","depicts":"This was taken at Immerse, in Orlando, Florida. This crew had a bunch of epic moves and movements and this one was taken just in time.","licence":"Unsplash License","thumb640":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1508700929628-666bc8bd84ea?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8bm92ZWx0eSUyMGRhbmNlfGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODg5NzYwOTZ8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=640","sourceUrl":"https://unsplash.com/photos/man-doing-breakdancing-on-gray-surface-z8Tul255kGg?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral","thumb1280":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1508700929628-666bc8bd84ea?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8bm92ZWx0eSUyMGRhbmNlfGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODg5NzYwOTZ8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1280","attributionUrl":"https://unsplash.com/@mafonso?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:11.357Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/novelty-dance"}
{"id":"1c70ca39-c5ab-45c1-9cbe-80709a005027","type":"art_form","slug":"oberek","title":"Oberek","summary":"The oberek, also known as obertas or ober, is a lively Polish dance in triple metre. Its name is derived from the Polish obracać się, meaning \"to spin\". It consists of many dance lifts and jumps.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ms61sazjv6","content":[{"text":"The oberek, also known as obertas or ober, is a lively Polish dance in triple metre. Its name is derived from the Polish obracać się, meaning \"to spin\". It consists of many dance lifts and jumps. It is performed at a much quicker pace than the Polish waltz and is one of the national dances of Poland.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e62dd5b4-93c3-47fa-b3bd-03361a370824"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Polish oberek (folk)","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jxytq0w4b7","content":[{"text":"The oberek, in its original form, is a Polish folk dance and is the fastest of the Five National Dances of Poland. The Five National Dances are: polonez (polonaise), mazur (mazurka), kujawiak, krakowiak (cracovienne) and oberek. The oberek consists of quick steps and constant turns. The beauty of the oberek depends on each individual dancer's talent of spinning at the fast tempo of the oberek, which shares some steps with the mazur.\nThe music for the oberek was typically performed by a small village band, kapela, dominated by the violin in central Poland.[1]","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e62dd5b4-93c3-47fa-b3bd-03361a370824"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Polish-American oberek (social)","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4ttjfcg72p","content":[{"text":"The Polish-American oberek is a social dance, originally brought to America by Polish immigrants in late 1800s and early 1900s. This social dance derives from the folk dance oberek; however, the steps are slightly altered and the music is slightly different. Obereks are played by Polka bands throughout the United States. It is the second-most popular dance in Polish-American music, after the polka.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e62dd5b4-93c3-47fa-b3bd-03361a370824"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6fzrn5pgn3","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Oberek”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e62dd5b4-93c3-47fa-b3bd-03361a370824"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"j2a0x40kdy","content":[{"text":"Oberek is traditional Polish dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"50ac3525-1b04-4a69-8356-39431a845963"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2ggmxc8md6","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 4 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"50ac3525-1b04-4a69-8356-39431a845963"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Oberek - Volkstanz","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/68/02016_0404_Oberek_-_Volkstanz.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Silar","height":1777,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Oberek - Volkstanz","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/68/02016_0404_Oberek_-_Volkstanz.JPG/960px-02016_0404_Oberek_-_Volkstanz.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:02016_0404_Oberek_-_Volkstanz.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/68/02016_0404_Oberek_-_Volkstanz.JPG/1280px-02016_0404_Oberek_-_Volkstanz.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Oberek - Volkstanz","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/81/02016_0406_Oberek_-_Volkstanz.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Silar","height":1779,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Oberek - Volkstanz","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/81/02016_0406_Oberek_-_Volkstanz.JPG/960px-02016_0406_Oberek_-_Volkstanz.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:02016_0406_Oberek_-_Volkstanz.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/81/02016_0406_Oberek_-_Volkstanz.JPG/1280px-02016_0406_Oberek_-_Volkstanz.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Oberek Volkstanz","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cc/02016_0426_Oberek_-_Volkstanz.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Silar","height":1775,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Oberek Volkstanz","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cc/02016_0426_Oberek_-_Volkstanz.JPG/960px-02016_0426_Oberek_-_Volkstanz.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:02016_0426_Oberek_-_Volkstanz.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cc/02016_0426_Oberek_-_Volkstanz.JPG/1280px-02016_0426_Oberek_-_Volkstanz.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:27.024Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/oberek"}
{"id":"ebe1c03f-68a0-44b2-af63-37565e0770e8","type":"art_form","slug":"odissi","title":"Odissi","summary":"Odissi (Odia: ଓଡ଼ିଶୀ) also referred to as Orissi in old literature, oldest surviving classical dance of India, is a major ancient Indian classical dance that originated in the temples of Odisha – an eastern coastal state of India.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"g318ra7e38","content":[{"text":"Odissi (Odia: ଓଡ଼ିଶୀ) also referred to as Orissi in old literature, oldest surviving classical dance of India, is a major ancient Indian classical dance that originated in the temples of Odisha – an eastern coastal state of India. Odissi, in its history, was performed predominantly by women, and expressed religious stories and spiritual ideas, particularly of Vaishnavism through songs written and composed according to the ragas & talas of Odissi music by ancient poets of the state. Odissi performances have also expressed ideas of other traditions such as those related to Hindu deities Shiva and Surya, as well as Hindu goddesses (Shaktism).\nThe theoretical foundations of Odissi trace to the ancient Sanskrit text Natya Shastra, its existence in antiquity evidenced by the dance poses in the sculptures of Kalingan temples, and archeological sites related to Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism. It was suppressed under British Rule. The suppression was protested by the Indians, followed by its revival, reconstruction and expansion since India gained independence from the colonial rule.\nOdissi is traditionally a dance-drama genre of performance art, where the artist(s) and musicians play out a story, a spiritual message or devotional poem from the Hindu texts, using symbolic costumes, body movement, abhinaya (expressions) and mudras (gestures and sign language) set out in ancient Sanskrit literature.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"930f9b5b-1a27-4823-a93b-f6310d194785"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History of Odissi","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"n242m18zhk","content":[{"text":"The foundations of Odissi are found in Natya Shastra, the ancient Hindu Sanskrit text of performance arts. The basic dance units described in the Natya Shastra, all 108 of them, are identical to those in Odissi. The text is attributed to the ancient scholar Bharata Muni, and its first complete compilation is dated to between 200 BCE and 200 CE, but estimates vary between 500 BCE and 500 CE. The most studied version of the Natya Shastra text consists of about 6000 verses structured into 36 chapters. The text, states Natalia Lidova, describes the theory of Tāṇḍava dance (Shiva), the theory of rasa, of bhāva, expression, gestures, acting techniques, basic steps, standing postures – all of which are part of Indian classical dances. Dance and performance arts, states this ancient text, are a form of expression of spiritual ideas, virtues and the essence of scriptures. The Natya Shastra refers to four pravrittis (methods of expressive delivery) in vogue – Avanti, Dakshinatya, Panchali and Odra-Magadhi; of these, the Odra refers to Odisha.\nMore direct historical evidence of dance and music as an ancient performance art are found in archaeological sites such as caves and in temple carvings of Bhubaneswar, Konark and Puri. The Manchapuri cave in Udayagiri shows carvings of dance and musicians, and this has been dated to the time of Jain king Kharavela in the first or second century BCE.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"930f9b5b-1a27-4823-a93b-f6310d194785"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Medieval era","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"62xb97279v","content":[{"text":"The Hindu, Jain and Buddhist archaeological sites in Odisha state, particularly the Assia range of hills show inscriptions and carvings of dances that are dated to the 6th to 9th century CE. Important sites include the Ranigumpha in Udaygiri, and various caves and temples at Lalitgiri, Ratnagiri and Alatgiri sites. The Buddhist icons, for example, are depicted as dancing gods and goddesses, with Heruka, Vajravarahi, and Marichi in Odissi-like postures. Historical evidence, states Alexandra Carter, shows that Odissi Maharis (Hindu temple dancers) and dance halls architecture (nata-mandapa) were in vogue at least by the 9th century CE.\nAccording to Kapila Vatsyayan, the Kalpasutra of Jainism, in its manuscripts discovered in Gujarat, includes classical Indian dance poses – such as the Samapada, the Tribhangi and the Chauka of Odissi. This, states Vatsyayan, suggests that Odissi was admired or at least well known in distant parts of India, far from Odisha in the medieval era, to be included in the margins of an important Jain text. However, the Jain manuscripts use the dance poses as decorative art in the margins and cover, but do not describe or discuss the dance. Hindu dance texts such as the Abhinaya Chandrika and Abhinaya Darpana provide a detailed description of the movements of the feet, hands, the standing postures, the movement and the dance repertoire. It includes illustrations of the karanas mentioned in Natya Shastra. Similarly, the illustrated Hindu text on temple architecture from Odisha, the Shilpa Prakasha, deals with Odia architecture and sculpture, and includes Odissi postures.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"930f9b5b-1a27-4823-a93b-f6310d194785"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xmcjdjgbwt","content":[{"text":"Actual sculptures that have survived into the modern era and panel reliefs in Odia temples, dated to be from the 10th to 14th century, show Odissi dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"930f9b5b-1a27-4823-a93b-f6310d194785"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Mughal and British period","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t3bzd3hp2j","content":[{"text":"After 12th-century, Odia temples, monasteries and nearby institutions such as the Puspagiri in the eastern Indian subcontinent came under waves of attacks and ransacking by Muslim armies, a turmoil that impacted all arts and eroded the freedoms previously enjoyed by performance artists. The official records of Sultan Firuz Shah Tughlaq's invasion in Odisha (1360–1361 CE), for example, describe the destruction of the Jagannath temple as well as numerous other temples, defacing of dancing statues, and ruining of dance halls. This led to a broad decline in Odissi and other religious arts, but there were some benevolent rulers in this period who supported arts particularly through performances at courts. During the Sultanate and Mughal era of India, the temple dancers were moved to entertain the Sultan's family and courts. They became associated with concubinage to the nobility.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"930f9b5b-1a27-4823-a93b-f6310d194785"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nyacbg7f26","content":[{"text":"The Odissi dance likely expanded in the 17th century, states Alexandra Carter, under King Ramachandradeva's patronage. This expansion integrated martial arts (akhanda) and athletics into Odissi dance, by engaging boys and youth called Gotipuas, as a means to physically train the young for the military and to resist foreign invasions. According to Ragini Devi, historical evidence suggests that the Gotipuas tradition was known and nurtured in the 14th century, by Raja of Khordha.\nDuring the British Raj, the officials of the colonial government ridiculed the temple traditions, while Christian missionaries launched a sustained attack on the moral outrage of sensuousness of Odissi and other Hindu temple dance arts.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"930f9b5b-1a27-4823-a93b-f6310d194785"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Post-independence","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"808s3hfztd","content":[{"text":"The temple dance ban and cultural discrimination during colonial rule marshalled a movement by Hindus to question the stereotypes and to revive the regional arts of India, including Odissi. Due to these efforts, the classical Indian dances witnessed a period of renaissance and reconstruction, which gained momentum particularly after Indians gained their freedom from colonialism.\nOdissi, along with several other major Indian dances gained recognition after efforts by many scholars and performers in the 1950s, particularly by Kavichandra Kalicharan Pattanayak, an Oriya poet, dramatist and researcher. Pattanayak is also credited with naming the dance form as \"Odissi\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"930f9b5b-1a27-4823-a93b-f6310d194785"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Repertoire","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4t8hd8w7xt","content":[{"text":"Odissi, in the classical and medieval period has been, a team dance founded on Hindu texts.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"930f9b5b-1a27-4823-a93b-f6310d194785"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yexfm9m3q3","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Odissi”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"930f9b5b-1a27-4823-a93b-f6310d194785"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bbt0wjhmpb","content":[{"text":"Odissi is One of the classical Indian dances, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"43810884-fd7d-4f18-a476-be8aa0eaa6ce"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"axarfesrvq","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 6 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"43810884-fd7d-4f18-a476-be8aa0eaa6ce"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"A scene from the abhinaya 'Tolagi Gopa Danda' choreographed by Guru Kelucharan Mahapatra. The dance was performed under the guidance of Guru Kelucharan Mahapatra","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0b/Abhinaya.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Melolagnia28192","height":1920,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"A scene from the abhinaya 'Tolagi Gopa Danda' choreographed by Guru Kelucharan Mahapatra. The dance was performed under the guidance of Guru Kelucharan Mahapatra","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0b/Abhinaya.jpg/960px-Abhinaya.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Abhinaya.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0b/Abhinaya.jpg/1280px-Abhinaya.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-08-31T05:47:26.289Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/odissi"}
{"id":"beec6552-53c0-46da-beb2-1cdc38403190","type":"art_form","slug":"orteke","title":"orteke","summary":"Orteke (Kazakh: ортеке) is a form of traditional performance in Kazakhstan that incorporates puppetry, music, and dance.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7x0xdhjmqz","content":[{"text":"Orteke (Kazakh: ортеке) is a form of traditional performance in Kazakhstan that incorporates puppetry, music, and dance. \nPossibly dating back thousands of years, the technique originated in southwestern Kazakhstan and spread among other Central Asian nomadic communities in places like Uzbekistan. The name \"orteke\" combines or (ditch, hole, trap) and teke (goat).\nSome ethnographers argue the Orteke began as a shamanic tool to distract spirits or to act as a \"spirit vessel\" during healing rituals.\nIn orteke, a musician playing a two-stringed dombra has a wooden puppet attached to their fingers by sticks and strings. The puppet, usually shaped like a horned mountain goat, is attached to the top of a drum, often a dauylpaz. As the musician plays, the puppet moves to the rhythm, creating a drumbeat. Experienced orteke performers can incorporate several puppets at once using both hands and feet. They can also incorporate wind instruments, such as a sazsyrnay or shankobyz.\nOrteke players traditionally learn their craft through apprenticeships, although local academics have begun to study it as well. After a period of obscurity and near-extinction, efforts to promote Kazakh national identity have revived interest in the art form.\nIn 2022, orteke was added to UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"77f57c52-5322-45ef-861e-40b6824248b1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dx17rffnnm","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Orteke”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"77f57c52-5322-45ef-861e-40b6824248b1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pz4hcpjtyb","content":[{"text":"orteke is indigenous Kazakh performing art that combines theatre, music and puppetry, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c49576de-f211-4038-81dd-1671fecd157c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sk3e4fnmw8","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c49576de-f211-4038-81dd-1671fecd157c"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-05T02:44:21.710Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/orteke"}
{"id":"33f9e2fe-cb5f-43c2-a7d6-3343fa22f31f","type":"art_form","slug":"ottan-thullal","title":"Ottan thullal","summary":"Ottan Thullal (or Ottamthullal) is a recite-and-dance art-form of Kerala, India. It was introduced in the eighteenth century by Kunchan Nambiar, one of the Prachina Kavithrayam (three famous Malayalam-language poets).","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hfkt3py4be","content":[{"text":"Ottan Thullal (or Ottamthullal) is a recite-and-dance art-form of Kerala, India. It was introduced in the eighteenth century by Kunchan Nambiar, one of the Prachina Kavithrayam (three famous Malayalam-language poets). The folksy performance, often laced with humour intended at criticism of society, is accompanied by a mridangam (a barrel-shaped double-headed drum) and/or the handy idakka besides a pair of ilathalam cymbals.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ff6a4f2d-dfa9-494e-a75e-08814fcbd2bd"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"edwxb4ajhk","content":[{"text":"Like most Indian performing art forms, Ottamthullal has its principles influenced by the Natya Shastra (c. 2nd century BCE). The word Thullal means \"to jump\" or \"leap about\" in the Malayalam language.\nLegend has it that Nambiar, the poet, fell asleep while playing the mizhavu drum for a Chakyar Koothu performance, inviting ridicule from the chakyar. In response, Nambiar developed Ottamthullal, which raised prevalent sociopolitical questions and made a satire of human pedigrees and prejudices. The chakyar complained about Nambiar's production to the king of Chembakassery. The king banned performances of Ottamthullal from the Ambalapuzha temple complex. Closely related art forms are Seethankan thullal and Parayan thullal. Mathur Panikkar popularized Ottamthullal for modern audiences. Ottamthullal competitions are held and the art form may be used to spread a social message.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ff6a4f2d-dfa9-494e-a75e-08814fcbd2bd"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Performers","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kg6vzdgyyr","content":[{"text":"In Ottamthullal, a solo performer, with green makeup and a colourful costume (decorated with a long red and white band and painted wooden ornaments), acts and dances while reciting dance (Thullal) (lyrics). A chorus or one or more artists repeats each sentence as it is completed. More recently, Ottamthullal has been performed with a solo female actor and with an ensemble cast.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ff6a4f2d-dfa9-494e-a75e-08814fcbd2bd"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Theme","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4rbna759pf","content":[{"text":"Nambiar parodies the ways of landlords and other prominent citizens, sometimes even the king. For example, the character of Bhima from the epic the Mahabharata is portrayed as an oaf. Higher castes including Brahmin are not spared.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ff6a4f2d-dfa9-494e-a75e-08814fcbd2bd"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Language","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"j84m98v1m2","content":[{"text":"Ottan thullal is performed in Malayalam, which pleases local audiences.  Old sayings and elements of folklore are used.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ff6a4f2d-dfa9-494e-a75e-08814fcbd2bd"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Works","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wf2fs3rj2t","content":[{"text":"There may be 64 or more Ottamthullal works. Examples include:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ff6a4f2d-dfa9-494e-a75e-08814fcbd2bd"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3b8c91w9eq","content":[{"text":"Kallyana Sougandhikam (a rare flower), Bhima is searching for the flower and has a long conversation with his older brother, Hanuman.\nKiratham, rukmini swayamvaram, keechakavadham, Garudagarva bhangam, Santhanagopalam, Ghoshayathra etc...","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ff6a4f2d-dfa9-494e-a75e-08814fcbd2bd"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8y3eqbcm0n","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Ottan Thullal”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ff6a4f2d-dfa9-494e-a75e-08814fcbd2bd"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"430e3p6at8","content":[{"text":"Ottan thullal is form of performance art from Kerala state, India, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e7356be6-48c0-4fa7-9e49-68f17fefdd5d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3q2q0s1rkw","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e7356be6-48c0-4fa7-9e49-68f17fefdd5d"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Ottan Thullal is a recite-and-dance art-form of Kerala, India. This is the face art of Ottan Thullal. Kerala School Kalolsavam 2017.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d4/Oottan_Thullal_at_Kerala_School_Kalothsavam_2017.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Shagil Kannur","height":1920,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Ottan Thullal is a recite-and-dance art-form of Kerala, India. This is the face art of Ottan Thullal. Kerala School Kalolsavam 2017.","licence":"CC BY 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d4/Oottan_Thullal_at_Kerala_School_Kalothsavam_2017.jpg/960px-Oottan_Thullal_at_Kerala_School_Kalothsavam_2017.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Oottan_Thullal_at_Kerala_School_Kalothsavam_2017.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d4/Oottan_Thullal_at_Kerala_School_Kalothsavam_2017.jpg/1280px-Oottan_Thullal_at_Kerala_School_Kalothsavam_2017.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0"},{"alt":"Ottan thullal is a traditional art form found in Kerala, south eastern state of India. It was introduced by Kunjan Nambiar. The art form influences people with its story and funny play made by the artist. People enjoy both the dance and poetry in the performance.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bc/Ottan_Thullal.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Anandukr97","height":1920,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Ottan thullal is a traditional art form found in Kerala, south eastern state of India. It was introduced by Kunjan Nambiar. The art form influences people with its story and funny play made by the artist. People enjoy both the dance and poetry in the performance.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bc/Ottan_Thullal.jpg/960px-Ottan_Thullal.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ottan_Thullal.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bc/Ottan_Thullal.jpg/1280px-Ottan_Thullal.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Kerala SchoolKalolsavam 2017","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9c/Oottam_thullal_make_up.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Shagil Kannur","height":1684,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Kerala SchoolKalolsavam 2017","licence":"CC BY 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9c/Oottam_thullal_make_up.jpg/960px-Oottam_thullal_make_up.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Oottam_thullal_make_up.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9c/Oottam_thullal_make_up.jpg/1280px-Oottam_thullal_make_up.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:07.213Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/ottan-thullal"}
{"id":"bd1ef756-7eac-437a-a877-44587ce4167c","type":"art_form","slug":"padayani","title":"Padayani","summary":"Padayani, also known Padeni (from the Malayalam word for military formations), is a traditional folk dance and a ritual art from the central portion of the Indian state of Kerala.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ffqwbm5ayb","content":[{"text":"Padayani, also known Padeni (from the Malayalam word for military formations), is a traditional folk dance and a ritual art from the central portion of the Indian state of Kerala. A ceremonial dance involving masks, it is an ancient ritual performed in Bhagavati temples. The dance is performed in honor of Bhadrakaali. Meaning, a 'row of warriors', Padayani is an art form that blends all music, dance, theatre, satire, facial masks, and paintings. It is part of worship of Bhadrakali and is staged in temples dedicated to the goddess from mid-December to mid-May. Padayani is unique to central Travancore, comprising the Pathanamthitta and Kottayam districts of Kerala. It is also performed in adjoining regions of Kollam, Alappuzha districts.\nIt is sometimes interpreted as preserving elements of earlier regional worship traditions that later became integrated into broader Hindu practices. Padayani is similar to the Theyyam ritual seen in northern Kerala. The percussion instruments used in Patayani are patayani thappu, chenda, para and kumbham.\nThe padayani at Puthukulangara Devi Temple in Othera, is particularly famous famous. A Bhairavi kolam is on the last day of festival, for which 1001 barks of areca palm is used. The main festival is on nakshatra trdrah of Meena.\n\"Pachathappu\" is the first Malayalam film based on Padayani. Pachathappu is written and directed by Anu Purushoth. It was nominated Kerala Film Critics Award for Best Art Film of 2020","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0f79cd11-e5df-4f5d-8689-ea05fe3185d6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kg1cgqfejj","content":[{"text":"The term Padayani originated from Malayalam words 'Pata' meaning military and 'ani' meaning preparation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0f79cd11-e5df-4f5d-8689-ea05fe3185d6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History and Traditions of origin","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9qq32k2d6v","content":[{"text":"The earliest inscription that mentions padayani is Talakkad inscription. It is dated back to 1024 CE. The inscription talks about the tax collected by village temple council and Chera king Rajasimha (Contemporary to Rajendra Chola) from christian traders of Manigramam settlement for conducting Padayani festival.\nPadyani is a modern form of Kolam Thullal, a ritual dance, which had been performed by the ritual specialists who performed healing ceremonies addressing psychological and spiritual distress within a cultural framework (The Tinta endogamous section of Ganaka community). In olden days, this elaborate and expensive event was carried out to heal illnesses of psychological dysfunctions without any identifiable physical cause, and cases that seemed to be not amenable to medical modalities of intervention .   This form of psychic or spiritual healing other wise known as Kolam Thullal, was solely designed, controlled and performed by the Tinta sub sect of the Ganaka community. The folk art, Padayani made its development from this dance performance, as a divine ritual tradition in association with festival occasions of Bhagavathy (Bhadrakaali) temples of Kerala.\nAnother version of its origin is related to the practice of ancient martial arts training in Kerala. Since the origin of term 'padayani' relates to military parade or rows of army, it is generally believed that it is evolved from a symbolic past reminiscent of the fencing march of the martial art (Kalari) by the Nair soldiers and their Kalari Asaans.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0f79cd11-e5df-4f5d-8689-ea05fe3185d6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Design and performance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"r95tj44yth","content":[{"text":"Padayani is very popular in Kerala, India, as a means, used to worship goddess Bhadra Kali.\nAfter the kolam thullal dancing ends, there is ritual called Pooppada which is the end of the padayani festival. After that, the days of colours will be over and the colourful memories will be in the minds.\nThe waiting for the next padayani starts with a prayer for the wellness of all world.\nIn 2007, plans were put forward to implement a proposal by poet Kadammanitta Ramakrishnan to create a Padayani Village to promote the dance form. As of 2009, the first such village is expected to be built in the poet's hometown of Kadammanitta at a cost of Rs. 1.9 crore. A chief exponent of Padayani is Prof. Kadammanitta Vasudevan Pillai. His association and acquaintance with Kadammanitta Ramakrishnan has led to many literary contributions. His Literary work \"Padayaniyude Paalakolangal\" and \"Padayani\" is an authoritative work on Kerala Folklore with special reference to Padayani. In 2010, a padayani village was established at Kadammanitta, historically a major centre of padayani performances, with museums and tourist facilities to promote the form.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0f79cd11-e5df-4f5d-8689-ea05fe3185d6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Elanthoor Padayani","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nhwf1p7m02","content":[{"text":"\"Elanthoor Padayani\" is being performed along with 8 days long Padeni maholtsavam at Elanthoor Bhagavathikunnu Devi Temple during February–March month of every year (Malayalam month of kumbam)(starts on makayiram naal). 8th day from makayiram naal is the grand padeni or Valya Padeni. Large crowd on valya padeni's procession is a main attraction follows kaappoli program. Main kolams are Ganapathi, Pishaachu, Sivakolam, Marutha, Koottamarutha, Rudra Marutha, Naayattu, Kuthira, Pakshi, Sundara Yekshi, Anthara Yekshi, Maya Yekshi, Arakki Yekshi, Erinaaga Yekshi, Maadan, Karinkkaali, Kaalankolam, Nina Bhairavi, Bhairavi, Kaanjiramaala and Mangala Bhairavi. Other performances include Velakali, Thaavadi, Pulavrittham, Pooppada and various types of Vinodhams such as Kaakkarashi Drama, Paradeshi, Sharkarakudam, Ammumma, Pattarum Pennum, Ooraali, Pulayan, Naadukaani, etc.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0f79cd11-e5df-4f5d-8689-ea05fe3185d6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Kottangal Padayani","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bddhmmzpvm","content":[{"text":"\"Kottangal Padayani\" is being performed along with the 8 (Ettu padayani) days from a total of 28 days during January - February (Makara Bharani). This is performed every year at Kottangal Devi Temple located in the boundary of Kottayam  and Pathanamthitta Districts. The last 8 days are important with the performance of different Kolams and other traditional programs.\nThe padayani is done by two Karas (areas which contains different sub areas) Kottangal and Kulathoor. The Last 8 days are equally divided to two karas that is 4 for each. The last two days (Valiya Padayani) are most important for both Karas and they conduct programs in a competitive manner. Beautiful Processions will be there on the evening of last two days. The main programs include vela Kali, Adavi, Pallippana, Vellam Kudi, vinodam and kolam Thullal. The kolams performed in the padayani are Ganapathi Kolam, Kuthira, Bhairavi, Sundara Yakshi, Araki Yakshi, Marutha, Pakshi, Kalamadan and Kalan Kolam.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0f79cd11-e5df-4f5d-8689-ea05fe3185d6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wcx168ej2y","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Padayani”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0f79cd11-e5df-4f5d-8689-ea05fe3185d6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"55ws3qvex9","content":[{"text":"Padayani is Ritual art performed in south Kerala, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"95d9934e-d902-4e01-a5d1-eec8c0eea2ce"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5s080v55ps","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"95d9934e-d902-4e01-a5d1-eec8c0eea2ce"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"These Kolam are representations of spiritual forces or divine characters, and are depicted with terrifying and spectacular face masks and head gear, painted in vivid colours like deep red and black, using natural powders. They include the Ganapathi Kolam, the Yakshi Kolam, the…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ed/Fire_and_Padayani.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Anandsankarsworld","height":1705,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"These Kolam are representations of spiritual forces or divine characters, and are depicted with terrifying and spectacular face masks and head gear, painted in vivid colours like deep red and black, using natural powders. They include the Ganapathi Kolam, the Yakshi Kolam, the…","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ed/Fire_and_Padayani.jpg/960px-Fire_and_Padayani.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Fire_and_Padayani.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ed/Fire_and_Padayani.jpg/1280px-Fire_and_Padayani.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:18.808Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/padayani"}
{"id":"66a0ad55-4147-4f0e-af6a-b2c383d281a9","type":"art_form","slug":"pandanggo","title":"Pandanggo","summary":"Pandanggo is a Philippine folk dance which has become popular in the rural areas of the Philippines. The dance evolved from Fandango, a Spanish folk dance, which arrived in the Philippines during the Hispanic period.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ppg6wpvj27","content":[{"text":"Pandanggo is a Philippine folk dance which has become popular in the rural areas of the Philippines. The dance evolved from Fandango, a Spanish folk dance, which arrived in the Philippines during the Hispanic period. The dance is accompanied by castanets. This dance, together with the Jota, became popular among the illustrados or the upper class and later adapted among the local communities. In the early 18th century, any dance that is considered jovial and lively was called Pandanggo.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0b3e2e85-0437-4cb0-a3a8-dea342209592"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Versions","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8xd40m6acs","content":[{"text":"There are many versions of this dance, and each locality has its own version. Local dancers have many ways of doing the Pandanggo, but there is one thing in common between different versions: they have gay and sprightly figures. It may be danced at any social gathering and is usually accompanied by clapping. In some places, the musicians do not stop playing until four to five couples have danced, one after the other. When one couple tires, another takes its place until there are no more people to dance. The musicians play faster and faster after each repetition until the dancers are exhausted. \nTwo of the most popular versions of Pandanggo, as a performing art, are the Pandanggo sa Ilaw (fandango with lights) from Mindoro and Oasioas. Pandanggo sa Ilaw, which originated in Lubang Island, Mindoro, involves the dancers performing while balancing lights. Another Philippine folk dance, Cariñosa, has Pandanggo as its base dance. Pandanggo is still danced by many people but mostly in religious rituals and processions such as the Pandangguhan sa Pasig, during the procession of St. Martha, and the Sayaw sa Obando which has a pandanggo for childless couples. While Fandango in Spain was superseded by its modern version, the Flamenco, it has evolved into a popular folk dance, and as a ritual dance in many religious processions in the Philippines.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0b3e2e85-0437-4cb0-a3a8-dea342209592"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2nt5v1k793","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Pandanggo”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0b3e2e85-0437-4cb0-a3a8-dea342209592"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"g78m9n0bqc","content":[{"text":"Pandanggo is Filipino folk dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fc45f339-fbc1-42a2-a513-27bfb6a47b97"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w16j45701e","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fc45f339-fbc1-42a2-a513-27bfb6a47b97"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"MSgt Kristin Rosales, 61st Medical Squadron, and her husband, TSgt Keno Enriquez , 752nd Medical Squadron, March Air Reserve Base, perform the traditional Filipino dance called Pandanggo sa Ilaw during the Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage (AAPIH) event held at the Space…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a3/LAAFB_2021_Asian_American_Pacific_Islander_Heritage_Celebration_%286691551%29.jpeg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"U.S. Space Force photo by Van Ha","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"MSgt Kristin Rosales, 61st Medical Squadron, and her husband, TSgt Keno Enriquez , 752nd Medical Squadron, March Air Reserve Base, perform the traditional Filipino dance called Pandanggo sa Ilaw during the Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage (AAPIH) event held at the Space…","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a3/LAAFB_2021_Asian_American_Pacific_Islander_Heritage_Celebration_%286691551%29.jpeg/960px-LAAFB_2021_Asian_American_Pacific_Islander_Heritage_Celebration_%286691551%29.jpeg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:LAAFB_2021_Asian_American_Pacific_Islander_Heritage_Celebration_(6691551).jpeg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a3/LAAFB_2021_Asian_American_Pacific_Islander_Heritage_Celebration_%286691551%29.jpeg/1280px-LAAFB_2021_Asian_American_Pacific_Islander_Heritage_Celebration_%286691551%29.jpeg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"MSgt Kristin Rosales, 61st Medical Squadron, and her husband, TSgt Keno Enriquez , 752nd Medical Squadron, March Air Reserve Base, perform the traditional Filipino dance called Pandanggo sa Ilaw during the Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage (AAPIH) event held at the Space…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d4/LAAFB_2021_Asian_American_Pacific_Islander_Heritage_Celebration_%286691553%29.jpeg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"U.S. Space Force photo by Van Ha","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"MSgt Kristin Rosales, 61st Medical Squadron, and her husband, TSgt Keno Enriquez , 752nd Medical Squadron, March Air Reserve Base, perform the traditional Filipino dance called Pandanggo sa Ilaw during the Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage (AAPIH) event held at the Space…","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d4/LAAFB_2021_Asian_American_Pacific_Islander_Heritage_Celebration_%286691553%29.jpeg/960px-LAAFB_2021_Asian_American_Pacific_Islander_Heritage_Celebration_%286691553%29.jpeg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:LAAFB_2021_Asian_American_Pacific_Islander_Heritage_Celebration_(6691553).jpeg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d4/LAAFB_2021_Asian_American_Pacific_Islander_Heritage_Celebration_%286691553%29.jpeg/1280px-LAAFB_2021_Asian_American_Pacific_Islander_Heritage_Celebration_%286691553%29.jpeg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"Pandanggo sa Ilaw is a timeless Philippine folk dance. This dance of lights simulates fireflies in the night by balancing lighted cups.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2d/Sayaw_-_Pandanggo_sa_Ilaw.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Richmond Chi","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Pandanggo sa Ilaw is a timeless Philippine folk dance. This dance of lights simulates fireflies in the night by balancing lighted cups.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2d/Sayaw_-_Pandanggo_sa_Ilaw.jpg/960px-Sayaw_-_Pandanggo_sa_Ilaw.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sayaw_-_Pandanggo_sa_Ilaw.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2d/Sayaw_-_Pandanggo_sa_Ilaw.jpg/1280px-Sayaw_-_Pandanggo_sa_Ilaw.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:07.501Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/pandanggo"}
{"id":"2cc25d5a-ccdd-4f0c-bcc6-bb5b0ad64006","type":"art_form","slug":"pansori","title":"pansori","summary":"Pansori (Korean: 판소리) is a Korean genre of musical storytelling performed by a singer and a drummer.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ydssc7yq8y","content":[{"text":"Pansori (Korean: 판소리) is a Korean genre of musical storytelling performed by a singer and a drummer. The term pansori is a compounds of the Korean words pan 판 and sori 소리, the latter of which means \"sound.\" However, pan has multiple meanings, and scholars disagree on which was the intended meaning when the term was coined. One meaning is \"a situation where many people are gathered.\" Another meaning is \"a song composed of varying tones.\" \nIn music, Gugwangdae describes a long story that takes as little as three hours and as much as eight hours or more. It is one of the traditional forms of Korean music that mixes body movements and songs to the accompaniment of a buk drum played by a gosu. The dramatic content of the drama is changed according to various rhythms based on the melody of Korea's local music. Pansori was originally called the \"sori\", and it was called Taryeong, Japga (잡가; 雜歌), Clown Song, and Geukga (극가; 劇歌). It was also commonly used in terms such as Changgeukjo (창극조; 唱劇調).\nIn the late 20th century, the sorrowful \"Western style\" of pansori overtook the vigorous \"Eastern style\" of pansori, and pansori began being called the \"sound of han\". All surviving pansori epics end happily, but contemporary pansori focuses on the trials and tribulations of the characters, commonly without reaching a happy ending because of the contemporary popularity of excerpt performances.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f71e6c88-9b8c-409b-afb8-8243b7da1ced"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Name","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7z0j504mwn","content":[{"text":"Pansori is a form of musical entertainment that has persisted in Korea from the 17th century to the present day. \nA related term, \"pannoreum,\" refers to plays such as Sandae-do Gamgeuk (산대도감극; 山臺都監劇) and geundu (근두; 筋斗), as well as tightrope walking. The pansori of the Joseon Dynasty included sijo poetry (시조; 時調) accompanied by music. Therefore, it is not appropriate to refer to pansori as Changgeuk (창극; 唱劇) or Changgeukjo (창극조; 唱劇調). Changgeuk is based on the name of Pansori dramatized after Wongaksa Temple (원각사; 圓覺社), but it is not suitable for pure Pansori. Therefore, Changgeukjo is appropriate for the musical term of the song sung in Changgeuk, but it is not appropriate for the form of pansori. [1]\n\"Pansori\" as a musical term originated independently from the term \"pannol\" (pannoreum). Likewise, the literary form of this form of pansori is also called pansori. It is therefore necessary to distinguish between pansori as a musical term and pansori as a literary term, but it is still appropriate to use the term \"pansori\" to refer to sijo. [2]","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f71e6c88-9b8c-409b-afb8-8243b7da1ced"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Description","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"en96h40r0v","content":[{"text":"Pansori performances are performed by \"Clown\", \"Gosu\", and \"Audience\".\nA clown sings with a fan in their right hand, and the singing part and the speaking part intersect. The singing part is called \"aniri\" or \"broader\" in terms of sound and speech, which is called \"applied\" or \"spacious.\"\nGosu is another important component of the performance that plays drums. As the expression \"one Gosu two master singers\" is often used, in the soundboard, a singer and a clown lead the game together. The drummer beats the emotional circuit of the song and adds more charm to the performance.\nRather than listening quietly, the audience adds a \"Chu-imsae\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f71e6c88-9b8c-409b-afb8-8243b7da1ced"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Pansori repertoire","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fjk6a561k9","content":[{"text":"During the 18th century, 12 song cycles, or madang (마당), were established as the repertoire of pansori stories. Those stories were compiled in Song Man-jae's Gwanuhi (관우희) and Jeong No-sik's Joseon Changgeuksa (조선창극사).\nOf the 12 original madang, only five are currently performed. They are as follows.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f71e6c88-9b8c-409b-afb8-8243b7da1ced"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"eqpxh42hy8","content":[{"text":"Chunhyangga\nSimcheongga\nHeungbuga\nSugungga\nJeokbyeokga\nContemporary performances of the madang differ greatly from the original works. Rather than performing an entire madang, which can take up to 10 hours, musicians may only perform certain sections, highlighting the most popular parts of a madang.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f71e6c88-9b8c-409b-afb8-8243b7da1ced"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Transmission","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sas5w74wmd","content":[{"text":"Pansori training has historically been conducted through one-on-one apprenticeships with pansori masters. Apprentices first learn to perform in the style of their teacher before developing their own personal style and technique. Significant time and care is taken to memorize and internalize the repertoire.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f71e6c88-9b8c-409b-afb8-8243b7da1ced"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Relationship between Shaman songs and Pansori","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bwvjdh7cq2","content":[{"text":"If Pansori comes from a shaman's husband, a clown, the musical wish should be saved in their connection. The rhythm of the unearned value shared by \"Lee Bo-hyung\" is as follows:\n1. Sinawi-Gwon: This is called the \"Yukja-baegi-jo\" and belongs to the southern part of the Han River in Gyeonggi-do and Chungcheong-do and Jeolla-do provinces.\n2. Menarizo : This is called an \"Sanyuhwa-garak\", and \"Gyeongsang-do\" and \"Gangwon-do\" provinces belong to it.\n3. Susimga·Sanyeombuljo: \"Pyeongan-do\" and \"Hwanghae-do\" provinces\n4. Changbu Taryeong ·Noraegarakjo: belong to Muga in northern Gyeonggi Province, Kaesong, Seoul, Cheorwon, and Yangju.\nIn addition, there is a theory that \"Gyeong-dereum\" is similar to the rhythm of the northern Gyeonggi Muga's Changbu Taryeong.\nAgain, the rhythm of Pansori has a tempo from the slow beat of Jinyangjo, Jungmori, Jungjungmori, Jajinmori, Hwimori, Ujungmori, etc. It is necessary to value the term \"Mori\" that appears here. In other words, if you compare Salpuri Gut in Jeolla-do Province, which is called Sinai Gijo, and Do Salmori, Balae in Gyeonggi-do and Chungcheong-do provinces, the sound of goso sung by clowns is Jungmori, especially in old Hongpagosa and Antaek.\nTherefore, it is the Muga of Hongpae Gosa, Seongjo, and Antaek, which are called by this southern clown, that is, the theory that pansori was produced in the clowns of Chungcheong-do. This is a problem that needs to be further clarified in the future, but even from this, it can be seen that the reasoning that pansori came from the reading voice that some argue is vain. Since clowns are folk singers, it would be right to say that they assimilated various folk songs based on the rhythm of these mugas and completed them.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f71e6c88-9b8c-409b-afb8-8243b7da1ced"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4vxchvt9r0","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Pansori”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f71e6c88-9b8c-409b-afb8-8243b7da1ced"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zvv9m5m6xd","content":[{"text":"pansori is Korean genre of musical storytelling performed by a singer and a drummer, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4a5767a2-83f5-4148-a37a-f472c49ced63"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sj31f1qsj9","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 16 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4a5767a2-83f5-4148-a37a-f472c49ced63"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-09-17T05:47:14.240Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/pansori"}
{"id":"d89c2772-e09e-4663-a76a-4c28d0b518f6","type":"art_form","slug":"para-para","title":"Para Para","summary":"Para Para (パラパラ, ParaPara) or Para-Para is a synchronized dance that originated in Japan. Unlike most types of club and rave dancing, Para Para features specific synchronized movements for each song, much like line dancing.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wtx0sp24m8","content":[{"text":"Para Para (パラパラ, ParaPara) or Para-Para is a synchronized dance that originated in Japan. Unlike most types of club and rave dancing, Para Para features specific synchronized movements for each song, much like line dancing. Para Para has been around since the early 1980s, when European countries started selling Italo disco and Eurodisco and, in the mid-to late 1970s, new wave and synthpop music in Japan. However, the dance did not achieve much popularity outside Japan until the late 1990s.\nPara Para is strongly associated with Eurobeat. Eurobeat artist Dave Rodgers has described Para Para as the only way to dance to Eurobeat, which is usually \"so fast.\"","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1460adee-1eae-4c5d-afe4-be26313af1df"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Description","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"n2dqhjk0eb","content":[{"text":"Para Para dancing consists of mostly upper body movements in synchronization with a four-on-the-floor rhythm. Dancing involves choreographed motions with the arms and hands while stepping to the right and left, similar to the movements of traditional festival dances such as Bon Odori and cheering squads called Ōendan. Para Para dancing is generally done to Eurobeat and Eurodance music, with each track having its own dance routine. Para Para involves very little lower body movement, with the exception of moving one's hips, stepping in place, and jumping or hopping. Some routines feature more complex leg movements. Routines are generally choreographed by groups affiliated with popular clubs in Japan (see below).\nFans of Para Para often refer to themselves as \"paralists\" and include official and unofficial teams of dancers in Japan, Chile, Brazil, Spain, the United States, Canada, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Finland, and several other countries. Some such dance teams are recognized by major Japanese music labels such as Avex and have been featured in Japanese media like the magazine Egg.\nThe history of Para Para is largely described by the community and historians in terms of \"booms\", during which Para Para saw an increase in popularity. Times of decreased popularity are referred to as \"glacial\" periods. To date, there have been four distinct booms, each with a distinct cultural and historical context.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1460adee-1eae-4c5d-afe4-be26313af1df"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"\"Official\" vs. \"maniac\"","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"320q8pj18z","content":[{"text":"The term \"official\" in the parapara world describes routines made by certain clubs/choreography groups in Japan. A non-exhaustive list of official club events are Starfire, SEF, 9LoveJ, and Twinstar. These routines are danced and learned by most people in the community.\nIn response to official routines, people in Japan have made their own routines, called \"maniac\" routines. This movement started in the late 1990s with clubs like Hibiya Radio City and Tottori Eleven choreographing their own routines. In addition to the club events mentioned, other famous maniac club events that existed were Medusa, Area, Joy, AXOS, Bless, and TMD. As of 2008, club events in Japan have not choreographed many maniac routines, and the movement has basically stopped. However, some official club events like Starfire and SEF still continue. Some paralists prefer maniac to official routines, though, and continue to host small events like Ravenous that feature maniac routines.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1460adee-1eae-4c5d-afe4-be26313af1df"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Variants","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"x905semdd4","content":[{"text":"Some variants of Para Para include TechPara (set to hyper techno instead of Eurobeat), and TraPara or ToraPara (set to trance).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1460adee-1eae-4c5d-afe4-be26313af1df"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"OriPara and refilms","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s0faycs83j","content":[{"text":"In what is called OriPara (for \"original Para Para\"), some may make their own parapara routines to their favorite Eurobeat songs. The term OriPara is typically reserved for routines that are not made by famous choreographers or taught at club events.\nA refilm is a home-made, usually non-profit video in which dancers film themselves dancing parapara routines. The routines usually come from commercial or club videos, but some have been known to film their own routines, which is a phenomenon called \"oripara.\" These videos have not played a big part in the Japanese parapara community, possibly for copyright reasons, but they are very big part of the international parapara community since there are no large parapara events outside Japan. The two general purposes of a refilm are to highlight a rare routine or to show the public ones' skills. With the advent of YouTube, refilms have become more visible internationally to even non-paralists.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1460adee-1eae-4c5d-afe4-be26313af1df"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0tjynmg5tc","content":[{"text":"It is thought that the term \"Para Para\" is derived from the onomatopoeic expression of one's hand movements along with the music, where the beat of the music was described similarly to \"Pa-pa pa-pa-ra ra-ra\", similar to phrases such as \"boop-boop-bee-doop\" in English.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1460adee-1eae-4c5d-afe4-be26313af1df"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7r5htt290s","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Para Para”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1460adee-1eae-4c5d-afe4-be26313af1df"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7rdstgq1tp","content":[{"text":"Para Para is synchronized dance that originated in Japan, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fd021474-4ccf-4721-8309-819fbe920aca"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fzy9t0ek7c","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fd021474-4ccf-4721-8309-819fbe920aca"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Parapara Note","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/95/Parapara_Note.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Mr.ちゅらさん","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Parapara Note","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/95/Parapara_Note.jpg/960px-Parapara_Note.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Parapara_Note.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/95/Parapara_Note.jpg/1280px-Parapara_Note.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:10.991Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/para-para"}
{"id":"f7add645-e496-4347-b5b7-c9711e342cda","type":"art_form","slug":"parachico","title":"Parachico","summary":"The Parachico or Parachicos are traditional dancers from Chiapa de Corzo, Chiapas, Mexico, who dance on the streets of the town during the Grand Fiesta festivities, which take place from January 15 to 23 every year.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0gskay75j1","content":[{"text":"The Parachico or Parachicos are traditional dancers from Chiapa de Corzo, Chiapas, Mexico, who dance on the streets of the town during the Grand Fiesta festivities, which take place from January 15 to 23 every year. The festival honors the local patron saints the Black Christ of Esquipulas, Saint Anthony Abbot, and Saint Sebastian. It is claimed locally that, like many of the Catholic festivals in Latin America, it has its roots in the much older indigenous culture. So it has developed into a hybrid of old indigenous culture and newer Catholic and Spanish cultures. The church where the festival concludes is home to an old tree which, according to residents, predates the church. This tree is said to represent the \"tree of life\" (drawing on Maya and other pre-Hispanic American cultures), which would suggest that this site was used for ceremonies before the arrival of Catholicism.\nThe festivities, which include Roman Catholic religious ceremonies, music, dancing, and local cuisine, were included in UNESCO's Intangible Cultural Heritage Lists on November 16, 2010, listed as \"Parachicos in the traditional January feast of Chiapa de Corzo\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2b7647d8-dc90-44c7-b85f-42cde4066a66"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0kas25804n","content":[{"text":"Although the Grand Fiesta of the Parachicos has pre-Hispanic origins, the tradition dates to the seventeenth century, when the image of San Sebastian, Martyr, arrived in what was then known as the Royal Village of Chiapa (or Chiapa of the Indians), and the church was built.\nThere are many versions of the history of the Parachicos, but all the stories say that one day a beautiful woman arrived seeking a cure for her sick son. She had taken him to visit doctor and healers, but all failed to alleviate his suffering. Someone told her to go to Chiapa de Corzo, where surely she would find a cure, so she moved there with all her servants, and there her son was finally healed.\nWhen she realized that the village was one of humble people, she tried to reward them by distributing food. Meanwhile, the natives danced around the boy—painted and disguised to look white like his mother, so the little one would not be scared. When the lady, whose name was Señora Maria de Angulo, gave the gifts to the dancers, she said: \"for the boy,\" or \"para el chico,\" shortened to\"Parachico.\"\nOral tradition also offers another version. It is said that in the middle of the 18th century a Spanish lady from Guatemala arrived in Chiapa de Corzo who had a sick son whom the doctors had not been able to cure. She had arrived in Chiapa de Corzo with her son and a large number of servants because she wanted to consult a famed Indian healer and went to visit him. \"Clear the way for my lady María de Angulo!\" shouted her servants. The healer recommended that the rich Spanish woman take her sick son to the healing waters of Cumbujuyú and bathe him for nine days.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2b7647d8-dc90-44c7-b85f-42cde4066a66"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Attire","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5682h4rnwq","content":[{"text":"Parachicos wear wooden masks with Caucasian features, such as light skin, facial hair and blue eyes, in contrast to Native people's features. They also wear a round headdress, colorful ribbons, striped serapes, embroidered shawls, usually over black or dark shirt and trousers.\nParachicos use metallic rattles locally known as chinchin or  chinchines, with colorful ribbons attached to the top and/or handles, which are shaken as they dance and chant.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2b7647d8-dc90-44c7-b85f-42cde4066a66"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Declaration as Intangible Cultural Heritage","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3k8pyrnxzc","content":[{"text":"On November 16, 2010, the Festival of the Parachicos was declared Intangible Cultural Heritage by UNESCO. The decision was adopted at the meeting of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage, held in Nairobi, Kenya, under the name \"Parachicos in the traditional January feast of Chiapa de Corzo.\"","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2b7647d8-dc90-44c7-b85f-42cde4066a66"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"se796973d2","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Parachico”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2b7647d8-dc90-44c7-b85f-42cde4066a66"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3btevdjm9e","content":[{"text":"Parachico is traditional dancers from Chiapa de Corzo, Chiapas, Mexico, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0565003f-12ef-45c3-8d6c-4a657d4be591"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jmnjz7mp4e","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0565003f-12ef-45c3-8d6c-4a657d4be591"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"La tradicional Fiesta Grande de Chiapa de Corzo tiene lugar del 8 al 23 de enero de cada año en Chiapas. Durante la Fiesta Grande, la danza de los parachicos invade todos los ámbitos de la vida local.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/23/Parachicos_en_la_Fiesta_Grande_de_Chiapa_de_Corzo.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Alonso Cerro","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"La tradicional Fiesta Grande de Chiapa de Corzo tiene lugar del 8 al 23 de enero de cada año en Chiapas. Durante la Fiesta Grande, la danza de los parachicos invade todos los ámbitos de la vida local.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/23/Parachicos_en_la_Fiesta_Grande_de_Chiapa_de_Corzo.jpg/960px-Parachicos_en_la_Fiesta_Grande_de_Chiapa_de_Corzo.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Parachicos_en_la_Fiesta_Grande_de_Chiapa_de_Corzo.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/23/Parachicos_en_la_Fiesta_Grande_de_Chiapa_de_Corzo.jpg/1280px-Parachicos_en_la_Fiesta_Grande_de_Chiapa_de_Corzo.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:28.931Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/parachico"}
{"id":"9edfd939-639e-41ba-a4b8-11b87e6ad43a","type":"art_form","slug":"partner-dance","title":"partner dance","summary":"Partner dances are dances whose basic choreography involves coordinated dancing of two partners.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"41campjse6","content":[{"text":"Partner dances are dances whose basic choreography involves coordinated dancing of two partners. As such it occupies a middle ground between individuals dancing alone or individually in a non-coordinated manner, and groups of people dancing simultaneously in a coordinated manner.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e931a5d3-9478-4071-86d6-4b241957af86"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"United States dance history","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"prqn7f5vyh","content":[{"text":"Prior to the 20th century, many ballroom dance and folk dances existed in America. As jazz music developed at the start of the 20th century, Black American communities in tandem developed the Charleston and eventually the Lindy Hop by the end of the 1920s. Many cities had regular local competitions such as the Savoy Ballroom which accelerated the development and popularization of the dance. The dances were introduced to wider public through movies and regular performances such as those done at the Cotton Club in New York.\nAn unusual (for the time) feature of the dance was the inclusion of sections where the dancers would move apart from each other and perform individual steps (known as the \"breakaway\"). Another unique feature that was introduced in these early days were the first airsteps, also known today as aerials. These daring maneuvers were exciting for the audiences to watch, and when combined with live performances such as those by Ella Fitzgerald, became a staple of organized Lindy Hop performances.\nOther dances such as Collegiate shag and Balboa developed in the United States in the same time period but never saw the same international popularity as the Lindy Hop.\nOver the next few decades, popular music changed, moving away from the big band sound of swing to styles like rhythm and blues and then rock and roll. Due to this and other factors, the Lindy Hop evolved and mutated into a number of different styles. Dance styles such as West Coast Swing and Modern Jive integrated features of ballroom dances and new music to create distinctive but similar dances.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e931a5d3-9478-4071-86d6-4b241957af86"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"German dance history","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4gahgpferk","content":[{"text":"In 1023, the German poet Ruodlieb referred to a couple dance with a basic motif of a boy wooing a girl, and the girl rejecting his advances. Men and women dancing as couples, both holding one hand of their partner, and \"embracing\" each other, can be seen in illustrations from 15th-century Germany.\nAt the end of the 13th century and during the 14th century, nobles and wealthy patricians danced as couples in procession in a slow dignified manner in a circle, while farmers and lower classes danced in a lively  fashion. The burgher middle class combined the dances with the processional as a \"fore dance\", and the turning as an \"after dance\".\nThe Danse de Paysans' (Peasant's Dance) by Théodore de Bry shows a couple with a man lifting his partner off the ground, pulling her towards him while holding her closely with both arms. His Danse de Seigneurs et Dames (Dance of the Lords and Ladies) features one Lord with his arms around the waist of his Lady. Syncopated rhythms gained widespread popularity for dancing in the last two centuries, although usually less complex and more regular than previous music.\nAn old couple dance which can be found all over Northern Europe is known as \"Manchester\" or \"Lott is Dead\". In Bavaria words to the music include \"One, two, three and one is four, Dianderl lifts up her skirt And shows me her knees\", and in Bavaria one verse invites the girl to leave her bedroom window open to allow a visit from her partner.\nDance partners stay together for the duration of the dance and, most often, dance independently of other couples dancing at the same time, if any.\nAlthough this kind of dancing can be seen, for instance, in ballet, this term is usually applied to various forms of social dance, ballroom dance, folk dance, and similar forms.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e931a5d3-9478-4071-86d6-4b241957af86"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Group dances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"76vq5pnqwh","content":[{"text":"Partner dance may be a basis of a formation dance, a round dance, a square dance or a sequence dance.  These are kinds of group dance where the dancers form couples and dance either the same choreographed or called routines or routines within a common choreography—routines that control  both how each couple dances together and how each couple moves in accord with other couples.  In square dance one will often change partners during the course of a dance, in which case one distinguishes between the \"original partner\" and a \"situational partner\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e931a5d3-9478-4071-86d6-4b241957af86"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Leader and follower","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rwa7nskwgs","content":[{"text":"In most partner dances, one is the leader and the other is the follower. As a rule, they maintain connection with each other. In some dances the connection is loose and called dance handhold. In other dances the connection involves body contact. In the latter case the connection imposes significant restrictions on relative body positions during the dance and hence it is often called dance frame. It is also said that each partner has their own dance frame. Although the handhold connection poses almost no restriction on body positions, it is quite helpful that the partners are aware of their dance frames, since this is instrumental in leading and following.\nIn promenade-style partner dancing there is no leader or follower, and the couple dance side-by-side maintaining a connection with each other through a promenade handhold.  The leader dances traditionally to the left of the follower.\nSome peoples have folk partner dances, where partners do not have any body contact at all, but there is still a kind of \"call-response\" interaction.\nA popular form of partner dancing is slow dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e931a5d3-9478-4071-86d6-4b241957af86"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History of same-sex partner dancing","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"crkp0jbcbr","content":[{"text":"Generally, partner dance has taken place between a man and a woman. Before the 1950s, however, if there was not a sufficient number of partners of the opposite sex available, couples formed into pairs of the same sex.\nSometimes this is also done as part of a dance tradition. In traditional partner dances done within certain conservative cultures, such as in traditional Uyghur partner dance, dancing is often done with the same sex as a matter of respect for the conservative culture.\nAs learning both dance roles has become more common and social norms have changed, many events and competitions have removed restrictions.\nTypically, in ballroom competitions today, same-sex partnerships are allowed up to the silver level (the third level in competition, after newcomer and bronze). However, these are comparatively rare.\nIt is thought that some partner dances actually developed with more relaxed gender roles. Prior to adoption by the mainstream, these dances did not actually normalize the man-lead/woman-follow paradigm.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e931a5d3-9478-4071-86d6-4b241957af86"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ajd6ww3tvx","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Partner dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e931a5d3-9478-4071-86d6-4b241957af86"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"apv6y9aqrz","content":[{"text":"partner dance is coordinated dancing of two partners, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2da9f92e-491d-4352-aac0-413193c382e4"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2bk3sgtjyz","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 5 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2da9f92e-491d-4352-aac0-413193c382e4"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-05T02:44:27.778Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/partner-dance"}
{"id":"5828aa25-0bb4-45a5-b9fe-08bf08c7f8de","type":"art_form","slug":"pas-de-deux","title":"pas de deux","summary":"In ballet, a pas de deux [pɑ d(ə) dø] (French, literally \"step of two\") is a dance duet in which two dancers perform ballet steps together.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nhgmmry83r","content":[{"text":"In ballet, a pas de deux [pɑ d(ə) dø] (French, literally \"step of two\") is a dance duet in which two dancers perform ballet steps together. The pas de deux is characteristic of classical ballet and can be found in many well-known ballets, including Sleeping Beauty, Swan Lake, and Giselle. It is most often performed by a male and a female (a danseur and a ballerina) though there are exceptions, such as in the film White Nights, in which a pas de deux is performed by Mikhail Baryshnikov and Gregory Hines.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"78cfb263-5826-4eb4-9ec2-bfa320e85ad4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Grand pas de deux","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vdj5yvek2q","content":[{"text":"A grand pas de deux is a structured pas de deux that typically has five parts, consisting of an entrée (introduction), an adagio, two variations (a solo for each dancer), and a coda (conclusion). It is effectively a suite of dances that share a common theme, often symbolic of a love story or the partnership inherent in love, with the dancers portraying expressions of affectionate feelings and thoughts between romantic partners. It is often considered to be the pièce de résistance and bravura highlight of a ballet and is usually performed by a leading pair of principal dancers.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"78cfb263-5826-4eb4-9ec2-bfa320e85ad4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Entrée","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tjq7nmzmfg","content":[{"text":"A grand pas de deux usually begins with an entrée (literally \"entrance\"), which serves as a short prelude to and also unequivocally denotes the beginning of the dance suite. During the entrée, the dancers first appear on the stage and, typically with great pageantry, acknowledge each other and position themselves near each other in preparation for the subsequent adagio. Depending on the choreography, the ballerina and danseur may enter the stage simultaneously or at different times.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"78cfb263-5826-4eb4-9ec2-bfa320e85ad4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Adagio","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5f69m9ex8f","content":[{"text":"The adagio or adage (meaning \"slowly\") part of a grand pas de deux features graceful and elaborate partnering by the dancing pair. In the adagio, the ballerina performs elegant, often slow and sustained movements while the danseur supports her. The danseur, in turn, strives to maintain a display of poise and seemingly effortless strength while providing support for the ballerina. The danseur may support the ballerina in a variety of common ways, including lifting her, holding and steadying her during turns, and offering a steady arm or hand for her to use as a \"virtual barre\" when she performs balancing feats that would be difficult or impossible without assistance. Because of this support the adagio is sometimes called supported adagio.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"78cfb263-5826-4eb4-9ec2-bfa320e85ad4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Variations","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"x02npe4xf5","content":[{"text":"Upon completion of the adagio, the dancers separate and each dancer, in turn, takes center stage and performs a variation (a solo dance). In general, the variations are intended to showcase spectacular, acrobatic leaps and turns, as well as the skills and athleticism of the individual dancers. The danseur's variation is usually performed first, followed by the ballerina's variation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"78cfb263-5826-4eb4-9ec2-bfa320e85ad4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Coda","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"km7tgnvf2p","content":[{"text":"The coda (literally \"tail\") is the concluding segment of a grand pas de deux. Typically, it is a recapitulation of earlier segments of the grand pas de deux, consisting of elements that are characteristic of the adagio, variations, or both, and ends during a grand musical climax.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"78cfb263-5826-4eb4-9ec2-bfa320e85ad4"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ddvvb574p0","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Pas de deux”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"78cfb263-5826-4eb4-9ec2-bfa320e85ad4"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"r3e609jtk6","content":[{"text":"pas de deux is ballet dance for two dancers, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"12e9e98b-b10b-438d-8718-f99c84cf4b2b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gzs9m958mg","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 5 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"12e9e98b-b10b-438d-8718-f99c84cf4b2b"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Paquita pas de deux, performed by Daria L and Ross at a NW Fusion Dance Company concert at the World Trade Center Theater in Portland, Oregon.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b1/NWFusionPaquitaPas2.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Lambtron","height":1417,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Paquita pas de deux, performed by Daria L and Ross at a NW Fusion Dance Company concert at the World Trade Center Theater in Portland, Oregon.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b1/NWFusionPaquitaPas2.jpg/960px-NWFusionPaquitaPas2.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:NWFusionPaquitaPas2.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b1/NWFusionPaquitaPas2.jpg/1280px-NWFusionPaquitaPas2.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:26.593Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/pas-de-deux"}
{"id":"fc8a80a1-f891-4918-b42f-c7807a887d27","type":"art_form","slug":"pas-de-quatre","title":"pas de quatre","summary":"Pas de quatre (literally, \"step of four\") is a French term used to identify a ballet dance for four people. Pas de quatre are usually plotless dances performed as divertissements  within the context of a larger work.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vr8gqpabr9","content":[{"text":"Pas de quatre (literally, \"step of four\") is a French term used to identify a ballet dance for four people. Pas de quatre are usually plotless dances performed as divertissements  within the context of a larger work. However, narrative pas de quatre and pas de quatre that stand alone are not unknown.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"27926675-9fb4-4b07-a7cb-ec03f1d7ddf3"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Selected works","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cybp3n7kbn","content":[{"text":"Among the pas de quatre best known in the ballet repertory are the following:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"27926675-9fb4-4b07-a7cb-ec03f1d7ddf3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"z8xtvngksy","content":[{"text":"1845. Pas de Quatre, choreography by Jules Perrot, music by Cesare Pugni. It was performed by Lucile Grahn, Carlotta Grisi, Fanny Cerrito, and Marie Taglioni, four celebrated ballerinas of the time. Fanny Elssler was invited to take part in its creation but declined to do so. Young Lucile Grahn accepted without hesitation.\n1895. Swan Lake, act 2, choreography by Lev Ivanov, music by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. Danse des petits cygnes (a.k.a. Dance of the Little Swans). With cross-linked hands, the four dancers, usually demi-soloists from the corps de ballet, perform precise and dazzling footwork.\n1898. Raymonda, choreography by Marius Petipa, music by Alexander Glazunov. Variation pour quatre danseurs, in Pas classique hongrois, act 3. An ebullient quartet, it was first performed by Sergei Legat, Georgi Kyasht, Nikolai Legat, and Alexander Gorsky.\n1936. Jardin aux Lilas, choreography by Antony Tudor, music by Ernest Chausson. Technically not a pure pas de quatre, as the four characters are accompanied by a corps de ballet. At its premier, the four principals were Maude Lloyd (Caroline), Hugh Laing (Her Lover), Antony Tudor (The Man She Must Marry), and Peggy van Praagh (An Episode in His Past).\n1949. The Moor's Pavane, choreography by José Limón, music by Henry Purcell. Based on Shakespeare's Othello. The original cast consisted of Limon (The Moor), Betty Jones (Desdemona), Lucas Hoving (Iago), and Pauline Koner (Emilia).\n1957. Agon, choreography by George Balanchine, music by Igor Stravinsky. Part I consists of a Pas de quatre for four men, a Double pas de quatre for eight women, and a Triple pas de quatre for eight women and four men.\n1975.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"27926675-9fb4-4b07-a7cb-ec03f1d7ddf3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zcth6vyp0d","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Pas de quatre (ballet)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"27926675-9fb4-4b07-a7cb-ec03f1d7ddf3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2fk9g0av5w","content":[{"text":"pas de quatre is ballet dance for four dancers, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6f99f2fa-57f8-45a3-8568-1b886b8df1d4"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dsj1gj7378","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6f99f2fa-57f8-45a3-8568-1b886b8df1d4"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Bodenwieser Ballet performance of Blue Danube Waltz, with Moira Claux, Elaine Vallance, Nina Bascolo and Biruta Apens, 1953 Part of the collection: Papers of Gertrud Bodenwieser.; At rear, left to right: Moira Claux, Elaine Vallance, Nina Bascolo. Front: Biruta Apens.; Also…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/eb/Bodenwieser_Ballet_performance_of_Blue_Danube_Waltz%2C_with_Moira_Claux%2C_Elaine_Vallance%2C_Nina_Bascolo_and_Biruta_Apens%2C_1953_%2817617112191%29_-_Restoration.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Adam Cuerden","height":1694,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Bodenwieser Ballet performance of Blue Danube Waltz, with Moira Claux, Elaine Vallance, Nina Bascolo and Biruta Apens, 1953 Part of the collection: Papers of Gertrud Bodenwieser.; At rear, left to right: Moira Claux, Elaine Vallance, Nina Bascolo. Front: Biruta Apens.; Also…","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/eb/Bodenwieser_Ballet_performance_of_Blue_Danube_Waltz%2C_with_Moira_Claux%2C_Elaine_Vallance%2C_Nina_Bascolo_and_Biruta_Apens%2C_1953_%2817617112191%29_-_Restoration.jpg/960px-Bodenwieser_Ballet_performance_of_Blue_Danube_Waltz%2C_with_Moira_Claux%2C_Elaine_Vallance%2C_Nina_Bascolo_and_Biruta_Apens%2C_1953_%2817617112191%29_-_Restoration.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bodenwieser_Ballet_performance_of_Blue_Danube_Waltz,_with_Moira_Claux,_Elaine_Vallance,_Nina_Bascolo_and_Biruta_Apens,_1953_(17617112191)_-_Restoration.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/eb/Bodenwieser_Ballet_performance_of_Blue_Danube_Waltz%2C_with_Moira_Claux%2C_Elaine_Vallance%2C_Nina_Bascolo_and_Biruta_Apens%2C_1953_%2817617112191%29_-_Restoration.jpg/1280px-Bodenwieser_Ballet_performance_of_Blue_Danube_Waltz%2C_with_Moira_Claux%2C_Elaine_Vallance%2C_Nina_Bascolo_and_Biruta_Apens%2C_1953_%2817617112191%29_-_Restoration.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:04.502Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/pas-de-quatre"}
{"id":"563fb28d-9711-4136-aabe-70a570ed4c7a","type":"art_form","slug":"pasillo","title":"pasillo","summary":"Pasillo (English: little step, hallway or aisle) is an Ecuadorean and Colombian genre of music popular in the territories that composed the 19th century Viceroyalty of New Granada: Born in the Andes during the independence wars, it spread t…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cr52bstdz7","content":[{"text":"Pasillo (English: little step, hallway or aisle) is an Ecuadorean and Colombian genre of music popular in the territories that composed the 19th century Viceroyalty of New Granada: Born in the Andes during the independence wars, it spread to other areas; especially Ecuador (where it is considered the national musical style) and, to a lesser extent, the mountainous regions of Venezuela and Panama. Venezuelans refer to this style of music as \"vals\" (Spanish for \"Waltz\"). Today, it has incorporated more European features of classical dance, such as Viennese waltz in Colombia and features of sanjuanito and yaraví in Ecuador. As it spread during the Gran Colombia period, pasillo also absorbed the individual characteristics of isolated villages. This gives it an eclectic feel; however, the style, tone,  and tempo of the music differ in each village and indeed between each country.\nIn its waltz, pasillo alters the classically European dance form to accompany guitar, mandolin, and other string instruments.\nUNESCO's representative list of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity includes Pasillo from 2021.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e205a157-b1a1-4e54-aa34-74ecdb5e4e8a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"v3qce92z6a","content":[{"text":"Invented in the 19th century, pasillo became closely associated with the Colombian War of Independence, the Ecuadorian War of Independence, and Ecuadorian nationalism. Pasillo gained popularity from the recordings of the duet \"Ecuador\", once performed by Enrique Ibañez Mora and Nicasio Safadi. It reached its international apex during the career of Julio Jaramillo.\nYounger generations of Ecuadorians still enjoy pasillos, including new styles sung by Juan Fernando Velasco and Margarita Lazo. Some Ecuadorian pasillos include \"Pasional\", \"Invernal\", \"Ángel de Luz\", \"El aguacate\", and many others. Pasillo has been a very popular style of music in Colombia since the 19th century. Famous Colombian pasillos include \"Espumas\", \"Pueblito viejo\", \"Pescador lucero y río\", and \"Oropel\". Colombian artists, such as Silva y Villalba and Garzon y Collazos, have helped popularize pasillo around the world.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e205a157-b1a1-4e54-aa34-74ecdb5e4e8a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"In Ecuador","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6w71a5qk7m","content":[{"text":"Ecuadorian pasillo adds the influence of sanjuanito, so Ecuadorian pasillo is slow and melancholic. Differing from other countries, Ecuadorian pasillo became a national music symbol. According to author Ketty Wong, since the beginning of the 20th century the Ecuadorian pasillo stopped being a festive genre played in saloons and bands became more popular. It had many singles with melancholic texts referring to nostalgic and brokenhearted feelings. However, there are also songs expressing the beauty of Ecuadorian landscapes, the beauty of Ecuadorian women, and the bravery of the Ecuadorian people. In addition, there are songs which reflect admiration for a region or a city, and in some places these have become even more representative than their own city anthems. This is the case of \"Guayaquil de mis amores\" by Nicasio Safadi. Wong asserts that in Ecuador, due to its capacity of integrating and producing different topics between different social, ethnic, and generational groups, the Ecuadorian pasillo has become the representation of national music by excellence.\nDuring the 1950s the Ecuadorian pasillo went through a transition. Although it was still the national music of Ecuador, with the arrival of the radio it was forced to compete with foreign boleros, tangos, waltzes, guarachas, and other styles of tropical music, such as guaracha, merecumbe, and the Ecuadorian-Colombian cumbia.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e205a157-b1a1-4e54-aa34-74ecdb5e4e8a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Composers","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4rp5nr6rjn","content":[{"text":"Julio Jaramillo\nFresia Saavedra\nCarlos Amable Ortiz\nFrancisco Paredes Herrera\nAdolfo Mejía Navarro\nOlga Eljuri de Villar\nNicasio Safadi\nJosé Ignacio Canelos\nEnrique Ibáñez Mora\nCarlota Jaramillo\nLuis Laberto Valencia\nGonzalo Benitez\nTulio Hidrobo\nJulio Baba\nEnrique Espín Yépez\nVicente Gómez Gudiño\nJacobo Palm\nJosé Luis Rodríguez Vélez\nCarlos Vieco\nGerman Dario Perez\nOriol Rangel\nLuis Antonio Calvo\nLuis Henrique Santos Goncalves","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e205a157-b1a1-4e54-aa34-74ecdb5e4e8a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Example","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ern1znvsfb","content":[{"text":"Adoracion\nText: Genaro Castro\nMusic: Enrique Ibáñez Mora","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e205a157-b1a1-4e54-aa34-74ecdb5e4e8a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mmpxkgk5mv","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Pasillo”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e205a157-b1a1-4e54-aa34-74ecdb5e4e8a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"h8a5htxbs3","content":[{"text":"pasillo is genre of South American music, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"475ec4cf-39b2-4cb1-8c18-87e2ee216bb3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hxcbk90024","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 8 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"475ec4cf-39b2-4cb1-8c18-87e2ee216bb3"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Hallway (Public Domain). Photo taken in Mexico.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0e/Pasillo_%28Dominio_P%C3%BAblico%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"DogeGamer2015MZT","height":1039,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Hallway (Public Domain). Photo taken in Mexico.","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0e/Pasillo_%28Dominio_P%C3%BAblico%29.jpg/960px-Pasillo_%28Dominio_P%C3%BAblico%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pasillo_(Dominio_P%C3%BAblico).jpg","thumb1280":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0e/Pasillo_%28Dominio_P%C3%BAblico%29.jpg/1280px-Pasillo_%28Dominio_P%C3%BAblico%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"},{"alt":"Málaga","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9e/Pasillo_del_Matadero_15%2C_M%C3%A1laga.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Tyk","height":1867,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Málaga","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9e/Pasillo_del_Matadero_15%2C_M%C3%A1laga.jpg/960px-Pasillo_del_Matadero_15%2C_M%C3%A1laga.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pasillo_del_Matadero_15,_M%C3%A1laga.jpg","thumb1280":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9e/Pasillo_del_Matadero_15%2C_M%C3%A1laga.jpg/1280px-Pasillo_del_Matadero_15%2C_M%C3%A1laga.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"},{"alt":"Pasillo de Santa Isabel 16","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2d/Pasillo_de_Santa_Isabel_16%2C_M%C3%A1laga.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Tyk","height":1687,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Pasillo de Santa Isabel 16","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2d/Pasillo_de_Santa_Isabel_16%2C_M%C3%A1laga.jpg/960px-Pasillo_de_Santa_Isabel_16%2C_M%C3%A1laga.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pasillo_de_Santa_Isabel_16,_M%C3%A1laga.jpg","thumb1280":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2d/Pasillo_de_Santa_Isabel_16%2C_M%C3%A1laga.jpg/1280px-Pasillo_de_Santa_Isabel_16%2C_M%C3%A1laga.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:27.230Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/pasillo"}
{"id":"bf4756dc-5730-4042-94f3-591ade9cf2e0","type":"art_form","slug":"passepied","title":"Passepied","summary":"The passepied (French pronunciation: [pasˈpje], \"pass-foot\", from a characteristic dance step) is a French court dance.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9mymaf2pvv","content":[{"text":"The passepied (French pronunciation: [pasˈpje], \"pass-foot\", from a characteristic dance step) is a French court dance. Originating as a kind of Breton branle, it was adapted to courtly use in the 16th century and is found frequently in 18th-century French opera and ballet, particularly in pastoral scenes, and latterly also in baroque instrumental suites of dances. In English the passepied has been spelled \"paspy\" as well as \"paspie\" or \"paspe\", phonetic approximations of the French pronunciation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"33ee9cc0-6d39-4636-9be5-55d7bd77ca53"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ywch8cs59n","content":[{"text":"The earliest historical mention of the passepied was by Noël du Fail in 1548, who said it was common at Breton courts. François Rabelais and Thoinot Arbeau, writing later in the 16th century, identify the dance as a type of branle characteristic of Brittany. At this time it was a fast duple-time dance with three-bar phrases, therefore of the branle simple type. Like many folk-dances it was popular at the court of Louis XIV.\nThe passepied was remodelled by Jean-Baptiste Lully as a pastoral concert dance, first appearing in the 1680s as a faster minuet. It is accounted the fastest of the triple-time dances of the time, usually with a time signature of 38 (also occasionally 68 or 34), its phrases starting upon the last beat of the measure. Its phrasing had to divide into four measures to accommodate the four characteristic tiny steps over two measures. It used the steps of the minuet, which Lully had long before similarly adapted, to quite different effect, moving lightly and tracing elaborate patterns upon the floor.\nAfter this the passepied appeared in a great many theatrical productions, including those of Jean-Philippe Rameau. It is found as late as 1774 in Christoph Willibald Gluck's Iphegenia in Aulis.\nWriting in 1739 Johann Mattheson described the passepied as a fast dance, with a character approaching frivolity, for which reason it lacks \"the eagerness, anger, or heat expressed by the gigue\". Italians often used it as a finale for instrumental sinfonie.\nPassepieds occasionally appear in suites such as J.S. Bach's Orchestral Suite No. 1 and Partita No. 5 in G major, or dramatic music such as his French Overture for harpsichord.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"33ee9cc0-6d39-4636-9be5-55d7bd77ca53"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Revivals","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pzcmwdy4vy","content":[{"text":"Léo Delibes wrote a passepied as part of his incidental music for the play Le roi s'amuse by Victor Hugo. More modern examples include:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"33ee9cc0-6d39-4636-9be5-55d7bd77ca53"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jjc9j0x6xf","content":[{"text":"The fourth and final movement of Claude Debussy's Suite bergamasque for piano\nThe third movement of Igor Stravinsky's Symphony in C, which consists of a minuet, passepied, and fugue\nThe second number in act 2 of Sergei Prokofiev's ballet Cinderella\nThe first of five dances in the ball scene of Miklós Rózsa's Madame Bovary\nThe first of five dances in the third movement, \"Révérences engrenées, premier pentacle\", of Henri Pousseur's Jardinet avec automates for piano\nThe third movement of Christopher Rouse's orchestral ballet Friandises\nThe fourth movement of the Garden of the Senses Suite in part 2 of Michael Gandolfi's The Garden of Cosmic Speculation\nThe 2nd piece of Jean-Michel Blais's 2022 album Aubades","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"33ee9cc0-6d39-4636-9be5-55d7bd77ca53"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dfb0mp0ags","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Passepied”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"33ee9cc0-6d39-4636-9be5-55d7bd77ca53"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4598jfhxzn","content":[{"text":"Passepied is French court dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fff12988-9fa9-4201-a09e-cadaab0988d1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"11vm18jf9h","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 10 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fff12988-9fa9-4201-a09e-cadaab0988d1"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Titre uniforme : Dedieu, Paul (18..-1899). Compositeur. [Passepied. Piano. Op. 40] Avec mode texte Piano, Musique de -- +* 1800......- 1899......+:19e siècle: Passepieds (piano) -- +* 1800......- 1899......+:19e siècle: Massenet, Jules (1842-1912). Dédicataire Éditeur : A.…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c4/Passepied_pour_le_piano%2C_op._40_-_par_Dedieu-P%C3%A9ters_-_bpt6k886718r_%2808_of_10%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Dedieu, Paul (18..-1899). Compositeur","height":1673,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Titre uniforme : Dedieu, Paul (18..-1899). Compositeur. [Passepied. Piano. Op. 40] Avec mode texte Piano, Musique de -- +* 1800......- 1899......+:19e siècle: Passepieds (piano) -- +* 1800......- 1899......+:19e siècle: Massenet, Jules (1842-1912). Dédicataire Éditeur : A.…","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c4/Passepied_pour_le_piano%2C_op._40_-_par_Dedieu-P%C3%A9ters_-_bpt6k886718r_%2808_of_10%29.jpg/960px-Passepied_pour_le_piano%2C_op._40_-_par_Dedieu-P%C3%A9ters_-_bpt6k886718r_%2808_of_10%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Passepied_pour_le_piano,_op._40_-_par_Dedieu-P%C3%A9ters_-_bpt6k886718r_(08_of_10).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c4/Passepied_pour_le_piano%2C_op._40_-_par_Dedieu-P%C3%A9ters_-_bpt6k886718r_%2808_of_10%29.jpg/1280px-Passepied_pour_le_piano%2C_op._40_-_par_Dedieu-P%C3%A9ters_-_bpt6k886718r_%2808_of_10%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"Titre uniforme : Dedieu, Paul (18..-1899). Compositeur. [Passepied. Piano. Op. 40] Avec mode texte Piano, Musique de -- +* 1800......- 1899......+:19e siècle: Passepieds (piano) -- +* 1800......- 1899......+:19e siècle: Massenet, Jules (1842-1912). Dédicataire Éditeur : A.…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f4/Passepied_pour_le_piano%2C_op._40_-_par_Dedieu-P%C3%A9ters_-_bpt6k886718r_%2810_of_10%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Dedieu, Paul (18..-1899). Compositeur","height":1673,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Titre uniforme : Dedieu, Paul (18..-1899). Compositeur. [Passepied. Piano. Op. 40] Avec mode texte Piano, Musique de -- +* 1800......- 1899......+:19e siècle: Passepieds (piano) -- +* 1800......- 1899......+:19e siècle: Massenet, Jules (1842-1912). Dédicataire Éditeur : A.…","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f4/Passepied_pour_le_piano%2C_op._40_-_par_Dedieu-P%C3%A9ters_-_bpt6k886718r_%2810_of_10%29.jpg/960px-Passepied_pour_le_piano%2C_op._40_-_par_Dedieu-P%C3%A9ters_-_bpt6k886718r_%2810_of_10%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Passepied_pour_le_piano,_op._40_-_par_Dedieu-P%C3%A9ters_-_bpt6k886718r_(10_of_10).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f4/Passepied_pour_le_piano%2C_op._40_-_par_Dedieu-P%C3%A9ters_-_bpt6k886718r_%2810_of_10%29.jpg/1280px-Passepied_pour_le_piano%2C_op._40_-_par_Dedieu-P%C3%A9ters_-_bpt6k886718r_%2810_of_10%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"Éditeur : chez Denis (A Paris)","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5c/Passepied_et_Allemande_a_quatre_%C3%A0_la_Dauphine_par_le_sieur_Clement..._-_btv1b108800741_%2811_of_19%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Clément, Jean Marie Bernard (1742-1812). Compositeur. Chorégraphe","height":1120,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Éditeur : chez Denis (A Paris)","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5c/Passepied_et_Allemande_a_quatre_%C3%A0_la_Dauphine_par_le_sieur_Clement..._-_btv1b108800741_%2811_of_19%29.jpg/960px-Passepied_et_Allemande_a_quatre_%C3%A0_la_Dauphine_par_le_sieur_Clement..._-_btv1b108800741_%2811_of_19%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Passepied_et_Allemande_a_quatre_%C3%A0_la_Dauphine_par_le_sieur_Clement..._-_btv1b108800741_(11_of_19).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5c/Passepied_et_Allemande_a_quatre_%C3%A0_la_Dauphine_par_le_sieur_Clement..._-_btv1b108800741_%2811_of_19%29.jpg/1280px-Passepied_et_Allemande_a_quatre_%C3%A0_la_Dauphine_par_le_sieur_Clement..._-_btv1b108800741_%2811_of_19%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-04T05:47:05.339Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/passepied"}
{"id":"d8af9ed9-4a46-4999-9061-16557008d7a0","type":"art_form","slug":"paydushko-horo","title":"Paydushko horo","summary":"Paydushko horo (Bulgarian: Пайдушко хоро, romanized: Pajduško horo; Macedonian: Пајдушко оро, romanized: Pajduško oro; Turkish: Payduşka; Albanian: Pajtushka; Greek: Παϊντούσκα, romanized: Baïdouska) is a Balkan folk dance, particularly ass…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xwbawfb0kt","content":[{"text":"Paydushko horo (Bulgarian: Пайдушко хоро, romanized: Pajduško horo; Macedonian: Пајдушко оро, romanized: Pajduško oro; Turkish: Payduşka; Albanian: Pajtushka; Greek: Παϊντούσκα, romanized: Baïdouska) is a Balkan folk dance, particularly associated with Bulgaria and North Macedonia. Like many other Balkan folk dances, each region or village has its own version of the figures. The name reflects the rhythm: paydushko derives from the Turkish word paytak, meaning \"a person with uneven legs\" (i.e. someone who limps), which refers to the limping step pattern of the dance.\nIt is a line dance, with the dancers in a line facing left, holding hands. It is traditionally a men's dance, but in modern times it is often performed in lines of both men and women. It features a 5-beat meter divided into \"quick\" (2-beat) and \"slow\" (3-beat) units, abbreviated quick-slow or 2+3.time . The dance starts moving right with a series of four lift-steps, followed by moving left: crossing the right foot in front of the left, transferring the weight onto the right foot while moving the left foot to the right (this is the characteristic movement of this dance, and is done four times). The dancers next move backwards using a series of four lift-steps.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9a22fd35-236e-4492-81dc-80e30b12d20b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Variants","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ch2v5a0a9c","content":[{"text":"A number of variations can be seen among individual dancers. For example, instead of moving left with the right foot always crossing in front, a front and back pattern can be used, resulting in a basic grapevine step. When moving backwards, the lift steps can be replaced by scissor-steps, often ending with a pas-de-basque step.\nA common version of this dance is Jambolsko Pajduško oro (yahm-bohl-sko pie-doosh-ko).\nThe dance is known as the \"Drunken Dance (Macedonian: пијано оро, romanized: pijano oro)  in  Macedonia and is believed to have been brought to Turkey hundreds of years ago within the early stages of the Ottoman rule of Macedonia. The Pajdusko is still danced by many within Turkey, especially Turks of Macedonian ancestry.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9a22fd35-236e-4492-81dc-80e30b12d20b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"10gv2ew4tw","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Paydushko horo”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9a22fd35-236e-4492-81dc-80e30b12d20b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rjwh2pbqzw","content":[{"text":"Paydushko horo is dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"40996a9c-977f-4af3-a4af-96fb6b1205e9"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vbfcsbebt7","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"40996a9c-977f-4af3-a4af-96fb6b1205e9"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"white concrete wall","src":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1565431914297-7e888596afa9?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8UGF5ZHVzaGtvJTIwaG9yb3xlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MTA4NzQ1fDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1080","kind":"photo","width":6000,"credit":"Ilja Nedilko","height":4000,"source":"unsplash","depicts":"white concrete wall","licence":"Unsplash License","thumb640":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1565431914297-7e888596afa9?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8UGF5ZHVzaGtvJTIwaG9yb3xlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MTA4NzQ1fDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=640","sourceUrl":"https://unsplash.com/photos/white-concrete-wall-4X_QYocl1to?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral","thumb1280":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1565431914297-7e888596afa9?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8UGF5ZHVzaGtvJTIwaG9yb3xlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MTA4NzQ1fDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1280","attributionUrl":"https://unsplash.com/@ilja_nedilko?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:16.257Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/paydushko-horo"}
{"id":"544b0e8c-f342-45d9-8505-4a6b16a77bfe","type":"art_form","slug":"peabody","title":"Peabody","summary":"The Peabody is an American ballroom dance that evolved from the fast foxtrot of the ragtime era of the 1910s and 1920s.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gqx2t7xc6a","content":[{"text":"The Peabody is an American ballroom dance that evolved from the fast foxtrot of the ragtime era of the 1910s and 1920s.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"25326411-579a-4882-8f54-ebcbb787098f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Background","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kwcmefj8z9","content":[{"text":"Soon after the introduction of the foxtrot in 1914, two variations developed: a slow version done at about forty measures per minute and a fast version done at more than fifty measures per minute. In England, the fast foxtrot was called the quickstep; in America it was called the Peabody, named after a New York policeman, Lieutenant William Frank Peabody (1873-1939). He was a good-natured man, husband, father, who was light on his feet and who loved to dance.  A popular member of New York ragtime dancing circles, he especially enjoyed dancing the fast foxtrot, which was gaining popularity in 1915. Because he was married, Officer Peabody would hold his partner on his right side in a manner known as the English or the right-outside position. The dance that came to be called the Peabody was thus based on an unusual dance position for the partners, which led to some unique steps and floor patterns.  The dance of the International School known as the Quickstep evolved from the Peabody -- according to oral legend, dancers from England saw it while visiting the United States, in attempting to reconstruct it, composed new elements to fill in for what they didn't remember.  Thus, the Peabody and the Quickstep bear little resemblance to each other, although some of the steps are the same.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"25326411-579a-4882-8f54-ebcbb787098f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Description","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rp2ya1rsd5","content":[{"text":"The Peabody is a brisk dance that covers a lot of space on the dance floor. Danced to almost any 2/4 or 4/4 ragtime tune of appropriate tempo, it is essentially a fast one-step, with long, gliding strides and a few syncopations. The leader changes sides as he travels around the floor and adds promenades and simple turns as the dance progresses. The partners may also add slight dipping motions with their upper bodies once they master the rhythm and flow of movement. In competitions and exhibitions, Peabody dancers sometimes wear appropriate ragtime dress: suits and straw boaters or bowler hats for the gentlemen and long, full dresses for the ladies. Music suitable for dancing the Peabody includes \"When the Saints Go Marching In,\" \"Ain't She Sweet?,\" \"Yes, We Have No Bananas,\" \"Tiger Rag,\" \"Bourbon Street Parade,\" and other ragtime tunes of New Orleans jazz men of the late 1910s and early 1920s.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"25326411-579a-4882-8f54-ebcbb787098f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Film and video","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"72xbnnh97p","content":[{"text":"The Library of Congress holds an archival video, intended for research purposes only, containing rare film clips from the 1900s through the 1930s. One segment shows Tony DeMarco and Sally DeMarco, professional exhibition dancers, performing the Peabody. It is available for general viewing only by special order. More accessible are prints of the 1936 film Swing Time, in which Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers perform a tap and ballroom dance that is loosely based on the Peabody. Set to Jerome Kern's catchy tune \"Pick Yourself Up,\" it is clearly a theatrical number, not a social dance, but it perfectly captures the playfulness and joyousness of the popular dance. A more serious work is Roseland, a 1977 film released by Merchant-Ivory Productions. Consisting of three separate stories of lonely people searching for a partner, on the dance floor and in life, it was filmed on the premises of Roseland, a famous ballroom on West 52nd Street in New York City. In the segment on the Peabody, the elderly Rosa, played by Lila Skala, dreams of winning the regularly held Peabody dance contest, even though her partner, who has more romantic dreams, is not the best dancer on the floor. They both hope to achieve their dreams before age makes dancing no longer possible.\nOther performances of the Peabody can be seen in video clips mounted on the Internet, including three that are particularly notable. Sandra Cameron and Paul Grecki danced a smooth, elegant, lighthearted version to Glen Gray's \"Maniac's Ball\" at the Dance of the Year celebration in 1991. A much more energetic version, combined with the Charleston, was danced by Chad Fasca and Midori Asakura to Sammy Ulano's \"Bourbon Street Parade\" at the 2004 American Lindy Hop Championships.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"25326411-579a-4882-8f54-ebcbb787098f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fhaysj2wm4","content":[{"text":"Forrest Outman Phoenix (DanceHistorian.com):\nhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JbWNb3bDQdw\nhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jugb0SQ6ziw\nhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rYfBtknJ0t4","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"25326411-579a-4882-8f54-ebcbb787098f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Demo","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mjybhxg00q","content":[{"text":"Peabody Demo\nPeabody with Stephanie Shapiro & Gene Eagle","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"25326411-579a-4882-8f54-ebcbb787098f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m1z050m2kk","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Peabody (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"25326411-579a-4882-8f54-ebcbb787098f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pa6s0t78mp","content":[{"text":"Peabody is fast foxtrot-type dance done to ragtime music, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8add370a-321a-4dfd-b5f8-fb8dad933c3f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nxprpwk9m5","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8add370a-321a-4dfd-b5f8-fb8dad933c3f"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Interior of the George Peabody Library in Baltimore","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c1/George-peabody-library.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Matthew Petroff","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Interior of the George Peabody Library in Baltimore","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c1/George-peabody-library.jpg/960px-George-peabody-library.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:George-peabody-library.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c1/George-peabody-library.jpg/1280px-George-peabody-library.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"},{"alt":"The Border to Boston rail trail in Peabody, MA, where it crosses underneath I-95","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a1/Border_to_Boston_rail_trail_in_Peabody_MA_I-95_underpass_September_2018.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"4300streetcar","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"The Border to Boston rail trail in Peabody, MA, where it crosses underneath I-95","licence":"CC BY 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a1/Border_to_Boston_rail_trail_in_Peabody_MA_I-95_underpass_September_2018.jpg/960px-Border_to_Boston_rail_trail_in_Peabody_MA_I-95_underpass_September_2018.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Border_to_Boston_rail_trail_in_Peabody_MA_I-95_underpass_September_2018.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a1/Border_to_Boston_rail_trail_in_Peabody_MA_I-95_underpass_September_2018.jpg/1280px-Border_to_Boston_rail_trail_in_Peabody_MA_I-95_underpass_September_2018.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0"},{"alt":"Historic 1886 Peabody City Hall, 300 N Walnut St, Peabody, Kansas , 666866, USA . Looking towards NNE. Photo by Steve Meirowsky on August 4, 2010.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/59/City_Hall_in_Peabody%2C_Kansas.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Steve Meirowsky ( Wikipedia ) (Flickr)","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Historic 1886 Peabody City Hall, 300 N Walnut St, Peabody, Kansas , 666866, USA . Looking towards NNE. Photo by Steve Meirowsky on August 4, 2010.","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/59/City_Hall_in_Peabody%2C_Kansas.jpg/960px-City_Hall_in_Peabody%2C_Kansas.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:City_Hall_in_Peabody,_Kansas.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/59/City_Hall_in_Peabody%2C_Kansas.jpg/1280px-City_Hall_in_Peabody%2C_Kansas.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:07.785Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/peabody"}
{"id":"63acfd2b-5cf3-40de-9cb7-a98939920717","type":"art_form","slug":"pendet","title":"Pendet","summary":"Pendet dance (Balinese: ᬧᭂᬦ᭄ᬤᭂᬢ᭄, igélan pendet) is a traditional dance from Bali, Indonesia, in which floral offerings are made to purify the temple or theater as a prelude to ceremonies or other dances.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sytxajtra9","content":[{"text":"Pendet dance (Balinese: ᬧᭂᬦ᭄ᬤᭂᬢ᭄, igélan pendet) is a traditional dance from Bali, Indonesia, in which floral offerings are made to purify the temple or theater as a prelude to ceremonies or other dances. Pendet is typically performed by young girls, carrying bowls of flower petals, handfuls of which are cast into the air at various times in the dance. Pendet can be thought of as a dance of greeting, to welcome the audience and invite spirits to enjoy a performance. It is one of the oldest Balinese dances, although the current form was codified in the 1950s.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"39f825b6-2bc6-486f-914d-5138a8f92497"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b65r29knbz","content":[{"text":"Traditional Balinese dances are the oldest form of performing arts in Bali. Traditional dances can be divided into two types: the sacred dances called Wali and entertainment dances called Bebalihan. Wali (sacred dances) are usually performed only during certain ritual ceremonies. Balinese Hindus believed that the sacred dances has strong religious significance and spiritual power, thus can only be performed during specific religious ceremony by specific dancers. Bebalihan are usually performed in social events. In addition to entertain, Bebalihan also has other purposes including welcoming guests, celebration of harvests, or gathering crowds. Bebalihan has more variations than Wali. Pendet is considered as a form of Bebalihan, often performed secularly to welcome guests or audiences.\nPendet believed as a representation of Balinese floral offering ritual, which offered banten or canang (floral offerings) from shrine to shrine within Balinese temple or residential compounds. Initially, Pendet dance is used as a complement of piodalan ceremonies in temples or family shrines, as a symbol of gratitude, respect, and joy when welcoming the presence of the gods who descend from khayangan (realm of gods). By the 1950s, the dance choreography, movements, costumes and properties were codified by two artists from Sumertha village, Denpasar; I Wayan Rindi and Ni Ketut Reneng. Both of them created Pendet as a welcome dance with four dancers, performed as part of a tourism show at a number of hotels in Denpasar, Bali. In 1961, I Wayan Beratha developed this dance and increased the number of dancers to five, as is often performed now.\nIn 1962, I Wayan Beratha and his colleagues developed Pendet dance as a mass dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"39f825b6-2bc6-486f-914d-5138a8f92497"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Performance and movements","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bwr4z3pxp5","content":[{"text":"The original Pendet dance is performed by 4-5 young pre-pubescent girls in the yards of Balinese Hindu temples. Pendet is the presentation of an offering in the form of a ritual dance. Unlike sacred ritual dances that demand arduous training, Pendet may be danced by anyone, taught simply by imitation.\nYounger girls follow the movements of the elder women, who recognize their responsibility in setting a good example. Proficiency comes with age. As a religious dance, Pendet is usually performed during temple ceremonies.\nAll dancers carry in their right hand a small silver bowl containing offerings include colorful flower petals and incense.\nThe bowl is decorated with yellow janur young palm leaves. The dance describes that the maiden dance from shrine to shrine within the temple. Pendet may be performed intermittently throughout the day and late into the night during temple feasts.\nPendet dancers bring flowers in small Bokor, silver bowls containing flowers in a ceremony. They spread the flowers around the temple. At the end of the performance, the maiden dancers would throw and sprinkle the flower petals towards the guests. This dance is a symbol of welcoming gods, spirits, and guests in some ritual ceremonies in Bali.\nPendet actually has simple dance movements. These movements are the basic dance movements of Balinese dance. Pendet has undergone later development with variations and now is not only performed in ritual ceremonies but also in some social events. Pendet since has been known as a welcoming dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"39f825b6-2bc6-486f-914d-5138a8f92497"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zpafzkjwz9","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Pendet dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"39f825b6-2bc6-486f-914d-5138a8f92497"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8fepbe9yqf","content":[{"text":"Pendet is Indonesian traditional dance from Bali, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1f73574a-bb01-447a-84ec-5314b42ab288"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9tv1mpzz3r","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1f73574a-bb01-447a-84ec-5314b42ab288"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Pendet is a traditional dance from Bali, Indonesia, in which floral offerings are made to purify the temple or theater as a prelude to ceremonies or other dances.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7d/Pendet_Dance.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Hendri Suhandi","height":854,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Pendet is a traditional dance from Bali, Indonesia, in which floral offerings are made to purify the temple or theater as a prelude to ceremonies or other dances.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7d/Pendet_Dance.jpg/960px-Pendet_Dance.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pendet_Dance.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7d/Pendet_Dance.jpg/1280px-Pendet_Dance.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:07.169Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/pendet"}
{"id":"661d2b53-fddb-4251-a02c-a2cde81348d2","type":"art_form","slug":"perini-shivatandavam","title":"Perini Shivatandavam","summary":"Perini Shivathandavam (Perini Śivatāṇḍavam) or Perini Thandavam is an ancient dance form from Telangana which has been revived in recent time. It prospered during the Kakatiya dynasty.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m57vmaatdk","content":[{"text":"Perini Shivathandavam (Perini Śivatāṇḍavam) or Perini Thandavam is an ancient dance form from Telangana which has been revived in recent time. It prospered during the Kakatiya dynasty. Perini is performed in honour of Lord Shiva, the Hindu God and it is believed that in ancient times this was performed before the soldiers set to war. Nataraja Ramakrishna revived the art form by studying old manuscripts and sculptures at Ramappa Temple.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b741599d-815e-45a5-a1f9-0e4697fe39f3"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"The dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6yb611zd8k","content":[{"text":"Perini Shivathandavam (Perini Śivatāṇḍavam) or Perini Thandavam is an ancient dance form from Telangana. It is a dance form usually performed by males. It is called 'Dance of Warriors'. Warriors before leaving to the battlefield enact this dance before the idol of Lord Shiva. The dance form, Perini, reached its pinnacle during the rule of the Kakatiyas who established their dynasty at Warangal and ruled for almost two centuries. The dance form is mentioned in the Sanskrit text Nrttya Ratnavali of Jayapa Senani. Based on its complex parts and myths, it is believed that the dance form developed for a long time before it.\nIt is believed that this dance form invokes 'Prerana' (inspiration) and is dedicated to the supreme dancer, Lord Shiva. One can find evidence of this dance in the sculptures near Garbha Gudi (Sanctum Sanctorum) of the Ramappa Temple at Warangal. Poet Srinatha mentioned in his Bhimeswara Puranam that Prerani as one of the dances being offered as Ragabhoga to the Lord Bhimeswara of Draksharama.\nPerini is a vigorous dance done to the resounding beats of drums. Dancers drive themselves to a state of mental abstraction where they feel the power of Shiva in their bodies. While dancing they invoke Shiva to come into him and dance through him. The dance was also performed on special platforms in front of temples. Perini dance form almost disappeared after the decline of the Kakatiya dynasty but Dr. Nataraja Ramakrishna brought a renaissance in Perini dance. He revived the art form by studying old manuscripts and sculptures at Ramappa Temple","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b741599d-815e-45a5-a1f9-0e4697fe39f3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gexzkdrq3f","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Perini Sivatandavam”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b741599d-815e-45a5-a1f9-0e4697fe39f3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9przsks3c4","content":[{"text":"Perini Shivatandavam is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b57d8838-5bc7-408e-891b-917e099849e2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yvsyfen1q7","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b57d8838-5bc7-408e-891b-917e099849e2"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"గజ్వేల్‌లోని మహతి ఆడిటోరియం ప్రారంభోత్సవం సందర్భంగా 2019 డిసెంబరు 15న తెలంగాణ ప్రభుత్వ భాషా సాంస్కృతిక శాఖ నిర్వహించిన సాంస్కృతిక సంబరాలులో పేరిణి నాట్య ప్రదర్శన","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/19/Perini_Dance_Performance_on_Lord_Srirama%27s_Life_at_Mahathi_Auditorium_in_Gajwel_15.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Department of Language and Culture, Government of Telangana","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"గజ్వేల్‌లోని మహతి ఆడిటోరియం ప్రారంభోత్సవం సందర్భంగా 2019 డిసెంబరు 15న తెలంగాణ ప్రభుత్వ భాషా సాంస్కృతిక శాఖ నిర్వహించిన సాంస్కృతిక సంబరాలులో పేరిణి నాట్య ప్రదర్శన","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/19/Perini_Dance_Performance_on_Lord_Srirama%27s_Life_at_Mahathi_Auditorium_in_Gajwel_15.jpg/960px-Perini_Dance_Performance_on_Lord_Srirama%27s_Life_at_Mahathi_Auditorium_in_Gajwel_15.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Perini_Dance_Performance_on_Lord_Srirama%27s_Life_at_Mahathi_Auditorium_in_Gajwel_15.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/19/Perini_Dance_Performance_on_Lord_Srirama%27s_Life_at_Mahathi_Auditorium_in_Gajwel_15.jpg/1280px-Perini_Dance_Performance_on_Lord_Srirama%27s_Life_at_Mahathi_Auditorium_in_Gajwel_15.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:20.899Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/perini-shivatandavam"}
{"id":"4439592a-6b38-48be-9bd4-a942769e4ebd","type":"art_form","slug":"peruvian-dance","title":"Peruvian dance","summary":"Dance in Peru is an art form primarily of native origin. There are also dances that are related to agricultural work, hunting and war. In Peru  dancing bears an important cultural significance.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yd1cngkr2x","content":[{"text":"Dance in Peru is an art form primarily of native origin. There are also dances that are related to agricultural work, hunting and war. In Peru  dancing bears an important cultural significance.  Some choreographies show certain Christian influence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"eb618d6f-d924-4dac-ab77-02fb0e821f89"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Types of dances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bx2gxa8v5p","content":[{"text":"The most internationally known dance in Peru is the Marinera Norteña. This dance represents a man's courting of a young woman. There are local variants of this dance in the Lima Region and the other regions of the country.\nAncash is a dance performed in Piscobamba (Ancash Region), on the occasion of the feast of the Virgin of Mercy, on the 25th, 26th and 27 September.\nApu Inka is a dance which re-enacts the capture of the Inca by the Spanish invaders.\nCh'unchu is a dance performed at festivals of the Cusco Region.\nDanzantes de Levanto, a typical dance from the Amazonas Region.\nEl Vals Criollo (Vals peruano) is a subgenre and musical adaptation of the original European waltz, originated in Peru or also called a genre of Afro-Peruvian Creole music.\nHuaconada (Wanka) is a ritual dance that is represented in the town of Mito, Concepción Province, Junín Region, located in the Central Andes of Peru.\nQhapaq Qulla is a dance performed at festivals of the Cusco Region.\nSupaypa wasin tusuq (Quechua for \"dancer of the devil's house\") or Danza de tijeras (Spanish for \"dance of scissors\") is an indigenous dance native to the region of Ayacucho, no relation to the highlands, with musical framework provided by violin and harp, which later spread to the Huancavelica and Apurímac Regions.\nTarkada is a dance performed during the carnival festival in the Tacna Region in Peru.\nTondero, also known as Marinera of Alto Piura, Piura yunga or (Morropón).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"eb618d6f-d924-4dac-ab77-02fb0e821f89"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"La Chumaichada","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"knqdeywvjj","content":[{"text":"La Chumaichada originated in Chachapoyasis and is known as \"the dance of Chachapoyas\". No holiday or celebration is complete if it is not danced.\nThe music is probably of Indian origin, but the choreography has a French origin stemming from \"Los Lanceros\" (the lancers), a dance introduced in Chachapoyas by the bishop of the diocese at that time, monsignor Emilio Lissón, of French origin. It has been said that he had so much influence that the city became Frenchified during his time.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"eb618d6f-d924-4dac-ab77-02fb0e821f89"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Los Danzantes de Levanto","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2zsap60pxd","content":[{"text":"Levanto is a little town about 10 km from Chachapoyas, whose \"dancers\" form a very well trained showy group of thirteen cholos,  guided by a \"pifador\" (a person who whistles) who plays the antara and a small drum called the tinya simultaneously.\nThey wear a white shirt of wide and long sleeves, a black vest adorned with red ribbons and black trousers, and a crown of showy peacock feathers. Their presence is important in all the big celebrations of the region.\nOther well-known dances performed in diverse localities are:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"eb618d6f-d924-4dac-ab77-02fb0e821f89"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1he5taae26","content":[{"text":"The \"Conchiperla\", in which the man gives a handkerchief to his partner; he must keep a knee on the ground and must drink a glass of liqueur if he fails.\nThe \"Trapichillo\", danced by four couples holding their right hands and turning anticlockwise.\nThe \"Quinsamana\", in which insult compliments are mixed.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"eb618d6f-d924-4dac-ab77-02fb0e821f89"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Carnaval in Amazonas","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k4yytnp92c","content":[{"text":"The \"carnival music\" that is played is euphoric. It is similar to the huayno. Pairs dance forming the pandilla (a kind of dance) around the humishas - trees adorned with quitasueños, small mirrors, ornamental chain stitches and pennants. These trees are filled with gifts, including live animals, which the guests take when the trees are knocked down at the end of the celebration.\nThe pair who fell the humisha in a Mardi Gras celebration have to make a new humisha the next year.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"eb618d6f-d924-4dac-ab77-02fb0e821f89"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ep16qv88tw","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Dance in Peru”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"eb618d6f-d924-4dac-ab77-02fb0e821f89"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ahrq14zcbz","content":[{"text":"Peruvian dance is multicultural Peruvian dances, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"edefa750-dcc4-4e9f-a353-483f756f613f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4xrwxb0wkp","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"edefa750-dcc4-4e9f-a353-483f756f613f"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"A group of dancers in Puno/ Lake Titicaca dance with tourist.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b9/Peruvian_dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Fanboy011","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"A group of dancers in Puno/ Lake Titicaca dance with tourist.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b9/Peruvian_dance.jpg/960px-Peruvian_dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Peruvian_dance.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b9/Peruvian_dance.jpg/1280px-Peruvian_dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:08.089Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/peruvian-dance"}
{"id":"ed8474c0-ba41-4564-8b3b-d87c9458d32d","type":"art_form","slug":"philippine-dance","title":"Philippine dance","summary":"The Philippines is home to several folk dances such as Tinikling, Pandanggo, Cariñosa, and Subli. Dance has integrated itself in Philippine society over the course of many years and is imbedded in Philippine culture.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qkgt47wbfb","content":[{"text":"The Philippines is home to several folk dances such as Tinikling, Pandanggo, Cariñosa, and Subli. Dance has integrated itself in Philippine society over the course of many years and is imbedded in Philippine culture.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d9026ce1-f465-4b0a-be13-77b5db3d367a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Types of dances by ethnic group","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jmkp4csjx7","content":[{"text":"The following are various indigenous dances of the major ethnic groupings of the Philippines","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d9026ce1-f465-4b0a-be13-77b5db3d367a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Igorot","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2zrk2r5bbh","content":[{"text":"There are six Igorot ethnolinguistic tribes living in Luzon's mountain terrains: the Bontoc, Ifugao, Benguet, Apayo, and the Kalinga tribes, which retained much of their anito religions. Their lives have been centered on appeasing their gods and maintaining a harmonious relationship between spirits and man. Dances are usually linked to rituals for a good harvest, health, prayers for peace, and safety in war.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d9026ce1-f465-4b0a-be13-77b5db3d367a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Moro","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"r4xjtw510n","content":[{"text":"The Moro people are the various usually unrelated Muslim Filipino ethnic groups. Most of their dances are marked by intricate hand and arm movements, accompanied by instruments such as the agong and kulintang.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d9026ce1-f465-4b0a-be13-77b5db3d367a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Lumad","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"e1fg1ex3en","content":[{"text":"The non-Islamized natives of Mindanao are collectively known as the Lumad people. Like the Igorot, they still retain much of their animistic anito religions.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d9026ce1-f465-4b0a-be13-77b5db3d367a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Christianized Filipinos","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xjyy2tt25n","content":[{"text":"The majority of Filipinos are the Christianized lowlanders of the islands. Their dances are heavily influenced by Spanish culture, though still retaining native aspects. The dances range from courtship dances, to fiesta (festival) dances, to performance dances. The traditional attire in these dances include the balintawak and patadyong skirts for the women, and camisa de chino and colored trousers for the men.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d9026ce1-f465-4b0a-be13-77b5db3d367a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hz3914v4mb","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Dance in the Philippines”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d9026ce1-f465-4b0a-be13-77b5db3d367a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mnzq8dk86t","content":[{"text":"Philippine dance is role of dance in Filipino culture, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f35cb1b6-5a60-4250-b186-5762ed47b57c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wmjhzgmm1v","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f35cb1b6-5a60-4250-b186-5762ed47b57c"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Subli is a dance reknown in Batangas province that use bamboo snappers on hand to accentuate rhythm.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fc/Subli.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Audioboss","height":856,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Subli is a dance reknown in Batangas province that use bamboo snappers on hand to accentuate rhythm.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fc/Subli.jpg/960px-Subli.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Subli.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fc/Subli.jpg/1280px-Subli.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-01T05:47:21.642Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/philippine-dance"}
{"id":"808a2f19-8c86-407a-beb6-7c4d01ac612e","type":"art_form","slug":"piva","title":"Piva","summary":"Piva is an Italian Renaissance dance that may have originated from a peasant dance to the accompaniment of bagpipes. In 15th-century sources it is described as the fastest version of the basse danse.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8ybgpnbmgm","content":[{"text":"Piva is an Italian Renaissance dance that may have originated from a peasant dance to the accompaniment of bagpipes. In 15th-century sources it is described as the fastest version of the basse danse. Antonio Cornazzano, for example, in his Libro del'arte del danzare (ca. 1455), explains that the music for the piva was also called cacciata, was in quadruple time beginning on the downbeat and was twice as fast as music for the basse danse.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7cbd58c0-8d33-470e-99c6-7a006adc8b01"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1exebb1cvq","content":[{"text":"The term appeared also in the 16th century, applied to compositions for lute. The pivas in Joan Ambrosio Dalza's 1508 lute collection are very repetitive pieces in quick triple time, with no clearly defined structure. However, it may not be accurate to describe them as being in triple time, since the fast triple rhythmic groupings do not represent one bar each, but rather single beats divided into triplets, just like Thoinot Arbeau's mesure ternaire for the basse danse.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7cbd58c0-8d33-470e-99c6-7a006adc8b01"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xgss729cfb","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Piva (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7cbd58c0-8d33-470e-99c6-7a006adc8b01"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"324zg9a9td","content":[{"text":"Piva is Italian dance of the Renaissance, performed in the 15th-16th centuries both during folk festivals and at the courts of nobles, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6d665bd8-f6fc-43b4-a71d-1fdd897fc979"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dptwrfb52k","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6d665bd8-f6fc-43b4-a71d-1fdd897fc979"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Blick auf den Piva-Stausee bei Plužine , Montenegro .","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d7/Piva_Canyon.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Julian Nyča","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Blick auf den Piva-Stausee bei Plužine , Montenegro .","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d7/Piva_Canyon.JPG/960px-Piva_Canyon.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Piva_Canyon.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d7/Piva_Canyon.JPG/1280px-Piva_Canyon.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Blick auf den Piva-Stausee bei Plužine , Montenegro .","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9d/Piva_Lake_1.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Julian Nyča","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Blick auf den Piva-Stausee bei Plužine , Montenegro .","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9d/Piva_Lake_1.JPG/960px-Piva_Lake_1.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Piva_Lake_1.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9d/Piva_Lake_1.JPG/1280px-Piva_Lake_1.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Der Piva-River in Montenegro","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4d/Piva-River_%283%29.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Römert","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Der Piva-River in Montenegro","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4d/Piva-River_%283%29.JPG/960px-Piva-River_%283%29.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Piva-River_(3).JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4d/Piva-River_%283%29.JPG/1280px-Piva-River_%283%29.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:28.545Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/piva"}
{"id":"ccb42a02-19ff-4dd2-9a96-596a35f3f271","type":"art_form","slug":"pogo","title":"pogo","summary":"The pogo is a dance in which the dancers jump up and down, while either remaining on the spot or moving around; the dance takes its name from its resemblance to the use of a pogo stick, especially in a common version of the dance, where one…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jkwsj9jc22","content":[{"text":"The pogo is a dance in which the dancers jump up and down, while either remaining on the spot or moving around; the dance takes its name from its resemblance to the use of a pogo stick, especially in a common version of the dance, where one keeps one's torso stiff, one's arms rigid, and one's legs close together. Pogo dancing is most associated with punk rock, and is a precursor to moshing.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bc6622da-2424-4d6c-8809-86560626b41c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Style","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"d7hr1sbwrx","content":[{"text":"The basic steps allow for a variety of interpretations, some of which might appear quite violent. Pogo dancers have their choice of:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bc6622da-2424-4d6c-8809-86560626b41c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9b8rd3ba74","content":[{"text":"Keeping their torsos rigid or thrashing them about;\nHolding their arms stiffly at their sides or flailing them;\nKeeping their legs together or kicking about; or\nJumping straight up and down, jumping in any direction, or spinning in the air.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bc6622da-2424-4d6c-8809-86560626b41c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rybcec4n3h","content":[{"text":"In The Filth and the Fury, Sex Pistols bassist Sid Vicious claimed that he invented the pogo sometime around 1976 at punk shows in the early days of London's punk scene. Vicious supposedly invented the dance as a way of mocking people who came to see Sex Pistols' performances, but who were not part of the punk movement. Whether Vicious actually invented the dance or not, the pogo quickly became closely associated with punk rock. Shane MacGowan, himself an early follower of the punk scene, also attributes pogo dancing to Vicious, claiming that a leather poncho he wore to gigs prevented him from any form of dancing other than jumping up and down. In her autobiography, Clothes, Clothes, Clothes. Music, Music, Music. Boys, Boys, Boys., Viv Albertine of The Slits claims that the Pogo was inspired by the way Sid jumped up and down while playing saxophone.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bc6622da-2424-4d6c-8809-86560626b41c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8jprr8y4rd","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Pogo (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bc6622da-2424-4d6c-8809-86560626b41c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2wr6mveeym","content":[{"text":"pogo is dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aa569477-17c2-4b8c-9e5d-bf4c573b2a7c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fma7yz7064","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"aa569477-17c2-4b8c-9e5d-bf4c573b2a7c"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"people standing during daytime","src":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1562686686-0b2c136f3569?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8cG9nb3xlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MTEyNTQ3fDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1080","kind":"photo","width":5184,"credit":"Andrés Gómez","height":2901,"source":"unsplash","depicts":"people standing during daytime","licence":"Unsplash License","thumb640":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1562686686-0b2c136f3569?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8cG9nb3xlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MTEyNTQ3fDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=640","sourceUrl":"https://unsplash.com/photos/people-standing-during-daytime-DBccbI3sA2M?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral","thumb1280":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1562686686-0b2c136f3569?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8cG9nb3xlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MTEyNTQ3fDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1280","attributionUrl":"https://unsplash.com/@andresloquesea?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:21.965Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/pogo"}
{"id":"8fbd3f7a-2f8d-47b2-886f-83539ed00918","type":"art_form","slug":"pole-dance","title":"pole dance","summary":"Pole dance combines dance and acrobatics centered around a vertical pole.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c8wzc5wtks","content":[{"text":"Pole dance combines dance and acrobatics centered around a vertical pole. This performance art form takes place not only in gentleman's clubs as a form of erotic dance, but also as a mainstream form of fitness, practiced in gyms and dedicated dance studios. Amateur and professional pole dancing competitions are held in countries around the world, and the discipline has evolved into different styles, such as pole sport, pole art, exotic pole, and pole theatre. Nowadays, while the sensual aspect of pole can still be expressed by the practitioners, especially in the exotic pole category, it is not predominant. Pole increasingly attracts not only women, but also men and children, as the sport becomes increasingly professionalized.\nPole dance requires significant muscular endurance, coordination, strength, flexibility, upper body and core stability, as well as artistry. As such, proper instruction and rigorous training are necessary to attain proficiency. Today, pole performances by exotic dancers range from basic spins and striptease in more intimate clubs to athletic moves such as climbs and body inversions in the \"stage heavy\" clubs of Las Vegas and Miami. Dancer Remy Redd at the King of Diamonds, for example, is famous for flipping herself upside down into a split and hanging from the ceiling.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"982aca46-7a62-4bd5-8b1f-11cb69a94d50"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"h6yzkmjea4","content":[{"text":"The use of a pole for sports and exercise dates back at least 800 years to the traditional Indian sport of mallakhamb,  which employs endurance and strength principles with a wooden pole wider in diameter than a modern standard pole. The Chinese pole, dating back to the 12th century, uses two poles on which men would perform \"gravity-defying tricks\" as they leap from pole to pole, at approximately twenty feet in the air.\nPole dance in America has its roots in the \"Little Egypt\" traveling sideshows of the 1890s, which featured sensual \"Kouta Kouta\" or \"Hoochie Coochie\" belly dances, performed mostly by Ghawazi dancers making their first appearance in America. In an era where women dressed modestly in corsets, the dancers, dressed in short skirts and richly adorned in jewelry, caused quite a stir. During the 1920s, dancers introduced pole by sensually gyrating on the wooden tent poles to attract crowds.\nThe rock and roll invasion in the 1950s saw the introduction of the pole to a broader audience, with Elvis Presley's \"Jailhouse Rock\" movie and video in 1957. The video featured Presley's famous gyrating hips as well as numerous pole slides, grinds, and twirls. Eventually, the pole dancing moved from tents to bars and combined with burlesque dance. Since the 1980s, pole dancing has incorporated athletic moves such as climbs, spins, and inversions into striptease routines, first in Canada and then in the United States. In the 1990s, pole dancing commenced being taught as art by Fawnia Mondey, a Canadian who moved to Las Vegas, US. She is known as the world's first pole dancing instructor. Since then, pole dancing classes have become a popular form of recreational and competitive sport, practiced and performed in a variety of sexual, non-sexual, and athletic settings.\nK.T.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"982aca46-7a62-4bd5-8b1f-11cb69a94d50"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Standard pole","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"seaswvxm8s","content":[{"text":"There are various dance pole types to suit different performance situations. Dance poles may be permanent or portable, have different sizes, have spinning and static modes, have different coatings, or be made from different materials.\nThe standard dance pole typically consists of a hollow chrome, steel, or brass pole with a circular cross-section, running from floor to ceiling. Affixing at the ceiling gives more stability but is not always realized, especially at nightclubs with higher roofs or at transportable devices. Dance poles that are permanent are fixed to the ceiling supported by a beam located in the roof, and they are set to the floor by different brackets and bearings. Portable poles are attached to a base or a mobile stage and do not need to be attached to the ceiling. These poles can easily be removed, dismantled, and fit into cases for transport.\nPoles come in a variety of diameters – 50 mm, 48 mm, 45 mm, 42 mm, 40 mm and 38 mm. The diameter used normally depends on personal preferences and what the pole will be used for—e.g., competitions or studio use. In the United States, the diameter is usually 50 mm (2 inches), or the now more popular 45 mm (1.75 inches), allowing it to be gripped comfortably with one hand. In Asia, the diameter is usually 45 mm or less. In Australia, a 38 mm pole is popular.\nPoles come in various materials and coatings, each of which possesses its own properties, advantages, and disadvantages. The materials poles are made of are brass, titanium–gold, stainless steel and chrome. The brass and titanium–gold poles are gold in colour and are used to enhance the grip between the pole and the dancer, and are normally used by more advanced dancers.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"982aca46-7a62-4bd5-8b1f-11cb69a94d50"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Show pole","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"60ptm7hv9s","content":[{"text":"There are now poles available for use in clubs that provide visual effects. These poles are made with clear plastics and contain water, glitter, and unique reflective materials, which stand out when used in conjunction with strobe lighting, as well as lighting hidden in their base joists. However,  these poles are not favorable to a dancer wanting to achieve better pole tricks as they bend slightly and tend to create a friction burn when slid down with any speed.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"982aca46-7a62-4bd5-8b1f-11cb69a94d50"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"As exercise","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9apty92m3a","content":[{"text":"Pole dancing has gained popularity as a form of exercise with increased awareness of the benefits to general strength and fitness. These forms of exercise increase core and general body strength by using the body itself as resistance while toning the body as a whole. A typical pole dance exercise regimen in class begins with strength training, dance-based moves, squats, push-ups, and sit-ups and gradually works its way up to the spins, climbs and inversions which are the métier of the exercise.\nPole dancing is also generally reported by its schools to be empowering for women in terms of building self-confidence, in terms of which its erotic components are still the subject of some controversy.\nA growing number of men are incorporating pole dancing into their fitness programmes.  In Australia, the UK and the US, dance studios are beginning to offer classes just for men. And in China, 2007's National Pole Dancing competition was won by a man. Dance instructor Zhang Peng, 23, beat a host of women dancers to the top prize.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"982aca46-7a62-4bd5-8b1f-11cb69a94d50"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Recreational pole","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ptjy6jc626","content":[{"text":"Since 2003, pole dancing has been transitioning from an exotic performance to a recreational activity. Pole dancing as a sport differs from pole dancing as a recreation as recreational pole dancing is undertaken mainly for enjoyment rather than fitness. Whilst undertaking pole class, students will learn a variety of different ways to use the pole to execute spins, tricks, climbs, hangs, drops and flips.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"982aca46-7a62-4bd5-8b1f-11cb69a94d50"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"etc8cm2p2b","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Pole dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"982aca46-7a62-4bd5-8b1f-11cb69a94d50"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ce3nn66msc","content":[{"text":"pole dance is form of performing art, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"20e24489-050e-41ae-af39-90787fc9f4fe"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"00phvcpz57","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 13 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"20e24489-050e-41ae-af39-90787fc9f4fe"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:07.983Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/pole-dance"}
{"id":"8ee97ad4-b488-4348-9dfe-10e83d01b33f","type":"art_form","slug":"polish-folk-dance","title":"Polish folk dance","summary":"Polish folk dances are a tradition rooted in ten centuries of Polish culture and history. Many of the dances stem from regional customs and historical events and are distinct from Czech, Slovak and Germanic styles.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pv4am0b5qe","content":[{"text":"Polish folk dances are a tradition rooted in ten centuries of Polish culture and history. Many of the dances stem from regional customs and historical events and are distinct from Czech, Slovak and Germanic styles. National dances include formal ballroom or ballet elements. Nowadays, the dances are only performed during major events, holidays or in tourist-oriented public spaces.\nThe most notable and renowned dances of Poland, also known as Poland's National Dances, are the Krakowiak, Mazurka, Oberek, Polonaise and Kujawiak. A great promoter of Polish folk music abroad was pianist and composer Frédéric Chopin, who often incorporated folklore into his works.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c0c34ce8-403c-4b16-8eec-b73ce0f42ccc"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Overview","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"n18e4sk26g","content":[{"text":"Polish folk dances (singular: taniec ludowy, pronounced [ˈtaɲɛts luˈdɔvɨ]; plural: tańce ludowe [ˈtaɲtsɛ luˈdɔvɛ]) tend to be lively, energetic, and joyful. Hops, twirls, and athletic movements are common. Many dances involve a circle (Polish: koło [ˈkɔwɔ] \"circle\", kołem [ˈkɔwɛm] \"in a circle\") but also partners.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c0c34ce8-403c-4b16-8eec-b73ce0f42ccc"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"National dances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cf09wznc9s","content":[{"text":"The Polish national dances are the Krakowiak, Kujawiak, Mazurek, Oberek, and Polonaise. These dances are classified as National, because almost every region in Poland has displayed a variety of these dances. Many of these dances were brought to the ballroom floor following Napoleon's expansion into Central and Eastern Europe, which brought French nobility imitating the Polish peasants style of dance, and adding flavors of ballet.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c0c34ce8-403c-4b16-8eec-b73ce0f42ccc"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Krakowiak","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"aqg1ev884g","content":[{"text":"The Krakowiak (pronounced [kraˈkɔvʲak]), also known as the Cracovienne, is a fast, syncopated Polish dance in duple time from the region of Kraków and Lesser Poland.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c0c34ce8-403c-4b16-8eec-b73ce0f42ccc"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Kujawiak","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m0cafzg4ke","content":[{"text":"The Kujawiak [kuˈjavʲak] is a dance from the region of Kuyavia in central Poland. The most romantic of the national dances, the Kujawiak is a slow dance in 34 metre, danced with couples.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c0c34ce8-403c-4b16-8eec-b73ce0f42ccc"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Mazur","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s5bqmcqym4","content":[{"text":"The Mazur is a faster dance in which pairs glide across the floor. The dance is laced heavily with French influences and the dancers move with grace and speed. The Mazur was one of Chopin's biggest influences when composing his music.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c0c34ce8-403c-4b16-8eec-b73ce0f42ccc"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2j1vff4wgp","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Polish folk dances”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c0c34ce8-403c-4b16-8eec-b73ce0f42ccc"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ntx7zbvx9g","content":[{"text":"Polish folk dance is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"10d4c49f-cbb4-4a9f-a12b-4f14618b40da"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zbwndqfwj8","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 7 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"10d4c49f-cbb4-4a9f-a12b-4f14618b40da"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Wikimania 2024 Polish folk dance","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e3/Wikimania_2024_Polish_folk_dance_%282%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Kurmanbek","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Wikimania 2024 Polish folk dance","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e3/Wikimania_2024_Polish_folk_dance_%282%29.jpg/960px-Wikimania_2024_Polish_folk_dance_%282%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Wikimania_2024_Polish_folk_dance_(2).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e3/Wikimania_2024_Polish_folk_dance_%282%29.jpg/1280px-Wikimania_2024_Polish_folk_dance_%282%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Wikimania 2024 Polish folk dance","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ad/Wikimania_2024_Polish_folk_dance_%281%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Kurmanbek","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Wikimania 2024 Polish folk dance","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/ad/Wikimania_2024_Polish_folk_dance_%281%29.jpg/960px-Wikimania_2024_Polish_folk_dance_%281%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Wikimania_2024_Polish_folk_dance_(1).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/ad/Wikimania_2024_Polish_folk_dance_%281%29.jpg/1280px-Wikimania_2024_Polish_folk_dance_%281%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:21.230Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/polish-folk-dance"}
{"id":"0dc57ab5-1078-42dd-b2ed-1a7f68c296db","type":"art_form","slug":"polka","title":"polka","summary":"Polka is a dance style and genre of dance music in 24 originating in nineteenth-century Bohemia, now part of the Czech Republic.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ns99ggpmpm","content":[{"text":"Polka is a dance style and genre of dance music in 24 originating in nineteenth-century Bohemia, now part of the Czech Republic. Though generally associated with Czech and Central European culture, polka is popular throughout Europe and the Americas.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"53d2c35e-69e2-4e36-ba32-3199d6939713"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0bv2njkq65","content":[{"text":"The term polka referring to the dance is believed to derive from the Czech word \"půlka\", meaning \"half-step\". \nCzech cultural historian Čeněk Zíbrt attributes the term to the Czech word půlka (half), referring to both the half-tempo 24 and the half-jump step of the dance. \nThe name was changed to \"Polka\" as an expression of honour and sympathy for Poland and the Poles after the November Uprising 1830–1831. \"Polka\" meaning, in both the Czech and Polish languages, \"Polish woman\". The name was widely introduced into the major European languages in the early 1840s.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"53d2c35e-69e2-4e36-ba32-3199d6939713"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origin and popularity","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wq24rc03xw","content":[{"text":"The polka's origin story first appears in the periodical Bohemia in 1844, in which it was attributed to a young Bohemian woman named Anna Slezáková (born Anna Chadimová). As told by Čeněk Zíbrt, the music teacher Josef Neruda noticed her dancing in an unusual way to accompany a local folk song called \"Strýček Nimra koupil šimla\", or \"Uncle Nimra Bought a White Horse\" in 1830. The dance was further propagated by Neruda, who put the tune to paper and taught other young men to dance it. Some versions of this origin story placed the first polka as being danced in Hradec Králové, while others claimed it occurred in Kostelec nad Labem or Labská Týnice. Historians believe the polka evolved as a quicker version of the waltz, and associate the rapid bourgeoning in popularity of the polka across Europe in the mid-1800s with the spread of the Romantic movement, which emphasized an idealized version of peasant culture.\nBy 1835, this dance had spread to the ballrooms of Prague. From there, it spread to classical music hub Vienna by 1839, and in 1840 was introduced in Paris by Johaan Raab, a Prague dance instructor. It was so well received in Paris that its popularity was referred to as \"polkamania.\" The dance soon spread to London in 1844, where it was considered highly fashionable, and was also introduced to America. It remained a popular ballroom dance in America, especially with growing Central, Northern, and Eastern European immigrant groups, until the late 19th century.\nIt may also be responsible for an increase in domestic popularity since the end of the 19th century, starting with the birth of recorded music, at first thanks to the many recordings provided by Emile Berliner's Gramophone company, which provided several examples of popular music.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"53d2c35e-69e2-4e36-ba32-3199d6939713"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Styles and variants","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1q5k4rnqbg","content":[{"text":"There are various styles of contemporary polka besides the original Czech dance, which is still the chief dance at any formal or countryside ball in the Czech Republic.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"53d2c35e-69e2-4e36-ba32-3199d6939713"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Belarus","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bd93d804ae","content":[{"text":"In the 1850s, polka was expanded among Belarusians, and was transformed by the national culture. In different regions, local variants arose, which assimilated with local choreographic folklore and gained popularity. The ease of penetration of the polka into Belarusian choreography was due to its degree of proximity to Belarusian national choreographic traditions.\nThe 2/4 meter polka merged well with Belarusian traditional dance, which had a similar meter. For example, \"Trasucha\" (Belarusian: \"Трасуха\", \"Trasucha\" or \"Пацяруха\", \"Paciaruchais\") a symbol of a typical folk dance, from which it received its name, and polka. Most often in Belarus, the polka is performed in pairs, moving half a step with turns in a circle. The dance is decorated with a variety of small pas, often accompanied by chastushkae.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"53d2c35e-69e2-4e36-ba32-3199d6939713"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"r5hkbecqy9","content":[{"text":"Belarusian polkas are extremely rich in their choreographic and musical patterns, and are distinguished by great modal and intonation diversity. Polka demands both skill and physical endurance from the dancers.\nLike the square dance, the polka also has many local variants: \"Віцебчанка, Viciebčanka\", \"Барысаўская, Barysaŭskaja\", \"Ганкоўская, Hankoŭskaja\", and the names were also given according to the peculiarities of the choreography: \"Through the leg\", \"With a podkindes\", \"With squats\", \"On the heel\", \"Screw\" and others.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"53d2c35e-69e2-4e36-ba32-3199d6939713"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"United States","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pt5ps7m0wn","content":[{"text":"In the United States, polka is promoted by the International Polka Association based in Chicago, which works to preserve the cultural heritage of polka music and to honor its musicians through the Polka Hall of Fame. Chicago is associated with \"Polish-style polka,\" and its sub-styles including \"The Chicago Honky\" (using clarinet and one trumpet) and \"Chicago Push\" featuring the accordion, Chemnitzer and Star concertinas, upright bass or bass guitar, drums, and (almost always) two trumpets. \nPolka is popular in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where the \"Beer Barrel Polka\" is played during the seventh-inning stretch and halftime of Milwaukee Brewers and Milwaukee Bucks games.  Polka is also the official state dance of Wisconsin.\nThe United States Polka Association is a non-profit organization based in Cleveland, Ohio. Cleveland is associated with North American \"Slovenian-style polka\", which is fast and features piano accordion, chromatic accordion, and/or diatonic button box accordion. North American \"Dutchmen-style\" features an oom-pah sound often with a tuba and banjo, and has roots in the American Midwest.\n\"Conjunto-style\" polkas have roots in northern Mexico and Texas, and are also called \"Norteño\". Traditional dances from this region reflect the influence of polka-dancing European immigrants from 1800s. In the 1980s and 1990s, several American bands began to combine polka with various rock styles (sometimes referred to as \"punk polka\"), \"alternative polka\".\nComedy musician \"Weird Al\" Yankovic is a fan of polka, and on every album since 1984 (with the exception of Even Worse), Al has taken bits of famous songs and modified them to fit polka style.\nThe Grammy Awards were first presented for polka in 1985.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"53d2c35e-69e2-4e36-ba32-3199d6939713"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xjhvg069r5","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Polka”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"53d2c35e-69e2-4e36-ba32-3199d6939713"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3fxdeztq2a","content":[{"text":"polka is Central European dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a66c8048-397b-41c6-8044-29d0bea744a2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"02g3v8dvhz","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 35 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a66c8048-397b-41c6-8044-29d0bea744a2"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:04.999Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/polka"}
{"id":"7bd3df13-da64-4a84-a20b-ff9dc8a9520c","type":"art_form","slug":"polka-mazurka","title":"polka-mazurka","summary":"The polka-mazurka is a dance, musically similar to the mazurka, but danced much like the polka. Many polka-mazurkas were composed by Johann Strauss II and his family.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4c662d9ht5","content":[{"text":"The polka-mazurka is a dance, musically similar to the mazurka, but danced much like the polka. Many polka-mazurkas were composed by Johann Strauss II and his family. Johann Strauss I did not compose any of this type of music; the first polka-mazurka example written by the Strauss family was in the year 1854 by Johann Strauss II, entitled La Viennoise op. 144.The polka-mazurka was not credited to the Strauss family alone, as many Viennese composers in the 1850s era also wrote many examples. This variant of the polka was seen as cross-cultural, as many of its influences can be seen in the French-polka with its feminine and deliberate steps as well as the exciting schnell-polka, where Eduard Strauss composed many famous pieces of this type.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"06f87085-ddf6-43eb-9926-44e03cc4bac2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Polka-mazurka music","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vj0hwgt73h","content":[{"text":"Its tempo of 3 beats to the bar (34 time) meant that it was similar in rhythm to the waltz, but the emphasis of the polka-mazurka was on the first beat of the bar as opposed to the waltz which places its beats on the last two as epitomised by the Viennese waltz with its heavily accentuated final two beats to the bar.\nThe polka-mazurka does possess a similar structure to the polka, with a main theme quickly proceeding to its subsidiary theme which is usually brash and loudly played. The 'trio' section is free-style and need not associate with the main theme nor of the same key signature. The Strauss family, Josef Strauss in particular, attempted in most of his famous polka-mazurkas to blend in sensitivity and romanticism, as can be heard in his pieces Sympathie op. 73, and Frauenherz op. 166, which were inspired by his concern for social issues faced by women in that era.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"06f87085-ddf6-43eb-9926-44e03cc4bac2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"scg2qwt0vn","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Polka-mazurka”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"06f87085-ddf6-43eb-9926-44e03cc4bac2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zjw69d484a","content":[{"text":"polka-mazurka is a combination of two dances, differs from the polka in its triple rhythm and from the mazurka in having an accent on the third beat of each bar, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3a61df65-0326-4d74-a2cb-f046247793b0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3pezzxq35v","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 7 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3a61df65-0326-4d74-a2cb-f046247793b0"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Titre uniforme : Talexy, Adrien (1821-1881). Compositeur. [Polkas-mazurkas. Offenbach, Jacques. La princesse de Trébizonde]. Arr. pour violon Avec mode texte Violon, Musique de (musique) Offenbach, Jacques (1819-1880). Compositeur de l'oeuvre adaptée Éditeur : Brandus et Cie…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/27/Quadrille%2C_valse%2C_polka%2C_polka-mazurka_sur_La_princesse_de_Tr%C3%A9bizonde._%2C_La_princesse_de_Tr%C3%A9bizonde_-_polka-mazurka_-_Talexy_%3B_%28arrang%C3%A9e_pour%29_violon_seul_-_bpt6k3233966_%281_of_3%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Talexy, Adrien (1821-1881). Compositeur","height":1914,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Titre uniforme : Talexy, Adrien (1821-1881). Compositeur. [Polkas-mazurkas. Offenbach, Jacques. La princesse de Trébizonde]. Arr. pour violon Avec mode texte Violon, Musique de (musique) Offenbach, Jacques (1819-1880). Compositeur de l'oeuvre adaptée Éditeur : Brandus et Cie…","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/27/Quadrille%2C_valse%2C_polka%2C_polka-mazurka_sur_La_princesse_de_Tr%C3%A9bizonde._%2C_La_princesse_de_Tr%C3%A9bizonde_-_polka-mazurka_-_Talexy_%3B_%28arrang%C3%A9e_pour%29_violon_seul_-_bpt6k3233966_%281_of_3%29.jpg/960px-thumbnail.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Quadrille,_valse,_polka,_polka-mazurka_sur_La_princesse_de_Tr%C3%A9bizonde._,_La_princesse_de_Tr%C3%A9bizonde_-_polka-mazurka_-_Talexy_;_(arrang%C3%A9e_pour)_violon_seul_-_bpt6k3233966_(1_of_3).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/27/Quadrille%2C_valse%2C_polka%2C_polka-mazurka_sur_La_princesse_de_Tr%C3%A9bizonde._%2C_La_princesse_de_Tr%C3%A9bizonde_-_polka-mazurka_-_Talexy_%3B_%28arrang%C3%A9e_pour%29_violon_seul_-_bpt6k3233966_%281_of_3%29.jpg/1280px-thumbnail.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"Titre uniforme : Talexy, Adrien (1821-1881). Compositeur. [Polkas-mazurkas. Offenbach, Jacques. La princesse de Trébizonde]. Arr. pour violon Avec mode texte Violon, Musique de (musique) Offenbach, Jacques (1819-1880). Compositeur de l'oeuvre adaptée Éditeur : Brandus et Cie…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5e/Quadrille%2C_valse%2C_polka%2C_polka-mazurka_sur_La_princesse_de_Tr%C3%A9bizonde._%2C_La_princesse_de_Tr%C3%A9bizonde_-_polka-mazurka_-_Talexy_%3B_%28arrang%C3%A9e_pour%29_violon_seul_-_bpt6k3233966_%283_of_3%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Talexy, Adrien (1821-1881). Compositeur","height":1909,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Titre uniforme : Talexy, Adrien (1821-1881). Compositeur. [Polkas-mazurkas. Offenbach, Jacques. La princesse de Trébizonde]. Arr. pour violon Avec mode texte Violon, Musique de (musique) Offenbach, Jacques (1819-1880). Compositeur de l'oeuvre adaptée Éditeur : Brandus et Cie…","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5e/Quadrille%2C_valse%2C_polka%2C_polka-mazurka_sur_La_princesse_de_Tr%C3%A9bizonde._%2C_La_princesse_de_Tr%C3%A9bizonde_-_polka-mazurka_-_Talexy_%3B_%28arrang%C3%A9e_pour%29_violon_seul_-_bpt6k3233966_%283_of_3%29.jpg/960px-thumbnail.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Quadrille,_valse,_polka,_polka-mazurka_sur_La_princesse_de_Tr%C3%A9bizonde._,_La_princesse_de_Tr%C3%A9bizonde_-_polka-mazurka_-_Talexy_;_(arrang%C3%A9e_pour)_violon_seul_-_bpt6k3233966_(3_of_3).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5e/Quadrille%2C_valse%2C_polka%2C_polka-mazurka_sur_La_princesse_de_Tr%C3%A9bizonde._%2C_La_princesse_de_Tr%C3%A9bizonde_-_polka-mazurka_-_Talexy_%3B_%28arrang%C3%A9e_pour%29_violon_seul_-_bpt6k3233966_%283_of_3%29.jpg/1280px-thumbnail.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"Titre uniforme : Talexy, Adrien (1821-1881). Compositeur. [Polkas-mazurkas. Offenbach, Jacques. La princesse de Trébizonde]. Arr. pour violon Avec mode texte Violon, Musique de (musique) Offenbach, Jacques (1819-1880). Compositeur de l'oeuvre adaptée Éditeur : Brandus et Cie…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/57/Quadrille%2C_valse%2C_polka%2C_polka-mazurka_sur_La_princesse_de_Tr%C3%A9bizonde._%2C_La_princesse_de_Tr%C3%A9bizonde_-_polka-mazurka_-_Talexy_%3B_%28arrang%C3%A9e_pour%29_violon_seul_-_bpt6k3233966_%282_of_3%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Talexy, Adrien (1821-1881). Compositeur","height":976,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Titre uniforme : Talexy, Adrien (1821-1881). Compositeur. [Polkas-mazurkas. Offenbach, Jacques. La princesse de Trébizonde]. Arr. pour violon Avec mode texte Violon, Musique de (musique) Offenbach, Jacques (1819-1880). Compositeur de l'oeuvre adaptée Éditeur : Brandus et Cie…","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/57/Quadrille%2C_valse%2C_polka%2C_polka-mazurka_sur_La_princesse_de_Tr%C3%A9bizonde._%2C_La_princesse_de_Tr%C3%A9bizonde_-_polka-mazurka_-_Talexy_%3B_%28arrang%C3%A9e_pour%29_violon_seul_-_bpt6k3233966_%282_of_3%29.jpg/960px-thumbnail.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Quadrille,_valse,_polka,_polka-mazurka_sur_La_princesse_de_Tr%C3%A9bizonde._,_La_princesse_de_Tr%C3%A9bizonde_-_polka-mazurka_-_Talexy_;_(arrang%C3%A9e_pour)_violon_seul_-_bpt6k3233966_(2_of_3).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/57/Quadrille%2C_valse%2C_polka%2C_polka-mazurka_sur_La_princesse_de_Tr%C3%A9bizonde._%2C_La_princesse_de_Tr%C3%A9bizonde_-_polka-mazurka_-_Talexy_%3B_%28arrang%C3%A9e_pour%29_violon_seul_-_bpt6k3233966_%282_of_3%29.jpg/1280px-thumbnail.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:16.108Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/polka-mazurka"}
{"id":"8ac31641-dd3d-410b-bcb3-672258d7ad5e","type":"art_form","slug":"polonaise","title":"polonaise","summary":"The polonaise (, French: [pɔlɔnɛz]; Polish: polonez, Polish pronunciation: [pɔˈlɔnɛs]) is a dance originating in Poland, and one of the five Polish national dances in 34 time.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t9e46hnm8b","content":[{"text":"The polonaise (, French: [pɔlɔnɛz]; Polish: polonez, Polish pronunciation: [pɔˈlɔnɛs]) is a dance originating in Poland, and one of the five Polish national dances in 34 time. The original Polish-language name of the dance is chodzony (pronounced [xɔˈd͡zɔnɨ]), denoting a walking dance. The polonaise dance influenced European ballrooms, folk music and European classical music.   \nThe polonaise has a rhythm quite close to that of the Swedish semiquaver or sixteenth-note polska, and the two dances share a common origin. Polska dance was introduced to Sweden during the period of the Vasa dynasty and the Polish–Swedish union.\nThe polonaise is popular in Poland today. It is the opening dance in major events, at New Year's balls, on national days as well as other parties. The polonaise is always the first dance at a studniówka (\"student ball\"), the Polish equivalent of the senior prom that occurs approximately 100 days before exams, hence its name \"studniówka\" or literally in Polish \"the ball of the hundred days\".\nIn 2023, the dance was included on the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage Lists being recognized as \"a form of joint celebration\", which \"commemorates important moments in family and community life and symbolizes cooperation, reconciliation and equality.\"","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"78ca138a-8f42-468d-b528-e67036afbd34"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Influence of Polonaise in music","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"19v6wb7fp2","content":[{"text":"The notation alla polacca (Italian: polacca means \"polonaise\") on a musical score indicates that the piece should be played with the rhythm and character of a polonaise. For example, the third movement of Beethoven's Triple Concerto op. 56, marked \"Rondo alla polacca,\" the last movement in Weber's Clarinet Concerto No. 2 is marked \"Alla Polacca\", his Horn Concertino likewise ends with a polka movement, and the finale of Chopin's Variations on \"Là ci darem la mano\" both feature this notation. In his book Classic Music: Expression, Form, and Style, Leonard G. Ratner cites the fourth movement from Beethoven's Serenade in D major, Op. 8, marked \"Allegretto alla Polacca,\" as a representative example of the polonaise dance topic (Ratner 1980, pp. 12–13).\nFrédéric Chopin's polonaises are generally the best known of all polonaises in classical music.  However, there had been a long tradition of polonaises in Western European music at least a century before Chopin. Händel wrote a famous one, and Wilhelm Fiedemann Bach wrote a number of in major-minor pairs.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"78ca138a-8f42-468d-b528-e67036afbd34"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"National dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"j38fch8c0g","content":[{"text":"The polonaise is a Polish dance and is one of the five historic national dances of Poland. The others are the Mazur (Mazurka), Kujawiak, Krakowiak and Oberek. Polonaise originated as a peasant dance known under various names – chodzony (\"pacer\"), chmielowy (\"hops\"), pieszy (\"walker\") or wielki (\"great\"), recorded as early as the 15th century. In later centuries, it gained popularity among the urban population and the nobles. By the late 16th century, the folk versions of polonaise (accompanied by singing) were commonly danced by the lower Polish nobility, but the dance was not known under its current name until the 17th century. With time, it also became a favorite dance of the Polish aristocratic class and acquired an instrumental form.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"78ca138a-8f42-468d-b528-e67036afbd34"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"France","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zs39gj86xn","content":[{"text":"The polonaise was introduced in the 17th century in French courts, although the form originated in Poland and was very popular throughout Europe. This dance in 3/4 meter was designed to entertain the French royal court. The term polonaise was used over the term polonez at the start of the 18th century.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"78ca138a-8f42-468d-b528-e67036afbd34"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Saxony","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0mfxbkecwj","content":[{"text":"Princess Anna Maria of Saxony collected sheet music for polonaises throughout her life time, collecting over 350, which was focused on the finest examples of instrumentation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"78ca138a-8f42-468d-b528-e67036afbd34"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Maluku","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wkakq82rpe","content":[{"text":"The polones (from either the Dutch polonez, or possibly the Portuguese polonesa) is a common feature of wedding receptions in Maluku. A loosely defined group dance, it typically resembles a country dance or cèilidh, or in some cases a line dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"78ca138a-8f42-468d-b528-e67036afbd34"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"szwv33nv3n","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Polonaise”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"78ca138a-8f42-468d-b528-e67036afbd34"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bp7sfq3vtz","content":[{"text":"polonaise is dance of Polish origin, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9fa1b6ec-bdfc-4fcd-a2fa-0434765d463c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vngf5jj08j","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 25 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9fa1b6ec-bdfc-4fcd-a2fa-0434765d463c"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:06.232Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/polonaise"}
{"id":"ef2b18c6-4c04-45b6-866e-f28ce6374cc6","type":"art_form","slug":"poorakkali","title":"Poorakkali","summary":"Poorakkali (meaning Festival Performance) is a traditional dance ritual performed by men during the nine-day Pooram Thiyya festival in Bhagavathy temples across North Malabar in Kerala State of south India.\nThe Pooram festival begins with t…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"keb68j25f6","content":[{"text":"Poorakkali (meaning Festival Performance) is a traditional dance ritual performed by men during the nine-day Pooram Thiyya festival in Bhagavathy temples across North Malabar in Kerala State of south India.\nThe Pooram festival begins with the Karthika asterism and concludes with the Pooram asterism of the month of Meenam according to the Malayalam calendar (corresponding to the sun sign Pisces according to the Julian Calendar) to honour Kamadeva, the god of love.\nThe performers come from different sects like Thiyya, Maniyani, Nambiar etc.  The basis of Poorakkali essentially is the memories of Vasanthapooja performed by inmates of different worlds like heaven, earth etc. Poorakkali spreads knowledge and entertainment. The show steals the hearts of audience with melodious songs and befitting body movements. The Panickers are well-known names in the world of Poorakkali and have contributed much to the survival and expansion of this art form.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"30b4d635-ab11-4d85-be21-5c8e1c13d6b5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Story","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jh3d9qk4kk","content":[{"text":"Kamadeva (the Hindu god of love), tries to awaken Shiva to the amorous advances of Parvati. He is burned to ashes by the fire emanating from Shiva's third eye. To bring love and joy back to the earth, that is left barren after Kama’s death, Vishnu instructs heavenly goddesses Rambha to create Kama’s figure with flowers and to sing and dance. Women on earth continued to sing and dance to celebrate Kama’s reincarnation. In the course of time, men took charge of the festivities, though young girls continue to play an integral role in the rituals.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"30b4d635-ab11-4d85-be21-5c8e1c13d6b5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Style","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dxezcje2zv","content":[{"text":"The Poorakkali dance itself is performed by a troop of young men decked in lion costumes around a huge, multi-tiered, lit lamp, also known as a \"nilavilukku.\" The dance involves masculine movements and acrobatic, martial art steps. No singers or musicians accompany the dance; instead, the dancers themselves keep rhythm by singing, clapping and executing synchronised foot-thumping movements. The dancers usually observe a month of abstinence and undergo strenuous practice before the performance. Most of the songs sung are hymns from Ramayana, Mahabharata or Bhagavata. The leader of the group, known by the name Panicker, sings the song, and the lines are repeated in chorus by the other dancers. Certain rituals are performed before the dance starts.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"30b4d635-ab11-4d85-be21-5c8e1c13d6b5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Variants of Poorakkali","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"me7zd5rjdq","content":[{"text":"Marathukali is a variant of Poorakkali. This is a form performed by two parties competently. The ordinary play lacks the competent mood displayed in Marathukali. Big disputes ensue between two parties while performance is on and learned people dissuade both parties from further confrontation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"30b4d635-ab11-4d85-be21-5c8e1c13d6b5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Further Study","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"26ewc6b3c8","content":[{"text":"Video of Poorakkali","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"30b4d635-ab11-4d85-be21-5c8e1c13d6b5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tdkezj0fff","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Poorakkali”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"30b4d635-ab11-4d85-be21-5c8e1c13d6b5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"h71580r02p","content":[{"text":"Poorakkali is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3f72690a-c2ac-405e-bb0b-5e3ffb175305"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5r27mxs8xt","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3f72690a-c2ac-405e-bb0b-5e3ffb175305"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Poorakkali (meaning Festival Performance) is a traditional dance ritual performed by men during the nine-day Pooram festival in Bhagavathy temples across North Malabar in Kerala State of south India.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/58/PoorakkaliIMG_1143.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Kannan Shanmugam, Shanmugam Studio, kollam","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Poorakkali (meaning Festival Performance) is a traditional dance ritual performed by men during the nine-day Pooram festival in Bhagavathy temples across North Malabar in Kerala State of south India.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/58/PoorakkaliIMG_1143.jpg/960px-PoorakkaliIMG_1143.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:PoorakkaliIMG_1143.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/58/PoorakkaliIMG_1143.jpg/1280px-PoorakkaliIMG_1143.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Poorakkali (meaning Festival Performance) is a traditional dance ritual performed by men during the nine-day Pooram festival in Bhagavathy temples across North Malabar in Kerala State of south India.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/46/Poorakkali_IMG_1150.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Kannan Shanmugam, Shanmugam Studio, kollam","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Poorakkali (meaning Festival Performance) is a traditional dance ritual performed by men during the nine-day Pooram festival in Bhagavathy temples across North Malabar in Kerala State of south India.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/46/Poorakkali_IMG_1150.jpg/960px-Poorakkali_IMG_1150.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Poorakkali_IMG_1150.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/46/Poorakkali_IMG_1150.jpg/1280px-Poorakkali_IMG_1150.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Poorakkali is a traditional art in north Kerala. Krishna bhakti is main theme. Influence of kalari is significant.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6b/Poorakkali_01.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Dvellakat","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Poorakkali is a traditional art in north Kerala. Krishna bhakti is main theme. Influence of kalari is significant.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6b/Poorakkali_01.jpg/960px-Poorakkali_01.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Poorakkali_01.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6b/Poorakkali_01.jpg/1280px-Poorakkali_01.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:08.465Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/poorakkali"}
{"id":"b152bb39-749e-4308-b350-c8319bf5a5f7","type":"art_form","slug":"pop-goes-the-weasel","title":"Pop Goes the Weasel","summary":"\"Pop! Goes the Weasel\" (Roud 5249) is a traditional old English song, a country dance, nursery rhyme, and singing game that emerged in the mid-19th century.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m6k8wc9555","content":[{"text":"\"Pop! Goes the Weasel\" (Roud 5249) is a traditional old English song, a country dance, nursery rhyme, and singing game that emerged in the mid-19th century. The melody is often used in jack-in-the-box toys and is frequently played by ice cream trucks.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5c678040-2d81-45d4-afe3-69bc6d624478"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origin","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"173vxjea32","content":[{"text":"In the early 1850s, Miller and Beacham of Baltimore published sheet music for \"Pop goes the Weasel for Fun and Frolic\". This is the oldest known source that pairs the name to this tune. Miller and Beacham's music was a variation of \"The Haymakers\", a tune dating back to the 1700s. Gow's Repository of the Dance Music of Scotland (1799 to 1820), included \"The Haymakers\" as a country dance or jig. One modern expert believes the tune, like most jigs, originated in the 1600s.\nIn June 1852, the boat Pop Goes The Weasel competed in the Durham Regatta. By December 1852, \"Pop Goes The Weasel\" was a popular social dance in England. A ball held in Ipswich on 13 December 1852 ended with \"a country dance, entitled 'Pop Goes the Weasel', one of the most mirth inspiring dances which can well be imagined.\"\nOn 24 December 1852, an ad in the Birmingham Journal offered lessons in the \"Pop Goes The Weasel\" dance, described as a \"highly fashionable Dance, recently introduced at her Majesty's and the Nobility's private soirees\". On 28 December 1852, an advertisement in The Times promoted a publication that included \"the new dance recently introduced with such distinguished success at the Court balls\" and contained \"the original music and a full explanation of the figures by Mons. E. Coulon\". Eugène Coulon was a well-known dance-master. In January 1853, the Bath Chronicle featured an advertisement from dance master, Mr. T. B. Moutrie, for \"instruction in the highly fashionable dances\" including \"Pop Goes the Weasel\".\nSheet music dated 1853 at the British Library describes it as \"An Old English Dance, as performed at Her Majesty's & The Nobilities Balls, with the Original Music\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5c678040-2d81-45d4-afe3-69bc6d624478"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Eugène Coulon","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nwsavtap9k","content":[{"text":"On 24 December 1852, the Gloucester Journal newspaper reported that \"A new dance has been introduced by a Frenchman—it is called 'Pop goes the Weasel', and from the title should be a comical affair\". That Frenchman was probably either Eugène Coulon or Louis-Antoine Jullien, as four days later in The Times, London, music publishers Jullien & Co. advertised \"Pop goes the Weasel: the new dance recently introduced ...is now published with the original music and a full explanation of the figures, by Mons. E. Coulon.\" In a later advertisement George Thompson is named as the arranger of the music.\nAdding support to Coulon's role is an advertisement from a dance teacher, Madame Catarina St. Louin, offering lessons in the \"latest and most fashionable dances, including \"Pop goes the Weasel\", \"La Tempéte\", and \"Coulon's Quadrille\", by permission of M. Eugène Coulon, as lately introduced by him at Her Majesty's and the Nobility's Balls\".\nThe Jullien & Co. publication with the original music arranged by George Thompson is the oldest known music for the dance. In it Coulon described  Pop goes the Weasel \"as a very old and a very animated English dance that has lately been revived among the higher classes of society\", and as his instructions were soon copied by other music publishers, with and without attribution, he appears to have been the authority for the dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5c678040-2d81-45d4-afe3-69bc6d624478"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"British version","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"977yr7n9az","content":[{"text":"The lyrics may have predated the dance as either a rhyme or the lyrics of another song dating to the 1600s. Regardless, there are many different versions of the lyrics. In England, most versions share the basic verse:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5c678040-2d81-45d4-afe3-69bc6d624478"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zqwb7hwyza","content":[{"text":"The most common additional verses are:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5c678040-2d81-45d4-afe3-69bc6d624478"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"American variations","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6vyt5zba6f","content":[{"text":"When the song crossed the Atlantic in the 1850s, the British lyrics were still changing. In the United States, the most common lyrics are different and may have a separate origin. The following lyrics were printed in Boston in 1858:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5c678040-2d81-45d4-afe3-69bc6d624478"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w97xanwg29","content":[{"text":"The March 1860 issue of the Southern Literary Messenger published a new verse:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5c678040-2d81-45d4-afe3-69bc6d624478"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"n4v4vftrtb","content":[{"text":"In New York in 1901, the opening lines were, \"All around the chicken coop / The possum chased the weasel.\" By the mid-20th century, the standard United States version had replaced the \"cobbler's bench\" with a \"mulberry bush\":","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5c678040-2d81-45d4-afe3-69bc6d624478"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"636920yh9q","content":[{"text":"Or the standard United States version had this line.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5c678040-2d81-45d4-afe3-69bc6d624478"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5xk7g2npf5","content":[{"text":"In 1994, the American Folklife Center documented a version of the song with sixteen verses.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5c678040-2d81-45d4-afe3-69bc6d624478"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Title","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ct6ts94df0","content":[{"text":"There has been much speculation about the meaning of the phrase and song title, \"Pop Goes the Weasel\". Some say a weasel is a tailor's flat iron, silver-plate dishes, a dead animal, a hatter's tool, or a spinner's weasel. One writer notes, \"Weasels do pop their heads up when disturbed and it is quite plausible that this was the source of the name of the dance.\"\nJust like the dancers to this jig, the spinner's weasel revolves, but to measure the thread or yarn produced on a spinning wheel. Forty revolutions of most weasels produce eighty yards (73 m) of yarn or a skein. The weasel's wooden gears are designed to make a popping sound after the 40th revolution to tell the spinner that the skein is completed.\nIona and Peter Opie observed that no one seemed to know what the phrase meant at the height of the dance craze in the 1850s. It may just be a nonsensical phrase. However, one further explanation links the lyrics of the popular nursery rhyme to the East London colloquial dialect of the 1800's, known as \"Cockney Rhyming Slang\". In this dialect \"weasel\" relates to \"weasel and stoat\", or coat, and \"pop\" relates the \"pop shop\" or pawnbrokers shop. The rhyme describes someone running short of money purchasing rice and treacle (metaphor for life's essentials); \"that's the way the money goes\". Subsequently, this forces them to sell (pop) their coat (weasel) to the pawnbroker (pop shop).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5c678040-2d81-45d4-afe3-69bc6d624478"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"eagdm0ejd2","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Pop Goes the Weasel”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5c678040-2d81-45d4-afe3-69bc6d624478"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tpg349gmbm","content":[{"text":"Pop Goes the Weasel is folk song, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0d6e5919-60ce-4867-8f0b-3285691ff813"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fvyxtxpns4","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 4 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0d6e5919-60ce-4867-8f0b-3285691ff813"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Excerpt from sheet music for \"Pop Goes The Weasel\" (Porter, 1853)","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a7/Pop_Goes_The_Weasel_%28Porter%2C_1853%29.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"J. W. Porter","height":536,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Excerpt from sheet music for \"Pop Goes The Weasel\" (Porter, 1853)","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a7/Pop_Goes_The_Weasel_%28Porter%2C_1853%29.png/960px-Pop_Goes_The_Weasel_%28Porter%2C_1853%29.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pop_Goes_The_Weasel_(Porter,_1853).png","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a7/Pop_Goes_The_Weasel_%28Porter%2C_1853%29.png/1280px-Pop_Goes_The_Weasel_%28Porter%2C_1853%29.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"Singing games - Pop goes the weasel.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7f/Singing_games_-_Pop_goes_the_weasel.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Author Josephine Pollard Illustrator Ferdinand Schuyler Mathews","height":723,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Singing games - Pop goes the weasel.","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7f/Singing_games_-_Pop_goes_the_weasel.jpg/960px-Singing_games_-_Pop_goes_the_weasel.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Singing_games_-_Pop_goes_the_weasel.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7f/Singing_games_-_Pop_goes_the_weasel.jpg/1280px-Singing_games_-_Pop_goes_the_weasel.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"This photo is of the pub described in the following descriptions.. The words to the Rhyme are \"Up and down the City road, in and out the Eagle - That’s the way the money goes - Pop! goes the weasel\". The Eagle refers to 'The Eagle Tavern' a pub which is located on the corner of…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0e/Pop_goes_the_weasel_%2816334543071%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Loco Steve from Bromley , UK","height":1019,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"This photo is of the pub described in the following descriptions.. The words to the Rhyme are \"Up and down the City road, in and out the Eagle - That’s the way the money goes - Pop! goes the weasel\". The Eagle refers to 'The Eagle Tavern' a pub which is located on the corner of…","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0e/Pop_goes_the_weasel_%2816334543071%29.jpg/960px-Pop_goes_the_weasel_%2816334543071%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pop_goes_the_weasel_(16334543071).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0e/Pop_goes_the_weasel_%2816334543071%29.jpg/1280px-Pop_goes_the_weasel_%2816334543071%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-09T05:47:31.447Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/pop-goes-the-weasel"}
{"id":"e035a123-1f03-4f2d-b401-9f6b24ee1726","type":"art_form","slug":"popping","title":"popping","summary":"Popping is a street dance adapted out of the earlier boogaloo cultural movement in Oakland, California.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0fkmjff638","content":[{"text":"Popping is a street dance adapted out of the earlier boogaloo cultural movement in Oakland, California. As boogaloo spread, it would be referred to as \"robottin'\" in Richmond, California; Strutting movements in San Francisco and San Jose; and the Strikin' dances of the Oak Park community in Sacramento, and \"Pop-Locking\" of Los Angeles which were popular through the mid-1960s to the late 1970s.\nPopping would be eventually adapted from earlier boogaloo (freestyle dance) movements from Oakland, California to Fresno, California, in the late 1970s by way of California high school gatherings at the West Coast Relays track meets. The dance is rooted in the rhythms of live funk music, and is based on the technique of boogaloo's posing approach, quickly contracting and relaxing muscles to cause a jerk, or can be a sudden stop in the dancer's body, referred to as a \"pose\", \"pop\" or a \"hit\". This is done continuously to the rhythm of a song, in combination with various movements and poses.\nThe dance was first televised and popularized by Boogaloo groups Granny & the Robotroids and the Black Messengers performing on national TV in 1976 (Robotroids), 1977 and 1978 (Black Messengers as Mechanical Device).  Later, a dance group called the Electric Boogaloos, which mixed popping techniques with boogaloo foundation from the San Francisco Bay Area. Closely related dance styles and techniques are often integrated into popping to create a more varied performance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"69cf42c8-926d-4f72-8ad9-a719764e15ca"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Terminology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5cpe8k7sj2","content":[{"text":"As stated earlier, popping has become the latest umbrella term for a group of closely related styles and techniques rooted in the boogaloo tradition that have often been combined, evolved or danced together with popping, some of which are seldom seen outside of popping contexts.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"69cf42c8-926d-4f72-8ad9-a719764e15ca"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Characteristics","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8x5f7wtctr","content":[{"text":"Popping is centered around the technique of \"popping\", which means to quickly contract and relax muscles to create a jerking effect (a \"pop\" or \"hit\") in the body. It is also known as posing hard from the boogaloo tradition; this technique was innovated by the Oakland-based boogaloo group the Black Messengers. Popping can be concentrated to specific body parts, creating variants such as arm pops, leg pops, chest pops and neck pops.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"69cf42c8-926d-4f72-8ad9-a719764e15ca"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Music","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0pgbrpw0k5","content":[{"text":"With its roots in the late 1970s funk era, popping is commonly danced to funk and disco music. Popular artists include Zapp, Dayton, Dazz Band and Cameo. During the 1980s, many poppers also utilized electro music, with artists such as Kraftwerk, Yellow Magic Orchestra, Egyptian Lover and World Class Wrecking Crew. More mainstream hip hop music was also employed by poppers during the 1980s, including Afrika Bambaataa, Kurtis Blow, Whodini and Run-DMC. Today, it is common to see popping danced to more current music genres, such as modern hip hop (often abstract/instrumental hip hop) and various forms of electronic dance music, such as dubstep.\nPoppers generally favor music with a straight and steady beat of 90–120 beats per minute, a 44 time signature, and a strong emphasis on the back beat, normally by a snare drum or a drum machine. The pops are generally performed on every beat or on the distinct back beats. The popper can also choose to follow the music more freely, such as by timing the pops to the rhythm of a melody or other rhythmic elements.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"69cf42c8-926d-4f72-8ad9-a719764e15ca"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Variations","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1az4q14223","content":[{"text":"Animation\nA style and a technique where the dancer imitates film characters being animated by stop motion. The technique of moving rigidly and jerky by tensing muscles and using techniques similar to strobing and the robot makes it appear as if the dancer has been animated frame by frame. Walt Disney was the first to use this term, referring to his character Steam Boat Willie’s motions as \"the animation dance\" in 1929. This style was heavily inspired by the dynamation films created by Ray Harryhausen, such as The Seventh Voyage of Sinbad (1958).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"69cf42c8-926d-4f72-8ad9-a719764e15ca"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k6jx327atg","content":[{"text":"Boogaloo\nBoogaloo or \"bug'n\" is an older umbrella name of funk dances originating in Oakland, California. It can be described as a free-form dance style with loose movements trying to give the impression of a body lacking bones, partly inspired by animated movies and cartoons. It utilizes circular rolls of various body parts, such as the hips, chest, shoulders, knees and head; this technique is also referred to as \"wormin\" and isolates sections of the body toward funk rhythms, especially sectioning through separating the rib cage from the hip. \"Wormin\" was innovated by Jerry Rentie of One Plus One., and the rolling of the chest or \"wiggling\" was innovated by Donald \"Duck\" Mathews. It also makes heavy use of angles and various steps and transitions to get from one spot to the next.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"69cf42c8-926d-4f72-8ad9-a719764e15ca"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zthjxtymvs","content":[{"text":"Tutting/King Tut\nInspired by the art of Ancient Egypt (the name derived from the Egyptian pharaoh Tutankhamun, colloquially known as \"King Tut\"), tutting exploits the body's ability to create geometric positions (such as boxes) and movements, predominantly with the use of right angles. It generally focuses on the arms and hands, and includes sub-styles such as finger tutting.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"69cf42c8-926d-4f72-8ad9-a719764e15ca"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Notable poppers","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"157b7ft8dg","content":[{"text":"Boogaloo Shrimp (aka Michael Chambers)\nPopin' Pete\nNonstop\nMr. Wiggles\nSuga Pop\nSalah\nSkeeter Rabbit\nSlim Boogie\nMr. Animation\nPoppin John","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"69cf42c8-926d-4f72-8ad9-a719764e15ca"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"30fy6k3d2c","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Popping”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"69cf42c8-926d-4f72-8ad9-a719764e15ca"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pg0edx989b","content":[{"text":"popping is street dance style noted for its rapid stop and start motions between poses, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6a6b6175-2ca0-4a76-86cc-7eca24e0c954"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f154awh2za","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 5 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6a6b6175-2ca0-4a76-86cc-7eca24e0c954"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"a piece of food that is falling into the air","src":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1632370161597-9c8429934d1b?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8cG9wcGluZ3xlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MTEzMDE5fDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1080","kind":"photo","width":3797,"credit":"Ric Matkowski","height":3073,"source":"unsplash","depicts":"a piece of food that is falling into the air","licence":"Unsplash License","thumb640":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1632370161597-9c8429934d1b?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8cG9wcGluZ3xlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MTEzMDE5fDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=640","sourceUrl":"https://unsplash.com/photos/a-piece-of-food-that-is-falling-into-the-air-nsIroK8IoSk?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral","thumb1280":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1632370161597-9c8429934d1b?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8cG9wcGluZ3xlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MTEzMDE5fDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1280","attributionUrl":"https://unsplash.com/@matkowrs?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:27.885Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/popping"}
{"id":"e5b51948-1ca1-484d-89af-11c302f5182b","type":"art_form","slug":"postmodern-dance","title":"postmodern dance","summary":"Postmodern dance is a 20th century concert dance movement that came into popularity in the early 1960s.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3vj7xtsatt","content":[{"text":"Postmodern dance is a 20th century concert dance movement that came into popularity in the early 1960s. While the term postmodern took on a different meaning when used to describe dance, the dance form did take inspiration from the ideologies of the wider postmodern movement, which \"sought to deflate what it saw as overly pretentious and ultimately self-serving modernist views of art and the artist\" and was, more generally, a departure from modernist ideals. Lacking stylistic homogeny, postmodern dance was discerned mainly by its anti-modern dance sentiments rather than by its dance style. The dance form was a reaction to the compositional and presentational constraints of the preceding generation of modern dance, hailing the use of everyday movement as valid performance art and advocating for unconventional methods of dance composition.\nPostmodern dance made the claim that all movement was dance expression and any person was a dancer regardless of training. In this, early postmodern dance was more closely aligned with the ideologies of modernism rather than the architectural, literary and design movements of postmodernism. However, the postmodern dance movement rapidly developed to embrace the ideas of postmodernism, which rely on chance, self-referentiality, irony, and fragmentation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"af07e8ab-7c77-49c6-8805-004f6f6f8ff5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Influences","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"v590f3zv7b","content":[{"text":"Postmodern dance can be understood as a continuation in dance history: stemming from early modernist choreographers like Isadora Duncan, who rejected the rigidity of an academic approach to movement, and modernists like Martha Graham, whose emotion-filled choreography sought to exploit gravity, unlike the illusionistic floating of ballet.\nMerce Cunningham, who studied under Graham, was one of the first choreographers to take major departures from the then-formalized modern dance in the 1950s. Among his  innovations was the severance of the connection between music and dance, leaving the two to operate by their own logic. He also removed dance performance from the proscenium stage. To Cunningham, dance could be anything, but its foundation was in the human body— specifically beginning with walking. He also incorporated chance into his work, using methods like tossing dice or coins at random to determine movements in a phrase. These innovations would become essential to the ideas in postmodern dance, however, Cunningham's work remained grounded in the tradition of dance technique, which would later be eschewed by the postmodernist.\nOther avant-garde artists who influenced the postmodernists include John Cage, Anna Halprin, Simone Forti, and other choreographers of the 1950s, as well as non-dance artistic movements such as Fluxus (a neo-dada group), Happenings, and Events.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"af07e8ab-7c77-49c6-8805-004f6f6f8ff5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Characteristics","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4z7r5e6ak5","content":[{"text":"Major characteristics of postmodern dance of the 1960s and 1970s can be attributed to its goals of questioning the process behind and reasons for dance-making while simultaneously challenging the expectations of the audience. Many dancemakers employed improvisation, spontaneous determination, and chance to create their works, instead of rigid choreography. In order to demystify and draw attention away from technique-driven dance, pedestrian movement was also employed to include everyday and casual postures. In some cases, choreographers cast non-trained dancers. Furthermore, movement was no longer bound to the tempo created by accompanying music, but to actual time. One dance artist, Yvonne Rainer, did not inflect her phrasing, which had the effect of flattening the amount of time passing as dynamics no longer had a role to play between time and dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"af07e8ab-7c77-49c6-8805-004f6f6f8ff5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Early postmodern dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hms9bn21db","content":[{"text":"The earliest usage of the term \"postmodern\" in dance was in the early 1960s. During the formative years of the performance art, the only defining characteristic was the participants' rejection of its predecessor, modern dance. The pioneer choreographers utilized unconventional methods, such as chance procedures and improvisation. Chance procedure, also known as dance by chance, is a method of choreography \"based on the idea that there are no prescribed movement materials or orders for a series of actions.\" This means that the chance methods, which could be the toss of a coin, determine the movements rather than the choreographer. Dance by chance was not a distinctly postmodern method – it was first used by modern dancer and choreographer Merce Cunningham. Thus, despite their adamant rejection of their predecessors, many early postmodern choreographers embraced the techniques of modern and classical ballet.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"af07e8ab-7c77-49c6-8805-004f6f6f8ff5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Analytical postmodern dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"n0dyshegh3","content":[{"text":"As postmodern dance progressed into the 1970s, a more identifiable, postmodern style emerged.  Sally Banes uses the term \"analytical postmodern\" to describe the form during the 70s. It was more conceptual, abstract, and distanced itself from expressive elements such as music, lighting, costumes, and props. In this way, analytical postmodern dance aligned more with modernist criteria as defined by art critic Clement Greenberg.  Analytical postmodern \"became objective as it was distanced from personal expression through the use of scores, bodily attitudes that suggested work and other ordinary movements, verbal commentaries, and tasks.\" Modernist influence can also be seen in the analytical postmodern choreographers' use of minimalism, a method used in art that relies on \"excessive simplicity and objective approach.\"\nAnalytical postmodern dance was also heavily influenced by the political activism taking place in the U.S. during the late 60s and early 70s. The Black Power movement, the anti-Vietnam war movement, the second-wave feminist movement, and the LGBTQ movement all became more explicitly explored in analytical postmodern dance. Many postmodern dancers during this time, despite their Euro-American backgrounds, were heavily influenced by African-American and Asian forms of dance, music and martial arts.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"af07e8ab-7c77-49c6-8805-004f6f6f8ff5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Postmodern dance 1980 and beyond","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"y66gn69vj7","content":[{"text":"The 1980s saw a distancing from the analytical postmodern dance of the previous decade, and a return to expression in meaning, which was rejected by the postmodern dance of the '60s and '70s. Though stylistically, postmodern dance of the '80s and beyond lacked a unifying style, specific aspects could be seen throughout the work of various choreographers. The form took on an \"alliance with the avant/pop music world\" and saw increased distribution on international main stages, with performances in venues such as City Center and the Brooklyn Academy of Music, both in New York City. There was also an increased interesting in preserving dance on film, in repertory, etc., which contrasts the improvisational attitudes of early postmodern dance choreographers.\nAnother aspect that unifies the postmodern dance of 1980 forward is the interest in \"narrative content and the traditions of dance history.\" The more recent forms of postmodern dance have distanced themselves from the formalism of the '70s and began a greater exploration into \"meaning of all kinds, from virtuosic skill to language and gesture systems to narrative, autobiography, character, and political manifestos.\"","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"af07e8ab-7c77-49c6-8805-004f6f6f8ff5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ykqmkt1zyp","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Postmodern dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"af07e8ab-7c77-49c6-8805-004f6f6f8ff5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ydavbk2kj6","content":[{"text":"postmodern dance is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6de8cb6b-35e1-4e77-8b4a-8a3bf2caa41c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rbsfjcvy66","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6de8cb6b-35e1-4e77-8b4a-8a3bf2caa41c"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Born in 1956 in Umag (Yugoslavia) Ariella Vidach began producing her choreography in New York where she moved in the 80’s inspired by the work of the most significant artists of the postmodern dance generation as Trisha Brown, Dana Reitz, Steve Paxton and with the aim to deepen…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0c/Ariella_Vidach_%285860227710%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"dancetechtv","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Born in 1956 in Umag (Yugoslavia) Ariella Vidach began producing her choreography in New York where she moved in the 80’s inspired by the work of the most significant artists of the postmodern dance generation as Trisha Brown, Dana Reitz, Steve Paxton and with the aim to deepen…","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0c/Ariella_Vidach_%285860227710%29.jpg/960px-Ariella_Vidach_%285860227710%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ariella_Vidach_(5860227710).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0c/Ariella_Vidach_%285860227710%29.jpg/1280px-Ariella_Vidach_%285860227710%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:18.365Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/postmodern-dance"}
{"id":"5b0121ca-9564-4a84-8330-dc16321e464e","type":"art_form","slug":"pottan-theyyam","title":"Pottan Theyyam","summary":"Pottan Theyyam is a vivid, lively and colorful ritualistic dance which comes in the traditional art form of theyyam, and is an essential part of the cultural heritage of Kolathunadu, a territory comprising present day Kannur district and pa…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dpa7z4y0pe","content":[{"text":"Pottan Theyyam is a vivid, lively and colorful ritualistic dance which comes in the traditional art form of theyyam, and is an essential part of the cultural heritage of Kolathunadu, a territory comprising present day Kannur district and parts of Kozhikode and Kasaragod districts of northern Kerala, India.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c3cc5462-f582-49c2-867b-8c7c5543983e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3svqt2waqk","content":[{"text":"In some versions, It is believed pottan theyyam is a manifestation of Shiva. In some Hindu tharavads, pottan theyyam has a small hut like building called a palliyara. Pottan theyyam is a form of resistance, symbolizing goodness that would wipe out the social evils in the community. \nThis theyyam is an anti-caste God. The theyyam re-enacts in ritualistic expressions the life of those personalities who had laid down their life for a social cause and is interpreted as a social/spiritual satire that is characteristic of the theyyam's personality. Pottan theyyam is also traditionally performed with a large fire, the embers of which pottan theyyam will rest upon (with the people insisting/requesting him to get up). After the performance and customs the locals may approach and speak with pottan theyyam and receive his response and blessing.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c3cc5462-f582-49c2-867b-8c7c5543983e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"The Narrative","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"v5ecdeq0hf","content":[{"text":"The legend of Pottan Theyyam goes like this, Pottan walks on the main road while carrying a child on his waist and a pot of tody on his head until he runs into the brahmin acharya Shankaracharya. The brahmin asked Pottan to get off the main road so that Pottan wouldn't pollute him. Pottan retorts by asking why he should do that? Pottan proceeds to go on a rageful rant against the caste system.\nIn Theyyam, Pottan says, \" You smear the sandal paste, we are bathed in dirt, you wear the chains of gold, we wear the chain of fish. Have you not crossed the river in which I rode a canoe? Have you not offered your god, the banana grown in our farms? Have you not worn the garland made of the basil grown in our yard? And yet you argue over caste. When you're wounded, is it not blood that comes out? When I am wounded, is it not blood that comes out?\"\nIn the narrative, Shankaracharya realizes his mistake and seeks forgiveness. However, it is likely that the event this is based on led to the killing of the dalit character.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c3cc5462-f582-49c2-867b-8c7c5543983e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4jj7an2yw2","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Pottan Theyyam”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c3cc5462-f582-49c2-867b-8c7c5543983e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wrqvsjq9dx","content":[{"text":"Pottan Theyyam is ritualistic dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ecfef58d-6d06-4153-85ea-1dbe7dd4f615"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"saqd0dec2e","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ecfef58d-6d06-4153-85ea-1dbe7dd4f615"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Offerings for Pottan Theyyam.Rice,Coconut,Arcanut etc are kept on plantain leaves . Three Sickles of Pottan Theyyam are also seen. The mask on the left side belongs to Pottan Theyyam and the smaller mask on right side is of Polaran Theyyam.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a2/Pottan_Theyyam-Nivedyam.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Uajith","height":819,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Offerings for Pottan Theyyam.Rice,Coconut,Arcanut etc are kept on plantain leaves . Three Sickles of Pottan Theyyam are also seen. The mask on the left side belongs to Pottan Theyyam and the smaller mask on right side is of Polaran Theyyam.","licence":"CC BY 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a2/Pottan_Theyyam-Nivedyam.jpg/960px-Pottan_Theyyam-Nivedyam.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pottan_Theyyam-Nivedyam.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a2/Pottan_Theyyam-Nivedyam.jpg/1280px-Pottan_Theyyam-Nivedyam.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0"},{"alt":"Pottan theyyam at maruthodan thravad feb 8 2026","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a3/Pottan_theyyam_at_maruthodan_thravad_feb_8_2026_-_43.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Vijayanrajapuram","height":1700,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Pottan theyyam at maruthodan thravad feb 8 2026","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a3/Pottan_theyyam_at_maruthodan_thravad_feb_8_2026_-_43.jpg/960px-Pottan_theyyam_at_maruthodan_thravad_feb_8_2026_-_43.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pottan_theyyam_at_maruthodan_thravad_feb_8_2026_-_43.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a3/Pottan_theyyam_at_maruthodan_thravad_feb_8_2026_-_43.jpg/1280px-Pottan_theyyam_at_maruthodan_thravad_feb_8_2026_-_43.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Pottan theyyam at Maruthodan tharavad on 23 March 2025","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7c/Pottan_theyyam_at_Maruthodan_tharavad_14.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Vijayanrajapuram","height":1700,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Pottan theyyam at Maruthodan tharavad on 23 March 2025","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7c/Pottan_theyyam_at_Maruthodan_tharavad_14.jpg/960px-Pottan_theyyam_at_Maruthodan_tharavad_14.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pottan_theyyam_at_Maruthodan_tharavad_14.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7c/Pottan_theyyam_at_Maruthodan_tharavad_14.jpg/1280px-Pottan_theyyam_at_Maruthodan_tharavad_14.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:09.434Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/pottan-theyyam"}
{"id":"324e855e-b26f-4503-90fd-c72b19e5daf1","type":"art_form","slug":"pravo","title":"Pravo","summary":"Pravo horo (Bulgarian: Право хоро, lit. 'straight dance') is a simple folk dance from Bulgaria that is done throughout the Balkan countries. In Greece, it is called Zonaradiko.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yf6y0c62za","content":[{"text":"Pravo horo (Bulgarian: Право хоро, lit. 'straight dance') is a simple folk dance from Bulgaria that is done throughout the Balkan countries. In Greece, it is called Zonaradiko.  It is considered the \"national dance\" of Bulgaria, Albania, and North Macedonia.  It is a rustic village line dance with a three-measure pattern, done to 24 or 68 music, and is a staple of weddings, feast days, and other celebrations.  As with other Balkan dances, each country and even local region has its own variation of the dance, often interspersing other steps with the basic pravo step,  to the extent that these different versions amount to distinct dances.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8f15790f-1f2b-41bd-a58f-356eabc48091"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Description","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nwj3xnfjwt","content":[{"text":"Pravo is a line dance, with men and women dancers in one or more concentric curving lines, facing in toward the center, holding hands.  One of two handholds is used, either simply holding hands down at the sides with right palm facing forward, left facing back, or the \"belt hold\" (na lesa), with each dancer holding the front of his two neighboring dancers' belt or sash, left arm over right. In most forms, the line moves slowly toward the right,  so the rightmost dancer is the leader. The curving line of dancers moves in toward the center then out again, in the basic step, as the line moves to the right.  This pattern is repeated throughout the dance.  There are several variations of the basic step, all have the form step, step, step, pause, step, pause, where the pause may be replaced with variations detailed below.  One common step is","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8f15790f-1f2b-41bd-a58f-356eabc48091"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t83c3a9wg5","content":[{"text":"Measure 1: (beat 1) Facing forward, step R foot forward and slightly diagonally R, (beat 2) step L foot next to R;\nMeasure 2: (beat 1) Step R foot forward and slightly diagonally R, (beat 2) pause;\nMeasure 3: (beat 1) Step L foot forward and slightly diagonally to R, (beat 2) turn slightly L to face center;\nMeasure 4: (beat 1) step R foot straight back, (beat 2) step L foot next to R;\nMeasure 5: (beat 1) step R foot straight back, (beat 2) pause;\nMeasure 6: (beat 1) step L foot back and slightly to L, (beat 2) pause;\nThe styling is rather heavy and earthy, with the knees always slightly bent and flexing slightly with each step.  The first two steps forward with the R foot are done with a peculiar sliding motion.   The leader and tail dancer may hold up handkerchiefs with their free hands and twirl them.\nThe dance lasts as long as the musicians wish to keep playing, and in villages may go on for hours.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8f15790f-1f2b-41bd-a58f-356eabc48091"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Variations","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9f3ywxj3yw","content":[{"text":"Each dancer may individually add certain variations or ornamentations to the basic step at will:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8f15790f-1f2b-41bd-a58f-356eabc48091"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"esa6r30xm8","content":[{"text":"Stamp: A small stamp may be added by the same foot just before the steps taken forward in beats 1 and 2 of measure 1\nChug: As the step forward is made in measure three, share the weight on both feet and scoot both heels forward, keeping feet apart.\nTriplets: The steps forward may be replaced by three light steps, the last two in place, in measure 2 (R-L-R), and measure 3 (L-R-L).  Similarly, the steps back may be replaced by three light steps in measure 5 (R-L-R) and measure 6 (L-R-L).\nTropoli: In place of the triplets, the dancer may step on full foot (count 1), tap other toe, raising supporting heel off floor (count &), sharply bring supporting heel down to floor (count 2), and tap other heel next to supporting foot (count &).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8f15790f-1f2b-41bd-a58f-356eabc48091"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Rhythm","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rm3r1mbn78","content":[{"text":"The time signature is 24 or 68 – counted as 2 triplets 3+3. Often in music for the pravo, both 24 and 68 time signatures will be used where 24 is used for the singing and 68 is used for the slightly faster instrumental portions. In Bulgaria, the 68 portion is also transcribed in 24 using triplets.  Each dance phrase corresponds to 3 musical measures counted as quick, quick, slow, slow, (corresponding to 2+2+4+4 in 24 time or 1+1+2+2 in 68 time).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8f15790f-1f2b-41bd-a58f-356eabc48091"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9fs9e3j8my","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Pravo”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8f15790f-1f2b-41bd-a58f-356eabc48091"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"e3tca4bfn0","content":[{"text":"Pravo is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cef71e69-0940-4f98-afd3-366d3670f2bf"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2kaknq9nx2","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cef71e69-0940-4f98-afd3-366d3670f2bf"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Patty Pravo in concerto a Zafferana Etnea 2016","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/48/Patty_Pravo_a_Zafferana.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Peppemax94","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Patty Pravo in concerto a Zafferana Etnea 2016","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/48/Patty_Pravo_a_Zafferana.jpg/960px-Patty_Pravo_a_Zafferana.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Patty_Pravo_a_Zafferana.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/48/Patty_Pravo_a_Zafferana.jpg/1280px-Patty_Pravo_a_Zafferana.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:28.850Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/pravo"}
{"id":"84e26c4b-a557-4804-814d-fa51b88d0c31","type":"art_form","slug":"prophetic-dance","title":"Prophetic dance","summary":"Sacred dance is the use of dance in religious ceremonies and rituals, present in most religions throughout history and prehistory.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xhcmg3kz3e","content":[{"text":"Sacred dance is the use of dance in religious ceremonies and rituals, present in most religions throughout history and prehistory. Its connection with the human body and fertility has caused it to be forbidden by some religions; for example, some branches of Christianity and Islam have prohibited dancing. Dance has formed a major element of worship in Hindu temples, with strictly formalized styles such as Bharatanatyam, which require skilled dancers and temple musicians. In the 20th century, sacred dance has been revived by choreographers such as Bernhard Wosien as a means of developing community spirit.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9476e038-1b7d-4f5f-934c-0ae812881a08"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Purposes","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"d7dcq8pvbc","content":[{"text":"The theologian W. O. E. Oesterley proposed in 1923 that sacred dance had several purposes, the most important being to honour supernatural powers; the other purposes were to \"show off\" before the powers; to unite the dancer with a supernatural power, as in the dances for the Greek goddesses Demeter and Persephone; making the body suitable as a temporary dwelling-place for the deity, by dancing ecstatically to unconsciousness; making crops grow, or helping or encouraging the deity to make them grow, as with Ariadne's Dance as described in the Iliad; consecrating a victim for sacrifice (as with the Israelites circling the altar, or the Sarawak Kayans circling a sacrificial pig); paying homage to the deity present for an initiation ceremony; helping warriors to victory in battle, and appeasing the spirits of the enemy killed in battle; averting the dangers associated with marriage, at a wedding ceremony; and at a funeral or mourning ceremony, purposes such as driving away the malevolent ghost of the dead person, or preventing the ghost from leaving the grave, or frightening off any evil spirits attracted by the corpse, or temporarily and invisibly bringing the dead person back to join in the dance, or simply honouring the dead person.\nThe dancer and scholar Harriet Lihs in 2009 divided religious dance into dances of imitation, such as of animals thought to be spirit messengers, or of battles; \"medicine dances\", i.e.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9476e038-1b7d-4f5f-934c-0ae812881a08"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"In ancient times","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rygsaw5p0f","content":[{"text":"Indigenous ceremonial dance rituals around the world appear to preserve forms that were widespread in ancient times. For example, processionals and circle dances seen in indigenous dance today were used in ancient Egypt and among the Hebrews. In ancient Egypt, dancers impersonated a deity such as the goddess Hathor, taking on the deity's attributes and interpreting the divine world for those watching.\nIn ancient Israel, the Hebrew Bible mentions dancing during religious worship. The prophet Miriam led dancing following the crossing of the Red Sea during the Exodus. During the return of the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem, King David danced \"before the Lord with all his might\". Dancing is mentioned as something familiar, implying it was a common practice. Sacred dance is described in the Bible by verbs meaning dancing, rotating, jumping, skipping, and whirling. The dance was accompanied by hand-drums (tambourines), cymbals, flutes, pipes, lyres, harps, and lutes.\nThe Hittites are shown in a sacred processional dance in a c. 1200 BCrock inscription at the sanctuary of Yazılıkaya, near their city of Hattusa, in Cappadocia.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9476e038-1b7d-4f5f-934c-0ae812881a08"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Judaism","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2cdhcqpsp8","content":[{"text":"Judaism observes the festival of Simchat Torah, which includes dancing in synagogues.\nThe Hasidic movement, which dates from the 18th century, practices dancing in a religious context.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9476e038-1b7d-4f5f-934c-0ae812881a08"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Christianity","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zr010z7m7a","content":[{"text":"Some Christian traditions make use of liturgical or worship dance, but it has long been controversial within the church. It has been supported, sometimes fervently, by both priests and Christian scholars; and opposed, sometimes stridently, by others who for example wrote some 157 tracts against dance between 1685 and 1963. The early church was largely in favour of dance, with the eminent Church Father Augustine arguing that Christian dance ought to be orderly according to a reasoned rhythm, in harmony with the Jewish tradition, but in contrast to ecstatic Greco-Roman dance. A typical early Christian dance is the 2nd century AD circle dance in the Acts of John which states that \"Grace danceth. I would pipe: dance ye all. The whole world on high hath part in our dancing.\" Circle dance is used, in its more meditative form, in worship within religious traditions including the Church of England. In northern Greece and southern Bulgaria, in the annual celebrations for Saint Constantine and Saint Helen, dancers perform the Anastenaria, a fire-walking ritual, as the climax of three days of processions, music, dancing, and animal sacrifice.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9476e038-1b7d-4f5f-934c-0ae812881a08"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Hinduism","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dwv8t4tjym","content":[{"text":"Indian classical dances such as Bharatanatyam, Kathak, Odissi, and Mohiniattam can be traced to the Sanskrit text Natya Shastra. They are a traditional drama-dance expression of religion, related to Vaishnavism, Shaivism, Shaktism, pan-Hindu epics and the Vedic literature. As a religious art, they are either performed inside the sanctum of a Hindu temple, or near it.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9476e038-1b7d-4f5f-934c-0ae812881a08"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"91zbekab1q","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Sacred dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9476e038-1b7d-4f5f-934c-0ae812881a08"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tzp9wzjzdv","content":[{"text":"Prophetic dance is dance´s types, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"80e07a7f-836d-47a3-9ae6-a65a23913d8b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wwvwzh027z","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"80e07a7f-836d-47a3-9ae6-a65a23913d8b"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"The prophetic dance of the masupias, from the book Seven Years in South Africa, volume 2, page 229","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/65/Seven_Years_in_South_Africa%2C_page_229%2C_the_prophetic_dance_of_the_masupias.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Unknown author Unknown author","height":1396,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"The prophetic dance of the masupias, from the book Seven Years in South Africa, volume 2, page 229","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/65/Seven_Years_in_South_Africa%2C_page_229%2C_the_prophetic_dance_of_the_masupias.jpg/960px-Seven_Years_in_South_Africa%2C_page_229%2C_the_prophetic_dance_of_the_masupias.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Seven_Years_in_South_Africa,_page_229,_the_prophetic_dance_of_the_masupias.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/65/Seven_Years_in_South_Africa%2C_page_229%2C_the_prophetic_dance_of_the_masupias.jpg/1280px-Seven_Years_in_South_Africa%2C_page_229%2C_the_prophetic_dance_of_the_masupias.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:10.757Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/prophetic-dance"}
{"id":"ae42e0ad-4423-467d-a065-e226e66f9d27","type":"art_form","slug":"pung-cholom","title":"Pung Cholom","summary":"The Pung cholom (Meitei: ꯄꯨꯡ ꯆꯣꯂꯣꯝ, lit. 'roar of the drum') is a traditional Meitei dance form originated from Manipur, which is the soul of the Manipuri Sankirtana music and the Manipuri classical dance.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2jw5ehfxt7","content":[{"text":"The Pung cholom (Meitei: ꯄꯨꯡ ꯆꯣꯂꯣꯝ, lit. 'roar of the drum') is a traditional Meitei dance form originated from Manipur, which is the soul of the Manipuri Sankirtana music and the Manipuri classical dance. The Pung cholom is a unique classical dance of Manipur. This dance may be performed by men or women and is usually a prelude to the Ras Lila. \nIn this style, the dancers play the pung (a form of hand beaten drum) while they dance at the same time. Dancers need to be graceful and acrobatic at the same time. They use these acrobatic effects without breaking the rhythm or flow of music. The dance is marked by a gentle rhythm, which gradually builds up to a thunderous climax. Pung cholom borrows elements from the Manipuri martial arts, Thang Ta and Sarit Sarak and also from the traditional Maibi Jagoi.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"35fb1a48-243f-4a0d-81d7-b597fced9faf"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Function of eyes","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wsj5z1qs4d","content":[{"text":"In Pung Cholom, eyes play a crucial role since every actions are done through vision.\nThere are three different ways of directing the gaze: close (Meitei: ꯑꯅꯛꯄ, romanized: anakpa), or to about 2.6m from the performer, middle (Meitei: ꯃꯌꯥꯏ, romanized: mayāi), about 4.3m, and distant (Meitei: ꯑꯔꯥꯞꯄ, romanized: arāppa), about 6m.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"35fb1a48-243f-4a0d-81d7-b597fced9faf"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"395z568fy3","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Pung Cholom”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"35fb1a48-243f-4a0d-81d7-b597fced9faf"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"96wgsbvxwp","content":[{"text":"Pung Cholom is is a dance form originated from Manipur, which is the soul of the Manipuri Sankirtana music and the classical Manipuri dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fd33df0b-6773-4acb-999b-62ebfa3e4423"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mgbfs1t4px","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fd33df0b-6773-4acb-999b-62ebfa3e4423"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Pung cholom performer, Manipur.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b3/Pung_cholom_performer%2C_Manipur.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"https://www.flickr.com/photos/matsukin/","height":1548,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Pung cholom performer, Manipur.","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b3/Pung_cholom_performer%2C_Manipur.jpg/960px-Pung_cholom_performer%2C_Manipur.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pung_cholom_performer,_Manipur.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b3/Pung_cholom_performer%2C_Manipur.jpg/1280px-Pung_cholom_performer%2C_Manipur.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"},{"alt":"Manipuri Pung cholom dance","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/33/Manipuri_Pung_cholom3.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Fotokannan","height":720,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Manipuri Pung cholom dance","licence":"CC BY 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/33/Manipuri_Pung_cholom3.jpg/960px-Manipuri_Pung_cholom3.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Manipuri_Pung_cholom3.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/33/Manipuri_Pung_cholom3.jpg/1280px-Manipuri_Pung_cholom3.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0"},{"alt":"Manipuri Pung cholom dance","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d8/Manipuri_Pung_cholom4.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Fotokannan","height":720,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Manipuri Pung cholom dance","licence":"CC BY 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d8/Manipuri_Pung_cholom4.jpg/960px-Manipuri_Pung_cholom4.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Manipuri_Pung_cholom4.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d8/Manipuri_Pung_cholom4.jpg/1280px-Manipuri_Pung_cholom4.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:12.277Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/pung-cholom"}
{"id":"793d1012-4552-4449-ad7f-9bb67de4b8e3","type":"art_form","slug":"punjabi-folk-dance","title":"Punjabi folk dance","summary":"Punjabi dances are an array of folk and religious dances of the Punjabi people indigenous to the Punjab region, straddling the border of India and Pakistan.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xdtyzz01wj","content":[{"text":"Punjabi dances are an array of folk and religious dances of the Punjabi people indigenous to the Punjab region, straddling the border of India and Pakistan. The style of Punjabi dances ranges from very high energy to slow and reserved, and there are specific styles for men and women.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2aac624a-b136-4180-a671-e1e552622c3e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Bhangra","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m5ammb5a59","content":[{"text":"Bhangra is the most popular folk dance from Punjab, originating in the Sialkot area of Pakistani Punjab. It is especially associated with the vernal Vaisakhi festival.\nBhangra was mainly performed by Punjabi farmers during the harvesting season, while they did agricultural chores. As they did each farming activity they would perform bhangra moves on the spot. This allowed them to finish their job in a pleasurable way. After harvesting their wheat crops during the Vaisakhi season, people used to attend cultural festivals while dancing bhangra. For many years, farmers performed bhangra to showcase a sense of accomplishment and to welcome the new harvesting season.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2aac624a-b136-4180-a671-e1e552622c3e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Giddha","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"e71z2f6w53","content":[{"text":"Giddha is a popular women's folk dance in the Punjab region. Giddha displays a traditional mode of performing Punjabi femininity, as seen through dress, choreography, and language. While the form of giddha was not seriously affected by the Partition of India, it has been classified, post-Partition, as the women's counterpart to the male bhangra, despite that not entirely being the case.\nTraditionally, women used to wear salwar kameez and ghagra in bright colours and jewellery. The attire is completed by styling the hair into two braids, adorned with folk ornaments and wearing a tikka on the forehead.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2aac624a-b136-4180-a671-e1e552622c3e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Malwai Giddha","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9w6f7ky37x","content":[{"text":"Malwai Giddha is a male folk dance from the Malwa region of Punjab. The dance was originally performed by elderly men. The dance is associated with the districts of Muktsar, Bathinda, Faridkot, Sangrur, Ferozpur, Mansa and Patiala.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2aac624a-b136-4180-a671-e1e552622c3e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Luddi","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1e8wte0zrm","content":[{"text":"Luddi is performed, by both men and women, by moving in circles while clicking fingers and clapping hands and perform jumps and half-turns. It is mainly performed at weddings and sports events to celebrate victory. It can be performed in pairs or in groups, to the sounds of dhol and shenayi. \"Luddi Hay Jamalo\" was a famous song sung by Noor Jehan in 1980s, often sung at weddings by women.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2aac624a-b136-4180-a671-e1e552622c3e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Sammi","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hgqnsf1909","content":[{"text":"Sammi is a traditional dance form originating from the tribal belt of Punjab, particularly in the Sandalbar area and Pothohar region of Pakistani Punjab. Men usually perform the Sammi dance during conventional Punjabi parties. It is also performed by women, who dress in colourful kurtas and lehengas, often accompanied with a silver hair accessory.\nCommonly, it has a slow flow and people dance in a circle. While forming a ring, dancers swing their hands from the side and bring them to the front. People implement a hopping sequence, along with using sticks in their hands. The Coke Studio track \"Sammi Meri Waar\" by Umair Jaswal and Quratulain Baloch is a popular song of this dance genre.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2aac624a-b136-4180-a671-e1e552622c3e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ky9jmsren7","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Folk dances of Punjab”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2aac624a-b136-4180-a671-e1e552622c3e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8qhaa2fcpt","content":[{"text":"Punjabi folk dance is array of folk and religious dances of the Punjabi people, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2f57047e-41ec-4060-af88-4968c8406947"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1x1pcd253j","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2f57047e-41ec-4060-af88-4968c8406947"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"This photo has been taken in the country: India","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b7/Punjabi_Folk_Dances.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"OkThat'sIt","height":608,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"This photo has been taken in the country: India","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b7/Punjabi_Folk_Dances.jpg/960px-Punjabi_Folk_Dances.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Punjabi_Folk_Dances.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b7/Punjabi_Folk_Dances.jpg/1280px-Punjabi_Folk_Dances.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:16.759Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/punjabi-folk-dance"}
{"id":"303bde5a-9e60-4830-8fef-a86a339a115b","type":"art_form","slug":"q11532640","title":"板橋の田遊び","summary":"板橋の田遊び is a tradition recorded in open cultural data. This page is a machine-generated stub awaiting review by someone who knows the tradition.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"n8xjss19b6","content":[{"text":"板橋の田遊び is a tradition recorded in open cultural data, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c10cc36b-5a76-4515-b26a-d27fbcf7e78b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"swwtf6wppw","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c10cc36b-5a76-4515-b26a-d27fbcf7e78b"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-05T02:44:08.512Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/q11532640"}
{"id":"df077414-6b38-48a0-b235-51ecd385b8e3","type":"art_form","slug":"q11659037","title":"隠岐の田楽と庭の舞","summary":"隠岐の田楽と庭の舞 is a tradition recorded in open cultural data. This page is a machine-generated stub awaiting review by someone who knows the tradition.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vpew1zm1w2","content":[{"text":"隠岐の田楽と庭の舞 is a tradition recorded in open cultural data, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6325cc35-a8f3-4448-b01e-512b668b078d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xwbanh71xn","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6325cc35-a8f3-4448-b01e-512b668b078d"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-05T02:44:08.888Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/q11659037"}
{"id":"b374ba69-03c8-48dc-9cc9-b7a9f76da816","type":"art_form","slug":"q12211450","title":"دبكة أردنية","summary":"دبكة أردنية is a tradition recorded in open cultural data. This page is a machine-generated stub awaiting review by someone who knows the tradition.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5amte4xsz4","content":[{"text":"دبكة أردنية is a tradition recorded in open cultural data, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a3b5b382-ff27-473e-b9e5-307f5ab3abea"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"exeqw7x21w","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a3b5b382-ff27-473e-b9e5-307f5ab3abea"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-05T02:44:09.277Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/q12211450"}
{"id":"f1cce013-2965-4357-a013-c5172c0d6bca","type":"art_form","slug":"q13053946","title":"Մայրոքե","summary":"Մայրոքե is a tradition recorded in open cultural data. This page is a machine-generated stub awaiting review by someone who knows the tradition.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hevxvvjr04","content":[{"text":"Մայրոքե is a tradition recorded in open cultural data, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a940064d-e490-478f-a0f1-ddacfb74d2ee"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-05T02:44:09.647Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/q13053946"}
{"id":"7cf18e4c-9a8d-45a0-b72d-c3eaddd4b80d","type":"art_form","slug":"q13109807","title":"അങ്കദൈവം","summary":"അങ്കദൈവം is a tradition recorded in open cultural data. This page is a machine-generated stub awaiting review by someone who knows the tradition.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"90ehm9tbd8","content":[{"text":"അങ്കദൈവം is a tradition recorded in open cultural data, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e02a33af-73bc-44b9-b0eb-569264b9e8e3"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-05T02:44:10.013Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/q13109807"}
{"id":"efd1898e-806a-4cbe-be51-5622cacec6c7","type":"art_form","slug":"q13109813","title":"അങ്കക്കാരനും പപ്പൂരനും","summary":"അങ്കക്കാരനും പപ്പൂരനും is a tradition recorded in open cultural data. This page is a machine-generated stub awaiting review by someone who knows the tradition.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t957bx9w8a","content":[{"text":"അങ്കക്കാരനും പപ്പൂരനും is a tradition recorded in open cultural data, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"88d8e083-3b8e-4719-a7ac-cd106f5261d4"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T07:23:11.428Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/q13109813"}
{"id":"e5fc67e1-77c3-476f-a83c-6a26df6d520c","type":"art_form","slug":"q13110209","title":"ആടിവേടൻ","summary":"ആടിവേടൻ is a tradition recorded in open cultural data. This page is a machine-generated stub awaiting review by someone who knows the tradition.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"40qn0n8smk","content":[{"text":"ആടിവേടൻ is a tradition recorded in open cultural data, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a93ec623-7426-442f-8cdc-f41a9fd61571"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T07:23:11.434Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/q13110209"}
{"id":"f217096a-3776-43a7-8ee2-093a9963d831","type":"art_form","slug":"q13110536","title":"ഉമ്മച്ചിത്തെയ്യം","summary":"ഉമ്മച്ചിത്തെയ്യം is a tradition recorded in open cultural data. This page is a machine-generated stub awaiting review by someone who knows the tradition.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sb77hvafhv","content":[{"text":"ഉമ്മച്ചിത്തെയ്യം is a tradition recorded in open cultural data, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"67909fe3-6978-4bb4-a41c-a7341797cba8"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-05T02:44:10.381Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/q13110536"}
{"id":"b817d0a2-4f37-4535-85fc-3dbf35fb449b","type":"art_form","slug":"q13111004","title":"കരിഞ്ചാമുണ്ഡി","summary":"കരിഞ്ചാമുണ്ഡി is a tradition recorded in open cultural data. This page is a machine-generated stub awaiting review by someone who knows the tradition.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4vxnftd0nd","content":[{"text":"കരിഞ്ചാമുണ്ഡി is a tradition recorded in open cultural data, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b226ceed-8ede-449b-ba9c-b4704252dac6"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T07:23:09.255Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/q13111004"}
{"id":"7647e00b-1550-4c2b-9b11-fa56030a8b42","type":"art_form","slug":"q13111186","title":"കാലിച്ചാൻ","summary":"കാലിച്ചാൻ is a tradition recorded in open cultural data. This page is a machine-generated stub awaiting review by someone who knows the tradition.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qx2n1c86cw","content":[{"text":"കാലിച്ചാൻ is a tradition recorded in open cultural data, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0d8a40b1-fe3c-44ad-ac9d-f1a9912b8528"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T07:23:09.260Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/q13111186"}
{"id":"b10a37dd-c44f-4220-9a1b-82b86b2c099e","type":"art_form","slug":"q13111290","title":"കുട്ടിക്കര ഭഗവതി","summary":"കുട്ടിക്കര ഭഗവതി is a tradition recorded in open cultural data. This page is a machine-generated stub awaiting review by someone who knows the tradition.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"p253mfs3rc","content":[{"text":"കുട്ടിക്കര ഭഗവതി is a tradition recorded in open cultural data, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e50dd5f0-75c9-4cfb-950e-9ca0e633e897"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-05T02:44:10.750Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/q13111290"}
{"id":"621cc0df-6114-4d54-8d43-f564efe4ab52","type":"art_form","slug":"q13111304","title":"കുണ്ഡോറച്ചാമുണ്ഡി","summary":"കുണ്ഡോറച്ചാമുണ്ഡി is a tradition recorded in open cultural data. This page is a machine-generated stub awaiting review by someone who knows the tradition.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ta399hwscz","content":[{"text":"കുണ്ഡോറച്ചാമുണ്ഡി is a tradition recorded in open cultural data, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1e57e49a-4eb2-471a-89bd-6e172cfa0eaa"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-05T02:44:11.708Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/q13111304"}
{"id":"ffe2b698-49a0-481c-b71d-b3a4f77b938d","type":"art_form","slug":"q13111912","title":"ചാത്തമ്പള്ളി വിഷകണ്ഠൻ","summary":"ചാത്തമ്പള്ളി വിഷകണ്ഠൻ is a tradition recorded in open cultural data. This page is a machine-generated stub awaiting review by someone who knows the tradition.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"am7nr88ycs","content":[{"text":"ചാത്തമ്പള്ളി വിഷകണ്ഠൻ is a tradition recorded in open cultural data, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"19d24e63-7113-464f-9706-40b2549e2175"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-05T02:44:13.086Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/q13111912"}
{"id":"42517398-540e-4040-af10-e71e1df7ea43","type":"art_form","slug":"q16125833","title":"رقصة درامية","summary":"رقصة درامية is a tradition recorded in open cultural data. This page is a machine-generated stub awaiting review by someone who knows the tradition.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"614schf912","content":[{"text":"رقصة درامية is a tradition recorded in open cultural data, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"30ca351c-5efc-4ec2-9088-808932437b0f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"63y60wr2hw","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"30ca351c-5efc-4ec2-9088-808932437b0f"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-05T02:44:14.641Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/q16125833"}
{"id":"faffa2ae-cd44-4a1b-9c3d-a4dd12cd129b","type":"art_form","slug":"q16133620","title":"അങ്കക്കാരൻ","summary":"അങ്കക്കാരൻ is a tradition recorded in open cultural data. This page is a machine-generated stub awaiting review by someone who knows the tradition.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wh189s48yn","content":[{"text":"അങ്കക്കാരൻ is a tradition recorded in open cultural data, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"68f9c986-30ee-4761-8056-cfc6348c0353"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T07:23:09.264Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/q16133620"}
{"id":"a9ce6bd8-6252-4ce0-928b-5d28b975d8de","type":"art_form","slug":"q16133917","title":"ഭൈരവൻ തെയ്യം","summary":"ഭൈരവൻ തെയ്യം is a tradition recorded in open cultural data. This page is a machine-generated stub awaiting review by someone who knows the tradition.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"an3e0r77de","content":[{"text":"ഭൈരവൻ തെയ്യം is a tradition recorded in open cultural data, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"15d967a1-37d1-43d2-a443-4878a38b4cdb"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-05T02:44:16.692Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/q16133917"}
{"id":"0b3bba9a-6fb3-4742-8fb3-0ff0b6b313fe","type":"art_form","slug":"q16134402","title":"മടയിൽ ചാമുണ്ഡി","summary":"മടയിൽ ചാമുണ്ഡി is a tradition recorded in open cultural data. This page is a machine-generated stub awaiting review by someone who knows the tradition.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ec0h7weyaj","content":[{"text":"മടയിൽ ചാമുണ്ഡി is a tradition recorded in open cultural data, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e59e1d90-06f5-4876-adad-71d2c5faabed"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T07:23:09.270Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/q16134402"}
{"id":"67bc4168-d733-4b0c-a49a-220c95d4771e","type":"art_form","slug":"q16134659","title":"ശൂലകുഠാരിയമ്മ തെയ്യം","summary":"ശൂലകുഠാരിയമ്മ തെയ്യം is a tradition recorded in open cultural data. This page is a machine-generated stub awaiting review by someone who knows the tradition.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hpc7jq2dz2","content":[{"text":"ശൂലകുഠാരിയമ്മ തെയ്യം is a tradition recorded in open cultural data, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee4e094d-6df8-4e20-8891-f9643c21cd48"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-05T02:44:17.114Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/q16134659"}
{"id":"ae53bd6b-0839-4c0a-9aa2-76dbaebb0044","type":"art_form","slug":"q16135153","title":"കാരണവർ തെയ്യം","summary":"കാരണവർ തെയ്യം is a tradition recorded in open cultural data. This page is a machine-generated stub awaiting review by someone who knows the tradition.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"q94qgwd9j1","content":[{"text":"കാരണവർ തെയ്യം is a tradition recorded in open cultural data, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1f59160a-d976-4616-98c6-da986bfc20af"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-05T02:44:18.673Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/q16135153"}
{"id":"d21373dd-c691-418c-bf2c-4227e67c8601","type":"art_form","slug":"quadrille","title":"quadrille","summary":"The quadrille is a dance that was fashionable in late 18th- and 19th-century Europe and its colonies. The quadrille consists of a chain of four to six contredanses.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"g97es7tjt8","content":[{"text":"The quadrille is a dance that was fashionable in late 18th- and 19th-century Europe and its colonies. The quadrille consists of a chain of four to six contredanses. Latterly the quadrille was frequently danced to a medley of opera melodies.\nPerformed by four couples in a rectangular formation, it is related to American square dancing. The quadrille also gave rise to Cape Breton Square Dancing via American square dancing in New England. The Lancers, a variant of the quadrille, became popular in the late 19th century and was still danced in the 20th century in folk-dance clubs. A derivative found in the Francophone Lesser Antilles is known as kwadril, and in Jamaica, quadrille is a traditional folk dance which is done in two styles i.e. ballroom and campstyle. The dance is also still found in Madagascar as well as old Caribbean culture.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"080cfdc2-9786-4d31-988d-d8e93f72c79d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"444deyvdfh","content":[{"text":"The term quadrille originated in 17th-century military parades in which four mounted horsemen executed square formations. The word probably derived from the Italian quadriglia (diminutive of quadra, hence a small square).\nThe dance was introduced in France around 1760: originally it was a form of cotillion in which only two couples were used, but two more couples were eventually added to form the sides of a square. The couples in each corner of the square took turns, in performing the dance, where one couple danced, and the other couples rested. The \"quadrille des contredanses\" was now a lively dance with four couples, arranged in the shape of a square, each couple facing the center. One pair was called the \"head\" couple, the adjacent pairs the \"side\" couples. A dance figure was often performed first by the head couple and then repeated by the side couples. Terms used in the dance are mostly the same as those in ballet, such as jeté, chassé, croisé, plié and arabesque.\nReaching English high society in 1816 through Lady Jersey, the quadrille became a craze. As it became ever more popular in the 19th century it evolved into forms that used elements of the waltz, including The Caledonians and The Lancers. In Germany and Austria dance composers (Josef Lanner and the Strauss family) composed for the quadrille. Its popularity made it a metaphor, the \"stately quadrille\", of the constant formation of fresh political alliances with different partners in order to maintain the balance of power in Europe. Lewis Carroll lampooned the dance in \"The Lobster Quadrille,\" part of his 1865 novel Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.\nThough new music was composed, the names of the five parts (or figures) remained the same, as did the steps and the figures themselves.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"080cfdc2-9786-4d31-988d-d8e93f72c79d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"The quadrille – musical analysis","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s8h1qq5jdc","content":[{"text":"Thus the quadrille was a very intricate dance. The standard form contained five different parts, and the Viennese lengthened it to six different parts. The following table shows what the different parts look like, musically speaking:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"080cfdc2-9786-4d31-988d-d8e93f72c79d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rmnr9r0q1v","content":[{"text":"part 1: Pantalon (written in 24 or 68)\ntheme A – theme B – theme A – theme C – theme A\npart 2: Été (always written in 24)\ntheme A – theme B – theme B – theme A\npart 3: Poule (always written in 68)\ntheme A – theme B – theme A – theme C – theme A – theme B – theme A\nPart 3 always begins with a two-measure introduction\npart 4: Trénis (always written in 24)\ntheme A – theme B – theme B – theme A\npart 5: Pastourelle (always written in 24)\ntheme A – theme B – theme C – theme B – theme A\npart 6: Finale (always written in 24)\ntheme A – theme A – theme B – theme B – theme A – theme A\nPart 6 always begins with a two-measure introduction\nAll the themes are 8 measures long.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"080cfdc2-9786-4d31-988d-d8e93f72c79d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"n7195vc425","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Quadrille”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"080cfdc2-9786-4d31-988d-d8e93f72c79d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"eyaq6xknhy","content":[{"text":"quadrille is a dance for four or more couples, popular in the 19th century and consisting of five sections in either 2/4 or 6/8, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a1e9072b-04dd-40ee-a509-3b7c48ea7339"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"y7a3637j8h","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 26 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a1e9072b-04dd-40ee-a509-3b7c48ea7339"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Die Saybuscher Quadrille (Tanz).","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a3/02016_0423_Die_Saybuscher_Quadrille_%28Tanz%29.JPG?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Silar","height":854,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Die Saybuscher Quadrille (Tanz).","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a3/02016_0423_Die_Saybuscher_Quadrille_%28Tanz%29.JPG/960px-02016_0423_Die_Saybuscher_Quadrille_%28Tanz%29.JPG?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:02016_0423_Die_Saybuscher_Quadrille_(Tanz).JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a3/02016_0423_Die_Saybuscher_Quadrille_%28Tanz%29.JPG/1280px-02016_0423_Die_Saybuscher_Quadrille_%28Tanz%29.JPG?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:21.281Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/quadrille"}
{"id":"83b7a232-6ec6-47de-aa1f-8da253c3e9a1","type":"art_form","slug":"queer-tango","title":"Queer Tango","summary":"Queer Tango (or Tango Queer) is dancing Argentine tango without regard to the traditional heteronormative roles of the dancers, and often to exchange the leader and follower roles. Therefore, it is related to open role or same-sex tango.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b09teyrbrv","content":[{"text":"Queer Tango (or Tango Queer) is dancing Argentine tango without regard to the traditional heteronormative roles of the dancers, and often to exchange the leader and follower roles. Therefore, it is related to open role or same-sex tango. The queer tango movement permits not only an access to tango for the LBGTQIAA+ community, but also supports female leaders and male followers, regardless of sexual orientation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7138d594-9244-48c1-bfc4-35a6df310bf0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Gender neutral dancing: open role reverse and same-sex tango","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t6g8cbxdya","content":[{"text":"Queer Tango was not approved at first, due to the blurred lines of gender roles and social class rankings being affected. The Queer Tango movement breaks these rigid heteronormative gender roles of the tango world and permits all the permutations of partnering within tango. Same-sex tangoing is frequent: men dance with men, women dance with women, who can lead or follow. Also men dance with women, exploring open role reverse. The term queer, commonly used as a synonym for the LBGTQIAA+ community, is used here in a larger sense. A queer tango dancer shifts the focus from sexuality to gender which allows to enhance his expressiveness by way of role exchange. Therefore, the Queer Tango scene gives not only a home to gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, intersex tangueras and tangueros (tango dancers), where they can feel comfortable, it also creates a liberated tango environment for gender-neutral dancing, where rules and codes of traditional tango no longer restrain communication between people. By way of queer tango teaching, heterosexuals dancers can learn the open role reverse and enhance their competences in tango.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7138d594-9244-48c1-bfc4-35a6df310bf0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0jzz0jnyzp","content":[{"text":"As with all types of social dance, including conventional tango, the skill level of Queer Tango varies. Dancers who engage in queer tango are interested in expression. \"Bodies without organs\" is a concept explored through same-sex tangoing, which allows people to experiment the dynamic presented in the technique.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7138d594-9244-48c1-bfc4-35a6df310bf0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Background","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"y6pgqnrhxn","content":[{"text":"There is one story which claims that tango as a dance was born in the brothels of Buenos Aires, another relates that tango was created by men dancing tango between men on street corners at the beginning of the 20th century:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7138d594-9244-48c1-bfc4-35a6df310bf0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k2cz78dbd5","content":[{"text":"\"Because of a shortage of women in the immigrant population, there were really only two practical ways for a man to get close to a woman under these circumstances. One was to visit a prostitute and the other was to dance. The men practicing together, looking for the best ways to please a woman when they danced with her, preparing for that rare moment when they actually did have a woman in their arms, were the people who created the Tango as a dance.\"","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7138d594-9244-48c1-bfc4-35a6df310bf0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2f2j6x0twp","content":[{"text":"In the first decade of the 20th century, tango became famous as a couple dance (man-woman) in Paris.\nThere are also French and American postcards from the first decades of the 20th century  which represent tango between women. This feminine replica of man-to-man-tango generated much less literary documentation, yet a more extensive iconography tinged with a voyeuristic accent of eroticism:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7138d594-9244-48c1-bfc4-35a6df310bf0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"md8wc8mz2e","content":[{"text":"\"The origin of those images, like the origin of the enthronement of tango as a universal fashion, is Paris. They are mostly anonymous pictures of women before the retina of a man one imagines to be complacent with the image of two women narrowing the distance between their bodies, something this dance encourages. One cannot see in them any self affirmation of feminine propriety, but rather, flattery or seduction toward the male spectator.[…]On one hand, Saphic flirtation or outright lesbianism was exercised by valid individuals belonging to circles of artistic luster wherein this was entirely admissible.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7138d594-9244-48c1-bfc4-35a6df310bf0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Movement","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"q8wrz0rt27","content":[{"text":"The queer tango movement which revives the origins of tango as a same-sex couple dance is relatively recent. It was founded  in Hamburg, Germany where in 2001 the first gay-lesbian milonga was organized. In the same year the First International Queer Tango Argentina Festival was brought to life. Since 2001 it takes place every year in order to bring together same sex couples in tango from all over the world.\nBorn in Germany, the Queer Tango movement inspired other countries to create local queer tango scenes. Meanwhile, Queer Tango festivals are celebrated for example in  Argentina, Montevideo, in Denmark,  Sweden, Paris, and in the United States.\nIn the bastion of traditional heteronormative tango, Augusto Balizano opened the first queer milonga, La Marshall, in Buenos Aires in 2002. A few years later, in 2005 Mariana Docampo started a weekly milonga in San Telmo called Tango Queer.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7138d594-9244-48c1-bfc4-35a6df310bf0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Queer Tango in Buenos Aires","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"n2g1dd4jn9","content":[{"text":"While queer tango is more and more common in the milongas in Buenos Aires, discrimination persists against same-sex couples or couples who reverse the traditional sex-assigned roles.  In late March 2022, a new milonga housed in a famous tango institution posted a list of rules at its entrance.  Among those rules was a strict prohibition on same-sex couples dancing together.\nMembers of the queer tango community continue to combat this type of discrimination.  The Feminist Movement of Tango (Movimiento Feminista de Tango) maintains a social media presence to disseminate information, raise consciousness, and engage in activism.\nFounded by Anahí Carballo in 2015, Tango Entre Mujeres (TEM) is the first Argentine-based all-women tango dance company.  The first scene of its 2019 work Vinculadas includes reenacted quotes of the insults that the company has received for its groundbreaking work.  Some of these include, \"you [meaning women dancing with each other] are the death of tango!\" and \"pan con pan es comida de tontos.\"","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7138d594-9244-48c1-bfc4-35a6df310bf0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3ta42b3kxk","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Queer Tango”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7138d594-9244-48c1-bfc4-35a6df310bf0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"18w187f85y","content":[{"text":"Queer Tango is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7eb8c46f-7297-4922-97b5-0a16ad18d568"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4g6wgd4wad","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7eb8c46f-7297-4922-97b5-0a16ad18d568"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:12.092Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/queer-tango"}
{"id":"38b866ec-21f8-41f5-b148-8d83439fe7f5","type":"art_form","slug":"quickstep","title":"quickstep","summary":"The quickstep is a light-hearted dance of the standard ballroom dances. The movement of the dance is fast and powerfully flowing and sprinkled with syncopations.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hptn19cmmz","content":[{"text":"The quickstep is a light-hearted dance of the standard ballroom dances. The movement of the dance is fast and powerfully flowing and sprinkled with syncopations. The upbeat melodies that quickstep is danced to make it suitable for both formal and informal events. Its origins are in combination of slow foxtrot combined with the Charleston, a dance which was one of the precursors to what today is called swing dancing.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5ecf73a2-5aa1-44a9-a2fb-435a89d8642f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qtgaasw36x","content":[{"text":"The quickstep evolved in the 1920s from a combination of the foxtrot, Charleston, shag, peabody, and one-step. The dance is English in origin and was standardized in 1927. While it evolved from the foxtrot, the quickstep now is quite separate. Unlike the modern foxtrot, the leader often closes his feet, and syncopated steps are regular occurrences (as was the case in early foxtrot). Three characteristic dance figures of the quickstep are the chassés, where the feet are brought together, the quarter turns, and the lock step.p126\nThis dance gradually evolved into a very dynamic one with much movement on the dance floor, with many advanced patterns including hops, runs, quick steps with much momentum, and rotation. The tempo of quickstep dance is rather brisk, as it was developed to ragtime era jazz music, which is fast-paced when compared to other dance music.\nBy the end of the 20th century the complexity of quickstep as done by advanced dancers had increased, with the extensive use of syncopated steps with eighth note durations. While in older times quickstep patterns were counted with \"quick\" (one beat) and \"slow\" (two beats) steps, many advanced patterns today are cued with split beats, such as \"quick-and-quick-and-quick, quick, slow\", with there being further steps on the 'and's.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5ecf73a2-5aa1-44a9-a2fb-435a89d8642f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Style","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fytf8wjjpd","content":[{"text":"The quickstep is elegant like the foxtrot and should be smooth and glamorous. The dancers should appear to be very light on their feet. It is very energetic and form-intensive.\nThe quickstep is danced to 4/4 music of 48 to 52 measures per minute.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5ecf73a2-5aa1-44a9-a2fb-435a89d8642f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Syllabus","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rjpnqgsqbe","content":[{"text":"The two International Style syllabi of ISTD and IDTA for quickstep differ very little.\nThe American Style dance competition program does not include quickstep, but a limited version of the dance is taught and danced socially in some American dance venues.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5ecf73a2-5aa1-44a9-a2fb-435a89d8642f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Pre-bronze","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jvhxwhvnmj","content":[{"text":"Quarter turn to right\nNatural turn\nNatural turn with hesitation\nNatural pivot turn\nNatural spin turn\nProgressive chassé\nChassé reverse turn\nForward lock\nHeel pivot (quarter turn to left)","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5ecf73a2-5aa1-44a9-a2fb-435a89d8642f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Silver","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8b72bf0sw7","content":[{"text":"Quick open reverse\nFishtail\nRunning right turn\nFour quick run\nV6\nClosed telemark","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5ecf73a2-5aa1-44a9-a2fb-435a89d8642f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jstzazjmjf","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Quickstep”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5ecf73a2-5aa1-44a9-a2fb-435a89d8642f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"r4srz99h95","content":[{"text":"quickstep is standard ballroom dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"006d9158-7534-49a2-a76c-6f4e095ca94e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tab06fdttc","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 13 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"006d9158-7534-49a2-a76c-6f4e095ca94e"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Quickstep 24 Sailboat \"Indigo\"","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/76/Quickstep_24_Sailboat_%22Indigo%22.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Paulhamlin44","height":1429,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Quickstep 24 Sailboat \"Indigo\"","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/76/Quickstep_24_Sailboat_%22Indigo%22.jpg/960px-Quickstep_24_Sailboat_%22Indigo%22.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Quickstep_24_Sailboat_%22Indigo%22.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/76/Quickstep_24_Sailboat_%22Indigo%22.jpg/1280px-Quickstep_24_Sailboat_%22Indigo%22.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Frederick Grinnell's centerboard steel schooner Quickstep ( Edward Burgess design, 1889) pictured in the Newport to Cottage City race on August 6th, 1892, which she won in her class. New York Times - In a brisk southwester","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0c/Schooner_Quickstep-3.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"This image is available from the United States Library of Congress 's Prints and Photographs division under the digital ID det.4a04674 . This tag does not indicate the copyright status of the attached work. A normal copyright tag is still required. See Commons:Licensing .","height":994,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Frederick Grinnell's centerboard steel schooner Quickstep ( Edward Burgess design, 1889) pictured in the Newport to Cottage City race on August 6th, 1892, which she won in her class. New York Times - In a brisk southwester","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0c/Schooner_Quickstep-3.jpg/960px-Schooner_Quickstep-3.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Schooner_Quickstep-3.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0c/Schooner_Quickstep-3.jpg/1280px-Schooner_Quickstep-3.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"Frederick Grinnell's centerboard steel schooner Quickstep ( Edward Burgess design, 1889)","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/99/Schooner_Quickstep-6.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"John S. Johnston","height":1596,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Frederick Grinnell's centerboard steel schooner Quickstep ( Edward Burgess design, 1889)","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/99/Schooner_Quickstep-6.jpg/960px-Schooner_Quickstep-6.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Schooner_Quickstep-6.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/99/Schooner_Quickstep-6.jpg/1280px-Schooner_Quickstep-6.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:18.054Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/quickstep"}
{"id":"747272fb-625a-4f45-963e-2e3883e6598a","type":"art_form","slug":"raibenshe","title":"Raibenshe","summary":"Raibenshe (Bengali: রায়বেঁশে), alternatively, Raibeshe (Bengali: রায়বেশে), is a genre of Bengali folk martial dance performed by male only. This genre of dance was once very popular in West Bengal.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"h9s9chrht4","content":[{"text":"Raibenshe (Bengali: রায়বেঁশে), alternatively, Raibeshe (Bengali: রায়বেশে), is a genre of Bengali folk martial dance performed by male only. This genre of dance was once very popular in West Bengal. Presently, it is performed mostly in Birbhum, Bardhaman and Murshidabad districts.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"85e880e2-6267-4e96-bd94-f5755dc54aba"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tn6ydfb8wn","content":[{"text":"Traditionally, this dance involves vigorous and manly movements of the body along with the acrobatics of a raibansh (a long bamboo stick), from which its name originated. During the performance, the performers enact the actions of drawing a bow, throwing a spear and waving a sword. The performers wear a brass anklet (nupur) on their right ankle. This dance is accompanied by dhols (drums) and Kanshis (cymbals). This dance was traditionally performed by Bagdi community, who worked as the bodyguards of the landlords in medieval Bengal.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"85e880e2-6267-4e96-bd94-f5755dc54aba"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2ecjfxyj9v","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Raibenshe”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"85e880e2-6267-4e96-bd94-f5755dc54aba"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3tazcphpkg","content":[{"text":"Raibenshe is Bengali folk dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"615ec919-ee28-4c6f-a0b5-a2c32e55b044"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zrm8yhjz98","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"615ec919-ee28-4c6f-a0b5-a2c32e55b044"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Raibenshe (Bengali: রায়বেঁশে), alternatively, Raibeshe (Bengali: রায়বেশে), is a genre of Bengali folk martial dance performed by male only.[1] This genre of dance was once very popular in West Bengal. Presently, it is performed mostly in Birbhum,[2] Bardhaman and Murshidabad…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1e/Martial_dance_Raibenshe_25.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Goutam1962","height":2282,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Raibenshe (Bengali: রায়বেঁশে), alternatively, Raibeshe (Bengali: রায়বেশে), is a genre of Bengali folk martial dance performed by male only.[1] This genre of dance was once very popular in West Bengal. Presently, it is performed mostly in Birbhum,[2] Bardhaman and Murshidabad…","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1e/Martial_dance_Raibenshe_25.jpg/960px-Martial_dance_Raibenshe_25.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Martial_dance_Raibenshe_25.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1e/Martial_dance_Raibenshe_25.jpg/1280px-Martial_dance_Raibenshe_25.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Raibenshe (Bengali: রায়বেঁশে), alternatively, Raibeshe (Bengali: রায়বেশে), is a genre of Bengali folk martial dance performed by male only.[1] This genre of dance was once very popular in West Bengal. Presently, it is performed mostly in Birbhum,[2] Bardhaman and Murshidabad…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/89/Martial_dance_Raibenshe_30.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Goutam1962","height":2282,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Raibenshe (Bengali: রায়বেঁশে), alternatively, Raibeshe (Bengali: রায়বেশে), is a genre of Bengali folk martial dance performed by male only.[1] This genre of dance was once very popular in West Bengal. Presently, it is performed mostly in Birbhum,[2] Bardhaman and Murshidabad…","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/89/Martial_dance_Raibenshe_30.jpg/960px-Martial_dance_Raibenshe_30.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Martial_dance_Raibenshe_30.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/89/Martial_dance_Raibenshe_30.jpg/1280px-Martial_dance_Raibenshe_30.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Raibenshe (Bengali: রায়বেঁশে), alternatively, Raibeshe (Bengali: রায়বেশে), is a genre of Bengali folk martial dance performed by male only.[1] This genre of dance was once very popular in West Bengal. Presently, it is performed mostly in Birbhum,[2] Bardhaman and Murshidabad…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/dd/Martial_dance_Raibenshe_15.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Goutam1962","height":2282,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Raibenshe (Bengali: রায়বেঁশে), alternatively, Raibeshe (Bengali: রায়বেশে), is a genre of Bengali folk martial dance performed by male only.[1] This genre of dance was once very popular in West Bengal. Presently, it is performed mostly in Birbhum,[2] Bardhaman and Murshidabad…","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/dd/Martial_dance_Raibenshe_15.jpg/960px-Martial_dance_Raibenshe_15.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Martial_dance_Raibenshe_15.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/dd/Martial_dance_Raibenshe_15.jpg/1280px-Martial_dance_Raibenshe_15.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:12.625Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/raibenshe"}
{"id":"6a48880a-e46d-4cc9-94f3-2c2909e7cb55","type":"art_form","slug":"rainmaking-rites","title":"rainmaking rites","summary":"Rainmaking is a weather modification ritual that attempts to invoke rain.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w3fxjdjezw","content":[{"text":"Rainmaking is a weather modification ritual that attempts to invoke rain. It is based on the belief that humans can influence nature, spirits, or their ancestors who withhold or bring rain.\nAmong the best known examples of weather modification rituals are North American rain dances, historically performed by many Native American tribes, particularly in the Southwestern United States. Some of these weather modification rituals are still implemented today.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9f9949de-f6be-4fd3-b867-881baf47767b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"North America","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qrzceyr7qr","content":[{"text":"Julia M. Buttree (the wife of Ernest Thompson Seton) describes the rain dance of the Zuni, along with other Native American dances, in her book The Rhythm of the Redman. Feathers and turquoise, or other blue items, are worn during the ceremony to symbolize wind and rain respectively. Guidance on how to properly perform the Rain Dance has been preserved through oral tradition.\nIn the Ozarks, multiple methods of attempting to call rain have been documented:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9f9949de-f6be-4fd3-b867-881baf47767b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rpcsqayyyk","content":[{"text":"Other hillmen try to produce rain by burning brush along the creeks, or hanging dead snakes belly-up on fences, or killing frogs and leaving them in the dry road, or putting salt on gravel bars, or suspending live turtles above the water. [..] In some localities people imagine that they can cause a rain by submerging a cat in sulphur water—they don't drown the animal, but make sure that it is completely under water for a moment at least. I once saw this tried at Noel, Missouri, but without any success.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9f9949de-f6be-4fd3-b867-881baf47767b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Africa","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8wxe5zcehf","content":[{"text":"Rain is a central concern of low-rainfall African societies outside Equatorial Africa, which depend on it for their sustenance and that of their animals. The power to make rain is usually attributed to African kings. In a number of African societies, kings who failed to produce the expected rain ran the risk of being blamed as scapegoats and killed by their people.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9f9949de-f6be-4fd3-b867-881baf47767b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Tunisia","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c6hax8e3qk","content":[{"text":"Omek Tannou is an ancient Tunisian rainmaking ritual traditionally performed by rural communities during periods of drought. Children parade a wooden doll representing the goddess Tanit, singing supplications for rain. which was inherited from Punic and Berber traditions involving invocations of the goddess Tanit. It is now all but extinct though traces of the ritual survive in some folk songs and oral traditions in northern Tunisia.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9f9949de-f6be-4fd3-b867-881baf47767b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"San people","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rfm12xkj2d","content":[{"text":"Among the San, shamans enter a trance-often induced by rhythmic dancing and hyperventilation-to access the spirit world and spiritually capture mythical \"rain animals\", notably the eland antelope.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9f9949de-f6be-4fd3-b867-881baf47767b"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Lobedu and Shona peoples","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hgrzx66mww","content":[{"text":"A famous rain making monarch is the Rain Queen of Balobedu, South Africa. Queen Modjadji, or the Rain Queen, is the hereditary queen of Balobedu, a people of the Limpopo Province of South Africa. The Rain Queen is believed to have special powers, including the ability to control the clouds and rainfall. She is known as a mystical and historic figure who brought rain to her allies and drought to her enemies. Queen Modjadji is believed to have ancestral ties to the Shona people of present-day Zimbabwe, a culture renowned historically for their rain shrines and ceremonies involving ancestral spirits. The Shona have some of the most powerful rainmaking abilities of the Southern Bantu as it was mainly practiced there until the late 1500s.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9f9949de-f6be-4fd3-b867-881baf47767b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qzyyn3nngc","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Rainmaking (ritual)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9f9949de-f6be-4fd3-b867-881baf47767b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"n5x9y41zzn","content":[{"text":"rainmaking rites is weather modification ritual, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e0f66ad1-2c8c-403e-a233-ba5adb77c8f0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qk1d5tmq9c","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 15 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e0f66ad1-2c8c-403e-a233-ba5adb77c8f0"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Dumagat Rain Dance Folk dance","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cf/Dumagat_Rain_Dance_%28City_of_SJDM%29_06.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"SJasminum","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Dumagat Rain Dance Folk dance","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cf/Dumagat_Rain_Dance_%28City_of_SJDM%29_06.jpg/960px-Dumagat_Rain_Dance_%28City_of_SJDM%29_06.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dumagat_Rain_Dance_(City_of_SJDM)_06.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cf/Dumagat_Rain_Dance_%28City_of_SJDM%29_06.jpg/1280px-Dumagat_Rain_Dance_%28City_of_SJDM%29_06.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:21.897Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/rainmaking-rites"}
{"id":"3e313c5c-084c-4376-b85e-51da92e47b7b","type":"art_form","slug":"rapper-sword","title":"Rapper sword","summary":"Rapper sword (also known as short sword dance) is a variation of sword dance unique to Northumberland and County Durham.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"49j2ep7sqe","content":[{"text":"Rapper sword (also known as short sword dance) is a variation of sword dance unique to Northumberland and County Durham. It emerged from the pit villages of Tyneside and Wearside, where miners first performed the tradition.\nThe dance requires five performers who co-ordinate themselves while using \"rapper swords\" made from flexible steel. Accompanied by traditional folk music, the dancers wear hard-soled shoes that allow for percussive foot movements. Mental alertness, in addition to physical agility, is required in order for dance participants to use the swords effectively without causing harm to themselves or the other performers.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5329f1fa-da02-4b23-8972-326ebd3f8018"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"z5fsjk6nz1","content":[{"text":"Whilst substantial evidence for the origins of the rapper sword tradition does not exist, as of 2012, since the publication of Rapper; The miner's Dance of North East England by Phil Heaton it is generally accepted that the dance was originally performed in the mining villages of the Northumberland and Durham coalfield in North-East England. The dances derive from a well-defined geographical area with an intensity of activity traced to pits along both the Durham and Northumberland banks of the river Tyne, south into County Durham past Sunderland and along the Northumberland coast. The earliest definite account of hilt-and-point sword dancing in England dates back to an article in 1715 describing a dance in the Tyne Valley to the west of Newcastle upon Tyne. The dance described closely resembles long sword dances of Yorkshire and rather than the rapper dance. A documented account of the Tyne Valley dance has been located in a 1715 article, in which a fairly accurate description can be read. Later references to sword dancing in the northern counties include a dance described in 1787 in the Cumberland Packet newspaper of January 1788, and a description from Teesdale in 1778, referenced by Hutchinson in his View of Northumberland.\nAt some stage in the nineteenth century, the rigid swords were replaced by flexible rappers in the coalfield. Very little is known about this major development in the tradition because of an absence of sufficient evidence, and it may have been entirely accidental. It used to be commonly thought that the flexible version was used for removing dirt from the backs of pit ponies, but there is no available documentation to verify this theory.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5329f1fa-da02-4b23-8972-326ebd3f8018"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Nineteenth century","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f1t7p8nppa","content":[{"text":"During the nineteenth century, teams of rapper dancers from the pit villages of Tyneside and Wearside would travel annually to the towns of Newcastle upon Tyne, Sunderland and Durham to perform the dance for the crowds, asking for monetary consideration. This was later revived as a source of income during the miners' strikes and lay-offs, especially when the collieries were closed down over winter. Sword dancers of the North East were also active in the political struggles of the coalfield. A team of Tyneside Rovers were part of an early march on parliament in 1890, and another team from Hebburn were part of the famous Jarrow Crusade in 1936. Teams were also reported all over Durham and Northumberland as dancing out and collecting in the 1926 miners' strike and later in the Great Depression.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5329f1fa-da02-4b23-8972-326ebd3f8018"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Twentieth century","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4x300cm670","content":[{"text":"By the early twentieth century, the tradition was beginning to die out, but was revived by the interest generated after Cecil Sharp published notations for five of the traditional village dances in his book, The Sword Dances of Northern England. After the First World War, the revival was marked by the fierce competition between pit villages in the rapper classes of the newly instituted North of England Musical Tournament held annually in Newcastle upon Tyne.\nAfter the Second World War, the tradition progressively declined in the original pit villages, partly as a result of social changes in the mining communities. However, another revival was initiated after the war, in 1949 by students at Kings College in Newcastle upon Tyne (now the University of Newcastle upon Tyne), which subsequently spread beyond the traditional area. Revival teams worldwide now perform the rapper tradition, sometimes learned from published notations, sometimes taught by rapper dancers in what is almost a continuation of the earlier oral traditions.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5329f1fa-da02-4b23-8972-326ebd3f8018"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Twenty-first century","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"281jc2xdac","content":[{"text":"The dance has transformed as it moved into the twenty-first century: the pace has quickened and is performed at around 140–160 beats per minute, with different team styles using different rates. It is nonetheless typically performed in a smooth and graceful manner, with one figure flowing seamlessly into the next. A number of acrobatic figures can be employed, including forward and backward somersaults over the swords.\nThe dance is now almost always performed to jigs (perhaps 90% of the time), with the normal form of rapper stepping being a form of shuffle imported from the local clogging tradition. The jigs used include local tunes and many instruments can, and have been, used to accompany rapper dances (the most popular being fiddles, tin whistles and accordions or melodeons). Many rapper jigs used for the last hundred years are tunes that were probably imported by Irish and Scottish immigrants to Tyneside in the nineteenth century. The music is usually performed solo, although it can be performed as a duet; however, rapper is not usually performed to a band. There is much controversy in the rapper community over the use of any form of percussion to accompany rapper beyond the rapper stepping included in the dance.\nIn modern times, the competitive element of rapper sword dancing has been revived in the form of the Dancing England Rapper Tournament (DERT) competition, and in recent years its American counterpart, Dancing America Rapper Tournament (DART).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5329f1fa-da02-4b23-8972-326ebd3f8018"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Costume","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"q40471cgkh","content":[{"text":"The costume in which the dance is usually performed, referred to as the kit, is a stylised version of the working clothes of the local nineteenth century coal miner (see photograph). It consists of a shirt; sash; breeks (breeches), hoggers (similar to breeks but shorter), or long trousers; and socks or stockings. Some traditional teams decorated their kit with ribbons or rosettes, and added a tie and/or waistcoat.\nModern teams use a variety of kits, mostly based on the traditional costume, with each team using different combinations of colours to try to have a unique corporate image. Some other modern sides, especially women's sides, use very different kits.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5329f1fa-da02-4b23-8972-326ebd3f8018"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"z16rtpktpk","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Rapper sword”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5329f1fa-da02-4b23-8972-326ebd3f8018"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"v4hy1n0dha","content":[{"text":"Rapper sword is variation of sword dance originally from the pit villages of Tyneside in North East England, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"db4455a2-6f70-4b98-a51a-d8646f14aa0b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"272zr0yhe5","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"db4455a2-6f70-4b98-a51a-d8646f14aa0b"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Northgate Rapper are a Rapper Sword dance team in Bath UK. After dancing in several pubs, we take time to share a few jokes in the Fairfield Arms, Bath. \"You know it was a good night when your sides ache in the morning from laughing so much\"","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ea/Northgate_Rapper_sword_dancers_take_a_happy_break.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Pensievecollector","height":879,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Northgate Rapper are a Rapper Sword dance team in Bath UK. After dancing in several pubs, we take time to share a few jokes in the Fairfield Arms, Bath. \"You know it was a good night when your sides ache in the morning from laughing so much\"","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ea/Northgate_Rapper_sword_dancers_take_a_happy_break.jpg/960px-Northgate_Rapper_sword_dancers_take_a_happy_break.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Northgate_Rapper_sword_dancers_take_a_happy_break.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ea/Northgate_Rapper_sword_dancers_take_a_happy_break.jpg/1280px-Northgate_Rapper_sword_dancers_take_a_happy_break.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Stone Monkey rapper sword dance side, at Towersey Festival 2018.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1b/Stone_Monkey_Rapper%2C_Towersey_2018.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Tim Packer","height":967,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Stone Monkey rapper sword dance side, at Towersey Festival 2018.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1b/Stone_Monkey_Rapper%2C_Towersey_2018.jpg/960px-Stone_Monkey_Rapper%2C_Towersey_2018.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Stone_Monkey_Rapper,_Towersey_2018.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1b/Stone_Monkey_Rapper%2C_Towersey_2018.jpg/1280px-Stone_Monkey_Rapper%2C_Towersey_2018.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-06T05:47:26.333Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/rapper-sword"}
{"id":"39af1286-68af-4d55-bcb7-8d264bc18b9a","type":"art_form","slug":"raqs-sharqi","title":"raqs sharqi","summary":"Raqs sharqi (Arabic: رقص شرقي, [ˈɾɑʔsˤ ˈʃæɾʔi]; literally \"Oriental dancing\" or \"Eastern dancing\") is the classical Egyptian style of belly dance that developed during the first half of the 20th century.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"59cg1r0btx","content":[{"text":"Raqs sharqi (Arabic: رقص شرقي, [ˈɾɑʔsˤ ˈʃæɾʔi]; literally \"Oriental dancing\" or \"Eastern dancing\") is the classical Egyptian style of belly dance that developed during the first half of the 20th century.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5eafb63e-7d2f-4bf9-bb47-1ae9a23a8ce3"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ytwznkscbp","content":[{"text":"Raqs sharqi emerged as a stage/cabaret adaptation of existing Egyptian dance traditions such as social/folk dances, as well professional dance entertainers who danced at weddings and other social events. \nIt was popularized by Taheyya Kariokka, Samia Gamal, Naima Akef, Zeinat Olwi, and other dancers who rose to fame during the golden years of the Egyptian film industry. This has come to be considered the classical style of dance in Egypt by the 1950s. These dancers were famous not only for their role in Egyptian films, but also for their performances at the \"Opera Casino\" opened in 1925 by Badia Masabni. This venue was a popular place for influential musicians and choreographers from both the US and Europe, so many of the developments pioneered here can be considered new developments in the dance.\nLater dancers who were influenced by these artists are Soheir Zaki, Nagwa Fouad, Fifi Abdou, and Dalilah. All rose to fame between 1960 and 1980, and are still popular today. And later generations, such as Dina, some of these later dancers were the first to choreograph and perform dances using a full 'orchestra' and stage set-up, which had a huge influence upon what is considered the 'classical' style.\nThough the basic movements of raqs sharqi are unchanged, the dance form continues to evolve. Nelly Mazloum and Mahmoud Reda are noted for incorporating elements of ballet, and their influence can be seen in modern Egyptian dancers who stand on relevé as they turn or travel in a circle or figure eight.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5eafb63e-7d2f-4bf9-bb47-1ae9a23a8ce3"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Costume","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kzgg8h50k7","content":[{"text":"Since the 1950s, it has been illegal in Egypt for belly dancers to perform publicly with their midriff uncovered or to display excessive skin. It is therefore becoming more common to wear a long, figure-hugging lycra one-piece gown with strategically placed cut-outs filled in with sheer, flesh-coloured fabric and the skirt is sometimes embroidered. A sheer body stocking covers the midsection. Contemporary raqs sharqi costumes have evolved in design and materials.\nEgyptian dancers traditionally dance in bare feet, but these days often wear shoes and even high heels.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5eafb63e-7d2f-4bf9-bb47-1ae9a23a8ce3"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Respectability in Egypt","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"01pgx2p41h","content":[{"text":"Generally, Egyptians do not consider Raqs Sharqi to be a respectable profession. but many Egyptians continue to employ native Egyptian dancers for special events. Strict moral laws prevent a lot of local Egyptian dancers from performing in public spaces so many dancers performing for tourists in nightclubs today are foreigners. \nProfessional belly dancers in Egypt are subject to governmental restrictions placed on their costume and movements.   Most notably, no floor work is permitted and the dancer's midriff must be covered. Dancers must be registered with the Egyptian \"moral police\" . However, many Egyptian nightclubs don't necessarily follow the government guidelines. \nIn 2009, a plan to establish a state institute to train belly dancers in Egypt came under heavy fire as it \"seriously challenges the Egyptian society's traditions and glaringly violates the constitution\", said Farid Esmail a member of the parliament, a thing that was widely viewed by many Egyptian celebrities and dancers as hate against Egyptian arts.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5eafb63e-7d2f-4bf9-bb47-1ae9a23a8ce3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ep1x47mrsv","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Raqs sharqi”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5eafb63e-7d2f-4bf9-bb47-1ae9a23a8ce3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0baxrbcmzq","content":[{"text":"raqs sharqi is Egyptian dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"336d823f-4b90-4be4-be9d-9603f897c14b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"34tq05h0zf","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"336d823f-4b90-4be4-be9d-9603f897c14b"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"\"RAQS SHARQI\" better known as \"BELLY DANCING\" being performed on Nile river Cruise ship, \"TOPAZ\" .","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0c/%27Raqs_Sharqi%27_performed_on_Nile_cruise_ship%27TOPAZ%27_on_Saturday925-10-08%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Rudolph.A.furtado","height":1707,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"\"RAQS SHARQI\" better known as \"BELLY DANCING\" being performed on Nile river Cruise ship, \"TOPAZ\" .","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0c/%27Raqs_Sharqi%27_performed_on_Nile_cruise_ship%27TOPAZ%27_on_Saturday925-10-08%29.jpg/960px-%27Raqs_Sharqi%27_performed_on_Nile_cruise_ship%27TOPAZ%27_on_Saturday925-10-08%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:%27Raqs_Sharqi%27_performed_on_Nile_cruise_ship%27TOPAZ%27_on_Saturday925-10-08).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0c/%27Raqs_Sharqi%27_performed_on_Nile_cruise_ship%27TOPAZ%27_on_Saturday925-10-08%29.jpg/1280px-%27Raqs_Sharqi%27_performed_on_Nile_cruise_ship%27TOPAZ%27_on_Saturday925-10-08%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"Raqs Sharqi in Dubai","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c0/2017_Raqs_Sharqi_in_Dubai_06.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"flightlog","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Raqs Sharqi in Dubai","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c0/2017_Raqs_Sharqi_in_Dubai_06.jpg/960px-2017_Raqs_Sharqi_in_Dubai_06.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:2017_Raqs_Sharqi_in_Dubai_06.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c0/2017_Raqs_Sharqi_in_Dubai_06.jpg/1280px-2017_Raqs_Sharqi_in_Dubai_06.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"},{"alt":"Danza del vientre en vivo. Atención al careto de salido del prenda que está sentado detrás de la chica.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6b/Raqs_Sharqi_%D8%B1%D9%82%D8%B5_%D8%B4%D8%B1%D9%82%D9%8A_%282841726635%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Cayetano","height":1707,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Danza del vientre en vivo. Atención al careto de salido del prenda que está sentado detrás de la chica.","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6b/Raqs_Sharqi_%D8%B1%D9%82%D8%B5_%D8%B4%D8%B1%D9%82%D9%8A_%282841726635%29.jpg/960px-Raqs_Sharqi_%D8%B1%D9%82%D8%B5_%D8%B4%D8%B1%D9%82%D9%8A_%282841726635%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Raqs_Sharqi_%D8%B1%D9%82%D8%B5_%D8%B4%D8%B1%D9%82%D9%8A_(2841726635).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6b/Raqs_Sharqi_%D8%B1%D9%82%D8%B5_%D8%B4%D8%B1%D9%82%D9%8A_%282841726635%29.jpg/1280px-Raqs_Sharqi_%D8%B1%D9%82%D8%B5_%D8%B4%D8%B1%D9%82%D9%8A_%282841726635%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:22.746Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/raqs-sharqi"}
{"id":"05bb6b45-c7c1-4e8f-8252-e54229633fe9","type":"art_form","slug":"rebetiko","title":"Rebetiko","summary":"Rebetiko (Greek: ρεμπέτικο, pronounced [re(m)ˈbetiko]), plural rebetika (ρεμπέτικα [re(m)ˈbetika]), occasionally transliterated as rembetiko or rebetico, is a term used to designate previously disparate kinds of urban Greek music which in t…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rsjm0g071p","content":[{"text":"Rebetiko (Greek: ρεμπέτικο, pronounced [re(m)ˈbetiko]), plural rebetika (ρεμπέτικα [re(m)ˈbetika]), occasionally transliterated as rembetiko or rebetico, is a term used to designate previously disparate kinds of urban Greek music which in the 1930s went through a process of musical syncretism and developed into a more distinctive musical genre. Rebetiko can be described briefly as the urban popular song of the Greeks, especially the poorest, from the late 19th century to the 1950s, and served as the basis for further developments in popular Greek music. The music, which was partly forgotten, was rediscovered during the so-called rebetika revival, which started in the 1960s and developed further from the early 1970s.\nIn 2017 rebetiko was added in the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage Lists.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0b6db2a2-e57d-4001-9d72-162b38b67ce9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Definition and etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"61gxe8mfb6","content":[{"text":"The word rebetiko (plural rebetika) is an adjectival form derived from the Greek word rebetis (Greek: ρεμπέτης, pronounced [re(m)ˈbetis]), which is construed to mean a person who embodies aspects of character, dress, behavior, morals and ethics associated with a particular subculture. The etymology of rebetis remains a subject of dispute and uncertainty. An early scholar of rebetiko, Elias Petropoulos, and the modern Greek lexicographer Georgios Babiniotis each offer suggested derivations, but leave the question open. The earliest known source of the word is a Greek-Latin dictionary published in Leiden, Holland in 1614 where the word ῥεμπιτός is defined as a 'wanderer', 'blind', 'misguided'.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0b6db2a2-e57d-4001-9d72-162b38b67ce9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Musical bases","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"trxqaxbptv","content":[{"text":"Although nowadays treated as a single genre, rebetiko is, musically speaking, a synthesis of elements of European music, the music of the various areas of the Greek mainland and the Greek islands, Greek Orthodox ecclesiastical chant, often referred to as Byzantine music, and the modal traditions of Ottoman art music and café music.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0b6db2a2-e57d-4001-9d72-162b38b67ce9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Melody and harmony","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ke26318cb6","content":[{"text":"The melodies of most rebetiko songs are thus often considered to follow one or more dromoi (δρόμοι, Greek for 'roads' or 'routes'; singular is dromos (δρόμος). The names of the dromoi are derived in all but a few cases from the names of various Turkish modes, also known as makam.\nHowever, the majority of rebetiko songs have been accompanied by instruments capable of playing chords according to the Western harmonic system, and have thereby been harmonized in a manner which corresponds neither with conventional European harmony, nor with Ottoman art music, which is a monophonic form normally not harmonized. Furthermore, rebetika has come to be played on instruments tuned in equal temperament, in direct conflict with the more complex pitch divisions of the makam system.\nDuring the later period of the rebetiko revival, there has been a cultural entente between Greek and Turkish musicians, mostly of the younger generations. One consequence of this has been a tendency to increase emphasis on the makam aspect of rebetiko as opposed to the Westernized polyphonic components, at the possible expense of perceiving and problematizing the truly syncretic nature of the music. \nA considerable proportion of the rebetiko repertoire on Greek records until 1936 was not dramatically different, except in terms of language and musical \"dialect\", from Ottoman café music (played by musicians of various ethnic backgrounds) which the mainland Greeks called Smyrneika. This portion of the recorded repertoire was played almost exclusively on the instruments of Smyrneika/Ottoman café music, such as kanonaki, santouri, politikí lyra (πολίτικη λύρα), tsimbalo (τσίμπαλο, actually identical with the Hungarian cimbalom, or the Romanian țambal), and clarinet.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0b6db2a2-e57d-4001-9d72-162b38b67ce9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Scales","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"a9b4ar54cd","content":[{"text":"The scales used in rebetiko music are the traditional Western major and minor scales, as well as a series of Eastern makams, influenced by the Ottoman classical music. Some of them include rast, uşşâk, hijaz (or \"phrygian dominant scale\"), saba(h) and nahawand. The makam system of modes serves as the melodic core of any Rebetiko composition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0b6db2a2-e57d-4001-9d72-162b38b67ce9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Rhythms","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7ykacqtt5w","content":[{"text":"Most rebetiko songs are based on traditional Greek or Anatolian dance rhythms. Most common are:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0b6db2a2-e57d-4001-9d72-162b38b67ce9"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tj89g6jjb0","content":[{"text":"Syrtos, a general name for many Greek dances (including the Nisiotika), (mostly a 44 meter in various forms)\nZeibekiko, a 94 or a 98 meter, in its various forms\nHasaposervikos, including various kinds of Greek music. It is also the fast version of hasapiko (like 44 and 24 meter)\nHasapiko, a 44 meter and the fast version hasaposerviko in a 24 meter\nAntikristos or Karsilamas and argilamas (a 98 meter)\nKamilierikos (a 98 meter) and aptalikos, broken down into sixteenths, (slow version a 94 and fast version a 916 meter in various forms\nTsifteteli, cheerful dance for women (a 44)\nBolero, in a few songs, mainly for guitar (a 34)\nVarious other rhythms are used too.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0b6db2a2-e57d-4001-9d72-162b38b67ce9"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5smafr9pyy","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Rebetiko”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0b6db2a2-e57d-4001-9d72-162b38b67ce9"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w53m40kyd1","content":[{"text":"Rebetiko is Greek music genre, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5291965c-1a5f-4e69-b9ca-eabc383c6f3d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wwydkhmvvv","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 22 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5291965c-1a5f-4e69-b9ca-eabc383c6f3d"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-09-16T05:47:20.650Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/rebetiko"}
{"id":"b0e10d78-11f8-415e-88a1-a9d2bf458117","type":"art_form","slug":"rebolation","title":"Rebolation","summary":"Rebolation, from the Portuguese verb rebolar  - \"to sway\" or \"to swing\",, also known as free step, is a style of Brazilian dance that originated in rave parties in the early 2000s.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"grgcpsp0ng","content":[{"text":"Rebolation, from the Portuguese verb rebolar  - \"to sway\" or \"to swing\",, also known as free step, is a style of Brazilian dance that originated in rave parties in the early 2000s. The dance, which gained popularity in 2007 after videos of people practicing the dance were uploaded to popular Internet video sharing websites, such as YouTube, is mainly performed to electronic music, often psy trance or electro house, and involves moving the arms and legs loosely while coordinated footwork makes the dancer appear to slightly hover above the floor.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"52a80ccf-189f-4162-b7a7-d77f765ea7f6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m2nmczjgaq","content":[{"text":"This step dance is considered by many dancers as the Brazilian version of the Melbourne Shuffle and Hardstyle. Originally pronounced as reboleixon, the word was defined as simply the dance of electronic music.\nIt is unknown which came first, but a similar type of dance that originated from Johannesburg, South Africa, called \"stepping\" or \"skitting\" began in 2006. Unlike Rebolation, it did not originate through video sharing websites, such as YouTube, although some dancers have posted videos on such sites.\nOne of the most popular YouTube videos of Rebolation was uploaded in 2008 by Ralph Morente with 11 million views as of 2023, which shows a young man dancing afloat-like at a roof terrace. The earliest YouTube video containing the dance was published July 15, 2008.\nFurthermore, Brazilian dancers are said to have changed the name from Rebolation to Free Step after the reggae-influenced Axé music video Rebolation by Parangolé was released in 2009 The music video was neither connected to electronic music, nor the rebolation dance community, and was therefore considered to be altering the name.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"52a80ccf-189f-4162-b7a7-d77f765ea7f6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Characteristics","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"404pbshtpy","content":[{"text":"When dancing rebolation, several steps are used, and the main move is to \"walk\" putting a foot forward and using the heel as a pivot point to turn the back foot backwards, while the front foot is turned inwards around the heel. The reverse movement is used when walking backwards. This, when properly performed, gives the impression that the dancer is somewhat sliding on the floor, and the loose movements of the hands create the impression that the dancer is not totally in control of the direction of movement.\nWith regards to clothing, the most prominent feature is perhaps the famous bell bottomed “shuffle pants” or phat pants with neon details, UV reflective tape or glitter, commonly used in the rave community, or light-up shoes, however, most rebolation dancers seem to wear casual street-style clothing with flat tennis shoes or sneakers, aiding the dancer in moving across the surface smoothly.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"52a80ccf-189f-4162-b7a7-d77f765ea7f6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c4ha9km6t9","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Rebolation”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"52a80ccf-189f-4162-b7a7-d77f765ea7f6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"d0z28jhng0","content":[{"text":"Rebolation is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"89f3ff57-2d77-4e9f-9e35-8b669e7502c5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gnd9dgpwzh","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"89f3ff57-2d77-4e9f-9e35-8b669e7502c5"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Fávera, Rio de Janeiro, Freedom Festival Fávera, Rave, Party, Festa, Partying, Open Air, On day, Eletronic Music, Musica Eletronica, E-MUSIC, Psytrance, Trance, Psy Trance, Djs, Rebolation, Danca, Dance Fávera, Dancing, Smiles, Hapiness, Beauty, Gorgeous, Pretty, Sexy Girls,…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1b/A_group_of_young_people_in_2006.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Rodrigo Della Fávera","height":857,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Fávera, Rio de Janeiro, Freedom Festival Fávera, Rave, Party, Festa, Partying, Open Air, On day, Eletronic Music, Musica Eletronica, E-MUSIC, Psytrance, Trance, Psy Trance, Djs, Rebolation, Danca, Dance Fávera, Dancing, Smiles, Hapiness, Beauty, Gorgeous, Pretty, Sexy Girls,…","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1b/A_group_of_young_people_in_2006.jpg/960px-A_group_of_young_people_in_2006.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:A_group_of_young_people_in_2006.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1b/A_group_of_young_people_in_2006.jpg/1280px-A_group_of_young_people_in_2006.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"},{"alt":"Fávera, Rio de Janeiro, Freedom Festival Fávera, Rave, Party, Festa, Partying, Open Air, On day, Eletronic Music, Musica Eletronica, E-MUSIC, Psytrance, Trance, Psy Trance, Djs, Rebolation, Danca, Dance Fávera, Dancing, Smiles, Hapiness, Beauty, Gorgeous, Pretty, Sexy Girls,…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f5/Girls_dance_open_air_festival_2006.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Rodrigo Della Fávera","height":856,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Fávera, Rio de Janeiro, Freedom Festival Fávera, Rave, Party, Festa, Partying, Open Air, On day, Eletronic Music, Musica Eletronica, E-MUSIC, Psytrance, Trance, Psy Trance, Djs, Rebolation, Danca, Dance Fávera, Dancing, Smiles, Hapiness, Beauty, Gorgeous, Pretty, Sexy Girls,…","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f5/Girls_dance_open_air_festival_2006.jpg/960px-Girls_dance_open_air_festival_2006.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Girls_dance_open_air_festival_2006.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f5/Girls_dance_open_air_festival_2006.jpg/1280px-Girls_dance_open_air_festival_2006.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:27.741Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/rebolation"}
{"id":"8125ab8f-e9d6-4dfb-8409-d3479420b9d4","type":"art_form","slug":"regency-dance","title":"Regency dance","summary":"Regency dance is the term for historical dances of the period ranging roughly from 1790 to 1825.  \nMost popular exposure to this era of dance comes in the works of Jane Austen.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b4mrjsenzg","content":[{"text":"Regency dance is the term for historical dances of the period ranging roughly from 1790 to 1825.  \nMost popular exposure to this era of dance comes in the works of Jane Austen.  Balls occur in her novels and are discussed in her letters, but specifics are few.  Films based on her works tend to incorporate modern revival English Country Dance; however, they rarely incorporate dances actually of the period and do them without the appropriate footwork and social style which make them accurate to the period.  Dances of this era were lively and bouncy, not the smooth and stately style seen in films.  Steps ranging from simple skipping to elaborate ballet-style movements were used.\nIn the early part of this period, up to the early 1810s, the ballroom was dominated by the country dance, the cotillion, and the scotch reel.\nIn the longways Country Dance, a line of couples perform figures with each other, progressing up and down the line. Regency country dances were often proceeded by a brief March by the couples, then begun by the top lady in the set and her partner, who would dance down the set to the bottom. Each couple in turn as they reached the top would likewise dance down until the entire set had returned to its original positions. This could be a lengthy process, easily taking an hour in a long set.  An important social element was the calling of the dance by the leading lady (a position of honor), who would determine the figures, steps, and music to be danced.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"de3b0357-51ee-4b71-a1b0-afa8fdee7704"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Periodization","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"075yev3v26","content":[{"text":"Some feel that the popular use of the term \"Regency dance\" is not technically correct, as the actual English Regency (the future George IV ruling on behalf of King George III) lasted only from 1811 until 1820.  However, the term \"Regency\" has been used to refer to a much broader period than the historical Regency for a very long time, particularly in areas such as the history of art and architecture, literature, and clothing.  This is because there are consistencies of style over this period which make having a single term useful.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"de3b0357-51ee-4b71-a1b0-afa8fdee7704"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Other popular dances of the era","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bw5thy2exb","content":[{"text":"\"La Boulangere\", the only dance mentioned by name in Jane Austen's writings, is a simple circle dance for a group of couples. Sir Roger de Coverly, mentioned by Charles Dickens, is the ancestor of America's Virginia Reel.\nNumerous instruction manuals survive from the Regency era. Several by Thomas Wilson are in the US Library of Congress online collection.  The Scotch Reel is described by Francis Peacock, whose manual is also available in the LC collection.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"de3b0357-51ee-4b71-a1b0-afa8fdee7704"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Revival","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"05rdrpxg32","content":[{"text":"The first major revival of English Country Dance, one of the major types of Regency dance, was by Englishman Cecil Sharp in the early 20th century.  Various other revivals have followed, most using at least some of Sharp's research.  Today, there are many groups around the world which perform a variety of English period dances, including many of the types of dance which were popular during the English Regency.\nRegency dance has gained popularity at science fiction conventions, in part due to the efforts of John Hertz. Reconstructed dances from the era are taught to newcomers and experienced dancers alike. Some authors—notably, Larry Niven—have added their personal enthusiasm to the trend.\nIn Silicon Valley, the Bay Area English Regency Society sponsors local dance classes and formal balls in churches, community centers, and other venues. In Los Angeles, California, the Valley Area English Regency Society hosts teas and Regency dance parties in a local church.  Both societies were founded by Laura Brodian Freas Beraha.\nSome enthusiasts go to extremes:  Cisco Systems founders Sandra Lerner and Len Bosack  created a foundation that bought a Regency-era country house once owned by Jane Austen's brother. In Australia, Earthly Delights Historic Dance Academy and John Gardiner-Garden run a Regency Dance School in conjunction with Jane Austen Festival Australia every April.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"de3b0357-51ee-4b71-a1b0-afa8fdee7704"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xh32jag2g3","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Regency dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"de3b0357-51ee-4b71-a1b0-afa8fdee7704"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ejfc67z5rn","content":[{"text":"Regency dance is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"203a0536-2f97-454b-b302-2264b0b58ca7"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wcw7hjm0ep","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"203a0536-2f97-454b-b302-2264b0b58ca7"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Sutton-in-Ashfield - Regency Ballroom","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cd/Sutton-in-Ashfield_-_Regency_Ballroom_-_geograph.org.uk_-_3239143.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Dave Bevis","height":911,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Sutton-in-Ashfield - Regency Ballroom","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cd/Sutton-in-Ashfield_-_Regency_Ballroom_-_geograph.org.uk_-_3239143.jpg/960px-Sutton-in-Ashfield_-_Regency_Ballroom_-_geograph.org.uk_-_3239143.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sutton-in-Ashfield_-_Regency_Ballroom_-_geograph.org.uk_-_3239143.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cd/Sutton-in-Ashfield_-_Regency_Ballroom_-_geograph.org.uk_-_3239143.jpg/1280px-Sutton-in-Ashfield_-_Regency_Ballroom_-_geograph.org.uk_-_3239143.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"},{"alt":"Dance held at All Saints Church Hall Ainslie Canberra in November 2015. Time travellers ball with called dances from all time eras from 15th to 20th century. Dance called by group Earthly Delights Danced to live music","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2d/Historical_dancing_baroque_at_time_travellers_ball_earthly_delights_dance_group.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"John Hewat of Canberra, Australia","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Dance held at All Saints Church Hall Ainslie Canberra in November 2015. Time travellers ball with called dances from all time eras from 15th to 20th century. Dance called by group Earthly Delights Danced to live music","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2d/Historical_dancing_baroque_at_time_travellers_ball_earthly_delights_dance_group.JPG/960px-Historical_dancing_baroque_at_time_travellers_ball_earthly_delights_dance_group.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Historical_dancing_baroque_at_time_travellers_ball_earthly_delights_dance_group.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2d/Historical_dancing_baroque_at_time_travellers_ball_earthly_delights_dance_group.JPG/1280px-Historical_dancing_baroque_at_time_travellers_ball_earthly_delights_dance_group.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:12.908Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/regency-dance"}
{"id":"c0fdb99a-24ca-47d5-92b3-290776548e9e","type":"art_form","slug":"reggae","title":"reggae","summary":"Reggae ( ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. The term also refers to the modern popular music of Jamaica and its diaspora.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4yg5jhw3dz","content":[{"text":"Reggae ( ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. The term also refers to the modern popular music of Jamaica and its diaspora. The 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals titled \"Do the Reggay\" was the first popular song to use the word reggae, effectively naming the genre and introducing it to a global audience.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e7a13f58-b52e-496a-929d-33450677a736"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origins and influences","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"swv4ypb1a3","content":[{"text":"Reggae developed from earlier Jamaican genres including mento, ska, and rocksteady, and is rooted in traditional drumming styles such as Kumina, Pukkumina, Revival Zion, Nyabinghi, and burru. It incorporates elements of rhythm and blues, jazz, mento (a rural folk form that served as dance music and an alternative to church singing, which was conflated with calypso by the 1950s), and traditional African folk rhythms.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e7a13f58-b52e-496a-929d-33450677a736"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Musical characteristics","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"601epkftw4","content":[{"text":"Reggae is distinguished by a slower tempo than ska or rocksteady, a strong emphasis on the downbeat in the drum and bass, and short, staccato guitar or piano chords on the offbeat. The bass guitar plays a central role, with a thick, heavy tone and the high frequencies reduced to accentuate the low end. Call-and-response patterns are common, and the rhythm section often uses the bass as a percussion instrument, a feature carried over from rocksteady. Notable rhythm players include Jackie Jackson, Carlton Barrett, Lloyd Brevett, Paul Douglas, Lloyd Knibb, Winston Grennan, Sly Dunbar, and Anthony \"Benbow\" Creary.\nVocals are often delivered in Jamaican Patois, Jamaican English, or Iyaric. Lyrical themes range from political and social commentary to religion, love, and leisure activities.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e7a13f58-b52e-496a-929d-33450677a736"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Cultural connections","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nff8sezdc9","content":[{"text":"Reggae is closely associated with Rastafari, an Afrocentric religion that emerged in Jamaica in the 1930s promoting pan-Africanism. From the 1970s onwards, its international success helped to spread Rastafarian beliefs, with musicians often seen as cultural messengers and agents of change.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e7a13f58-b52e-496a-929d-33450677a736"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Global spread","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"am4qkffcwt","content":[{"text":"Reggae has reached audiences worldwide, often fusing with other genres and incorporating local instruments. In Latin America, reggae en Español originated in Panama before spreading to Venezuela and across South America. In the United Kingdom, Caribbean music, including reggae, has been popular since the late 1960s, spawning several subgenres and fusions, with many reggae artists beginning their careers there. European musicians have also drawn heavily on Jamaican and Caribbean traditions. In Africa, the genre's profile was boosted by the visit of Bob Marley to Zimbabwe in 1980.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e7a13f58-b52e-496a-929d-33450677a736"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tmwy0byhvr","content":[{"text":"The 1967 edition of the Dictionary of Jamaican English lists reggae as \"a recently estab. sp. for rege\", as in rege-rege, a word that can mean either \"rags, ragged clothing\" or \"a quarrel, a row\". Reggae as a musical term first appeared in print with the 1968 rocksteady hit \"Do the Reggay\" by the Maytals which named the genre.\nReggae historian Steve Barrow credits Clancy Eccles with altering the Jamaican patois word  streggae (loose woman) into reggae. However, Toots Hibbert said:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e7a13f58-b52e-496a-929d-33450677a736"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ccq8eq7v4m","content":[{"text":"There's a word we used to use in Jamaica called \"streggae\". If a girl is walking and the guys look at her and say \"Man, she's streggae\" it means she don't dress well, she look raggedy. The girls would say that about the men too. This one morning me and my two friends were playing and I said, \"OK man, let's do the reggay.\" It was just something that came out of my mouth. So we just start singing \"Do the reggay, do the reggay\" and created a beat. People tell me later that we had given the sound its name. Before that people had called it blue-beat and all kind of other things. Now it's in the Guinness World of Records.\nBob Marley said that the word reggae came from a Spanish term for \"the king's music\". The liner notes of To the King, a compilation of Christian gospel reggae, suggest that the word reggae was derived from the Latin regi meaning 'to the king'.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e7a13f58-b52e-496a-929d-33450677a736"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gngs5abknc","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Reggae”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e7a13f58-b52e-496a-929d-33450677a736"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wbjv377v2t","content":[{"text":"reggae is music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3e7b0035-98d1-45ed-b248-efd81f06f64f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"knxdb014mk","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 59 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3e7b0035-98d1-45ed-b248-efd81f06f64f"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:24.851Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/reggae"}
{"id":"330abb4b-10aa-44c9-9b4e-1da76bab36b1","type":"art_form","slug":"regong-arts","title":"Regong arts","summary":"The Regong arts (or Rebgong arts) are the popular arts on the subject of Tibetan Buddhism.  They are painting, sculpture, engraving, architecture, and embroidery.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rjkkkpcmsk","content":[{"text":"The Regong arts (or Rebgong arts) are the popular arts on the subject of Tibetan Buddhism.  They are painting, sculpture, engraving, architecture, and embroidery. They are associated with communities in Tongren County and along the river Rongwo which crosses the current Huangnan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in the province of Qinghai in China.\nRegong arts were included in 2009 on the representative list of intangible cultural heritage.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2b7c23b1-629e-4cbf-975e-4ef196eb45e2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"910za69521","content":[{"text":"Regong arts trace their origins to the 10th century","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2b7c23b1-629e-4cbf-975e-4ef196eb45e2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Different Regong arts","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t36ke00fbc","content":[{"text":"The thangka, literally something which is unrolled, is a painting on canvas characteristic of Tibetan culture. Canvases of all sizes can be found, from thangka portraits which can be unrolled due to two sticks passing through eyelets, up to momentous designed to be unrolled to cover a wall or door, which can measure dozens of metres. The thangkas generally represent mystic symbols (mandala), divinities of Tibetan Buddhism or Bon, or portraits of the Dalai Lama. They are often used as support for meditation.\nThe Thangka paintings stand as a paramount art form in Asia, it embodies intricate Buddhist symbolism that demands comprehensive expertise and scholarly investigation. Every ornament, posture, and attribute holds profound significance, reflecting specific aspects of Buddhism and the related teachings. While materials have evolved, the techniques and methodologies have remained essentially unchanged, preserving the traditional essence of this art form.\nThe hues of the Thangka painting are naturally extracted from plants and minerals, and adorned with 24k gold paint. Each art piece of Thangka carries a unique tradition and lesson that survives intact to the present day.\nGenerally, Thangka paintings fall into two categories: painted (palas) and silk-made. While Thangka can be used as educational aids of Buddha to illustrate historical events to related lamas, Thangka are also used as a centrepiece in meditation rituals and worshipers’ rituals. Most Thangka paintings were crafted by monks, who acquired merits to do so. Rather than being sold for a fee, the art pieces were then given to monasteries and individuals in exchange for “gifts”.\nThe Dui tapestries (duixiu) or barbola are pictures of animals and plants, decorated on silk, which creates a relief.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2b7c23b1-629e-4cbf-975e-4ef196eb45e2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3v2vnaspsr","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Regong arts”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2b7c23b1-629e-4cbf-975e-4ef196eb45e2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s9mm0kqmp9","content":[{"text":"Regong arts is popular arts on the subject of Tibetan Buddhism, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9f120132-ee28-48d0-a574-c9ffbd95d8c0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4311m638b8","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 4 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9f120132-ee28-48d0-a574-c9ffbd95d8c0"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-05T01:44:16.385Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/regong-arts"}
{"id":"ad0cfcbc-7307-4913-9ddb-79ef1c808c15","type":"art_form","slug":"renaissance-dance","title":"Renaissance dance","summary":"Renaissance dances belong to the broad group of historical dances, specifically those during the Renaissance period.  During that period, there was a distinction between country dances and court dances.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k4vscfdns7","content":[{"text":"Renaissance dances belong to the broad group of historical dances, specifically those during the Renaissance period.  During that period, there was a distinction between country dances and court dances. Court dances required the dancers to be trained and were often for display and entertainment, whereas country dances could be attempted by anyone. At Court, the formal entertainment would often be followed by many hours of country dances which all present could join in. Dances described as country dances such as Chiarantana or Chiaranzana remained popular over a long period – over two centuries in the case of this dance. A Renaissance dance can be likened to a ball.\nKnowledge of court dances has survived better than that of country dances as they were collected by dancing masters in manuscripts and later in printed books. The earliest surviving manuscripts that provide detailed dance instructions are from 15th century Italy. The earliest printed dance manuals come from late 16th century France and Italy. The earliest dance descriptions in England come from the Gresley manuscript, c.1500, found in the Derbyshire Record Office, D77 B0x 38 pp 51–79. These have been recently published as \"Cherwell Thy Wyne (Show your joy): Dances of fifteenth-century England from the Gresley manuscript\".  The first printed English source appeared in 1651, the first edition of Playford.\nThe dances in these manuals are extremely varied in nature.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"eadf51d1-69be-42c7-947c-724030cca144"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Fifteenth-century Italian dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"z7adtxyj97","content":[{"text":"Our knowledge of 15th-century Italian dances comes mainly from the surviving works of three Italian dance masters: Domenico da Piacenza, Antonio Cornazzano and Guglielmo Ebreo da Pesaro. Their work deals with similar steps and dances, though some evolution can be seen. The main types of dances described are bassa danza and balletto. These are the earliest European dances to be well-documented, as we have a reasonable knowledge of the choreographies, steps and music used.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"eadf51d1-69be-42c7-947c-724030cca144"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Modern performance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5e1dmjnr9j","content":[{"text":"Many groups exist that recreate historical music and dance from the Renaissance period","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"eadf51d1-69be-42c7-947c-724030cca144"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pwqe5g7qyf","content":[{"text":"The Early Dance Circle is an umbrella group for early dance in the UK\nRenaissance Footnotes, a UK dance group recreating dances of the renaissance","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"eadf51d1-69be-42c7-947c-724030cca144"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hc0ba7qtyk","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Renaissance dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"eadf51d1-69be-42c7-947c-724030cca144"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7cf2xbbb7n","content":[{"text":"Renaissance dance is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4389f023-a879-44e7-81f1-bb2ca7eb2e87"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0b1gqk9cwg","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4389f023-a879-44e7-81f1-bb2ca7eb2e87"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Dancing, stage, stage lights, thematic project and arts. May 2019.","src":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1563775957372-b1d36ac1e9ae?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8UmVuYWlzc2FuY2UlMjBkYW5jZXxlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MTEzMDIyfDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1080","kind":"photo","width":6720,"credit":"Hulki Okan Tabak","height":4480,"source":"unsplash","depicts":"Dancing, stage, stage lights, thematic project and arts. May 2019.","licence":"Unsplash License","thumb640":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1563775957372-b1d36ac1e9ae?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8UmVuYWlzc2FuY2UlMjBkYW5jZXxlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MTEzMDIyfDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=640","sourceUrl":"https://unsplash.com/photos/a-blurry-photo-of-a-group-of-people-dancing-uRASl4mm9B4?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral","thumb1280":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1563775957372-b1d36ac1e9ae?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8UmVuYWlzc2FuY2UlMjBkYW5jZXxlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MTEzMDIyfDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1280","attributionUrl":"https://unsplash.com/@hulkiokantabak?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:28.797Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/renaissance-dance"}
{"id":"c238cb7f-8895-4c34-9e1c-5913d9bcee18","type":"art_form","slug":"reog","title":"Reog","summary":"Reog or Réyog (Javanese: ꦫꦺꦪꦺꦴꦒ꧀) is a traditional Indonesian dance in an open arena that serves as folk entertainment and contains some magical elements.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"04enk6q9z2","content":[{"text":"Reog or Réyog (Javanese: ꦫꦺꦪꦺꦴꦒ꧀) is a traditional Indonesian dance in an open arena that serves as folk entertainment and contains some magical elements. The main dancer is a lion-headed person with a peacock feather decoration, accompanied by several masked dancers and Kuda Lumping. Reog is one of the performing arts from the northwestern region of East Java and Ponorogo is the region where Reog originated. The city gate of Ponorogo is decorated with warok and gemblak, two characters who were present at the time when Reog is performed. Reog is one aspect of Indonesian culture that remains firmly linked with mystical elements and mysticism.\nIn 2013, Reog Ponorogo tradition was recognized as National Intangible Cultural Heritage of Indonesia by the Indonesia Ministry of Education and Culture.\nOn 3 December 2024, Reog Ponorogo performing art was inscribed on the UNESCO list of Intangible cultural heritage in need of urgent safeguarding.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"25c6e993-c28c-44b6-a981-d51cb0b0d88f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5dz1fgfqbc","content":[{"text":"In the book of \"Pedoman Dasar Kesenian Reog Ponorogo dalam Pentas Budaya Bangsa\" published by the Ponorogo Regional Government in 1993, it is stated that the words reog or reyog is Javanese in origin. It comes from the Javanese riyeg or riyet means 'noisy or crowded'.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"25c6e993-c28c-44b6-a981-d51cb0b0d88f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8e55wa9y4e","content":[{"text":"The dance describe Klono Sewandono the king of Ponorogo on his journey to Kediri to seek the hand of the Princess Songgo Langit. On his journey he was attacked by a vicious monster called Singo Barong, a mythical lion with peacock on its head. Historians trace the origin of Reog Ponorogo as the satire on the incompetence of Majapahit rulers during the end of the empire. It describe the innate Ponorogo liberty and its opposition on centralist Majapahit rule. The lion represent the king of Majapahit while the peafowl represent the queen, it was suggested that the king was incompetent and always being controlled by his queen. The beautiful, youthful and almost effeminate horsemen describe the Majapahit cavalry that have lost their manliness.\nIn society there is another version of the origin of the Reog. History of Reog Arts began with the revolt of Ki Ageng, a man of Majapahit Kingdom in the 15th century, where at that time the Majapahit Kingdom was under the rule of the King of Kertabhumi Bhre, the last Majapahit Kingdom. Ki Ageng Kutu, who held wrath against the corrupt behavior of his King, saw that the powers of the Majapahit Kingdom soon would end. He left the Kingdom and founded a college of martial arts in hope of raising seeds which can be held as under. Aware that the army was not able to compete with the Majapahit army, political messages of Ki Ageng Kutu were submitted through the performances of Reog. Ki Ageng Kutu utilized performance of Reog to build resistance to the Royal Society.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"25c6e993-c28c-44b6-a981-d51cb0b0d88f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Performance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"knnjs7939s","content":[{"text":"Reog is a traditional dance that became the main identity for Ponorogo Regency. Reog National Festival is held every year along with the anniversary of Ponorogo regency and the Grebeg Suro celebration. Reog dance is also staged nightly on the full moon in Paseban, Ponorogo town square. Reog tells the story about the struggle of a prince who will propose to a beautiful princess. Reog Ponorogo tells the story of a mythical battle between the King of Ponorogo and the magical lion-like creature called Singo Barong.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"25c6e993-c28c-44b6-a981-d51cb0b0d88f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Singo Barong mask (Dadak Merak)","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"13yw1kj9jw","content":[{"text":"The Reog dance of Ponorogo involves a lion figure known as the singo barong. Singo Barong is a large mask usually made from a tiger's or leopard's head skin, on the mask is a large fan adorned with real peafowl feathers. The Singo Barong mask is notoriously heavy and the dancer of the Singo Barong has to carry the mask of about 30–40 kg (66–88 lb) in weight and is supported by the strength of their teeth.\nA single dancer, or warok, carries the heavy lion mask by his teeth. He is credited with supernatural abilities and strength. The warok may also carry an adolescent boy or girl on its head. When carrying an adolescent boy or girl on his head, the Reog dancer holds weight of up to 100 kg (220 lb) in total. Holding the heavy big mask by biting, the warok relies on the strength of his jaws, neck and shoulder muscles. The great mask spans over 2.5 m (8 ft 2 in) with genuine tiger skin and real peacock feathers. It has gained international recognition as the world's largest mask.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"25c6e993-c28c-44b6-a981-d51cb0b0d88f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Performers","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"00vdhr2ds2","content":[{"text":"The leading figures in Reog Ponorogo performance include:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"25c6e993-c28c-44b6-a981-d51cb0b0d88f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wsz855a0ek","content":[{"text":"Klono Sewandono, A man in regal attire wearing a mask with a proud and pompous dance and plays the role as the King of Ponorogo\nBujang Ganong are rough youthful men wearing red masks, they perform acrobatic dances and sometimes also involve trances.\nJathil, the youthful and handsome men riding horses made of weaved bamboo, similar to the Kuda Lumping dance. Today, Jathil is usually performed by female dancers.\nWarok, plays as the Singo Barong, the mythical creature. The one who is allowed to perform this dance is called warok. A warok is the honorary title of the local hero or strongman of the village who possesses both exceptional spiritual and physical strength. The dance itself is a demonstration of physical strength.\nReog Ponorogo usually consists of three sets of dances; each dance is performed by several dancers:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"25c6e993-c28c-44b6-a981-d51cb0b0d88f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"g0b78p8rp4","content":[{"text":"The first dance is the opening dance, performed by Bujang Ganong, male dancers who wear black costumes. The costume describes rough men with intimidating moustaches and other masculine symbols.\nThe second dance is the Jaran Kepang dance performed by Jathil; it is originally performed by a gemblak, a handsome and youthful teenage boy wearing colourful costumes. Today female dancers usually play this role.\nThe third dance is the main attraction of the show; it is performed by all the Reog dancers. The warok as the main male dancer, wearing the large and heavy lion mask, dances in the centre of the stage while the other dancers dance around him. To demonstrate the warok's extraordinary strength, the Jathil rides on top of the lion mask and is carried around.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"25c6e993-c28c-44b6-a981-d51cb0b0d88f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m6zg0nw2qe","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Reog”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"25c6e993-c28c-44b6-a981-d51cb0b0d88f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8b658ybaaq","content":[{"text":"Reog is Indonesian traditional theatrical dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1dde8f97-6c06-4e0c-80fe-a9776252ceeb"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ermfppw35c","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1dde8f97-6c06-4e0c-80fe-a9776252ceeb"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Reog Ponorogo Fire Attractions Cultural Attractions, Bogor City Anniversary 2015","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c8/Atraksi_Sembur_Api_Reog_Ponorogo.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Dedesudiana265","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Reog Ponorogo Fire Attractions Cultural Attractions, Bogor City Anniversary 2015","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c8/Atraksi_Sembur_Api_Reog_Ponorogo.jpg/960px-Atraksi_Sembur_Api_Reog_Ponorogo.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Atraksi_Sembur_Api_Reog_Ponorogo.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c8/Atraksi_Sembur_Api_Reog_Ponorogo.jpg/1280px-Atraksi_Sembur_Api_Reog_Ponorogo.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:26.496Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/reog"}
{"id":"97c8240f-1858-4153-9f85-cc14db2c0e7b","type":"art_form","slug":"rhumba","title":"rhumba","summary":"Rhumba, also known as ballroom rumba, is a genre of ballroom music and dance that appeared in the East Coast of the United States during the 1930s.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c87anjj0kq","content":[{"text":"Rhumba, also known as ballroom rumba, is a genre of ballroom music and dance that appeared in the East Coast of the United States during the 1930s. It combined American big band music with Afro-Cuban rhythms, primarily the son cubano, but also conga and rumba. Although taking its name from the latter, ballroom rumba differs completely from Cuban rumba in both its music and its dance. Hence, some authors prefer the Americanized spelling of the word (rhumba) to distinguish between them.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d9dfa7ca-e391-44e3-ae2e-6b9b37cbd6b2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Music","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1ddw1g41d8","content":[{"text":"Although the term rhumba  began to be used by American record companies to label all kinds of Latin music between 1913 and 1915, the history of rhumba as a specific form of ballroom music can be traced back to May 1930, when Don Azpiazú and his Havana Casino Orchestra recorded their song \"El manisero\" (The Peanut Vendor) in New York City. This single, released four months later by Victor, became a hit, becoming the first Latin song to sell 1 million copies in the United States. The song, composed by Moisés Simons, is a son-pregón arranged, in this case, for Azpiazú's big band featuring three saxophones, two cornets, banjo, guitar, piano, violin, bass, and trap drums. With vocals by Antonio Machín and a trumpet solo (the first one in the recorded history of Cuban music) by Remberto Lara, the recording, arranged by saxophonist Alfredo Brito, attempted to adapt the Cuban son to the style of ballroom music prevalent at the time in the East Coast.\nSoon, Azpiazú's style was followed by other Cuban artists such as Armando Oréfiche and the Lecuona Cuban Boys, who had extensive international tours in the 1930s. Their style has been often described as ballroom conga, since they used to borrow conga rhythms in songs such as \"Para Vigo me voy\". Among their numerous hits were boleros and canciones such as \"Amapola\" and \"Siboney\". This music movement, which also included many American big bands that covered Latin standards, was dubbed the rhumba craze. Notable bandleaders of the rhumba craze include Xavier Cugat, Jimmy Dorsey, Nathaniel Shilkret, Leo Reisman and Enric Madriguera.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d9dfa7ca-e391-44e3-ae2e-6b9b37cbd6b2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tyb11pb6j5","content":[{"text":"Two variations of rhumba with opposing step patterns are danced around the world. American style rumba was imported to America by band directors like Emil Coleman and Don Aspiazú between 1913 and 1935. The film Rumba, released in 1935, brought the style to the attention of the general public. American style rhumba is taught in a box step, known for its slow-quick-quick pattern danced on the 1, 3, and 4 beats of 4-beat music. International style rhumba was developed in Europe by Monsieur Pierre after he compared the established American style with contemporary Cuban dancers. International style is taught in a quick-quick-slow pattern danced on the 2, 3, and 4 beats of 4 beat music, similar in step and motion to the cha-cha-cha. Both styles were canonized in 1955.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d9dfa7ca-e391-44e3-ae2e-6b9b37cbd6b2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"International style","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"a38es8pj50","content":[{"text":"Rhumba is one of the ballroom dances which occurs in social dance and in international competitions. Of the five competitive international Latin dances (pasodoble, samba, cha-cha-cha, jive, and rumba), it is the slowest. This ballroom rumba was derived from a Cuban rhythm and dance called the bolero-son; the international style was derived from studies of dance in Cuba in the pre-revolutionary period.\nThe modern international style of dancing the rumba derives from studies made by dance teacher Monsieur Pierre (Pierre Zurcher-Margolle), who partnered Doris Lavelle. Pierre, then from London, visited Cuba in 1947, 1951, and 1953 to find out how and what Cubans were dancing at the time.\nThe international ballroom rumba is a slower dance of about 120 beats per minute which corresponds, both in music and in dance, to what the Cubans of an older generation called the bolero-son. It is easy to see why, for ease of reference and for marketing, rhumba is a better name, however inaccurate; it is the same kind of reason that led later on to the use of salsa as an overall term for popular music of Cuban origin.\nAll social dances in Cuba involve a hip-sway over the standing leg and, though this is scarcely noticeable in fast salsa, it is more pronounced in the slow ballroom rumba. In general, steps are kept compact and the dance is danced generally without any rise and fall. This style is authentic, as is the use of free arms in various figures. The basic figures derive from dance moves observed in Havana in the pre-revolutionary period, and have developed their own life since then. Competition figures are often complex, and this is where competition dance separates from social dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d9dfa7ca-e391-44e3-ae2e-6b9b37cbd6b2"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"American style","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"txvnd37xxx","content":[{"text":"There is also a variant, commonly danced in the United States, with box-like basic figures.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d9dfa7ca-e391-44e3-ae2e-6b9b37cbd6b2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jmkqny0rcg","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Ballroom rumba”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d9dfa7ca-e391-44e3-ae2e-6b9b37cbd6b2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"x0drem6s7y","content":[{"text":"rhumba is dance that appeared in the East Coast of the United States during the 1930s, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"562a27b9-ea57-44fd-a93b-eadcd50107b8"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"p4htqrd3m9","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 22 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"562a27b9-ea57-44fd-a93b-eadcd50107b8"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:09.337Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/rhumba"}
{"id":"e49c1514-7922-4cf6-984c-2496a589b802","type":"art_form","slug":"robot","title":"robot","summary":"The robot, also called mannequin or dancing machine, is a street dance style—often confused with popping—that suggests the stilted movements of a dancing robot or mannequin.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hm27j7n1dc","content":[{"text":"The robot, also called mannequin or dancing machine, is a street dance style—often confused with popping—that suggests the stilted movements of a dancing robot or mannequin. Roboting gained fame in the 1970s after Michael Jackson used the dance when he performed \"Dancing Machine\" with his brothers.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c392b071-105a-43f5-bf4f-c11c6dacb9d6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Description","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"py8fxfnmsy","content":[{"text":"The robot became popular in the 1980s, but goes back to the 1970s, when it was used theatrically in miming. It is a dance in which the dancer moves their limbs in a way that imitates the movements of a robot. Movements of the robot are normally started and finished with a dimestop (a very abrupt stop), to give the impression of motors starting and stopping, but poppers have also been known to do the robot with a pop to the beat. As long as the illusion of being a robot is maintained, it is considered the robot.\nRobot dancing is often considered a subsection of popping because poppers often include the robot in their routines, sometimes adding pops to the beat while maintaining the illusion of a robot. However, the robot also exists as its own dance and is sometimes considered a performance rather than a dance when the performer is imitating a robot without any music. When done without music, it is considered to be mime, instead of dance. Street theater often featured mimes who did a mechanical man or puppet style illusion, without music, including performer Robert Shields, who would later perform this style on a wider stage as part of Shields and Yarnell. In the late 1960s, the style was used while social dancing to funk or soul music. While not the first to imitate a robot as a mime, Charles \"Robot\" Washington and his partner \"Robot Ann\" were the first to socially couple dance the style to music at parties and clubs. It was at this point it became a party dance and later combined with other illusion styles to form today's popping style. It is commonly known as \"Robotics\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c392b071-105a-43f5-bf4f-c11c6dacb9d6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Music","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tw9tkazr3y","content":[{"text":"As with popping in general, the visual impact of the robot can be boosted by doing it in pace with music. The best effect is achieved with music that has very distinct beats such as electrofunk. It is nonetheless common to use music not particularly suited for the dance, but which has a \"robot theme\". In 1969 Jack Wild did the robot in the \"Mechanical Boy\" episode of H.R. Pufnstuf. The Jackson 5 first performed \"Dancing Machine\" on Soul Train on November 3, 1973, where Michael Jackson performed a robot dance during the song's musical break. The group again performed the routine on The Mike Douglas Show and the Sonny and Cher Comedy Hour in 1974.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c392b071-105a-43f5-bf4f-c11c6dacb9d6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"World record","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kjpmb22aaf","content":[{"text":"On September 29, 2009, the Guinness World Record for the Largest Robot Dance was broken by Robogals at the University of Melbourne, Australia. The previous record of 276 was broken when a Guinness World Record recognised 318 people were recorded as dancing in unison in approved robot style.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c392b071-105a-43f5-bf4f-c11c6dacb9d6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7zm77z2mhj","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Robot (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c392b071-105a-43f5-bf4f-c11c6dacb9d6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wngtr9h6dd","content":[{"text":"robot is illusionary street dance style that attempts to imitate a dancing robot or mannequin, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1562f630-f88d-47e6-be25-a666596922a7"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zgq9y7q5h2","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1562f630-f88d-47e6-be25-a666596922a7"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"This artist's concept features NASA's Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity rover, a mobile robot for investigating Mars' past or present ability to sustain microbial life. Curiosity landed near the Martian equator about 10:31 p.m., Aug. 5 PDT (1:31 a.m. Aug. 6 EDT) In this picture,…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/de/Curiosity_-_Robot_Geologist_and_Chemist_in_One%21.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"NASA/JPL-Caltech","height":720,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"This artist's concept features NASA's Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity rover, a mobile robot for investigating Mars' past or present ability to sustain microbial life. Curiosity landed near the Martian equator about 10:31 p.m., Aug. 5 PDT (1:31 a.m. Aug. 6 EDT) In this picture,…","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/de/Curiosity_-_Robot_Geologist_and_Chemist_in_One%21.jpg/960px-Curiosity_-_Robot_Geologist_and_Chemist_in_One%21.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Curiosity_-_Robot_Geologist_and_Chemist_in_One!.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/de/Curiosity_-_Robot_Geologist_and_Chemist_in_One%21.jpg/1280px-Curiosity_-_Robot_Geologist_and_Chemist_in_One%21.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"Rocket robot from bottom the 3D animation, red hovering robot with one eye","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/23/Rocket_robot_bottom.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Kurt Kaiser","height":720,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Rocket robot from bottom the 3D animation, red hovering robot with one eye","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/23/Rocket_robot_bottom.png/960px-Rocket_robot_bottom.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Rocket_robot_bottom.png","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/23/Rocket_robot_bottom.png/1280px-Rocket_robot_bottom.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"},{"alt":"A robot built by students at Robert O. Gibson Middle School for the 2017-2018 VEX Robotics Competition season. Here it is seen being controlled with remote control.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f6/VEX_Robotics_Competition_Robot_and_Controller.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Noah Wulf","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"A robot built by students at Robert O. Gibson Middle School for the 2017-2018 VEX Robotics Competition season. Here it is seen being controlled with remote control.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f6/VEX_Robotics_Competition_Robot_and_Controller.jpg/960px-VEX_Robotics_Competition_Robot_and_Controller.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:VEX_Robotics_Competition_Robot_and_Controller.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f6/VEX_Robotics_Competition_Robot_and_Controller.jpg/1280px-VEX_Robotics_Competition_Robot_and_Controller.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:15.555Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/robot"}
{"id":"c9b4d5c8-2c92-4453-956e-2d816d6949c4","type":"art_form","slug":"rodat","title":"Rodat","summary":"Rodat (Jawi: رودت) is a folk dance of the Malays and Acehnese believed to have originated from the Middle East and was spread to Maritime Southeast Asia by traders in Aceh as far as Terengganu in the beginning of the 19th century.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"21yczc4zjz","content":[{"text":"Rodat (Jawi: رودت) is a folk dance of the Malays and Acehnese believed to have originated from the Middle East and was spread to Maritime Southeast Asia by traders in Aceh as far as Terengganu in the beginning of the 19th century. Rodat may have come from كِتَاب حَضْرَة (Kitāb Ḥaḍrat), which is a book written by a man named Hadrat from Baghdad containing praises to Allah and Muhammad.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"12f82943-6507-4c15-ac21-797f9207c1d0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Performance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rjrmp0sy4q","content":[{"text":"Until the 1900s, Rodat was performed in all male groups with the original style of singing zikir with rebana accompaniment to celebrate Muhammad’s birthday and Malay weddings. However, by 1930, the dancing part was included and performed by transvestite dancers, who were later replaced by women dancers after World War II. With the addition of dancing and singing of popular Malay and Hindustani tunes and female dancers, the performance became popular at secular events such as the harvest celebration, Sultan’s birthday, and festivities for Malaysian National Day.\nThe performance involves the singing of religious praises, advices, customs, contemplation and awareness, corresponding between the male and female groups of chorus members, and is accompanied by the rhythmic patterns of the rebana drum. The number of performers ranges from 20 to 26 and consisted of three separate group of performers: pelenggok (12 male dancers), pengadi (eight drummers) and mak inang (four to six female dancers). The basic dance movements are divided into sitting-kneeling, a combination of squatting and standing (performed mainly by male dancers) and standing movements.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"12f82943-6507-4c15-ac21-797f9207c1d0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Lyrics","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"d4sewvfnpz","content":[{"text":"There are various versions, some extracting 8 to 12 verses from the Kitab Zikir book, while the most notable ones are taken from Kitab Hadrat, which compiles adhkār written by a man named Hadrat who was sentenced to death, and read these words to the king to convince him to lift the sentence.\nThe most prominent version is called \"Ya Hayyu Ya Qayyum,\" which extracted a few verses from Kitab Hadrat. However, as time went on, these verses went on to be corrupted to a point where not only the pronunciations are incorrect, but many other gibberish sounds were added to the lines. Despite the corruption, the version remains to be the most mainstream version being used in many modern songs including Uji Rashid's Inang Rodat and in the opening performance for the XVI Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"12f82943-6507-4c15-ac21-797f9207c1d0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"e5j7svqk9w","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Rodat (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"12f82943-6507-4c15-ac21-797f9207c1d0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mnhx4csdx7","content":[{"text":"Rodat is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"706ef532-c16f-417c-b946-0fe779fe5284"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bs4nta10dc","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"706ef532-c16f-417c-b946-0fe779fe5284"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Ecole Emilie de Rodat - entrée, 214 avenue de Lardenne (Toulouse)","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fe/Ecole_Emilie_de_Rodat_-_entr%C3%A9e%2C_214_avenue_de_Lardenne_%28Toulouse%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Abdoucondorcet","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Ecole Emilie de Rodat - entrée, 214 avenue de Lardenne (Toulouse)","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fe/Ecole_Emilie_de_Rodat_-_entr%C3%A9e%2C_214_avenue_de_Lardenne_%28Toulouse%29.jpg/960px-Ecole_Emilie_de_Rodat_-_entr%C3%A9e%2C_214_avenue_de_Lardenne_%28Toulouse%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ecole_Emilie_de_Rodat_-_entr%C3%A9e,_214_avenue_de_Lardenne_(Toulouse).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fe/Ecole_Emilie_de_Rodat_-_entr%C3%A9e%2C_214_avenue_de_Lardenne_%28Toulouse%29.jpg/1280px-Ecole_Emilie_de_Rodat_-_entr%C3%A9e%2C_214_avenue_de_Lardenne_%28Toulouse%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"},{"alt":"Statue d'Emilie de Rodat dans l'église Saint-Maurice à Luc (Aveyron)","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7e/Statue_d%27Emilie_de_Rodat_dans_l%27%C3%A9glise_Saint-Maurice_%C3%A0_Luc_%28Aveyron%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Pierre Tribhou","height":1707,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Statue d'Emilie de Rodat dans l'église Saint-Maurice à Luc (Aveyron)","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7e/Statue_d%27Emilie_de_Rodat_dans_l%27%C3%A9glise_Saint-Maurice_%C3%A0_Luc_%28Aveyron%29.jpg/960px-Statue_d%27Emilie_de_Rodat_dans_l%27%C3%A9glise_Saint-Maurice_%C3%A0_Luc_%28Aveyron%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Statue_d%27Emilie_de_Rodat_dans_l%27%C3%A9glise_Saint-Maurice_%C3%A0_Luc_(Aveyron).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7e/Statue_d%27Emilie_de_Rodat_dans_l%27%C3%A9glise_Saint-Maurice_%C3%A0_Luc_%28Aveyron%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail_unscaled","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Intérieur de de la chapelle Sainte-Émilie-de-Rodat à Villefranche-de-Rouergue","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e1/Int%C3%A9rieur_de_de_la_chapelle_Sainte-%C3%89milie-de-Rodat_%C3%A0_Villefranche-de-Rouergue.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Daniel CULSAN","height":1911,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Intérieur de de la chapelle Sainte-Émilie-de-Rodat à Villefranche-de-Rouergue","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e1/Int%C3%A9rieur_de_de_la_chapelle_Sainte-%C3%89milie-de-Rodat_%C3%A0_Villefranche-de-Rouergue.JPG/960px-Int%C3%A9rieur_de_de_la_chapelle_Sainte-%C3%89milie-de-Rodat_%C3%A0_Villefranche-de-Rouergue.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Int%C3%A9rieur_de_de_la_chapelle_Sainte-%C3%89milie-de-Rodat_%C3%A0_Villefranche-de-Rouergue.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e1/Int%C3%A9rieur_de_de_la_chapelle_Sainte-%C3%89milie-de-Rodat_%C3%A0_Villefranche-de-Rouergue.JPG/1280px-Int%C3%A9rieur_de_de_la_chapelle_Sainte-%C3%89milie-de-Rodat_%C3%A0_Villefranche-de-Rouergue.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:13.193Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/rodat"}
{"id":"3a650f76-1d41-43d6-82b7-d9b7bb45c39d","type":"art_form","slug":"roger-de-coverley","title":"Roger de Coverley","summary":"Roger de (or of) Coverley (also Sir Roger de Coverley or ...Coverly) is the name of an English country dance and a Scottish country dance (also known as The Haymakers).","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dfc8baqyn1","content":[{"text":"Roger de (or of) Coverley (also Sir Roger de Coverley or ...Coverly) is the name of an English country dance and a Scottish country dance (also known as The Haymakers). An early version was published in The Dancing Master, 9th edition (1695). The Virginia Reel is a North American adaptation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9c057c75-f470-4db1-ad65-a0ea639186bf"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"04pq3mahwx","content":[{"text":"The dance Roger of Coverly probably originated in Northern England; An early version was published in The Dancing Master, 9th edition (1695). The tune is said to derive its name from the Calverley family, who hailed from Calverley, Yorkshire.  A manuscript in the British Museum called The First and Second division Violin, which is attributed to John Eccles, 1705, describes the tune as \"Roger of Coverly the true Cheisere way.\" Alternatively Roger refers to Royalists in the English Civil War and that ‘Coverly’ was a corruption of ‘Cavalier’ The Virginia reel is a North American adaptation.\nThe dance is supposed to be danced at the end of the evening.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9c057c75-f470-4db1-ad65-a0ea639186bf"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"References in modern culture","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1kcy5kf2tn","content":[{"text":"It is mentioned in Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol (1843) when the Ghost of Christmas Past shows Scrooge a party from his apprenticeship with Mr. Fezziwig. \"...the great effect of the evening came after the Roast and Boiled, when the fiddler ... struck up 'Sir Roger de Coverley'. Then old Fezziwig stood out to dance with Mrs. Fezziwig.\" In the 1951 film Scrooge, based on Dickens's story and starring Alastair Sim in the title role, the fiddler is shown playing the tune at an energetic tempo during the party scene. It figures in William Makepeace Thackeray's short story The Bedford-Row Conspiracy as the musical centrepiece of a political feast pitting the Whigs against the Tories, and in Arnold Bennett's novel Leonora as music considered by the older gents as more suitable for a ball than the likes of the Blue Danube Waltz. The 1985 British TV adaptation of Dickens' Pickwick Papers showed the titular character, along with his friends performing the dance at Christmas celebrations at the Manor Farm - Mr.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9c057c75-f470-4db1-ad65-a0ea639186bf"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Fictional character","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tth0b6j826","content":[{"text":"Sir Roger de Coverley was also the name of a fictional character in The Spectator (1711), created by Joseph Addison and Richard Steele. An English squire of Queen Anne's reign. Sir Roger exemplified the values of an old country gentleman. He was portrayed as lovable but somewhat ridiculous ('rather beloved than esteemed') (Spectator no. 2), making his Tory politics seem harmless but silly. He was said to be the grandson of the man who invented the dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9c057c75-f470-4db1-ad65-a0ea639186bf"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3sk1qr8rsz","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Roger de Coverley”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9c057c75-f470-4db1-ad65-a0ea639186bf"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3cttp86n4m","content":[{"text":"Roger de Coverley is country dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c047ef7b-4f66-4a15-926f-acb3792613b7"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5t6dx8kgqt","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c047ef7b-4f66-4a15-926f-acb3792613b7"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Image from the magazine","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a9/St._Nicholas-Vol_1.1-458.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Frederick Morgan","height":921,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Image from the magazine","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a9/St._Nicholas-Vol_1.1-458.jpg/960px-St._Nicholas-Vol_1.1-458.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:St._Nicholas-Vol_1.1-458.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a9/St._Nicholas-Vol_1.1-458.jpg/1280px-St._Nicholas-Vol_1.1-458.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-01T05:47:22.247Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/roger-de-coverley"}
{"id":"4e00877e-10cc-4ee9-ab97-b7e96deffec2","type":"art_form","slug":"romani-dance","title":"Romani dance","summary":"This is a list of dances of the Romani people.\nThe most prominent Gypsy dance styles are those amongst the Roma in the Balkans. The Sulukule district in Istanbul is famous for its Romani dances.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gehfar24va","content":[{"text":"This is a list of dances of the Romani people.\nThe most prominent Gypsy dance styles are those amongst the Roma in the Balkans. The Sulukule district in Istanbul is famous for its Romani dances. Prominent Romani dances in Western Europe include the flamenco dance, the traditional dance from Andalusia in Southern Spain. The Roma in Wales were also renowned for their distinctive style of dance, most notably for their rendition of clog dancing.  \nAfter leaving India, the Romani people spread across the world, with many settling in various European countries. As eternal nomads, they traveled through different regions before reaching Europe, which is why their dance incorporates elements from Persian, Celtic, Balkan, Indian, Arabic, and many other cultures. Romani dance is vibrant, energetic, and captivating, reflecting the traditions, nomadic lifestyle, and spirit of freedom of the Romani people. The music accompanying the dance is played on local instruments that have evolved over the centuries. Romani dance is known for its improvisation, freedom, energy, and passion. Because the Roma historically settled in many different countries, several distinct styles of Romani dance have developed, influenced by the local cultures and creativity of the Romani communities.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cf4d2be5-b190-4bbd-a7e8-5c93d01f5c37"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Balkans/Southeastern Europe","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qnywm6m23j","content":[{"text":"Botoló, a stick dance using weapons\nČoček, a dance originating from Ottoman military bands that was later adopted by Roma in the Balkans\nRomani csárdás\nRomani havasi, an adaption of havasi popular in East Thrace, a Turkish folk dance with the main base and elements of Byzantine music.\nRomani Kolo","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cf4d2be5-b190-4bbd-a7e8-5c93d01f5c37"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Western Europe","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"emfdcy6cwn","content":[{"text":"Flamenco\nRomani clog dancing, an adaption of clog dancing, primarily performed by the Roma in Wales","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cf4d2be5-b190-4bbd-a7e8-5c93d01f5c37"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Russia","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4737jsaqpg","content":[{"text":"Russian Romani dance is characterized by gradual speed-up of music and movements. Female dance includes wide hand waves with the skirt and shoulder shakes (\"shimmy\"). Male dance traditionally includes complex tap dance and patting knees, shoulders, and hips.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cf4d2be5-b190-4bbd-a7e8-5c93d01f5c37"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bdrrky7gac","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Romani dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cf4d2be5-b190-4bbd-a7e8-5c93d01f5c37"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mgfek4n044","content":[{"text":"Romani dance is dances of the Romani people, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"07abca34-a5a8-43b8-b20c-d84c248a0041"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"94xheq2w4z","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"07abca34-a5a8-43b8-b20c-d84c248a0041"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Gypsy love dance from North Serbia represents a love story between two young people. It begins with her trying to gain his attention while he pretends not to notice her but as she dances more and more for him, he starts looking at her and finally ends up dancing with her. As…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/87/Gypsy_love_dance_from_North_Serbia_02.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"EmaSrb","height":854,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Gypsy love dance from North Serbia represents a love story between two young people. It begins with her trying to gain his attention while he pretends not to notice her but as she dances more and more for him, he starts looking at her and finally ends up dancing with her. As…","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/Gypsy_love_dance_from_North_Serbia_02.jpg/960px-Gypsy_love_dance_from_North_Serbia_02.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Gypsy_love_dance_from_North_Serbia_02.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/Gypsy_love_dance_from_North_Serbia_02.jpg/1280px-Gypsy_love_dance_from_North_Serbia_02.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:22.051Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/romani-dance"}
{"id":"30b12b35-2a4f-4258-bc1f-0a218aaf0e60","type":"art_form","slug":"romvong","title":"Romvong","summary":"Romvong (Khmer: រាំវង់, also romanized as Rom Vong or Roam Vong), Lamvong (Lao: ລຳວົງ - pronounced [lám.wóŋ]) or Ramwong (Thai: รำวง; RTGS: ram wong; Tai Lue: ᩃ᪁ ᩴᩅ ᩫ ᩬ; Tai Khun: ᨽ᩠ᨿᨦᨴᩱ᩠ᨿᩃᩨᩢ; pronounced [rām.wōŋ]; Shan: လမ်းဝူင်), Rambung …","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wc0vkpmw3t","content":[{"text":"Romvong (Khmer: រាំវង់, also romanized as Rom Vong or Roam Vong), Lamvong (Lao: ລຳວົງ - pronounced [lám.wóŋ]) or Ramwong (Thai: รำวง; RTGS: ram wong; Tai Lue: ᩃ᪁ ᩴᩅ ᩫ ᩬ; Tai Khun: ᨽ᩠ᨿᨦᨴᩱ᩠ᨿᩃᩨᩢ; pronounced [rām.wōŋ]; Shan: လမ်းဝူင်), Rambung (Malay: رمبوڠ), Vietnamese: lăm-vông) is a type of Southeast Asian dance where both men and women dance in a circle. It is a popular folk-dance in Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Xishuangbanna (China), and Thailand. It is a slow round dance continuously moving in a circular manner, and incorporates graceful hand movements and simple footwork. Both men and women participate in the same circle.\nThe circular dance style is claimed as a traditional dance in the four countries of the region where it is often part of traditional festivities, popular celebrations and modern parties. In addition to the dominant Khmer, Lao, Malay and Thai cultures, romvong is also common among many other groups indigenous to Southeast Asia. In Cambodia, for example, Ramvong dance is also found among ethnic groups including the Bunong, Krung, Tampuan and Brao people.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6d2cbe43-147a-4189-a4ff-4068f092d7e4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"whr872e8mz","content":[{"text":"Romvong, sometimes transliterated as ramvong, is from the Khmer word រាំវង់ (IPA: [rŏəm ʋŏəŋ]). In Khmer, the word consists of two separate native Khmer morphemes រាំ (rom: \"dance\") and វង់ (vong: \"circle\"). The words were borrowed into both Thai (รำ, ram; วง, wong) and Lao (ລຳ, lam; ວົງ, wong) with the same meanings and pronounced according to phonology of the respective languages.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6d2cbe43-147a-4189-a4ff-4068f092d7e4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qv0qrhnjg2","content":[{"text":"Romvong is very popular among other Mon-Khmer indigenous people known as Khmer Loeu. All ethnic Khmers including Khmer Kandal (Cambodia), Northern Khmer (Thailand), and Khmer Krom (Southern Vietnam) as well as other Mon-Khmer tribes used the same word \"roamvong\" for this type of dance as a unified Khmer identity.\nThe indigenous Mon-Khmer minority known as Khmer Loeu, who live in higher altitude land areas of Northeastern Cambodia and other mountainous region in mainland Southeast Asia, popularly dance circling the campfire at night. This dancing (romvong) dates for millennia. In the Leang Arak rituals or Lerng Nak Ta which was the original Khmer tradition before Hinduism and Buddhism introduced to ancient Cambodia, small shrines were built surrounded with religious fence, where the spiritual women dance around the shrine. Then romvong become more popular for the locals dancing for entertainment and celebrations.\nRomvong was probably performed by the Khmer locals during New Year celebration and festivities during Khmer Empire, and later on adopted by other Tai settlers, the ancestor of modern Thais and Laos when settling in Khmer Empire territories, based on the writer's opinion.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6d2cbe43-147a-4189-a4ff-4068f092d7e4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Description","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1jk8fwkc6b","content":[{"text":"The basic pattern involves two couples folding their palms, with their fingers at right angles to their wrists, and bringing the hands up from behind the body to in front of the face, straightening and bending the fingers in time to the music throughout. The hands move in opposition directions, one to the left and one to the right.\nThe legs must move in time of the rhythm, and in the opposite direction of the partner. Dancers continue around in a circle, keeping in time with the beat of the drum. There is often a decorated pole or a vase of flowers used to mark the center of the circle.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6d2cbe43-147a-4189-a4ff-4068f092d7e4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Importance in Cambodia","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7z47gj40jy","content":[{"text":"As Romvong originated from Khmer pre-historical tradition, this type of folk dance is very popular in Cambodia as this type of slow dance is regarded as Khmer national identity and local folklore.\nRomvong is the most popular folk dance perform by both men and women across Cambodia especially in the New Year Eve, national and religious celebrations, and occasional events. Khmer people performs romvong for entertainment, releasing stress, and happiness. This type of dance is easily learned and perform, that's why most Khmer people regardless of social status know how to perform it. Moreover, Romvong songs are very popular among Khmer people sing during Khmer New Year (Sankrata), and other festivities especially during local celebrations.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6d2cbe43-147a-4189-a4ff-4068f092d7e4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Importance in Laos","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jaz1hcjh35","content":[{"text":"In Laos, romvong is known as lamvong or lamvonglao that is believed to have been part of the culture of Laos since ancient time. Lamvonglao is usually performed during several special occasions such as weddings, festivals, ceremonies, or guest welcoming. Today's fine stylistic lamvonglao dance originally evolved from a simple dance that villagers growing rice in paddy field would perform around a central bale of rice to celebrate harvest time. It is a slow revolving circle dance with the men forming an inner circle around an outer circle formed by the women, and the dance consists of eight movements per cycle. The cycles are repeated according to the length of the music. The beautiful arm and hand gestures are combined harmoniously with rhythmic musical instruments, such as khene, a Lao bamboo flute. As there are diverse ethnic groups living in various regions of Laos, there are many specific choreographic styles throughout the country, reflecting the richness of the Lao culture. For instance, there are lamvongs Salavane from Salavan province (southern Laos), Tangwaiy from Savannakhet province (central Laos), Sipandone from Champasak province, khabthoumlouangprabang from Luang Prabang province (northern Laos), and Mahaxay from Khammouane province (central Laos). These dances differ slightly in style, movement and music but are based on the national classical theme.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6d2cbe43-147a-4189-a4ff-4068f092d7e4"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"chbzxg3yy1","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Romvong”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6d2cbe43-147a-4189-a4ff-4068f092d7e4"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3ne1c3y7sx","content":[{"text":"Romvong is type of Southeast Asian dance where both females and males dance in a circle, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9a131b67-4719-469c-8511-487e9fd4f134"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c16epr3sgb","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9a131b67-4719-469c-8511-487e9fd4f134"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Guest performers Sadira Benee and Rita Pin-Ahrens performs the Cambodian dance, \" The Dance of Cambodian Women,\" during the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) Cultural Exchange Celebration, in Washington, D.C., May 25, 2017. The…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/59/20170525-DM-LSC-0229_%2834773227612%29.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"U.S. Department of Agriculture","height":854,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Guest performers Sadira Benee and Rita Pin-Ahrens performs the Cambodian dance, \" The Dance of Cambodian Women,\" during the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) Cultural Exchange Celebration, in Washington, D.C., May 25, 2017. The…","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/59/20170525-DM-LSC-0229_%2834773227612%29.jpg/960px-20170525-DM-LSC-0229_%2834773227612%29.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:20170525-DM-LSC-0229_(34773227612).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/59/20170525-DM-LSC-0229_%2834773227612%29.jpg/1280px-20170525-DM-LSC-0229_%2834773227612%29.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:27.640Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/romvong"}
{"id":"98264a8a-ff59-4ed2-9d33-fe88c4b6233d","type":"art_form","slug":"round-dance","title":"round dance","summary":"Modern social round dance, or round dancing, is a choreographed and cued ballroom dance that progresses in a circular counter-clockwise pattern around the dance floor.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"66chxb2t6r","content":[{"text":"Modern social round dance, or round dancing, is a choreographed and cued ballroom dance that progresses in a circular counter-clockwise pattern around the dance floor. The two major categories of ballroom dances found in round dancing are the smooth and international ballroom styles (such as foxtrot and waltz) and the Latin dances (such as cha-cha-chá, salsa, and rhumba). It is not to be confused with circle dancing, which is a type of folk dance in which dancers are connected in a circular chain.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"603d18be-a75b-494b-8673-60b50ba020a3"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Description","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6r9hwm1bv4","content":[{"text":"Round dancing differs from free-style ballroom dancing in that each round dance has been fully choreographed ahead of time, and a \"cuer\" or leader at the front of the ballroom tells the dancers, as they dance, what steps to do. As the music plays, and just ahead of the beat, so the dancers have time to respond, the cuer names each dance figure in the choreography. As a consequence, all the dancers on the floor are dancing the same steps at the same time.\nTo create a round dance, a piece of music is selected by the choreographer, and the different steps or figures are chosen to fit the music. If the music swells and pauses briefly, then a dance step that rises and stretches is put into that place. If there is a little syncopation in another part of the music, then a quick step is inserted. The creation of a piece of choreography is like engineering a machine, with every gear and lever in just the right place to give smooth and flowing motion. The step-by-step instructions on how to dance this choreography are written out in what is called a cue sheet.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"603d18be-a75b-494b-8673-60b50ba020a3"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Types","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wa66akamne","content":[{"text":"Examples of social dances that may be danced in \"round\" fashion are  bolero, cha-cha-cha, foxtrot, hustle, jive,  mambo, merengue, paso doble, quickstep, rhumba, salsa, samba, single swing, slow two step, tango, two step, waltz, Viennese waltz and West Coast swing.\nRoundalab, the International Association of Round Dance Teachers, Inc., has established a \"Phase Rating System\" of round dancing, in order to rate round dance figures according to difficulty and complexity.\nSalsa rueda, also referred to as casino de rueda, is a kind of round dance in which there is no complete pre-choreographed sequence, and the dance patterns are called out in a random order.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"603d18be-a75b-494b-8673-60b50ba020a3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c45afxart0","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Round dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"603d18be-a75b-494b-8673-60b50ba020a3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mycfc0wt4x","content":[{"text":"round dance is dance with circular list of dancers, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"83aa4202-25ae-4e9e-abf2-6f7ef5c9991a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"y6fh5e4qp6","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"83aa4202-25ae-4e9e-abf2-6f7ef5c9991a"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Amruteshwar, a 1200 year old temple of Mahadeva in Ahemadnagar, Maharashtra has function on the day of Mahashivratri. The local tribal people perform various kind of cultural dance during the ceremony. This particular dance is called 'Fungadi'","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/40/Round_Dance_by_Tribal_1.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Nikhil More","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Amruteshwar, a 1200 year old temple of Mahadeva in Ahemadnagar, Maharashtra has function on the day of Mahashivratri. The local tribal people perform various kind of cultural dance during the ceremony. This particular dance is called 'Fungadi'","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/40/Round_Dance_by_Tribal_1.jpg/960px-Round_Dance_by_Tribal_1.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Round_Dance_by_Tribal_1.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/40/Round_Dance_by_Tribal_1.jpg/1280px-Round_Dance_by_Tribal_1.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Amruteshwar, a 1200 year old temple of Mahadeva in Ahemadnagar, Maharashtra has function on the day of Mahashivratri. The local tribal people perform various kind of cultural dance during the ceremony. This particular dance is called 'Fungadi'","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7b/Round_Dance_by_Tribal_9.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Nikhil More","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Amruteshwar, a 1200 year old temple of Mahadeva in Ahemadnagar, Maharashtra has function on the day of Mahashivratri. The local tribal people perform various kind of cultural dance during the ceremony. This particular dance is called 'Fungadi'","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7b/Round_Dance_by_Tribal_9.jpg/960px-Round_Dance_by_Tribal_9.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Round_Dance_by_Tribal_9.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7b/Round_Dance_by_Tribal_9.jpg/1280px-Round_Dance_by_Tribal_9.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Drawing; Drawings","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e6/%22The_Round_Dance%22_or_%22Rays_of_Sunlight%22_MET_DP156186.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Louis Janmot","height":1048,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Drawing; Drawings","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e6/%22The_Round_Dance%22_or_%22Rays_of_Sunlight%22_MET_DP156186.jpg/960px-%22The_Round_Dance%22_or_%22Rays_of_Sunlight%22_MET_DP156186.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:%22The_Round_Dance%22_or_%22Rays_of_Sunlight%22_MET_DP156186.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e6/%22The_Round_Dance%22_or_%22Rays_of_Sunlight%22_MET_DP156186.jpg/1280px-%22The_Round_Dance%22_or_%22Rays_of_Sunlight%22_MET_DP156186.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:23.057Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/round-dance"}
{"id":"eacc8d2f-9552-4aad-ac9a-668cace59ffa","type":"art_form","slug":"royal-ballet-of-cambodia","title":"Royal Ballet of Cambodia","summary":"The Royal Ballet of Cambodia (Khmer: របាំព្រះរាជទ្រព្យ, Robam Preah Reach Troap, lit. 'Dance of Royal Wealth') is a classical Khmer dance known for its intricate hand movements and elaborate costumes.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"23ygajyh0q","content":[{"text":"The Royal Ballet of Cambodia (Khmer: របាំព្រះរាជទ្រព្យ, Robam Preah Reach Troap, lit. 'Dance of Royal Wealth') is a classical Khmer dance known for its intricate hand movements and elaborate costumes. Historically linked to the Khmer court, it has been performed at various royal ceremonies such as coronations, weddings, funerals, and Khmer holidays. The repertoire includes various ancient Khmer legends.\nThe ballet faced near extinction during the Khmer Rouge regime in the 1970s but continues to be a significant element of Cambodian cultural heritage. It has been inscribed on the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage Lists since 2003.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"270c3a4b-0482-4dd6-8178-eef9e690a02e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4xv8tkwtyn","content":[{"text":"Western names for this dance tradition, such as Cambodian court dance, often make reference to the royal court, as the tradition was performed and maintained by attendants of the royal palaces. As a performing art, it is formally referred to as the Royal Ballet of Cambodia (le Ballet royal du Cambodge in French) by UNESCO, Cravath, Brandon, and others in the academic field, although this term may also refer to the National Dance Company of Cambodia. The term Khmer classical dance is also used alongside \"Royal Ballet of Cambodia\" in publications by UNESCO and the above-mentioned authors.\nIn Khmer, it is formally known as Robam Preah Reach Trop (របាំព្រះរាជទ្រព្យ), lit. \"dances of royal wealth\") or Lakhon Preah Reach Trop (ល្ខោនព្រះរាជទ្រព្យ), lit. \"theatre of royal wealth\"). It is also referred to as Lakhon Luong (ល្ខោនហ្លួង, lit. \"the king's theatre\"). During the Lon Nol regime of Cambodia, the dance tradition was referred to as Lakhon Kbach Boran Khmer (ល្ខោនក្បាច់បូរាណខ្មែរ), lit. \"Khmer theatre of the ancient style\"), a term alienating it from its royal legacy.\nKhmer classical dancers, as a whole, are frequently referred to as apsara dancers by laymen; this usage would be incorrect with the modern form of the dance, as the apsara is just one type of character among others in the repertoire. Regardless, the tradition's romanticized affiliation with the apsaras and devatas of the ruins of Angkor still persists.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"270c3a4b-0482-4dd6-8178-eef9e690a02e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Angkor and pre-Angkor era","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"q68ng3ff26","content":[{"text":"One of the earliest records of dance in Cambodia is from the 7th century, where performances were used as a funeral rite for kings. Ancient stone inscriptions describe thousands of apsara dancers assigned to temples and performing divine rites as well as for the public. There are five different pre-Angkor inscriptions mentioning dancers.  The oldest known inscription in the Khmer language (K.600) is dated 611 on a temple where a god named with the suffix -isvara (Shiva) had merged with another with a name that denotes a tree. The offerings to the temple of one Antar include seven female dancers (jmah ge ram), six of whom are named. Save for two, all names musicians and dancers are in Sanskrit. George Cœdès dated the inscription known as K.51 to the late sixth-early seventh century (although stylistically there's a likeness with fifth century Funan inscriptions). An itemization of gifts from one Indradatta to a temple's deity, there are four legible names of female dancers (called rapam) offered: Ata, Tittaru, Ngarngor, and Kandin. The inscription of K. 138 indicates that four dancers(ram), two female and two male, were offered to a Shiva temple on a waning moon's first day. Inscription K. 155, dated to the late seventh or early eighth century, details one Chief of Granaries offerings that include nine named female dancers (rpam) and then an additional three named female dancers (rpam). Evidence for a literary basis for dance during Funana/Chenla era are found in a sixth century inscription near the Laos border by Veal Kantel, a Cambodian village. King Bhavavarman's brother-in-law offered copies of the Ramayana and Mahabharata to a temple dedicated to Shiva.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"270c3a4b-0482-4dd6-8178-eef9e690a02e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"82eadgh6ya","content":[{"text":"During the Angkor period, dance was ritually performed at temples.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"270c3a4b-0482-4dd6-8178-eef9e690a02e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Post-Angkorian era","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ctas6m12xe","content":[{"text":"The tradition of temple dancers declined when the Angkor era came to an end. Scholar Xenia Zarina wrote that dance came to Thailand through the Khmer Empire, and when the Thai conquered Angkor, \"among the 90,000 prisoners of war were artists and artisans\" including dancers, which the Thai \"especially loved and cultivated.\" Thai author and former Director General of the Fine Arts Department Dhanit Yupho says the Khmers may have introduced masked dance-drama to Siam as the Thai word Khon, first appearing in Ayutthaya after Khmer artists were brought to the court, comes from the Khmer word Khol. Scholar Paul Cravath wrote that, whereas dancers were marched off to Ayutthaya when the Siamese captured Angkor, all the evidence points to some of the dancers managing to follow the Khmer king to the new capital - view also held by contemporary Cambodian dance teachers. Portuguese historian Diogo do Couto described a lake with several boats \"gathering the rice with merry energy, dances and musical contests” at Angkor in the late 1580s. Monsieur de la Loubere gave a 1688 account of \"the rabam\" (from the Khmer word robam for dance) in Siamese court dance at Ayutthaya and noted it was performed at funerals, implying Siam retained the ritualistic nature of Khmer robam at least during that period, though later losing its Khmer \"ritual function\" in favor of the Siamese/Thai dramatic dance.\nIn the mid 19th century, King Ang Duong spent much of his childhood in Bangkok, where the Siamese King later held the three eldest of Duong's sons captive, and ruled Cambodia as a vassal of Siam. According to one account, the court of Bangkok provided dancers to Ang Duong's court due to declining numbers of ballet dancers in Cambodia, though this claim has been contested.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"270c3a4b-0482-4dd6-8178-eef9e690a02e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"French colonial era","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8pv0vhftwy","content":[{"text":"Cambodia became a French protectorate in 1863. Since then, dancers began performing for foreign dignitaries and for the public on the monarch's birthday. Dance was thereby, promoted as national identity.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"270c3a4b-0482-4dd6-8178-eef9e690a02e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kyzwn4ezfq","content":[{"text":"King Norodom was crowned in 1864, four years after the death of Duong (his father). Three dance troupes,  including male dancers, existed in the palace, controlled by Norodom's wives and other royal women. Nuon, the \"star ballerina\" under Ang Duong, continued on after Duong's death and became Norodom's first wife. Called Khun Than and later bestowed Preah Moneang Socheat Bopha, she controlled one troupe as well as theater. There were many troupes and dancers in Cambodia during this time. \"Tall\" Khmer dancer Neang Sok, who played mostly male neay rong roles, married Frenchman Paul Le Faucheur who worked on the Royal Palace. Teen girls named Neang Nhiv and Neang Nhoeng displayed a talent for climbing trees and were sent to join the Battambang governor’s dance troupe. A dance hall, or rong ram (រោងរាំ), was erected at the palace. French explorer Louis Delaporte was among those invited by King Norodom to a royal dance performance in the rong ram. Delaporte would sketch an illustration, the first \"pictorialization of Khmer dancers\" ever documented by a European.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"270c3a4b-0482-4dd6-8178-eef9e690a02e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"1940s and Post-independent Cambodia","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m7m9jcgjhc","content":[{"text":"Princess (later Queen) Sisowath Kossamak became a patron of the Royal Ballet of Cambodia.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"270c3a4b-0482-4dd6-8178-eef9e690a02e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"btkcx3da3f","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Royal Ballet of Cambodia”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"270c3a4b-0482-4dd6-8178-eef9e690a02e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"afd9bfgqcm","content":[{"text":"Royal Ballet of Cambodia is Cambodian dance company, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c6b3cbad-ef78-4e95-8eba-78f496516c18"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xbs3hc5m02","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c6b3cbad-ef78-4e95-8eba-78f496516c18"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"The Royal Ballet of Cambodia at curtain call. This was a performance of a dance drama titled 'Apsara Mera' in Paris, France.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4a/Royal_Ballet_Camboda_Apsara_Mera.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"' dalbera ' (Flickr user, no real name given)","height":909,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"The Royal Ballet of Cambodia at curtain call. This was a performance of a dance drama titled 'Apsara Mera' in Paris, France.","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4a/Royal_Ballet_Camboda_Apsara_Mera.jpg/960px-Royal_Ballet_Camboda_Apsara_Mera.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Royal_Ballet_Camboda_Apsara_Mera.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4a/Royal_Ballet_Camboda_Apsara_Mera.jpg/1280px-Royal_Ballet_Camboda_Apsara_Mera.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-04T05:47:13.025Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/royal-ballet-of-cambodia"}
{"id":"68a26f48-9c16-492e-bd29-fb18bc528fa2","type":"art_form","slug":"rugovo","title":"Rugovo","summary":"Albanian war dances (Albanian: valle luftarake or loja luftarake) are war dances performed by the Albanian people.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hjkpv9xb4n","content":[{"text":"Albanian war dances (Albanian: valle luftarake or loja luftarake) are war dances performed by the Albanian people. They have been historically performed before Albanians' departure for the battle front, but in recent times they have been traditionally performed during particular events and feasts. The war dances differ in both form and content according to the Albanian ethnographic area.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7ddd21bd-4559-4214-9b02-8dc13caef37a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"War dance in circle around fire","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bpqe43bh49","content":[{"text":"Early descriptions of the Albanian war dance in circle around fire was provided in the early 19th century by western travellers who visited southern Albania. The dance is practiced for several hours with very short intervals, acquiring new vigour from the words of the accompanying song that starts with a battle cry invoking war drums, and which is of a piece with the movement and usually changed only once or twice during the whole performance.\nThe ritual purifying fire (Zjarri) is traditionally used by Albanians, in particular singing and dancing around it, to gain protection and energizing from its supernatural power.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7ddd21bd-4559-4214-9b02-8dc13caef37a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Sword dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"22qeptz2hk","content":[{"text":"The Albanian sword dance type has been commonly performed in the northern Albanian highlands. From there this type of dance spread in the lowlands of the Lezha area and the Mati valley by the mountain shepherds. In its primordial form it is danced silently with free-flowing, only following the rhythmic movements of the body that are improvised by the dancer(s) (hence without instrumental music or vocals). Sword dances are also those performed in certain areas of northwestern Kosovo, which are accompanied by instrumental music and referred to as \"contest to win the maid\". Also the Albanians of Italy – the Arbëreshë – perform the sword dance, albeit in a different way. Into the late 1400s Albanian sword dances were imitaded by Italian tarantellas.\nThe Albanian folk tale \"Skanderbeg and Ballaban\" narrates about the Albanian sword dance, which is sung and danced by Skanderbeg's soldiers before battle.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7ddd21bd-4559-4214-9b02-8dc13caef37a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Sword dance of Rugova","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cy7mjaqrf3","content":[{"text":"The Rugova war dance (Albanian: Vallja me shpata e Rugovës or Loja Luftarake e Rugovës) is a traditional Albanian sword dance named after the Rugova region in Kosovo.\nRugova dance is a relic of the war dances, the remnants of pantomimic dances performed in the re-enactment or preparation of battles.\nThe dance is performed by two male dancers who fight a mock battle for the hand of a girl (a \"maiden's dance\"). \nIt was made internationally famous by the Kosovo Albanian Rugova clans (hailing from Kelmend in Albania). The dance is also found in mountainous Montenegro, where a tribe of shepherds settled in the 18th century. Based on the war dance of the Rugova clans, Slavko Kvasnevski created in 1971 the Rugova choreography, which was part of Yugoslav folk dancing ensemble. In 1982, it was noted that \"in the last time the Rugova dance has gained wide popularity\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7ddd21bd-4559-4214-9b02-8dc13caef37a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"486yfmv2pr","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Albanian war dances”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7ddd21bd-4559-4214-9b02-8dc13caef37a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hq4b49ag38","content":[{"text":"Rugovo is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c8d6e0c7-e368-48c3-b3ef-23b2094b7b42"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"73baraypn3","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c8d6e0c7-e368-48c3-b3ef-23b2094b7b42"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"1972 RUGOVO SCHLUCHT","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4a/1972_RUGOVO_SCHLUCHT_-_panoramio.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"jean melis","height":832,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"1972 RUGOVO SCHLUCHT","licence":"CC BY 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4a/1972_RUGOVO_SCHLUCHT_-_panoramio.jpg/960px-1972_RUGOVO_SCHLUCHT_-_panoramio.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:1972_RUGOVO_SCHLUCHT_-_panoramio.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4a/1972_RUGOVO_SCHLUCHT_-_panoramio.jpg/1280px-1972_RUGOVO_SCHLUCHT_-_panoramio.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0"},{"alt":"RUGOVO SCHLUCHT 1972","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b2/RUGOVO_SCHLUCHT_1972_-_panoramio.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"jean melis","height":898,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"RUGOVO SCHLUCHT 1972","licence":"CC BY 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b2/RUGOVO_SCHLUCHT_1972_-_panoramio.jpg/960px-RUGOVO_SCHLUCHT_1972_-_panoramio.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:RUGOVO_SCHLUCHT_1972_-_panoramio.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b2/RUGOVO_SCHLUCHT_1972_-_panoramio.jpg/1280px-RUGOVO_SCHLUCHT_1972_-_panoramio.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0"},{"alt":"1972 RUGOVO SCHLUCHT","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/84/1972_RUGOVO_SCHLUCHT_-_panoramio_-_jean_melis.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"jean melis","height":861,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"1972 RUGOVO SCHLUCHT","licence":"CC BY 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/84/1972_RUGOVO_SCHLUCHT_-_panoramio_-_jean_melis.jpg/960px-1972_RUGOVO_SCHLUCHT_-_panoramio_-_jean_melis.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:1972_RUGOVO_SCHLUCHT_-_panoramio_-_jean_melis.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/84/1972_RUGOVO_SCHLUCHT_-_panoramio_-_jean_melis.jpg/1280px-1972_RUGOVO_SCHLUCHT_-_panoramio_-_jean_melis.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:13.505Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/rugovo"}
{"id":"28c83b14-238a-41e4-9ecc-31b82248d3cc","type":"art_form","slug":"rumba-flamenca","title":"rumba flamenca","summary":"Rumba flamenca, also known as flamenco rumba or simply rumba (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈrumba]), is a palo (style) of flamenco music developed in Andalusia, Spain.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cz1kswy59n","content":[{"text":"Rumba flamenca, also known as flamenco rumba or simply rumba (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈrumba]), is a palo (style) of flamenco music developed in Andalusia, Spain. It is known as one of the cantes de ida y vuelta (roundtrip songs), music which diverged in the new world, then returned to Spain in a new form. The genre originated in the 19th century in Andalusia, southern Spain, where Cuban music first reached the country.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7ae62561-ea1b-41cd-890e-1619c9694a21"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m91y1776f0","content":[{"text":"Rumba flamenca was primarily influenced by guaracha, an uptempo style of vocal music which originated in Havana's musical theatre. Some elements from Cuban rumba were also incorporated, although minor, despite the name. Although unlikely, both guaracha and Cuban rumba might have been influenced by flamenco earlier in the 19th century. Guarachas can be traced back to the Spanish jácaras, thus justifying the classification of rumba flamenca as a cante de ida y vuelta.\nThe first rumba flamenca recordings were made by La Niña de los Peines in the 1910s. During the late 20th century, Paco de Lucía, together with percussionist Rubem Dantas, incorporated Afro-Peruvian musical elements such as the cajón (wooden box) and certain rhythms.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7ae62561-ea1b-41cd-890e-1619c9694a21"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Terminology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9ntv67kd6m","content":[{"text":"In term rumba as applied to the flamenco style stems from its use in Cuba to refer to Cuban rumba (originally, \"rumba\" meant \"party\"). Within flamenco circles, the genre is simply called \"rumba\", and other terms have been used to distinguish it from Cuban rumba, including gypsy rumba (rumba gitana) and Spanish rumba, which are nonetheless ambiguous since they may also be used to mean Catalan rumba or other contemporary styles such as tecno-rumba.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7ae62561-ea1b-41cd-890e-1619c9694a21"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Instrumentation","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wbcwbggad6","content":[{"text":"The rumba flamenca instrumentation consists of flamenco guitars, hand clapping, occasional body slapping, castanets and the cajón. As a result, it bears little resemblance to Cuban rumba, whose instrumentation is based on the congas and claves. Nonetheless, some artists such as Paco de Lucía and Tomatito have included congas alongside their cajones in their ensembles, although with a minor role.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7ae62561-ea1b-41cd-890e-1619c9694a21"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Music theory","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jeeckwaqsy","content":[{"text":"In Cuba, the rumba is performed with multiple percussion instruments, playing in duple meter. The flamenco version of it uses palmas, guitar, and golpes (slapping the guitar). In addition, rumba flamenca has a particular guitar strumming pattern absent in other flamenco styles.\nThe rhythm is a modified tresillo rhythm with eight beats grouped into a repeating pattern of 3+3+2. Unlike traditional flamenco, rumbas may be played in any key, major, minor and modal. At approx. 100-120bpm, the tempo of rumba flamenca is slower than other more traditional flamenco styles such as bulerías and fandangos. There are 4 beats per bar with an accent on the 2nd and 4th beats.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7ae62561-ea1b-41cd-890e-1619c9694a21"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w8p4z4xf39","content":[{"text":"The rumba flamenca dance has some origins in Catalonia, specifically in the downtown areas of Barcelona, where gypsies performed rumba catalana at the times of this genre's flowering popularity. The dance that it accompanied was improvised with prominent hip and shoulder movements, more overtly sexual than other styles of flamenco dances.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7ae62561-ea1b-41cd-890e-1619c9694a21"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1gbk24nyyf","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Rumba flamenca”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7ae62561-ea1b-41cd-890e-1619c9694a21"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6fddtqj3k9","content":[{"text":"rumba flamenca is flamenco style, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9b2806c5-61f6-46f3-94db-4d1fcd107b5f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"a2gyjt5spa","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9b2806c5-61f6-46f3-94db-4d1fcd107b5f"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Domingo 04 de Noviembre 2018 CDMX Sevillanas y Rumba Flamenca,Dir:Selena González, España, se presento en el escenario 2 como parte de la programación artística de la celebración de Muertos 2018 en el Zócalo de la Ciudad de México. Fotografía: Irvin Tobias/ Secretaría de Cultura…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/02/MX_IT_SEVILLANAS_Y_RUMBA_FLAMENCA_2.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Secretaría de Cultura de la Ciudad de México","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Domingo 04 de Noviembre 2018 CDMX Sevillanas y Rumba Flamenca,Dir:Selena González, España, se presento en el escenario 2 como parte de la programación artística de la celebración de Muertos 2018 en el Zócalo de la Ciudad de México. Fotografía: Irvin Tobias/ Secretaría de Cultura…","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/02/MX_IT_SEVILLANAS_Y_RUMBA_FLAMENCA_2.jpg/960px-MX_IT_SEVILLANAS_Y_RUMBA_FLAMENCA_2.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:MX_IT_SEVILLANAS_Y_RUMBA_FLAMENCA_2.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/02/MX_IT_SEVILLANAS_Y_RUMBA_FLAMENCA_2.jpg/1280px-MX_IT_SEVILLANAS_Y_RUMBA_FLAMENCA_2.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:17.240Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/rumba-flamenca"}
{"id":"7eb5e8e2-ee89-49db-a6f2-9cf24132696a","type":"art_form","slug":"sacred-dance","title":"sacred dance","summary":"Sacred dance is the use of dance in religious ceremonies and rituals, present in most religions throughout history and prehistory.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"g6m6a1zh5k","content":[{"text":"Sacred dance is the use of dance in religious ceremonies and rituals, present in most religions throughout history and prehistory. Its connection with the human body and fertility has caused it to be forbidden by some religions; for example, some branches of Christianity and Islam have prohibited dancing. Dance has formed a major element of worship in Hindu temples, with strictly formalized styles such as Bharatanatyam, which require skilled dancers and temple musicians. In the 20th century, sacred dance has been revived by choreographers such as Bernhard Wosien as a means of developing community spirit.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9476e038-1b7d-4f5f-934c-0ae812881a08"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Purposes","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ksx0np9xvt","content":[{"text":"The theologian W. O. E. Oesterley proposed in 1923 that sacred dance had several purposes, the most important being to honour supernatural powers; the other purposes were to \"show off\" before the powers; to unite the dancer with a supernatural power, as in the dances for the Greek goddesses Demeter and Persephone; making the body suitable as a temporary dwelling-place for the deity, by dancing ecstatically to unconsciousness; making crops grow, or helping or encouraging the deity to make them grow, as with Ariadne's Dance as described in the Iliad; consecrating a victim for sacrifice (as with the Israelites circling the altar, or the Sarawak Kayans circling a sacrificial pig); paying homage to the deity present for an initiation ceremony; helping warriors to victory in battle, and appeasing the spirits of the enemy killed in battle; averting the dangers associated with marriage, at a wedding ceremony; and at a funeral or mourning ceremony, purposes such as driving away the malevolent ghost of the dead person, or preventing the ghost from leaving the grave, or frightening off any evil spirits attracted by the corpse, or temporarily and invisibly bringing the dead person back to join in the dance, or simply honouring the dead person.\nThe dancer and scholar Harriet Lihs in 2009 divided religious dance into dances of imitation, such as of animals thought to be spirit messengers, or of battles; \"medicine dances\", i.e.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9476e038-1b7d-4f5f-934c-0ae812881a08"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"In ancient times","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4pdzd87r37","content":[{"text":"Indigenous ceremonial dance rituals around the world appear to preserve forms that were widespread in ancient times. For example, processionals and circle dances seen in indigenous dance today were used in ancient Egypt and among the Hebrews. In ancient Egypt, dancers impersonated a deity such as the goddess Hathor, taking on the deity's attributes and interpreting the divine world for those watching.\nIn ancient Israel, the Hebrew Bible mentions dancing during religious worship. The prophet Miriam led dancing following the crossing of the Red Sea during the Exodus. During the return of the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem, King David danced \"before the Lord with all his might\". Dancing is mentioned as something familiar, implying it was a common practice. Sacred dance is described in the Bible by verbs meaning dancing, rotating, jumping, skipping, and whirling. The dance was accompanied by hand-drums (tambourines), cymbals, flutes, pipes, lyres, harps, and lutes.\nThe Hittites are shown in a sacred processional dance in a c. 1200 BCrock inscription at the sanctuary of Yazılıkaya, near their city of Hattusa, in Cappadocia.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9476e038-1b7d-4f5f-934c-0ae812881a08"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Judaism","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m82kd02k8b","content":[{"text":"Judaism observes the festival of Simchat Torah, which includes dancing in synagogues.\nThe Hasidic movement, which dates from the 18th century, practices dancing in a religious context.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9476e038-1b7d-4f5f-934c-0ae812881a08"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Christianity","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"r9bcqwnf1a","content":[{"text":"Some Christian traditions make use of liturgical or worship dance, but it has long been controversial within the church. It has been supported, sometimes fervently, by both priests and Christian scholars; and opposed, sometimes stridently, by others who for example wrote some 157 tracts against dance between 1685 and 1963. The early church was largely in favour of dance, with the eminent Church Father Augustine arguing that Christian dance ought to be orderly according to a reasoned rhythm, in harmony with the Jewish tradition, but in contrast to ecstatic Greco-Roman dance. A typical early Christian dance is the 2nd century AD circle dance in the Acts of John which states that \"Grace danceth. I would pipe: dance ye all. The whole world on high hath part in our dancing.\" Circle dance is used, in its more meditative form, in worship within religious traditions including the Church of England. In northern Greece and southern Bulgaria, in the annual celebrations for Saint Constantine and Saint Helen, dancers perform the Anastenaria, a fire-walking ritual, as the climax of three days of processions, music, dancing, and animal sacrifice.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9476e038-1b7d-4f5f-934c-0ae812881a08"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Hinduism","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"an0wjzfq8f","content":[{"text":"Indian classical dances such as Bharatanatyam, Kathak, Odissi, and Mohiniattam can be traced to the Sanskrit text Natya Shastra. They are a traditional drama-dance expression of religion, related to Vaishnavism, Shaivism, Shaktism, pan-Hindu epics and the Vedic literature. As a religious art, they are either performed inside the sanctum of a Hindu temple, or near it.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9476e038-1b7d-4f5f-934c-0ae812881a08"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6qwz2w2ycp","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Sacred dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9476e038-1b7d-4f5f-934c-0ae812881a08"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s0dd2bnzpq","content":[{"text":"sacred dance is use of dance in religious ceremonies and rituals, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c7b5e9a0-bb12-4fa4-9b22-e37193170784"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"n09nk1gzqy","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 8 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c7b5e9a0-bb12-4fa4-9b22-e37193170784"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Un grupo de baile religioso danzando en la explanada del Templo Votivo de Maipú. 14 de marzo de 2010.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/46/Baile_Religioso_-_Templo_Votivo_Maip%C3%BA.JPG?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Jorge Barrios","height":1707,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Un grupo de baile religioso danzando en la explanada del Templo Votivo de Maipú. 14 de marzo de 2010.","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/46/Baile_Religioso_-_Templo_Votivo_Maip%C3%BA.JPG/960px-Baile_Religioso_-_Templo_Votivo_Maip%C3%BA.JPG?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Baile_Religioso_-_Templo_Votivo_Maip%C3%BA.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/46/Baile_Religioso_-_Templo_Votivo_Maip%C3%BA.JPG/1280px-Baile_Religioso_-_Templo_Votivo_Maip%C3%BA.JPG?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:16.927Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/sacred-dance"}
{"id":"4ce77951-0afb-4a73-a669-0634d48be8be","type":"art_form","slug":"salsa","title":"salsa","summary":"Salsa is the name for Latin American dances that are danced to salsa music.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hskchyeqcs","content":[{"text":"Salsa is the name for Latin American dances that are danced to salsa music. Salsa is one of the most popular types of Latin dance that is practiced worldwide, and is typically danced with a partner, although there are elements of solo footwork as well. There are several distinct styles of salsa that are danced around the world.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"579ce038-8b7f-49e2-9eab-d1ac052dd082"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origin","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"byhs12r9vy","content":[{"text":"The term \"salsa\" was popularized in New York in the 1960s and 1970s by Johnny Pacheco, Fania Records, and the Fania All-Stars as an umbrella label for a New York-based form of Afro-Caribbean dance music with roots in Cuba and mid-20th-century New York. Salsa dance developed from a longer lineage of Afro-Cuban and Caribbean social dances, especially Son cubano, danzón, mambo, cha-cha-chá, and rumba.\nSalsa's movement vocabulary reflects both African-derived and European-derived influences. African and Afro-Cuban traditions contributed polyrhythmic movement, body isolations, grounded footwork, improvisation, and call-and-response interaction, including influences associated with Yoruba, Bantu, rumba, and Santería/Orisha practices. European-derived social dance traditions contributed partner-dance structures, couple formations, and ballroom lineages, especially through Cuban danzón, which developed from European country dance, French contredanse, and Spanish contradanza in contact with African rhythmic and dance practices.\nIn the United States, modern salsa dance was shaped by Palladium-era mambo and related Latin dances, while also absorbing influences from jazz, swing, hustle, tap, and other U.S. social and stage dance traditions. New York and Los Angeles styles later became internationally influential through dance schools, performance teams, congresses, and commercial salsa instruction. Cuban casino, often called Cuban salsa outside Cuba, developed from related Cuban antecedents such as son, mambo, cha-cha-chá, rumba, and danzón, while retaining a more circular partner-dance structure than the slot-based forms common in New York and Los Angeles styles.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"579ce038-8b7f-49e2-9eab-d1ac052dd082"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Description","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"48f2q358en","content":[{"text":"Salsa dance steps can be done individually, but salsa is most popularly known as a partner dance where the lead takes the follower through a series of spins and turn patterns to music. Salsa's tempo ranges from about 150 bpm (beats per minute) to around 250 bpm, although most dancing is done to music somewhere between 160 and 220 bpm. The basic salsa dance rhythm consists of taking three steps for every four beats of music. Salsa dancers can also break apart to dance solo, known as \"shines\".\nThe two main styles of partnered salsa dancing are linear and circular. In linear salsa, dance couples remain in their \"slot\", with each dancer switching places from one side of the slot to the other, similar to West Coast Swing—New York–style salsa and LA-style salsa are both danced this way. The second style of partnered salsa dancing is circular salsa. Here, dancers circle around each other, reminiscent of East Coast Swing. Both Cuban and Colombian salsa follow this circular pattern.\nIncorporating other dance styling techniques into salsa dancing has become very common for both men and women: foot work, arm work, body movement, spins, body isolations, shoulder shimmies, body rolls, hand styling, acrobatics, and even lifts.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"579ce038-8b7f-49e2-9eab-d1ac052dd082"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Venues","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hs36509427","content":[{"text":"Salsa dance socials are commonly held in night clubs, bars, ballrooms, restaurants, and outside, especially if part of an outdoor festival. Festivals are held annually, often called a salsa congress, in various host cities aimed to attract a variety of salsa dancers from other cities and countries.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"579ce038-8b7f-49e2-9eab-d1ac052dd082"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Styles","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b5a2rbackh","content":[{"text":"Over the years, many different styles of salsa dancing have evolved around the world. Many of them are compatible with each other, but others are different enough to make dancing between dancers of different styles difficult.\nSalsa has many similarities with other partner dances, the styles and skills learned in salsa can be applied to other partnered dances like Bachata or West Coast Swing. Incorporating other dance styling techniques into salsa dancing has also become common, with dancers incorporating styles and movements from dance styles such as ballet and hip hop to create new fusions of dance styles.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"579ce038-8b7f-49e2-9eab-d1ac052dd082"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"New York style","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"h8q0vncr41","content":[{"text":"\"On 2\" style salsa originated in New York and is often referred to as New York style. It is a linear form of salsa, where dancers dance in a slot, similar to LA style salsa. Unlike other styles of salsa, however, New York style is danced on the second beat of the music (\"on 2\"), and the follower, not the leader, steps forward on the first measure of the music. There is also often a greater emphasis on performing \"shines\" in which dancers separate themselves and dance solo with intricate footwork and styling—a phenomenon that likely has origins from Swing and New York Tap.\nNew York style is the first style of salsa to emerge following the birth of salsa music in New York, and is a mixture of Cuban dances, such as mambo, son, pachanga, and rumba as well as American dances such as swing and tap.\nOne of the most influential figures in New York style salsa is Eddie Torres (known as \"the Mambo King\"), who is credited with helping to formalize the on 2 salsa timing (based on the tumbao rhythm) and helping to popularize it by teaching it in dance studios in New York and through early instructional tapes.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"579ce038-8b7f-49e2-9eab-d1ac052dd082"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ngqxv5mfak","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Salsa (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"579ce038-8b7f-49e2-9eab-d1ac052dd082"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2bjgrmtsch","content":[{"text":"salsa is dance form, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c7f29a13-1acc-484b-a58f-8394c3014703"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"x8xz2d26p4","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 17 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c7f29a13-1acc-484b-a58f-8394c3014703"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Student performers of \"Salsa\" at \"Semana de la cutura\" in ITESM CCM.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c9/CCMDonation99.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Edil Villa","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Student performers of \"Salsa\" at \"Semana de la cutura\" in ITESM CCM.","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c9/CCMDonation99.jpg/960px-CCMDonation99.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:CCMDonation99.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c9/CCMDonation99.jpg/1280px-CCMDonation99.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-08-31T05:47:05.358Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/salsa"}
{"id":"8d2c3904-2773-4906-9609-de857ad95cd6","type":"art_form","slug":"saltarello","title":"saltarello","summary":"The saltarello is a musical dance originally from Italy. The first mention of it is in Add MS 29987, a late-fourteenth- or early fifteenth-century manuscript of Tuscan origin, now in the British Library.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"j3sfvmazfv","content":[{"text":"The saltarello is a musical dance originally from Italy. The first mention of it is in Add MS 29987, a late-fourteenth- or early fifteenth-century manuscript of Tuscan origin, now in the British Library. It was usually played in a fast triple meter and is named for its peculiar leaping step, after the Italian verb saltare (\"to jump\"). This characteristic is also the basis of the German name Hoppertanz or Hupfertanz (\"hopping dance\"); other names include the French pas de Brabant and the Spanish alta or alta danza.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"426234b0-68e6-48d1-b126-2173f93bb0fe"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3twmgcvk17","content":[{"text":"The saltarello enjoyed great popularity in the courts of medieval Europe.  During the 14th century, the word saltarello became the name of a particular dance step (a double with a hop on the final or initial upbeat), and the name of a meter of music (a fast triple), both of which appear in many choreographed dances. Entire dances consisting of only the saltarello step and meter are described as being improvised dances in 15th-century Italian dance manuals. (The first dance treatise that dealt with the saltarello was the 1465 work of Antonio Cornazzano.) A clearer, detailed description of this step and meter appears in a 16th-century manuscript in Madrid's Academia de la Historia. During this era, the saltarello was danced by bands of courtesans dressed as men at masquerades. \nThe saltarello is one of four dance misure or rhythms at the time, the others being bassadanza, quadernaria, and piva. Each of the four misure corresponded to a time signature (unknown today) and its own characteristic step. Quadernaria was also known as saltarello tedesco (or \"German\" saltarello, after its rhythm), but experts believe it was rarely danced, unlike the other three misure.\nIn 1540, Hans Neusidler published an Italian dance under the name Hupff auff (introductory skip), and identified it with a parenthetical subtitle: \"saltarella\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"426234b0-68e6-48d1-b126-2173f93bb0fe"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"As a folk dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"df3t7fve40","content":[{"text":"Although a Tuscan court dance in origin, the saltarello laziale became the typical Italian folk dance of Lazio and a favorite tradition of Rome in the Carnival and vintage festivities of Monte Testaccio. After witnessing the Roman Carnival of 1831, the German composer Felix Mendelssohn incorporated the dance into the finale of one of his masterpieces, the Italian Symphony. The only example of a saltarello in the North is saltarello romagnolo of Romagna.\nThe saltarello is still a popular folk dance played in the regions of southern-central Italy, such as Abruzzo, Molise (but in these two regions the name is feminine: Saltarella), Lazio and Marche.  The dance is usually performed on the zampogna bagpipe or the organetto, a type of diatonic button accordion, and is accompanied by a tamburello or hand-drum.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"426234b0-68e6-48d1-b126-2173f93bb0fe"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Medieval saltarelli","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7mtwwy5wxh","content":[{"text":"The principal source for the medieval Italian saltarello is the Tuscan manuscript Add MS 29987, dating from the late 14th or early 15th century and now in the British Library. The musical form of these four early saltarelli is similar to that of the estampie. However, they are in different metres: two are in senaria imperfecta, and two in quaternaria. No choreographies survive from before the 1430s, and it is not clear that these four dances have any relationship to later saltarelli.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"426234b0-68e6-48d1-b126-2173f93bb0fe"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"In classical music","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9e0e3td7ka","content":[{"text":"Tielman Susato included a saltarello in Het derde musikboexken: Danserye (1551).\nJoseph La Monaca \"Saltarello\" for solo piccolo and symphonic orchestra\nA lute piece entitled \"Saltarello\" is attributed to Vincenzo Galilei, written in the 16th century.\nOdoardo Barri: Six morceaux de salon, for alto-viola and piano (no. 6 is a saltarello)\nFelix Mendelssohn used the Saltarello for the fourth movement of his Symphony No. 4 \"Italian\".\nFanny Hensel: Il saltarello romano, for piano, Op. 6, No. 4\nCharles-Valentin Alkan wrote a \"Saltarelle\" Op. 23, and in the final movement of his Sonate de Concert Op. 47 for piano and cello, \"Finale alla Saltarella\".\nBerlioz used a saltarello in the Carnival scene of Benvenuto Cellini which was reprised in the Roman Carnival Overture.\nJoachim Raff: Saltarello, for piano, Op. 108\nCharles Gounod: Saltarello for orchestra\nCamille Saint-Saëns: Saltarelle, for men's choir, Op. 74\nCamille Saint-Saëns: the last movement of the Piano Concerto No. 2, Op. 22 is a Saltarelle\nEugène Ketterer: Saltarelle, for piano, Op. 266\nDaniel van Goens: Saltarello for cello and piano, Op. 35\nErnst Haberbier: Saltarello for piano. Op. 54\nMax Mayer: Fünf Klavierstücke, Op. 6 (no. 3 is \"Alla saltarello\")\nF. Laurent-Rollandez: Saltarello for piano, Op. 18\nFranz Ries: Nocturne et Saltarello, for violin and piano\nS. B. Mills: Saltarello, for piano, Op. 26\nBernhard Molique: Saltarella, for violin and piano, Op. 55\nH. T. Manicus: Saltarello, for piano\nGeorge Grothe: Saltarello Galop, for piano\nEmil Kronke: Saltarello, for piano, Op. 32\nGeorge Frederick Bristow: Saltarello, for piano\nAugust Marten: 4 Charakterstücke for violin and piano, Op. 8 (no. 2 is a saltarello)\nGeorg Goltermann: Saltarello, for cello and piano, Op. 59, No. 2\nGustav Satter: Saltarello, for piano, Op.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"426234b0-68e6-48d1-b126-2173f93bb0fe"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"e3c7w6q8ty","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Saltarello”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"426234b0-68e6-48d1-b126-2173f93bb0fe"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hyb4k3708x","content":[{"text":"saltarello is dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"223b0ad3-c6db-4ef7-b23a-ecd91ecb894c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f7e74x4gga","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 12 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"223b0ad3-c6db-4ef7-b23a-ecd91ecb894c"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Two women dance as another plays the tambourine : Saltarello, an Italan dance","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8e/Il_saltarello_%28Two_women_dance_as_another_plays_the_tambourine%29_-_Lithograph_by_Hortense_Lescot%2C_Wellcome.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Hortense Haudebourt-Lescot","height":1769,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Two women dance as another plays the tambourine : Saltarello, an Italan dance","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8e/Il_saltarello_%28Two_women_dance_as_another_plays_the_tambourine%29_-_Lithograph_by_Hortense_Lescot%2C_Wellcome.jpg/960px-Il_saltarello_%28Two_women_dance_as_another_plays_the_tambourine%29_-_Lithograph_by_Hortense_Lescot%2C_Wellcome.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Il_saltarello_(Two_women_dance_as_another_plays_the_tambourine)_-_Lithograph_by_Hortense_Lescot,_Wellcome.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8e/Il_saltarello_%28Two_women_dance_as_another_plays_the_tambourine%29_-_Lithograph_by_Hortense_Lescot%2C_Wellcome.jpg/1280px-Il_saltarello_%28Two_women_dance_as_another_plays_the_tambourine%29_-_Lithograph_by_Hortense_Lescot%2C_Wellcome.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"Roma. Il saltarello (acquaforte).","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f2/Roma._Il_saltarello_%28acquaforte%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Aubert","height":981,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Roma. Il saltarello (acquaforte).","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f2/Roma._Il_saltarello_%28acquaforte%29.jpg/960px-Roma._Il_saltarello_%28acquaforte%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Roma._Il_saltarello_(acquaforte).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f2/Roma._Il_saltarello_%28acquaforte%29.jpg/1280px-Roma._Il_saltarello_%28acquaforte%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"},{"alt":"Saltarello rhythm. Created by Hyacinth ( talk ) 01:51, 11 February 2010 using Sibelius 5.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ed/Saltarello_dance_pattern.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Hyacinth at English Wikipedia","height":164,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Saltarello rhythm. Created by Hyacinth ( talk ) 01:51, 11 February 2010 using Sibelius 5.","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ed/Saltarello_dance_pattern.png/960px-Saltarello_dance_pattern.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Saltarello_dance_pattern.png","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ed/Saltarello_dance_pattern.png/1280px-Saltarello_dance_pattern.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-03T05:48:12.450Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/saltarello"}
{"id":"0f2896fe-4073-4a25-8d68-b47dd6637350","type":"art_form","slug":"saman","title":"Saman","summary":"Saman (also known as the dance of a thousand hands) is one of the most popular dances in Indonesia.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"em683pqeaf","content":[{"text":"Saman (also known as the dance of a thousand hands) is one of the most popular dances in Indonesia. Its origin is from the Gayo ethnic group from Gayo Lues, Aceh province, Indonesia, and it is usually performed to celebrate important occasions. The dance is characterized by its fast-paced rhythm and common harmony between dancers. These two elements are key figures of Saman and are among the reasons Saman is widely known and practiced in Indonesia, besides being relatively easy to learn.\nOn November 24, 2011, UNESCO officially recognized Aceh's traditional Saman dance as an Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding.\nThe ASEAN Tourism Association (ASEANTA) named the Saman dance as the best ASEAN cultural preservation effort at the 25th ASEANTA Awards for Excellence 2012.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9fd33a29-c860-4da9-8742-96a6684f9b23"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"16h01rq7v7","content":[{"text":"The word \"saman\" comes from Sheikh Saman, a cleric from Gayo in Aceh. Syekh Saman developed a dance which is now called the Saman dance to spread Islam in the land of Gayo, Province of Aceh, Indonesia.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9fd33a29-c860-4da9-8742-96a6684f9b23"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Form","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c46284adbb","content":[{"text":"The dance is performed by a group of people without musical instruments. Originally, the group was exclusively men. In performing this dance, the player sings some songs (syair) while doing the attractive movements. A short song (which leads to a short dance) can last for approximately 15 to 20 minutes.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9fd33a29-c860-4da9-8742-96a6684f9b23"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Performance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"d4v3qrjmnj","content":[{"text":"A typical Saman performance is usually constituted of the following elements: The dancers enter the stage and immediately form a single line while sitting in a form equivalent to the Japanese seiza. The singer then begins to sing, with the lyrics at the beginning commonly telling the general attributes of Gayo culture at a medium pace. The dancers then begin to move their hands rhythmically, following the movements. As the dance progresses, the movements are also performed with arms, head, and the upper body. The pace becomes faster, and the seat positions may change. The key element is that every dancer must move at the same time, creating a homogeneous, continuous line of movement that is often described as the defining feature of Saman dance. One thing that makes this dance unique is that the original Saman dance, which comes from Gayo Lues, is not accompanied by any musical instruments.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9fd33a29-c860-4da9-8742-96a6684f9b23"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"77ht87vx8v","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Saman (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9fd33a29-c860-4da9-8742-96a6684f9b23"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t1fx6cjhzm","content":[{"text":"Saman is tradition of the Gayo people of Aceh province in Sumatra, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a03a9858-e24d-48af-a5c2-ac55a3350c08"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5nb155ads5","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a03a9858-e24d-48af-a5c2-ac55a3350c08"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Saman (or the dance of a thousand hands) is one of the most popular dances in Indonesia. Its origin is from the Gayo ethnic group from Gayo Lues, Aceh province, Sumatera, and is normally performed to celebrate important occasions. The dance is characterized by its fast-paced…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/dc/Saman_Dance%2C_Aceh_Indonesia.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"IrmaRosalina","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Saman (or the dance of a thousand hands) is one of the most popular dances in Indonesia. Its origin is from the Gayo ethnic group from Gayo Lues, Aceh province, Sumatera, and is normally performed to celebrate important occasions. The dance is characterized by its fast-paced…","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/dc/Saman_Dance%2C_Aceh_Indonesia.jpg/960px-Saman_Dance%2C_Aceh_Indonesia.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Saman_Dance,_Aceh_Indonesia.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/dc/Saman_Dance%2C_Aceh_Indonesia.jpg/1280px-Saman_Dance%2C_Aceh_Indonesia.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:05.974Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/saman"}
{"id":"e1ae8ed4-5816-4e62-9b74-8896bf0d949f","type":"art_form","slug":"sammi","title":"Sammi","summary":"Sammi (Shahmukhi: سمّی) is a traditional dance form originating from the tribal communities of Punjab. The dance originates from Sandal bar but is also popular in other Bars and Pothohar regions of Pakistani Punjab.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"j89pyfh1vw","content":[{"text":"Sammi (Shahmukhi: سمّی) is a traditional dance form originating from the tribal communities of Punjab. The dance originates from Sandal bar but is also popular in other Bars and Pothohar regions of Pakistani Punjab.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e9ce9c32-676a-45e5-97ca-22939c33bbfd"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0ad3q6ka9t","content":[{"text":"The dance is named after a young heroine of a legend, Sammi, who was madly in love and used to sing and dance as best as she could for the sake of her love.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e9ce9c32-676a-45e5-97ca-22939c33bbfd"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Costume","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sne0znvq9j","content":[{"text":"The dancers are dressed in bright colored kurtas and full flowing skirts called Ghagra or Lehenga. A peculiar silver hair ornament is associated with this dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e9ce9c32-676a-45e5-97ca-22939c33bbfd"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Performance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xyecb53g1r","content":[{"text":"Like Giddha it is danced in a circle. The dancers stand in a ring and swing their hands bringing them up from the sides, right in front. The refrain of the most popular Sammi song is \"Sammi Meri waar..\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e9ce9c32-676a-45e5-97ca-22939c33bbfd"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sjvap42b2y","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Sammi (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e9ce9c32-676a-45e5-97ca-22939c33bbfd"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yd0t28rx1t","content":[{"text":"Sammi is traditional dance form of Punjab, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fbbf7dbe-a177-4998-8f70-376111cdcca3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"459gawj1kp","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fbbf7dbe-a177-4998-8f70-376111cdcca3"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Sammi Cheng in 2023","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5e/Sammi_Cheng_2023.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Kkwaie","height":1920,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Sammi Cheng in 2023","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5e/Sammi_Cheng_2023.jpg/960px-Sammi_Cheng_2023.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sammi_Cheng_2023.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5e/Sammi_Cheng_2023.jpg/1280px-Sammi_Cheng_2023.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"#FOLLOWMi Sammi Cheng World Tour Live in Hong Kong 2019","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f5/Sammi_Cheng_2019.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"AlfredWong925","height":1920,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"#FOLLOWMi Sammi Cheng World Tour Live in Hong Kong 2019","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f5/Sammi_Cheng_2019.jpg/960px-Sammi_Cheng_2019.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sammi_Cheng_2019.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f5/Sammi_Cheng_2019.jpg/1280px-Sammi_Cheng_2019.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"#FOLLOWMi Sammi Cheng World Tour Live in Hong Kong 2019","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/ca/Sammi_Cheng_2019_%28cropped%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"AlfredWong925","height":1360,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"#FOLLOWMi Sammi Cheng World Tour Live in Hong Kong 2019","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/ca/Sammi_Cheng_2019_%28cropped%29.jpg/960px-Sammi_Cheng_2019_%28cropped%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sammi_Cheng_2019_(cropped).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/ca/Sammi_Cheng_2019_%28cropped%29.jpg/1280px-Sammi_Cheng_2019_%28cropped%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:13.782Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/sammi"}
{"id":"372d7858-92b7-4eea-80a2-629e50c64b84","type":"art_form","slug":"samoan-dance","title":"Samoan dance","summary":"Samoan dance traditions reflect contact between Samoan culture and other cultures from the East and West.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8h1nhnjwtp","content":[{"text":"Samoan dance traditions reflect contact between Samoan culture and other cultures from the East and West. The space in which dance is conducted has been interpreted as a microcosm of Samoan society.\nSamoan dance has been characterized as a means of maintaining Samoan identity in contact with other civilizations.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2b13b9e3-df81-4a25-885b-9217d43ae009"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Traditional dances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"66hgmnh1t1","content":[{"text":"Fa'ataupati\nMaulu'ulu\nSasa\nSiva afi\nSiva tau\nTaualuga\nMatamatame\n'Ailao","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2b13b9e3-df81-4a25-885b-9217d43ae009"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"88ddk0p67s","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Samoan dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2b13b9e3-df81-4a25-885b-9217d43ae009"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f4ajfx2xxt","content":[{"text":"Samoan dance is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4b019736-745b-4e0f-b984-1487b8e5bc54"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0ybmq99yg1","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4b019736-745b-4e0f-b984-1487b8e5bc54"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"View of a traditional Samoan dance performed at the Pasifika Festival, 2016. Performers are wearing traditional Samoan dresses 'puletasi' and decorations.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e3/Samoan_Village_at_Pasifika_Festival%2C_2016._%28PASF-D-2016-145%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Adana Dobranis","height":1920,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"View of a traditional Samoan dance performed at the Pasifika Festival, 2016. Performers are wearing traditional Samoan dresses 'puletasi' and decorations.","licence":"CC BY 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e3/Samoan_Village_at_Pasifika_Festival%2C_2016._%28PASF-D-2016-145%29.jpg/960px-Samoan_Village_at_Pasifika_Festival%2C_2016._%28PASF-D-2016-145%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Samoan_Village_at_Pasifika_Festival,_2016._(PASF-D-2016-145).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e3/Samoan_Village_at_Pasifika_Festival%2C_2016._%28PASF-D-2016-145%29.jpg/1280px-Samoan_Village_at_Pasifika_Festival%2C_2016._%28PASF-D-2016-145%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0"},{"alt":"View of a traditional Samoan dance performed at the Pasifika Festival, 2016. Performers are wearing traditional Samoan dresses 'puletasi' and decorations.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7e/Samoan_Village_at_Pasifika_Festival%2C_2016._%28PASF-D-2016-147%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Adana Dobranis","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"View of a traditional Samoan dance performed at the Pasifika Festival, 2016. Performers are wearing traditional Samoan dresses 'puletasi' and decorations.","licence":"CC BY 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7e/Samoan_Village_at_Pasifika_Festival%2C_2016._%28PASF-D-2016-147%29.jpg/960px-Samoan_Village_at_Pasifika_Festival%2C_2016._%28PASF-D-2016-147%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Samoan_Village_at_Pasifika_Festival,_2016._(PASF-D-2016-147).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7e/Samoan_Village_at_Pasifika_Festival%2C_2016._%28PASF-D-2016-147%29.jpg/1280px-Samoan_Village_at_Pasifika_Festival%2C_2016._%28PASF-D-2016-147%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0"},{"alt":"Zoomable full resolution image available at davidrumsey.com . This image 4442.021 is a part of image group 4442.000 . Engraved view, b&w. See note field above. Haskell 18. Subjects:","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/ff/Samoan_Dance._Drawn_by_A.T._Agate._A._Jones_sc._%28Philadelphia-_Lea_%26_Blanchard._1845%29_%28IA_dr_samoan-dance-drawn-by-at-agate-a-jones-sc-philadelphia-lea-blanch-4442021%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"United States Exploring Expedition (1838-1842) Wilkes, Charles, 1798-1877 Agate, A. T. Jones, Alfred","height":923,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Zoomable full resolution image available at davidrumsey.com . This image 4442.021 is a part of image group 4442.000 . Engraved view, b&w. See note field above. Haskell 18. Subjects:","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/ff/Samoan_Dance._Drawn_by_A.T._Agate._A._Jones_sc._%28Philadelphia-_Lea_%26_Blanchard._1845%29_%28IA_dr_samoan-dance-drawn-by-at-agate-a-jones-sc-philadelphia-lea-blanch-4442021%29.jpg/960px-thumbnail.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Samoan_Dance._Drawn_by_A.T._Agate._A._Jones_sc._(Philadelphia-_Lea_%26_Blanchard._1845)_(IA_dr_samoan-dance-drawn-by-at-agate-a-jones-sc-philadelphia-lea-blanch-4442021).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/ff/Samoan_Dance._Drawn_by_A.T._Agate._A._Jones_sc._%28Philadelphia-_Lea_%26_Blanchard._1845%29_%28IA_dr_samoan-dance-drawn-by-at-agate-a-jones-sc-philadelphia-lea-blanch-4442021%29.jpg/1280px-thumbnail.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:15.437Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/samoan-dance"}
{"id":"3327a214-260e-4f73-b790-b6f426e42d59","type":"art_form","slug":"sanghyang","title":"Sanghyang","summary":"Sanghyang (Balinese: ᬲᬂᬳ᭄ᬬᬂ​) is a traditional sacred Balinese dance originated from the Indonesian island of Bali. It is based on the premise that an unseen force enters the body of an entranced performer.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w4xr2eyqw1","content":[{"text":"Sanghyang (Balinese: ᬲᬂᬳ᭄ᬬᬂ​) is a traditional sacred Balinese dance originated from the Indonesian island of Bali. It is based on the premise that an unseen force enters the body of an entranced performer. The force, identified as hyang, is an important type of spiritual entity in ancient Indonesian mythology.\nThe sanghyang dances are considered sacred ritual dances and are performed exclusively at Balinese religious ceremonies.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"94fc8555-a132-4f97-b1b8-f1a4c5ba572a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Sanghyang bojog","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qcdh0qn8gx","content":[{"text":"The dancer is a man dressed like a monkey (bojog) and accompanied by a chorus of chanting sanghyang. Before it begins, the dancer goes through the phases of summoning ape spirits. After conceding, the dancer will jump into a tree and mimic the behavior of an ape. This dance is only found in Bugbug, Karangasem.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"94fc8555-a132-4f97-b1b8-f1a4c5ba572a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Sanghyang celeng","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"d1ze1wk846","content":[{"text":"This is a sanghyang dance variant only found in Duda, Karangasem, danced by a man wearing palm fiber clothing. The dancer mimics the movements of a pig.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"94fc8555-a132-4f97-b1b8-f1a4c5ba572a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Sanghyang dedari","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k7g9ax5fts","content":[{"text":"Sanghyang dedari is a dance performed by pre-pubescent girls, similar in some ways to the legong dance. Often, the girls are carried on the shoulders of men; trance is associated with this ritual.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"94fc8555-a132-4f97-b1b8-f1a4c5ba572a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Sanghyang deling","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2vhp5h5t0f","content":[{"text":"This dance is performed by a pair of pre-pubescent girls who are entered by the spirit of Goddess Sri (Goddess of Fertility). Each dancer holds a tree linked to a thread, where two suspended dolls are made from a lontar leaf called deling.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"94fc8555-a132-4f97-b1b8-f1a4c5ba572a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Sanghyang grodog","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kyqpnr92a0","content":[{"text":"This is danced by 23 people, each of whom has a different character.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"94fc8555-a132-4f97-b1b8-f1a4c5ba572a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rybw0zeze5","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Sanghyang”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"94fc8555-a132-4f97-b1b8-f1a4c5ba572a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8ad8f61n9j","content":[{"text":"Sanghyang is Indonesian traditional dance, sacred Balinese dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a8ba9e93-7e79-41e2-876c-89cb82c932bd"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"79nzh9sad0","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a8ba9e93-7e79-41e2-876c-89cb82c932bd"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"A Sanghyang Jaran dancer in Ubud.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c5/Sanghyang_Jaran_Fire_Dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Olivier Lejade","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"A Sanghyang Jaran dancer in Ubud.","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c5/Sanghyang_Jaran_Fire_Dance.jpg/960px-Sanghyang_Jaran_Fire_Dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sanghyang_Jaran_Fire_Dance.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c5/Sanghyang_Jaran_Fire_Dance.jpg/1280px-Sanghyang_Jaran_Fire_Dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"},{"alt":"Original description by photographer: dance is performed by two underage girls, since virgins are considered holy. The girls are placed in a trance prior to dancing and set between the female and male choirs. The dancers sway freely in a dream vision. Their movements are…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3d/Sanghyang_dedari_dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"casey yancey","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Original description by photographer: dance is performed by two underage girls, since virgins are considered holy. The girls are placed in a trance prior to dancing and set between the female and male choirs. The dancers sway freely in a dream vision. Their movements are…","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3d/Sanghyang_dedari_dance.jpg/960px-Sanghyang_dedari_dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sanghyang_dedari_dance.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3d/Sanghyang_dedari_dance.jpg/1280px-Sanghyang_dedari_dance.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"},{"alt":"Balinese sacred dance ritual, Sanghyang Jaran, is a dance performed by boys who ride coconut hobby horses (Kuda Lumping) in and around a fire. Trance is also associated with this ritual. Performed to ward off pestilence and plague and restore harmony to the seen and unseen.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e1/Sang_Hyang_Jaran.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Bathyaangga","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Balinese sacred dance ritual, Sanghyang Jaran, is a dance performed by boys who ride coconut hobby horses (Kuda Lumping) in and around a fire. Trance is also associated with this ritual. Performed to ward off pestilence and plague and restore harmony to the seen and unseen.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e1/Sang_Hyang_Jaran.jpg/960px-Sang_Hyang_Jaran.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sang_Hyang_Jaran.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e1/Sang_Hyang_Jaran.jpg/1280px-Sang_Hyang_Jaran.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:16.047Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/sanghyang"}
{"id":"1ffb701d-e3f6-472f-b9d7-de87cb4ce441","type":"art_form","slug":"sarba","title":"Sârbă","summary":"A Sârbă (Moldovan spelling: sîrba; Cyrillic Moldovan: сырба) is a Romanian folk dance normally played in 68 or 128 time.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ghw7ym21ga","content":[{"text":"A Sârbă (Moldovan spelling: sîrba; Cyrillic Moldovan: сырба) is a Romanian folk dance normally played in 68 or 128 time.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"53059f44-cb3e-48fd-a452-4d858f760e23"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s2zf28cgm0","content":[{"text":"The word Sârbă literally means \"Serbian\". It can be danced in a circle, line, or couple formations and alternates between travelling or resting phrases.\nIt was historically popular not only in Romania, but also in Moldova, Serbia, Ukraine, Hungary, Polish highlanders (Gorals) and Ashkenazi Jews. It is fast-paced and triplets are usually emphasized in the melody. The sârba is still popular in Romanian traditional music and in Jewish Klezmer music. In Serbia its version is called Vlaski (\"Wallachian\").","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"53059f44-cb3e-48fd-a452-4d858f760e23"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3dfqxy6842","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Sârbă”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"53059f44-cb3e-48fd-a452-4d858f760e23"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gfmw1e573k","content":[{"text":"Sârbă is folk dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"09ac7e3f-ce8d-4d02-927e-222eb0fbca54"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"95e36eayd2","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"09ac7e3f-ce8d-4d02-927e-222eb0fbca54"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Sarba seen from Harissa, Lebanon","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/84/Sarba_From_Harissa%2C_Lebanon.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Paul Saad","height":720,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Sarba seen from Harissa, Lebanon","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/84/Sarba_From_Harissa%2C_Lebanon.jpg/960px-Sarba_From_Harissa%2C_Lebanon.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sarba_From_Harissa,_Lebanon.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/84/Sarba_From_Harissa%2C_Lebanon.jpg/1280px-Sarba_From_Harissa%2C_Lebanon.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"A citadel built by the crusaders in 11 century AD in Sarba, south of Lebanon.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a7/Crusader_Citadel_Sarba_Lebanon.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"LebRese","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"A citadel built by the crusaders in 11 century AD in Sarba, south of Lebanon.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a7/Crusader_Citadel_Sarba_Lebanon.jpg/960px-Crusader_Citadel_Sarba_Lebanon.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Crusader_Citadel_Sarba_Lebanon.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a7/Crusader_Citadel_Sarba_Lebanon.jpg/1280px-Crusader_Citadel_Sarba_Lebanon.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Old church Sarba South Lebanon","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/25/Old_church_Sarba_South_Lebanon.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"LebRese","height":1707,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Old church Sarba South Lebanon","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/25/Old_church_Sarba_South_Lebanon.jpg/960px-Old_church_Sarba_South_Lebanon.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Old_church_Sarba_South_Lebanon.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/25/Old_church_Sarba_South_Lebanon.jpg/1280px-Old_church_Sarba_South_Lebanon.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:16.641Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/sarba"}
{"id":"38a6bd73-ca38-4422-972b-da60f5c292c0","type":"art_form","slug":"sasa","title":"Sasa","summary":"Sasa, also spelled sāsā, is a type of folk dance from Samoa. Sasa is performed by all ages and genders, usually in groups and while seated.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"x3ewpc805r","content":[{"text":"Sasa, also spelled sāsā, is a type of folk dance from Samoa. Sasa is performed by all ages and genders, usually in groups and while seated. The word \"sāsā\" literally means \"to strike\", and is characterized by precise, rhythmic claps and intricate hand movements. The movements of sasa often depict Samoan practices and history, with individual gestures representing actions from everyday life, such as cooking, paddling canoes, or cleaning.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"27b4a562-585d-465d-a8e3-b36eff1f7274"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gbm58sk0zd","content":[{"text":"The origin and evolution of sasa is unclear, owing to poor documentation by researchers. A dance by the name of sasa is first mentioned in the academic literature in Buck's field notes from 1927–28, but his descriptions more closely resemble a different Samoan dance, usually referred to as siva lapalapa.\nThe word sasa  literally means 'to strike'. The dance was originally a village activity, but it soon became one of Samoa's most well-known dances. It was traditionally performed by whole villages in order to give a perfect effect on the viewers- the more performers, the more the dance became effective.\nSa'a is cognate with other words found across Polynesia often used to describe local dance forms, such as Māori haka, Hawaiian ha'a, etc.\nThe Sasa requires synchronization, energy and enthusiasm","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"27b4a562-585d-465d-a8e3-b36eff1f7274"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Performance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5r1f9w4e5r","content":[{"text":"Generally, the sasa is performed by a large group of people, it is normally performed sitting down, but there are parts of the dance which require the group to stand up. The movements depict everyday life, from the movement of fish in the water, to the flying birds in the sky, from cooking the umu to cleaning the house, and even a form of voyaging, where the group move into the form of a large canoe, having the arms on the outside mimic the movement of paddles in the water.\nEvery Sasa is different, some movements have never changed, however nowadays, more contemporary moves are now being added to the Sasa. The Samoa 'ava ceremony is always included in the Sasa where the group would mimic the Taupōu making 'ava.\nA Sasa will always begin with the fa'aluma yelling tulolo which tells the group to bow their heads, and nofo for the group to sit up again, in a Sasa you will hear chants like \"Talofa\" (greetings) at the beginning and \"Tofa\" (farewell) at the end or easier, fa.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"27b4a562-585d-465d-a8e3-b36eff1f7274"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"er69kvy4t2","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Sasa (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"27b4a562-585d-465d-a8e3-b36eff1f7274"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8hqvp8yjre","content":[{"text":"Sasa is dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b154ce0d-76f3-49be-b4e0-8b5da374d36e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9gkb2e0mdv","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b154ce0d-76f3-49be-b4e0-8b5da374d36e"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"La sede delle assicurazioni SASA a Trieste","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e0/SASA.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Tiesse","height":892,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"La sede delle assicurazioni SASA a Trieste","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e0/SASA.jpg/960px-SASA.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:SASA.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e0/SASA.jpg/1280px-SASA.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"Sasa palmata : Winterpicture.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d4/Sasa-palmata-winter.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Sten Porse","height":851,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Sasa palmata : Winterpicture.","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d4/Sasa-palmata-winter.JPG/960px-Sasa-palmata-winter.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sasa-palmata-winter.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d4/Sasa-palmata-winter.JPG/1280px-Sasa-palmata-winter.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"},{"alt":"Bambú Sasa Autor: Jordi Coll Costa Jordi coll costa 13:08, 26 November 2006 (UTC)","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4c/Sasa_001.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"No machine-readable author provided. Jordi coll costa assumed (based on copyright claims).","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Bambú Sasa Autor: Jordi Coll Costa Jordi coll costa 13:08, 26 November 2006 (UTC)","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.5","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4c/Sasa_001.jpg/960px-Sasa_001.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sasa_001.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4c/Sasa_001.jpg/1280px-Sasa_001.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:15.726Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/sasa"}
{"id":"2806a7c4-7265-4cdb-bb2d-01f04e7e74b0","type":"art_form","slug":"sattriya","title":"Sattriya","summary":"Sattriya, or Sattriya Nritya, is a major Indian classical dance. It was initially created as part of Bhaona which are performances of Ankiya Nat, one-act plays, originally created by Sankardev, a 15th-16th century polymath from Assam.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dcw7rm49k7","content":[{"text":"Sattriya, or Sattriya Nritya, is a major Indian classical dance. It was initially created as part of Bhaona which are performances of Ankiya Nat, one-act plays, originally created by Sankardev, a 15th-16th century polymath from Assam. These dances are part of the living traditions today of Sattra, which are communities of live-in devotees belonging to the Ekasarana Dharma, a Hindu sect established by Sankardev.\nThe themes played are related to Krishna, as well as other avatars of Vishnu such as Rama, and stories from the epics Mahabharata and the Ramayana.\nOn November 15 of the year 2000, the Sangeet Natak Akademi of India recognised Sattriya as one of the eight classical dances of India. Modern Sattriya explores many themes and plays, and its performances are staged worldwide.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6f0450f6-04c0-4f03-b445-f1ae3d0fb1bf"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fhrstnh8j2","content":[{"text":"Sattriya is a classical dance of India, tracing its roots to ancient drama and music texts of India, particularly  Bharata Muni's Nātya Śāstra.  Its first complete compilation is dated to between 200 BCE and 200 CE, but estimates vary between 500 BCE and 500 CE. The most studied version of the Nātya Śāstra text consists of about 6000 verses structured into 36 chapters. The text describes the theory of Tāṇḍava dance (Shiva), the theory of rasa, of bhāva, expression, gestures, acting techniques, basic steps, standing postures – all of which are part of Indian classical dances.\n Dance and performance arts, states this ancient text, are a form of expression of spiritual ideas, virtues, and the essence of scriptures.\nThe history of dance arts in Assam goes back to antiquity, as evidenced by copper plate inscriptions and sculpture relating to Shaivism and Shaktism traditions. Singing and musical traditions, similarly, have been traced to Assamese chorus singing tradition for the Hindu epics: the Ramayana and the Mahabharata.\nThe modern form of Sattriya is attributed to the 16th century Sankaradeva, who systematized the dance using the ancient texts, and introduced drama and expressive dancing (nritta and nritya) as a form of a community religious art for emotional devotion to Krishna.\nSince the 16th century, the Sattriya art grew as part of the Vaishnava bhakti movement, in Hindu monasteries called Sattra. The art was developed and practiced by monks in the form dance-dramas about legends and mythologies of Krishna, particularly from texts such as the Bhāgavata Purāna.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6f0450f6-04c0-4f03-b445-f1ae3d0fb1bf"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Repertoire","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"v2s7rppe96","content":[{"text":"Like the other schools of Indian Classical dance, Sattriya encompasses the principles required of a classical dance form: the treatises of dance and dramaturgy, like Nātya Śāstra, Abhinaya Darpana, and Śārngadeva's Sangīta Ratnākara; The Sangīta Ratnākara of Śārngadeva complements his Bhakti Ratnakara, which traces the Upanishads, Bhagavad Gita, Yoga and Vedanta themes, the ethical values such as non-violence (ahimsa), truthfulness (satya) and others, thus premising a theological foundation to Sattriya. To Shankaradeva, religious values, ethics, joys of life and performance arts were intimately linked, and he asked the leaders of Hindu monasteries to compose at least one play, during their tenure, before they die.\nSattriya repertoire (mārg) includes nritta (pure dance, solo), nritya (expressive dance, solo), and nātya (dramatic play, group). Like all major classical Indian dance forms, those three categories of performances are:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6f0450f6-04c0-4f03-b445-f1ae3d0fb1bf"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ynvjqxg1cq","content":[{"text":"The Nritta performance is abstract, fast and rhythmic aspect of the dance. The viewer is presented with pure movement in Nritta, wherein the emphasis is the beauty in motion, form, speed, range and pattern. This part of the repertoire has no interpretive aspect, no telling of story.\nThe Nritya is slower and expressive aspect of the dance that attempts to communicate feelings, story line particularly with spiritual themes. In a nritya, the performance expands to include story-telling, the silent expression of words through gestures and body motion set to musical notes.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6f0450f6-04c0-4f03-b445-f1ae3d0fb1bf"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dresses","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zx0b2jh2ps","content":[{"text":"The dress of Sattriya dance is primarily of two types: the male dress comprising the dhoti, chadar  and the paguri (turban) and the female dress comprising the ghuri, chadar and kanchi (waist cloth). Traditionally the dresses were of  white or raw silk color with use of red, blue and yellow for specific dance numbers. In earlier times velvet and satin materials were mostly used for the dresses. With change of time,  as this dance form evolved from the sattras onto stage, the design and materials of the dance dresses changed. Pat (also spelled paat) – a silk produced in Assam which is derived from the mulberry plant and muga silk (golden silk of Assam) is also used in preparing the dance dress. Other bright colours are also used in the female dresses.  These hand-woven materials normally have intricate local motifs like Kingkhap, Miri Motif, Kolka etc.\nUses of play-specific dress are also seen in Sattriya dance. The dress of Krishna Nritya and Nadubhangi Nritya is of yellow and blue keeping in line with the attire of Lord Krishna. The Sutradhar Nritya also has its specific white dress with a special turban.\nTraditional Assamese jewellery is used in Sattriya dance. The jewellery is made by a unique technique in Kesa Sun (raw gold).  Artistes wear Kopali on the forehead, Muthi Kharu and Gam Kharu (bracelets), different type of neck pieces like Mata Moni (for male dancers), Golpata,  Dhulbiri (shaped like the musical instrument dhol), Bena (pendant shaped like a crescent), Jethipata (lizard shaped), Dugdugi (leaf shaped), Senpata (eagle shaped), Dhansira (strand of rice grain) and Lokaparo (pigeon design). Earrings are made in similar designs and also Thuka Suna and Keru are worn by dancers.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6f0450f6-04c0-4f03-b445-f1ae3d0fb1bf"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Music and instruments","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"j8f50tdemh","content":[{"text":"Sattriya Nritya is accompanied by musical compositions called bargeets (composed by Sankardeva and Shree Shree Madhavdev, among others) which are based on classical ragas.\nA key musical instrument that accompanies a Sattriya performance is the khol  (two-faced, asymmetrical drum quite different from the rest of India) played with fingers. The special shape and materials of construction – clay, wood, leather, rice dough, iron filings, rope straps – of Sattriya khol produces a high pitch with the right side (Daina), while producing a deep bass sound on the left (Bewa).\nAccompanying the khol are various types of Tālas or cymbals (Manjira, Bhortal, Bihutal, Patital, Khutital) and the flute (bansuri). Other instruments like the violin and the harmonium have been recent additions.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6f0450f6-04c0-4f03-b445-f1ae3d0fb1bf"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Styles","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zzqa2afn9t","content":[{"text":"A Sattriya performance comes in many styles such as the Sutradhara (or Sutra-bhangi), character specific Bhangi, Prabesh, Nritya and Jhumura. The Sutradhara is a style that tells a story and presents the spiritual values of Vaisnavism in a complete classical format: nritta, nritya and natya. One feature of the Sutradhara (or Sutradhari) style is the included commentary for the audience in local language.\nAnkiya Nat is a subgenre consisting of one-act plays of Sattriya.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6f0450f6-04c0-4f03-b445-f1ae3d0fb1bf"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"e6r15dwdbe","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Sattriya”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6f0450f6-04c0-4f03-b445-f1ae3d0fb1bf"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gr5ddq6yw8","content":[{"text":"Sattriya is one among the eight principal classical Indian dance traditions, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1e6c8886-a515-4dce-8290-afb14b9e58dd"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9gc44gmzs4","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1e6c8886-a515-4dce-8290-afb14b9e58dd"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"A Sattriya posture","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a2/Priyakshee_Kataky.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"User: Sattriyadance","height":1280,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"A Sattriya posture","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a2/Priyakshee_Kataky.jpg/960px-Priyakshee_Kataky.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Priyakshee_Kataky.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a2/Priyakshee_Kataky.jpg/1280px-Priyakshee_Kataky.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:06.258Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/sattriya"}
{"id":"d6fd4e39-4dd3-483c-9c7c-9ca85a6ec48f","type":"art_form","slug":"schafflertanz","title":"Schäfflertanz","summary":"The Coopers' Dance (German: Schäfflertanz) is a guild dance of coopers originally started in Munich. Since early 1800s the custom spread via journeymen and it is now a common tradition over the Old Bavaria region.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5q2qrqhbdf","content":[{"text":"The Coopers' Dance (German: Schäfflertanz) is a guild dance of coopers originally started in Munich. Since early 1800s the custom spread via journeymen and it is now a common tradition over the Old Bavaria region. The dance was supposed to be held every seven years.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"590e3e26-8489-4d89-9957-1ff41e045c78"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cbjppdb4r7","content":[{"text":"Early documented cases of Schäfflertanz are dated by 1702 when the Münich magistrate approved the performance of the dance as a well-established tradition. However, for a long time the date 1517 was prevalent in the literature, following the 1830 book Der Schäffler-tanz in Münchhen by Anton Baumgartner, who originated the discredited legend that the tradition started after the 1517 plague, to revive the spirits of the people, \"to lure them out of their houses\", although other authors tried to suggest other dates. But there are no records in chronicles about any plague in Münich at this period of time. Still, the 500th anniversary was celebrated in 2017.\nThere is no clear indication of the origin of the seven-year cycle.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"590e3e26-8489-4d89-9957-1ff41e045c78"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance and music","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f5kc4cfkae","content":[{"text":"The choreography of the dance was standardized in the 19th century.\nAfter marching in various formations and performing standard figures, the final number is the barrel hoop swinging. The hoop swinger holds two hoops with shots of schnapps on the inside. The idea is to swing the hoops in intricate ways without spilling the schnapps (relying on the centrifugal force).\nOf other traditions of the dance, only the costume survived: white shirt, white waistcoat, red jacket, leather apron, knee breeches, sash, brogue shoes and, a green cap adorned with down feathers \nThe author of the current standard tune (the so-called the Second or New Münich Schäfflertanz, 1866) is Johann Wilhelm Siebenkäs (1826-1888). The First or Old Münich Schäfflertanz (no longer used) was by Peter Streck.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"590e3e26-8489-4d89-9957-1ff41e045c78"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ng9yrpzbkc","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Schäfflertanz”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"590e3e26-8489-4d89-9957-1ff41e045c78"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"drhbye3ks7","content":[{"text":"Schäfflertanz is dance of the coopers, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6dcaafac-899c-4929-9f3b-e773d763d4f0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kyr3nerk1h","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6dcaafac-899c-4929-9f3b-e773d763d4f0"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Cooper's dance in Munich","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3f/Sch%C3%A4fflertanz_2012-05.JPG?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Michael F. Schoenitzer","height":1216,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Cooper's dance in Munich","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3f/Sch%C3%A4fflertanz_2012-05.JPG/960px-Sch%C3%A4fflertanz_2012-05.JPG?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sch%C3%A4fflertanz_2012-05.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3f/Sch%C3%A4fflertanz_2012-05.JPG/1280px-Sch%C3%A4fflertanz_2012-05.JPG?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:16.201Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/schafflertanz"}
{"id":"6ae74eb9-fb1d-44e4-8dd9-729d413e3583","type":"art_form","slug":"scottish-highland-dance","title":"Scottish highland dance","summary":"Highland dance or Highland dancing (Scottish Gaelic: dannsa Gàidhealach) is a style of competitive dancing developed in the Scottish Highlands in the 19th and 20th centuries, in the context of competitions at public events such as the Highl…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6cwwwbsvc0","content":[{"text":"Highland dance or Highland dancing (Scottish Gaelic: dannsa Gàidhealach) is a style of competitive dancing developed in the Scottish Highlands in the 19th and 20th centuries, in the context of competitions at public events such as the Highland games. It was created from the Gaelic folk dance repertoire, but formalised with the conventions of ballet, and has been subject to influences from outside the Highlands. Highland dancing is often performed with the accompaniment of Highland bagpipe music, and dancers wear specialised shoes called ghillies or pumps. It is now seen at nearly every modern-day Highland games event.\nHighland dance should not be confused with Scottish country dance, cèilidh dancing, or clog dancing, although they too may be performed at Highland games and like competitions.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"65db7fd9-2cd1-4a38-a7b9-6d7b8a8b0cb1"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Basic description of Highland dancing","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"89feech25c","content":[{"text":"Highland dancing is a competitive and technical dance form requiring technique, stamina, and strength, and is recognised as a sport by the Sport Council of Scotland.\nIn Highland dancing, the dancers dance on the balls of the feet.  Highland dancing is a form of solo step dancing, from which it evolved, but while some forms of step dancing are purely percussive in nature, Highland dancing involves not only a combination of steps but also some integral upper body, arm, and hand movements.  (Dances such as strathspey or a tulloch involve up to four dances, but dancers are individually judged.)\nHighland dancing should not be confused with Scottish country dancing which is both a social dance (that is, a dance which is danced with a partner or partners) like ballroom dancing, and a formation dance (that is, a dance in which an important element is the pattern of group movement about the dance floor) like square dancing.\nSome Highland dances do derive from traditional social dances. An example is the Highland reel, also known as the foursome reel or strathspey, in which groups of four dancers alternate between solo steps facing one another and a figure-of-eight style with intertwining progressive movement. Even so, in competitions, the Highland reel dancers are judged individually. All but three Highland dances are danced solo and those three dances are variations of each other.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"65db7fd9-2cd1-4a38-a7b9-6d7b8a8b0cb1"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Scottish and Irish dancing","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"adpw9e26nx","content":[{"text":"Many non-practitioners think the two Celtic forms are synonymous.  While some dance studios teach both, they are two distinct styles, not just in the attire.  In comparison to Scottish Highland dance, Irish dancers rarely use their arms which are held beside their bodies (rather than raised above the shoulders), legs and feet are frequently crossed (not turned out at 45°), and frequent use of the hard-soled step shoes (compared to ghillies or \"pumps\").  There is a greater use of choreography than traditional movements.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"65db7fd9-2cd1-4a38-a7b9-6d7b8a8b0cb1"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"chf9tjgxym","content":[{"text":"Modern Highland dancing emerged in the 19th and 20th centuries. It was \"created from the Gaelic folk dance repertoire, but formalised with the conventions of ballet\".\nIt seems that forms of sword dancing were performed by warriors in many parts of Europe in the prehistoric period. Forms of sword dancing are also attested in the late Medieval period. Ritualistic and combative dances that imitated epic deeds and martial skills were a familiar feature in Scottish tradition and folklore. The earliest reference to these dances in Scotland is mentioned in the Scotichronicon which was compiled in Scotland by Walter Bower in the 1440s. The passage regards Alexander III and his second marriage to the French noblewoman Yolande de Dreux at Jedburgh on 14 October 1285.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"65db7fd9-2cd1-4a38-a7b9-6d7b8a8b0cb1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4mw09xwm51","content":[{"text":"At the head of this procession were the skilled musicians with many sorts of pipe music including the music of bagpipes, and behind them others splendidly performing a war-dance with intricate weaving in and out. Bringing up the rear was a figure regarding whom it was difficult to decide whether it was a man or an apparition. It seemed to glide like a ghost rather than walk on feet. When it looked as if he was disappearing from everyone's sight, the whole frenzied procession halted, the song died away, the music faded, and the dancing contingent froze suddenly and unexpectedly.\nIn 1573, Scottish mercenaries are said to have performed a Scottish sword dance before the Swedish King, John III, at a banquet held in Stockholm Castle. The dance, 'a natural feature of the festivities', was used as part of a plot to assassinate the King, where the conspirators were able to bare their weapons without arising suspicion.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"65db7fd9-2cd1-4a38-a7b9-6d7b8a8b0cb1"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Organisations","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"n0fvxbt18z","content":[{"text":"Most dancing prior to the 1900s was not organised at a national or international level.  Judges of competitions were local persons, without specific standards for attire or the steps to the danced.  Local Caledonian societies trained young dancers in the way of each society.  Slowly consistency of steps was achieved, and dancing-specific organisations were established.\nDancers now undergo written examinations and practical assessments to become a teacher, and then further training and testing to become a dancer examiner, then competition judge or adjudicator.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"65db7fd9-2cd1-4a38-a7b9-6d7b8a8b0cb1"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Royal Scottish Official Board of Highland Dancing (RSOBHD)","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8rxmvg1z2f","content":[{"text":"Many if not most Highland gatherings worldwide recognise the Royal Scottish Official Board of Highland Dancing (RSOBHD), formed in 1950, as the world governing body of Highland dancing.  The 'Royal' title from the Queen of the United Kingdom was approved by 16 November 2019.  The RSOBHD standardised dance steps for competition purposes, established rules for competitions and attire, and certifies competitions and instructors. The RSOBHD World Highland Dance Championship has been held annually at the Cowal Highland Gathering since 1934.  Today this RSOBHD World Championship is sanctioned by the RSOBHD at three levels: Juvenile, Junior and Adult. Only RSOBHD-registered dancers may compete at this RSOBHD championship.\nThe RSOBHD is made up of representatives from many different Highland Dancing bodies and associations from around the world. The Board comprises delegates from the examining bodies (professional teaching associations), affiliated organisations in Australia (Australian Board of Highland Dancing Inc.), Canada (ScotDance Canada), South Africa (Official Board of Highland Dancing (South Africa)), New Zealand (Scot Dance New Zealand), and the United States (Federation of United States Teachers and Adjudicators) which represent the many Highland dance organisations in those countries.\nThe RSOBHD board sanctions Highland dancing championships although does not actually organise any of them.  There are non-RSOBHD sanctioned championships run by non-RSOBHD aligned organisations at which registered RSOBHD dancers are forbidden to take part by the RSOBHD. At competitions and championships run by non-RSOBHD organisations, all dancers are welcome, however if they choose to participate they may receive a ban from the RSOBHD.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"65db7fd9-2cd1-4a38-a7b9-6d7b8a8b0cb1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5znt9dg2fw","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Highland dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"65db7fd9-2cd1-4a38-a7b9-6d7b8a8b0cb1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yem22zb8yk","content":[{"text":"Scottish highland dance is Scottish Dancing, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2b8c0716-11ab-4351-b579-6e9f2a14f8cf"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6ev6k0cf9j","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2b8c0716-11ab-4351-b579-6e9f2a14f8cf"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"girl in white long-sleeved shirt dancing at the floor","src":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1559632134-e8f32765e016?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8U2NvdHRpc2glMjBoaWdobGFuZCUyMGRhbmNlfGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgxMTI1NDl8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1080","kind":"photo","width":4041,"credit":"Annie Spratt","height":2694,"source":"unsplash","depicts":"girl in white long-sleeved shirt dancing at the floor","licence":"Unsplash License","thumb640":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1559632134-e8f32765e016?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8U2NvdHRpc2glMjBoaWdobGFuZCUyMGRhbmNlfGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgxMTI1NDl8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=640","sourceUrl":"https://unsplash.com/photos/girl-in-white-long-sleeved-shirt-dancing-at-the-floor-IY6kA5dvMss?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral","thumb1280":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1559632134-e8f32765e016?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8U2NvdHRpc2glMjBoaWdobGFuZCUyMGRhbmNlfGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgxMTI1NDl8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1280","attributionUrl":"https://unsplash.com/@anniespratt?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-03T05:48:19.479Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/scottish-highland-dance"}
{"id":"6b0417b3-f84f-4454-b0c7-096a6f127d07","type":"art_form","slug":"scottish-sword-dance","title":"Scottish sword dance","summary":"The Sword dance is one of the best known of all Highland dances, an ancient dance of war.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"x5b8fsxbgn","content":[{"text":"The Sword dance is one of the best known of all Highland dances, an ancient dance of war.  Performance of sword dances in the folklore of Scotland is recorded from as early as the 15th century.\nRelated customs are found in the Welsh and English Morris dance, in Austria, Germany, Flanders, France, Italy, Spain, Portugal and Romania.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5a7b5190-009c-41bc-89cd-7e7ea38c70f0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hz7ff415cj","content":[{"text":"In  Ghillie Callum or \"Scottish sword dance\"  the dancer crosses two swords on the ground in an \"X\" or a \"+\" shape, and dances around and within the 4 quarters of it.\nThe dirk dance involves either one or two dancers, each holding a single dirk.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5a7b5190-009c-41bc-89cd-7e7ea38c70f0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origins","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3g7nwemzrv","content":[{"text":"Gillidh Callum was a figure in Scottish apocryphal folk belief, said to be Noah's bagpiper. According to these beliefs, Noah, upon first drinking fermented wine, crossed two vines and danced above them while Gillidh Callum played the bagpipes, thus inventing the ancestor of the Highland sword dance (gillie callum). \nThere are many theories surrounding the origins and backstory of the Scottish Sword Dance (Gille Chaluim). One theory is that King Malcolm III killed a rival chieftain and proceeded to celebrate the victory by dancing over both men's swords. Another theory is that Gille Chaluim would be danced prior to battle and if the dancer's foot touched a sword, it was a sign of bad luck and the men would lose the battle.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5a7b5190-009c-41bc-89cd-7e7ea38c70f0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Traditions","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"a8d6zfc2gd","content":[{"text":"As a part of the traditional Scottish intangible heritage, the performance of the Sword Dance has been recorded as early as the 15th century. It is normally recognised as the war dance with some ceremonial sense in the Scottish Royal court during that period. The old kings and clan chiefs organised the Highland Games as a method to choose their best men at arms, and the  discipline required to perform the Highland dances allowed men to demonstrate their strength, stamina, and agility. The earliest reference also mentioned that the dance is often accompanied with the music of bagpipes. The basic rule requires the dancer to cross two swords on the ground in an \"X\" or \"+\" shape and to dance around and within the 4 quarters of it.\nThe earliest reference to these dances in Scotland is mentioned in the Scotichronicon, compiled in Scotland by Walter Bower in the 1440s. The passage is in Lib. X, Cap. XL (Book 10, Chapter 40), and regards Alexander III and his second marriage to the French lady Yolande de Dreux at Jedburgh in Roxburghshire on 14 October 1285.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5a7b5190-009c-41bc-89cd-7e7ea38c70f0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qjmn39n6r0","content":[{"text":"At the head of this procession were the skilled musicians with many sorts of pipe music including the wailing music of bagpipes, and behind them others splendidly performing a war-dance with intricate weaving in and out. Bringing up the rear was a figure regarding whom it was difficult to decide whether it was a man or an apparition. It seemed to glide like a ghost rather than walk on feet.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5a7b5190-009c-41bc-89cd-7e7ea38c70f0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Types of sword dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dhwekxmy4y","content":[{"text":"Many of the Highland dances now lost were once performed with traditional weapons that included the Lochaber axe, the broadsword, a combination of targe and dirk, and the flail.\nThe old Skye dancing song Buailidh mi thu anns a' cheann, \"I will break your head\", may indicate some form of weapon play to music. 'Breaking the head' was the winning blow in cudgelling matches throughout Britain, \"for the moment that blood runs an inch anywhere above the eyebrow, the old gamester to whom it belongs is beaten, and has to stop.\"\nC. N. McIntyre North describes a clockwise-moving Sword Dance in his 1880 \"Book of the Club of True Highlanders\". McIntyre North describes nine steps. The first step beats the rhythm in time with the tune \"Gillie Calliun\" [sic].\nA combative sword dance called the Highland Dirk Dance still exists and is often linked to the sword dance or dances called \"Macinorsair\" (Mac an Fhòrsair), the \"Broad Sword Exercise\" or the \"Bruicheath\" (Battle Dance). These dances are mentioned in a number of sources, and may have been performed in a variety of different forms, by two performers in a duelling form and as a solo routine.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5a7b5190-009c-41bc-89cd-7e7ea38c70f0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Tradition in Highland Regiments","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dwmtb83qhh","content":[{"text":"Highland Regiments have preserved the traditional dance, albeit with some changes. To prepare for the Sword Dance, a soldier arranges two crossed swords. Then to the sound of bagpipes he dances a choreographed series of steps and movements between and around the swords, keeping his back straight, arms raised, and hands posed in a certain way. The dance can be performed by more than one individual, and there is a long tradition of exhibition and competitive dancing with additional crossed swords and dancers. Over time, this style of dance became an integral part of the performance of bagpipe bands.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5a7b5190-009c-41bc-89cd-7e7ea38c70f0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8gm6efc9d8","content":[{"text":"The crossed weapons in the traditional sword dance is not limited to basket-hilted broadswords. Dancing around crossed Lochaber axes is mentioned as an older version of the dance. The Broadsword indicated the basket-hilted sword worn by officers of Highland Regiments and sometimes miscalled the claymore, which is a large two-handed weapon. The original version of the Broadswords Dance is described in MacLellan’s book: the steps, four strathspey and one quick-time, and the drill for marching on and off a dancing stage are less elaborate than those seen in some present day forms of the dance. It is not an \"Old Thyme\" dance and it is not regimental in origin.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5a7b5190-009c-41bc-89cd-7e7ea38c70f0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Links","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3j41mhzz0t","content":[{"text":"Illustration from The Book of the Club of True Highlanders showing step patterns and timing of the Sword Dance: http://www.electricscotland.com/history/club/club2%20084.jpg","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5a7b5190-009c-41bc-89cd-7e7ea38c70f0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3m8bmjzk6q","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Scottish sword dances”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5a7b5190-009c-41bc-89cd-7e7ea38c70f0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nwpx074vbr","content":[{"text":"Scottish sword dance is Dancing around two crossed swords, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bc7bc2fa-ed96-4746-afb4-8c5d3f9e51da"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6w8s0jwb10","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bc7bc2fa-ed96-4746-afb4-8c5d3f9e51da"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Men of the 93rd (Sutherland Highlanders) Regiment of Foot (later amalgamated into the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders), and the 42nd (Royal Highland) Regiment of Foot (\"Black Watch\"), engaging in, playing music for, and watching a Highland sword dance (with a boy and a dog…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/17/The_Sword_Dance_by_David_Cunliffe%2C_1853.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"David Cunliffe","height":958,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Men of the 93rd (Sutherland Highlanders) Regiment of Foot (later amalgamated into the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders), and the 42nd (Royal Highland) Regiment of Foot (\"Black Watch\"), engaging in, playing music for, and watching a Highland sword dance (with a boy and a dog…","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/17/The_Sword_Dance_by_David_Cunliffe%2C_1853.jpg/960px-The_Sword_Dance_by_David_Cunliffe%2C_1853.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:The_Sword_Dance_by_David_Cunliffe,_1853.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/17/The_Sword_Dance_by_David_Cunliffe%2C_1853.jpg/1280px-The_Sword_Dance_by_David_Cunliffe%2C_1853.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:16.754Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/scottish-sword-dance"}
{"id":"d1827667-470b-4f56-8e9a-ed3adfdf4684","type":"art_form","slug":"sean-nos-dance","title":"sean-nós dance","summary":"Sean-nós dance ( SHAN-nohss; Irish: damhsa ar an sean nós [ˈd̪ˠəusˠə ɛɾʲ ə ˈʃan̪ˠ n̪ˠoːsˠ], lit. 'old style dancing') is an older style of traditional solo Irish dance.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fmcs08brh3","content":[{"text":"Sean-nós dance ( SHAN-nohss; Irish: damhsa ar an sean nós [ˈd̪ˠəusˠə ɛɾʲ ə ˈʃan̪ˠ n̪ˠoːsˠ], lit. 'old style dancing') is an older style of traditional solo Irish dance. It is a casual dance form, as opposed to the more formal and competition-oriented form of Irish stepdance.\nSean nós in Irish means 'old style', and is applied to the dance form as well as a style of singing. These now less-common forms of Irish dance and traditional Irish singing have been documented in Irish history and by ethnomusicologists, but are still alive in parts of the Irish music scene.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"91638dab-f6a4-470a-a3f2-9d79e40cad1f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Characteristics","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1k0dg96kxf","content":[{"text":"Sean-nós dance is characterised by its \"low to the ground\" footwork, improvised steps, free movement of the arms, and an emphasis upon a \"batter\" (which sounds out more loudly the accented beat of the music). Because sean-nós dancing is improvisational, it is not necessary for a pre-arranged routine or choreography to be decided upon by the dancer. Spontaneous expression is highly valued. Therefore, it is less common to see groups performing synchronised sean-nós dance (which requires choreography in advance). Instead, the dancers may dance in turns, playing off the energy of the other.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"91638dab-f6a4-470a-a3f2-9d79e40cad1f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Contrasted with stepdance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tabe487j59","content":[{"text":"Sean-nós dancing is similar to, and likely influenced, the more modern, formalised and competitive Irish stepdance, although it is more freeform in its expression given it is not competitive. Stepdancing is noted for its stylised clothing, high kicks, fancy footwork, and good posture, with arms kept rigidly to the side of the body. In comparison, sean-nós dancers generally do not place emphasis on any particular costuming, wearing any clothing they happen to have on. Posture is not a key point, as with competitive dance, other than basics such as standing up relatively straight—or at least enough to execute the steps. Sean-nós dancers' arms also usually move more freely, swinging with the natural rhythm of the dance, or are kept more loosely at the side rather than rigidly. This is very similar to the Scottish-based dance of Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, in which many dancers incorporate larger arm movements in their performances. Personal style is highly valued in sean-nós.\nCompetitive stepdancing can be danced with a soft or a hard, percussive shoe, depending on the type of dance and situation. Sean-nós dancing is done with any available shoe that is to the liking of the individual dancer. The sound of a sean-nós dancer's footwork has its own rhythmic quality, thus many dancers prefer a shoe that is capable of percussive sound.\nTraditional sean-nós dance surfaces include a standard wooden dance floor, a door that has been taken off the hinges, a table, a barrel, or even the top of a stool.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"91638dab-f6a4-470a-a3f2-9d79e40cad1f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Varying styles","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5z5p9mse0g","content":[{"text":"Sean-Nós Dance: This is an old style traditional form of dancing... This is a low to ground stepping out to the music, very relaxed, similar to tap dance, but it is not the stage show event like the Step Dancing you see in productions of Riverdance. Sean-nós dancing is a very impromptu, rhythmic, and low key accompaniment to a lively traditional Irish band. The footwork \"battering\" is great watch and listen to. These are typically done as a solo performer or in very small groups and are well suited to all ages. (oftentimes the best sean-nós dancers, are the old timers in the dark corners of the pub).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"91638dab-f6a4-470a-a3f2-9d79e40cad1f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2282drcxq6","content":[{"text":"The popularization of old style dancing through competitions, stage shows and copycat teaching/learning methods has created \"standard\" old style steps, counter to the ideology of an improvisational, personal form of Irish dancing. Standard steps can be seen multiple times in any competition and standard tunes have emerged also, such as McCleod's reel and New Mown Meadows. Tap dancing shoes have been adopted by many prominent dancers, changing not only the sound, but also the style of the dancing.\nOld style dancing may be subdivided further;","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"91638dab-f6a4-470a-a3f2-9d79e40cad1f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"x12wpxsk7c","content":[{"text":"Improvisational dancing – completely improvisational, using known movements but no predefined step sequences.\nImprovisational step dancing – a mix of improvisation and use of personal steps in an order decided on the spot.\nStep dancing – fully choreographed dance.\nWith the increasing popularity of competitions in old style dancing and the desire for a polished performance, many dancers opt for fully choreographed dances.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"91638dab-f6a4-470a-a3f2-9d79e40cad1f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"In the Irish diaspora","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rr4qfdn9k9","content":[{"text":"As the Irish peoples emigrated, they took sean-nós dance with them. This form of dance has influenced various other forms of traditional solo dance extant around the world, e.g. Tap Dance or American traditional informal freeform solo folk dancing. Sean-nós dance in America may differ from how it is practiced in Ireland, because it in turn has been influenced by other cultures' dance styles there. Sean-nós dancing in America and Canada is most commonly seen at folk festivals and informal Irish music sessions, possibly mixed in with casual Irish Stepdancing and other regional styles. However, some dance workshops in America are beginning to introduce the style more widely.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"91638dab-f6a4-470a-a3f2-9d79e40cad1f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"aeff9cg9m6","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Sean-nós dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"91638dab-f6a4-470a-a3f2-9d79e40cad1f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mh0jjnm3k2","content":[{"text":"sean-nós dance is percussive dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0d9b1090-6612-45e0-a4ba-9795bbf11642"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"g5k1emea4z","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0d9b1090-6612-45e0-a4ba-9795bbf11642"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"This is in Ramallah Contemporary Dance Festival 2018","src":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1529229504105-4ea795dcbf59?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8c2Vhbi1uJUMzJUIzcyUyMGRhbmNlfGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODg5NzYwOTN8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1080","kind":"photo","width":5760,"credit":"Ahmad Odeh","height":3840,"source":"unsplash","depicts":"This is in Ramallah Contemporary Dance Festival 2018","licence":"Unsplash License","thumb640":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1529229504105-4ea795dcbf59?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8c2Vhbi1uJUMzJUIzcyUyMGRhbmNlfGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODg5NzYwOTN8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=640","sourceUrl":"https://unsplash.com/photos/dancer-performing-with-motion-blur-KHipnBn7sdY?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral","thumb1280":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1529229504105-4ea795dcbf59?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8c2Vhbi1uJUMzJUIzcyUyMGRhbmNlfGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODg5NzYwOTN8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1280","attributionUrl":"https://unsplash.com/@aoddeh?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:11.077Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/sean-nos-dance"}
{"id":"fbfa8eb8-4c9c-40c0-a90b-81c1c13f2d6b","type":"art_form","slug":"seann-triubhas","title":"Seann Triubhas","summary":"The seann triubhas (pronounced [ʃãũn̪ˠ ˈt̪ɾu.əs̪], approximately shown-TROOSS) is a Highland dance, and is usually done in kilt. Its name is a Scottish Gaelic phrase which means 'old trousers'.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qxdc7amj6c","content":[{"text":"The seann triubhas (pronounced [ʃãũn̪ˠ ˈt̪ɾu.əs̪], approximately shown-TROOSS) is a Highland dance, and is usually done in kilt. Its name is a Scottish Gaelic phrase which means 'old trousers'.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dfc152bc-ea79-4c7f-8612-479bcab1d524"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origins","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"53nr69085a","content":[{"text":"There has been a widely accepted story that the kicking or sweeping movements of the legs in the first step represented the attempt of the dancer to shake off the \"despicable\" trews, but D. G. MacLennan wrote in Traditional Highland and Scottish Dances that \"this first step has nothing to do with the idea of kicking off the trews, but ... is new to the dance and was composed by myself\". The seann triubhas, then, is simply about a pair of old trews which may or may not have been a subject of distaste or fun to the wearer, and may or may not have something to do with the Jacobite Rebellion of 1745. \nCatriona Scott explains that in personal correspondence with Christina Morrison, a highland dancer, that '[T]he steps are meant to represent the advantages of the kilt, particularly in the whirling and birling steps. I remember we used to do a sort of pirouette step but I don't think it is done now'. \nMartin Martin described trews as common men's wear throughout the Hebrides in his 1703 Description of the Western Islands of Scotland. Tartan trews were part of the Highland wardrobe for chieftains and gentlemen whilst on horseback (the large Highland ponies) from the early 17th century onward. Some Seann Triubhas steps seem to have originated from hard shoe dancing, and the dance was taught to be performed in regular shoes with heels by dancing masters in the 19th century. In her Memoirs of a Highland Lady, Elizabeth Grant recounted that in 1805 she \"danced my Shean Trews ... in a new pair of yellow (!) slippers bought at Perth\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dfc152bc-ea79-4c7f-8612-479bcab1d524"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Tunes","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t0r5rkh3w8","content":[{"text":"In the late 18th century, the dance was performed to a fiddle tune called \"Seann Triubhas Uilleachan\" (Scottish Gaelic for 'Willie's Old Trousers'), previously and more scurrilously called \"The De'il Stick the Minister\". When the dance began to be incorporated into Highland Dance competitions, which were usually played for by pipers, the tune was changed to \"Whistle O'er the Lave o't\", which could be played on the bagpipe and is the tune commonly used for the dance today.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dfc152bc-ea79-4c7f-8612-479bcab1d524"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dancing","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"q9cchwgbxn","content":[{"text":"A version of a seann triubhas in a percussive dance style was remembered and danced by Margaret Gillis in Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia, and those steps were written down in 1957 by Frank Rhodes. These steps were to be danced to the tune \"Whistle O'er the Lave o't\", though the same steps were said to be danced to the \"Irish Washerwoman\" jig on St. Patrick's Night. An anonymous manuscript dating to 1826 describes both Irish and Scottish seann triubhas (spelled Shauntreuse in the manuscript) steps, but tunes for these dances are not specified.\nIn contemporary competitive Highland dance, after dancing three to four steps, the dancer will clap, which signals the piper to speed up the music. The final, or 'Quick Time' steps look similar to the Highland Fling, and Quick Time steps currently described in the Royal Scottish Official Board of Highland Dancing (RSOBHD) textbook are steps that used to be danced in the Fling. Other steps have been published by G. Douglas Taylor, William Cameron, D. G. MacLennan, and Joan & Tom Flett.\nThe seann triubhas is now danced at most highland dance competitions around the world. Dancers usually start dancing it in the beginner category at competitions, and continue to dance it up to premier level. This dance is also common in most highland and theory exams.  Dancers wear the standard kilt outfit to perform this dance, though it historically had been performed in tartan trews as well.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dfc152bc-ea79-4c7f-8612-479bcab1d524"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Steps","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mw4vggjf8m","content":[{"text":"This dance is usually done with either:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dfc152bc-ea79-4c7f-8612-479bcab1d524"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kx5gjwnvzj","content":[{"text":"4 steps (3 slow steps and 1 quick step) – \"3 & 1\";\n6 steps (4 slow steps and 2 quick steps) – \"4 & 2\".\nThe first step must always be done to start the dance, but the rest of the steps are up to the dancer to choose.  At the higher levels the SOBHD will release a different order of steps for each year to be danced in championship competitions. Dancers taking theory exams may also need to know all of these steps, as well as their order, depending on the level of their exam.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dfc152bc-ea79-4c7f-8612-479bcab1d524"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w903v5kjh9","content":[{"text":"Music: Whistle ower the Lave o't' \nSlow steps tempo – 94–104 beats per minute\nFirst step: brushing\nFirst step alternative\nSecond step: side travel\nThird step: diagonal travel\nThird alternative\nFourth step: backward travel\nFourth alternative\nFifth step: travelling balance\nAlternative method of counting\nSixth step: leap and highcut\nSeventh step: entrechat and highcut\nEighth step: leap and shedding\nNinth step: leap and entrechat\nTenth step: highcut in front and balance\nAlternative tenth step\nEleventh Step: side heel-and-toe\nTwelfth Step: double highcutting\nQuick steps tempo – 112–124 beats per minute\nThirteenth step: shedding with back-step\nFourteenth step: toe-and-heel and rock\nFifteenth step: pointing and back-stepping\nSixteenth step: heel-and-toe and shedding\nSeventeenth step: heel-and-toe, shedding, and back-stepping\nEighteenth step: back-stepping\nFinish method 1: one leap\nFinish method 2: two leaps\nFinish method 3: two Highland fling turns\nEntrechat endings:\nMethod 1: one entrechat\nMethod 2: two entrechats\nMethod 3: leap then entrechat\nMethod 4: entrechat then leap\nMethod 5: leap, entrechat, leap\nMethod 6: leap, entrechat, leap, entrechat","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dfc152bc-ea79-4c7f-8612-479bcab1d524"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zzq9cnzdh3","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Seann triubhas”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dfc152bc-ea79-4c7f-8612-479bcab1d524"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qzfpqzmv61","content":[{"text":"Seann Triubhas is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1a1499ce-fce3-4d92-86df-767367767b81"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"49rahy0nmg","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1a1499ce-fce3-4d92-86df-767367767b81"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"a group of young women sitting next to each other","src":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1652946619064-a12aec2d8456?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8U2Vhbm4lMjBUcml1Ymhhc3xlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4OTc2MDk4fDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1080","kind":"photo","width":3984,"credit":"Mufid Majnun","height":2656,"source":"unsplash","depicts":"a group of young women sitting next to each other","licence":"Unsplash License","thumb640":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1652946619064-a12aec2d8456?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8U2Vhbm4lMjBUcml1Ymhhc3xlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4OTc2MDk4fDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=640","sourceUrl":"https://unsplash.com/photos/a-group-of-young-women-sitting-next-to-each-other-qQcX17o9EWU?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral","thumb1280":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1652946619064-a12aec2d8456?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8U2Vhbm4lMjBUcml1Ymhhc3xlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4OTc2MDk4fDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1280","attributionUrl":"https://unsplash.com/@mufidpwt?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:11.968Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/seann-triubhas"}
{"id":"bef651c0-e610-4488-b84c-d8359e706519","type":"art_form","slug":"sega","title":"sega","summary":"Sega (French: séga) is one of the major music genres of Mauritius and Réunion. It is a complete performance art, involving music, story-telling and traditional dance.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"75jqfyccpm","content":[{"text":"Sega (French: séga) is one of the major music genres of Mauritius and Réunion. It is a complete performance art, involving music, story-telling and traditional dance. Musically, the most modern forms common in Mauritius are its fusion genre seggae and bhojpuri variations, whilst Réunion also features maloya, the latter being much closer to the older, typical music influences originating from Madagascar.  The variety of different sega forms is reflected in the multi-ethnic populous of the indigenous population of Mauritius.\nSega (traditional Mauritian sega, sega tambour Chagos, sega tambour of Rodrigues Island) has been included in UNESCO's Intangible Cultural Heritage lists. \nSega has its roots in the music of slaves as well as their descendants Mauritian Creole people and is usually sung in Mauritian Creole or Réunionese Creole. Sega is also popular on the islands of Agaléga and Rodrigues as well as Seychelles, though the music and dances differ and it is sung in these islands' respective creole languages. In the past, sega music focused on traditional percussion instruments such as the ravanne and the triangle, it was sung to protest against injustices in the Mauritian society, this particular version of sega is known as Santé engagé.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ba70fcad-8d38-41d0-b4bf-3456212e02f0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Description","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nghgj67dmk","content":[{"text":"The music's traditional form was largely improvised and intensely emotional and expressed the tribulations of a subjugated, initially enslaved, people.\nIt is primarily music to dance to but was also used for dirges and as part of traditional exorcisms.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ba70fcad-8d38-41d0-b4bf-3456212e02f0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Instruments","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s53wx3w5mr","content":[{"text":"Traditional instruments include:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ba70fcad-8d38-41d0-b4bf-3456212e02f0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ewf402rkrk","content":[{"text":"the maravanne (rattle)\nmoutia (hand drum)\nthe goatskin drum ravanne\ntriangle\nand the bobre (bow).\nThere is also the tantam, which is a stringed instrument consisting of a gourd with a bow attached, played in time to the drum. Nowadays, electric guitars and keyboards are used.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ba70fcad-8d38-41d0-b4bf-3456212e02f0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Lyrics","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kndp38n9hr","content":[{"text":"The lyrics of modern sega music usually relate to the lives of the inhabitants; they do not usually relate to the musicians' ancestral homeland.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ba70fcad-8d38-41d0-b4bf-3456212e02f0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tvf4ft23jy","content":[{"text":"Sega is danced without the feet ever leaving the ground. Instead, the rest of the body moves, with an emphasis on the hips and waist. For women this involves the use of large, colourful, circular skirts and short sleeved, sleeveless or off the shoulder tops, baring the midriff (belly), to accentuate their moves. Traditionally, men wear colourful shirts and shorts and straw hats are popular in the ancient styles.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ba70fcad-8d38-41d0-b4bf-3456212e02f0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origins","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bjefh0wt42","content":[{"text":"Sega music originated among the slave populations of Mauritius and Réunion and later spread throughout the Seychelles. It is usually in 68 meter and has an associated dance form.\nSega's exact origins outside the islands are unknown. However, it is understood to have Afro-Malagasy roots and be a fusion of African or Malagasy music with European music. The European influence includes folk dance music like polka, waltz and quadrilles.\nGatan Benoit suggested that sega came from Madagascar and Boswell notes there may be a link between sega and famadihana, a Merina death ritual. Arago instead identifies it with (t)chéga from Mozambique. He states that it is similar to the fandango and chica (dance) from Brazil whose origins are in African music from Mozambique and Angola. It was termed \"African\" by sega musician Jacques Cantin.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ba70fcad-8d38-41d0-b4bf-3456212e02f0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tns528h02e","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Sega (genre)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ba70fcad-8d38-41d0-b4bf-3456212e02f0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7yb4qsm70t","content":[{"text":"sega is music genre of Mauritius and Reunion island, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"02d11d32-dd16-4b34-8150-2ed3d77f081a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c4zdav16qf","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 7 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"02d11d32-dd16-4b34-8150-2ed3d77f081a"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"The Japanese Sega Mega Drive video game console. This is the first design model of the system.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a1/Sega-Mega-Drive-JP-Mk1-Console-Set.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Evan-Amos","height":640,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"The Japanese Sega Mega Drive video game console. This is the first design model of the system.","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a1/Sega-Mega-Drive-JP-Mk1-Console-Set.jpg/960px-Sega-Mega-Drive-JP-Mk1-Console-Set.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sega-Mega-Drive-JP-Mk1-Console-Set.jpg","thumb1280":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a1/Sega-Mega-Drive-JP-Mk1-Console-Set.jpg/1280px-Sega-Mega-Drive-JP-Mk1-Console-Set.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"The Sega SG-1000, a video game console released in Japan in 1983.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7b/Sega-SG-1000-Console-Set.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Evan-Amos","height":772,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"The Sega SG-1000, a video game console released in Japan in 1983.","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7b/Sega-SG-1000-Console-Set.jpg/960px-Sega-SG-1000-Console-Set.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sega-SG-1000-Console-Set.jpg","thumb1280":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7b/Sega-SG-1000-Console-Set.jpg/1280px-Sega-SG-1000-Console-Set.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"A North American Sega Genesis video game console with 6-button controller. The Sega Genesis is a 16-bit, fourth generation game console that was first released in 1988. This is the second remodel of the console and is shown with a 6-button that was released later in the…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6a/Sega-Genesis-Mk2-6button.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Evan-Amos","height":658,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"A North American Sega Genesis video game console with 6-button controller. The Sega Genesis is a 16-bit, fourth generation game console that was first released in 1988. This is the second remodel of the console and is shown with a 6-button that was released later in the…","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6a/Sega-Genesis-Mk2-6button.jpg/960px-Sega-Genesis-Mk2-6button.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sega-Genesis-Mk2-6button.jpg","thumb1280":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6a/Sega-Genesis-Mk2-6button.jpg/1280px-Sega-Genesis-Mk2-6button.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:28.117Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/sega"}
{"id":"222e4a7d-7e0d-428b-a577-e2306ab7573a","type":"art_form","slug":"semah-alevi-bektasi-ritual","title":"Semah, Alevi-Bektaşi ritual","summary":"Sama, literally Listening, is a Sufi ritual performed as part of the meditation and prayer practice known as Dhikr (in English, Remembrance [of God]).","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1hb45jd0vq","content":[{"text":"Sama, literally Listening, is a Sufi ritual performed as part of the meditation and prayer practice known as Dhikr (in English, Remembrance [of God]). It is discussed by al-Ghazali in his The Alchemy of Happiness.\nIt is sometimes associated with Rumi, who is said to have fallen into an ecstatic trance after wandering through a city and hearing the name of God in the rhythmic hammering of a goldbeater (hence the name Sama, i.e. hearing/listening).  As an imitation of this, Sama invites the practitioner to reflect on the all-encompassing presence of God, a concept known as tawhid.\nSama often includes singing, playing instruments, dancing, recitation of poetry and prayers, wearing symbolic attire, and other rituals. Sama is a particularly popular form of worship in Sufism.\nIn 2005, UNESCO confirmed the \"Mevlevi Sama Ceremony\" of Turkey as one of the Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"795e1303-48a8-4f6e-847f-be38c3af7f71"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s2qsh7v7qv","content":[{"text":"The term sama stems from the root-verb meaning acceptance by tradition, from which are derived the words سَمْع (sam‘un) and اِسْتِمَاع (’istimā‘un, listening), often paired with نَقْل (naqlun) and تَقْلِيد (taqlīdun, tradition). It may have been in use since the tenth century to refer to a type of dhikr (remembrance of God), a ceremony used by various Sufi orders, particularly the Chishti order of the sub-continent. It often involves prayer, song and dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"795e1303-48a8-4f6e-847f-be38c3af7f71"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origin","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7czph66nb5","content":[{"text":"The origination of Sama is credited to Rumi, Sufi master and creator of the Mevlevi Order. Outside of the Mevlevi Order, it has also been used by other Sufi orders drawing inspiration from Rumi.\nThe story of the creation of this unique form of dhikr is that Rumi was walking through the town marketplace one day when he heard the rhythmic hammering of the goldbeaters. It is believed that Rumi heard the dhikr,  لا إله إلا الله \"la ilaha ilallah\" or in English, \"There is no god but Allah\" in the apprentices beating of the gold and was so entranced in happiness he stretched out both of his arms and started spinning in a circle (sufi whirling). With that the practice of Sama and the dervishes of the Mevlevi order were born.\nSimilarly, Abu Sa`id, (357 A.H.) (967 C.E.) was born in Mayhana, a town near Sarakhs, in Iran, bordering Turkmenistan. He is noted for establishing a rule for conduct in the khanaqah and also for the introduction of music (sama'), poetry and dance, as part of the Sufi collective devotional ritual of dhikr.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"795e1303-48a8-4f6e-847f-be38c3af7f71"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Mevlevi","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"srpyfw9c9v","content":[{"text":"The Whirling Dervishes of the Mevlevi order are probably the best-known practitioners of Sama. Mevlevi practitioners of sema are adult initiates into the order, which historically only meant men. Participants move as a group in a circle while also turning individually.\nArt is \"self expression\" and Sama is \"selfless expression\" - an experience of \"fanaa\". Fanaa (Arabic: فناء‎ fanāʾ ) in Sufism is the \"passing away\" or \"annihilation\" of the self.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"795e1303-48a8-4f6e-847f-be38c3af7f71"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Alevi/Bektashi","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6qkt8sctr3","content":[{"text":"Sema is prominent in the ceremonies of the Alevi community of Turkey and the closely related Bektashi Order.\nThe most common forms of Alevi sema include kirklar semahı (sema of the forty) and turnalar semahı (crane sema).  They are performed by both male and female teenagers, often in mixed groups, and participants turn facing each other in pairs or small groups and do not necessarily whirl as individuals. Many cemevleri (Alevi meetinghouses) have organized sema groups that perform at events such as the annual Hacı Bektaş Veli Festival.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"795e1303-48a8-4f6e-847f-be38c3af7f71"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Tannoura","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"412404g7jh","content":[{"text":"In Egypt, the Mevlevi form of Sama is known as tannoura and has been adopted (with some modifications) by other Sufi orders as well. It is also performed as a folk and concert dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"795e1303-48a8-4f6e-847f-be38c3af7f71"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qh9947770w","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Sama (Sufism)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"795e1303-48a8-4f6e-847f-be38c3af7f71"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"j5ktb8tkva","content":[{"text":"Semah, Alevi-Bektaşi ritual is a tradition recorded in open cultural data, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"75bc6047-25a6-463d-8784-1c0436491d7c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xadp461bha","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"75bc6047-25a6-463d-8784-1c0436491d7c"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Semah, Alevi ve Bektaşiler tarafından inançları gereği cemlerde icra edilen semah, hizmet sahipleri olan zakirlerin çaldığı saz eşliğinde söylenen sözler ve müziğin ritmine uyarak yapılan mistik ve estetik hareketler ile Tanrı’ya ulaşma yoludur. Türkiye coğrafyasının genelinde…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ea/Semah.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Hidayetgoktas","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Semah, Alevi ve Bektaşiler tarafından inançları gereği cemlerde icra edilen semah, hizmet sahipleri olan zakirlerin çaldığı saz eşliğinde söylenen sözler ve müziğin ritmine uyarak yapılan mistik ve estetik hareketler ile Tanrı’ya ulaşma yoludur. Türkiye coğrafyasının genelinde…","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ea/Semah.jpg/960px-Semah.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Semah.jpg","thumb1280":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ea/Semah.jpg/1280px-Semah.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:18.702Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/semah-alevi-bektasi-ritual"}
{"id":"be315e02-2df5-4ff1-8781-8dbb86946494","type":"art_form","slug":"serra","title":"Serra","summary":"No verifiable historical evidence supports a direct continuity between the Sera and the ancient Pyrrhic dance (Πυρρίχιος).","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7fa08daxkr","content":[{"text":"No verifiable historical evidence supports a direct continuity between the Sera and the ancient Pyrrhic dance (Πυρρίχιος). Claims identifying the Sera as a survival of the Pyrrhic rely primarily on ideological and folkloristic interpretations developed during the 20th century rather than on documented historical transmission. Establishing such continuity would require intermediate textual descriptions, choreographic records, iconographic evidence, or other forms of documentation tracing the dance across successive historical periods from antiquity to the modern era. In practice, the earliest reliable descriptions, photographs, and recordings of the Sera date only to the 19th and 20th centuries.\nThe characterization of the Sera as a “war dance” derives largely from this later identification with the Pyrrhic dance of antiquity rather than from historical evidence concerning the dance’s actual social function.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d58def7a-87a9-4ca4-b09f-9fae4bdc5939"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Structure and performance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zmvbzzd0sm","content":[{"text":"The Sera consists of distinct phases, beginning with a slower introductory section known as Atşapat (more rarely Aktşapat), named after the wider region of Akçaabat (historically Platana). This introductory phase gradually leads into the main, faster section of the dance.\nThe dance is characterized by rapid and intense body movements, close physical cohesion between the dancers, forceful stamping and twisting of the feet, and pronounced muscular contractions. In its original form in Pontus, the Sera was performed in a circular formation, in accordance with the broader tradition of Pontic dances. In contemporary practice, it is more commonly performed in a line formation with dancers holding each other, often accompanied by the Pontic lyra.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d58def7a-87a9-4ca4-b09f-9fae4bdc5939"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Rhythm","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"557gfz3e5g","content":[{"text":"The rhythmic structure of the Sera is complex and dynamic. It commonly begins in an asymmetrical meter (such as 7/16), associated with the slower introductory phase, and may transition into a more even rhythmic pattern as the tempo increases during the main section of the dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d58def7a-87a9-4ca4-b09f-9fae4bdc5939"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Contemporary practice","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"abfvdbxxa7","content":[{"text":"Although in historical Pontus the term Sera primarily referred to what is today recognized as the fast-paced section of the dance—closely related in movement vocabulary to a vigorous Tik form (Τρομαχτόν Τικ), accompanied by specific figures—its contemporary performance has been significantly shaped by later folkloric interventions.\nIn modern renditions, particularly in Greece, the dance has been expanded through the addition of various choreographic figures. These additions often reflect either aesthetic adaptations introduced by dance instructors or, in some cases, combinations of figures drawn from different local variants of the dance. While such elements may be rooted in traditional material, they were not necessarily performed together in this composite form in their original historical context in Pontus.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d58def7a-87a9-4ca4-b09f-9fae4bdc5939"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Cultural recognition","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qea708m869","content":[{"text":"In 2018, the Sera dance was inscribed in the National Inventory of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Greece.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d58def7a-87a9-4ca4-b09f-9fae4bdc5939"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"y29mc76b7r","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Serra (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d58def7a-87a9-4ca4-b09f-9fae4bdc5939"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"r6z38fwsdv","content":[{"text":"Serra is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"502326fb-bad3-48d7-9774-90ec8e345bd6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cmydbtynyg","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"502326fb-bad3-48d7-9774-90ec8e345bd6"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"peripheral urban settlement in São Paulo City, Brazil. The area is next to Cantareira Mountain Range","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/dc/Serra_da_Cantareira%2C_Sao_Paulo.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Wilfredor","height":850,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"peripheral urban settlement in São Paulo City, Brazil. The area is next to Cantareira Mountain Range","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/dc/Serra_da_Cantareira%2C_Sao_Paulo.jpg/960px-Serra_da_Cantareira%2C_Sao_Paulo.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Serra_da_Cantareira,_Sao_Paulo.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/dc/Serra_da_Cantareira%2C_Sao_Paulo.jpg/1280px-Serra_da_Cantareira%2C_Sao_Paulo.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"},{"alt":"Parc national de la Serra da Capivara, un parc de niveau fédéral, situé à Canto do Buriti (PI), São João do Piauí (PI), São Raimundo Nonato (PI), Coronel José Dias (PI). Le long temps de pose fait apparaître nettement la Voie lactée derrière la formation géologique de l'arche…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6b/Parque_nacional_serra_da_capivara-THIAGO_CAMPI-03.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Thiagomarcelcampi","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Parc national de la Serra da Capivara, un parc de niveau fédéral, situé à Canto do Buriti (PI), São João do Piauí (PI), São Raimundo Nonato (PI), Coronel José Dias (PI). Le long temps de pose fait apparaître nettement la Voie lactée derrière la formation géologique de l'arche…","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6b/Parque_nacional_serra_da_capivara-THIAGO_CAMPI-03.jpg/960px-Parque_nacional_serra_da_capivara-THIAGO_CAMPI-03.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Parque_nacional_serra_da_capivara-THIAGO_CAMPI-03.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6b/Parque_nacional_serra_da_capivara-THIAGO_CAMPI-03.jpg/1280px-Parque_nacional_serra_da_capivara-THIAGO_CAMPI-03.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"imagens da cidade de Serra, Espirito Santo, captadas a partir do Shopping Montserrat, da mesma cidade.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c6/Serra_%28Espirito_Santo%29_-_01.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Ajmcbarreto","height":622,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"imagens da cidade de Serra, Espirito Santo, captadas a partir do Shopping Montserrat, da mesma cidade.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c6/Serra_%28Espirito_Santo%29_-_01.jpg/960px-Serra_%28Espirito_Santo%29_-_01.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Serra_(Espirito_Santo)_-_01.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c6/Serra_%28Espirito_Santo%29_-_01.jpg/1280px-Serra_%28Espirito_Santo%29_-_01.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:30.717Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/serra"}
{"id":"e77f8020-3185-47dc-aef6-96feedccd0c0","type":"art_form","slug":"seungmu","title":"Seungmu","summary":"Seungmu is a Korean dance performed by Buddhist monks. It is one of the most famous Korean traditional dances and designated as South Korea's important intangible cultural asset number 27 in 1969.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"magrsv74sc","content":[{"text":"Seungmu is a Korean dance performed by Buddhist monks. It is one of the most famous Korean traditional dances and designated as South Korea's important intangible cultural asset number 27 in 1969. It has been developed into a solo dance by professional dancers.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9cc9c024-a540-400a-8cb5-89616bb57a95"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origins","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s7ysxkbt48","content":[{"text":"There is little extant evidence regarding how Seungmu was created. Seungmu is a dance that origins are traced back to Korea. But there is no known exact origin of where the dance could have originated. However, there are many suggestions of where this dance could have formed. It is believed that a wandering monk called Wonhyo had some connection to the creation of the monk’s dance (Seungmu). In addition, to Wonhyo, some others or circumstances could have been the progenitors of this dance. Some scholars suggest that this dance originated from “mocking upper-class priests who repeated certain bodily gestures when they were engaged in Buddhist teaching or disciplinary activity”. Eventually, the dance gained popularity during the sixteenth century. Some believed the dance originated then by a celebrated courtesan called Hwang Chin’i.  \nEven though there is no easy way to pinpoint how the dance links to Buddhist cultural tradition. The monk’s dance (Seungmu) was never distinctly featured in traditional Buddhist dance performances, but it is hardly separable from Buddhist traditions. The characteristics of the dance, such as hand and feet motion, share commonalities with Buddhist rituals. Based on analyses of forms and movements of Seungmu, some researchers have suggested that it may have derived from other Buddhist ritual dances or ethnic or folk dances. Some said that Seungmu came from bubgo dance, a Buddhist ritual dance. But it is known that the dance is a form of art that strayed away from Buddhist halls to secular streets. The dance communicated to the public in a casual manner that was aesthetical.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9cc9c024-a540-400a-8cb5-89616bb57a95"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Forms","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nzq5j3jh65","content":[{"text":"The dancer wears a robe (jangsam) with long sleeve called gasa and white hood called (gokkal). The drum or bubgo is the most important part of Seungmu.\nThe seungmu integrates the eight rhythmic cycles: yeombul, dodeuri, taryeong, jajin taryeong, gutgeori, dwit gutgeori, gujeong nori, and saesanjo. Every now and then, when one rhythm shifts to another, the dancer changes the mood by changing his steps.\nThe dance and rhythm were mainly improvised in variegated forms in different regions until the 1930s when various styles were archived and choreographed, and some of the performances were officially listed as cultural assets since the 1960s. For example, the general plot of the rhythmic cycles would proceed as follows: \n(Cycle 1, 2) Yeombul, Dodeuri: The birth of the universe and the trinity of sky, earth and man. The rhythm is heavy and slow, the dancer starts crouched on the ground and slowly and powerfully expands his/her motion to describe the expansion of the universe.\n(Cycle 3) Taryeong: The four azimuths (north, south, east, west) are created. Labor begins, and the world starts working. The rhythm changes to four beats (dun-ttak-duntta-kun), the dance introduces basic moves. \n(Cycle 4, 5) Jajin Taryeong, Gutgeori: Flowers bloom and the dance describes the beautiful course of life blooming. The rhythm becomes more sophisticated and so does the dance, symbolizing the myriad forms of life (birth, growth, aging, death), of the seasons (spring, summer, autumn, winter), of human emotions (joy, wrath, sorrow, comfort).\n(Cycle 6) Jajinmori, Hwimori: Time goes on, fruits ripen, life matures as it endures the changes. The drum beats faster toward a climax.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9cc9c024-a540-400a-8cb5-89616bb57a95"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Aesthetic","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"p5s73c150z","content":[{"text":"The dance is highly dignified and graceful. Some regard Seungmu as the most beautiful Korean dance, for the mixture of flowing movements and stillness. When viewed by the public, one feels an elaborateness and dignity that is strong, dynamic, and sharp. The dancer expresses themselves through their noble and elegant motions and emotions. As they embody an aesthetic concept, they express their passion through their face and the dance itself, which tells a story of resentment or ecstasy. The costume worn during Seungmu is radiant with color, and the lines are elegant. The dancer's long and white sleeves movements, the serenity of white hood, a breathtaking pause, and then a soul-stirring motion contribute to the singular uniqueness of the seungmu.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9cc9c024-a540-400a-8cb5-89616bb57a95"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Famous performers","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w4yep5mag1","content":[{"text":"As with many of Korea's Intangible National Treasures, Seungmoo has been preserved by Human Cultural Treasures. The performers themselves are considered Intangible National Treasures of Korea. Until recently, this dance was preserved by Master Lee Mae Bang, who died in 2015. Currently the position for next Human Cultural Treasure has yet to be decided by the Korean Government.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9cc9c024-a540-400a-8cb5-89616bb57a95"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xcgt4bcn8m","content":[{"text":"Lee Mae Bang, National Human Treasure, for Intangible Cultural Asset No. 27 and 97.\nKim Myo Seon, Master Assistant of Intangible Cultural Asset No. 27.\nKim Myung Ja, Master Assistant of Intangible Cultural Asset No. 27.\nHan Young-suk, Master of Korean Dance from 1969, including seungmu.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9cc9c024-a540-400a-8cb5-89616bb57a95"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zjq1ta4e02","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Seungmu”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9cc9c024-a540-400a-8cb5-89616bb57a95"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7be33xqhv1","content":[{"text":"Seungmu is Korean monk's dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"728e3342-bb45-4dc2-9242-1136d35d9e4f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"thh2t4b5w2","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"728e3342-bb45-4dc2-9242-1136d35d9e4f"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:15.407Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/seungmu"}
{"id":"d1df3400-b092-4537-8dd1-eafa484c8aa6","type":"art_form","slug":"sevillanas","title":"sevillanas","summary":"Sevillanas (Spanish pronunciation: [seβiˈʝanas]) are a type of folk music and dance of Sevilla and its region. They were derived from the Seguidilla, an old Castilian folk music and dance genre.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kax4556eb6","content":[{"text":"Sevillanas (Spanish pronunciation: [seβiˈʝanas]) are a type of folk music and dance of Sevilla and its region. They were derived from the Seguidilla, an old Castilian folk music and dance genre. In the nineteenth century they were influenced by Flamenco. They have a relatively limited musical pattern but are rich in lyrics based on country life, virgins, country towns, neighborhoods, pilgrimage, and love themes. \nSevillanas can be heard mainly in fairs and festivals, including the famous Seville Fair (Feria de abril de Sevilla). Among local groups that perform it are the Los Romeros de la Puebla, Los Amigos de Gines, Las Corraleras de Lebrija, Cantores de Hispalis, and Los del Río.\nSevillanas Rocieras are a religiously oriented genre of the Sevillana, with a particular emphasis on the Virgin of El Rocío. They are sung in numerous religious and cultural events in the South of the country.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1d8cb211-ae38-419b-a561-253938f5548a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rfzzbc2rrf","content":[{"text":"Sevillanas are danced by couples of all ages and sexes during celebrations (fiestas or ferias), often by whole families and towns. Sevillana choreography is characterized by stability and functionality, since it is a festival dance. This is why those intending to dance flamenco usually start by learning sevillanas; they are easier to master and there are more occasions for practice and training.\nThe rhythm of Sevillanas can be interpreted as 3/4, although it is generally 6/8.\nEach sevillana is composed of four or sometimes seven parts, with each part divided into three coplas and with each copla made up of six movements. During festivals and shows, it is often the Sevillana dancing visitors to Andalusia mistakenly take as Flamenco, as it is a vivid style, full of turns.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1d8cb211-ae38-419b-a561-253938f5548a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"n5b2p48pfh","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Sevillanas”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1d8cb211-ae38-419b-a561-253938f5548a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"n03xsmf62t","content":[{"text":"sevillanas is musical genre, folk song and dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"305ae733-f978-4ef1-b702-be60c1fa8a1d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kzt1camz5x","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 8 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"305ae733-f978-4ef1-b702-be60c1fa8a1d"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"black car parked in front of building during daytime","src":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1559713516-785db2d9270d?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8c2V2aWxsYW5hc3xlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MTEzMDIyfDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1080","kind":"photo","width":4032,"credit":"Isabella Smith","height":3024,"source":"unsplash","depicts":"black car parked in front of building during daytime","licence":"Unsplash License","thumb640":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1559713516-785db2d9270d?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8c2V2aWxsYW5hc3xlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MTEzMDIyfDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=640","sourceUrl":"https://unsplash.com/photos/black-car-parked-in-front-of-building-during-daytime-QWKR1HnIm6I?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral","thumb1280":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1559713516-785db2d9270d?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8c2V2aWxsYW5hc3xlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MTEzMDIyfDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1280","attributionUrl":"https://unsplash.com/@__isabella__?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:28.482Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/sevillanas"}
{"id":"45a6c4ce-5b36-4c1a-93d4-5457623263f0","type":"art_form","slug":"shalakho","title":"Shalakho","summary":"Shalakho ( sha-luh-KHAW) is a folk dance performed throughout all of the Caucasus. It's distinguished by its  68 time signature and fast-paced, upbeat style.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qmwhmr2x33","content":[{"text":"Shalakho ( sha-luh-KHAW) is a folk dance performed throughout all of the Caucasus. It's distinguished by its  68 time signature and fast-paced, upbeat style.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4f963449-dadd-4087-b66c-720b6bded335"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Armenian sources","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kfknnzsyhj","content":[{"text":"Per Karine Hayrapetyan, from Pan-Armenian International Academy of Sciences the name Shalakho (Armenian: շալախո) derives from Shalakhoi (Armenian: Շալախոյ) with the y-semi-vowel falling. She further argues, that the name is related to the Armenian totems and the Shirak Plain. Additionally, she draws a parallel between the name and the word shalax (Armenian: շալախ, lit. 'apricot, precocious').","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4f963449-dadd-4087-b66c-720b6bded335"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Georgian sources","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sjrp35r6hq","content":[{"text":"In Georgian the term Kintouri (Georgian: კინტოური, romanized: K'int'ouri, lit. 'Kintoian') is equivalent to kinto (Georgian: კინტო, romanized: K'int'o, lit. 'kinto, the entertainers who lived in Tbilisi') + -uri (Georgian: ური, romanized: -uri, lit. '-ian'). The term is used interchangeably with Shalakho (Georgian: შალახო, romanized: Shalakho) and Baghdaduri (Georgian: ბაღდადური, romanized: baghdaduri, lit. 'Baghdadian').\nThe Georgian term Baghdaduri (Georgian: ბაღდადური, romanized: baghdaduri, lit. 'Headscarfian') is equivalent to baghdad (Georgian: ბაღდად, romanized: baghdad, lit. 'headscarf') + -uri (Georgian: ური, romanized: -uri, lit. '-ian'). The term is used interchangeably with Shalakho (Georgian: შალახო, romanized: Shalakho) and Kintouri (Georgian: კინტოური, romanized: K'int'ouri, lit. 'Kintoian').","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4f963449-dadd-4087-b66c-720b6bded335"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Azerbaijani sources","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"btrxr6r5fq","content":[{"text":"Per Azerbaijani composer Afrasiyab Badalbeyli, in his Explanatory Monographic Musical Dictionary (Azerbaijani: İzahlı Monoqrafik musiqi lüğəti) the term Shalakho derives from Shalakum (Azerbaijani: Şələküm), which is an elision of the phrase shala yukum (Azerbaijani: şələ yüküm, lit. '(my) heavy load').\nAzerbaijani philologist Aliheydar Orucov, in his Explanatory Dictionary of Azerbaijani Language (Azerbaijani: Azərbaycan Dilinin İzahlı Lüğəti) marks the word as a Georgian loanword.\nAccording to Aynur Talıbova, in her Get Closer To Azerbaijan (Azerbaijani: Azərbaycana daha yaxın olaq) the name Shalakho owes its origin to the moment when clowns and entertainers in Zaqatala would put a piece of wood on an animal's back during their performance, thus alluding to a bundle of logs, then singing a song where lyrics contained multiple use of the word shala (Azerbaijani: şələ, lit. 'a burden, load').\nFor the name Shalaqoy (Azerbaijani: Şələqoy) compare Azerbaijani phrase shalani qoy, gal doyushak (Azerbaijani: şələni qoy, gəl döyüşək, lit. 'put your burden, let's fight'), which could have influenced it.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4f963449-dadd-4087-b66c-720b6bded335"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Other languages","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8cvq6b5q8d","content":[{"text":"Bezhta term shalakho (Bezhta: шалахо, romanized: šalaxo), Hunzib term shalakho (Hunzib: шалахо, romanized: šalaxo) and Tsakhur term shalakho (Tsakhur: шалахо, romanized: shalakho) are thought to be a borrowed from Georgian.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4f963449-dadd-4087-b66c-720b6bded335"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xg0y1h6qz7","content":[{"text":"The Shalakho dance developed in the urban centers of the South Caucasus, particularly in Tiflis (now Tbilisi), which in the 19th century was an important cultural hub with a significant Armenian population active in music and dance. The city was ethnically diverse, and various communities participated in public performances and entertainment, including Shalakho performed with duduk, barrel organ, and other popular instruments. In this cultural environment, Shalakho was performed by local musicians and dancers, with the majority being of Armenian origin.\nThese performances were part of popular urban entertainment, often including comedic acts and animal displays, such as bears or monkeys. The performing groups were ethnically mixed, including Romani entertainers.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4f963449-dadd-4087-b66c-720b6bded335"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w05hs2xcya","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Shalakho”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4f963449-dadd-4087-b66c-720b6bded335"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"80c24shz6j","content":[{"text":"Shalakho is style of dance in the Caucasus, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dca53e4a-cf32-4b18-96f6-d786ecc6a0f4"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"d14y2t44tn","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dca53e4a-cf32-4b18-96f6-d786ecc6a0f4"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"رنگ شلخو از ردیف میرزا عبدالله در ماهور دو","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8f/Shalakho%2C_MirzaAbdollaah.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"MBozorgmehr","height":828,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"رنگ شلخو از ردیف میرزا عبدالله در ماهور دو","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8f/Shalakho%2C_MirzaAbdollaah.png/960px-Shalakho%2C_MirzaAbdollaah.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Shalakho,_MirzaAbdollaah.png","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8f/Shalakho%2C_MirzaAbdollaah.png/1280px-Shalakho%2C_MirzaAbdollaah.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:17.962Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/shalakho"}
{"id":"0b564a50-7842-4cef-b92f-7b4937d37b5c","type":"art_form","slug":"shapish","title":"Shapish","summary":"Shapish is a tradition recorded in open cultural data. This page is a machine-generated stub awaiting review by someone who knows the tradition.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3a1azv4d15","content":[{"text":"Shapish is a tradition recorded in open cultural data, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fbe19a64-a75e-4574-87ae-a39977e57931"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"18jk3t2bvw","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fbe19a64-a75e-4574-87ae-a39977e57931"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T07:23:08.680Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/shapish"}
{"id":"edb1b727-77bd-499c-be7b-d7e8dd5c1a22","type":"art_form","slug":"shim-sham","title":"Shim Sham","summary":"The Shim Sham Shimmy, Shim Sham or just Sham originally is a particular tap dance routine and is regarded as tap dance's national anthem.  For today's swing dancers, it is a line dance.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0kbqf8btf7","content":[{"text":"The Shim Sham Shimmy, Shim Sham or just Sham originally is a particular tap dance routine and is regarded as tap dance's national anthem.  For today's swing dancers, it is a line dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3fe578c4-e13d-4429-818c-f5ea7ad3fb96"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4t9vzfqkgp","content":[{"text":"In the late 1920s, when Leonard Reed and Willie Bryant were with the Whitman Sisters troupe on the T.O.B.A. circuit in Chicago, they created a tap dance routine they called \"Goofus\" to the tune Turkey in the Straw. The routine consisted of standard steps: eight bars each of the Double Shuffle, the Cross Over, Tack Annie (an up-and-back shuffle), and Falling Off a Log.\nIn early 1930s, the Shim Sham was performed on stage in Harlem at places like Connie's Inn, Dickie Wells's Shim Sham Club, the 101 Ranch, the LaFayette Theatre, and the Harlem Opera House.\nAt the end of many performances, all of the musicians, singers, and dancers would get together on stage and do one last routine: the Shim Sham Shimmy. Tap dancers would perform technical variations, while singers and musicians would shuffle along as they were able. For example, in 1931 flash dance act The Three Little Words would close their show at Connie's Inn with the Shim Sham, and invite everyone to join in, \"and the whole club would join us, including the waiters. For awhile people were doing the Shim Sham up and down Seventh Avenue all night long,\" according to Joe Jones.\nAccording to tap dancer Howard “Stretch” Johnson the word \"Shim\" was a contraction of the term \"she-him\", a reference to the fact that the female chorus line dancers at the 101 Ranch were played by men.\nAt the Savoy Ballroom, some lindy hoppers did the shim sham as a group line dance, without the taps. A bunch of dancers would just jump up and start doing the shim sham on the side of the ballroom, over in the corner.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3fe578c4-e13d-4429-818c-f5ea7ad3fb96"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Variations","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4gqy26xjwf","content":[{"text":"There are several variations of \"shim sham\" choreography. There is the choreography used by Leonard Reed and Willie Bryant, as well as a number of variations by Leonard Reed and others. Other \"shim sham\" choreographies include ones by Frankie Manning, Al Minns and Leon James (also called the \"Savoy Shim Sham\"), and Dean Collins.\nThe Leonard Reed Shim Shams:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3fe578c4-e13d-4429-818c-f5ea7ad3fb96"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wcasevmppa","content":[{"text":"The original Shim Sham from 1927, a 32-bar chorus composed of four steps and a break\nThe Freeze Chorus, circa 1930s, the original Shim Sham without the breaks\nThe Joe Louis Shuffle Shim Sham, 1948, a tap-swing dance 32-bar chorus number that Leonard Reed performed with the World Heavyweight Boxing champ Joe Louis\nThe Shim Sham II, 1994, a 32-bar chorus dance based on the original Shim Sham\nThe Revenge of the Shim Sham, 2002, a 32-bar chorus dance, Leonard Reed's final Shim Sham, which builds upon his original four (the name was suggested by Maxwell DeMille at a performance at the Orpheum Theatre in Los Angeles).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3fe578c4-e13d-4429-818c-f5ea7ad3fb96"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"The dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yst2gyegdv","content":[{"text":"The Shim Sham is 10 phrases of choreography (each phrase lasting four 8-counts), so it does not usually take up an entire song. After the Shim Sham was over, the dancers then would exit either stage left or right, depending on what was agreed upon for that show.\nToday in the Lindy Hop scene, once the Shim Sham choreography is over, dancers typically find a partner and break into lindy hop for the remainder of the song.  During this portion of the song, the band or a DJ may call out \"Freeze!\" or \"Slow!\" instructing the dancers to either stop where they are or dance slowly, then call out \"Dance!\" to tell everyone to resume normal dancing.  The Frankie Manning version repeats the basic choreography (replacing each of the break steps with an 8-beat hold), then adds two Boogie Back/Boogie Forward phrases and two Boogie Back/Shorty George phrases to the end of the second repetition of the basic choreography.  Only after the final Shorty George is completed do the dancers break into freestyle Lindy Hop.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3fe578c4-e13d-4429-818c-f5ea7ad3fb96"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"The music","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c51ctxw273","content":[{"text":"The Shim Sham goes best with swing songs whose melody lines start on beat eight, as does the choreography.  An obvious choice is The Shim Sham Song (Bill Elliot Swing Orchestra), which was written specifically for this dance and has musical effects (e.g., breaks) in all the right places.  However, today the Shim Sham — particularly the Frankie Manning version — is danced more often to \"'Tain't What You Do (It's The Way That Cha Do It)\" by Jimmie Lunceford and His Orchestra, or \"Tuxedo Junction\" by Erskine Hawkins. In fact, it is typical now at a Lindy dance party for dancers to start up a Shim Sham whenever \"'Tain't What You Do\" is played.  There is also a recording \"Stompin' at the Savoy\" with the George Gee band where Manning himself calls out the moves.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3fe578c4-e13d-4429-818c-f5ea7ad3fb96"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"The steps","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4ccyy7ye3v","content":[{"text":"These are the steps of the original 32-bar Shim Sham:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3fe578c4-e13d-4429-818c-f5ea7ad3fb96"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0hjtjgt73y","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Shim Sham”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3fe578c4-e13d-4429-818c-f5ea7ad3fb96"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tkc7z90t7w","content":[{"text":"Shim Sham is jazz dance routine, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"21493de2-dc0b-49c6-8820-51fa7772a020"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zvqsdtxwnt","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"21493de2-dc0b-49c6-8820-51fa7772a020"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Ahlen - Osthalde","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/14/Ahlen_-_Shim_Sham.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Michael Schmalenstroer","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Ahlen - Osthalde","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/14/Ahlen_-_Shim_Sham.jpg/960px-Ahlen_-_Shim_Sham.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ahlen_-_Shim_Sham.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/14/Ahlen_-_Shim_Sham.jpg/1280px-Ahlen_-_Shim_Sham.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:11.856Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/shim-sham"}
{"id":"27c51d86-2c43-4312-9a25-e0fe1a2708c4","type":"art_form","slug":"shimmy","title":"Shimmy","summary":"A shimmy or shoulder shakes is a dance move in which the body is held still, except for the shoulders, which are quickly alternated back and forth. When the right shoulder goes back, the left one comes forward.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ssz3rs50pe","content":[{"text":"A shimmy or shoulder shakes is a dance move in which the body is held still, except for the shoulders, which are quickly alternated back and forth. When the right shoulder goes back, the left one comes forward.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5da718e0-23ad-4a98-908a-6248d89b6405"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"United States","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3vbzxhjy6p","content":[{"text":"In 1917, a dance-song titled \"Shim-Me-Sha-Wabble\" by Spencer Williams was published, as \"The Jazz Dance\", which included the \"Shimmy-She\", among others. \nGilda Gray attributed to American Indians in a 1919 interview with Variety saying: \"You may not believe it but the original shimmy dance has never been properly introduced in New York. I know, for I have studied the dancing characteristics of the Indians for a long time, and they are really responsible for the shimmy which they labelled the 'Shima Shiwa'. There have been continual efforts on the part of this dancer and that one, with each declaring that his or her version is the 'original'. There is no doubt but that the shimmy dance as it was constructed by the American Indian would have a greater popularity if done right.\"\n\"I Wish I Could Shimmy Like My Sister Kate\" was an up-tempo jazz dance song, written by Clarence Williams and Armand Piron, and published in 1919, which has been popular ever since and performed and recorded by many artists.\nFlappers often performed the dance in the 1920s. The origin of the name is often falsely attributed to Gilda Gray, a Polish emigrant to America. An anecdote says that when she was asked about her dancing style, she answered, in heavy accent, \"I'm shaking my chemise\". In an interview Gilda denied having said this, and earlier usages of the word are recorded. In the late 1910s, others were also attributed as being the \"inventor\" of the shimmy, including Hilda Ferguson, Bee Palmer and the jazz duo Frank Hale and Signe Paterson.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5da718e0-23ad-4a98-908a-6248d89b6405"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Folk dance traditions","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9qjd9063cz","content":[{"text":"The move is known in Romani dances, done by female dancers to produce a chime of costume decorations made of sewn-on coins.\nShoulder shakes is a characteristic attribute of the Ethiopian eskista dance. In fact, \"eskista\" means \"dancing shoulders\" in Amharic.\nIn Bukusu culture (East Africa), the \"kamabeka\" dance involves vigorous shaking of shoulders.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5da718e0-23ad-4a98-908a-6248d89b6405"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nxvenz0369","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Shimmy”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5da718e0-23ad-4a98-908a-6248d89b6405"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b8gcyezdna","content":[{"text":"Shimmy is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9f670564-bcdf-40ac-860d-e026356e7131"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5h7n2e6fhb","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9f670564-bcdf-40ac-860d-e026356e7131"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"National Ports Authority House at the V&A Waterfront","src":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1646558581666-d1aa8d51595d?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8U2hpbW15fGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgxMTYzODh8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1080","kind":"photo","width":4013,"credit":"Grant Durr","height":3010,"source":"unsplash","depicts":"National Ports Authority House at the V&A Waterfront","licence":"Unsplash License","thumb640":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1646558581666-d1aa8d51595d?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8U2hpbW15fGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgxMTYzODh8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=640","sourceUrl":"https://unsplash.com/photos/a-tall-building-sitting-next-to-a-body-of-water-OiXpnjykTlU?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral","thumb1280":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1646558581666-d1aa8d51595d?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8U2hpbW15fGVufDF8MHx8fDE3ODgxMTYzODh8MA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1280","attributionUrl":"https://unsplash.com/@grant_durr?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:08.276Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/shimmy"}
{"id":"eefeb80d-e1bb-411b-af44-d6e589c5a8dd","type":"art_form","slug":"sirtaki","title":"Sirtaki","summary":"Sirtaki or syrtaki (Greek: συρτάκι) is a dance of Greek origin, choreographed for the 1964 film Zorba the Greek. It is a recent Greek folkdance, and a mixture of \"syrtos\" and the slow and fast rhythms of the hasapiko dance.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dewcnpj7xt","content":[{"text":"Sirtaki or syrtaki (Greek: συρτάκι) is a dance of Greek origin, choreographed for the 1964 film Zorba the Greek. It is a recent Greek folkdance, and a mixture of \"syrtos\" and the slow and fast rhythms of the hasapiko dance. The dance and the accompanying music by Mikis Theodorakis are also called Zorba's dance, the Zorba or \"the dance of Zorba\". The dance has become popular in Greece and is identified with the Greeks, becoming an invented tradition.\nThe name sirtaki comes from the Greek word syrtos – from σύρω (τον χορό), which means \"drag (the dance)\" or \"lead (the dance)\" – a common name for a group of traditional Greek dances of so-called \"dragging\" style, as opposed to pidikhtos (πηδηχτός), a hopping or leaping style. Despite its name, sirtaki incorporates both syrtos (in its slower part) and pidikhtós (in its faster part) elements.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4c5bff7d-7b3a-42fd-a5ee-03b34d68279f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Choreography","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"925epp3jya","content":[{"text":"The dance was created specifically for the film Zorba the Greek rather than using a traditional form of dance. The name sirtaki suggests it was based on a traditional Cretan dance form, \"syrtos\", a type of dance where the dancers drag their feet instead of hopping, however, the dance also incorporates both a slower hasapiko dance style, and a faster hasaposerviko style. The dance is therefore an amalgamation of three different dance styles. It also has some characteristics of the zeybek dance. The choreography of the dance for the film has been attributed to Giorgos Provias.\nDuring the filming of Zorba the Greek, Stelios Katsivelakis taught choreography to Anthony Quinn (although another dancer teacher contests this, claiming that several dancers, including himself, were involved in teaching Quinn), including various Greek dances such as the Kalamatianos, Chaniotikos syrtos (syrtos of Chania), pentozali with the psalidia (scissor-like) movements, and hasapiko. The zeibekiko was initially omitted, as the director felt it was not a suitable dance for a non-Greek and that the hasapiko looked better on screen. Quinn claimed that because he had problem doing a hopping motion due to a broken foot, he invented the dragging-sliding dance steps that he said a villager taught him, as well as coming up with its name on the fly when the film was being shot. Quinn could not perform the fast part of choreography planned for the final scene by the choreographer, and the choreography had to be changed on the spot.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4c5bff7d-7b3a-42fd-a5ee-03b34d68279f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Performance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m0st93nne7","content":[{"text":"Groups of dancers can perform the sirtaki in a line or circle formation with hands held on neighbours' shoulders. When performing alone, the sirtaki-dancer raises his arms horizontally on both sides of the body. Parts of the leg movements may be suggestive of crushing of grapes.\nMeter is 44, tempo increasing, and often the signature is changed to 2/4 in the fastest part. Accordingly, the dance begins with slower, smoother actions, gradually transforming into faster, vivid ones, often including hops and leaps.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4c5bff7d-7b3a-42fd-a5ee-03b34d68279f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Guinness World Records","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4v4cz0chcj","content":[{"text":"On August 31, 2012, the previous Sirtaki Dance Guinness World Record (Cyprus, 2010, 1672 persons) was broken by 5,614 people dancing sirtaki for five minutes by the sea, starting from the port of the city of Volos in Greece. The Association for Social Impact and Culture to the Municipality of Magnisia organized the event on the main beach of the town of Volos under the light of the second full moon of the month. Some 5,614 people, aged from 14 to 89, danced to the music of Mikis Theodorakis' Zorba the Greek, filling the town square and making it into the Guinness World Records. Enthusiasts from Volos, Larisa, Athens, Thessaloniki, Trikala, and the Greek islands joined the regional union of blind people, the national synchronized swimming team and many ordinary citizens. The idea came from a Volos resident, Alexia Halvatzakou, who suggested it to the municipal services as an alternative way to promote the area. The President of the Association for Social Impact and Culture, Costas Halevas, liked the idea and set about organizing the event.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4c5bff7d-7b3a-42fd-a5ee-03b34d68279f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qy7vcrsmcr","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Sirtaki”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4c5bff7d-7b3a-42fd-a5ee-03b34d68279f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"h9kmeyk5g4","content":[{"text":"Sirtaki is type of Greek folkdance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0e24a38e-0ddf-4f08-951b-32abe06f97ce"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vb4gja65xd","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 4 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0e24a38e-0ddf-4f08-951b-32abe06f97ce"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:12.079Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/sirtaki"}
{"id":"adbc79ea-4ab5-4999-a94f-d5fa2f254793","type":"art_form","slug":"siva-tau","title":"Siva Tau","summary":"The Manu Siva Tau is a Samoan war dance, performed by the Samoan sporting teams before each match.\nThe national rugby union team used to perform the traditional 'Maulu'ulu Moa' on tour.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dhzg9bbs8h","content":[{"text":"The Manu Siva Tau is a Samoan war dance, performed by the Samoan sporting teams before each match.\nThe national rugby union team used to perform the traditional 'Maulu'ulu Moa' on tour. Prior to the 1991 World Cup, the 'Manu' war chant was composed; it was considered more effective at psyching up players.\nThe national Australian rules football team performs the Siva Tau at its International Cup appearances.\nIn WWE, The Usos, as faces, performed the Siva Tau as part of their ring entrance.\nThe Toa Samoa national rugby league team also perform the Siva Tau before each match (with the \"Toa\" replacing \"Manu\" in the words).\nThe song \"Le Manu\" by the New Zealand metal band Shepherds Reign has the lyrics of the Siva Tau as performed by the Manu Samoa.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"18e51d7c-9db2-42a7-9378-d7a9bbfae95e"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Alternate versions","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tpd6wpb697","content":[{"text":"During the 2007 Rugby World Cup, the Samoa national rugby union team used a more aggressive version of the Siva Tau. However, this version was dropped by the Manu Samoa before the 2007 Rugby World Cup match against United States in favour of the original version.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"18e51d7c-9db2-42a7-9378-d7a9bbfae95e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"x5ax9p31g9","content":[{"text":"This version of the Siva Tau, similar to the version used by the Manu Samoa in the 2007 Rugby World Cup, is used by the Samoa national rugby league team, however, differently from the prior version, the final lines are similar to the Siva Tau performed by the Manu Samoa.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"18e51d7c-9db2-42a7-9378-d7a9bbfae95e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bzp9x3p4nz","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Siva Tau”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"18e51d7c-9db2-42a7-9378-d7a9bbfae95e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"espax8yfrq","content":[{"text":"Siva Tau is Samoan type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"88042aef-9ac9-4327-992a-988c2f726700"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yyyyh9afje","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"88042aef-9ac9-4327-992a-988c2f726700"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Stone with tibetian mantras Tibet sanscrit","src":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1607893579544-c205660b5b79?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8U2l2YSUyMFRhdXxlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MTEzMDE3fDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1080","kind":"photo","width":4608,"credit":"Raimond Klavins","height":3072,"source":"unsplash","depicts":"Stone with tibetian mantras Tibet sanscrit","licence":"Unsplash License","thumb640":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1607893579544-c205660b5b79?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8U2l2YSUyMFRhdXxlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MTEzMDE3fDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=640","sourceUrl":"https://unsplash.com/photos/gray-and-red-stone-fragment-A0xMkK4-qmA?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral","thumb1280":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1607893579544-c205660b5b79?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8U2l2YSUyMFRhdXxlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4MTEzMDE3fDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1280","attributionUrl":"https://unsplash.com/@raimondklavins?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:27.300Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/siva-tau"}
{"id":"83d1fce0-b618-4f5d-b1ba-bf5734603c1d","type":"art_form","slug":"skank","title":"Skank","summary":"Skanking is a form of dancing practiced in the ska, ska punk, hardcore punk, reggae,  drum and bass and other music scenes.\nThe dance style originated in the 1950s or 1960s at Jamaican dance halls, where ska music was played.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ncvvgbsxk0","content":[{"text":"Skanking is a form of dancing practiced in the ska, ska punk, hardcore punk, reggae,  drum and bass and other music scenes.\nThe dance style originated in the 1950s or 1960s at Jamaican dance halls, where ska music was played. Ska music has a prominent backbeat played by the electric guitar on beats two and four of a 4/4 bar of music. When ska became popular amongst British mods and skinheads of the 1960s, these UK youth adopted these types of dances and altered them. The dancing style was revived during the 1970s and 1980s 2 Tone era, and has been adopted by some in the hardcore punk subculture.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"691861e1-c1a8-4669-81fb-b8e416eab0a9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Types","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ehvz2cm070","content":[{"text":"Originally, skanking consisted of a \"running man\" motion of the legs to the beat while alternating bent-elbow fist-punches, left and right. Over time, variations emerged. The punk version, commonly known as two-stepping, features a sharp striking out look with the arms, and is sometimes used in moshing to knock around others doing the same. However, this is rarely seen as an act of true aggression but rather a consensual release of emotion.\nThis rough appearance tends to lead to negative stereotypes of violence, though they are rare at best and almost never tolerated by venue operators, bands, or other audience members. While the flailing, swinging, and pushing may appear dangerous, there is almost always a conscious effort by each dancer in the 'pit' to refrain from actually striking or hurting each other. Additionally, should any one person trip and fall, others in the group tend to avoid trampling them and even help them to get back up.\nThe style, speed, and moves used when skanking are as diverse as the music it is performed to, usually dictated by its rhythm and genre. For example, the skanking done at a reggae concert would typically be slower and more restrained than the skanking done at a hardcore punk show. An example of this is the lighter style known as 'stroll' which has become popularized by American ska-punk bands, mainly Big D and the Kids Table. In this style, dancers tend to 'stroll' in a circle around the center 'pit' while rhythmically swaying from side to side with arms bent and marching in sync to the music.\nIn drum and bass music, skanking is very different from ska, punk or reggae skanking. Also referred to as x-outing, x-stepping or dnb stepping, it is characterised by its fast, technical movements.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"691861e1-c1a8-4669-81fb-b8e416eab0a9"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6v4h8zrxhn","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Skank (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"691861e1-c1a8-4669-81fb-b8e416eab0a9"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"62fw5mjshx","content":[{"text":"Skank is form of dancing, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"de152b93-2ad2-4e49-a743-cc8cc928c3fd"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1f817mvva6","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"de152b93-2ad2-4e49-a743-cc8cc928c3fd"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Show da banda Skank no Auditório Araújo Viana em Porto Alegre, no dia 26 de novembro de 2022.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7e/Skank_no_Audit%C3%B3rio_Araujo_Viana%2C_Porto_Alegre%2C_novembro_de_2022_%2812%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Fronteira","height":577,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Show da banda Skank no Auditório Araújo Viana em Porto Alegre, no dia 26 de novembro de 2022.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7e/Skank_no_Audit%C3%B3rio_Araujo_Viana%2C_Porto_Alegre%2C_novembro_de_2022_%2812%29.jpg/960px-Skank_no_Audit%C3%B3rio_Araujo_Viana%2C_Porto_Alegre%2C_novembro_de_2022_%2812%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Skank_no_Audit%C3%B3rio_Araujo_Viana,_Porto_Alegre,_novembro_de_2022_(12).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7e/Skank_no_Audit%C3%B3rio_Araujo_Viana%2C_Porto_Alegre%2C_novembro_de_2022_%2812%29.jpg/1280px-Skank_no_Audit%C3%B3rio_Araujo_Viana%2C_Porto_Alegre%2C_novembro_de_2022_%2812%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Show da banda Skank no Auditório Araújo Viana em Porto Alegre, no dia 26 de novembro de 2022.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2a/Skank_no_Audit%C3%B3rio_Araujo_Viana%2C_Porto_Alegre%2C_novembro_de_2022_%2814%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Fronteira","height":2842,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Show da banda Skank no Auditório Araújo Viana em Porto Alegre, no dia 26 de novembro de 2022.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2a/Skank_no_Audit%C3%B3rio_Araujo_Viana%2C_Porto_Alegre%2C_novembro_de_2022_%2814%29.jpg/960px-Skank_no_Audit%C3%B3rio_Araujo_Viana%2C_Porto_Alegre%2C_novembro_de_2022_%2814%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Skank_no_Audit%C3%B3rio_Araujo_Viana,_Porto_Alegre,_novembro_de_2022_(14).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2a/Skank_no_Audit%C3%B3rio_Araujo_Viana%2C_Porto_Alegre%2C_novembro_de_2022_%2814%29.jpg/1280px-Skank_no_Audit%C3%B3rio_Araujo_Viana%2C_Porto_Alegre%2C_novembro_de_2022_%2814%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Show da banda Skank no Auditório Araújo Viana em Porto Alegre, no dia 26 de novembro de 2022.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/51/Skank_no_Audit%C3%B3rio_Araujo_Viana%2C_Porto_Alegre%2C_novembro_de_2022_%2813%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Fronteira","height":2842,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Show da banda Skank no Auditório Araújo Viana em Porto Alegre, no dia 26 de novembro de 2022.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/51/Skank_no_Audit%C3%B3rio_Araujo_Viana%2C_Porto_Alegre%2C_novembro_de_2022_%2813%29.jpg/960px-Skank_no_Audit%C3%B3rio_Araujo_Viana%2C_Porto_Alegre%2C_novembro_de_2022_%2813%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Skank_no_Audit%C3%B3rio_Araujo_Viana,_Porto_Alegre,_novembro_de_2022_(13).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/51/Skank_no_Audit%C3%B3rio_Araujo_Viana%2C_Porto_Alegre%2C_novembro_de_2022_%2813%29.jpg/1280px-Skank_no_Audit%C3%B3rio_Araujo_Viana%2C_Porto_Alegre%2C_novembro_de_2022_%2813%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:23.865Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/skank"}
{"id":"fc9a63e5-aed5-42a6-ad2a-7785a38c6a14","type":"art_form","slug":"slovak-verbunk","title":"Slovak verbunk","summary":"Slovak verbunk is Czech improvised dance. This page is a machine-generated stub awaiting review by someone who knows the tradition.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pc62jqjzjx","content":[{"text":"Slovak verbunk is Czech improvised dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"16f03c88-ac02-421f-ab65-1f8b16383cb6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"h38m4xh307","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"16f03c88-ac02-421f-ab65-1f8b16383cb6"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T07:23:08.060Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/slovak-verbunk"}
{"id":"e3329bac-0418-424a-bf2c-81bed02c8078","type":"art_form","slug":"slow-dance","title":"slow dance","summary":"A slow dance is a type of partner dance in which a couple dance slowly, swaying to the music.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"y0xn00kwth","content":[{"text":"A slow dance is a type of partner dance in which a couple dance slowly, swaying to the music. This is usually done to very slow-beat songs, namely sentimental ballads.\nSlow dancing can refer to any slow couple dance (such as certain ballroom dances), but is often associated with a particular, simple dance style performed by middle school, high school, and college students.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"de6dbaa6-f96c-491b-a488-1e207e71c9e0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Technique","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0gfx30aahv","content":[{"text":"When two partners dance together, the male dancer typically holds his hands against the sides of the female dancer's hips, buttocks, or waist while the  female dancer drapes her hands on the male dancer’s shoulders, upper back, or around their neck. The couple then sways back and forth with the music. Foot movement is minimal, but the pair may use their feet to turn on the spot slowly. Because the dance requires little physical concentration, participants often talk to each other while dancing. Some couples who have a close relationship may dance very closely together, in a \"hug-and-sway\" fashion.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"de6dbaa6-f96c-491b-a488-1e207e71c9e0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6wg2fjv52b","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Slow dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"de6dbaa6-f96c-491b-a488-1e207e71c9e0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6msk4jb8dv","content":[{"text":"slow dance is type of partner dance in which a couple dance slowly, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b2edbffe-17d2-46d2-94e3-8ac50ef37d38"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0z2sgf200y","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b2edbffe-17d2-46d2-94e3-8ac50ef37d38"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Logo de las palabras Slow Dance","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5d/Slow_Dance_%28Logo_Words%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"CrySwiftly","height":291,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Logo de las palabras Slow Dance","licence":"CC BY 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5d/Slow_Dance_%28Logo_Words%29.jpg/960px-Slow_Dance_%28Logo_Words%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Slow_Dance_(Logo_Words).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5d/Slow_Dance_%28Logo_Words%29.jpg/1280px-Slow_Dance_%28Logo_Words%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0"},{"alt":"The late night slow dance competition at Lindy Focus 2023, a Lindy Hop event in Asheville, North Carolina, held at the Crowne Plaza Resort Asheville.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c5/Slow_dance_competition_at_Lindy_Focus_2023.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Sdkb","height":964,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"The late night slow dance competition at Lindy Focus 2023, a Lindy Hop event in Asheville, North Carolina, held at the Crowne Plaza Resort Asheville.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c5/Slow_dance_competition_at_Lindy_Focus_2023.jpg/960px-Slow_dance_competition_at_Lindy_Focus_2023.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Slow_dance_competition_at_Lindy_Focus_2023.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c5/Slow_dance_competition_at_Lindy_Focus_2023.jpg/1280px-Slow_dance_competition_at_Lindy_Focus_2023.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Yo digo que se les ocurrió la idea del performance por la rola de The Cult: www.youtube.com/watch?v=E0coJxNgASs Muy ad hoc para un toquín de Metal (¡Más metal!) Les pongo la letra de la rola porque es una verdadera joya: Fire woman, yeah Shake, shake, shake, shake it, yeah Wound…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/64/Twistin_like_a_flame_in_a_slow_dance%2C_baby_%282915750769%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Eneas De Troya from Mexico City, México","height":857,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Yo digo que se les ocurrió la idea del performance por la rola de The Cult: www.youtube.com/watch?v=E0coJxNgASs Muy ad hoc para un toquín de Metal (¡Más metal!) Les pongo la letra de la rola porque es una verdadera joya: Fire woman, yeah Shake, shake, shake, shake it, yeah Wound…","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/64/Twistin_like_a_flame_in_a_slow_dance%2C_baby_%282915750769%29.jpg/960px-Twistin_like_a_flame_in_a_slow_dance%2C_baby_%282915750769%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Twistin_like_a_flame_in_a_slow_dance,_baby_(2915750769).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/64/Twistin_like_a_flame_in_a_slow_dance%2C_baby_%282915750769%29.jpg/1280px-Twistin_like_a_flame_in_a_slow_dance%2C_baby_%282915750769%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:24.167Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/slow-dance"}
{"id":"aa66a9e5-c24f-4c82-a178-77b1859bb47b","type":"art_form","slug":"social-dance","title":"social dance","summary":"Social dances are dances that have social functions and context. Social dances are intended for participation rather than performance.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ffv3wdgn2k","content":[{"text":"Social dances are dances that have social functions and context. Social dances are intended for participation rather than performance. They are often danced merely to socialise and for entertainment, though they may have ceremonial, competitive and erotic functions.\nMany social dances of European origin are in recent centuries partner dances (see Ballroom dance) but  elsewhere there may instead be circle dances or line dances.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"13ac2ebb-3ac8-47bf-9dc5-a693bd677286"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Social dance in western cultures","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2g9txn2773","content":[{"text":"The types of dance performed in social gatherings change with social values. Social dance music of the 14th century has been preserved in manuscript, though without proper choreography, for dances such as the ballo, carol, stampita, saltarello, trotto and roto. The 15th century is the first period from which written records of dances exist. A manuscript from Brussels highlights the Burgundian court dance, which spread all over Europe, referred to as the basse dance in which a large group perform a series of steps in triple time. Italian courts danced balli, with a wide array of choreographed rhythms, steps and positions for the dancers. These were documented in instruction books written by the dance masters who choreographed them for the courts.\nSocial dances of lower classes were not recorded until the Late Renaissance. According to Richard Powers, courtiers in the late 16th century continually had to \"prove themselves through their social skills, especially through dance.\" Recorded social dances of the late 16th century include the pavane and the Canary dance. Thoinot Arbeau's book Orchésographie describes peasant branles as well as the 16th century basse danse and la volta. The peasants from the countryside supplied new dances to the court as the old ones' novelty wore out.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"13ac2ebb-3ac8-47bf-9dc5-a693bd677286"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gks8m88k8j","content":[{"text":"During the Baroque Era court balls served to display social status. A formal ball opened with a branle in which couples stood in a line in order of their place in the social hierarchy, the most highly regarded couples dancing first. The Menuet and the Gavotte gained popularity. Balls often ended with an English country dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"13ac2ebb-3ac8-47bf-9dc5-a693bd677286"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"20th century United States","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fnrpg5pcha","content":[{"text":"Towards the end of the 19th century, Americans were tiring of the court dances of their grandparents' era. In the early 20th century, Americans began pairing Victorian dances such as the Two-Step with Ragtime music. Other dances included the African American Cakewalk, and animal dances such as the Turkey Trot. The most popular social dance of the time was the One-Step. The dance consisted of couples taking one step on each beat of the music, so even beginners could participate.\nThe introduction of the phonograph record marked a shift toward dancing to recorded music, as radio stations, jukeboxes, and sock hops played records to dance to.\nSwing dance in the 1930s has grown in popularity, taking many dance forms, some of them, such as Lindy Hop or West Coast Swing have survived to today.\nRock 'n' roll in the 1950s brought about a shift in social dancing toward rebelliousness. This shift was seen especially in teenagers who did not want to dance the same steps that their parents did. The dancing was mostly swing based but had a variations in different regions. Couples began dancing as individuals for the first time, sending the message that there did not have to be a leader and a follower.\nThe mid-20th century also saw a strong influence from Latin American dance, particularly from the Caribbean. In Cuba, Spanish colonial ballroom traditions blended with Indigenous Taíno forms and the music and dance of enslaved Africans, creating a diverse range of partnered social dances. Many of these styles spread to the United States through immigration and cultural exchange, especially in growing Latino communities in New York, Miami, and Los Angeles.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"13ac2ebb-3ac8-47bf-9dc5-a693bd677286"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1wvez77ee1","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Social dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"13ac2ebb-3ac8-47bf-9dc5-a693bd677286"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"83721fc0vt","content":[{"text":"social dance is participatory dance focused on human interaction, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4fad8419-4e67-413d-968a-efa832de6543"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c9ky74211d","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 10 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4fad8419-4e67-413d-968a-efa832de6543"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Lindy-Hop party at the Barswingona 2010 held in the building \"Casino l'Aliança del Poblenou\"","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/ce/BSW2010-_148bis.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Goel land","height":850,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Lindy-Hop party at the Barswingona 2010 held in the building \"Casino l'Aliança del Poblenou\"","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/ce/BSW2010-_148bis.jpg/960px-BSW2010-_148bis.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:BSW2010-_148bis.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/ce/BSW2010-_148bis.jpg/1280px-BSW2010-_148bis.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:25.113Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/social-dance"}
{"id":"67896e35-2dbb-4389-a46d-f927745eab7e","type":"art_form","slug":"solea","title":"Soleá","summary":"Soleares  (plural of soleá, pronounced [soleˈa]) is one of the most basic forms or palos of Flamenco music, probably originating among the Calé Romani people of Cádiz or Seville in Andalusia, the most southern region of Spain.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8vzvpzs74w","content":[{"text":"Soleares  (plural of soleá, pronounced [soleˈa]) is one of the most basic forms or palos of Flamenco music, probably originating among the Calé Romani people of Cádiz or Seville in Andalusia, the most southern region of Spain. It is usually accompanied by one guitar only, in phrygian mode \"por arriba\" (fundamental on the 6th string); \"Bulerías por soleá\" is usually played \"por medio\" (fundamental on the 5th string). Soleares is sometimes called \"mother of palos\" although it is not the oldest one (e.g. siguiriyas is older than soleares) and not even related to every other palo (e.g. fandangos family is from a different origin)","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a158a85d-b833-4e71-ac5f-35f06dea3863"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Lyrics","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3vj10rwbkn","content":[{"text":"When singers sing soleá, as with most palos, they normally choose different \"coplas\" (stanzas), with different melody, and combine them according to the inspiration of the moment or to a previous plan. Even if the singer has a previous plan, it is often altered on the spur of the moment. These stanzas are independent in subject matter from one another.\nThe content of the lyrics is generally serious in nature, as appropriate to the solemn air of the music. They often have a sententious tone and convey a feeling of intimate pain. Sometimes despair, more typical of seguiriya, can also appear. However, it is difficult to generalize: sometimes a less serious stanza can turn up in the middle of other serious ones, and irony is frequent.\nThe stanza of the soleá has three or four lines. In four-line stanzas, the second and fourth line are in assonant rhyme, while the first and third are free. In three-line stanzas, the assonance is between the first and the third.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a158a85d-b833-4e71-ac5f-35f06dea3863"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Musical analysis","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pfy8znvkvk","content":[{"text":"Soleá is one of the flamenco palos with the highest number of traditional songs, and it is particularly appreciated by knowledgeable artists and audiences. It is very demanding for singers, as they have to strive to be creative and, at the same time, respectful of the tradition, and they have to succeed in finding a good balance between melodic and rhythmic sides, both extremely difficult. It demands great vocal faculties, and the singer should achieve a balance between passion and restraint.\nThe melody of a soleá stanza usually stays within a limited range (usually not more than a 5th). Its difficulty lies in the use of melisma and microtones, which demand great agility and precision in the voice. It is usual to start a series of soleares with a more restrained stanza in the low register, while continuing to more and more demanding ornaments in a higher register. The series is quite often finished with a stanza in a much more vivid tempo in the relative Major mode.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a158a85d-b833-4e71-ac5f-35f06dea3863"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Metre (compás)","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"891pvr0wz4","content":[{"text":"The metre or \"compás\" of the soleá is one of the most widely used in Flamenco. Other palos have derived their compás from the soleá, including Bulerías por soleá, the palos in the Cantiñas group, like Alegrías, Romeras, Mirabrás, Caracoles or, to a certain extent, Bulerías. It consists of 12 beats, and could be described as a combination of triple and duple beat bars, so it's a polymetre form, with strong beats at the end of each bar. The basic \"skeleton\" of the soleá rhythm, thus, follows this pattern:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a158a85d-b833-4e71-ac5f-35f06dea3863"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k4dyzr6vgv","content":[{"text":"(Each number represents a beat. Blue squares mean weak beats, while big brown dots are strong beats.)\nNevertheless, this is just an underlying structure, like a foundation, a kind of grid where flamenco artists creatively draw the rhythm by means of subdivisions, articulation, and less commonly,  syncopation and accent displacement.\nThe first example of \"palmas\" is a very common, simple pattern:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a158a85d-b833-4e71-ac5f-35f06dea3863"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7zcv4c644s","content":[{"text":"Notice that palmas are often (though by no means always) silent during beats 4 to 6, even if beat number 6 is a \"strong one\". This is specially true when no dancing takes place: the main interest there is the singing (or playing) and too much percussion can take attention away from the music. Those beats though are often marked when there is dance, or when performing other palos in the same metre like Alegrías or Bulería por soleá.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a158a85d-b833-4e71-ac5f-35f06dea3863"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Harmonic structure","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"a83z4pxgcy","content":[{"text":"Soléa develops in (altered) Phrygian mode \"por arriba\" (fundamental on the 6th string), with the III degree of the mode altered to a major 3rd when resolving to I.\nTo adapt to the singer's vocal range, guitarists can use a \"cejilla\" (capo) to play in any key while preserving the known chord positions. Modern guitarists often play soleá using other chord positions or even changing the tuning of the guitar to experiment with new sounds, especially in solo instrumental pieces.\nThe typical flamenco progression iv, III, II, I (an altered Phrygian cadence) is heard several times during the development of the song. In E altered Phrygian, the progression would be Am, G, F, E (the E chord should be Em in a diatonic Phrygian cadence, but its diatonic third – G – is altered to a G♯).\nA usual progression with a four-line stanza is the following:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a158a85d-b833-4e71-ac5f-35f06dea3863"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"efxszqrsc3","content":[{"text":"first line: E7, Am,\ntransition to 2nd line: Am, G, (or F, G)\n2nd line: F, E\n3rd line: G7, C (or C7)\n4th line: Am, G, F, E, F, E\nAnd a usual progression with a three-line stanza:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a158a85d-b833-4e71-ac5f-35f06dea3863"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0q6r67da1j","content":[{"text":"first line: E7, Am\n2nd line: G7, C\n3rd line: Am, G, F, E, F, E","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a158a85d-b833-4e71-ac5f-35f06dea3863"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Structure of the Soleá form","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"p7vm0c58a5","content":[{"text":"Soleá guitar style is easily identified by its metre and Phrygian mode, but also by a series of characteristic phrases.\nA guitarist, when playing soleá, will combine:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a158a85d-b833-4e71-ac5f-35f06dea3863"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2ne7evbthn","content":[{"text":"\"llamadas\" (the \"call\") on the I degree of the Phrygian altered cadence (in E, E major)\n\"compas\" (the standard accompaniment figure)\n\"falseta\" (plur. \"falsetas\"), melodic ideas played between different stanzas.\nAll sections have an even number of \"compas\" and are comparable in duration.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a158a85d-b833-4e71-ac5f-35f06dea3863"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"42nmrm54c0","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Soleá”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a158a85d-b833-4e71-ac5f-35f06dea3863"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"67gz33zzm5","content":[{"text":"Soleá is musical form and a style of flamenco music, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e0615920-1c77-4dc0-9670-856c1c6e1e45"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6yyy0q0jee","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e0615920-1c77-4dc0-9670-856c1c6e1e45"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Common sole ( Solea solea ), Arrábida National Park, Portugal. It lives on the sandy or muddy seabed of the northern Atlantic and the Mediterranean Sea where it often partially immerses itself in the substrate. The small eyes are close to each other on the right side of the…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/94/Lenguado_com%C3%BAn_%28Solea_solea%29%2C_Parque_natural_de_la_Arr%C3%A1bida%2C_Portugal%2C_2023-07-28%2C_DD_08.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Diego Delso","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Common sole ( Solea solea ), Arrábida National Park, Portugal. It lives on the sandy or muddy seabed of the northern Atlantic and the Mediterranean Sea where it often partially immerses itself in the substrate. The small eyes are close to each other on the right side of the…","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/94/Lenguado_com%C3%BAn_%28Solea_solea%29%2C_Parque_natural_de_la_Arr%C3%A1bida%2C_Portugal%2C_2023-07-28%2C_DD_08.jpg/960px-Lenguado_com%C3%BAn_%28Solea_solea%29%2C_Parque_natural_de_la_Arr%C3%A1bida%2C_Portugal%2C_2023-07-28%2C_DD_08.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lenguado_com%C3%BAn_(Solea_solea),_Parque_natural_de_la_Arr%C3%A1bida,_Portugal,_2023-07-28,_DD_08.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/94/Lenguado_com%C3%BAn_%28Solea_solea%29%2C_Parque_natural_de_la_Arr%C3%A1bida%2C_Portugal%2C_2023-07-28%2C_DD_08.jpg/1280px-Lenguado_com%C3%BAn_%28Solea_solea%29%2C_Parque_natural_de_la_Arr%C3%A1bida%2C_Portugal%2C_2023-07-28%2C_DD_08.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Dover Sole from the Belgian coastal waters.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cd/Solea_solea_1.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Hans Hillewaert","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Dover Sole from the Belgian coastal waters.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cd/Solea_solea_1.jpg/960px-Solea_solea_1.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Solea_solea_1.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cd/Solea_solea_1.jpg/1280px-Solea_solea_1.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Common sole ( Solea solea ), Arrábida Natural Park , Portugal. The common sole is a species of flatfish in the family Soleidae . It lives on the sandy or muddy seabed of the northern Atlantic and the Mediterranean Sea where it often semi-immerses itself in the substrate as seen…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7e/Lenguado_com%C3%BAn_%28Solea_solea%29%2C_Parque_natural_de_la_Arr%C3%A1bida%2C_Portugal%2C_2020-07-23%2C_DD_05-06_FS.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Diego Delso","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Common sole ( Solea solea ), Arrábida Natural Park , Portugal. The common sole is a species of flatfish in the family Soleidae . It lives on the sandy or muddy seabed of the northern Atlantic and the Mediterranean Sea where it often semi-immerses itself in the substrate as seen…","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7e/Lenguado_com%C3%BAn_%28Solea_solea%29%2C_Parque_natural_de_la_Arr%C3%A1bida%2C_Portugal%2C_2020-07-23%2C_DD_05-06_FS.jpg/960px-Lenguado_com%C3%BAn_%28Solea_solea%29%2C_Parque_natural_de_la_Arr%C3%A1bida%2C_Portugal%2C_2020-07-23%2C_DD_05-06_FS.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lenguado_com%C3%BAn_(Solea_solea),_Parque_natural_de_la_Arr%C3%A1bida,_Portugal,_2020-07-23,_DD_05-06_FS.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7e/Lenguado_com%C3%BAn_%28Solea_solea%29%2C_Parque_natural_de_la_Arr%C3%A1bida%2C_Portugal%2C_2020-07-23%2C_DD_05-06_FS.jpg/1280px-Lenguado_com%C3%BAn_%28Solea_solea%29%2C_Parque_natural_de_la_Arr%C3%A1bida%2C_Portugal%2C_2020-07-23%2C_DD_05-06_FS.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:20.170Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/solea"}
{"id":"e5f773f9-6ba0-4a5c-974e-8fd6194b519e","type":"art_form","slug":"song-and-dance-around-the-midsummer-pole","title":"Song and dance around the Midsummer pole","summary":"A maypole is a tall wooden pole erected as a part of various European folk festivals, around which a maypole dance often takes place.\nThe festivals may occur on 1 May or Pentecost (Whitsun), although in some countries it is instead erected …","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jgz8kezvk8","content":[{"text":"A maypole is a tall wooden pole erected as a part of various European folk festivals, around which a maypole dance often takes place.\nThe festivals may occur on 1 May or Pentecost (Whitsun), although in some countries it is instead erected during Midsummer (20–26 June). In some cases, the maypole is a permanent feature that is only utilized during the festival, although in other cases it is erected specifically for the purpose before being taken down again.\nPrimarily found within the nations of Germanic Europe and the neighboring areas which they have influenced, its origins remain unknown. It has often been speculated that the maypole originally had some importance in the Germanic paganism of Iron Age and early Medieval cultures and that the tradition survived Christianisation, albeit losing any original meaning that it had. It has been a recorded practice in many parts of Europe throughout the Medieval and Early Modern periods, although it became less popular in the 18th and 19th centuries. Today, the tradition is still observed in some parts of Europe and among European communities in the Americas.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"15eb0e08-e6b0-455e-b4cf-5c9b22082fa0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Symbolism","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6jc604583b","content":[{"text":"English historian Ronald Hutton concurs with Swedish scholar Carl Wilhelm von Sydow who stated that maypoles were erected \"simply\" as \"signs that the happy season of warmth and comfort had returned.\" Their shape allowed for garlands to be hung from them and were first seen, at least in the British Isles, between AD 1350 and 1400 within the context of medieval Christian European culture. In 1588, at Holy Trinity Church in Exeter, villagers gathered around the 'summer rod' for feasting and drinking. Geoffrey Chaucer mentions that a particularly large maypole stood at St Andrew Undershaft, which was collectively erected by church parishioners annually due to its large shape.\nThe symbolism of the maypole has been continuously debated by folklorists for centuries, although no definitive answer has been found. Some scholars classify maypoles as symbols of the world axis (axis mundi). The fact that they were found primarily in areas of Germanic Europe, where, prior to Christianisation, Germanic paganism was followed in various forms, has led to speculation by some that the maypoles were in some way a relic of a Germanic pagan tradition. One theory holds that they were a remnant of the Germanic reverence for sacred trees, as there is evidence for various sacred trees and wooden pillars that were venerated by the pagans across much of Germanic Europe, including Thor's Oak and the Irminsul.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"15eb0e08-e6b0-455e-b4cf-5c9b22082fa0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Belgium","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kngt3ae61m","content":[{"text":"In Belgium, the Maypole is called Meiboom or Meyboom in Dutch. Hasselt erects its Meiboom on 30 April. In Brussels and Leuven, the Meyboom is traditionally erected on 9 August before 5 p.m.\nThe planting of the Meyboom in Brussels is reminiscent of a long-standing (folkloric) feud with Leuven, dating back to 1213. In that year, a brawl broke out between the two cities, which saw the former victorious. To commemorate this event, Brussels was granted, almost 100 years later, the eternal right by John II, Duke of Brabant, to erect a Meyboom, but only if they managed to do this every year on 9 August before 5 p.m. Following a \"theft\" of the tree in 1974, Leuven has also claimed ownership of the only official Meyboom. Ever since, the two cities have been involved in a friendly rivalry to decide who has the \"real\" Meyboom.\nIt is also customary, mostly in the Dutch-speaking region of Belgium, to place a branch (also called a Meiboom) on the highest point of a building under construction. The erection of the branch is often cause for celebration by both the workmen and the neighbors.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"15eb0e08-e6b0-455e-b4cf-5c9b22082fa0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Germany and Austria","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"saprtmx52w","content":[{"text":"In Germany and Austria, the maypole (or Maibaum) is a tradition going back to the 16th century. It is a decorated tree or tree trunk that is usually erected either on 1 May – in Baden and Swabia – or on the evening before, for example, in East Frisia. In most areas, especially in Baden-Württemberg, Bavaria, and Austria, it is usual to have a ceremony to erect the maypole on the village green. The custom of combining it with a village or town fete, which usually takes place on 1  May or April 30 at Pentecost (Whitsun), is widespread. This tradition is especially strong in the villages of the Bavarian Alps where the raising of the traditional maypole on 1 May in the village square is a cause for much celebration. Some poles are painted in the Bavarian colors of white and blue; most are decorated with emblems depicting local crafts and industry.  In Bavaria, the Maibaum is procured, prepared and then stored in some building, such as a farmer's barn days or weeks before being erected on 1 May. The young men from the villages try to steal the Maibaum from each other (out of the storage places) which is why the people of the village take turns in watching over it. If a village manages to steal a Maibaum, then the village the Maibaum has been stolen from has to invite the whole village of the thieves to free beer and a festivity to get it back.\nJust before the Maibaum is erected, depending on the region, there may be a procession through the village, usually ending at a central place and/or restaurant and usually watched by crowds of spectators and accompanied by a brass band. The actual installation of the tree then takes place in the afternoon or evening.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"15eb0e08-e6b0-455e-b4cf-5c9b22082fa0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Hungary","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yx63hjcj82","content":[{"text":"In Hungary the common term is Májusfa. They were danced around and usually decorated with a full bottle of wine, with hímestojás, flowers and ribbons. May Poles and similar decorated branches, collectively called Zöld ágak were believed to have magical properties. All of them were often put up as an ornament to bring good luck and protect against witches' spells, since it was generally believed by the Hungarians that they can be protected against with different types of weed and herbs.\nThe base was a tall tree stripped of its bark, with the foliage left only at the top (usually 12–15 meters), but it could also be a smaller tree or a large, flowering, greenish branch. They also tried to personalise the trees, decorating them with small gifts, combs, mirrors but also thorny branches and rags, reflecting negative qualities.\nOften it was only in front of the priest and judge's house that a tall May Pole was erected, but every girl had to have at least one branch. Usually each suitor would put one in the girl's garden. Often they would carve it out and write the boy's name on it. The cutting and wood delivery had to be done in secret, under the cover of night, so that the lady in question would not suspect anything. When the family saw the boys, if the girl liked the suitor, they invited them in to dinner and proudly left the tree in the garden.\nIn the morning, they compared who got the longer May Pole, and tried to guess who gave it to them and often, which envious lover has plucked the tree. Unlike other May Poles, in Hungary it was the length of the tree that mattered, which would ultimately convince the girls to go out with the men.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"15eb0e08-e6b0-455e-b4cf-5c9b22082fa0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Italy","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vsmwvfqgqz","content":[{"text":"Maypole traditions can be found in some parts of It…","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"15eb0e08-e6b0-455e-b4cf-5c9b22082fa0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"da4zjf22wz","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Maypole”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"15eb0e08-e6b0-455e-b4cf-5c9b22082fa0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7xf4rmsccf","content":[{"text":"Song and dance around the Midsummer pole is singing, dancing and games around the Midsummer pole, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"46c16b83-bfae-4017-bf68-73dbec71145d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"d3zg1hca9v","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"46c16b83-bfae-4017-bf68-73dbec71145d"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Euskal Jaixa (basque festival) in Eibar, 2012.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cd/Eibar_euskal_jaixa_2012_001.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Asier Sarasua Aranberri","height":677,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Euskal Jaixa (basque festival) in Eibar, 2012.","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cd/Eibar_euskal_jaixa_2012_001.jpg/960px-Eibar_euskal_jaixa_2012_001.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Eibar_euskal_jaixa_2012_001.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cd/Eibar_euskal_jaixa_2012_001.jpg/1280px-Eibar_euskal_jaixa_2012_001.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:35.475Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/song-and-dance-around-the-midsummer-pole"}
{"id":"59aba990-de96-44f7-ac58-f96af973ca13","type":"art_form","slug":"square-dance","title":"square dance","summary":"A square dance is a dance for four couples, or eight dancers in total, arranged in a square, with one couple on each side, facing the middle of the square.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2x3334c70y","content":[{"text":"A square dance is a dance for four couples, or eight dancers in total, arranged in a square, with one couple on each side, facing the middle of the square. Square dances are part of a broad spectrum of dances known by various names: country dances, traditional dances, folk dances, barn dances, ceilidh dances, contra dances, Playford dances, etc. These dances appear in over 100 different formations, of which the Square and the Longways Set are by far the most popular formations.\nSquare dances contain elements from numerous traditional dances including English country dances, which were first documented in 17th-century England, and 18th-century French quadrilles and cotillions; square dancing travelled to North America with the European settlers and developed significantly there.\nSquare dancing is done in many different styles all around the world. In some countries and regions, through preservation and repetition, square dances have attained the status of a folk dance. Square dancing is strongly associated with the United States, in part due to its association with the romanticized image of the American cowboy in the 20th century, and 31 states have designated it as their official state dance. The main North American types of square dances include traditional square dance and modern western square dance, which is widely known and danced worldwide.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9e3885a5-fac0-42e6-8ade-ac173e4a8311"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"a6j26jvm0f","content":[{"text":"The origins of Square dances can be traced back to steps and figures used in traditional folk dances and social dances from many countries. One of the earliest influences may have been the Morris dance, an English dance for six men involving a line formation and energetic steps. This dance is closely related to another ancestor of square dancing, English country dance, which included a variety of dances for groups of couples arranged in circles, lines, or squares. In 1651, John Playford published 105 of these dances in The English Dancing Master, eight of which are square dances exhibiting concepts still in use, such as the head couples performing an action and the side couples repeating it. Three of the dances, such as \"Dull Sir John\", specifically use the term square dance in the phrase, \"A Square Dance for eight thus\". In the early 1800s, English country dances merged with French dances to form the quadrille, a dance for four couples in a square.\nThese dances further evolved in America, where they arrived with European settlers. After the American Revolution, the quadrille became especially popular. Quadrilles were originally danced from memorized steps and sequences, but as African American slaves played music for the dances, they began calling out the steps. This practice became common by the early 1900s and gave rise to the modern caller. Between 1940 and 1960, modern western square dance evolved from the western style of traditional square dance that had formed in the United States. Traditional western square dancing was promoted beginning in the 1930s by Lloyd Shaw, who solicited definitions from callers across the country in order to preserve that dance form and make it available to other teachers.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9e3885a5-fac0-42e6-8ade-ac173e4a8311"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Main types","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"436q7tgcyb","content":[{"text":"Square dances are considered folk dances in many countries and regions, although the term square dance varies. In the United States the term is used for dances in square formations and also refers to the dance events where square dances are performed. In England, Ireland, and Scotland, the term is used less frequently, and many dance events involve dances in square, circle, and line formations. The term has also become associated with barn dances, where many different formations of dance are used.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9e3885a5-fac0-42e6-8ade-ac173e4a8311"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Traditional square dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"p46ck1g3pp","content":[{"text":"Also called old-time square dance or quadrilles by some older New England callers in recognition of the dance it descended from, traditional square dance is not standardized and can be subdivided into three main regional styles: Northeast/New England, Southeast/Appalachian, and Western. The New England and Appalachian styles have been particularly well documented in the early U.S. and have survived to the 21st century. There are several other styles, some of which have survived or been revived while others have not. Where traditional square dance has been revived, it encompasses a wide range of new choreography.\nTraditional square dance structure varies by region, but it usually consists of a limited number of calls occurring in a set order. Traditional square dance is frequently presented in alternation with contra dances, particularly in revival groups, or with some form of freestyle couple dancing at surviving local events.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9e3885a5-fac0-42e6-8ade-ac173e4a8311"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Modern western square dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vke6a9a2kq","content":[{"text":"Modern western square dance, which is also called western square dance, contemporary western square dance, or modern American square dance, evolved from the western style of traditional square dance.\nIndustrialist Henry Ford popularized the form, believing that Jews invented jazz as a plot to corrupt society and that this plot could be counteracted by returning America to dances and musical styles that he saw as traditional and white. As a result, beginning in the early 1920s, he used his wealth to promote square dancing, through books and square dancing events. Ford also promoted square dance classes in public school, which were present in half of all American schools by 1928 as part of the standard physical education curriculum. Modern western square dance evolved in square dance events funded by Ford, using direction and guidance prepared by Colorado school superintendent Lloyd \"Pappy\" Shaw.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9e3885a5-fac0-42e6-8ade-ac173e4a8311"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rt3ykh286s","content":[{"text":"Since the 1970s, modern western square dance has been promoted and standardized by Callerlab, the International Association of Square Dance Callers.The initial stage reached by all dancers is called Mainstream. This program consists of a core list of about 70 moves which is revised periodically. Modern western square dance is sometimes presented in alternation with round dances. This modern form of square dancing is taught in around 30 countries, including the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, Belgium, France, Germany, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Australia, China, Japan, and Russia. Within Europe, the majority of square dance clubs are in Germany and the United Kingdom. All teach the Callerlab syllabus, but there are slight style and call title variations throughout the world.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9e3885a5-fac0-42e6-8ade-ac173e4a8311"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Playford dances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"e2bb8nhyyn","content":[{"text":"Also called English country dances, Playford-style dances originated from the dances published in John Playford's book The English Dancing Master. Some of the square dances listed in the book, such as \"Newcastle\", have survived to the 21st century, and countless new dances have been written in the Playford style. These dances include a range of moves, from smooth, gentle steps to more energetic leaps. They are supported by the English Folk Dance and Song Society.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9e3885a5-fac0-42e6-8ade-ac173e4a8311"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"21gjjpm218","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Square dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9e3885a5-fac0-42e6-8ade-ac173e4a8311"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gpeazhcass","content":[{"text":"square dance is dance for four couples (eight dancers) arranged in a square, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d4a3c5ed-f31a-4fe7-9a93-4395873b862b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hb25346tgf","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 11 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d4a3c5ed-f31a-4fe7-9a93-4395873b862b"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Dancing in the shadow","src":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1504609813442-a8924e83f76e?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8c3F1YXJlJTIwZGFuY2V8ZW58MXwwfHx8MTc4ODExNjM4Mnww&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1080","kind":"photo","width":6000,"credit":"Ardian Lumi","height":4000,"source":"unsplash","depicts":"Dancing in the shadow","licence":"Unsplash License","thumb640":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1504609813442-a8924e83f76e?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8c3F1YXJlJTIwZGFuY2V8ZW58MXwwfHx8MTc4ODExNjM4Mnww&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=640","sourceUrl":"https://unsplash.com/photos/group-of-people-dancing-6Woj_wozqmA?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral","thumb1280":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1504609813442-a8924e83f76e?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8c3F1YXJlJTIwZGFuY2V8ZW58MXwwfHx8MTc4ODExNjM4Mnww&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1280","attributionUrl":"https://unsplash.com/@ardianlumi?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-04T05:47:22.244Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/square-dance"}
{"id":"da96ac3d-1f69-43ee-82d7-659c24d4b5a6","type":"art_form","slug":"sri-lankan-dance","title":"Sri Lankan dance","summary":"There are several styles of classical and folk dance in Sri Lanka.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"h7n1cj783s","content":[{"text":"There are several styles of classical and folk dance in Sri Lanka.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ecd308a8-54ad-459d-ae11-622a933914b9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Classical dances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6n8t3razqm","content":[{"text":"There are three main styles of Sri Lankan classical dance:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ecd308a8-54ad-459d-ae11-622a933914b9"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wn36sa94xn","content":[{"text":"The Kandyan dances of the Hill Country, known as Uda Rata Natum;\nThe low country dances of the southern plains, known as Pahatha Rata Natum;\nSabaragamuwa dances, or Sabaragamuwa Natum.\nKandyan dance takes its name from Kandy, the last royal capital of Sri Lanka, which is situated about 120 kilometers from the modern capital at Colombo. This genre is today considered the classical dance of Sri Lanka. In Sanskrit terminology it is considered pure dance (nrtta); it features a highly developed system of \"tala\" (rhythm), provided by cymbals called \"thalampataa\". There are five distinct types; the ves, naiyandi, uddekki, pantheru, and vannams.\nThe four classical dance forms differ in their styles of body-movements and gestures, in the costumes worn by the performers, and in the shape and size of the drums used to provide rhythmic sound patterns to accompany the dancing.\nThe drum used in Kandyan dancing is known as the Geta Bera, the drum in Ruhunu (low country) dancing as the \"Yak Bera\", and drum in Sabaragamu dancing as the \"Davula\" (the word Bera or Bereya in Sinhale means \"Drum\") The Geta Bera is beaten with the hands as is also Yak Bera, while the Davula is played with a stick on one side and with one hand on the other side; the Geta Bera has a body which tapers on both sides while the Yak Bera and the Davula both have cylindrical bodies.\nThe main distinguishing feature between Kandyan and Sabaragamu dancing, and Ruhunu dancing, is that Ruhunu dancers wear masks.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ecd308a8-54ad-459d-ae11-622a933914b9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Ves dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xgd8zhz2sf","content":[{"text":"\"Ves\" dance, the most popular, originated from an ancient purification ritual, the Kohomba Yakuma or Kohomba Kankariya. The dance was propitiatory, never secular, and performed only by males.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ecd308a8-54ad-459d-ae11-622a933914b9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Naiyandi dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qvn6jven2w","content":[{"text":"Dancers in Naiyandi costume perform during the initial preparations of the Kohomba Kankariya festival, during the lighting of the lamps and the preparation of foods for the demons. The dancer wears a white cloth and white turban, beadwork decorations on his chest, a waistband, rows of beads around his neck, silver chains, brass shoulder plates, anklets, and jingles. This is a graceful dance, also performed in Maha Visnu (Vishnu) and Kataragama Devales temples on ceremonial occasions.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ecd308a8-54ad-459d-ae11-622a933914b9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Uddekki dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tezj7mrtsa","content":[{"text":"Uddekki is a very prestigious dance. Its name comes from the uddekki, a small lacquered hand drum in the shape of an hourglass, about seven and one-half inch (1.3 centimeters) high, believed to have been given to people by the gods. The two drumskins are believed to have been given by the god Iswara, and the sound by Visnu; the instrument is said to have been constructed according to the instructions of Sakra and was played in the heavenly palace of the gods. It is a very difficult instruments to play. The dancer sings as he plays, tightening the strings to obtain variations of pitch.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ecd308a8-54ad-459d-ae11-622a933914b9"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Pantheru Dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6wjbcsvy2e","content":[{"text":"Pantheru dance is associated with goddess Pattini. Pantheruwa is a round musical instrument made from Brass, similar to a Tambourine without a drumhead. The place where it's held is called \"Alluwa\". The circumference of a Pantheruwa is usually 28 inches. This dance was used by ancient kings to signify victory in a battle.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ecd308a8-54ad-459d-ae11-622a933914b9"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wdp54zp4g8","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Dance in Sri Lanka”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ecd308a8-54ad-459d-ae11-622a933914b9"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"295dkav1rk","content":[{"text":"Sri Lankan dance is Sri Lankan dances, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6d5abf56-81da-4733-bd1f-8c90275edabf"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"r535b2c70b","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 4 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6d5abf56-81da-4733-bd1f-8c90275edabf"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Traditional Sri Lankan harvesting dance. Sri Lankan Friendship Association of BC . Langley International Festival 2010.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f4/Traditional_Sri_Lankan_harvesting_dance_-_Sri_Lankan_Friendship_Association_of_BC_-_02.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Brendan","height":1928,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Traditional Sri Lankan harvesting dance. Sri Lankan Friendship Association of BC . Langley International Festival 2010.","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f4/Traditional_Sri_Lankan_harvesting_dance_-_Sri_Lankan_Friendship_Association_of_BC_-_02.jpg/960px-Traditional_Sri_Lankan_harvesting_dance_-_Sri_Lankan_Friendship_Association_of_BC_-_02.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Traditional_Sri_Lankan_harvesting_dance_-_Sri_Lankan_Friendship_Association_of_BC_-_02.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f4/Traditional_Sri_Lankan_harvesting_dance_-_Sri_Lankan_Friendship_Association_of_BC_-_02.jpg/1280px-Traditional_Sri_Lankan_harvesting_dance_-_Sri_Lankan_Friendship_Association_of_BC_-_02.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:24.345Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/sri-lankan-dance"}
{"id":"8fab7d17-3e41-4780-a323-c4dfc0077227","type":"art_form","slug":"step-dance","title":"step dance","summary":"Step dance is a generic term for dance styles in which footwork is considered to be the most important part of the dance and arm movements and styling are either restricted or considered less relevant.\nStep-dancing is a percussive form of d…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nps3yr7any","content":[{"text":"Step dance is a generic term for dance styles in which footwork is considered to be the most important part of the dance and arm movements and styling are either restricted or considered less relevant.\nStep-dancing is a percussive form of dance that employs hard-soled shoes and may be synchronized with music played at a specified tempo using instruments like pipes, whistles, fiddles, or puirt-a-beul (mouth music). It entails producing rhythmic beats through intricate and diverse footwork, involving striking heels, toes, and feet, all the while ensuring impeccable timing with the musical rhythms found in strathspey, reel, and jig compositions.\nThe terminology used in percussive dance styles reflects a wide range of naming conventions, highlighting both shared features and unique distinctions. The umbrella term \"percussive dance\" encompasses dance forms where the foot serves as an intentional source of rhythmic sound, akin to a percussion instrument. The specific footwear associated with each style contributes to variations within this genre.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"539cc43b-16c3-440d-b397-170ccda7a02c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"African-American stepping","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fannzkg4w7","content":[{"text":"Stepping has African roots and is an African American traditional dance style. Popularized by National Pan-Hellenic Council, dancers such as members of fraternities and sororities join in steps—elaborate synchronized group routines that are performed in competitions called \"step shows\". Step shows incorporate cheerleading, military, and drill-team moves, especially the call-and-response element inherent in those forms. These aspects are not only important to the energy of stepping for entertainment use but also for bonding and pride within their organizations.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"539cc43b-16c3-440d-b397-170ccda7a02c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Cape Breton step dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sagxgkdqhz","content":[{"text":"The traditional Cape Breton step dance, reminiscent of the style brought by 19th-century Scottish immigrants, is characterized by its exceptional precision. Throughout the dance, the feet stay close to the floor, executing each step with unwavering accuracy, ensuring no beats are missed. The repertoire consists of concise, symmetrical steps, with each foot taking precise positions. In contrast, contemporary Cape Breton step dance blends influences from various styles such as Irish, tap, Acadian, and Ottawa Valley step dance. These modern versions depart from the traditional precision, incorporating \"offbeat\" steps that don't strictly adhere to a four or eight-bar musical phrase. Additionally, asymmetrical elements introduce subtle divergences between the movements of each foot, deviating from the mirrored actions seen in the conventional dance form. The Cape Breton step dance is distinguished by its unique musical accompaniment, particularly the exceptional rendition of the strathspey performed skillfully by acclaimed Cape Breton fiddlers like Carl MacKenzie and Howie MacDonald. The heart of Cape Breton step dancing is closely linked to the captivating interplay of the \"drive and the lift\" inherent in the Cape Breton strathspey. What sets this dance apart from similar step dances globally is the incorporation of the Cape Breton-style strathspey, a musical expression less commonly found in other Celtic regions where jigs and reels are more prevalent. In present-day Cape Breton step dance, the vibrant melodies of the fiddle, accompanied by the piano, play a central role, marking a shift from an earlier period when the dance tradition was primarily influenced by the piping tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"539cc43b-16c3-440d-b397-170ccda7a02c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Clog dancing","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0c25h994h0","content":[{"text":"Step dancing includes clog dancing in which the steps are performed by performers wearing clogs. The sound of the clogs against a hard surface produces a characteristic sound which is an important element of the dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"539cc43b-16c3-440d-b397-170ccda7a02c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Irish step dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rzmsabpmsm","content":[{"text":"Irish stepdance is a widespread form of step dance. The earliest feis, or competition, occurred in 1897. It descends from traditional Irish dance, but global popularity of the Riverdance troupe significantly altered its competitive form from traditional Irish standards. Both traditional and more modern competitive styles are characterized by the use of specific shoes and by costumes that can be remarkably elaborate. Irish stepdance is, as of 2017, the only form of step dance to which a Broadway production, Lord of the Dance, has been devoted.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"539cc43b-16c3-440d-b397-170ccda7a02c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Other forms of step dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2k8yyfvqsz","content":[{"text":"Tap dancing is a modern form of step dancing taking its influence from a variety of older step-forms.\nA traditional form of individual step dancing is still found in certain areas of England such as East Anglia and Dartmoor. This style of dance is commonly performed informally in pubs to traditional folk tunes, with dancers often bringing a wooden board to dance on.\nStep dancing (\"stomping\") can also be found in other countries such as Malambo from Argentina and Zapateado from Mexico.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"539cc43b-16c3-440d-b397-170ccda7a02c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"beevt67s2t","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Step dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"539cc43b-16c3-440d-b397-170ccda7a02c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"epkpn16g9b","content":[{"text":"step dance is term for dance styles in which footwork is the most important, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"29d58165-a714-45cd-bd95-7849c4aeaa38"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fxv7k4hht7","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 7 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"29d58165-a714-45cd-bd95-7849c4aeaa38"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Print; Prints","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/eb/Broadsheet_with_songs_for_a_two-step_dance%2C_a_couple_dancing_MET_DP868555.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Antonio Vanegas Arroyo / José Guadalupe Posada","height":1916,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Print; Prints","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/eb/Broadsheet_with_songs_for_a_two-step_dance%2C_a_couple_dancing_MET_DP868555.jpg/960px-Broadsheet_with_songs_for_a_two-step_dance%2C_a_couple_dancing_MET_DP868555.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Broadsheet_with_songs_for_a_two-step_dance,_a_couple_dancing_MET_DP868555.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/eb/Broadsheet_with_songs_for_a_two-step_dance%2C_a_couple_dancing_MET_DP868555.jpg/1280px-Broadsheet_with_songs_for_a_two-step_dance%2C_a_couple_dancing_MET_DP868555.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"},{"alt":"Anocalypse Now Appalachian traditional step clog dance at the Charlwood Music Festival 2024, in Charlwood , Surrey , England. To see the most relevant allied photos, click on Charlwood , and this uploader's photos. You can find image links related to this one in a variety of…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e8/Charlwood_Music_Festival_2024_Surrey_England_Anocalypse_Now_Appalachian_traditional_step_dance_03.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Acabashi","height":1024,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Anocalypse Now Appalachian traditional step clog dance at the Charlwood Music Festival 2024, in Charlwood , Surrey , England. To see the most relevant allied photos, click on Charlwood , and this uploader's photos. You can find image links related to this one in a variety of…","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e8/Charlwood_Music_Festival_2024_Surrey_England_Anocalypse_Now_Appalachian_traditional_step_dance_03.jpg/960px-Charlwood_Music_Festival_2024_Surrey_England_Anocalypse_Now_Appalachian_traditional_step_dance_03.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Charlwood_Music_Festival_2024_Surrey_England_Anocalypse_Now_Appalachian_traditional_step_dance_03.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e8/Charlwood_Music_Festival_2024_Surrey_England_Anocalypse_Now_Appalachian_traditional_step_dance_03.jpg/1280px-Charlwood_Music_Festival_2024_Surrey_England_Anocalypse_Now_Appalachian_traditional_step_dance_03.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:28.643Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/step-dance"}
{"id":"2823bd86-4a52-4efa-83c4-4ee42e913408","type":"art_form","slug":"stomp-dance","title":"stomp dance","summary":"The stomp dance is performed by various Eastern Woodland tribes and Native American communities in the United States, including the Muscogee, Yuchi, Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Delaware, Miami, Caddo, Tuscarora, Ottawa, Quapaw, Peoria, Sh…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ez1p1m6jp5","content":[{"text":"The stomp dance is performed by various Eastern Woodland tribes and Native American communities in the United States, including the Muscogee, Yuchi, Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Delaware, Miami, Caddo, Tuscarora, Ottawa, Quapaw, Peoria, Shawnee, Seminole, Natchez, and Seneca-Cayuga tribes. Stomp dance communities are active in Georgia, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Alabama, Mississippi, and Florida.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"70ef0a7d-6ec4-48e6-aaf7-cf8ab3c45b91"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Names and etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mvb15nkge5","content":[{"text":"The English term stomp dance refers to the \"shuffle and stomp\" movements of the dance. In the Muskogee language the dance is called opvnkv haco, which can mean \"drunken\", \"crazy\" or \"inspirited\" dance. This usually refers to the exciting, yet meditative effect the dance and the medicine have on the participants. In the Shawnee language, the dance is called nikanikawe which refers to a dance involving friends or Nekon. It is also called the \"leading dance\" by many Shawnees, but most simply call it the \"stomp dance\".  In the Caddo language, the dance is called kakiʔtihánnakah.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"70ef0a7d-6ec4-48e6-aaf7-cf8ab3c45b91"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Structure and function of a stomp dance society","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"49nw7wrs8m","content":[{"text":"Among Muscogee Creeks and Four Mothers Society members, the stomp dance grounds contain an elevated square platform with the flat edges of the square facing the cardinal directions. Arbors are constructed upon the flat edges of the square in which the men sit facing one of the four directions.  This is formally referred to as the Square Ground, which is encircled by a ring-mound of earth. In the center of this is the ceremonial fire, which is referred to by many names including \"mother\" fire. Ceremonially, this fire is the focus of the songs and prayers of the people and is considered to be a living sacred being. \nOutside of the circle of earth, surrounding the Square Ground are the community's clan-houses. These houses are casually referred to as \"camps\" and depending on the traditional level and financial situation of the community may be relatively nice cottages, shanties or in between. Prior to the dance dinner is prepared in these family camps. Throughout the night guests that arrive are welcomed to help eat up the leftovers. The foods eaten at stomp dances are typical southern delicacies such as corn bread, mashed potatoes as well as certain specialized Indian dishes such as sofkee, pashofa, grape or lye dumplings, hominy, and numerous traditional dishes.\nKituwah stomp dance grounds are encircled by seven clan arbors. These are influenced by the traditionalist revival among Cherokees during the late 19th century, inspired by Redbird Smith. In 1907, 22 ceremonial grounds were active on Cherokee lands in Oklahoma.\nStickball games are often played at stomp dance grounds. Yuchi stomp dances are held in conjunction with their ritual football games. Especially in Oklahoma, different tribes will participate in each other's dances.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"70ef0a7d-6ec4-48e6-aaf7-cf8ab3c45b91"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Leadership","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cr4vqvcp93","content":[{"text":"A traditional stomp dance grounds is often headed by a male elder. In the Creek and Seminole traditions, the mekko or \"king\" [chief] is the primary ceremonial authority. The mekko is assisted by his second in charge called a henehv, the chief medicine man called a heleshayv and speaker called opunayv.  Mekkos are not supposed to publicly address the entire grounds and as such that responsibility falls often on opunayv. A traditional Creek grounds also employs four tvstvnvkvlke (warchiefs/generals/police), four head ladies and four alternate head ladies.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"70ef0a7d-6ec4-48e6-aaf7-cf8ab3c45b91"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Ceremony","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1sr672p1w0","content":[{"text":"A night of dancing typically starts well after dark and continues until dawn of the next day, with many rounds of dancing throughout the night. Participants who are making a religious commitment to the ceremony will begin fasting after midnight, \"touch medicine\" at four different times during night, and are obligated to stay awake the whole night. The medicine is made from specific roots and plants which have been ceremonially gathered by selected \"medicine helpers\" and prepared by the Heles Haya at dawn of the morning of the Dance. This medicine is intended for the physical and spiritual benefit of the members of the dance at the ceremonial ground.\nOne of the male members of the community is given the job of calling out each song leader and all other participants to dance for each round. Each round is led by a selected man who has developed his own sequence of songs from the multitude of variations on traditional rhythms, melodies and lyrics, sometimes with personalized content in the mix. The songs are typically performed in call and response form, in the native language. Every dance must have at least one woman with shakers, who falls into step immediately behind the song leader, to carry the rhythm. The remaining dancers follow, alternating male-female in a continuous spiral around the central fire, with visitors, then young children, and the odd numbers trailing at the end. The dancers circle the fire in counterclockwise direction with deliberate stomping steps set to the rhythm created by the women with their shell shakers. Depending on the size of the community and the number of visitors in attendance, the number of people joining the circle may range from less than ten up to several hundred.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"70ef0a7d-6ec4-48e6-aaf7-cf8ab3c45b91"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance grounds","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1x738sw2b2","content":[{"text":"Although not as widespread as they were in the past, there are still many ceremonial grounds, or stomp grounds, located in what is now the southeastern United States and Oklahoma, where so many of the southeastern peoples were forced to move during the 1800s. Stokes Smith Stomp Dance Ground, which is located in an isolated area of the Cherokee Nation tribal lands, is one of approximately seven active Cherokee grounds. The Eastern Band Cherokee stomp grounds is currently located in Raven's Roost, North Carolina, on the Qualla Boundary. The Echota Ceremonial Ground has been located in Park Hill, Oklahoma since 2001. There is one active Tuscarora arbor located adjacent to the Tuscarora Nation Longhouse in the rural community of Prospect, North Carolina. The Creek tribe today has 16 active ceremonial grounds located throughout northeast Oklahoma. One of which is Flat Rock, located west of Eufaula and south of Mill Creek. Other active communities include Hossossv Tvlvhvse Ceremonial Ground on the Poarch Creek Indian Reservation near Atmore, Alabama, Kvnfvske Etvlwv in Fountain, Florida, and the White Oak Shawnee Tribe's grounds.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"70ef0a7d-6ec4-48e6-aaf7-cf8ab3c45b91"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ns028m4ewq","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Stomp dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"70ef0a7d-6ec4-48e6-aaf7-cf8ab3c45b91"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t4et9sb6pm","content":[{"text":"stomp dance is Eastern Native American ceremonial dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"25cd34c0-2a09-4214-9d44-e414d50043b1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"za9epfkwgw","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"25cd34c0-2a09-4214-9d44-e414d50043b1"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"group of people performing on stage","src":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1550026593-cb89847b168d?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8c3RvbXAlMjBkYW5jZXxlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4OTc2MDk3fDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1080","kind":"photo","width":6000,"credit":"Samantha Weisburg","height":4000,"source":"unsplash","depicts":"group of people performing on stage","licence":"Unsplash License","thumb640":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1550026593-cb89847b168d?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8c3RvbXAlMjBkYW5jZXxlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4OTc2MDk3fDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=640","sourceUrl":"https://unsplash.com/photos/group-of-people-performing-on-stage-hFTcxZFsG6g?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral","thumb1280":"https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1550026593-cb89847b168d?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=max&fm=jpg&ixid=M3wxMDQ5MzI3fDB8MXxzZWFyY2h8MXx8c3RvbXAlMjBkYW5jZXxlbnwxfDB8fHwxNzg4OTc2MDk3fDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1280","attributionUrl":"https://unsplash.com/@samiweisburg?utm_source=folkroom&utm_medium=referral"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:11.643Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/stomp-dance"}
{"id":"e4a0fb47-3bcd-4bfb-8df0-cd3a5239fca6","type":"art_form","slug":"street-dance","title":"street dance","summary":"Street dance is an umbrella term for a large number of social dance styles such as: breakdancing, popping, locking, house dance, waacking, voguing, hip-hop dance, etc.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gss0e6f127","content":[{"text":"Street dance is an umbrella term for a large number of social dance styles such as: breakdancing, popping, locking, house dance, waacking, voguing, hip-hop dance, etc. Social dance styles have many accompanying steps and foundations, created organically from a culture, a moment in time, a way of life, influenced by natural social interaction. A street dance is a vernacular dance in an urban context.  Vernacular dances are often improvisational and social in nature, encouraging interaction and contact with spectators and other dancers. These dances are a part of the vernacular culture of the geographical area that they come from.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"23940845-2f2b-4767-ba70-11d4f0bd1d23"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dy9ygyb00y","content":[{"text":"Street dance evolved during the 1970s outside dance studios in any available open space. This includes streets, dance parties, block parties, parks, school yards, raves, and nightclubs. This is partly because African Americans who created the style were generally not accepted into dance studios because of their race. A significant feature of street dance is that it was historically a dance of young people offering a sense of freedom and giving a 'voice' to unrepresented communities.\nDue to the mix of styles within street dance, its origin can not be traced to one precise area, however, America is the birthplace of most street styles. Breakdance originated in the Bronx and Lite Feet emerged in Harlem, both in New York City, while popping and locking developed during the 1970s funk era in California, USA. Clogging, which evolved in the streets and factories of Northern England in the mid-19th century, is an early form of street dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"23940845-2f2b-4767-ba70-11d4f0bd1d23"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rw3vgkwj61","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Street dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"23940845-2f2b-4767-ba70-11d4f0bd1d23"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"h5kv02846z","content":[{"text":"street dance is vernacular dance in an urban context, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"927dd00a-ae83-410c-94a6-25fc3223ee4e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qrvtj0f1j0","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 8 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"927dd00a-ae83-410c-94a6-25fc3223ee4e"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Murilo Resende and Patricia Sousa, two street dancers performing at the URBANOS dance contest in Distrito Federal, BR.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/06/Urbanos.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Eduardo de São Paulo","height":1919,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Murilo Resende and Patricia Sousa, two street dancers performing at the URBANOS dance contest in Distrito Federal, BR.","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/06/Urbanos.jpg/960px-Urbanos.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Urbanos.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/06/Urbanos.jpg/1280px-Urbanos.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:27.242Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/street-dance"}
{"id":"c1d45304-2783-4507-8a5a-0756b505c19b","type":"art_form","slug":"striptease","title":"striptease","summary":"A striptease is an erotic or exotic dance in which the performer gradually undresses, either partly or completely, in a seductive and sexually suggestive manner.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"71fxbfk130","content":[{"text":"A striptease is an erotic or exotic dance in which the performer gradually undresses, either partly or completely, in a seductive and sexually suggestive manner. The person who performs a striptease is commonly known as a \"stripper\", \"exotic dancer\", or \"burlesque dancer\".\nIn Western countries, venues where stripteases are performed on a regular basis are now usually called strip clubs, but striptease may also be performed in venues such as pubs (especially in the United Kingdom), theaters and music halls. At times, a stripper may be hired to perform at a bachelor or bachelorette party. In addition to providing adult entertainment, stripping can be a form of sexual play between partners.\nStriptease involves a slow, sensuous undressing. The stripper may prolong the undressing by wearing additional items of clothing (thus having more to remove) or putting clothes or hands in front of just-undressed body parts such as the breasts or genitalia. The emphasis is on the act of undressing along with sexually suggestive movement, rather than the state of being undressed. In the past, the performance often finished as soon as the undressing was finished, though in modern times strippers may continue dancing naked. The costume the stripper wears before disrobing can form part of the act.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2e8ccc75-35cb-4d90-9ae7-00dbacda1797"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s8yzmadk53","content":[{"text":"The origins of striptease as a performance art are disputed and various dates and occasions have been given from ancient Babylonia to 20th century America. The term \"striptease\" was first recorded in 1932.\nThere is a stripping aspect in the ancient Sumerian myth of the descent of the goddess Inanna into the Underworld (or Kur). At each of the seven gates, she removed an article of clothing or a piece of jewelry. As long as she remained in hell, the earth was barren. When she returned, fecundity abounded. Some believe this myth was embodied in the dance of the seven veils of Salome, who danced for King Herod, as mentioned in the New Testament in Matthew 14:6 and Mark 6:21-22. However, although the Bible records Salome's dance, the first mention of her removing seven veils occurs in Oscar Wilde's play Salome, in 1893.\nIn ancient Greece, the lawgiver Solon established several classes of prostitutes in the late 6th century BC. Among these classes of prostitutes were the auletrides: female dancers, acrobats, and musicians, noted for dancing naked in an alluring fashion in front of audiences of men. In ancient Rome, dance featuring stripping was part of the entertainments (ludi) at the Floralia, an April festival in honor of the goddess Flora. Empress Theodora, wife of 6th-century Byzantine emperor Justinian is reported by several ancient sources to have started in life as a courtesan and actress who performed in acts inspired from mythological themes and in which she disrobed \"as far as the laws of the day allowed\". She was famous for her striptease performance of Leda and the Swan. From these accounts, it appears that the practice was hardly exceptional nor new.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2e8ccc75-35cb-4d90-9ae7-00dbacda1797"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"French tradition","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ap08zmtqer","content":[{"text":"In the 1880s and 1890s, Parisian shows such as the Moulin Rouge and Folies Bergère were featuring attractive scantily clad women dancing and tableaux vivants. In this environment, an act in the 1890s featured a woman who slowly removed her clothes in a vain search for a flea crawling on her body. The People's Almanac credits the act as the origin of modern striptease.\nIn 1905, the notorious Dutch dancer Mata Hari, later shot as a spy by the French authorities during World War I, was an overnight success from the debut of her act at the Musée Guimet. The most celebrated segment of her act was her progressive shedding of clothing until she wore just a jeweled bra and some ornaments over her arms and head but exposing her pubic region. Another landmark performance was the appearance at the Moulin Rouge in 1907 of an actress called Germaine Aymos, who entered dressed only in three very small shells. In the 1920s and 1930s, Josephine Baker danced topless in the danse sauvage at the Folies, and other such performances were provided at the Tabarin. These shows were notable for their sophisticated choreography and often featuring the women in glitzy sequins and feathers. In his 1957 book Mythologies, semiotician Roland Barthes interpreted this Parisian striptease as a \"mystifying spectacle\", a \"reassuring ritual\" where \"evil is advertised the better to impede and exorcise it\". By the 1960s \"fully nude\" shows were provided at such places as Le Crazy Horse Saloon.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2e8ccc75-35cb-4d90-9ae7-00dbacda1797"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"American tradition","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5b3bm3dzzc","content":[{"text":"In the United States, striptease started in traveling carnivals and burlesque theatres, and featured famous strippers such as Gypsy Rose Lee and Sally Rand. The 1893 \"World's Columbian Exposition\" in Chicago, Illinois would result in Sal Bloom making large sums of money off of \"hoochie-coochie\" exotic dance shows which bore resemblance to striptease acts. The vaudeville trapeze artist Charmion performed a \"disrobing\" act onstage as early as 1896, which was captured in the 1901 Edison film Trapeze Disrobing Act. Another milestone for modern American striptease is the possibly legendary show at Minsky's Burlesque in April 1925 that inspired the novel and film The Night They Raided Minsky's. Another performer, Hinda Wassau, claimed to have inadvertently invented the striptease in 1928 when her costume was shaken loose during a shimmy dance. Burlesque theatres in New York were prohibited from staging striptease performances in a legal ruling of 1937, leading to the decline of these \"grindhouses\" (named after the bump 'n grind entertainment on offer). However many striptease stars were able to work in other cities and, eventually, nightclubs.\nThe 1960s saw a revival of striptease in the form of topless go-go dancing. This eventually merged with the older tradition of burlesque dancing. Carol Doda of the Condor Night Club in the North Beach section of San Francisco is given the credit of being the first topless go-go dancer. The club opened in 1964 and Doda's première topless dance occurred on the evening of June 19 of that year. The large lit sign in front of the club featured a picture of her with red lights on her breasts. The club went \"bottomless\" on September 3, 1969 and began the trend of explicit \"full nudity\" in American striptease dancing.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2e8ccc75-35cb-4d90-9ae7-00dbacda1797"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"British tradition","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"206dj7s5xq","content":[{"text":"In Britain in the 1930s, when Laura Henderson began presenting nude shows at the Windmill Theatre, London, censorship regulations prohibited naked girls from moving while appearing on-stage. To get around the prohibition, the models appeared in stationary tableaux vivants. The Windmill girls also toured other London and provincial theatres, sometimes using ingenious devices such as rotating ropes to move their bodies round, though strictly speaking, staying within the letter of the law by not moving of their own volition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2e8ccc75-35cb-4d90-9ae7-00dbacda1797"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Japan","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wt4641z8hw","content":[{"text":"Striptease became popular in Japan after the end of World War II. When entrepreneur Shigeo Ozaki saw the American stripper Gypsy Rose Lee perform, he started his own striptease revue in Tokyo's Shinjuku neighborhood.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2e8ccc75-35cb-4d90-9ae7-00dbacda1797"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"63m7wtq3v3","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Striptease”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2e8ccc75-35cb-4d90-9ae7-00dbacda1797"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kxjyre661x","content":[{"text":"striptease is erotic dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5a9c25c2-0361-4dab-a0a1-0f08cdab1b77"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"358a5jp721","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 26 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5a9c25c2-0361-4dab-a0a1-0f08cdab1b77"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-05T02:43:59.129Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/striptease"}
{"id":"beea1726-ad4a-4728-9b71-9b6e472da5e6","type":"art_form","slug":"sufi-whirling","title":"Sufi whirling","summary":"Sufi whirling (or Sufi turning) (Turkish: Semazen borrowed from Persian Sama-zan, Sama, meaning listening, from Arabic, and zan, meaning doer, from Persian) is a form of physically active meditation which originated among certain Sufi group…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"csgnc4gdg4","content":[{"text":"Sufi whirling (or Sufi turning) (Turkish: Semazen borrowed from Persian Sama-zan, Sama, meaning listening, from Arabic, and zan, meaning doer, from Persian) is a form of physically active meditation which originated among certain Sufi groups, and which is still practiced by the Sufi dervishes of the Mevlevi order and other orders such as the Rifa'i-Marufi. It is a customary meditation practice performed within the sema, or worship ceremony, through which dervishes (from the Persian darvish درویش, also called semazens, from Persian سماعزن) aim to reach greater connection with Allah. This is sought through abandoning one's nafs, ego or personal desires, by listening to the music, focusing on God, and spinning one's body in repetitive circles, which has been seen as a symbolic imitation of planets in the Solar System orbiting the Sun.\nThe Mevlevi practice gave rise to an Egyptian form, tanoura, distinguished by the use of a multicolored skirt. This has also developed into a performance dance by non-Sufis, including dancers outside the Islamic world.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee1a5041-45e4-4667-aa3a-74b28cc71f60"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origin","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"06d3e29tmf","content":[{"text":"As an order, the whirling Dervishes were founded by mystic poet Rumi in the 13th century. Initially, Sufi fraternities (Arabic: طرائق, romanized: ṭarāʾiq) were organized as leaderships where members followed prescribed disciplines in service to a sheikh or master to establish trust with him. A member of such a fraternity is referred to as a Persian darwish. These turuk were responsible for organizing an Islamic expression of religious life, often founded by independent saints or resulted from the division of existing orders. Each Sufi tariqa stems from a unique silsila, or \"chain of order\" in which a member must learn, as the silsila binds each member to Allah through one's chain of order. One's silsila extends through the member's individual teacher, to their teacher and so on, through time until one is connected to the Prophet and thus Allah. The Prophet himself is revered as the originator of Sufism, which has in turn been traced down through a series of saints.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee1a5041-45e4-4667-aa3a-74b28cc71f60"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Practice","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"90yx5cvs50","content":[{"text":"A dervish practices multiple rituals, the primary of which is the dhikr, a remembering of Allah. The dhikr involves recitation of devotional Islamic prayer. This dhikr is coupled with physical exertions of movement, specifically dancing and whirling, in order to reach a state assumed by outsiders to be one of \"ecstatic trances\". As explained by Sufis:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee1a5041-45e4-4667-aa3a-74b28cc71f60"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m8psg4dqgg","content":[{"text":"In the symbolism of the Sema ritual, the semazen's camel's hair hat (sikke) represents the tombstone of the ego; his wide, white skirt (tennure) represents the ego's shroud. By removing his black cloak (hırka), he is spiritually reborn to the truth. At the beginning of the Sema, by holding his arms crosswise, the semazen appears to represent the number one, thus testifying to god's unity. While whirling, his arms are open: his right arm is directed to the sky, ready to receive god's beneficence; his left hand, upon which his eyes are fastened, is turned toward the earth. The semazen conveys god's spiritual gift to those who are witnessing the Sema. Revolving from right to left around the heart, the semazen embraces all humanity with love. The human being has been created with love in order to love. Mevlâna Jalâluddîn Rumi says, \"All loves are a bridge to Divine love. Yet, those who have not had a taste of it do not know!\"\nAmong the Mevlevi order, the practice of dhikr is performed in a traditional dress: a tennure, a sleeveless white frock, the destegul, a long sleeved jacket, a belt, and a black overcoat or khirqa to be removed before the whirling begins. As the ritual dance begins, the dervish dons a felt cap, a sikke, in addition to a turban wrapped around the head, a trademark of the Mevlevi order. The sheikh leads the ritual with strict regulations.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee1a5041-45e4-4667-aa3a-74b28cc71f60"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Today","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mza89w2j4b","content":[{"text":"Dervish communities, in the Middle Ages, served a central role in social, religious and political life throughout \"central Islamic lands.\" Dervish orders were at one time much larger in size than they are today, as the government has taken control over most Dervish monasteries throughout this area. In 1925, Turkey ordered the dissolution of all Sufi fraternities by decree, the Mevlevi managed to survive among small villages throughout the Middle East. In 1954, the Turkish government granted the Mevlevi order a special permission to perform ritual whirling practices for tourists during two weeks each year. Outside of tourist entertainment, Orthodox theologians have now vocally discounted the Dervish practice resulting in faqirs, or wandering, mendicant dervishes throughout central Islamic regions. Despite strict government control over Dervish practices, the Mevleviyah order continued its existence in Turkey to this day.\nWhile only men have historically been permitted to take part in the ceremony, some communities now allow women to participate.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee1a5041-45e4-4667-aa3a-74b28cc71f60"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Egyptian tanoura","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vkzk8ar9jy","content":[{"text":"In Egypt, the practice of whirling has been adapted as tanoura (Arabic: التنورة, romanized: el-tanoura). The word tanoura or tannoura refers to the colorful skirt worn by the whirler, with a color representing each Sufi order. The word may also refer to the dancer, traditionally a Sufi man. Tanoura is associated with Sufism and is performed at Sufi festivals, but it is also performed by non-Sufis as a folk dance or concert dance.\nAlthough it is mainly used for visual effects, the dancers also augment their balance with the tanoura, through a dynamic centrifugal effect.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee1a5041-45e4-4667-aa3a-74b28cc71f60"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Pakistan","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m59cd8m7cm","content":[{"text":"In Sufi shrines in Pakistan, such as the Lal shrine in Sehwan, Sindh, the practice of Sufi whirling is called Dhamaal and is performed to honor Sufi saints, or qalandars. Unlike the Turkish practice, Dhamaal may be practiced by any devotee – priests as well as pilgrims. Dhamaal is usually preceded by the beating of a drum (naghara) and ringing of bells, as pilgrims raise their hands, start to skip steps standing at one place and gradually work into a trance as the beats get faster. As the beats get faster, rhythms change and the drum beats are accompanies by the playing of shehnai.\nPractitioners associate the dance with Lal Shahbaz Qalandar and with protests following the Battle of Karbala. They regard the rhythm of the drum to evoke the rhythm of the creation of the universe, as illustrated in the concept of Kun Fyakun.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee1a5041-45e4-4667-aa3a-74b28cc71f60"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w6bvxh5h1h","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Sufi whirling”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee1a5041-45e4-4667-aa3a-74b28cc71f60"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1btqzf9r2z","content":[{"text":"Sufi whirling is physically active Sufi meditation, practiced by Dervish orders, involving spinning in circles to music, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"51f93c2d-bb44-4617-8aca-17633bab1e47"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6gmvkx9zzx","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"51f93c2d-bb44-4617-8aca-17633bab1e47"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Turkish whirling dervishes of Mevlevi Order, bowing in unison during the Sema ceremony at Chicago Turkish Festival.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/ce/Turkish_whirling_dervishes_of_Mevlevi_Order%2C_bowing_in_unison_during_the_Sema_ceremony.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Quinn Dombrowski","height":1920,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Turkish whirling dervishes of Mevlevi Order, bowing in unison during the Sema ceremony at Chicago Turkish Festival.","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/ce/Turkish_whirling_dervishes_of_Mevlevi_Order%2C_bowing_in_unison_during_the_Sema_ceremony.jpg/960px-Turkish_whirling_dervishes_of_Mevlevi_Order%2C_bowing_in_unison_during_the_Sema_ceremony.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Turkish_whirling_dervishes_of_Mevlevi_Order,_bowing_in_unison_during_the_Sema_ceremony.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/ce/Turkish_whirling_dervishes_of_Mevlevi_Order%2C_bowing_in_unison_during_the_Sema_ceremony.jpg/1280px-Turkish_whirling_dervishes_of_Mevlevi_Order%2C_bowing_in_unison_during_the_Sema_ceremony.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-01T05:47:05.983Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/sufi-whirling"}
{"id":"46c7791f-df6a-4ee0-a822-d9727195b347","type":"art_form","slug":"sun-dance","title":"sun dance","summary":"The Sun Dance is a ceremony practiced by some Native Americans in the United States and Indigenous peoples in Canada, primarily those of the Plains cultures, as well as a new movement within Native American religions.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7hg43pv9jq","content":[{"text":"The Sun Dance is a ceremony practiced by some Native Americans in the United States and Indigenous peoples in Canada, primarily those of the Plains cultures, as well as a new movement within Native American religions. Members of otherwise independent bands gather to reaffirm beliefs about the world and the supernatural through rituals of personal and community sacrifice. Typically, young men would dance semi-continuously for several days and nights without eating or drinking; in some cultures, self-mortification was or is currently also practiced.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8ec64d8b-bc16-445c-84bc-32442772780a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sqshxc8qxt","content":[{"text":"After European colonization of the Americas, and with the formation of the Canadian and United States governments, both countries passed laws intended to suppress Indigenous cultures and force assimilation into Christianity and majority-Anglo-American culture. The Sun Dance was one of the prohibited ceremonies, as was the potlatch of the Pacific Northwest peoples. An attenuated form was practiced after Canada lifted its prohibition against the practice of the full ceremony in 1951. In the United States, Congress passed the American Indian Religious Freedom Act (AIRFA) in 1978, which was enacted to protect basic civil liberties, and to protect and preserve the traditional religious rights and cultural practices of Native Americans, Eskimos, Aleuts, and Native Hawaiians.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8ec64d8b-bc16-445c-84bc-32442772780a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Description","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"g0ppdxprzc","content":[{"text":"Several features are common to the ceremonies held by Sun Dance cultures. These include dances and songs passed down through many generations, the use of a traditional drum, a sacred fire, praying with a ceremonial pipe, fasting from food and water before participating in the dance, and, in some cases, the ceremonial piercing of skin and trials of physical endurance. Certain plants are picked and prepared for use during the ceremony, such as Artemisia ludoviciana (white sage), which the Lakota use to make bracelets.\nTypically, the Sun Dance is a grueling ordeal for the dancers, a physical and spiritual test that they offer in sacrifice for their people. According to the Oklahoma Historical Society, young men dance around a pole to which they are fastened by \"rawhide thongs pegged through the skin of their chests.\" Piercing was accomplished using skewers or piercing needles through a small fold of skin on the upper chest or back; leather was then used to attach a bison skull or other heavy weight to the skewers. A dancer would dance while bearing the weight until he collapsed or the skin was torn loose.\nAt most ceremonies, family members and friends stay in the surrounding camp and pray in support of the dancers. Communities plan and organize for at least a year to prepare for the ceremony. Usually, one leader or a small group of leaders is in charge of the ceremony, but many elders help out and advise.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8ec64d8b-bc16-445c-84bc-32442772780a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Canada","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2e79fhz41g","content":[{"text":"The Government of Canada, through the Department of Indian Affairs (now Crown–Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada), persecuted Sun Dance practitioners and attempted to suppress the dance. Indian agents, based on directives from their superiors, routinely interfered with, discouraged, and disallowed sun dances in many Canadian plains communities from 1882 until the 1940s.\nThe Canadian government outlawed \"any celebration or dance of which the wounding or mutilation of the dead or living body of any human being or animal forms a part or is a feature\" in an 1895 amendment to the Indian Act. Anyone who engaged, assisted or encouraged (either directly or indirectly) was liable to imprisonment. Though not all nations' Sun Dances include the body piercings, the amendment legally prohibited its performance for those communities that did.\nIt is unclear how often this law was actually enforced; in at least one instance, police are known to have given their permission for the ceremony to be conducted. The First Nations people simply conducted many ceremonies quietly and in secret. Sun dance practitioners, such as the Plains Cree, Saulteaux, and Blackfoot, continued to hold sun dances throughout the persecution period. Some practiced the dance in secret, others with permissions from their agents, and others without the body piercing.\nIn 1951, government officials amended the Indian Act, dropping the prohibition against practices of flesh-wounding.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8ec64d8b-bc16-445c-84bc-32442772780a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Contemporary practices","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5sdpnt2q10","content":[{"text":"The Sun Dance is a living tradition practiced annually in many Native communities in Canada and the U.S. The Cree and Saulteaux have conducted at least one Rain Dance (with similar elements) each year since 1890 somewhere on the Canadian Plains.\nIn 1993, responding to what they believed was a frequent desecration of the Sun Dance and other Lakota sacred ceremonies, US and Canadian Lakota, Dakota and Nakota nations held \"the Lakota Summit V\". It was an international gathering of about 500 representatives from 40 different peoples and bands of the Lakota. They unanimously passed the following 'Declaration of War Against Exploiters of Lakota Spirituality':","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8ec64d8b-bc16-445c-84bc-32442772780a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"45x8rx1r4t","content":[{"text":"\"Whereas sacrilegious \"sundances\" for non-Indians are being conducted by charlatans and cult leaders who promote abominable and obscene imitations of our sacred Lakota sundance rites; ... We hereby and henceforth declare war against all persons who persist in exploiting, abusing, and misrepresenting the sacred traditions and spiritual practices of the Lakota, Dakota and Nakota people.\" - Mesteth, Wilmer, et al (1993)\nIn 1995, efforts to continue practicing the ceremony on a tract of unceded Secwepemc land led to an armed confrontation known as the Gustafsen Lake standoff.\nIn 2003, the 19th-Generation Keeper of the Sacred White Buffalo Calf Pipe of the Lakota asked non-Native people to stop attending the Sun Dance (Wi-wayang-wa-c'i-pi in Lakota); he stated that all can pray in support, but that only Native people should approach the altars.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8ec64d8b-bc16-445c-84bc-32442772780a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Ascetic elements and symbolism","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hny2h8jjch","content":[{"text":"The Sun Dance includes pronounced ascetic practices that carry deep spiritual meaning in Plains Indigenous cultures. Participants voluntarily engage in physical sacrifice—such as fasting, piercing, and dancing for extended periods—as acts of prayer and devotion for the benefit of the wider community. These rituals reflect values of endurance, humility, and the renewal of life through sacrificial offering.\nAcross Sun Dance traditions, one of the core ascetic elements is fasting from both food and water for several days, usually within a sacred circular arbor centered on a cottonwood pole. This fast is not only a physical test but a spiritual discipline aimed at purification and focus. Anthropologist Alice Kehoe explains that dancers \"embody the strength of their people\" through physical exertion that reaffirms communal bonds and relationships with the sacred realm. Ethnographer Ruth Underhill described the Sun Dance as a \"rite of renewal\" in which participants submit their bodies to intense trials as offerings to the Creator.\nIn many Sun Dance ceremonies—particularly among the Lakota, Cheyenne, and Arapaho—piercing plays a central role.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8ec64d8b-bc16-445c-84bc-32442772780a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Filming","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"za4ygcmd41","content":[{"text":"In most Sun Dance cultures, it is forbidden to film ceremony or prayer.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8ec64d8b-bc16-445c-84bc-32442772780a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kwdvmbbfj8","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Sun Dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8ec64d8b-bc16-445c-84bc-32442772780a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rfyrhkgg9e","content":[{"text":"sun dance is ceremony practiced by some Indigenous people in North America, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e80761c1-c2c7-4571-bedd-2f2678b77021"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"etzjvh8tvp","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 13 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e80761c1-c2c7-4571-bedd-2f2678b77021"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:10.550Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/sun-dance"}
{"id":"6b0f1485-28ed-4a21-8f48-ac3d2d99274c","type":"art_form","slug":"suspense","title":"suspense","summary":"Suspense is a state of anxiety or excitement caused by mysteriousness, uncertainty, doubt, or undecidedness.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7jc948s70e","content":[{"text":"Suspense is a state of anxiety or excitement caused by mysteriousness, uncertainty, doubt, or undecidedness.  In a narrative work, suspense is the audience's excited anticipation about the plot or conflict (which may be heightened by a violent moment, stressful scene, puzzle, mystery, etc.), particularly as it affects a character for whom the audience feels sympathy. However, suspense is not exclusive to narratives.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"61fa8820-7739-4b8a-90b9-71dd3da401a1"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"In narratives","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bsfy1hctyr","content":[{"text":"In literature, films, television, and plays, suspense is a major device for securing and maintaining interest.  It may be of several major types:  in one, the outcome is uncertain and the suspense resides in the question of who, what, or how; in another, the outcome is inevitable from foregoing events, and the suspense resides in the audience's anxious or frightened anticipation in the question of when.  Readers feel suspense when they are deeply curious about what will happen next, or when they know what is likely to happen but do not know how it will happen.  Even in historical fiction, with characters whose life stories are well known, the why usually brings suspense to the novel.\nAn adjunct to suspense is foreshadowing, as found in hints of national crisis or revolution in Isabel Allende's House of the Spirits (1982).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"61fa8820-7739-4b8a-90b9-71dd3da401a1"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Examples","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3pakdy83pm","content":[{"text":"In Sophocles' Oedipus Rex (429 B.C.), suspense is achieved through a withholding of the knowledge that Oedipus himself has killed Laius, his father.  During the play, the spectators, aware that Oedipus will eventually make the discovery, share the hero's uncertainties and fears as he pursues the truth of his own past.\nIn George Washington Cable's story \"Jean-ah Poquelin\" (1875), the reader wants to know the cause of the strange smell and the unexplained disappearance of a brother.\nIn Mark Twain's Pudd'nhead Wilson (1895), the reader anticipates the outcome of the switching of a black infant with a white infant.\nIn Ernest J. Gaines's A Gathering of Old Men (1983), the reader waits for the court's decision at a murder trial.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"61fa8820-7739-4b8a-90b9-71dd3da401a1"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Paradox of suspense","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6nmm4qcr85","content":[{"text":"Some authors have tried to explain the \"paradox of suspense\", namely: a narrative tension that remains effective even when uncertainty is neutralized, because repeat audiences know exactly how the story resolves. Some theories assume that true repeat audiences are extremely rare because, in reiteration, we usually forget many details of the story and the interest arises due to these holes of memory; others claim that uncertainty remains even for often told stories because, during the immersion in the fictional world, we forget fictionally what we know factually or because we expect fictional worlds to look like the real world, where exact repetition of an event is impossible.\nThe position of Yanal is more radical and postulates that narrative tension that remains effective in true repetition should be clearly distinguished from genuine suspense, because uncertainty is part of the definition of suspense. Baroni proposes to name rappel this kind of suspense whose excitement relies on the ability of the audience to anticipate perfectly what is to come, a precognition that is particularly enjoyable for children dealing with well-known fairy tales. Baroni adds that another kind of suspense without uncertainty can emerge with the occasional contradiction between what the reader knows about the future (cognition) and what he desires (volition), especially in tragedy, when the protagonist eventually dies or fails (suspense par contradiction).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"61fa8820-7739-4b8a-90b9-71dd3da401a1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"62kc3bdzh8","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Suspense”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"61fa8820-7739-4b8a-90b9-71dd3da401a1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sbd0xxx3cd","content":[{"text":"suspense is feeling of uncertainty and anxiety about the outcome of certain actions, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"af3ecb4e-de78-481a-bacc-812a6641c6f7"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"x683wfw78p","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 10 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"af3ecb4e-de78-481a-bacc-812a6641c6f7"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:34.785Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/suspense"}
{"id":"ab3b35cf-56c4-420f-95f9-a682ec58ed1a","type":"art_form","slug":"swing","title":"swing","summary":"Swing dance is a category of social dances that developed with the swing style of jazz music in the 1920s–1940s, with the origin of each dance predating the swing era.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1e96vm3gcp","content":[{"text":"Swing dance is a category of social dances that developed with the swing style of jazz music in the 1920s–1940s, with the origin of each dance predating the swing era. Hundreds of styles of swing dancing were developed; those that have survived beyond that era include Charleston, Balboa, Lindy Hop, West Coast Swing, and Collegiate Shag. Today, the best-known of these dances is the Lindy Hop,  which originated in Harlem in the early 1930s.  While the majority of swing dances began in African-American communities as vernacular African-American dances, some influenced swing-era dances, such as Balboa, that developed outside of these communities.\nSwing dance was not commonly used to identify a group of dances until the second half of the 20th century. Historically, the word swing referred to a style of jazz music, which inspired the evolution of the dance. Jitterbug is any form of swing dance, though it is often used as a synonym for the six-count derivative of Lindy Hop called \"East Coast Swing\".  One who danced swing was called a swing dancer. Jitterbug might refer to Lindy Hop, Shag, or other swing dances.  The term was famously associated with swing era band leader Cab Calloway because, as he put it, the dancers \"look like a bunch of jitterbugs out there on the floor\" due to their fast, often bouncy movements.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1b7d2062-e522-4048-be33-13b33b926e64"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Original forms dating from the 1920s and early 1930s","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vp5e0ne2gz","content":[{"text":"Balboa is a very fast eight-count dance in closed position. The earliest form of the dance (often called \"Pure Balboa\") evolved in the mostly conservative dance halls of southern California where space was limited and strict codes of conduct were enforced.  These dance halls usually prohibited the wild kicks of the Charleston and Lindy Hop.  Pure Balboa is characterized by an upright posture with partners standing chest to chest.  Step variations generally play with the rhythm or look and feel (style) from below the knee downwards and deal with changes in direction. Balboa is frequently danced to fast jazz,  usually 180-320 beats per minute (BPM), though many like a slower (170-190 BPM) tempo. While most dancers differentiate between pure Balboa and Bal-Swing, both are considered to be a part of the dance. Bal-Swing evolved from Balboa when original Balboa dancers experimented with fancier variations of the dance which forced the chest to chest connection to be broken. In this form of Balboa a variety of spins, turns, dips, tricks, and even air steps are introduced.\nCharleston (dance) is danced partnered or solo, often to faster music. It includes a number of positions, including side-by-side, hand-to-hand, and tandem.  In \"jockey position\", the closed position is opened out so that both partners may face forward, without breaking apart.  In side-by-side Charleston, partners open the closed position entirely, so that their only points of connection are at their touching hips and arm contact, wherein the leader's right hand and arm touch the follower's back and the follower's left hand and arm touch the leader's shoulder and arm.  Both partners then swing their free arms as they would in solo Charleston.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1b7d2062-e522-4048-be33-13b33b926e64"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Forms dating from the late 1930s and early 1940s","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zc93aexyhk","content":[{"text":"Big Apple: A partner dance and a \"called\" circle dance that originated in the Afro-American community of the United States in the beginning of the 20th century.  The dance that eventually became known as the Big Apple is speculated to have been created in the early 1930s by African-American youth dancing at the Big Apple Club, which was at the former House of Peace Synagogue on Park Street in Columbia, South Carolina.  The synagogue was converted into a black juke joint called the \"Big Apple Night Club\".\nLittle Apple: This dance was a partnered version of the Big Apple, which is also believed to have originated in the Carolinas of the Southern United States.\nSt. Louis shag (or \"Shag\"): A dance that evolved out of the Charleston. As its name suggests, it is recognized as having started in St. Louis, Missouri. St. Louis Shag features a stationary eight-count basic that is most commonly composed of triple-step, kick, triple-step, kick. It is a very fast closed position dance that is usually done to stomp, jump, and boogie-woogie music.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1b7d2062-e522-4048-be33-13b33b926e64"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Derivatives of swing dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yrgz100z0s","content":[{"text":"Acrobatic Rock'n'Roll – Popular in Europe, acrobatic rock'n'roll is popularly associated with Russian gymnasts who took up the dance, though it is popular throughout Europe today. It is a performance dance and sport rather than a social dance, though there are people who remove the acrobatic stunts to dance it on a social level.\nBoogie-woogie developed originally in the 1940s, with the rise of boogie woogie music. It is popular today in Europe, and was considered by some to be the European counterpart to East Coast Swing, a six-count dance standardized for the American ballroom industry. It is danced to rock music of various kinds, blues or boogie woogie music but usually not to jazz. As the dance has developed, it has also taken to eight-count variations and swing outs similar to Lindy Hop, while keeping the original boogie woogie footwork.\nEast Coast Swing is a simpler six-count variation that spawned from the six-count variations of the Lindy Hop.  It evolved with swing-band music of the 1940s and the work of the Arthur Murray dance studios in the 1940s. It is also known as Six-count Swing, Triple-Step Swing, or Single-Step Swing.  East Coast Swing has very simple structure and footwork along with basic moves and styling. It is popular for its simple nature and is often danced to slow, medium, or fast tempo jazz, blues, or rock and roll.  Occasionally, Rockabilly, aka Rock-a-billy, is mistaken for East Coast Swing, but Rockabilly is more closely related to Western Swing.\nCarolina Shag was danced along the strands between Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, and Wilmington, North Carolina, during the 1940s but, during the 1990s and later, has expanded to many other places.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1b7d2062-e522-4048-be33-13b33b926e64"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Swing dancing today","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"h2xxpy8rz7","content":[{"text":"Swing dancing was most popular in the 1930s and 1940s, but it still continues today. Dance moves have evolved with the music. Swing dancing styles are the foundation of many other dance styles including disco and country line dancing.  Swing dancing clubs and contests are still held around the world.\nThe American Bop Association (ABA) is a non-profit corporation of 34 member swing dance clubs who are dedicated to the preservation and promotion of the broad range of dance and music styles more commonly known as bop, all forms of swing, jitterbug, and shag.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1b7d2062-e522-4048-be33-13b33b926e64"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Formats","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xfgwdnmw2v","content":[{"text":"The swing dance competitions use one of the few formats (\"categories\"):","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1b7d2062-e522-4048-be33-13b33b926e64"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8ygxdt3hs0","content":[{"text":"Showcase and classic are formats that are close to the ones used in ballroom dancing: pairs that had trained together perform pre-choreographed dances. Showcase format allows lifts, drops, and aerials.  Classic competition allows few drops, but otherwise limits moves to the ones that can be used in social dancing.\nStrictly swing and Jack-and-Jill competitions, in contrast, demand spontaneity and lead/follow communications. Pre-choreographed dance patterns are prohibited and are penalized if discovered.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1b7d2062-e522-4048-be33-13b33b926e64"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2bk0c4p32r","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Swing (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1b7d2062-e522-4048-be33-13b33b926e64"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w16bdpjz0g","content":[{"text":"swing is group of dances tied to jazz, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3c6a41f3-3e19-4cba-9aac-46094528bf97"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tpxmnqym58","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 9 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3c6a41f3-3e19-4cba-9aac-46094528bf97"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Anthony & Stephanie Charleston dancer dancing pose","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b9/Anthony_%26_Stephanie_Charleston_dancer_dancing_pose.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Anthonydpadgett","height":1694,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Anthony & Stephanie Charleston dancer dancing pose","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b9/Anthony_%26_Stephanie_Charleston_dancer_dancing_pose.jpg/960px-Anthony_%26_Stephanie_Charleston_dancer_dancing_pose.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Anthony_%26_Stephanie_Charleston_dancer_dancing_pose.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b9/Anthony_%26_Stephanie_Charleston_dancer_dancing_pose.jpg/1280px-Anthony_%26_Stephanie_Charleston_dancer_dancing_pose.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-08-31T05:47:04.423Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/swing"}
{"id":"aad51200-6a5c-439e-8c9b-280e3d5c1471","type":"art_form","slug":"sword-dance","title":"sword dance","summary":"Weapon dances incorporating swords or similar weapons are recorded throughout world history. There are various traditions of solo and mock-battle sword dances in Africa, Asia and Europe.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"d0p9psby7g","content":[{"text":"Weapon dances incorporating swords or similar weapons are recorded throughout world history. There are various traditions of solo and mock-battle sword dances in Africa, Asia and Europe. Some traditions use sticks or clubs in place of bladed weapons, while most modern performers employ dulled replications to avoid injury.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"49eb012d-7c5e-4174-a0fe-7d72c50cfacd"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Forms","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kr8w0teqzx","content":[{"text":"General types of sword dance include:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"49eb012d-7c5e-4174-a0fe-7d72c50cfacd"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zn6evqbhc9","content":[{"text":"solo dancers around swords – such as the traditional Scottish sword dances. This general form also encompasses non-sword dances such as the bacca pipes jig in Cotswold morris dance.\nmock-battle dances, including many stick dances from non-sword traditions, and such common continental dances as Bouffons or Mattachins as described by Thoinot Arbeau in 1588.\nhilt-and-point sword dances – where the dancers are linked together by their swords in a chain. These form the basis for rapper sword and long sword forms.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"49eb012d-7c5e-4174-a0fe-7d72c50cfacd"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"China and Vietnam","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4cckpz6srq","content":[{"text":"Sword dances in China and Vietnam, known as jian wu or múa kiếm, began as a military training exercise with swords and spears which evolved into an elaborate acrobatic dance. Jian wu was one of four classical dances that were used in the Chinese and Vietnamese opera. Each of these dances was very meaningful within the opera performances and they often were used for plot descriptions and characterization. Sword dancing also found a use in Chinese and Vietnamese cultures through communicating with the supernatural; sword dancing was done in an effort to communicate feelings to the dead spirits that may be disrupting a household.\nThere are quite a few styles within the actual art of sword dancing. The first style focuses on relaxation and flexibility while the other style focuses on speed and strength. There are also different types of swords and weapons used during each dance. A long sword is usually wielded with slower dramatic movements during a solo performance while shorter scimitars are used at a very high pace during a sword dance between two or more people. Each style requires certain movements that require the dancer to be highly agile and athletic.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"49eb012d-7c5e-4174-a0fe-7d72c50cfacd"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Indian subcontinent","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jarwannrvx","content":[{"text":"Many sword-dances in the Indian subcontinent originated with the martial traditions of the region, the paragon of which exemplified in the long-established Gatka tradition, arising from the tenet of monolithic, theosophical militarization found within Sikhism. The paika akhada which were previously used to train Orissan warriors now perform weapon dances in the streets during festivals. Other dances like the mer dandiya are simply theatrical depictions of battle, while some like the choliya of the Kumaon region were used to ward off evil spirits. Sword dances are still commonly performed for weddings and other occasions in the Indian subcontinent today.\nIn the Indian subcontinent, the chhau sword dance, Firkal sword dance, Khasi tribal sword dance, Bhotiya tribe sword dance, Lakharu-li sword dance, Khaijama-Phanai sword dance, Gujarat sword dance and the Khattak sword dance are performed on festive occasions.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"49eb012d-7c5e-4174-a0fe-7d72c50cfacd"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Middle East","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zvyqandk8c","content":[{"text":"Arab sword dances (raqs al-saïf) evolved out of sword fighting between men, in both Egypt and Turkey. There was even a time when sword dancing was banned by the sultan during Ottoman rule, as it was believed that dancers, who took swords from soldiers and pretended to \"kill\" them at the end of the performances, collected the swords to begin a resistance against the army. These swords were never returned. Female sword dancing was not widespread in West Asia. Men in Egypt performed a dance called el ard, a martial dance involving upraised swords, but women were not widely known to use swords as props during their dancing in public. However, paintings and engravings by French artist Jean-Léon Gérôme (who visited Egypt in the 18th century) show sword dancers balancing sabers on their heads. The Turkish Kılıç Kalkan dance of Bursa is performed exclusively by men with a sword and shield, and represents the Ottoman conquest of the city. The performers wear early Ottoman battle dress and dance to the sound of clashing swords and shields without music.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"49eb012d-7c5e-4174-a0fe-7d72c50cfacd"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Europe","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jny0dmmh2x","content":[{"text":"Hilt-and-point sword dances are, or were, performed all over Europe. These are particularly concentrated in an area corresponding to the boundaries of the Holy Roman Empire at around 1400–1500, and many of these traditional dances are still performed in England, Czech Republic, Germany, Austria, North Italy, France, Flanders, and the Iberian Peninsula, with a particular concentration in Basque Country, Galicia and Andalusia. Sword dances are also performed by Albanians, both in the Balkans and in Italy. Into the late 1400s Albanian sword dances were imitated by Italian tarantellas.\nSword dances performed by the guilds of Smiths and Cutlers in Nuremberg are recorded from 1350. 16th century records of sword dances survive from all over Germany. Depictions of dances survive from Zürich (1578) and Nuremberg (1600).  In Scotland a dance was recorded as being performed in 1285, but this was found in a document from 1440.\nAn important concentration of traditional sword dances can be found on the Italian side of the western Alps. Main sites are Giaglione, Venaus and S. Giorio in the Susa valley, where the so-called \"Spadonari\" (sword-holders) dance is still performed between the end of January and the beginning of February. This dance is also connected with the rebirth of nature and vegetation.\nIn Romania, in a dance called Căluș, a sword dance similar to a Morris Dance, is part of a more complex ritualistic dance involving elements of fertility ritual and horse worship.\nHilt-and-point sword dances traditional to England include rapper sword and long sword, although both of these are now also performed by revival teams outside their traditional areas, including teams in most of the English-speaking world.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"49eb012d-7c5e-4174-a0fe-7d72c50cfacd"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3ehzz739cz","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Sword dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"49eb012d-7c5e-4174-a0fe-7d72c50cfacd"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"65787xnqk6","content":[{"text":"sword dance is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fabb5f9c-4f57-4e6c-af43-4b6a0a61adef"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jwcrc09m1a","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 16 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"fabb5f9c-4f57-4e6c-af43-4b6a0a61adef"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:11.797Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/sword-dance"}
{"id":"8341caaa-69d0-400e-a519-e5ba82570a06","type":"art_form","slug":"tahtib","title":"tahtib","summary":"Tahtib (Arabic: تحطيب, romanized: taḥṭīb) is the term for a traditional stick-fighting martial art originally named fan a'nazaha wa-tahtib (\"the art of being straight and honest through the use of stick\").","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"p2xzb9rhbm","content":[{"text":"Tahtib (Arabic: تحطيب, romanized: taḥṭīb) is the term for a traditional stick-fighting martial art originally named fan a'nazaha wa-tahtib (\"the art of being straight and honest through the use of stick\"). The original martial version of tahtib later evolved into an Egyptian folk dance with a wooden stick. It is commonly described in English as a \"stick dance\", \"cane dance\", \"stick-dancing game\", or as ritual mock combat accompanied by music. Nowadays, the word tahtib encompasses both martial practice and performance art. It is mainly practiced today in Upper Egypt. Tahtib is regularly performed for tourists in Luxor and Aswan.\nThe stick used in tahtib is about four feet in length and is called an asa, asaya, assaya, or nabboot. It is often flailed in large figure-eight patterns across the body with such speed that the displacement of air is loudly discernible.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"321bd5a1-efc8-4d13-8c3b-e52fc7c4ae91"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k753n7pq1k","content":[{"text":"The oldest traces of tahtib were found on engravings from the archaeological site of Abusir, an extensive necropolis of the Old Kingdom period, located in the south-western suburbs of Cairo. On some of the reliefs of the Pyramid of Sahure (V dynasty, c. 2500 BC); the images and explanatory captions are particularly precise and accurate in their depiction of what seems to be military training using sticks. Tahtib, with archery and wrestling, was then among the three disciplines of warfare taught to soldiers.\nThree of the 35 tombs of the Beni Hassan necropolis (XI-XII Dynasties, 1900 – 1700 BC) near the town of Minya, contain engravings showing scenes of tahtib. Similar engravings can be seen in the archaeological site of Tell el Amarna (XVIII Dynasty, 1350 BC), some 60 km south of Minya. In addition to its role as military training, tahtib matches were also popular among peasants and farmers. The first evidence of the festive representation of tahtib can only be seen in the New Empire (1500 – 1000 BC), as shown by the engravings on the walls of Luxor and Saqqâra Early Christian writings mention tahtib as a leisure activity and a popular art performed by men during weddings and celebrations. It is believed that tahtib developed as a game or performance art in this civilian context.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"321bd5a1-efc8-4d13-8c3b-e52fc7c4ae91"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Performance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"whn24wc82c","content":[{"text":"As with its combative counterpart, the dance form of tahtib was originally performed by men, but female versions were later developed. In one form, the women dress as men and imitate the males. Another female variant is performed flirtatiously and with less aggression. The latter, called ra's el assaya (dance of the stick) is incorporated into cabaret or Raqs sharqi performances. The stick used for this dance is generally more lightweight and hooked at one end like a cane. It is often embellished with metallic-coloured foil or sequins. The costume is a simple baladi dress. Performances include balancing the cane on the head, hip or shoulder.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"321bd5a1-efc8-4d13-8c3b-e52fc7c4ae91"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Music","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"890xn7bkgf","content":[{"text":"Music in tahtib features the tabl (bass drum) and mizmar (folk oboe). The right hand uses a heavier stick with a hooked head to beat out the dum (the deep sound from striking the center of the drum) which drive the heartbeat of the rhythm, while the left hand uses a light twig as a switch to produce rapid-fire staccato \"taks\" (the higher sound from striking the edge of the drum).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"321bd5a1-efc8-4d13-8c3b-e52fc7c4ae91"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Modern tahtib","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sezyhk68m0","content":[{"text":"Modern tahtib is an attempt to re-explore the sources of tahtib as a fighting art, and to enrich them as a martial practice by codifying the techniques and teaching them structurally. As in traditional tahtib, the main target is the opponent's head, as it is considered the most fragile and vulnerable part of the body. Consequently, techniques revolve around protecting one's own head while reaching the head of the opponent. Victory can be attained either by a single clean touch to the head, or three touches to the body. Unlike its traditional counterpart, modern tahtib allows both women and men to practice in mixed groups.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"321bd5a1-efc8-4d13-8c3b-e52fc7c4ae91"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pyae85m6b5","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Tahtib”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"321bd5a1-efc8-4d13-8c3b-e52fc7c4ae91"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7ads4grj73","content":[{"text":"tahtib is Egyptian martial art and folk dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ba5004de-4593-4dba-85b9-830a00d6c40a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"h8c90aj14s","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ba5004de-4593-4dba-85b9-830a00d6c40a"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"This is an image with the theme \" Play \" from: Egypt","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/48/%D8%B1%D8%AC%D8%A7%D9%84_%D9%85%D8%B5%D8%B1%D9%8A%D9%88%D9%86_%D9%85%D9%86_%D8%B5%D8%B9%D9%8A%D8%AF_%D9%85%D8%B5%D8%B1_%D9%8A%D9%85%D8%A7%D8%B1%D8%B3%D9%88%D9%86_%D9%84%D8%B9%D8%A8%D8%A9_%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AA%D8%AD%D8%B7%D9%8A%D8%A8.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Yasser Elrasoul","height":876,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"This is an image with the theme \" Play \" from: Egypt","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/48/%D8%B1%D8%AC%D8%A7%D9%84_%D9%85%D8%B5%D8%B1%D9%8A%D9%88%D9%86_%D9%85%D9%86_%D8%B5%D8%B9%D9%8A%D8%AF_%D9%85%D8%B5%D8%B1_%D9%8A%D9%85%D8%A7%D8%B1%D8%B3%D9%88%D9%86_%D9%84%D8%B9%D8%A8%D8%A9_%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AA%D8%AD%D8%B7%D9%8A%D8%A8.jpg/960px-%D8%B1%D8%AC%D8%A7%D9%84_%D9%85%D8%B5%D8%B1%D9%8A%D9%88%D9%86_%D9%85%D9%86_%D8%B5%D8%B9%D9%8A%D8%AF_%D9%85%D8%B5%D8%B1_%D9%8A%D9%85%D8%A7%D8%B1%D8%B3%D9%88%D9%86_%D9%84%D8%B9%D8%A8%D8%A9_%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AA%D8%AD%D8%B7%D9%8A%D8%A8.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:%D8%B1%D8%AC%D8%A7%D9%84_%D9%85%D8%B5%D8%B1%D9%8A%D9%88%D9%86_%D9%85%D9%86_%D8%B5%D8%B9%D9%8A%D8%AF_%D9%85%D8%B5%D8%B1_%D9%8A%D9%85%D8%A7%D8%B1%D8%B3%D9%88%D9%86_%D9%84%D8%B9%D8%A8%D8%A9_%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AA%D8%AD%D8%B7%D9%8A%D8%A8.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/48/%D8%B1%D8%AC%D8%A7%D9%84_%D9%85%D8%B5%D8%B1%D9%8A%D9%88%D9%86_%D9%85%D9%86_%D8%B5%D8%B9%D9%8A%D8%AF_%D9%85%D8%B5%D8%B1_%D9%8A%D9%85%D8%A7%D8%B1%D8%B3%D9%88%D9%86_%D9%84%D8%B9%D8%A8%D8%A9_%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AA%D8%AD%D8%B7%D9%8A%D8%A8.jpg/1280px-%D8%B1%D8%AC%D8%A7%D9%84_%D9%85%D8%B5%D8%B1%D9%8A%D9%88%D9%86_%D9%85%D9%86_%D8%B5%D8%B9%D9%8A%D8%AF_%D9%85%D8%B5%D8%B1_%D9%8A%D9%85%D8%A7%D8%B1%D8%B3%D9%88%D9%86_%D9%84%D8%B9%D8%A8%D8%A9_%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AA%D8%AD%D8%B7%D9%8A%D8%A8.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-08-31T05:47:05.952Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/tahtib"}
{"id":"4c982ec8-fff0-49be-a825-941576d81b62","type":"art_form","slug":"talchum","title":"talchum","summary":"Talchum (Korean: 탈춤; IPA: [ˈtʰa̠(ː)ʎt͡ɕʰum]; lit. 'mask dance') is a Korean dance performed while wearing a mask, and often involves singing and dancing.\nAlthough the term talchum is usually taken to mean all mask dance dramas by most Korea…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bts2mkx2qd","content":[{"text":"Talchum (Korean: 탈춤; IPA: [ˈtʰa̠(ː)ʎt͡ɕʰum]; lit. 'mask dance') is a Korean dance performed while wearing a mask, and often involves singing and dancing.\nAlthough the term talchum is usually taken to mean all mask dance dramas by most Koreans, it is strictly speaking a regional term originally only applied to dances of Hwanghae Province in present-day North Korea. Dances from the Seoul or Gyeonggi province region are known as sandae noli, whereas dances from the southern coast are known as yayu (야유), which means \"field play\", or Obangsinjang, which means \"dance of five gods\". However, talchum is nowadays accepted as a general term for mask dance drama.\nThe dances also feature drama and story, as masked characters portray people, animals, and even supernatural beings. These folk dramas often reflected the frustrations felt by the lower classes towards the elite yangban.\nIn 2022, Talchum was inscribed on UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, highlighting both its local importance and global significance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d712bb93-58fc-45fd-b716-0d139b659070"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Agricultural consciousness","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"41ahfayw82","content":[{"text":"It is a theory that the origin of the masquerade is the agricultural consciousness held by farmers for good farming since ancient times. The appearance of agricultural consciousness is well illustrated in burak-gut such as Seonang-gut that remains today. According to the theory of agricultural consciousness, masks made by imitating the face of God were gradually changed into masks that resemble humans, and Gut to magically solve conflicts with nature was transformed into an artistic expression of social conflicts, resulting in a masquerade. The conversion of the Nongak band into a musician or the fact that the audience of the masquerade intervenes in the progress of the play are considered traditions that come down from the stage of Seonang-gut. The variegated (雜色) play of the Nongak band shows the blindness of the masquerade, and the Hahoebyulsingut mask game and the Gangneung Gwanno mask game (陵 government 奴) mask game were mask plays that did not completely escape the form of a gut, and since the agricultural consciousness was an event of farmers, the masquerade grew into a people's play from the beginning.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d712bb93-58fc-45fd-b716-0d139b659070"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Instrumental theory","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bmm7g7znhw","content":[{"text":"It is a theory that instrumental music (伎), which was learned by Baekje man Mimaji (味摩) in the Southern Dynasties of China and passed it on to Japan, is the origin of masquerade. Although instrumental music (伎) in the 13th century Japanese literature \"Gyohuncho (訓抄 of Church)\" is a mukgeuk (默劇), it is argued that instrumental music was handed down as a masquerade because its contents are similar to today's Yangju Byeolsandaenori and Bongsan Mask Dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d712bb93-58fc-45fd-b716-0d139b659070"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"e8fgyewsbc","content":[{"text":"Talchum originated in Korean villages as part of shamanic rituals. It then became a form of popular entertainment. It was even performed in the royal court—during the Goryeo period, the Office of Masked-Dance Drama (Sandae Togam) supervised such dances. The office however was abolished during the Joseon period.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d712bb93-58fc-45fd-b716-0d139b659070"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Masque of the Three Kingdoms period","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m6hpdaz6ye","content":[{"text":"The origin of the mask dance dates back to the end of the 9th century, and you can get a glimpse of the traces of the use of masks in the fifth period of Choi Chi-won's \"Hyangak Japyeong\", namely, Woljeon, Daemyeon, Geumhwan, Sokdok, and Sanye. What is regrettable is that the poem is too simple and the content is not detailed. However, as a mask play, this is the first record in Korea. In addition to this, it is said that in the Silla Dynasty, there were sword dances and Cheoyong dances as mask play, but there are no accurate literature and relics about this. However, it is said that this mask dance is a story of face-to-face 戱 and young Gwanchang through dance, as the suggestion of the sword dance as a mask dance can be obtained from the article of \"Catch Up Donggyeong\" and \"Pungseongjo\". In the same book, it was said that Cheoyongmu also dances with a mask. However, looking at the article \"Bibigo Literature\" and \"Hwangchangrangmu (黃昌郞舞)\", it is questionable whether a mask was used even at the time of Silla when these two plays occurred. However, it can be presumed that it is clear that masks were used later from the above-described literature. This sword dance has been handed down to this day and it is seen that Augusti and the sword dance we see today do not wear masks, which is thought to have been after posterity passed down from male play to female play. In any case, it is thought that this sword dance was intended to express and inspire the spirit of Hwarangdo (郞 way) when Silla was trying to achieve the feat of unification as a sword dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d712bb93-58fc-45fd-b716-0d139b659070"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Sandae japhee of the Goryeo Dynasty","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vaha14q7n6","content":[{"text":"During the Goryeo Dynasty, there were mask-wearing narye events and sandae japhee. Narye is a ritual held on the night of the Lunar New Year's Eve to welcome a pleasant and joyful New Year by expelling evil spirits, the source of disasters and sickness throughout the year. According to the Literature Memorandum, this event was held until King Injo of the Joseon Dynasty when he entered the Korean Peninsula in the 6th year of King Jeongjong of Goryeo. Meanwhile, unlike Narye, there was a sandae japhee at the end of Goryeo. This japhee also included masks such as Cheoyongmu, but it became more popular when it entered the Joseon Dynasty.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d712bb93-58fc-45fd-b716-0d139b659070"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5sc4k1w0at","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Talchum”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d712bb93-58fc-45fd-b716-0d139b659070"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ewea33me9d","content":[{"text":"talchum is traditional type of dance with Korean masks worn by people, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a90a1027-2916-4b29-8141-189ff528addf"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9a5ndxf2fq","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a90a1027-2916-4b29-8141-189ff528addf"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"A Korean traditional dance","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/24/Korean.Dance-Mask-Bride-Monk-01.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"originally by photoren","height":1578,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"A Korean traditional dance","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/24/Korean.Dance-Mask-Bride-Monk-01.jpg/960px-Korean.Dance-Mask-Bride-Monk-01.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Korean.Dance-Mask-Bride-Monk-01.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/24/Korean.Dance-Mask-Bride-Monk-01.jpg/1280px-Korean.Dance-Mask-Bride-Monk-01.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-04T05:47:05.696Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/talchum"}
{"id":"04ab4470-e997-4210-bf4c-a7c29c5aa277","type":"art_form","slug":"tandava","title":"Tandava","summary":"Tandavam (also spelled as Tāṇḍava), also known as Tāṇḍava Natyam, is a divine dance performed by Hindu god Shiva.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0n2vnrnt7n","content":[{"text":"Tandavam (also spelled as Tāṇḍava), also known as Tāṇḍava Natyam, is a divine dance performed by Hindu god Shiva. Shiva is depicted as dancing the Tandava in his form of Nataraja.\nThe Natya Shastra, a Sanskrit treatise on the performing arts, describes various aspects of the Tandava.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5885a07c-28e8-436a-a821-ef5d3daa4149"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Description","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kkk07p8hbn","content":[{"text":"Tandava refers both to Shiva's dance, the source of the cosmic cycle of creation, preservation, and dissolution, and the style of classical Indian dance-drama modeled upon it, characterized by vigorous, brisk movements. \nThe dance takes different names depending on the mood expressed or the specific activity of Shiva it portrays. For example, the Ananda Tandava expresses grace and symbolizes the five-fold cosmic cycle (pancakritya), from creation through dissolution to liberation, while Raudra Tandava is the posture Shiva assumes specifically during cosmic annihilation. Other types of Tandava found in Hindu texts include Tripura Tandava, Sandhya Tandava, Samhara Tandava, Kali (Kalika) Tandava, Uma Tandava, Shiva Tandava, Krishna Tandava, and Gauri Tandava.\nIn Shaiva Siddhanta tradition, Shiva as Nataraja (lit. \"King of dance\") is considered to be supreme lord of dance. In the non-dual Shaivite and Tantric traditions, Shiva's dance is interpreted both as a cosmic rhythm and as a \"free and spontaneous mystical dance [that] takes place in the human heart.\"\nTandava takes its name from Tandu (taṇḍu), the attendant of Shiva, who instructed Bharata (author of the Natya Shastra) in the use of Angaharas and Karanas modes of the Tandava at Shiva's order. Some scholars consider that Tandu himself must have been the author of an earlier work on the dramatic arts, which was incorporated into the Natya Shastra. The Natya Shastra portrays Shiva narrating about the various aspects of the dance to the god Brahma.\nThe 32 Angaharas and 108 Karanas are discussed by Bharata in the 4th chapter of the Natya Shastra, Tandava Lakshanam. Karana is the combination of hand gestures with feet to form a dance posture.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5885a07c-28e8-436a-a821-ef5d3daa4149"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Association with other deities","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fzmq484sq1","content":[{"text":"Ganesha, the son of Shiva, is depicted as Ashtabhuja tandavsa nritya murtis (Eight armed form of Ganesha dancing the Tandava) in temple sculptures.\nThe Bhagavata Purana talks of Krishna dancing his Tandava on the head of the serpent Kaliya. King Chikka Devaraja (the  fourteenth maharaja of the Kingdom of Mysore) minted a series of gold coins called \"Devaraja [with] the image of dancing Krishna\" (tandava krishnamurti devaraja) to commemorate his coronation. Purandara Dasa calls the dancing Krishna (\"Nritya Krishna\") as \"Tandava Krishna\".\nAccording to Jain traditions, Indra is said to have performed the Tandava in honour of Rishabha (Jain tirthankar) on the latter's birth.\nThe similarly correlated Buddhist deity Acala is shown in some depictions to trample upon Vighnarāja, a demon of obstacles, in the manner of Tandava.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5885a07c-28e8-436a-a821-ef5d3daa4149"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Indian classical dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jr3vasgemd","content":[{"text":"In Kathak dance three types of Tandavas are generally used, they are, Krishna Tandava, Shiva Tandava and Ravana Tandava, but sometimes a fourth variety - Kalika Tandava, is also often used. Bharatanatyam and Kuchipudi have variants of Krishna dancing his Tandava on Kaliya.\nThe Manipuri dance is categorized as either \"Tandava\" (vigorous, usually go with Shiva, Shakti or Krishna as warrior-savior themed plays) or lasya (delicate, usually go with love stories of Radha and Krishna). In the Krishna Tandava in Raslila performance of Manipuri dance is graceful yet with swift movement and acrobatic gestures.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5885a07c-28e8-436a-a821-ef5d3daa4149"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Sculpture","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ddm8mbh0xs","content":[{"text":"The 108 karanas of Tandava have inspired Shiva sculptures of the 1st-millennium BCE, particularly the Tandava style which fuses many of these into a composite image found at the Nataraja temple of Chidambaram.\nShiva as Nataraja or Krishna dancing the Tandava is a recurring theme in the Chola period bronzes. Various Shiva temples in South India depict the dancing Nataraja.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5885a07c-28e8-436a-a821-ef5d3daa4149"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Modern Reception","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"th3phg0n1y","content":[{"text":"In the 20th century, following the publication of Ananda Coomaraswamy's 1918 work The Dance of Shiva, European and North American artists, writers, and collectors began to interpret the dancing Shiva as an allegory for world events. During and after World War II, the German author Hermann Hesse and art collector Eduard von der Heydt saw the dance as symbolizing a world facing imminent catastrophe, in contrast with a Western optimism about unbridled technological progress. In The Tao of Physics, physicist Fritjof Capra likened the form and rhythm of the Tandava to quantum field theory, describing the continuous creation and destruction of subatomic particles as an ongoing cosmic \"energy dance.\" In 2004, a statue of Shiva as Nataraja was installed at CERN in Geneva in commemoration of India's research collaboration with the facility for the prior four decades.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5885a07c-28e8-436a-a821-ef5d3daa4149"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mwn5m2ag5g","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Tandava”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5885a07c-28e8-436a-a821-ef5d3daa4149"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rcr0edgpq3","content":[{"text":"Tandava is divine dance performed by the Hindu god Shiva, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"23741c60-6500-48a7-8c80-1438891ab461"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"e599pds1d5","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"23741c60-6500-48a7-8c80-1438891ab461"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Shiva dance. Shiva Nataraja, Shiva Tandava runs the world from Moscow Kremlin and Red Square. Moscow, Russia.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/13/Shiva_Dance%2C_Shiva_Nataraja%2C_Shiva_Tandava%2C_Moscow%2C_Russia.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Vyacheslav Argenberg","height":851,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Shiva dance. Shiva Nataraja, Shiva Tandava runs the world from Moscow Kremlin and Red Square. Moscow, Russia.","licence":"CC BY 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/13/Shiva_Dance%2C_Shiva_Nataraja%2C_Shiva_Tandava%2C_Moscow%2C_Russia.jpg/960px-Shiva_Dance%2C_Shiva_Nataraja%2C_Shiva_Tandava%2C_Moscow%2C_Russia.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Shiva_Dance,_Shiva_Nataraja,_Shiva_Tandava,_Moscow,_Russia.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/13/Shiva_Dance%2C_Shiva_Nataraja%2C_Shiva_Tandava%2C_Moscow%2C_Russia.jpg/1280px-Shiva_Dance%2C_Shiva_Nataraja%2C_Shiva_Tandava%2C_Moscow%2C_Russia.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0"},{"alt":"Ananda Tandava is a cosmic dance performed by the Hindu deity Shiva in his manifestation as Nataraja, the Lord of Dance. It symbolizes the continuous cycle of creation, preservation, and dissolution (death). Agni fire is the energy of destruction and renewal. The dissolution…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bc/Meenakshi_Temple%2C_Shiva%2C_Nataraja%2C_Ananda_Tandava%2C_Madurai%2C_India.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Vyacheslav Argenberg","height":893,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Ananda Tandava is a cosmic dance performed by the Hindu deity Shiva in his manifestation as Nataraja, the Lord of Dance. It symbolizes the continuous cycle of creation, preservation, and dissolution (death). Agni fire is the energy of destruction and renewal. The dissolution…","licence":"CC BY 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bc/Meenakshi_Temple%2C_Shiva%2C_Nataraja%2C_Ananda_Tandava%2C_Madurai%2C_India.jpg/960px-Meenakshi_Temple%2C_Shiva%2C_Nataraja%2C_Ananda_Tandava%2C_Madurai%2C_India.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Meenakshi_Temple,_Shiva,_Nataraja,_Ananda_Tandava,_Madurai,_India.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bc/Meenakshi_Temple%2C_Shiva%2C_Nataraja%2C_Ananda_Tandava%2C_Madurai%2C_India.jpg/1280px-Meenakshi_Temple%2C_Shiva%2C_Nataraja%2C_Ananda_Tandava%2C_Madurai%2C_India.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0"},{"alt":"Shiva dance. Shiva Nataraja, Shiva Tandava runs the world from Moscow Kremlin and Red Square. Moscow, Russia.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6b/Shiva_Dance%2C_Shiva_Nataraja%2C_Shiva_Tandava%2C_Moscow_at_night%2C_Russia.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Vyacheslav Argenberg","height":851,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Shiva dance. Shiva Nataraja, Shiva Tandava runs the world from Moscow Kremlin and Red Square. Moscow, Russia.","licence":"CC BY 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6b/Shiva_Dance%2C_Shiva_Nataraja%2C_Shiva_Tandava%2C_Moscow_at_night%2C_Russia.jpg/960px-Shiva_Dance%2C_Shiva_Nataraja%2C_Shiva_Tandava%2C_Moscow_at_night%2C_Russia.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Shiva_Dance,_Shiva_Nataraja,_Shiva_Tandava,_Moscow_at_night,_Russia.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6b/Shiva_Dance%2C_Shiva_Nataraja%2C_Shiva_Tandava%2C_Moscow_at_night%2C_Russia.jpg/1280px-Shiva_Dance%2C_Shiva_Nataraja%2C_Shiva_Tandava%2C_Moscow_at_night%2C_Russia.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:28.275Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/tandava"}
{"id":"cd857647-bee2-4848-9b3e-65686b2d357d","type":"art_form","slug":"tango","title":"tango","summary":"Tango is a partner and social dance that originated in the 1880s along the Río de la Plata, the natural border between Argentina and Uruguay.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"r3q8k0dkrj","content":[{"text":"Tango is a partner and social dance that originated in the 1880s along the Río de la Plata, the natural border between Argentina and Uruguay. The tango was born in the impoverished port areas of these countries from a combination of Argentine Milonga, Spanish-Cuban Habanera, and Uruguayan Candombe celebrations. It was frequently practiced in the brothels and bars of ports, where business owners employed bands to entertain their patrons. It then spread to the rest of the world. A number of variations of this dance currently exist around the world.\nOn August 31, 2009, UNESCO approved a joint proposal by Argentina and Uruguay to include the tango in the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage Lists.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dc0dcb50-fa9b-4a57-bc2c-1b5c49ea1faa"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"agqvt37ngq","content":[{"text":"There are several theories regarding the origin of the word tango, none of which has been proven. An African culture is often credited as the creator of this word; in particular, it is theorized that the word derives from the Yoruba word shangó, which refers to Shango, the God of Thunder in traditional Yoruba religion. This theory suggests that the word \"shangó\" was morphed through the dilution of the Nigerian language once it reached South America via slave trade. According to an alternative theory, tango is derived from the Spanish word for \"drum\", tambor. This word was then mispronounced by Buenos Aires’ lower-class inhabitants to become tambo, ultimately resulting in the common tango. It is also sometimes theorized that the word is derived from the Portuguese word tanger, which means \"to play a musical instrument\". Another Portuguese word, tangomão, a combination of the verb tanger (\"to touch\") with the noun mão (\"hand\") meaning \"to play a musical instrument with one's hands\", has been suggested as the etymon of tango. \nAccording to some authors, tango is derived from the Kongo word ntangu which means \"sun\", \"hour\", \"space-time\".\nThe topic of the etymology of the term \"tango\" remains the subject of intense controversy. One of the foundational works on the issue is José Gobello's article Tango, vocablo controvertido (1976), which specifically highlights the controversial climate surrounding the origin of the word. The core of the passionate debate is essentially civilizational, since it focuses on determining the role played by indigenous, Latin American, African, and European cultures in shaping the expression.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dc0dcb50-fa9b-4a57-bc2c-1b5c49ea1faa"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"55t5qeqcek","content":[{"text":"Tango is a dance that has influences from African and European culture. Dances from the Candombe ceremonies of former African enslaved people helped shape the modern day tango. The dance originated in working-class districts of Buenos Aires and Montevideo. Tango music derived from the fusion of various forms of music from Europe. The words \"tango\" and \"tambo\" around the River Plate basin were initially used to refer to musical gatherings of slaves, with written records of colonial authorities attempting to ban such gatherings as early as 1789.\nInitially, it was just one of the many dances, but it soon became popular throughout society, as theatres and street barrel organs spread it from the suburbs to the working-class slums, which were packed with hundreds of thousands of European immigrants.\nWhen the tango began to spread internationally around 1900, cultural norms were generally conservative, and so tango dancing was widely regarded as extremely sexual and inappropriate for public display. This led to a phenomenon of culture shock. Additionally, the combination of African, Native American and European cultural influences in tango was new and unusual to most of the Western world.\nMany neighbourhoods of Buenos Aires have their particular tango histories: for example La Boca, San Telmo and Boedo. At Boedo Avenue, Cátulo Castillo, Homero Manzi and other singers and composers used to meet at the Japanese Cafe with the Boedo Group.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dc0dcb50-fa9b-4a57-bc2c-1b5c49ea1faa"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w8byv4bwd4","content":[{"text":"In the early years of the 20th century, dancers and orchestras from Buenos Aires travelled to Europe, and the first European tango craze took place in Paris, soon followed by London, Berlin, and other capitals.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dc0dcb50-fa9b-4a57-bc2c-1b5c49ea1faa"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Styles","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4hd6tpejrh","content":[{"text":"The tango consists of a variety of styles that developed in different regions and eras of Argentina, as well as in other locations around the world. The dance developed in response to multiple cultural elements, such as the crowding of the venue and even the fashions in clothing. The styles are mostly danced in either open embrace, where lead and follow have space between their bodies, or close embrace, where the lead and follow connect either chest-to-chest (Argentine tango) or in the upper thigh, hip area (American and International tango).\nDifferent styles of tango are:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dc0dcb50-fa9b-4a57-bc2c-1b5c49ea1faa"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mkqbja5fbq","content":[{"text":"Tango argentino\nTango canyengue\nTango fantasia\nTango Liso\nTango oriental\nTango orillero\nTango salon\nTango camacupense (Angola)\nTango milonguero (tango apilado) (see also \"Milonguero\")\nTango nuevo (new tango)\nTango vals (Tango waltz)\nMilonga\nBallroom tango\nFinnish tango\nUruguayan tango\nMaxixe (Brazilian tango)\nThese are danced to several types of music:\nTango\nElectronic tango-inspired music (Tango electronico)\n\"Alternative tango\", i.e. music that is an alternative to tango, or non-tango music employed for use in tango-inspired dance\nThe milonguero style is characterized by a close embrace, small steps, and syncopated rhythmic footwork. It is based on the petitero or caquero style of the crowded downtown clubs of the 1950s.\nIn contrast, the tango that originated in the family clubs of the suburban neighborhoods (Villa Urquiza, Devoto, Avellaneda, etc.) emphasizes long elegant steps, and complex figures. In this case the embrace may be allowed to open briefly, to permit the execution of the complex footwork.\nThe complex figures of this style became the basis for a theatrical performance style of tango seen in the touring stage shows.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dc0dcb50-fa9b-4a57-bc2c-1b5c49ea1faa"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Tango canyengue","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hje9z2bpdd","content":[{"text":"Tango canyengue is a rhythmic style of tango that originated in the early 1900s and is still popular today. It is one of the original roots styles of tango and contains all fundamental elements of traditional Tango from the River Plate region (Uruguay and Argentina). In tango canyengue the dancers share one axis, dance in a closed embrace, and with the legs relaxed and slightly bent. Tango canyengue uses body dissociation for the leading, walking with firm ground contact, and a permanent combination of on- and off-beat rhythm. Its main characteristics are its musicality and playfulness. Its rhythm is described as \"incisive, exciting, provocative\".\nThe complex figures of this style became the basis for a theatrical performance style of Tango seen in the touring stage shows. For stage purposes, the embrace is often very open, and the complex footwork is augmented with gymnastic lifts, kicks, and drops.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dc0dcb50-fa9b-4a57-bc2c-1b5c49ea1faa"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Tango nuevo","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w53cvyrqz0","content":[{"text":"A newer style sometimes called tango nuevo or 'new tango' was popularized after 1980 by a younger generation of musicians and dancers. Ástor Piazzolla, composer and virtuoso of the bandoneón (so-called \"tango accordion\") played a major role in the innovation of traditional tango music.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dc0dcb50-fa9b-4a57-bc2c-1b5c49ea1faa"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2fgwkxxtpj","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Tango”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"dc0dcb50-fa9b-4a57-bc2c-1b5c49ea1faa"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"832ytdqcsr","content":[{"text":"tango is Argentinian-Uruguayan partner dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ccbc2e9d-d4db-4e71-b048-cc5234619efa"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wc285wkw3y","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 35 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ccbc2e9d-d4db-4e71-b048-cc5234619efa"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Tango dance, Buenos Aires, Argentina","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ea/Tango_dance_02.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"carlos luque","height":1707,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Tango dance, Buenos Aires, Argentina","licence":"CC BY 2.5","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ea/Tango_dance_02.jpg/960px-Tango_dance_02.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tango_dance_02.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ea/Tango_dance_02.jpg/1280px-Tango_dance_02.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.5"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:19.093Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/tango"}
{"id":"842d8e95-3d88-4af8-8b22-f8289e7a9101","type":"art_form","slug":"tanoura-dance","title":"Tanoura (dance)","summary":"Sufi whirling (or Sufi turning) (Turkish: Semazen borrowed from Persian Sama-zan, Sama, meaning listening, from Arabic, and zan, meaning doer, from Persian) is a form of physically active meditation which originated among certain Sufi group…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tx9z4af69f","content":[{"text":"Sufi whirling (or Sufi turning) (Turkish: Semazen borrowed from Persian Sama-zan, Sama, meaning listening, from Arabic, and zan, meaning doer, from Persian) is a form of physically active meditation which originated among certain Sufi groups, and which is still practiced by the Sufi dervishes of the Mevlevi order and other orders such as the Rifa'i-Marufi. It is a customary meditation practice performed within the sema, or worship ceremony, through which dervishes (from the Persian darvish درویش, also called semazens, from Persian سماعزن) aim to reach greater connection with Allah. This is sought through abandoning one's nafs, ego or personal desires, by listening to the music, focusing on God, and spinning one's body in repetitive circles, which has been seen as a symbolic imitation of planets in the Solar System orbiting the Sun.\nThe Mevlevi practice gave rise to an Egyptian form, tanoura, distinguished by the use of a multicolored skirt. This has also developed into a performance dance by non-Sufis, including dancers outside the Islamic world.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee1a5041-45e4-4667-aa3a-74b28cc71f60"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origin","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"510tmnc38h","content":[{"text":"As an order, the whirling Dervishes were founded by mystic poet Rumi in the 13th century. Initially, Sufi fraternities (Arabic: طرائق, romanized: ṭarāʾiq) were organized as leaderships where members followed prescribed disciplines in service to a sheikh or master to establish trust with him. A member of such a fraternity is referred to as a Persian darwish. These turuk were responsible for organizing an Islamic expression of religious life, often founded by independent saints or resulted from the division of existing orders. Each Sufi tariqa stems from a unique silsila, or \"chain of order\" in which a member must learn, as the silsila binds each member to Allah through one's chain of order. One's silsila extends through the member's individual teacher, to their teacher and so on, through time until one is connected to the Prophet and thus Allah. The Prophet himself is revered as the originator of Sufism, which has in turn been traced down through a series of saints.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee1a5041-45e4-4667-aa3a-74b28cc71f60"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Practice","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vpf8bwpva3","content":[{"text":"A dervish practices multiple rituals, the primary of which is the dhikr, a remembering of Allah. The dhikr involves recitation of devotional Islamic prayer. This dhikr is coupled with physical exertions of movement, specifically dancing and whirling, in order to reach a state assumed by outsiders to be one of \"ecstatic trances\". As explained by Sufis:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee1a5041-45e4-4667-aa3a-74b28cc71f60"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"y5v2y35aae","content":[{"text":"In the symbolism of the Sema ritual, the semazen's camel's hair hat (sikke) represents the tombstone of the ego; his wide, white skirt (tennure) represents the ego's shroud. By removing his black cloak (hırka), he is spiritually reborn to the truth. At the beginning of the Sema, by holding his arms crosswise, the semazen appears to represent the number one, thus testifying to god's unity. While whirling, his arms are open: his right arm is directed to the sky, ready to receive god's beneficence; his left hand, upon which his eyes are fastened, is turned toward the earth. The semazen conveys god's spiritual gift to those who are witnessing the Sema. Revolving from right to left around the heart, the semazen embraces all humanity with love. The human being has been created with love in order to love. Mevlâna Jalâluddîn Rumi says, \"All loves are a bridge to Divine love. Yet, those who have not had a taste of it do not know!\"\nAmong the Mevlevi order, the practice of dhikr is performed in a traditional dress: a tennure, a sleeveless white frock, the destegul, a long sleeved jacket, a belt, and a black overcoat or khirqa to be removed before the whirling begins. As the ritual dance begins, the dervish dons a felt cap, a sikke, in addition to a turban wrapped around the head, a trademark of the Mevlevi order. The sheikh leads the ritual with strict regulations.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee1a5041-45e4-4667-aa3a-74b28cc71f60"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Today","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ej2vhkvf1p","content":[{"text":"Dervish communities, in the Middle Ages, served a central role in social, religious and political life throughout \"central Islamic lands.\" Dervish orders were at one time much larger in size than they are today, as the government has taken control over most Dervish monasteries throughout this area. In 1925, Turkey ordered the dissolution of all Sufi fraternities by decree, the Mevlevi managed to survive among small villages throughout the Middle East. In 1954, the Turkish government granted the Mevlevi order a special permission to perform ritual whirling practices for tourists during two weeks each year. Outside of tourist entertainment, Orthodox theologians have now vocally discounted the Dervish practice resulting in faqirs, or wandering, mendicant dervishes throughout central Islamic regions. Despite strict government control over Dervish practices, the Mevleviyah order continued its existence in Turkey to this day.\nWhile only men have historically been permitted to take part in the ceremony, some communities now allow women to participate.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee1a5041-45e4-4667-aa3a-74b28cc71f60"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Egyptian tanoura","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"74qmep100m","content":[{"text":"In Egypt, the practice of whirling has been adapted as tanoura (Arabic: التنورة, romanized: el-tanoura). The word tanoura or tannoura refers to the colorful skirt worn by the whirler, with a color representing each Sufi order. The word may also refer to the dancer, traditionally a Sufi man. Tanoura is associated with Sufism and is performed at Sufi festivals, but it is also performed by non-Sufis as a folk dance or concert dance.\nAlthough it is mainly used for visual effects, the dancers also augment their balance with the tanoura, through a dynamic centrifugal effect.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee1a5041-45e4-4667-aa3a-74b28cc71f60"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Pakistan","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ya5wy025wj","content":[{"text":"In Sufi shrines in Pakistan, such as the Lal shrine in Sehwan, Sindh, the practice of Sufi whirling is called Dhamaal and is performed to honor Sufi saints, or qalandars. Unlike the Turkish practice, Dhamaal may be practiced by any devotee – priests as well as pilgrims. Dhamaal is usually preceded by the beating of a drum (naghara) and ringing of bells, as pilgrims raise their hands, start to skip steps standing at one place and gradually work into a trance as the beats get faster. As the beats get faster, rhythms change and the drum beats are accompanies by the playing of shehnai.\nPractitioners associate the dance with Lal Shahbaz Qalandar and with protests following the Battle of Karbala. They regard the rhythm of the drum to evoke the rhythm of the creation of the universe, as illustrated in the concept of Kun Fyakun.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee1a5041-45e4-4667-aa3a-74b28cc71f60"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6rzy8rxsa2","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Sufi whirling”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ee1a5041-45e4-4667-aa3a-74b28cc71f60"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"n42spgqv1d","content":[{"text":"Tanoura (dance) is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"109da59a-dcb7-4b60-879a-c8bcad4727ef"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7rmgfpjjbd","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"109da59a-dcb7-4b60-879a-c8bcad4727ef"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Spinning away unlike most dancers – folkloric Tanoura dance.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3d/Folkloric_Tanoura_dance_performed_by_man.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Mohamed Khalil90","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Spinning away unlike most dancers – folkloric Tanoura dance.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3d/Folkloric_Tanoura_dance_performed_by_man.jpg/960px-Folkloric_Tanoura_dance_performed_by_man.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Folkloric_Tanoura_dance_performed_by_man.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3d/Folkloric_Tanoura_dance_performed_by_man.jpg/1280px-Folkloric_Tanoura_dance_performed_by_man.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-09T05:47:16.869Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/tanoura-dance"}
{"id":"b81834b3-b646-4f5d-909d-70f112186d3c","type":"art_form","slug":"tap-dance","title":"tap dance","summary":"Tap dance (or tap) is a form of dance in which the dancers use sounds of tap shoes striking the floor as a form of percussion; it is often accompanied by music.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"q5y4bbm4jv","content":[{"text":"Tap dance (or tap) is a form of dance in which the dancers use sounds of tap shoes striking the floor as a form of percussion; it is often accompanied by music. Tap dancing can also be performed with no musical accompaniment; the sound of the taps is its own music.\nIt is an American art form that evolved alongside the advent of jazz music. Tap is a type of step dance that began with the combination of Black American and Irish dance traditions, such as the juba dance and Irish step dances. The fusion of African rhythms and performance styles with European techniques of footwork led to the creation of tap dance. This fusion began in the mid-17th century but did not become popular until the mid-19th century.\nThere are two major versions of tap dance: rhythm (jazz) tap and Broadway tap. Broadway tap focuses on dance; it is widely performed in musical theater. Rhythm tap focuses on musicality, and practitioners consider themselves to be a part of the jazz tradition.\nThe sound is made by shoes that have a metal \"tap\" on the heel and toe. Different shoes may differ in their sound.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"11406a70-9734-4e75-bb5a-a3526472df70"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8k4nfc6x6k","content":[{"text":"Tap dance is an American dance form with roots to Central African, West African, and Western European musical and step dance traditions. During the 17th – 19th centuries, it developed from the blending of the Central African djouba, and the Irish jig and the Welsh clog, that were brought to the North American continent by immigrants. These fused and evolved into a form of dance called \"jigging\", which was taken up by both black and white minstrel show dancers in the 1800s. Tap dance then became a popular stage entertainment.\nAs minstrel shows began to decline in popularity, tap dance moved to the increasingly popular Vaudeville stage. Due to Vaudeville's unspoken \"two-colored rule\", which forbade black people from performing solo, many Vaudeville tap acts were duets. One such duo was \"Buck and Bubbles,\" which consisted of John \"Bubbles\" Sublett tap dancing and Ford \"Buck\" Washington playing a piano. The duo performed a \"Class Act\", a routine in which the performers wore tuxedos, effectively distinguishing them from the older minstrel show concept of tap dancers as \"grinning-and-dancing clowns.\"\nAnother notable figure during this period is Bill \"Bojangles\" Robinson, a protégé of Alice Whitman of The Whitman Sisters around 1904 (then known as \"Willie Robinson\"). Well versed in both Buck and Wing dancing and Irish Step dancing, Robinson joined the Vaudeville circuit in 1902 in a duo with George W. Cooper. The act quickly became famous, headlining events across the country, and touring England as well. In 1908, the partnership ended and Robinson began dancing solo, which was extremely rare for a black man at that time. Despite this, he had tremendous success and soon became a world-famous celebrity.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"11406a70-9734-4e75-bb5a-a3526472df70"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Segregation's impact","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ynxq8q02kz","content":[{"text":"During the 1930s and the 1940s, Americans were able to watch tap dancers perform on film. However, black tap dancers found it difficult to be a part of white films because segregation was prominent in America. This led to the creation of two different styles of tap dance: white tap dancers evolved up to  a Broadway style and black dancers continued with the traditional rhythm based style. Broadway tap dance was performed in mainly Broadway musicals and film, and it did not emphasize classic jazz rhythms. Rhythm tap integrated more of the classic African roots of tap dance, and it emphasized jazz rhythms, musicality, and improvisation.\nThere was also the \"two-color rule,\" which made sure that black tap dancers were not able to perform solos onstage. This led to some tap dancers performing comedic tap duets. There were stereotypes placed on black Americans such as the \"Uncle Tom\" stereotype, and many tap dancers were forced to wear \"black-face\" onstage to perform. One of the first black tap dancers to be acknowledged by America was Bill \"Bojangles\" Robinson, who performed duets with Shirley Temple. However, Bill Robinson's career was reduced to \"minstrelsy,\" which can be defined as white performers using makeup to mock black culture or using black stereotypes in a performance. Black Americans joined these minstrel performances, where they would be forced to act on black stereotypes in their performances.  James \"Buster\" Brown, got his start in the segregated clubs of the 1930s, but eventually earned international mainstream recognition and mentored younger more modern tap dancers in the 1990s.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"11406a70-9734-4e75-bb5a-a3526472df70"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Characteristics","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6a5v5v8qdm","content":[{"text":"Tap dancers make frequent use of syncopation. Choreography typically starts on the eighth or first beat count. Another aspect of tap dancing is improvisation. Tap dancing can either be done with music following the beats provided, or without musical accompaniment; the latter is known as \"a cappella\" tap dancing.\nHoofers are tap dancers who dance primarily \"closer to the floor\", using mostly footwork and not showing very much arm or body movement. This kind of tap dancing, also called rhythm tap, was employed by slaves in America.\nSteve Condos developed an innovative rhythmic tap style that influenced the work of later tap dancers such as Gregory Hines and Savion Glover. The majority of early hoofers, such as Sammy Davis Jr., Glover, Hines, and LaVaughn Robinson were African American men. Savion Glover helped bring tap dance into mainstream media by choreographing Happy Feet, a film about a tap dancing penguin. Another well-known tap film is 1989's Tap, starring Gregory Hines and many old-time hoofers.\nEarly tappers like Fred Astaire provided a more ballroom look to tap dancing, while Gene Kelly introduced ballet elements and style into tap. This style of tap led to what is today known as Broadway style, which is popular in American culture. It often involves high heeled tap shoes and show music, and is usually the type of tap first taught to beginners. Examples of this style are found in Broadway musicals such as Anything Goes and 42nd Street.\n\"Soft-Shoe\" is a rhythm form of tap dancing that does not require special shoes, and though rhythm is generated by tapping of the feet, it also uses sliding of the feet (even sometimes using scattered sand on the stage to enhance the sound of sliding feet) more often than modern rhythm tap.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"11406a70-9734-4e75-bb5a-a3526472df70"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Tap steps","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yh373x3xhc","content":[{"text":"Basic tap steps are known as \"one-sound steps\" and are either weight shifting or non-weight-shifting steps. Common basic tap steps include heel drops, toe drops, heel digs, toe taps, a brush, scuff, chug, pull, hop, leap and step.\nIn advanced tap dancing, basic steps are often combined to create new steps. Many steps also have single, double, and triple variations, or can have a variation with a pickup, which is essentially adding an additional brush sound. Popular steps with many variations include pullbacks, timesteps, riffs, and drawbacks.\nTime steps is an umbrella term that is widely used in tap for any combination of steps that follows a specific rhythm or pattern. These consist of a rhythm that is changed to make new time steps by adding or removing steps.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"11406a70-9734-4e75-bb5a-a3526472df70"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Tap shoes","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1favy209gc","content":[{"text":"In the earliest years of tap dancing,…","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"11406a70-9734-4e75-bb5a-a3526472df70"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wq91tk6z68","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Tap dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"11406a70-9734-4e75-bb5a-a3526472df70"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m5kd0as2ka","content":[{"text":"tap dance is type of dance involving percussive shoes, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bdfd3a7f-43b0-4a8e-a535-553089e591a4"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dsj1k7mz3h","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 25 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bdfd3a7f-43b0-4a8e-a535-553089e591a4"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:10.273Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/tap-dance"}
{"id":"b2449276-a8e4-4e18-a9cf-bed564ce1398","type":"art_form","slug":"tari-piring","title":"Tari Piring","summary":"Piring dance (Minangkabau: Piriang; Jawi: تاري ڤيريڠ) is a traditional Minangkabau plate dance originated and performed in West Sumatra, Indonesia.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6h2hd4gkxc","content":[{"text":"Piring dance (Minangkabau: Piriang; Jawi: تاري ڤيريڠ) is a traditional Minangkabau plate dance originated and performed in West Sumatra, Indonesia. The dance might be performed by a group of women, men, or couples; each of whom holds a plate in each hand, and vigorously rotates or half rotates them in various formations and fast movements.\nThe dance demonstrates the skill of the dancers that manage balance and move the ceramics plate swiftly without dropping or breaking them. Another variation, called tari lilin (candle dance), sometimes involves candles that are lit on the plate. Dancers hold the bottom of plates in the palm of their hands and swing them wildly using the inertia to prevent the plate from falling. Dancers tap their plates with a ring on one of their fingers to animate their movement with sonic accompaniment.\nThis dance is usually performed as a ceremonial welcoming dance to honor the guests and elders to a traditional ceremony. Next to randai, saman, pendet and jaipongan, the dance is also one of popular Indonesian traditional dances performed in festivals abroad to promote Indonesian culture and tourism.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8da54dee-4674-41dd-b742-83b2079f4220"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"r5xeq173jt","content":[{"text":"Traditionally, this dance comes from Solok, West Sumatra. According to the legend of its early appearance, this Piring dance functions as a dance in fertility ceremonies. This dance is also a form of traditional art that has a lot of high aesthetic values and contains very deep ancestral cultural values. This dance is also a ritual of gratitude for the local community to the gods after getting an abundant harvest. The ritual is carried out by bringing sesajen (offering) in the form of food placed on a plate while walking with dynamic movements.\nAfter the entry of Islam to Minangkabau, the piring dance is no longer used as a ritual of thanksgiving to the gods. However, the dance is used as a means of entertainment for many people who are displayed at public events.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8da54dee-4674-41dd-b742-83b2079f4220"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Form and movement","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ty87wavt66","content":[{"text":"The Piring dance movement in general is to place two plates on the palm of the hand. The dancer swings the plate in rapid movements, interspersed with the clinking of a plate or two rings on the dancer's finger against the plate he is carrying. At the end of the dance, usually the dancers will throw to the floor and the dancers will dance on broken plates. The number of plate dance dancers is usually served odd consisting of three to seven people.\nThe dancers wear brightly colored clothes with shades of red and yellow and headgear.\nThis dance is accompanied by a combination of talempong and saluang musical instruments.  The tempo of the music at first and regular, then gradually changed to become faster.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8da54dee-4674-41dd-b742-83b2079f4220"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tqnvy5957e","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Piring dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8da54dee-4674-41dd-b742-83b2079f4220"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"msv9grwkfq","content":[{"text":"Tari Piring is Indonesian traditional dance originating from West Sumatra in Sumatra island, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5298a8bf-2a1b-4fe6-a360-0e38294f1ea4"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ke7611smra","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5298a8bf-2a1b-4fe6-a360-0e38294f1ea4"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Tari piring, tarian khas Minangkabau, di suatu acara budaya di Painan, Kabupaten PesisirSelatan, Sumatera Barat.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3e/Tari_Piring_di_Pesisir_Selatan.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Syofiardi Bachyul Jb","height":803,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Tari piring, tarian khas Minangkabau, di suatu acara budaya di Painan, Kabupaten PesisirSelatan, Sumatera Barat.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3e/Tari_Piring_di_Pesisir_Selatan.jpg/960px-Tari_Piring_di_Pesisir_Selatan.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tari_Piring_di_Pesisir_Selatan.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3e/Tari_Piring_di_Pesisir_Selatan.jpg/1280px-Tari_Piring_di_Pesisir_Selatan.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:21.168Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/tari-piring"}
{"id":"b7acba64-7a4a-4b7e-bc78-02583f3e3647","type":"art_form","slug":"tea-dance","title":"tea dance","summary":"A tea dance, also called a thé dansant (French for 'dancing tea'), was a dance held in the summer or autumn from 4 to 7 p.m. In the English countryside, a garden party sometimes preceded the dance.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wyh3egjvyr","content":[{"text":"A tea dance, also called a thé dansant (French for 'dancing tea'), was a dance held in the summer or autumn from 4 to 7 p.m. In the English countryside, a garden party sometimes preceded the dance. The function grew out of the afternoon tea tradition, and J. Pettigrew traces its origin to the French colonization of Morocco.\nBooks on Victorian-era etiquette included detailed instructions for hosting such gatherings, such as Party-giving on Every Scale (London, n.d. [1880]), which notes that \"afternoon dances are seldom given in London, but are a popular form of entertainment in the suburbs, in garrison-towns, watering-places, etc.\" Royal Navy officers hosted tea dances aboard ships at various naval stations, the expenses being shared by the captain and officers, as they were shared by colonels and officers at barrack dances in mess rooms ashore.\nThe usual refreshments in 1880 were tea and coffee, ices, champagne-cup and claret-cup, fruit, sandwiches, cake, and biscuits. The expected feature was a live orchestra or a small band playing light classical music, even after the invention of the phonograph. The dances included waltzes, tangos, and the Charleston by the late 1920s. They also offset the expenses of a seated supper, wine, and candles associated with a ball. A stiff waxed canvas dancing cloth was considered sufficient when strained over the drawing-room carpet, rather than taking up the carpet and waxing the floor in preparation for dancing.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"347861b2-3d34-4dd5-a9e6-68a42cdb23a0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"World records","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cdjbbfvz4z","content":[{"text":"Four world-record tea dances have been held in the early 21st century. In Glasgow in December 2008, some 408 dancers gained the record during the city's Winterfest celebrations. The programme of music for the event was provided by the Scottish swing-dance band That Swing Sensation, with dance hosts the Fly Right Dance Company. The previous record was set in 2005 by a total of 195 couples, who danced in London's Trafalgar Square.\nSubsequently, the Royal Opera House in London held a world record attempt on 8 July 2010 in Trafalgar Square, with the unofficial total being 507 dancers.\nGlasgow's George Square was the venue for the established world record, set on 12 September 2010, with 4,000 dancers.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"347861b2-3d34-4dd5-a9e6-68a42cdb23a0"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"In popular culture","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kb8s864ep2","content":[{"text":"Tea dances are a common cultural reference in early 20th-century British and American fiction as a staple of genteel society. Literary characters normally attend these receptions while visiting resort towns, especially coastal ones such as Brighton, The Hamptons, Provincetown, and Ogunquit. Episode two in season four of Downton Abbey features two characters attending a tea dance in York, England, in the 1920s. The 1925 Broadway musical No, No, Nanette features a tea dance as the occasion for the plot's climax, when the main characters travel to Atlantic City, New Jersey. The term has been broadened in the United States since the late 20th century to refer to any casual afternoon dance event.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"347861b2-3d34-4dd5-a9e6-68a42cdb23a0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"r77107maz5","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Tea dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"347861b2-3d34-4dd5-a9e6-68a42cdb23a0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w0w46dd5xp","content":[{"text":"tea dance is dance held in the summer or autumn in the afternoon, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f5fec1e6-0a4d-4361-848f-269b4a9ae1c4"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Tea dance as pictured by Marguerite Martyn and published in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch on January 10, 1920. Shows a crowd of people dancing and socializing. Debutante in center is serving drinks from a trolley. Men at right are pouring a drink from a flask.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3c/Tea_dance_as_pictured_by_Marguerite_Martyn%2C_1920.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Marguerite Martyn","height":1419,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Tea dance as pictured by Marguerite Martyn and published in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch on January 10, 1920. Shows a crowd of people dancing and socializing. Debutante in center is serving drinks from a trolley. Men at right are pouring a drink from a flask.","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3c/Tea_dance_as_pictured_by_Marguerite_Martyn%2C_1920.jpg/960px-Tea_dance_as_pictured_by_Marguerite_Martyn%2C_1920.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tea_dance_as_pictured_by_Marguerite_Martyn,_1920.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3c/Tea_dance_as_pictured_by_Marguerite_Martyn%2C_1920.jpg/1280px-Tea_dance_as_pictured_by_Marguerite_Martyn%2C_1920.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:10.496Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/tea-dance"}
{"id":"6f64ae0e-9898-4512-92f0-3622b838d9fd","type":"art_form","slug":"tello","title":"Tello","summary":"Tello (Azerbaijani: Tello) is an Azerbaijani national dance. It is a kind of yalli dance and is related to a female name.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yv81trxhxp","content":[{"text":"Tello (Azerbaijani: Tello) is an Azerbaijani national dance. It is a kind of yalli dance and is related to a female name.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"53be5bf4-34b1-4a62-a869-a858b359eff8"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Performance of the dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m88eaya4k6","content":[{"text":"Both women and men can perform this dance. The dancers hold the little fingers of each other and lift them at shoulders level. The dancing process consists of two fast parts, during which the shoulders move up and down. This dance is popular almost in all regions of Azerbaijan.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"53be5bf4-34b1-4a62-a869-a858b359eff8"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qb1mth8fqh","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Tello (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"53be5bf4-34b1-4a62-a869-a858b359eff8"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jqtwsjz0h3","content":[{"text":"Tello is Azerbaijani national dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1b62f335-d0b2-4179-b725-ed4f62ca4c2f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gs4rtgxd5p","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1b62f335-d0b2-4179-b725-ed4f62ca4c2f"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"a cheap drone from Ryze Robotics, developed in collaboration with DJI and Intel.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a2/Ryze_Tello.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"SimonWaldherr","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"a cheap drone from Ryze Robotics, developed in collaboration with DJI and Intel.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a2/Ryze_Tello.jpg/960px-Ryze_Tello.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ryze_Tello.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a2/Ryze_Tello.jpg/1280px-Ryze_Tello.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"One Ryze Tello and two Tello EDUs","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5a/Ryze_Tello_and_Tello_EDUs_%281-19-2026%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"ZLEA","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"One Ryze Tello and two Tello EDUs","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Ryze_Tello_and_Tello_EDUs_%281-19-2026%29.jpg/960px-Ryze_Tello_and_Tello_EDUs_%281-19-2026%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ryze_Tello_and_Tello_EDUs_(1-19-2026).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Ryze_Tello_and_Tello_EDUs_%281-19-2026%29.jpg/1280px-Ryze_Tello_and_Tello_EDUs_%281-19-2026%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Ryze-DJI TLW004 Tello EDU (cn 0TQ3HAA0HSX126) at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ee/Ryze-DJI_TLW004_Tello_EDU_%28cn_0TQ3HAA0HSX126%29_%281-19-2026%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"ZLEA","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Ryze-DJI TLW004 Tello EDU (cn 0TQ3HAA0HSX126) at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ee/Ryze-DJI_TLW004_Tello_EDU_%28cn_0TQ3HAA0HSX126%29_%281-19-2026%29.jpg/960px-Ryze-DJI_TLW004_Tello_EDU_%28cn_0TQ3HAA0HSX126%29_%281-19-2026%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ryze-DJI_TLW004_Tello_EDU_(cn_0TQ3HAA0HSX126)_(1-19-2026).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ee/Ryze-DJI_TLW004_Tello_EDU_%28cn_0TQ3HAA0HSX126%29_%281-19-2026%29.jpg/1280px-Ryze-DJI_TLW004_Tello_EDU_%28cn_0TQ3HAA0HSX126%29_%281-19-2026%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:05.780Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/tello"}
{"id":"0783849f-db47-4a2e-adf5-6c97dcb052ff","type":"art_form","slug":"temate","title":"Temate","summary":"Temate is a tradition recorded in open cultural data. This page is a machine-generated stub awaiting review by someone who knows the tradition.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6dxjvs3ez1","content":[{"text":"Temate is a tradition recorded in open cultural data, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"db6838ab-3dcc-4261-9632-a99719316233"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"p136czzdbx","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"db6838ab-3dcc-4261-9632-a99719316233"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-05T02:44:05.116Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/temate"}
{"id":"2126590e-4a0d-4cb0-a92d-cf142cbbe7d1","type":"art_form","slug":"tenzere","title":"Tenzere","summary":"Tenzere is Azerbaijani folk dance. This page is a machine-generated stub awaiting review by someone who knows the tradition.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kqm5ymfqb1","content":[{"text":"Tenzere is Azerbaijani folk dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"118cb455-6286-40b4-a33e-c931b00c5c9b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"e7q7bd5krx","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"118cb455-6286-40b4-a33e-c931b00c5c9b"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T07:23:08.065Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/tenzere"}
{"id":"89a75a47-6969-456f-916b-5a023c10c464","type":"art_form","slug":"teskoto","title":"Teškoto","summary":"Teškoto or Teshkoto (Macedonian: Тешкото, \"the hard one\"), is a folk dance from the Mijak ethnographic region, located in western Macedonia.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pnr0e9hb7n","content":[{"text":"Teškoto or Teshkoto (Macedonian: Тешкото, \"the hard one\"), is a folk dance from the Mijak ethnographic region, located in western Macedonia.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8457b9d8-b98e-41a6-b189-6d862f2762bd"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bh7ybe4pyx","content":[{"text":"The dance represents the hard life of people from the region. Its origins come from the period when locals were leaving their country for a better life, but over the years it has also grown as a symbol for all the pain caused in the region in the past. The dance has inspired Blaže Koneski's 1948 poem Teškoto. It has been the signature dance of Tanec after its formation in 1949. Teškoto has been traditionally performed in the western Macedonian mountainous region of Reka, as well as the villages of Galičnik, Lazaropole, and Gari. Apart from Eastern Orthodox people, dancers of Teškoto have also been the Torbeši. Traditionally, Albanian-speaking Muslim Romani people from Debar have been the performers of the music for the dance. It is a line dance in which the leader requires skills of improvisation. The dance begins with a slow and non-metric section where the dancers perform with precise lifts, steps, and leaps. The musicians must follow the leader, picking up on visual embodied cues. The music builds with a tempo, ending in a fast 2/4 section. Macedonia (now North Macedonia) attempted to include the dance in UNESCO's Masterpiece of Intangible Cultural Heritage list twice, in 2002 and 2004. A monument of the dance is in Skopje.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8457b9d8-b98e-41a6-b189-6d862f2762bd"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Galičnik Wedding Festival","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6pwwdsn6ys","content":[{"text":"One of the most prominent festivals that feature the dance is the Galičnik Wedding Festival, an annual event in the Galičnik, one of the oldest villages in North Macedonia.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8457b9d8-b98e-41a6-b189-6d862f2762bd"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8ftcrryhbw","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Teškoto”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8457b9d8-b98e-41a6-b189-6d862f2762bd"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4qjg853ssj","content":[{"text":"Teškoto is Macedonian folk dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c2ba7342-2355-4a22-ab7a-ac86fdd1ec9e"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"g9twx860bs","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c2ba7342-2355-4a22-ab7a-ac86fdd1ec9e"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:34.487Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/teskoto"}
{"id":"013faedd-c511-4bb6-99ec-27712f6baf61","type":"art_form","slug":"thai-dance","title":"Thai dance","summary":"Dance in Thailand (Thai: นาฏศิลป์, pronounced [nāːt.tā.sǐn] or นาฏกรรม, pronounced [nāːt.tā.kām]) is the main dramatic art form in Thailand.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"a7297cd6ph","content":[{"text":"Dance in Thailand (Thai: นาฏศิลป์, pronounced [nāːt.tā.sǐn] or นาฏกรรม, pronounced [nāːt.tā.kām]) is the main dramatic art form in Thailand. Thai dance can be divided into two major categories, high art (classical dance) and low art (folk dance).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d51227ad-d9a9-4986-900e-1a6cc8878f10"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"k41rxp49cv","content":[{"text":"The term nattasin (Thai: นาฏศิลป์) means \"art of the classical Thai dance, art of drama\", and the term nattakam (Thai: นาฏกรรม) means \"poetry, music drama and dance\", according to The Thai Official Dictionary of Royal Institute 2545 BE. Both terms are derived from Sanskrit:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d51227ad-d9a9-4986-900e-1a6cc8878f10"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"etx50knrsd","content":[{"text":"naṭa (Sanskrit: नाट) → nata, which means \"dancing, acting, a dance,\"\nśilpa (Sanskrit: शिल्प) → sin, meaning \"artistic work,\"\nkarma (Sanskrit: कर्म) → kama\nThe term for dance in Thai, also known as the Dance of the Four Regions, is as follows:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d51227ad-d9a9-4986-900e-1a6cc8878f10"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fh9h0cwajy","content":[{"text":"Northern Thailand: The term fon (Thai: ฟ้อน) describes a category of traditional dance forms, such as Fon Khan Dok. Historical evidence, including stone inscriptions, engravings, and the Buddhist cosmological treatise Trai Phum Phra Ruang (Tribhumikatha Buddhist Cosmology) written in 1345 AD by King Li Thai (Maha Thammaracha I) of Sukhothai, shows the long-standing importance of this term within the broader Tai cultural area. The development of fon dances in the Lanna region shows a unique cultural path that evolved alongside, rather than just borrowing from, other Tai states like Sukhothai.\nUpper Northeastern Thailand: Traditional dances are classified using terms from Tai languages. The term fon (Thai: ฟ้อน) usually describes a graceful and classical style of dance. This type of dance features refined movements and elaborate costumes for ceremonies or artistic events. On the other hand, soeng (Thai: เซิ้ง) refers to a more energetic and vibrant dance form. It is often linked to communal celebrations, festivals, and folk traditions, marked by lively rhythms and frequently improvised movements.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d51227ad-d9a9-4986-900e-1a6cc8878f10"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origin","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wwdkzapxjq","content":[{"text":"Thai classical dance forms, like many performing arts in Southeast Asia, are heavily influenced by ancient Indian art. They include ideas from the Natya Shastra, an important Sanskrit text on the performing arts that describes basic dance poses and movements known as karanas. The depiction of 108 karanas in temples like the Nataraja Temple in Chidambaram, India, shows these principles that resonated throughout the region. However, Thai dance developed into a unique blend. It combined these outside influences with local traditions and innovations that grew from interactions with nearby cultures, especially the Khmer Empire.\nArchaeological evidence offers a glimpse into the early performing arts traditions that later shaped Thai classical dance. Stuccos and sculptures showing dance-like poses, dating back to the Dvaravati era (6th–11th century CE), have been found at sites like Khok Mai Den and Chansen in Nakhon Sawan, as well as Ban Khu Bua in Ratchaburi. These Dvaravati artifacts show a clear influence from Indian culture in their iconography and artistic expression. In addition, later archaeological discoveries from the Khmer period, highlighted by the detailed dance figures at Prasat Phimai in Nakhon Ratchasima (primarily 11th–12th century CE), were also important in the developing performing arts scene of the region.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d51227ad-d9a9-4986-900e-1a6cc8878f10"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"28b5x09gqw","content":[{"text":"Over time, Thai dance grew through a steady blend of cultural influences. It transformed various elements into a unique artistic form. This evolution involved creatively using different cultural aspects, musical instruments, and storytelling traditions from India, China, the Malay world, Mon, Khmer, Myanmar, and local groups in the Chao Phraya River Basin. Through this broad mixing and local adaptation, these varied influences were reshaped.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d51227ad-d9a9-4986-900e-1a6cc8878f10"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Nanzhao period","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wxj4a5d4m3","content":[{"text":"Traditional accounts and historical narratives suggest that early forms of martial dance emerged in kingdoms associated with Tai-speaking peoples in mainland Southeast Asia. One tradition, often linked to the historical kingdom of Nanzhao, which dates from the 8th century CE onwards, is known as Fon Joeng. This art form, practiced by northern Thai peoples, combines ceremonial dance for rituals with martial movements for self-defense. It showcases both offensive and defensive fighting styles. Fon Joeng features various drum rhythms and is traditionally believed to have been passed down through a lineage that includes the Ngoenyang and Lanna kingdoms. Its cultural influences extend to other Tai states like Sukhothai. Today, Fon Joeng is still practiced in Thailand as a recreational dance and is recognized as a historical precursor to elements found in the martial art of Muay Thai.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d51227ad-d9a9-4986-900e-1a6cc8878f10"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Sukhothai period","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"addegq1r15","content":[{"text":"Evidence from the Sukhothai period, particularly the famous inscription attributed to King Ramkhamhaeng, shows that public festivities and performing arts were present. The inscription describes the sounds of pipes and drums during a celebration, likely the Kathina festival. This suggests that music and festive activities played a role in community life. While these records confirm the existence of performances, scholars point out that the evidence highlights communal, ritualistic, or festive events rather than structured, narrative drama, which arose in later periods. The performing arts in the Sukhothai kingdom were part of a larger regional mix, combining various cultural influences from mainland Southeast Asia during that time.\nEarly inscriptions indicate that public performances were festive. However, more structured dance-drama based on stories developed in the region due to a blend of cultures. The emerging states in the Chao Phraya basin, such as Sukhothai, interacted closely with the well-established Mon and Khmer civilizations. The Khmer, especially, had a rich court culture at Angkor, filled with complex, Indian-influenced religious and theatrical traditions. As Sukhothai gained power, it started to adopt and modify these respected Khmer performance styles, which focused on storytelling and graceful movement. This cultural blending played a key role in creating the classical dramatic arts later linked to Siamese courts, combining local traditions with the refined aesthetics of the Khmer.\nFurther evidence of performance in this era comes from inscriptions and literature, although their details are often misunderstood. For instance, Sukhothai Inscription No.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d51227ad-d9a9-4986-900e-1a6cc8878f10"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Ayutthaya period","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6d5h7dkn2b","content":[{"text":"Archaeological and historical evidence indicates that before the Ayutthaya Kingdom was officially established in the mid-14th century, the area was home to earlier settlements influenced by the Mon and especially the Khmer civilizations. The site that became Ayutthaya likely held strategic and cultural importance because of its location near the Chao Phraya River. It was under Khmer control before gradually shifting toward the influence of emerging Tai polities. While the Sukhothai Kingdom was officially established earlier, around 1238 CE, Ayutthaya gained prominence later.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d51227ad-d9a9-4986-900e-1a6cc8878f10"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fs8frj0mh8","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Dance in Thailand”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d51227ad-d9a9-4986-900e-1a6cc8878f10"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s031hjkrqr","content":[{"text":"Thai dance is main dramatic art form in Thailand, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8aa167b8-02bf-4388-b54a-62992343e0b4"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0n2kan03cy","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 4 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8aa167b8-02bf-4388-b54a-62992343e0b4"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Chiang Mai. Benjarong Khantoke. Traditional Thai dance","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5f/Chiang_Mai._Benjarong_Khantoke._Traditional_Thai_dance._2016-10-14_20-30-01.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Shesmax","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Chiang Mai. Benjarong Khantoke. Traditional Thai dance","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5f/Chiang_Mai._Benjarong_Khantoke._Traditional_Thai_dance._2016-10-14_20-30-01.jpg/960px-Chiang_Mai._Benjarong_Khantoke._Traditional_Thai_dance._2016-10-14_20-30-01.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Chiang_Mai._Benjarong_Khantoke._Traditional_Thai_dance._2016-10-14_20-30-01.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5f/Chiang_Mai._Benjarong_Khantoke._Traditional_Thai_dance._2016-10-14_20-30-01.jpg/1280px-Chiang_Mai._Benjarong_Khantoke._Traditional_Thai_dance._2016-10-14_20-30-01.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"This young Thai Dance Artists astounds the audience","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/04/Young_Thai_Traditional_Dance_Artist.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"AjarnRichard","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"This young Thai Dance Artists astounds the audience","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/04/Young_Thai_Traditional_Dance_Artist.jpg/960px-Young_Thai_Traditional_Dance_Artist.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Young_Thai_Traditional_Dance_Artist.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/04/Young_Thai_Traditional_Dance_Artist.jpg/1280px-Young_Thai_Traditional_Dance_Artist.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Chiang Mai. Benjarong Khantoke. Traditional Thai dance","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f8/Chiang_Mai._Benjarong_Khantoke._Traditional_Thai_dance._2016-10-14_20-38-03.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Shesmax","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Chiang Mai. Benjarong Khantoke. Traditional Thai dance","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f8/Chiang_Mai._Benjarong_Khantoke._Traditional_Thai_dance._2016-10-14_20-38-03.jpg/960px-Chiang_Mai._Benjarong_Khantoke._Traditional_Thai_dance._2016-10-14_20-38-03.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Chiang_Mai._Benjarong_Khantoke._Traditional_Thai_dance._2016-10-14_20-38-03.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f8/Chiang_Mai._Benjarong_Khantoke._Traditional_Thai_dance._2016-10-14_20-38-03.jpg/1280px-Chiang_Mai._Benjarong_Khantoke._Traditional_Thai_dance._2016-10-14_20-38-03.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:22.041Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/thai-dance"}
{"id":"644707a6-386c-48c0-baf2-bf73ede6aa58","type":"art_form","slug":"theyyam","title":"Theyyam","summary":"Theyyam also known as Kaliyattam, is an Indian ritual practiced in the North Malabar Region of Kerala and some parts of neighbouring Karnataka.\nIt involves extended singing of ritual songs related to the performing Theyyam and ceremonial pr…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sycqngyd1y","content":[{"text":"Theyyam also known as Kaliyattam, is an Indian ritual practiced in the North Malabar Region of Kerala and some parts of neighbouring Karnataka.\nIt involves extended singing of ritual songs related to the performing Theyyam and ceremonial preparations that typically span 8 to 10 hours. The ritual culminates with the placement of the mudi (sacred headgear) on the performer, a moment believed to mark the entry of the deity into the performer's body. As part of the process, the performer consumes madhyam (toddy), which is believed to suppress personal consciousness, allowing the divine consciousness of the devatha to manifest. This practice aligns with philosophical concepts found in Hindu texts such as the Yoga Vasistha, which describe how divine entities (devatas) can enter the human body, parakāya praveśanam at a Paramanu level.\nTheyyam consists of traditions, rituals and customs associated with temples and sacred groves of Malabar. The people of the region consider Theyyam itself as a channel to a god and they thus seek blessings from Theyyam. In Kerala, Theyyam is performed predominantly in the North Malabar region (consisting of present-day Kasargod, Kannur districts, Mananthavady Taluk Of Wayanad And Vadakara And Koyilandy taluks of Kozhikode).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7788c843-a5e8-471f-aa9f-29deed569010"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Overview","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"twtfhp3e48","content":[{"text":"There are about 456 types of Theyyams documented. Theyyam is mainly performed by males, except the Devakkoothu theyyam which is performed by women. Devakoothu is performed only in the Thekkumbad Kulom temple.\nTheyyam is typically performed by people from castes and tribes like Pulayar, Vannan, Malayan, Anhoottan, Munnoottan, Mavilan, Koppalan, Velan, Chingathan, Kalanaadi, Paravan, and Nalikeyavar. Of these, Kalanaadi people perform only in Wayanad district, while Parava, Pambada, Paanaara and Nalikeyavar perform in places north of Kerala, Mangalapuram (Mangalore) and Udupi districts.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7788c843-a5e8-471f-aa9f-29deed569010"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ykqggkr9pr","content":[{"text":"Theyyam has a long history. \"There can be no doubt,\" say Bridget and Raymond Alchin, \"that a very large part of this modern folk religion is extremely ancient and contains traits which originated during the earliest periods of Neolithic, Chalcolithic settlement and expression.\"\nThere are approximately 400 types of Theyyam, including Kathivanoor Veeran, Vishnumoorthy Theyyam, Vettakkorumakan and Sree Muthappan.\nTheyyam may have its origins in ancestor worship. It has been observed that a vast majority of the Theyyam deities have their origin in Thiyya castes. The ancestor worship ritual was evolved into the elaborate dance ritual, that is seen nowadays, by incorporating many other local beliefs.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7788c843-a5e8-471f-aa9f-29deed569010"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Classification of sub-sects","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s0xqhbppct","content":[{"text":"According to K. K. N. Kurup, it can be said that all the prominent characteristics of primitive, tribal, religious worship had widened the stream of Theyyam, where \"even the followers of Islam are associated with the cult in its functional aspect\" and made it a deep-rooted folk religion of millions. For instance, Bhagavathi, the mother goddesses had and still has an important place in Theyyam. Besides this, practices like spirit worship, ancestor worship, hero-worship, masathi-worship, tree worship, animal worship, serpent worship, the worship of the goddesses of disease and the worship of Gramadevata (Village-Deity) are included in the mainstream of the Theyyam. Along with these gods and goddesses there exist innumerable folk gods and goddesses. Most of these goddesses are known as Bhagavathy.\nDifferent branches of mainstream Hindu religion such as Shaktism, Vaishnavism and Shaivism now dominate Theyyam. However, the forms of propitiation and other rituals are continuations of a very ancient tradition. In several cult-centres, blood offering is seen, which is forbidden in Buddhism and Jainism. In such centres, separate places outside the precincts of the shrine are selected for blood offerings and for the preparation of the traditional Kalam (square made for this sacrifice occasion) known as Vadakkan Vathil. The Theyyam deities propitiated through cock-sacrifice will not enter such shrines. This religious cockfight over blood sacrifice, which does also include the cockfight as a blood sacrifice, is a prime example of \"cultural synthesis of 'little' and 'great' cultures\".\nOn account of the late revival of the Vaishnavism movement in Kerala, it does not have a deep impact on Theyyam. Only a few deities are available under this category.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7788c843-a5e8-471f-aa9f-29deed569010"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Patronage","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fp2asa710e","content":[{"text":"Out of devotion, ruling clans established their own shrines and Kavus for Theyyam deities where non-sattvic rituals and customs are observed. The goddesses like Rakteshwari, Chamundi, Someshwari, Kurathi, and the gods like Vishnumoorthi are propitiated in these household shrines. There, the Theyyam dancers appear during the annual festivals of gods and goddesses. The rituals in such shrines are different from those of the Brahmanical temples. This fusion in the later stage is an indication of the gradual introduction of civilization into Southern India with increasing Aryan influence and assimilation of local cultures into the large Vedic religion.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7788c843-a5e8-471f-aa9f-29deed569010"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Ritual performance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1a79be7dzr","content":[{"text":"The dance or invocation is generally performed in front of the village shrine. It is also performed in the houses as ancestor-worship with elaborate rites and rituals.\nThere is no stage or curtain or other such arrangements for the performance. The devotees would be standing or some of them would be sitting on a sacred tree in front of the shrine. In short, it is an open theatre. Performance of a particular deity according to its significance and hierarchy in the shrine continues for 12 to 24 hours with intervals. The chief dancer who propitiates the central deity of the shrine has to reside in the rituals. Further, after the sun sets, this particular dancer would not eat anything for the remainder of that day. His make-up is done by specialists and other dancers. The first part of the performance is usually known as Vellattam or Thottam. It is performed without proper make-up or any decorative costume. Only a small, red headdress is worn on this occasion.\nThe dancer along with the drummers recites the particular ritual song, which describes the myths and legends, of the deity of the shrine or the folk deity to be propitiated. This is accompanied by the playing of folk musical instruments. After finishing this primary ritualistic part of the invocation, the dancer returns to the green room. Again after a short interval, he appears with proper make-up and costumes. There are different patterns of face painting. Some of these patterns are called vairadelam, kattaram, kozhipuspam, kottumpurikam, and prakkezhuthu. Mostly primary and secondary colours are applied with contrast for face painting. It helps in effecting certain stylization in the dances. Then the dancer comes in front of the shrine and gradually \"metamorphoses\" into the particular deity of the shrine.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7788c843-a5e8-471f-aa9f-29deed569010"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"93fyx3b8rz","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Theyyam”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7788c843-a5e8-471f-aa9f-29deed569010"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nae6cjm3bh","content":[{"text":"Theyyam is ritual form of worship from Kerala, India, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0ed36f73-d31f-4235-bdf3-3ac0bd04e432"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ktrmkvw5fz","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0ed36f73-d31f-4235-bdf3-3ac0bd04e432"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"പോർക്കലി തെയ്യം, കണ്ണൂർ","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9e/Porkkali_Theyyam_001.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Shagil Kannur","height":1020,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"പോർക്കലി തെയ്യം, കണ്ണൂർ","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9e/Porkkali_Theyyam_001.jpg/960px-Porkkali_Theyyam_001.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Porkkali_Theyyam_001.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9e/Porkkali_Theyyam_001.jpg/1280px-Porkkali_Theyyam_001.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-06T05:47:10.173Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/theyyam"}
{"id":"c43c9669-a92f-4b69-b8c9-80f428320617","type":"art_form","slug":"thidambu-nritham","title":"Thidambu Nritham","summary":"Thidambu Nritham (dance with the replica of the deity) is a Hindu ritual dance performed in Temples of North Malabar in India.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bt27b9hwty","content":[{"text":"Thidambu Nritham (dance with the replica of the deity) is a Hindu ritual dance performed in Temples of North Malabar in India.  It is mainly performed by Namboothiris and rarely other Brahmin, Thiyyar communities like Shivalli, Karhade and Havyaka.\nThidambu Nritham, as the name conveys, is a dance carrying the decorated image of the deity (thidambu) on the head.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e6aad799-3ce9-4688-b020-f428fb0d9139"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Elements","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t6vc1bxfka","content":[{"text":"The dance is staged both inside and outside the temple.  Ten persons are needed for staging this dance. The dance is performed with the decorated deity of the Devi carried on the head. Foot work is most important and this is executed to the rhythms of the drums.  Thidambu nritham is commonly performed by Namboothiris (Kerala Brahmins), Thiyyars. There shall be seven musicians and two lamp-bearers.  All the performers are male. The musicians are from Maarar or Pothuval community and the lamp-bearers are from Pushpakan (Unni), Nambeesan, Variar, Unnithiri communities.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e6aad799-3ce9-4688-b020-f428fb0d9139"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Costumes","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cyf2becrtx","content":[{"text":"The dancer wears a costume a skirt of pleated cloth, a silk vest, earrings, bangles, necklaces and a decorated turban called ushnipeetam. The performance unfolds in various stages like Urayal, invoking the deity, Thakiladi adantha, Chembada, Pamchan etc. The dancer is usually accompanied by a group of artists, five of whom play the percussions and two hold aloft the lamps.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e6aad799-3ce9-4688-b020-f428fb0d9139"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4hkw93y0e5","content":[{"text":"This ritual art form is believed to be over 600–700 years old and follows the principles of dance laid down in Natyasasthra.This ritual is commonly performed by Namboodiris at temples in Kannur and Kasaragod of Kerala.\nThe origin of Thitambu Nritham cannot be easily traced. Tulu Brahmins who had migrated to the North Malabar during Kolathiri might have introduced this dance from Karnataka where a form of \"Nritham\" called \"Darsana Bali\" was in vogue. Replicas are made of bamboo with which a beautiful frame with intricate designs is created. The priestly dancer, clad in the traditional style after performing the usual rituals, comes out of the sanctorum, and standing under the flag, holds aloft the replica weighing about 10 kg on his head and starts the divine dance.\nAnother legend goes like this : A Namboothiri used to sit in meditation under a nux vomica tree [Botanical name : Stricnos nuxvomica; Mal. - \"Kaanjiram\"]. He had sores all over his body. The fruit that occasionally fell on his body gave him excruciating pain. In agony he cried out a curse : \"Let this tree bear no fruit any longer\". During the festival, the dancing Namboothiri priests place the idols of various gods in a small \"Mandapam\" under the tree. People pay obeisance to the deities here.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e6aad799-3ce9-4688-b020-f428fb0d9139"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Performance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zbg4rghn1f","content":[{"text":"Thidambu Nritham begins with \"Kotti Urayikkal\", drumming in different rhythm, which would persuade the performer and the viewer to an equal extent. The performer will dance with the rhythm holding the \"Thidambu\" on his head.\nThis unique ritual art form has undergone changes over the period of time. Even though the basic concepts of Thidamabu Nritham have not changed, slight change happened in its Thaalam, which has added more novelty and variety to this art.\nThere is no scope for emotional expressions in this art.\nAn exception is famous \"Kootippiriyal\" (parting of lord Krishna and Balarama at Trichambaram./ Krishna and Balarama play about wildly until the former runs after the milkman carrying milk, and the latter returns to his dwelling some distance away.\nThere is a legend woven round the Thitambu Nritham of Thrichambaram. There was an ardent devotee of lord Krishna - a Namboothiri. He visited the temple everyday, seeking Krishna's blessings. Time flew. He grew old, so old that he could not walk up to the temple half a kilometer away. Inwardly crushed at his physical incapacity, he prayed : \"Krishna, my dear, I cannot come to you; forgive me\". Legend has it that, that night, lord Krishna ran up to him with his brother Balarama and danced along what is called \"Pookkottu Nada\" just in front of the Namboothiri's house.\nThe festival at Trichambaram which goes on from 22nd Kumbham to 6th Meenam (middle March) is in celebration of that event.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e6aad799-3ce9-4688-b020-f428fb0d9139"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"eedhc7zgy9","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Thidambu Nritham”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e6aad799-3ce9-4688-b020-f428fb0d9139"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yqazwqhxd7","content":[{"text":"Thidambu Nritham is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"970623d6-0858-4772-859b-da718d88ff76"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2qwrarw0qs","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"970623d6-0858-4772-859b-da718d88ff76"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Thidambu Nritham","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1b/Thidambu_nritham_puthu.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Hakeemjkp.per","height":1911,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Thidambu Nritham","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1b/Thidambu_nritham_puthu.jpg/960px-Thidambu_nritham_puthu.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Thidambu_nritham_puthu.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1b/Thidambu_nritham_puthu.jpg/1280px-Thidambu_nritham_puthu.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Thidambu nritham 16042021-5","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c3/Thidambu_nritham_16042021-5.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Suneeshvasu80","height":2000,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Thidambu nritham 16042021-5","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c3/Thidambu_nritham_16042021-5.jpg/960px-Thidambu_nritham_16042021-5.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Thidambu_nritham_16042021-5.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c3/Thidambu_nritham_16042021-5.jpg/1280px-Thidambu_nritham_16042021-5.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"THIDAMBU NRITHAM","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f5/THIDAMBU_NRITHAM_5004.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Nrij287","height":1021,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"THIDAMBU NRITHAM","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f5/THIDAMBU_NRITHAM_5004.jpg/960px-THIDAMBU_NRITHAM_5004.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:THIDAMBU_NRITHAM_5004.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f5/THIDAMBU_NRITHAM_5004.jpg/1280px-THIDAMBU_NRITHAM_5004.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:29.902Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/thidambu-nritham"}
{"id":"f9e7299b-54cd-45d3-becc-df86eceef65a","type":"art_form","slug":"thiruvathirakkali","title":"Thiruvathirakkali","summary":"Thiruvathirakali is a unique group dance of women in Kerala.  The dance is performed by women in small groups, both as part of and apart from religious rituals.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pq21zcyjwr","content":[{"text":"Thiruvathirakali is a unique group dance of women in Kerala.  The dance is performed by women in small groups, both as part of and apart from religious rituals. Generally on Onam and Thiruvathira day in the month of Dhanumas, women perform this art form by singing the praises of Shiva Parvati in Shiva temples etc. Thiruvathirakali is especially for women who observe Thiruvathira Vradam. This art form is also known as Kaikottikali and Kummikali with slight variations.\nThe dance is believed to bring a long and auspicious married life and marriage of choice.  This play is performed at night on Thiruvathira day. The first Thiruvathira after the marriage of girls is called Poothiruvathira.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cb0a72f4-1de5-48c0-9362-ff22f294fd22"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Ceremonies and Rituals","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"116b741hkv","content":[{"text":"In ancient times, this dance was performed for 28 days starting from Thiruvathira day till Thiruvathira in the next month.  In some places, an 11-day program is performed during the month of Dhanum.\nCeremonies begin with the eating of a special meal called Ettangadi on Makairyam day, the day before Thiruvathira day.  The ingredients of Ettangadi are sorghum, yam, kachil, berry, yam, lentil, sugar, and honey. It is eaten the night before. But this ceremony is not observed today.\nDasapushkas are collected in front of the house during the day.  Thiruvathirakali starts after sunset.  After Thiruvathira nakshatramudhi at midnight, the dancers sing devotional songs and bring dasa flowers along with Ashtamangalyam holding the lamp to the house.  Later they wear these flowers in their hair.  This is called half-breeding.  The flowers are lit by singing songs praising the deities of each flower.  Crows are also seen.\nThe girls dance in a circle around a lit candle to the beat of the song, clapping each other's hands.  Sarees and blouses are the attire used for Thiruvathirakali.  A group of girls playing Thiruvathira will see a heroine.  The heroine sings the first line and the ensemble responds to the same line.  The group members step and clap their hands to the rhythm of the song.  Lasyabhava is a shadow throughout the game.  The steps in the game performed during the pooja are very simple.  This makes it easy for even the uninitiated to participate in the game.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cb0a72f4-1de5-48c0-9362-ff22f294fd22"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nw4cghpym7","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Thiruvathirakkali”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cb0a72f4-1de5-48c0-9362-ff22f294fd22"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"e9je0wzar3","content":[{"text":"Thiruvathirakkali is group dance of women in Kerala, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7f76962f-605d-4ce1-bcdb-d0558ad8a45e"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Thiruvathirakkali performed by college students as part of arts & cultural fest","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fc/Advika_VAST_2020_Thiruvathirakkali_09.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Subin Siby","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Thiruvathirakkali performed by college students as part of arts & cultural fest","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fc/Advika_VAST_2020_Thiruvathirakkali_09.jpg/960px-Advika_VAST_2020_Thiruvathirakkali_09.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Advika_VAST_2020_Thiruvathirakkali_09.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fc/Advika_VAST_2020_Thiruvathirakkali_09.jpg/1280px-Advika_VAST_2020_Thiruvathirakkali_09.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Thiruvathirakkali performed by college students as part of arts & cultural fest","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2d/Advika_VAST_2020_Thiruvathirakkali_02.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Subin Siby","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Thiruvathirakkali performed by college students as part of arts & cultural fest","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2d/Advika_VAST_2020_Thiruvathirakkali_02.jpg/960px-Advika_VAST_2020_Thiruvathirakkali_02.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Advika_VAST_2020_Thiruvathirakkali_02.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2d/Advika_VAST_2020_Thiruvathirakkali_02.jpg/1280px-Advika_VAST_2020_Thiruvathirakkali_02.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Thiruvathirakkali performed by college students as part of arts & cultural fest","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b6/Advika_VAST_2020_Thiruvathirakkali_08.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Subin Siby","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Thiruvathirakkali performed by college students as part of arts & cultural fest","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b6/Advika_VAST_2020_Thiruvathirakkali_08.jpg/960px-Advika_VAST_2020_Thiruvathirakkali_08.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Advika_VAST_2020_Thiruvathirakkali_08.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b6/Advika_VAST_2020_Thiruvathirakkali_08.jpg/1280px-Advika_VAST_2020_Thiruvathirakkali_08.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:06.637Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/thiruvathirakkali"}
{"id":"e7e679e1-f1a7-4f9e-9c24-f47a8d9c01f7","type":"art_form","slug":"tientos","title":"Tientos","summary":"Tientos is a flamenco Andalusian palo which has a rhythm consisting of 4 beats. It is in the same family as the Tangos, but slower and with different topics, lyrics and mood. Every Tientos becomes a Tangos at the end of the song/dance.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5qg9b7f53x","content":[{"text":"Tientos is a flamenco Andalusian palo which has a rhythm consisting of 4 beats. It is in the same family as the Tangos, but slower and with different topics, lyrics and mood. Every Tientos becomes a Tangos at the end of the song/dance. Traditionally, cantaor El Marrurro (1848–1906) has been considered one of the creators of this style. Enrique el Mellizo gave it the modern form by which we know it today. Other famous cantaores who interpreted this style were Antonio Chacón and Pastora Pavón.\nLike many Cante Jondo, traditional Tientos lyrics (letras) tend to be pathetic, sentimental, and speak about the lack of love, disillusionment and revenge. Dancers strive to capture this mood in their solos. It can be danced by a man or a woman.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3fd8a882-4e32-485f-a6b5-a984e2d835b1"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Structure","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0sk4r4njs1","content":[{"text":"The structure is similar to most flamenco dances and can be broken down as follows:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3fd8a882-4e32-485f-a6b5-a984e2d835b1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"e4rwwvngey","content":[{"text":"Guitar intro\nSong intro\nFootwork intro and llamada\nFirst letra, punctuated by a footwork during the respiro ‑ a break in the song after the second line of letra\nGuitar falsetta\nEscobilla (footwork section)\nSecond letra\nSecond escobilla\nSubida\nMacho or Tangos to close","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3fd8a882-4e32-485f-a6b5-a984e2d835b1"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Compás","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9rvy81zszg","content":[{"text":"The compás of Tientos has a 44 time signature like the Tangos, but with the above 2 ways of accents. A simple one and more complicated one.\nTientos in its simple point of view:\nFour-count rhythm with an added beat on the 'and' count of the second beat.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3fd8a882-4e32-485f-a6b5-a984e2d835b1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"856cfnb5v0","content":[{"text":"1+[2]+[3]+[4]+ 1+[2]+[3]+[4]","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3fd8a882-4e32-485f-a6b5-a984e2d835b1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"z53ey05wr0","content":[{"text":"Tientos in its less simple point of view:\nEach beat is broken into triplets, and that added beat after beat two is on the \"a\" of the triplet.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3fd8a882-4e32-485f-a6b5-a984e2d835b1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f1zzh4n2vh","content":[{"text":"1+a[2]+[a][3]+a[4]+a","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3fd8a882-4e32-485f-a6b5-a984e2d835b1"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Palmas","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"van77nye2t","content":[{"text":"The standard palmas for both Tientos and Tangos are:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3fd8a882-4e32-485f-a6b5-a984e2d835b1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0g938fd65p","content":[{"text":"1+2+3+4+ or 1  2+3  4","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3fd8a882-4e32-485f-a6b5-a984e2d835b1"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"For guitarists","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3670pq7e7y","content":[{"text":"The basic compás for Tientos on the guitar can be performed with the same basic chords associated with the Tangos:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3fd8a882-4e32-485f-a6b5-a984e2d835b1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3f423hf0bs","content":[{"text":"|B♭   |A   |B♭   |A   |","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3fd8a882-4e32-485f-a6b5-a984e2d835b1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c81vmta37q","content":[{"text":"|Dm  |C   |B♭   |A   |","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3fd8a882-4e32-485f-a6b5-a984e2d835b1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rv4142pkgy","content":[{"text":"Passing chords are added to this basic pattern to create the harmony for the Letra:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3fd8a882-4e32-485f-a6b5-a984e2d835b1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"g7n66s0zjy","content":[{"text":"|B♭   |A   |B♭   |A   |","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3fd8a882-4e32-485f-a6b5-a984e2d835b1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"e3m729t454","content":[{"text":"double time","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3fd8a882-4e32-485f-a6b5-a984e2d835b1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"855cz4ew0b","content":[{"text":"|B♭   |B♭  |A    |A   |","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3fd8a882-4e32-485f-a6b5-a984e2d835b1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ng6j6hgneh","content":[{"text":"a tempo","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3fd8a882-4e32-485f-a6b5-a984e2d835b1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"z2ywxsc9cy","content":[{"text":"|Dm   |Dm   |Dm   |G7   |C    |","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3fd8a882-4e32-485f-a6b5-a984e2d835b1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4zv0frr782","content":[{"text":"|F      |B♭     |B♭    |A     |","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3fd8a882-4e32-485f-a6b5-a984e2d835b1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gs5znqatvk","content":[{"text":"|C      |F       |B♭    |A     |B♭   |A   |","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3fd8a882-4e32-485f-a6b5-a984e2d835b1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ztqr98cmtk","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Tientos (flamenco)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3fd8a882-4e32-485f-a6b5-a984e2d835b1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qawzy1v8d8","content":[{"text":"Tientos is flamenco palo, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b9e34580-61db-432d-bbaa-6a298b0db3d2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"q4h7c5dmrh","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b9e34580-61db-432d-bbaa-6a298b0db3d2"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Éditeur : L. E. Dotesio","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d9/Mari-Gloria_-_tientos_para_canto_y_piano_-_hechos_sobre_coplas_populares_por_Joaquin_Valverde_-_bpt6k382055p_%288_of_8%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Valverde, Joaquin (1846-1910). Compositeur","height":1640,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Éditeur : L. E. Dotesio","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d9/Mari-Gloria_-_tientos_para_canto_y_piano_-_hechos_sobre_coplas_populares_por_Joaquin_Valverde_-_bpt6k382055p_%288_of_8%29.jpg/960px-Mari-Gloria_-_tientos_para_canto_y_piano_-_hechos_sobre_coplas_populares_por_Joaquin_Valverde_-_bpt6k382055p_%288_of_8%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mari-Gloria_-_tientos_para_canto_y_piano_-_hechos_sobre_coplas_populares_por_Joaquin_Valverde_-_bpt6k382055p_(8_of_8).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d9/Mari-Gloria_-_tientos_para_canto_y_piano_-_hechos_sobre_coplas_populares_por_Joaquin_Valverde_-_bpt6k382055p_%288_of_8%29.jpg/1280px-Mari-Gloria_-_tientos_para_canto_y_piano_-_hechos_sobre_coplas_populares_por_Joaquin_Valverde_-_bpt6k382055p_%288_of_8%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"Éditeur : L. E. Dotesio","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f2/Mari-Gloria_-_tientos_para_canto_y_piano_-_hechos_sobre_coplas_populares_por_Joaquin_Valverde_-_bpt6k382055p_%287_of_8%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Valverde, Joaquin (1846-1910). Compositeur","height":1635,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Éditeur : L. E. Dotesio","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f2/Mari-Gloria_-_tientos_para_canto_y_piano_-_hechos_sobre_coplas_populares_por_Joaquin_Valverde_-_bpt6k382055p_%287_of_8%29.jpg/960px-Mari-Gloria_-_tientos_para_canto_y_piano_-_hechos_sobre_coplas_populares_por_Joaquin_Valverde_-_bpt6k382055p_%287_of_8%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mari-Gloria_-_tientos_para_canto_y_piano_-_hechos_sobre_coplas_populares_por_Joaquin_Valverde_-_bpt6k382055p_(7_of_8).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f2/Mari-Gloria_-_tientos_para_canto_y_piano_-_hechos_sobre_coplas_populares_por_Joaquin_Valverde_-_bpt6k382055p_%287_of_8%29.jpg/1280px-Mari-Gloria_-_tientos_para_canto_y_piano_-_hechos_sobre_coplas_populares_por_Joaquin_Valverde_-_bpt6k382055p_%287_of_8%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"Éditeur : L. E. Dotesio","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/15/Mari-Gloria_-_tientos_para_canto_y_piano_-_hechos_sobre_coplas_populares_por_Joaquin_Valverde_-_bpt6k382055p_%281_of_8%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Valverde, Joaquin (1846-1910). Compositeur","height":1651,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Éditeur : L. E. Dotesio","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/15/Mari-Gloria_-_tientos_para_canto_y_piano_-_hechos_sobre_coplas_populares_por_Joaquin_Valverde_-_bpt6k382055p_%281_of_8%29.jpg/960px-Mari-Gloria_-_tientos_para_canto_y_piano_-_hechos_sobre_coplas_populares_por_Joaquin_Valverde_-_bpt6k382055p_%281_of_8%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mari-Gloria_-_tientos_para_canto_y_piano_-_hechos_sobre_coplas_populares_por_Joaquin_Valverde_-_bpt6k382055p_(1_of_8).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/15/Mari-Gloria_-_tientos_para_canto_y_piano_-_hechos_sobre_coplas_populares_por_Joaquin_Valverde_-_bpt6k382055p_%281_of_8%29.jpg/1280px-Mari-Gloria_-_tientos_para_canto_y_piano_-_hechos_sobre_coplas_populares_por_Joaquin_Valverde_-_bpt6k382055p_%281_of_8%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:30.191Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/tientos"}
{"id":"0f9c6fb4-bc7b-43b9-85f5-040964f4c661","type":"art_form","slug":"tinikling","title":"Tinikling","summary":"Tinikling (traditionally written tiniclín) is a traditional Philippine folk dance which originated prior to Spanish colonialism in the area.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yvkhezgzwf","content":[{"text":"Tinikling (traditionally written tiniclín) is a traditional Philippine folk dance which originated prior to Spanish colonialism in the area. The dance involves at least two people beating, tapping, and sliding bamboo poles on the ground and against each other in coordination with one or more dancers who step over and in between the poles in a dance. It is traditionally danced to rondalla music, a sort of serenade played by an ensemble of stringed instruments which originated in Spain during the Middle Ages. The locomotor movements used in this dance are hopping, jumping, and turning.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7090063b-f585-444a-91c4-d5a6a47a68cf"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origin","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tm2d1zsn6a","content":[{"text":"The name tinikling is a reference to birds locally known as tikling, which can be any of a number of rail species, but more specifically refers to the slaty-breasted rail (Gallirallus striatus), the buff-banded rail (Gallirallus philippensis), and the barred rail (Gallirallus torquatus). The term tinikling literally means \"to perform it tikling-like.\"The dance originated in Palo, Leyte, Island in the Visayas. It imitates the movement of the tikling birds as they walk between grass stems, run over tree branches, or dodge bamboo traps set by rice farmers. Dancers imitate the tikling bird's legendary grace and speed by skillfully maneuvering between large bamboo poles.\nHowever, other known stories also explain where this national dance originated from. A more popular one is the legend, without historical evidence, that says the tinikling dance originated from Filipino field workers during the time of Spanish colonization. It was a form of punishment for workers who worked too slowly in the large haciendas the Spanish had. More specifically,  two spine-tipped bamboo poles were used to hit the feet of the field workers. Legend claims that after a while, the workers trained themselves to dodge the strikes of the bamboo poles. What was once a way to avoid punishment now became a form of art and dance. \nAs stated, there is no historical basis to support the previous claim. Similar dances exist in other regions of South and Southeast Asia that were never under Spanish rule, such as the Cheraw dance in India, Múa Sạp in Vietnam, Lao Kra Top Mai in Thailand, Robam Kom Araek in Cambodia, Karen or Bamboo Chin dance in Myanmar, Alai Sekap in Brunei, Ami Bamboo in Taiwan, and Magunatip in Sabah (East Malaysia) and North Kalimantan (Indonesia).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7090063b-f585-444a-91c4-d5a6a47a68cf"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Description","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"aawvjr27h2","content":[{"text":"Two or four parallel pairs of bamboo poles, each around 6 to 12 ft (1.8 to 3.7 m) long, are held by two or more sitting or kneeling people (\"clappers\" or \"clickers\"). The poles are used as percussive instruments accompanying rondalla music played with string instruments (usually bandurrias, guitars, laúdes, octavinas, or ukuleles). They produce clapping sounds as they are struck against the ground (or two raised pieces of wood) and each other in a triple metre pattern. Traditionally, the poles are tapped twice on the ground on the first two beats, then brought together on the third beat.\nTwo or more dancers then weave through the rapidly moving bamboo poles with bare feet and ankles. The dancers have to carefully follow the rhythm so as not to get their ankles caught between the poles as they snap closed. They start the dance with their hands at their hips or clasped behind their backs. The tempo of the bamboo poles becomes faster as the dance progresses, forcing the dancers closer together as their movements become more frantic. The dancers hold hands at the last part of the dance when the tempo is the fastest. They end the dance by letting go of each other's hands and stepping out entirely of the moving bamboo poles.\nFor the dance, women traditionally wear a dress called Balintawak or patadyong, and men wear an untucked embroidered shirt called the barong Tagalog. The Balintawak are colorful dresses with wide arched sleeves and the patadyong is a pineapple fiber blouse paired with checkered skirts. The barong Tagalog is usually a light long-sleeved shirt worn with red trousers.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7090063b-f585-444a-91c4-d5a6a47a68cf"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Adaptations","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sq8c838gxe","content":[{"text":"When performed by dance troupes or in cultural shows, Tinikling is typically performed in the \"Rural Suite,\" which includes dances originating from Filipino Christians that have a more \"folksy\" character. These dances originate mostly from the islands of Visayas and imitate the simplicity and joy of the lifestyle of the Filipino villagers living in those regions during the Spanish period. Other Filipino folk dances of this category include Sayaw sa Bangko, Maglalatik, and Pandanggo sa Ilaw.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7090063b-f585-444a-91c4-d5a6a47a68cf"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3d9za5cphc","content":[{"text":"In the United States, this dance has been altered into a four-beat rhythm to adjust to popular music. In some cases, it has been used in conjunction with traditional Filipino martial arts to demonstrate fleetness of foot and flow of movement. As mentioned earlier, Tinikling is used as aerobic exercise for physical education classes in the United States for grades K-12. Instead of using traditional bamboo poles, most schools create their poles using plastic PVC pipe or wooden dowels. Another alternative is to tie elastic bands to the ankles of two students. The two students switch between jumping with their feet apart and their feet together to simulate the movement of the wooden poles. This way, more students are engaged in the aerobic exercise, rather than just the dancer.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7090063b-f585-444a-91c4-d5a6a47a68cf"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Regional versions of the dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6v1p6jp6s1","content":[{"text":"Similar dances are found throughout Asia signifying close cultural relationships of people within the region. In Taiwan, there are the Ami and Puyuma bamboo dances. In Southeast Asia similar dances such as the Rangku Alu of the Manggarai and the Gaba-gaba of the Ambonese in Indonesia, Múa Sạp from Vietnam, Lao Kra Top Mai from Thailand, Robam Kom Araek from Cambodia, Karen or Chin Bamboo Dance from Myanmar, Alai Sekap in Brunei, and Magunatip of the Murut people of Borneo. In Northeast India, various bamboo dances like the Cheraw dance from Mizoram people and various other Naga groups like the bamboo dances of the Kuki people are still conducted today. Multiple bamboo dances in southern China: the Zhuang, the Li (called Da Chai), Yao, etc.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7090063b-f585-444a-91c4-d5a6a47a68cf"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"eyasa7q0hz","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Tinikling”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7090063b-f585-444a-91c4-d5a6a47a68cf"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"m1cdazb3kj","content":[{"text":"Tinikling is traditional Filipino folk dance from Visayas, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1b2d4d8c-1ac4-43fa-9e7d-6a8e1f280990"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w68mdkxr8n","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1b2d4d8c-1ac4-43fa-9e7d-6a8e1f280990"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Members from the Philippine Cultural Dancers group perform a traditional dance ( tinikling ) during the Asian Pacific Heritage Month celebration May 26 at the Kadena Air Base, Japan, exchange parking lot.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bc/Tinikling.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"U.S. Air Force/Senior Airman Nestor Cruz","height":887,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Members from the Philippine Cultural Dancers group perform a traditional dance ( tinikling ) during the Asian Pacific Heritage Month celebration May 26 at the Kadena Air Base, Japan, exchange parking lot.","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bc/Tinikling.jpg/960px-Tinikling.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tinikling.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bc/Tinikling.jpg/1280px-Tinikling.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:29.410Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/tinikling"}
{"id":"63d5fb67-532d-4b2f-b9e6-60c12d0a562b","type":"art_form","slug":"tobas","title":"tobas","summary":"The dance of the Tobas is a Bolivian folkoric dance created in the city of Oruro in the early 20th century. Currently, it is performed in important festivals such as the Carnaval de Oruro and the Fiesta del Gran Poder.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ymeyy4fwmd","content":[{"text":"The dance of the Tobas is a Bolivian folkoric dance created in the city of Oruro in the early 20th century. Currently, it is performed in important festivals such as the Carnaval de Oruro and the Fiesta del Gran Poder. Its origin is urban and it holds little relation to the Toba people, although this tribe was the main inspiration for its creation.\nOn March 24, 2014, the Bolivian government declared the dance of the Toba as tangible and intangible heritage of the nation, with the contribution of Bolivian researcher Juan Manuel Cuellar Carpio. Every January 24th, the day national day of the dance of the Tobas is celebrated in Bolivia.\nThe dance is also present in festivities outside Bolivia, such as the Carnaval con la Fuerza del Sol in Arica (Chile), the Fiesta de la Virgen de la Candelaria in Puno (Peru) and the Entrada Folclórica de Integración Cultural in Buenos Aires (Argentina).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ad20cb1e-c90c-4098-8b96-59ac4da7e0f4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hvg0e0f71y","content":[{"text":"The Tobas were a tribe of warriors that lived in the Chaco region of Bolivia. The Incas admired their dance and they were taken from their Amazonian homeland by the Emperor Tupac Yupanqui. The dance and music of the Tobas have been reinterpreted by subsequent people of Bolivia.\nThe history of the dance of the Tobas begins in the early 20th century when the Bolivian Tomás Cáceres Nava, who had worked in the mining centers of the department of Oruro (in San José, La Colorada and the Itos Mine), travelled to southern Bolivia with his son Donato Cáceres Véliz in search of new mining explorations. They arrived at the religious festivity of San Roque in the city of Tarija, and they were fascinated to witness the dance of the Chunchos, pilgrims of San Roque.\nAround the year 1905, Tomás and his son returned to Oruro with the idea of creating a comparsa inspired by the dance of the Chunchos of San Roque. Researcher Juan Manuel Cuellar Carpio has stated that the Cáceres family did not have the intention of creating a new dance in a short period of time but rather that the creation of the dance of the Tobas can be attributed to a process of acceptance and development. Tomás and Donato Cáceres' comparsa started performing a dance inspired by the Chunchos of San Roque in the year 1905 in the Carnaval de Oruro and other religious festivities in the mining centers of the city of Oruro, which were booming at the time. When the spectating public saw the costumes worn during their performances, they started calling them the comparsa of the Ch'unch'us, a pejorative term used by the Aymara people to designate any indigenous group of the lowlands, who they considered to be savages.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ad20cb1e-c90c-4098-8b96-59ac4da7e0f4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0wyce1wjb6","content":[{"text":"The Tobas dance is a representation of energy - a singular dance with jumps performed by the dancers to impress the audience. The dance is performed during religious and other festivities as well as the Oruro Carnival. Performing the dance requires physical strength, stamina, and coordination.\nEach dance step has a traditional name and style. For example: Bolivar involves fast regular jumps; camba features high, one-meter jumps; chucu-chucu uses a rapid rhythm and tiptoe movements; and the cullahui jump is another distinctive element.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ad20cb1e-c90c-4098-8b96-59ac4da7e0f4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Costume","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s122s4yr5z","content":[{"text":"The typical Tobas costume is headwear entirely made of feathers, decorated with jewels, a skirt and top decorated made with colorful fabrics, with beads and fringes on the bottom, with cows feet sewed onto fabric to tie around the ankle, spear or hatchet, bracelet of feathers, and an anklet of feathers.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ad20cb1e-c90c-4098-8b96-59ac4da7e0f4"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hrx6bvyqje","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Tobas”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ad20cb1e-c90c-4098-8b96-59ac4da7e0f4"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6mbkjkekwy","content":[{"text":"tobas is Bolivian dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d5c7852d-6831-48dd-9b5d-6a23d7179164"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bzdw4z6s1s","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d5c7852d-6831-48dd-9b5d-6a23d7179164"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Dancer on Tobas in show Origenes.- Sucre , Bolivia . Tobas, a traditional Aymara dance from Bolivia, performed during religious festivals. The Tobas dance is a special representation of energy. The dance and music of the Tobas has been reinterpreted by subsequent people of…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3c/Danseur_dans_une_Tobas%2C_danse_traditionnelle_aymara_de_Bolivie.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Pierre André Leclercq","height":1261,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Dancer on Tobas in show Origenes.- Sucre , Bolivia . Tobas, a traditional Aymara dance from Bolivia, performed during religious festivals. The Tobas dance is a special representation of energy. The dance and music of the Tobas has been reinterpreted by subsequent people of…","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3c/Danseur_dans_une_Tobas%2C_danse_traditionnelle_aymara_de_Bolivie.jpg/960px-Danseur_dans_une_Tobas%2C_danse_traditionnelle_aymara_de_Bolivie.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Danseur_dans_une_Tobas,_danse_traditionnelle_aymara_de_Bolivie.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3c/Danseur_dans_une_Tobas%2C_danse_traditionnelle_aymara_de_Bolivie.jpg/1280px-Danseur_dans_une_Tobas%2C_danse_traditionnelle_aymara_de_Bolivie.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:03.152Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/tobas"}
{"id":"b4cfb4c1-92bf-4f23-bd9a-c2bb6e550e4a","type":"art_form","slug":"topeng-dance","title":"Topeng dance","summary":"Topeng (from Balinese: ᬢᭀᬧᬾᬂ; Javanese: ꦠꦺꦴꦥꦺꦁ, romanized: topèng; Sundanese: ᮒᮧᮕᮨᮔᮌ) is a dramatic form of Indonesian dance in which one or more mask-wearing ornately costumed performers interpret traditional narratives concerning fabled k…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yjheakg4ww","content":[{"text":"Topeng (from Balinese: ᬢᭀᬧᬾᬂ; Javanese: ꦠꦺꦴꦥꦺꦁ, romanized: topèng; Sundanese: ᮒᮧᮕᮨᮔᮌ) is a dramatic form of Indonesian dance in which one or more mask-wearing ornately costumed performers interpret traditional narratives concerning fabled kings, heroes, and myths, accompanied by gamelan or other traditional music instruments. Topeng dance is a typical Indonesian dance that can be found in various regions of Indonesia. Topeng dance has the main characteristic that the dancers use masks to cover their faces. The dance will usually be performed by one dancer or a group of dancers.\nTopeng is widely used in dances that are part of traditional ceremonies or the retelling of ancient stories from the ancestors. It is believed that topeng is closely related to ancestral spirits, which are considered to be the interpretations of gods. In some tribes, topeng still adorns various daily artistic and customary activities. Topeng dance is a dance performance filled with meaningful symbols that are expected to be understood by the audience. These symbols are conveyed through the colors of the masks, the expressions of the masks, and the accompanying music. The meaning conveyed can be in the form of leadership values, love, wisdom, and many others expressed through the medium of dance movements.\nIn 2010, Topeng Cirebon from Cirebon, West Java was recognized as a National Intangible Cultural Heritage of Indonesia by the Indonesian Ministry of Education and Culture.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"24f8b989-da86-413c-aac7-337c0bbfc2aa"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pxa91v7ykf","content":[{"text":"The term topeng is the Javanese word for \"mask\" or \"dance-drama that uses the mask\". In modern daily Javanese and Indonesian vocabulary, tari topeng or \"topeng dance\" refers to a dance or dance-drama performance that uses a mask.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"24f8b989-da86-413c-aac7-337c0bbfc2aa"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9ewedr45tb","content":[{"text":"Indonesian masked dance predates Hindu-Buddhist influences. Native Indonesian tribes still perform traditional masked-dances to represent nature, as the Hudoq dance of the Dayak people of Kalimantan, or to represent ancestor spirits. With the arrival of Hinduism in the archipelago, the Ramayana and Mahabharata epics began to be performed in masked-dance.\nThe oldest known record that concerns Topeng dance is from the ninth century. Around 840 AD an Old Javanese (Kawi) inscriptions called Jaha Inscriptions issued by Maharaja Sri Lokapala form Medang Kingdom in Central Java mentions three sorts of performers: atapukan, aringgit, and abanol. Atapukan means Mask dance show, Aringgit means Wayang puppet show, and abanol means joke art.\nOn the inscription of Candi Perot (850 AD), the word \"manapel\" is written from the word \"tapuk\" or \"tapel\" which means mask. On the Bebetin inscription (896 AD) there is the word \"patapukan\" which means a mask association. In the Mantiasih inscription (904 AD) there are the terms \"matapukan\" and \"manapukan\" which means that they relate to the drama presentation of masks.\nThe most popular storyline of topeng dance, however, is derived from the locally developed Javanese Panji cycles, based on the tales and romance of Prince Panji and Princess Chandra Kirana, set in the 12th-century Kadiri kingdom.\nOne of the earliest written records of topeng dance is also found in the 14th-century poem Nagarakretagama, which describes King Hayam Wuruk of Majapahit — wearing a golden mask — as an accomplished topeng dancer. The current topeng dance form arose in the 15th century in Java and Bali where it remains prevalent, but it is also found in other Indonesian islands — such as Madura (near East Java).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"24f8b989-da86-413c-aac7-337c0bbfc2aa"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Balinese topeng","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1ssqgmswz6","content":[{"text":"It is believed that the use of masks is related to the cult of the ancestors, which considered dancers the interpreters of the gods. Topeng performances open with a series of non-speaking masked characters that may not be related to the story to be performed. These traditional masks often include Topeng Manis (a refined hero), Topeng Kras (a martial, authoritarian character), and Topeng Tua (an old man who may joke and draw out the audience).\nThe story is narrated from a penasar, a jawless half-mask that enables the actor to speak clearly. In group topeng, there are usually two penasars providing two points of view. The performance alternates between speaking and non-speaking characters and can include dance and fight sequences as well as special effects (sometimes provided by the gamelan). It is almost always wrapped up by a series of comic characters introducing their views. The narrators and comic characters frequently break Western conventions of storytelling by including current events or local gossip to get a laugh.\nIn topeng, there is a conscious attempt to include many, sometimes contradictory, aspects of the human experience: the sacred and the profane, beauty and ugliness, refinement and caricature. A detailed description and analysis of topeng pajegan, the one-man form of topeng, is available in Masked Performance by John Emigh, a Western theater professor who has become a performer of Balinese topeng.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"24f8b989-da86-413c-aac7-337c0bbfc2aa"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Banjarese topeng","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8a84fj6exw","content":[{"text":"The topeng also calls topeng barikin from South Kalimantan.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"24f8b989-da86-413c-aac7-337c0bbfc2aa"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Betawi topeng","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bzp4hgw76h","content":[{"text":"Betawi mask dance or tari topeng Betawi is a theatrical form of dance-drama of the Betawi people in Jakarta, Indonesia. This dance-drama encompasses dance, music, bebodoran (comedy) and lakon (drama). The Betawi mask dance demonstrates the theme of Betawi society life which is represented in the form of dance and drama. It is called mask dance because the dancers use topeng (mask) during dancing and Betawi people believed that the topeng has magical powers.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"24f8b989-da86-413c-aac7-337c0bbfc2aa"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5qv5amhc25","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Topeng dances”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"24f8b989-da86-413c-aac7-337c0bbfc2aa"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9aj8pvj01c","content":[{"text":"Topeng dance is Indonesian traditional dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3e3c91f6-1ef7-41b0-9839-83a7c3b7af09"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"px807zxgtx","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"3e3c91f6-1ef7-41b0-9839-83a7c3b7af09"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Topeng Endel Adalah bentuk topeng wanita dengan kostum endel yang mirip penari Gambyong. Tariannya diiringi gending lancaran ombak banyu laras slendro manyuro. Topeng Kresna bermuka merah jambu dan berambut. Gending pengiringnya adalah lancaran lelenderan naik lancaran praliman.…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b0/Tari_Topeng_Endel.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Sudanto Ponco Sularso","height":886,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Topeng Endel Adalah bentuk topeng wanita dengan kostum endel yang mirip penari Gambyong. Tariannya diiringi gending lancaran ombak banyu laras slendro manyuro. Topeng Kresna bermuka merah jambu dan berambut. Gending pengiringnya adalah lancaran lelenderan naik lancaran praliman.…","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b0/Tari_Topeng_Endel.jpg/960px-Tari_Topeng_Endel.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tari_Topeng_Endel.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b0/Tari_Topeng_Endel.jpg/1280px-Tari_Topeng_Endel.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:16.364Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/topeng-dance"}
{"id":"ec7ff5d4-9b5b-4503-96de-4c097961cdd4","type":"art_form","slug":"toyi-toyi","title":"Toyi-toyi","summary":"Toyi-toyi is a Southern African dance used in political protests in South Africa.\nToyi-toyi could begin as the stomping of feet and spontaneous chanting during protests that could include political slogans or songs, either improvised or pre…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"frhv034y6b","content":[{"text":"Toyi-toyi is a Southern African dance used in political protests in South Africa.\nToyi-toyi could begin as the stomping of feet and spontaneous chanting during protests that could include political slogans or songs, either improvised or previously created.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"99bff387-0901-4fa0-bb53-710cf29758f5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Use during Apartheid","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bg87hrerv0","content":[{"text":"Toyi-toyi was often used for intimidating the South African police and security forces during anti-apartheid demonstrations. The toyi-toyi was also used with chants such as the African National Congress's \"Amandla\" (\"power\") and \"Awethu\" (\"ours\") or  the Pan African Congress's \"One Settler, One Bullet\".\nAfter the 1976 Soweto massacre, the anti-apartheid movement became more militant. The toyi-toyi, a military march dance and song style became commonplace in massive street demonstrations. As one activist puts it, \"The toyi-toyi was our weapon. We did not have the technology of warfare, the tear gas and tanks, but we had this weapon.\"","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"99bff387-0901-4fa0-bb53-710cf29758f5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Current use in South Africa","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bqt6hzynyj","content":[{"text":"After Apartheid ended, people have used toyi-toyi to express their grievances against current government policies. Use of the dance has become very popular during service delivery protests and among trade unions. The Anti-Privatisation Forum has come out with a CD that they see as a compilation of music specially for toyi-toying.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"99bff387-0901-4fa0-bb53-710cf29758f5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"General","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1y3ap30e6n","content":[{"text":"The UK band, UB40, incorporated the \"Amandla, Awethu\" chant into Sing Our Own Song from the 1986 album Rat In The Kitchen.\nIn October 2004 Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe banned toyi-toyi even indoors because of its use as a protest.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"99bff387-0901-4fa0-bb53-710cf29758f5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fsvczt7kag","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Toyi-toyi”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"99bff387-0901-4fa0-bb53-710cf29758f5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4jmsy48e4x","content":[{"text":"Toyi-toyi is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a2e2cb32-a57c-407f-88c4-9f571a131c49"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jws63t97sb","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a2e2cb32-a57c-407f-88c4-9f571a131c49"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Picture of the protest Toyi-toyi","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3b/Telkom_toyi_toyi.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"philipp from cape town, south africa","height":763,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Picture of the protest Toyi-toyi","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3b/Telkom_toyi_toyi.jpg/960px-Telkom_toyi_toyi.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Telkom_toyi_toyi.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3b/Telkom_toyi_toyi.jpg/1280px-Telkom_toyi_toyi.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:09.237Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/toyi-toyi"}
{"id":"1399f6eb-f9ab-4866-a4a0-fc3fb52e63a6","type":"art_form","slug":"troika","title":"Troika","summary":"Troika is a Russian performance dance based on Russian folk dances.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5kad7b9980","content":[{"text":"Troika is a Russian performance dance based on Russian folk dances. The Russian word troika means three-horse team/gear, and the dancers imitate the prancing of horses pulling a sled or a carriage.\nThe first version was created by choreographer Nadezhda Nadezhdina for her folklore dance troupe Beroyzka in 1948. Since then this dance is included into repertoires of virtually all Russian ethnographic dance ensembles. Initially, it was a dance for a man and two women, but later choreographies with other combinations were created, such as one woman and two men or three women.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4202390b-a7a9-47eb-aaa0-b325be592a74"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Other cultures","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cb4dxeab77","content":[{"text":"Similar folk dances are known among other Slavic peoples, e.g., the Polish Trojak.\nA Cajun dance of the same name, Troika, exists, similar to the Russian dance. It has been suggested that the Cajun version of the dance originated at the times when Cossacks of the Russian tsar army were stationed in Paris.\nThere was a German contra dance triolet recorded in 1829 for groups of one man and two women.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4202390b-a7a9-47eb-aaa0-b325be592a74"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pkvdkxay4g","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Troika (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"4202390b-a7a9-47eb-aaa0-b325be592a74"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gc6pj5sdff","content":[{"text":"Troika is Russian concert folk dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1415a29a-7069-41a5-985e-d3b95eeb0f64"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"85h9h7m6qq","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1415a29a-7069-41a5-985e-d3b95eeb0f64"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Troika, \"Buttercup - Canticle of the creatures\", 2024, sculpture","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ef/Troika_Buttercup.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Sebtroika","height":859,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Troika, \"Buttercup - Canticle of the creatures\", 2024, sculpture","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ef/Troika_Buttercup.jpg/960px-Troika_Buttercup.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Troika_Buttercup.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ef/Troika_Buttercup.jpg/1280px-Troika_Buttercup.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Troika, \"Double Image\", 2018","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b3/Troika_Double_Image.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Sebtroika","height":1707,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Troika, \"Double Image\", 2018","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b3/Troika_Double_Image.jpg/960px-Troika_Double_Image.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Troika_Double_Image.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b3/Troika_Double_Image.jpg/1280px-Troika_Double_Image.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Troika, \"Anima Atman\", 2024, installation view at Langen Foundation","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b5/Troika_Anima_Atman.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Sebtroika","height":894,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Troika, \"Anima Atman\", 2024, installation view at Langen Foundation","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b5/Troika_Anima_Atman.jpg/960px-Troika_Anima_Atman.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Troika_Anima_Atman.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b5/Troika_Anima_Atman.jpg/1280px-Troika_Anima_Atman.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:10.818Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/troika"}
{"id":"8b735f7c-5372-4e13-a479-ae11b2efe147","type":"art_form","slug":"tumba-francesa","title":"tumba francesa","summary":"Tumba francesa is a secular Afro-Cuban genre of dance, song, and drumming that emerged in Oriente, Cuba.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nft38nxyqs","content":[{"text":"Tumba francesa is a secular Afro-Cuban genre of dance, song, and drumming that emerged in Oriente, Cuba. It was introduced by slaves from the French colony of Saint-Domingue (which would later become the nation of Haiti) whose owners resettled in Cuba's eastern regions following the slave rebellion during the 1790s. The genre flourished in the late 19th century with the establishment of sociedades de tumba francesa (tumba francesa societies), of which only three survive.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9501a900-817f-4321-addd-9359a27b7317"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Characteristics","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qscwjermhd","content":[{"text":"Tumba francesa combines musical traditions of West African, Bantu, French and Spanish origin. Cuban ethnomusicologists agree that the word \"tumba\" derives from the Bantu and Mandinka words for drum. In Cuba, the word tumba is used to denote the drums, the ensembles and the performance itself in tumba francesa.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9501a900-817f-4321-addd-9359a27b7317"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Instrumentation","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ch3vjg2a7x","content":[{"text":"Tumbas francesas are directed by a mistress of ceremonies called mayora de plaza. Performances generally begin with improvised solo singing in a mixture of Spanish and French patois termed kreyol cubano or patuá cubano by the lead vocalist (composé). After the introduction, the catá (a wooden cylindrical idiophone struck with two sticks) is played, and the composé alternates call and response singing with a group of female vocalists (tumberas). After the catá establishes the beat, the three tumbas are played. The tumbas are single-headed hand drums; from largest to smallest they are called premier (or manma), bulá and segón. The premier is now commonly called quinto, as it fulfills the same lead, improvisatory role as the quinto does among the conga drums in Cuban rumba. In the toque masón, a double-headed bass drum called tamborita (or simply tambora) establishes the rhythm together with the catá. In addition, a shaker called chachá or maruga is commonly played by the tumberas and the mayora throughout the performance. The structure of tumba francesa is related to an eastern type of Cuban rumba called tahona.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9501a900-817f-4321-addd-9359a27b7317"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Toques","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"80y5k46czj","content":[{"text":"There are three main toques, or types of tumba performance, each associated with a specific dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9501a900-817f-4321-addd-9359a27b7317"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tsj43epfrq","content":[{"text":"Masón. This is the first toque. It features the whole music ensemble and is associated with a quadrille-style dance similar to the contradanza.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9501a900-817f-4321-addd-9359a27b7317"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"maj7ps452k","content":[{"text":"Yubá. This toque follows the masón and involves the catá and the three tumbas. It is accompanied by the main tumba dance, which is improvised. There are two subtypes of yubá: macota and cobrero.\nFrenté (or fronté). Originally the final section of the yubá, this is now considered an individual toque. It involves the catá, the premier and the bulá. It is played in front of the drums, hence the name.\nAn additional toque called cinta is only performed in Santiago de Cuba. It is called so because the performance takes place around a tree trunk with coloured bands (cintas), which are red, white and blue.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9501a900-817f-4321-addd-9359a27b7317"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ac1gqnj4xt","content":[{"text":"The dance in tumba francesa is similar to Haitian affranchi, which involves a series of straight-backed, held-torso, French style figures followed by African improvisation on the final set, but tumba francesa is danced to drums instead of string and woodwind instruments. The clothes of the dancers are colorful and flamboyant.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9501a900-817f-4321-addd-9359a27b7317"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2fpqx9xa9j","content":[{"text":"Tumbas francesas can be traced back to the late 18th century when the Haitian Revolution triggered the migration of French colonists from Saint-Domingue, bringing their slaves to the Oriente Province of Cuba. By the late 19th century, following the abolition of slavery in 1886, tumba francesa societies became established in this region, especially in Santiago de Cuba and Guantánamo. Their establishment was in many ways similar to the old African cabildos. Performers identify tumba francesa as French-Haitian, acknowledging it as a product of Haiti which now resides in Cuba. By the second half of the 20th century, tumbas francesas were still performed in eastern Cuba, especially the toque masón. Other toques however are only played in the context cultural associations. Three tumba francesa societies survive at the moment: La Caridad de Oriente (originally La Fayette) in Santiago de Cuba; Bejuco in Sagua de Tánamo, Holguín; and Santa Catalina de Riccis (originally La Pompadour) in Guantánamo.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9501a900-817f-4321-addd-9359a27b7317"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"47araw59wx","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Tumba francesa”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9501a900-817f-4321-addd-9359a27b7317"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"v654wr32df","content":[{"text":"tumba francesa is music genre and type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e24bf6de-de62-4209-9e47-8e2c01453402"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"63qgnn7ye2","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 4 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e24bf6de-de62-4209-9e47-8e2c01453402"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Guantánamo, house of the Tumba francesa","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/55/Guant%C3%A1namo_CF9A1071.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Christian Pirkl","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Guantánamo, house of the Tumba francesa","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/55/Guant%C3%A1namo_CF9A1071.jpg/960px-Guant%C3%A1namo_CF9A1071.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Guant%C3%A1namo_CF9A1071.jpg","thumb1280":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/55/Guant%C3%A1namo_CF9A1071.jpg/1280px-Guant%C3%A1namo_CF9A1071.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:22.877Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/tumba-francesa"}
{"id":"54c1ec00-68e5-4924-8318-730911a78368","type":"art_form","slug":"turkish-folk-dance","title":"Turkish folk dance","summary":"Turkish folk dances are the folk dances of Turkey. Facing three seas, straddling important trade routes, Turkey has a complex, sophisticated culture, reflected in the variety of its dances. The dominant dance forms are types of line dance.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7g2wp0fxmq","content":[{"text":"Turkish folk dances are the folk dances of Turkey. Facing three seas, straddling important trade routes, Turkey has a complex, sophisticated culture, reflected in the variety of its dances. The dominant dance forms are types of line dance. There are many different types of folk dances performed in various ways in Turkey. Zeybek, Teke Zortlatması in Aegean region, Bar in Erzurum province, Halay in the central, southern, eastern, and southeastern parts of the country, Hora in Thrace, Horon in the eastern Black Sea region, Spoon dances in and around Konya, and Lezginka in Kars and Ardahan are some of the best known examples of these.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d33861bd-257e-4f9b-8e63-286eb08ba6f7"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Bar","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6d2sj3vsbg","content":[{"text":"With their structure and formation, they are the dances performed by groups in the open. They are spread, in general, over the eastern part of Anatolia (Erzurum, Bayburt, Ağrı, Kars, Artvin and Erzincan provinces). The characteristic of their formation is that they are performed side-by-side, hand, shoulder and arm-in-arm. Woman and man bars are different from one another. The principal instruments of bar dances are davul and zurna (shrill pipe). Later, clarinet has been added to women's bar dances. The dominant measures in bars are 58 and 98. Occasionally, measures of 68 and 128 are used. Aksak 98 measures which are also the most characteristic measures, in particular, of the Turkish folk music are applied with extremely different and interesting structures in this dance. They normally wear costumes as they dance. They always dance with pride and they turn their hands as they hop dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d33861bd-257e-4f9b-8e63-286eb08ba6f7"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Halay","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dpaa0h75rd","content":[{"text":"Halay is a term used for some of the folk dances found in Turkey and is performed to a large extent in Eastern, South-central, Central, and Southeastern Turkey. The rhythmic and choreographic elements of these dances are very diverse. These dances are mostly performed with davul and zurna combination as well as with kaval (shepherd's pipe), sipsi (reed), çığırtma (fife) or bağlama (an instrument with three double strings played with a plectrum) or performed when folk songs are sung.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d33861bd-257e-4f9b-8e63-286eb08ba6f7"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Horon","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"za4g3gpyf4","content":[{"text":"The horon (Greek: horos [masculine noun, singular form, nominative]), which derives from the Greek word: choros (Greek: (ο) χορός) meaning dance in both ancient and modern Greek, Turkish: Horon, is a dance style found in the Black Sea region, now modern Turkey. The dances called Horon derived from the Laz culture of the area and are circular in nature, each characterized by distinct short steps. Horon was originally a Laz pagan dance. Horon or the round dance is a typical folk dance of the Black Sea coastal area and its interior parts. Horons appear very different from the folk dances in other parts of the country with their formation of tempo, rhythm and measure. Horons are performed, in general, by groups and their characteristic measure is 716 For their melodies are rendered very fast, it is very difficult to render them with every instrument. For this reason, rendering with a drum and zurna becomes practical. Melodies of horon are performed with the small type of zurna which is called 'cura'. In addition, in the interior parts blowing instruments such as bagpipe mey (again, a small zurna) etc. The other measures used are 24, 58 and 916.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d33861bd-257e-4f9b-8e63-286eb08ba6f7"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Zeybek","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qytxd6csx5","content":[{"text":"Zeybeks are, in general, the widespread folk dances of the Western Anatolia. Zeybek dance originated from the Zeybeks of the Aegean region. The dance is rendered by one person or two or by a group of people and its name changes for example as 'seymen' in the central parts of Anatolia. Zeybek dances are formed, in general, of 98 measures and have a variety of tempos such as very slow, slow, fast and very fast. Very slow zeybek dances have the measure of 92, slow ones 94 and some others 98. Very fast dances, for instance, teke (goat) dance seen in Burdur – Fethiye region can be regarded as dances of zeybek character, they have the traditional measure of 916. There is another folk dance named as bengi in the zeybek region. It is performed more differently from the zeybek and has got a different musical feature and the most characteristic measure of bengi dance is 98. Particularly in slow zeybeks, the traditional instruments is drum and zurna combination. The use of 2 drums and 2 zurnas in combination is a tradition, function of one of the zurnas is accompaniment, in other words, it accompanies the melody with a second constant tune. Apart from drum-zurna, a three-double string instrument bağlama, reed, marrow bow etc. are used for fast zeybek dances. In particular, the traditional instrument of the teke (goat) dance region is reed.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d33861bd-257e-4f9b-8e63-286eb08ba6f7"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Other forms","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wkcqbma5fk","content":[{"text":"Karsilamas: (a kind of wedding music) and hora (from ancient Greek art form of χορεία) type folk dances with melodic and rhythmic structure and with a fast performance facing one another and different cultural structure of the region and the dominant measure is 98 but some other measures are used as well. Their traditional instrument are 2 drum and 2 zurna combination, the most characteristic use of this combination is seen in this region. It can be found also as, Tsifteteli/Çiftetelli.\nKasap havasi/Hasapiko: meaning \"the butcher's dance\" from Turkish: kasap \"butcher\", is a modern dance from Istanbul and East Thrace. The dance has its origins in Byzantine times by butchers, taken by the Byzantine military.\nKaşık Oyunları: (Wooden-spoon dances): these dances, in general, are mostly spread over the Mediterranean region and have a very different structure with their arrangement performance, rhythmic and melodic characteristics. They are always rendered with wooden- spoons and the characteristic measure is 24 or 44. The instruments used are beast bow (later violin), baglama and clarinet, in general, they are accompanied by folk songs. Dinar is probably the best known of the \"wooden spoon dances\"\nKolbastı: Kolbastı is among teens in common and widespread.\nLezginka: Lezginka is mainly performed in Kars and Ardahan.\nSamah: Samah melodies have the measures of 58, 78 and 98. Their traditional instruments are baglama, bow etc. There is no rhythmic instrument. Performance by singing (without any instrument) is also widespread.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d33861bd-257e-4f9b-8e63-286eb08ba6f7"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"07htke4nsn","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Turkish folk dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d33861bd-257e-4f9b-8e63-286eb08ba6f7"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kmk2kkwxaz","content":[{"text":"Turkish folk dance is folk dances of Turkey and Turks elsewhere, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d895a7d3-3231-47bd-8353-6670f8f5ccd1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ateb8csym9","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d895a7d3-3231-47bd-8353-6670f8f5ccd1"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"A row of Turkish folk dancers.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/85/Row_of_Turkish_folk_dancers.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"quinn.ayna","height":1676,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"A row of Turkish folk dancers.","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/85/Row_of_Turkish_folk_dancers.jpg/960px-Row_of_Turkish_folk_dancers.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Row_of_Turkish_folk_dancers.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/85/Row_of_Turkish_folk_dancers.jpg/1280px-Row_of_Turkish_folk_dancers.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:28.823Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/turkish-folk-dance"}
{"id":"a9a184f6-d689-45d9-aa1a-d1fe8ec44b99","type":"art_form","slug":"two-rhythm-dance","title":"Two-Rhythm Dance","summary":"The Zwiefacher (German pronunciation: [ˈtsviːfaxɐ]) is a southern German folk dance with a quick tempo and changing beat patterns.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qdes4b0npg","content":[{"text":"The Zwiefacher (German pronunciation: [ˈtsviːfaxɐ]) is a southern German folk dance with a quick tempo and changing beat patterns.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e74fb424-a1a7-4798-acc8-a3628daf48c4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Location","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gs2zqtem6r","content":[{"text":"The Zwiefacher is danced primarily in Bavaria, especially Lower Bavaria, Hallertau, and Upper Palatinate; it is also known in the Black Forest, Austria, Alsace, the Czech Republic, and Sudetenland.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e74fb424-a1a7-4798-acc8-a3628daf48c4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Name","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"a7v0zbqh07","content":[{"text":"The first documented use of the word Zwiefach was in 1780. It loosely translates as \"two times\" or \"double\". Although this may be indicative of the two different time signatures, the title may refer to the couple being tightly wound against each other, a departure from earlier traditions. \nThe dance is still known by various other names in different regions, such as Schweinauer, Schleifer, Übern Fuaß, Mischlich, Grad und Ungrad, Neu-Bayerischer and, above all Bairischer (meaning \"Farmer Dance\", a name sometimes confused with the Bavarian polka).\nThe number of different names for the same dance should not be surprising, as the dance is older than the modern German language. Neither should one be surprised that the tunes themselves have multiple names. One German dance researcher, Felix Hoerburger, catalogued 112 different Zwiefacher tunes with 474 different names.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e74fb424-a1a7-4798-acc8-a3628daf48c4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Rhythm","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"sw86sdft4p","content":[{"text":"The Zwiefacher alternates between odd and even time signatures, changing from three to two beats per bar. The changes may occur regularly - for example, two measures per time signature, may change only once or may change irregularly throughout. Early Zwiefachers were played before the modern bar line was invented.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e74fb424-a1a7-4798-acc8-a3628daf48c4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Choreography","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"datgeszck7","content":[{"text":"The couple turns very quickly in a closed position, similar to the waltz. Physically, the rhythmic shift looks like a change from normal waltz steps to Dreher steps (pivots), occasionally also to polka steps.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e74fb424-a1a7-4798-acc8-a3628daf48c4"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Lyrics","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0hytnnvsgw","content":[{"text":"Lyrics were often created as a mnemonic device to help learn Zwiefachers melodies by heart. This led to many songtexts for the same melodies. New lyrics are still sometimes used together with old melodies, as in the McDonald's parody \"Hunger kriag I glei\" by \"Bayrisch-Diatonischer Jodelwahnsinn\", which uses the same music as the \"Suserl-Zwiefache\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e74fb424-a1a7-4798-acc8-a3628daf48c4"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9dqaxvk418","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Zwiefacher”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e74fb424-a1a7-4798-acc8-a3628daf48c4"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dxhrvkk6kb","content":[{"text":"Two-Rhythm Dance is Zwiefache is a typical Bavarian-Bohemian musical genre that is played, danced and sung, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c1f1921b-a15f-490c-aa7b-ee5dd9da8c49"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5g6c7knjj9","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c1f1921b-a15f-490c-aa7b-ee5dd9da8c49"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-05T02:44:25.582Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/two-rhythm-dance"}
{"id":"0b912060-25d6-4d5f-a909-57aa6aa4c7f6","type":"art_form","slug":"umhlanga","title":"Umhlanga","summary":"Umhlanga [um̩ɬaːŋɡa], or Reed Dance ceremony, is an annual Swazi event that takes place at the end of August or at the beginning of September.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qwz1znpdf7","content":[{"text":"Umhlanga [um̩ɬaːŋɡa], or Reed Dance ceremony, is an annual Swazi event that takes place at the end of August or at the beginning of September. In Eswatini, tens of thousands of unmarried and childless Swazi girls and women travel from the various chiefdoms to the Ludzidzini Royal Village to participate in the eight-day event. \nToday’s Reed Dance is a revival of the older “umcwasho” custom. Under that practice, unmarried girls were grouped into age-regiments. If a woman had become pregnant outside marriage, her family paid a cow to the local chief.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b2e09b58-5114-41c8-b7c6-15c241f49c2d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gmp2q7xa85","content":[{"text":"Umhlanga was created in Eswatini in the 1940s under the rule of Sobhuza II, and is an adaptation of the much older Umchwasho ceremony. The reed dance continues to be practised today in Eswatini. In South Africa, the reed dance was introduced in 1991 by Goodwill Zwelithini, the former King of the Zulus. The dance in South Africa takes place in Nongoma, a royal kraal of the Zulu king.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b2e09b58-5114-41c8-b7c6-15c241f49c2d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Eswatini","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4arz8xtx60","content":[{"text":"In Eswatini, girls begin the rite by gathering at the Queen Mother's royal village, which currently is Ludzidzini Royal Village. After arriving at the Queen Mother's residence, the women disperse the following night to surrounding areas and cut tall reeds. The following night, they bundle the reeds together and bring them back to the Queen Mother to be used in repairing holes in the reed windscreen surrounding the royal village.\nAfter a day of rest and washing, the women prepare their traditional costumes consisting of a bead necklace, rattling anklets made from cocoons, a sash, and skirt. Many of them carry the bush knives, which they had earlier used to cut the reeds, as symbols of their virginity. Afterwards, they sing and dance as they parade in front of the royal family as well as a crowd of dignitaries, spectators, and tourists. After the parade, groups from select villages take to the centre of the field and put on a special performance for the crowd. The King's many daughters and royal princesses also participate in the reed dance ceremony and are distinguished by the crown of red feathers they wear in their hair.\nThe present form of the Reed Dance developed in the 1940s from the Umcwasho custom, where young girls were placed in age regiments to ensure their virginity. Once they had reached marriageable age, they would perform labour for the Queen Mother followed by dancing and a feast. The official purpose of the annual ceremony is to preserve the women's chastity, provide tribute labour for the Queen Mother, and produce solidarity among the women through working together.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b2e09b58-5114-41c8-b7c6-15c241f49c2d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Nudity controversy","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mw63qjwbk2","content":[{"text":"The reed dance videos were once classified as age-restricted content by YouTube, which angered the users who had uploaded them. This included Lazi Dlamini, the head of TV Yabantu, an online video production company that aims to produce content that \"protects, preserves and restores African values\". Working with more than 200 cultural groupings across the country and in neighbouring Eswatini, Dlamini organised a series of protests against Google to force them to rethink their position. YouTube apologized, and allowed the showing of genuine African traditional videos. According to a representative for the company, they lifted the restriction, as it is not Google's policy to \"restrict nudity in such instances where it is culturally or traditionally appropriate\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b2e09b58-5114-41c8-b7c6-15c241f49c2d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Preparations","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w4bs5ys499","content":[{"text":"The date of the ceremony is scheduled by looking at the phases of the moon. Once the moon reaches full stage, the ceremony commences. Places where the reed is located are visited to check if it is ready for cutting and its availability. Preparations also include finding places where the young girls will sleep, health meals, organising transport to carry them from their respective constituencies to the royal kraal. From constituency level, the constituency chooses four trustworthy males who will lead the young group of girls from that constituency. If an emergency situation arises two  of the men who are accompanying this girls will head back home to report the situation. From early days the girls start practicing traditional songs and traditional dances. At home, a girl will gather all the traditional attire needed for the ceremony.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b2e09b58-5114-41c8-b7c6-15c241f49c2d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Modern changes","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2pm929t9vr","content":[{"text":"In earlier times, the girls used to sleep outside in open space; today they sleep in tents. Today they are also ferried by lorries instead of walking long distances carrying the reed. Microphones are used to start songs and to announce which song will be sung. The Internet, social media, radio stations and television channels are now used to announce when the ceremony will commence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b2e09b58-5114-41c8-b7c6-15c241f49c2d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"n7zqxy0gcy","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Umhlanga (ceremony)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b2e09b58-5114-41c8-b7c6-15c241f49c2d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qy0a5ehbty","content":[{"text":"Umhlanga is ceremony, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"04b12ad1-1bf5-4a35-94bf-989a5d59f4fa"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5gdcvk457r","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"04b12ad1-1bf5-4a35-94bf-989a5d59f4fa"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Eswatini: The Reed Dance Festival 2006","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3c/Eswatini_Reed_Dance_2006_-01.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Amada44","height":793,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Eswatini: The Reed Dance Festival 2006","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3c/Eswatini_Reed_Dance_2006_-01.jpg/960px-Eswatini_Reed_Dance_2006_-01.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Eswatini_Reed_Dance_2006_-01.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3c/Eswatini_Reed_Dance_2006_-01.jpg/1280px-Eswatini_Reed_Dance_2006_-01.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-08-31T05:47:27.674Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/umhlanga"}
{"id":"8eea1263-7197-48bb-9e2c-be958afac0cd","type":"art_form","slug":"upa-upa","title":"'upa'upa","summary":"The ʼupaʼupa (often written as upa upa) is a traditional dance from Tahiti. It was mentioned by European explorers, who described it as very indecent.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"33r10ashem","content":[{"text":"The ʼupaʼupa (often written as upa upa) is a traditional dance from Tahiti. It was mentioned by European explorers, who described it as very indecent. It is not quite clear how similar the gestures at that time were with the now immensely popular tāmūrē. In both dances the performers form groups of pairs of a boy and a girl, dancing more or less in sexually oriented movements.\nThe musical setting usually includes voice, flute, and drums.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"60c02a89-9b2d-44c5-9d64-275580bcc7c3"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5vs4fyvhfb","content":[{"text":"After having arrived on Tahiti in 1797, the LMS missionaries quickly intimidated the local rulers of the island and fixed themselves in a position of power. Although this enabled them to abolish such habits as infanticide, cannibalism and tribal wars, it also enabled them to introduce the idea of sin, which was unknown on Tahiti until then. The joy of dancing, so dear to the Polynesian heart, was one of the first to be axed. The famous Pōmare code of 1819 declared the ʼupaʼupa (and tattooing in the same line) to be bad and immoral habitudes, severely to be opposed. The Leewards followed suit soon after. But dancing continued in secret.\nIn the code of 1842 many restrictions were relaxed, but the ʼupaʼupa (the general term for dancing then) remained on the black list. In the same year the French proclaimed the protectorate. Being Catholic with some broader views on life than the Protestants, and considering that \"if you cannot beat them, join them\", they proclaimed in the official bulletin of 1849 that the ʼupaʼupa was still forbidden, except on public feastdays, but then still without the indecent gestures. The act of 1853, repeated in 1876 was more restrictive. In the hope that the Tahitians would spend their time on more pious occupations than dancing and drinking, a system of licenses was introduced. A license could only be obtained by a chef and only on Saturday evenings.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"60c02a89-9b2d-44c5-9d64-275580bcc7c3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gxgt4zyg87","content":[{"text":"Despite all these restrictions, dancing went on, less secret or more secret depending on the law at that moment.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"60c02a89-9b2d-44c5-9d64-275580bcc7c3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rk5fmbb9kk","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “'upa'upa”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"60c02a89-9b2d-44c5-9d64-275580bcc7c3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"d4des8n7dh","content":[{"text":"'upa'upa is dance from Tahiti, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"35f88db1-d547-4f0c-946d-1e84c53c08d7"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kyvry8nbb9","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"35f88db1-d547-4f0c-946d-1e84c53c08d7"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Depicted person: Frédéric Guillaume Schneklüd (1859-1930), French musician","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b3/Gauguin_-_Der_Violoncellist_Upaupa_Schneklud_1894.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Paul Gauguin","height":1626,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Depicted person: Frédéric Guillaume Schneklüd (1859-1930), French musician","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b3/Gauguin_-_Der_Violoncellist_Upaupa_Schneklud_1894.jpg/960px-Gauguin_-_Der_Violoncellist_Upaupa_Schneklud_1894.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Gauguin_-_Der_Violoncellist_Upaupa_Schneklud_1894.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b3/Gauguin_-_Der_Violoncellist_Upaupa_Schneklud_1894.jpg/1280px-Gauguin_-_Der_Violoncellist_Upaupa_Schneklud_1894.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"Depicted person: Frédéric Guillaume Schneklüd (1859-1930), French musician","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/79/Paul_gauguin_the_cellist_wikipedia.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Paul Gauguin","height":1625,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Depicted person: Frédéric Guillaume Schneklüd (1859-1930), French musician","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/79/Paul_gauguin_the_cellist_wikipedia.JPG/960px-Paul_gauguin_the_cellist_wikipedia.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Paul_gauguin_the_cellist_wikipedia.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/79/Paul_gauguin_the_cellist_wikipedia.JPG/1280px-Paul_gauguin_the_cellist_wikipedia.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:28.461Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/upa-upa"}
{"id":"95a1fac5-71f0-4339-8ea7-5dadc29c2350","type":"art_form","slug":"uzundara","title":"Uzundara","summary":"Uzundara or ouzoundara (Armenian: Ուզունդարա; Azerbaijani: Uzundərə) is a lyrical Armenian and Azerbaijani dance traditionally performed by women.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"yzmdw730hk","content":[{"text":"Uzundara or ouzoundara (Armenian: Ուզունդարա; Azerbaijani: Uzundərə) is a lyrical Armenian and Azerbaijani dance traditionally performed by women. Today, the dance is famous throughout the South Caucasus region; in particular Armenia and Azerbaijan.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a1897ece-bcb6-4936-a951-32757cdd9b60"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology and origin","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fzh64rnxyb","content":[{"text":"The place of origin is either Nagorno-Karabakh, or Western Armenia (Erzurum). The origination of the dance is claimed by both Armenians and Azerbaijanis alike due to the fact that both nations lived in Karabakh, where the Uzundere valley is located. According to Azerbaijani scholars, the dance originates in a Uzundara valley between Aghdam and Baş Qərvənd in the region of Karabakh. According to another explanation, the dance was brought to the region by Armenians from Erzurum, who fled from the Ottoman Empire in 1828 during the Russian-Turkish war.\nIn Armenian, particularly in the western Armenian dialect \"Uzundara\" translates to \"They wanted her, They took her\". With \"Uzun\" being \"they wanted (her)\" and \"Daran\" 'They took (her)\". It showcases the metaphor of a bride being taken from her family.\nTranslated from Azerbaijani, the word Uzundara means \"long gorge\" or \"long valley\". The word Uzundara itself comes from the word \"Uzun\", which is of Old Turkic origin and means \"long\", and the word \"Dara\", which is of Persian origin and means \"gorge\".  Armenian ethnographer Srbuhi Lisitsian notes that \"dara\", in addition to a \"gorge\", can also mean a \"pit\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a1897ece-bcb6-4936-a951-32757cdd9b60"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Performing","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s0a4b7bbxd","content":[{"text":"The dance is performed easily, smoothly. Circular strokes and small lateral steps are coordinated with gentle movements. It has a 3-part structure, with more active movement in the outer parts and smooth in the middle. A typical method of melodic development is the variation of two-, three- and four-bar motives.\nAccording to Tamara Stepanovna Tkachenko, three elements alternate in Uzundara in the following order: moves in a circle, \"syzme\" (small, \"floating\" steps) and small movements forward or from side to side such as \"khyrdalyk\". She described those elements as \"main elements of Azerbaijani female dance\", while pointing out that \"syzme\" is an \"integral part of Armenian dance\". Tkachenko also noted that in Armenia, the lyrical dance of the bride was performed after the solemn dances of the matchmaker, parents, and groom, to the melodies of \"Uzundara\", \"Nunufar\" or \"Rangi\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a1897ece-bcb6-4936-a951-32757cdd9b60"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"r72mngss58","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Uzundara”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a1897ece-bcb6-4936-a951-32757cdd9b60"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zk8bbg8m06","content":[{"text":"Uzundara is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"03deb3f2-9455-4093-9788-09ed5ae8c844"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f4wa4tyapk","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"03deb3f2-9455-4093-9788-09ed5ae8c844"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Uzundara: Surxondaryo viloyati, Boysun tumani, “Qoʻshchinor” MFY","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c7/2023.06.08_Kashkadarya%26Surhandarya_263.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Relisa Granovskaya","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Uzundara: Surxondaryo viloyati, Boysun tumani, “Qoʻshchinor” MFY","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c7/2023.06.08_Kashkadarya%26Surhandarya_263.jpg/960px-2023.06.08_Kashkadarya%26Surhandarya_263.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:2023.06.08_Kashkadarya%26Surhandarya_263.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c7/2023.06.08_Kashkadarya%26Surhandarya_263.jpg/1280px-2023.06.08_Kashkadarya%26Surhandarya_263.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Uzundara: Surxondaryo viloyati, Boysun tumani, “Qoʻshchinor” MFY","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/53/2023.06.08_Kashkadarya%26Surhandarya_080.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Relisa Granovskaya","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Uzundara: Surxondaryo viloyati, Boysun tumani, “Qoʻshchinor” MFY","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/53/2023.06.08_Kashkadarya%26Surhandarya_080.jpg/960px-2023.06.08_Kashkadarya%26Surhandarya_080.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:2023.06.08_Kashkadarya%26Surhandarya_080.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/53/2023.06.08_Kashkadarya%26Surhandarya_080.jpg/1280px-2023.06.08_Kashkadarya%26Surhandarya_080.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Uzundara: Surxondaryo viloyati, Boysun tumani, “Qoʻshchinor” MFY","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5e/2023.06.08_Kashkadarya%26Surhandarya_145.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Relisa Granovskaya","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Uzundara: Surxondaryo viloyati, Boysun tumani, “Qoʻshchinor” MFY","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5e/2023.06.08_Kashkadarya%26Surhandarya_145.jpg/960px-2023.06.08_Kashkadarya%26Surhandarya_145.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:2023.06.08_Kashkadarya%26Surhandarya_145.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5e/2023.06.08_Kashkadarya%26Surhandarya_145.jpg/1280px-2023.06.08_Kashkadarya%26Surhandarya_145.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:11.109Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/uzundara"}
{"id":"58c7f35b-e48a-43c2-a952-8949497008a3","type":"art_form","slug":"vallenato","title":"Vallenato","summary":"Vallenato (Latin American Spanish pronunciation: [baʝeˈnato]) is a popular folk music genre from Colombia. It primarily comes from its Caribbean region. Vallenato literally means \"born in the valley\".","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"av13761wdj","content":[{"text":"Vallenato (Latin American Spanish pronunciation: [baʝeˈnato]) is a popular folk music genre from Colombia. It primarily comes from its Caribbean region. Vallenato literally means \"born in the valley\".  The valley influencing this name is located between the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta and the Serranía de Perijá in north-east Colombia. The name also applies to the people from the city where this genre originated: Valledupar (from the place named Valle de Upar – \"Valley of Upar\"). In 2006, vallenato and cumbia were added as a category in the Latin Grammy Awards. Colombia's traditional vallenato music is Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding, according to UNESCO.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0cbaad01-41d2-4983-9c57-d78117d71b36"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origins","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"453n97mfs2","content":[{"text":"This form of music originated from farmers who, keeping a tradition of Spanish minstrels (juglares in Spanish), used to travel through the region with their cattle in search of pastures or to sell them in cattle fairs. Because they traveled from town to town and the region lacked rapid communications, these farmers served as bearers of news for families living in other towns or villages. Their only form of entertainment during these trips was singing and playing guitars or indigenous gaita flutes, known as kuisis in the Kogi language, and their form of transmitting their news was by singing their messages.\nThe first form of vallenato was played with gaita flutes, guacharaca, and caja, and later adopted other instruments like guitars. These troubadors were later influenced by Europe's instruments: piano and accordion. Impressed by the sound of the accordion, troubadors probably later obtained accordions from Aruba and Curaçao. Vallenato was considered music of the lower class and farmers, but gradually started penetrating through every social group during the mid-20th century.\nDon Clemente Quintero – a prominent member from the region's elite – was a lover of this music, usually accompanied by liquor, was a form of entertainment for this almost isolated region. He then decided to start a parranda (party) inside the very strict Valledupar Social Club with friends. This triggered an acceptance for the music and it became a regular feature at parties, carnivals and reunions, not for dancing, but for listening to these juglares stories .\nAlfonso López Michelsen, a prominent Colombian politician, showed interest in the region as his ancestors and wife were born there.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0cbaad01-41d2-4983-9c57-d78117d71b36"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Instruments","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pxv51h3wnh","content":[{"text":"Its three traditional instruments are:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0cbaad01-41d2-4983-9c57-d78117d71b36"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t4c0fcekxw","content":[{"text":"the caja vallenata: a small drum held between the knees and played with bare hands. It was used by the African slaves brought by the Europeans. Similar to a tambora drum.\nthe guacharaca: a wooden, ribbed stick similar to a sugar cane, accompanied by a fork that when rubbed together emits a scraping sound. It's about 18 inches (45 centimeters) long and 1 inch (3 centimeters) in diameter. It was used by the aborigines to imitate the song of the guacharaca or guacharaco (one of the species of chachalaca), a bird from the region, to hunt and perform dancing rites.\nthe accordion: three-line button, German-origin accordion. It has three reeds per note and comes in different keys: ADG, GCF, and BbEbAb (\"5 Letras\"). Accordions in Colombia and Panama sometimes have custom made keys especially made for vallenato and cumbia.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0cbaad01-41d2-4983-9c57-d78117d71b36"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"The four rhythms","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ew15v0b121","content":[{"text":"Vallenato consists of four beats or \"airs\" that are differentiated through their rhythmic structure and the melody chord structure the accordionist gives it. These are son, paseo, merengue, and puya. The son and the paseo have a 24 time and the merengue and the puya a 68 time.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0cbaad01-41d2-4983-9c57-d78117d71b36"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7vhm76th0w","content":[{"text":"Son is played with heavy accentuation and cadence stressed on the low notes of the accordion on its left-hand side. It is normally mournful and slow.\nPaseo is thought to be an offshoot of the son. Its speed can vary and today is the most widely recorded air.\nPuya's main difference from the merengue is the length of its lyrics. In the last 40 years, accordion players have begun to play it faster, and each of the three instruments used in vallenato has a solo. It is considered the oldest of the four \"airs\", with roots in an ancient Indian dance of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta.\nMerengue is often confused with a Dominican genre with the same name, probably brought by related African tribal groups. It has a more narrative style and was often used to play décimas, a 10-line format with internal rhymes brought by the Spanish in the 16th century.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0cbaad01-41d2-4983-9c57-d78117d71b36"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Piqueria","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"s0dx5arwhx","content":[{"text":"The piqueria vallenata is a type of typical musical showdown Colombian Caribbean folklore and Vallenato. As in the contrapunteo Joropo burrowing, or trova paisa within the music, litigants demonstrate their improvisational skills in building verses that challenge their opponent. This type of musical confrontation arose as a result of chance encounters between vallenatos minstrels who roamed the northern part of Colombia brightening binges and to demonstrate their talent on the accordion and the art of improvisation faced with songs and rhymes. One of the most important meetings of the Piqueria was between Emiliano Zuleta and Lorenzo Morales, both vallenato accordionists. From this meeting came the popular song \"La Gota Fría\" (\"The Cold Drop\" in English), played in its most popular version by Colombian singer Carlos Vives.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0cbaad01-41d2-4983-9c57-d78117d71b36"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Vallenato festivals","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pfqy54ppba","content":[{"text":"Many vallenato festivals are held annually in Colombia, such as:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0cbaad01-41d2-4983-9c57-d78117d71b36"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kg0d87yzmf","content":[{"text":"The Vallenato Legend Festival: Every year by the end of April, in the city of Valledupar, the Festival de la Leyenda Vallenata (Vallenato Legend Festival) is celebrated. During the festival a contest takes place in which the best vallenato interpreters fight for the title of Rey Vallenato (Vallenato accordion King), \"verseadores\", new song composers, \"guacharaqueros\" and \"cajeros\" are also awarded within three categories; professional, aficionado and infant. The festival also includes record industry's orchestras shows.\nAccordions' Cradle Festival: (Festival cuna de accordeones) This festival is celebrated every year since 1979, in Valledupar's neighboring town of Villanueva, in La Guajira. The Festival is similar to the Vallenato Legend Festival format, but also includes a category for the elderly accordion players over sixty years old.\nOther Vallenato festivals\nThe Vallenato Festival in Bogotá, Colombia","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0cbaad01-41d2-4983-9c57-d78117d71b36"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0j4j9tv45g","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Vallenato”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0cbaad01-41d2-4983-9c57-d78117d71b36"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6rqqrsap3w","content":[{"text":"Vallenato is musical tradition fusing cultural expressions of several origins in the Monteria Córdoba - Magdalena Grande area of Colombia – inscribed in the List of Intangible Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding in 2015, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"19f2987b-2986-48b9-9a08-c3b0f4b08042"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"aya3n89nns","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 15 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"19f2987b-2986-48b9-9a08-c3b0f4b08042"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"MARIMNATO ( ESTILO MUSICAL TROPICAL COLOMBIANO Estilo musical creado en buenaventura ( Colombia ), el cual fusiona instrumentos que son considerados patrimonios de la humanidad colombianos. Representativos del genero vallenato y del folclore de la región pacifica colombiana. En…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2b/GON_2993.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"andres felipe paz taborda","height":854,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"MARIMNATO ( ESTILO MUSICAL TROPICAL COLOMBIANO Estilo musical creado en buenaventura ( Colombia ), el cual fusiona instrumentos que son considerados patrimonios de la humanidad colombianos. Representativos del genero vallenato y del folclore de la región pacifica colombiana. En…","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2b/GON_2993.jpg/960px-GON_2993.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:GON_2993.jpg","thumb1280":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2b/GON_2993.jpg/1280px-GON_2993.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Grupo de música vallenato presentándose en Wateke","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/58/Grupo_Vallenato_tocando_en_Wateke.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Luisarriaga88","height":1280,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Grupo de música vallenato presentándose en Wateke","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/58/Grupo_Vallenato_tocando_en_Wateke.jpg/960px-Grupo_Vallenato_tocando_en_Wateke.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Grupo_Vallenato_tocando_en_Wateke.jpg","thumb1280":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/58/Grupo_Vallenato_tocando_en_Wateke.jpg/1280px-Grupo_Vallenato_tocando_en_Wateke.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Alfonso Quintero en el Festival Vallenato de Bayfront","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a6/Alfonso_Quintero_en_el_Festival_Vallenato_de_Bayfront.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Aquint92","height":580,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Alfonso Quintero en el Festival Vallenato de Bayfront","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a6/Alfonso_Quintero_en_el_Festival_Vallenato_de_Bayfront.jpg/960px-Alfonso_Quintero_en_el_Festival_Vallenato_de_Bayfront.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Alfonso_Quintero_en_el_Festival_Vallenato_de_Bayfront.jpg","thumb1280":"https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a6/Alfonso_Quintero_en_el_Festival_Vallenato_de_Bayfront.jpg/1280px-Alfonso_Quintero_en_el_Festival_Vallenato_de_Bayfront.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-02T05:47:22.395Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/vallenato"}
{"id":"50b47a7d-2621-45e0-a91c-5c4c5074c8d6","type":"art_form","slug":"vals","title":"vals","summary":"Argentine tango is a musical genre and accompanying social dance originating at the end of the 19th century in the suburbs of Buenos Aires.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wsg57g88ey","content":[{"text":"Argentine tango is a musical genre and accompanying social dance originating at the end of the 19th century in the suburbs of Buenos Aires. It typically has a 24 or 44 rhythmic time signature, and two or three parts repeating in patterns such as ABAB or ABCAC. Its lyrics are marked by nostalgia, sadness, and laments for lost love. The typical orchestra  has several melodic instruments and is given a distinctive air by the bandoneon. It has continued to grow in popularity and spread internationally, adding modern elements without replacing the older ones. Among its leading figures are the singer and songwriter Carlos Gardel and composers/performers Francisco Canaro, Juan D'Arienzo, Carlos Di Sarli, Osvaldo Pugliese, Elvira Santamaría, and Ástor Piazzolla.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f1b1274f-11aa-4b51-b2ff-693397ebb7a3"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History of tango","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"4k00v7sh8j","content":[{"text":"The origins of tango are unclear because little historical documentation from that era exists. In recent years, a few tango aficionados have undertaken a thorough research of that history and so it is less mysterious today than before. It is generally thought that the dance developed in the late 19th century in working-class neighborhoods of Buenos Aires, Argentina and was practiced by Argentine dancers, musicians, and immigrant laborers. Like other Latin American countries, Argentine elites rejected a racial mixture with darker skin colored Argentines. Argentines repeated stereotypes that were common in Europe in the colonial era: non-caucasian people were forced into ghetto cohabitation. Tango was practiced in streets and patios, particularly dark street corners.  Additionally, Afro-Argentines played important roles in evolution both musically and choreographically in the early stage of tango. The term \"tango\" was originated from Afro-Argentine dance forms, and black people are still connected to tango well into the 20th century. Tango developed with expression of political struggles by black community and was loved by many immigrants who lived in shanty town and wished to change their socio-economic situation.\nArgentine elites viewed tango as dangerous association and gathering place for lower-class people. However, as famous tango stars such as Alberto Castillo gained popularity in Argentina, the positive image of blackness related to tango started to widely share in Argentina's mass culture during the 1930s to 1950s. Tango lyrics often challenge the images of Argentina made by foreigners: The true Argentina was the country with both black and white people who originated the tango, not the rich people who danced the foxtrot.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f1b1274f-11aa-4b51-b2ff-693397ebb7a3"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Music","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wx1fr3ej8n","content":[{"text":"Argentine tango music is much more varied than ballroom tango music. A large amount of tango music has been composed by a variety of different orchestras over the last century. Not only is there a large volume of music, there is a breadth of stylistic differences between these orchestras as well, which makes it easier for Argentine tango dancers to spend the whole night dancing only Argentine tango. The four representative schools of the Argentine tango music are Di Sarli, d'Arienzo, Troilo and Pugliese, all four descendent from Italian immigrant families. They are dance orchestras, playing music for dancing. When the spirit of the music is characterized by counterpoint marking, clarity in the articulation is needed. It has a clear, repetitive pulse or beat, a strong tango-rhythm which is based on the 2x4, 2 strong beats on 4 (dos por cuatro). Ástor Piazzolla stretched the classical harmony and counterpoint and moved the tango from the dance floor to the concert stage. His compositions tell us something of our contemporary life and dancing it relates much to modern dance.\nWhile Argentine tango dancing has historically been danced to tango music, such as that produced by such orchestra leaders as Osvaldo Pugliese, Carlos di Sarli, Juan d'Arienzo, in the '90s a younger generation of tango dancers began dancing tango steps to alternatives to tango music; music from other genres like, \"world music\", \"electro-tango\", \"experimental rock\", \"trip hop\", and \"blues\", to name a few.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f1b1274f-11aa-4b51-b2ff-693397ebb7a3"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"France","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"e1wv634cmj","content":[{"text":"In 1983, the dance show Tango Argentino, staged by Claudio Segovia and Hector Orezzolli, opened in Paris, France, starring dancers Juan Carlos Copes and Maria Nieves, Nélida y Nelson, Eduardo y Gloria, María y Carlos Rivarola, Norma y Luis Pereyra, Mayoral y Elsa Maria, Carlos y Inés Borges, Pablo Veron, Miguel Zotto and Milena Plebs, and Virulazo and Elvira.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f1b1274f-11aa-4b51-b2ff-693397ebb7a3"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"United Kingdom","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3j0h7ftxey","content":[{"text":"Argentine tango dancing in the UK began in the early 1990s in response to the hugely popular internationally touring shows \"Forever Tango\" and \"Tango Argentino\". Enthusiastic Anglo-Argentine milonguero (dance hall tango dancer) Andrew Potter who had followed \"Forever Tango\" to London and stayed for its extensive run, got together with some Londoner friends to start the city's first-ever tango milonga (tango dance party/hall) in The London Welsh Centre at 157 Grays Inn Road, known as \"Tango The Argentine Way\" which would pack out every Friday night. From that moment, the tango dances and classes proliferated throughout the capital and then throughout the rest of the UK.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f1b1274f-11aa-4b51-b2ff-693397ebb7a3"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"United States","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6ytqygrhhe","content":[{"text":"In 1985, the Argentine dance show Tango Argentino transferred to Broadway in New York City. Cast members gave classes to a number of students, including Robert Duvall. Paul Pellicoro provided a dance center for the performers to teach new students. At the same time, Danel and Maria Bastone were teaching tango in New York, and Orlando Paiva was offering tango classes in Los Angeles. For further lessons, Duvall sought out Nestor Ray, a dancer who Duvall had seen perform in the documentary film Tango mio.\nIn 1986, Nora and Raul Dinzelbacher visited San Francisco, coming from La Paz, Entre Ríos and Buenos Aires aboard a cruise ship where they were dancing tango and chacarera professionally. Al and Barbara Garvey took tango classes from them as well as from Jorge and Rosa Ledesma from Quilmes, Buenos Aires; all in the style of choreographed show tango. In 1987, the Garveys traveled to Buenos Aires to discover the traditional improvisational social dance style at a large milonga (Centro Akarense) filled with older dancers in Villa Urquiza. Upon returning home to Fairfax, California, the Garveys continued tango lessons and began organizing milongas around the San Francisco Bay Area. They co-founded the Bay Area Argentine Tango Association (BAATA) and published a journal.\nIn 1986, Brigitta Winkler appeared in her first stage performance, Tangoshow in Montreal. Though based in Berlin, Winkler traveled often to teach at tango festivals in North America throughout the following two decades. Winkler was a seminal influence of Daniel Trenner.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f1b1274f-11aa-4b51-b2ff-693397ebb7a3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bdq5w6g5tv","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Argentine tango”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f1b1274f-11aa-4b51-b2ff-693397ebb7a3"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8r0bfgrvnn","content":[{"text":"vals is type of tango dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5dfd9fbf-b80a-4ff8-8df1-df6a9a16caed"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2sz3jt62f3","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5dfd9fbf-b80a-4ff8-8df1-df6a9a16caed"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Vals, Ansicht von Süden","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8a/Vals_GR.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Adrian Michael","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Vals, Ansicht von Süden","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8a/Vals_GR.jpg/960px-Vals_GR.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Vals_GR.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8a/Vals_GR.jpg/1280px-Vals_GR.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"},{"alt":"Vals GR als historischer Kurort in E.Lechners Reiseführer von 1903 dargestellt","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1c/Vals_GR_historischer_Druck_von_1903_O.F%C3%BCssli_E.Lechner.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Geca001","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Vals GR als historischer Kurort in E.Lechners Reiseführer von 1903 dargestellt","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1c/Vals_GR_historischer_Druck_von_1903_O.F%C3%BCssli_E.Lechner.jpg/960px-Vals_GR_historischer_Druck_von_1903_O.F%C3%BCssli_E.Lechner.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Vals_GR_historischer_Druck_von_1903_O.F%C3%BCssli_E.Lechner.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1c/Vals_GR_historischer_Druck_von_1903_O.F%C3%BCssli_E.Lechner.jpg/1280px-Vals_GR_historischer_Druck_von_1903_O.F%C3%BCssli_E.Lechner.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"},{"alt":"Vals as seen in a westward direction towards Zervreilahorn left above Zervreila Dam and Piz Aul (right)","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/85/4_times_Vals_in_a_southwestward_direction.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Caumasee","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Vals as seen in a westward direction towards Zervreilahorn left above Zervreila Dam and Piz Aul (right)","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/85/4_times_Vals_in_a_southwestward_direction.jpg/960px-4_times_Vals_in_a_southwestward_direction.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:4_times_Vals_in_a_southwestward_direction.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/85/4_times_Vals_in_a_southwestward_direction.jpg/1280px-4_times_Vals_in_a_southwestward_direction.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-06T05:47:12.721Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/vals"}
{"id":"38336216-ab02-4acb-a990-36b17b3f2106","type":"art_form","slug":"variation","title":"variation","summary":"In ballet, a variation (sometimes referred to as a pas seul, meaning to dance alone) is a solo dance. In a classical grand pas de deux, the ballerina and danseur each perform a variation.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rdbxspfw39","content":[{"text":"In ballet, a variation (sometimes referred to as a pas seul, meaning to dance alone) is a solo dance. In a classical grand pas de deux, the ballerina and danseur each perform a variation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f3620f97-3dfa-4fd8-a562-cd2b186dc9b5"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Examples","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f7qp268h7r","content":[{"text":"La Bayadère – Gamzatti, Nikiya\nCoppélia – Swanhilda\nLe Corsaire – Medora\nDiana and Acteon – Diana\nDon Quixote – Basilio, Kitri, Cupid\nThe Nutcracker – Sugar Plum Fairy\nSleeping Beauty – Bluebird\nSwan Lake – Odile (the Black Swan)","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f3620f97-3dfa-4fd8-a562-cd2b186dc9b5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5zkm24pgc5","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Variation (ballet)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"f3620f97-3dfa-4fd8-a562-cd2b186dc9b5"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5fn6bx6f1m","content":[{"text":"variation is ballet dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d6973fec-12ef-46ef-bbc0-704329f8be14"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"krk3hey3t8","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d6973fec-12ef-46ef-bbc0-704329f8be14"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Regional genetic variation within the Belgian population. Belgian samples were mapped on the European PC model (41,083 SNPs) and colored based on the region of inhabitance as indicated.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bc/PCA_of_regional_genetic_variation_of_the_Belgians.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Jimmy Van den Eynden, Tine Descamps, Els Delporte, Nancy H. C. Roosens, Sigrid C. J. De Keersmaecker, Vanessa De Wit, Joris Robert Vermeesch, Els Goetghebeur, Jean Tafforeau, Stefaan Demarest, Marc Van den Bulcke, and Herman Van Oyen","height":1030,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Regional genetic variation within the Belgian population. Belgian samples were mapped on the European PC model (41,083 SNPs) and colored based on the region of inhabitance as indicated.","licence":"CC BY 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bc/PCA_of_regional_genetic_variation_of_the_Belgians.png/960px-PCA_of_regional_genetic_variation_of_the_Belgians.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:PCA_of_regional_genetic_variation_of_the_Belgians.png","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bc/PCA_of_regional_genetic_variation_of_the_Belgians.png/1280px-PCA_of_regional_genetic_variation_of_the_Belgians.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0"},{"alt":"Aulostomus maculatus (Trumpetfish -brown variation).","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/eb/Aulostomus_maculatus_%28Trumpetfish_-brown_variation%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Nhobgood ( talk ) Nick Hobgood","height":1704,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Aulostomus maculatus (Trumpetfish -brown variation).","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/eb/Aulostomus_maculatus_%28Trumpetfish_-brown_variation%29.jpg/960px-Aulostomus_maculatus_%28Trumpetfish_-brown_variation%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Aulostomus_maculatus_(Trumpetfish_-brown_variation).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/eb/Aulostomus_maculatus_%28Trumpetfish_-brown_variation%29.jpg/1280px-Aulostomus_maculatus_%28Trumpetfish_-brown_variation%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"},{"alt":"Spirobranchus giganteus (Christmastree Worm - yellow variation).","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/43/Spirobranchus_giganteus_%28Christmastree_Worm_-_yellow_variation%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Nhobgood Nick Hobgood","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Spirobranchus giganteus (Christmastree Worm - yellow variation).","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/43/Spirobranchus_giganteus_%28Christmastree_Worm_-_yellow_variation%29.jpg/960px-Spirobranchus_giganteus_%28Christmastree_Worm_-_yellow_variation%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Spirobranchus_giganteus_(Christmastree_Worm_-_yellow_variation).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/43/Spirobranchus_giganteus_%28Christmastree_Worm_-_yellow_variation%29.jpg/1280px-Spirobranchus_giganteus_%28Christmastree_Worm_-_yellow_variation%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:06.351Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/variation"}
{"id":"5bf3009b-3084-4f82-8e32-c143b7a6646f","type":"art_form","slug":"varsovienne","title":"Varsovienne","summary":"The Varsoviana is both a couple dance and a melody.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"whd5xn2gz2","content":[{"text":"The Varsoviana is both a couple dance and a melody. Whilst originally conceived as a mazurka (with its characteristic  34 time and accent on the 2nd or 3rd beat) it is now regularly mislabeled as a waltz (even being known as The Waltz of Vienna).\nThe Varsoviana is known by a variety of variations of its name (such as the Varsouvienne, Varsovienne or La Va), but it also has names which reference the distinctive 'pause' motif in the dance (such as Shoe the Donkey, Put your Little Foot, Cock your Leg Up) as well as titles that refer to songs which have come to be associated with the tune (e.g. Jan Pierewiet, Mascando Chicote, Turkey Rhubarb).\nThe dance and melody is known across Europe, North America, South America and Australasia. It is one of the most well known and long lived of all the 19th century 'round' couple dances, it was one of the earliest ever \"sequence\" dances. Its longevity is possibly due to its distinctive choreography, in particular the novelty (for that time) of having a pause motif in the dance. The pause motif which marks out all versions of the Varsoviana dance, usually through a point of the toe or heel held for one of two beats, also makes it more difficult to relocate the dance to a different tune, perhaps protecting the association between dance choreography and melody.\nThe earliest reference to the creation of 'La Varsoviana' is a French newspaper Journal Des Faits.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"225ff22a-e667-4371-9f1b-c7cdc348ed62"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Uses","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jqa7z7rp3v","content":[{"text":"Henry Ford's Dance Orchestra recorded a piece titled Varsovienne.\nThe Albion Dance Band recorded a varsoviana tune on their 1977 album The Prospect Before Us.\nA varsoviana tune plays an important role in Tennessee Williams' play A Streetcar Named Desire.\nConrad Hilton danced the varsovienne as a type of ceremonial good luck ritual when he opened new hotels.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"225ff22a-e667-4371-9f1b-c7cdc348ed62"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xrrjbm80my","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Varsovienne”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"225ff22a-e667-4371-9f1b-c7cdc348ed62"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"x0aevhqt81","content":[{"text":"Varsovienne is dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cb233fa8-47c2-42f5-ae73-10c0e88db54a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"z6p9vjjhgh","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 4 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cb233fa8-47c2-42f5-ae73-10c0e88db54a"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Lithograph of La Varsovienne by French poet and dramatist Casimir Delavigne A Paris, chez Launer, éditeur Marchand de musique, Boulevard Montmartre N° 14.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a2/La_Varsovienne_Delavigne.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Tellier","height":871,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Lithograph of La Varsovienne by French poet and dramatist Casimir Delavigne A Paris, chez Launer, éditeur Marchand de musique, Boulevard Montmartre N° 14.","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a2/La_Varsovienne_Delavigne.png/960px-La_Varsovienne_Delavigne.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:La_Varsovienne_Delavigne.png","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a2/La_Varsovienne_Delavigne.png/1280px-La_Varsovienne_Delavigne.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"Sheet music of La Varsovienne . Lyrics by French poet and dramatist Casimir Delavigne . Music by Antoine Meissonnier (1783-1857). A Paris, chez Launer, éditeur Marchand de musique, Boulevard Montmartre N° 14.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6c/La_Varsovienne_Delavigne_sheet_music_02.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Tellier","height":1838,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Sheet music of La Varsovienne . Lyrics by French poet and dramatist Casimir Delavigne . Music by Antoine Meissonnier (1783-1857). A Paris, chez Launer, éditeur Marchand de musique, Boulevard Montmartre N° 14.","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6c/La_Varsovienne_Delavigne_sheet_music_02.png/960px-La_Varsovienne_Delavigne_sheet_music_02.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:La_Varsovienne_Delavigne_sheet_music_02.png","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6c/La_Varsovienne_Delavigne_sheet_music_02.png/1280px-La_Varsovienne_Delavigne_sheet_music_02.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"Sheet music of La Varsovienne . Lyrics by French poet and dramatist Casimir Delavigne . Music by Antoine Meissonnier (1783-1857). A Paris, chez Launer, éditeur Marchand de musique, Boulevard Montmartre N° 14.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a4/La_Varsovienne_Delavigne_sheet_music_01.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Tellier","height":1839,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Sheet music of La Varsovienne . Lyrics by French poet and dramatist Casimir Delavigne . Music by Antoine Meissonnier (1783-1857). A Paris, chez Launer, éditeur Marchand de musique, Boulevard Montmartre N° 14.","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a4/La_Varsovienne_Delavigne_sheet_music_01.png/960px-La_Varsovienne_Delavigne_sheet_music_01.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:La_Varsovienne_Delavigne_sheet_music_01.png","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a4/La_Varsovienne_Delavigne_sheet_music_01.png/1280px-La_Varsovienne_Delavigne_sheet_music_01.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:28.026Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/varsovienne"}
{"id":"cdd8107b-d0e3-4845-90e1-0e03cf5bcaf0","type":"art_form","slug":"velakali","title":"Velakali","summary":"Velakali is a traditional martial dance of Nair community of Kerala, India that is performed during temple festivals.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gaj1ptwh7d","content":[{"text":"Velakali is a traditional martial dance of Nair community of Kerala, India that is performed during temple festivals. Brightly dressed dancers wielding swords and shields depict a fight sequence between the Pandavas and Kauravas during the course of the dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cfa079a2-7392-4f34-9be8-a71364971f18"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Myth behind Velakali","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9j49p9ftyf","content":[{"text":"There are several legends associated with the origin and history of Velakali. One such legend talks of the sage Narada witnessing Lord Krishna and his friends staging a mock battle on the banks of the Kalindi using the stalks and leaves of the water lily as swords and shields. Narada then requested the sage Villumangalam to capture the martial vigour of the mock fight in a ritualistic performance for Krishna. Villumangalam in turn requested the ruler of Ambalapuzha to teach young men to perform the dance and so the ruler asked his army chieftains Mathoor Panicker and Velloor Kurup to ready a troupe of Velakali performers. Since the dancers were originally warriors, the dance bore a close resemblance to the martial art form of Kalarippayattu.\nVelakali thus originated in the princely state of Chempakassery (modern Ambalappuzha). To this day it is a regular feature of the pooram at the Ambalapuzha Sri Krishnaswamy temple. Since the annexation of Ambalappuzha into Travancore, Velakali has marked the commencement of the annual Painkuni festival at Sri Padmanabha Swamy Temple, Trivandrum.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cfa079a2-7392-4f34-9be8-a71364971f18"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Performance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"htwfa3xv5d","content":[{"text":"During a Velakali performance huge effigies representing the Pandavas are put up during the festival at the eastern entrance of the Padmanabhaswamy temple. In Ambalapuzha, the dance is choreographed under the guidance of Mathur Panickar a hereditary Asan and minister of the Ambalapuzha royal family. Velakali dancers represent the Kauravas and the dance represents the battle between the cousins. The dancers stop and beat a retreat once they reach the effigy of Yudhishthira. The performance represents the victory of dharma over adharma and the victory of Bheema over the Kauravas during their exile to the forest. The younger performers line up in the front and the elders make up the rear of the troupe with a group of flag bearers forming the rearmost line. The performers are also sometimes accompanied by replicas of animals like oxen that were used in warfare in the olden days. According to Alf Hiltebeitel, Velakali performances in central Travancore are reenactments of supposedly historical battles rather than the Mahabharata War and are intertwined with rituals of patayani. It is at the Padmanabhaswamy temple that the performances are linked with the battle between the cousins of the Mahabharata.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cfa079a2-7392-4f34-9be8-a71364971f18"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Costumes","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"eayr303ypc","content":[{"text":"Velakali is an all-male performance. The performers dress up in traditional clothes and colorful red headgear of the medieval Nair soldiers and wear cloth garlands of beads that cover their bare chests. They wield colorful shields and long canes or bear swords and dance to the beat of panchavadyam performers who accompany the performance and there are skilful displays of swordplay.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cfa079a2-7392-4f34-9be8-a71364971f18"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Music","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"effqfr5drz","content":[{"text":"Velakali is performed to the accompaniment of panchavadyam which uses the maddalam, thavil, ilathalam, kombu and kuzhal. The music involves no lyrics and the artists move to the rhythm of the percussion instruments. Also, unlike most dance forms, bhava has no place in Velakali and the focus is solely on tala. Velakali involves several distinct movements such as the pidichakali, padakali and the vela ottam.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cfa079a2-7392-4f34-9be8-a71364971f18"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Recent trends","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"60vxywpek8","content":[{"text":"Velakali requires of its performers considerable physical training and the knowledge of the use of arms. Education and employment opportunities had gradually led to fewer youngsters taking up Velakali resulting in its gradual decline. It has enjoyed a resurgence in recent years due to the efforts of Mohanankunju Panicker. The dance was staged again at the Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple in Trivandrum in 2011 after a gap of almost 40 years.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cfa079a2-7392-4f34-9be8-a71364971f18"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1mxfm638mp","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Velakali”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"cfa079a2-7392-4f34-9be8-a71364971f18"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"swwavd4qx0","content":[{"text":"Velakali is Traditional martial dance of Kerala, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e8a685e7-9afa-4cbe-8d3d-834166846979"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xq7ybxxy43","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e8a685e7-9afa-4cbe-8d3d-834166846979"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"VELAKALI","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4f/VELAKALI_FESTIVAL.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Sunivallamkottarakara","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"VELAKALI","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4f/VELAKALI_FESTIVAL.jpg/960px-VELAKALI_FESTIVAL.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:VELAKALI_FESTIVAL.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4f/VELAKALI_FESTIVAL.jpg/1280px-VELAKALI_FESTIVAL.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"വേലകളിക്ക് ഒരുങ്ങിയ കുട്ടികൾ കല്ലൂപ്പാറയിൽ","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fa/Velakali_Kallooppara_2025_04.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Akhilan","height":957,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"വേലകളിക്ക് ഒരുങ്ങിയ കുട്ടികൾ കല്ലൂപ്പാറയിൽ","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fa/Velakali_Kallooppara_2025_04.jpg/960px-Velakali_Kallooppara_2025_04.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Velakali_Kallooppara_2025_04.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fa/Velakali_Kallooppara_2025_04.jpg/1280px-Velakali_Kallooppara_2025_04.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"വേലകളിക്ക് ഒരുങ്ങിയ കുട്ടികൾ കല്ലൂപ്പാറയിൽ","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5b/Velakali_Kallooppara_2025_02.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Akhilan","height":765,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"വേലകളിക്ക് ഒരുങ്ങിയ കുട്ടികൾ കല്ലൂപ്പാറയിൽ","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5b/Velakali_Kallooppara_2025_02.jpg/960px-Velakali_Kallooppara_2025_02.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Velakali_Kallooppara_2025_02.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5b/Velakali_Kallooppara_2025_02.jpg/1280px-Velakali_Kallooppara_2025_02.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:04.142Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/velakali"}
{"id":"91ec5891-835b-435d-b996-f96e4197c042","type":"art_form","slug":"venezuelan-dance","title":"Venezuelan dance","summary":"Most of Venezuela's dances originated in the Caribbean and integrated African and European styles into indigenous culture.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"j52xhs4s6f","content":[{"text":"Most of Venezuela's dances originated in the Caribbean and integrated African and European styles into indigenous culture. They include the national dance joropo, Venezuelan salsa, Venezuelan merengue, and the Baile de San Juan, also called tambor. One of the pioneers of contemporary dance in Venezuela was choreographer Sonia Sanoja who received the National Dance Award in 1998 for her artistic career and contributions Venezuelan dance. Other major figures include Irma Contreras, who founded the National Ballet of Venezuela with her sister Margot Contreras. Other well known figures who have helped popularize Venezuelan dance include Yolanda Moreno, who toured with her dancing troupe across the United States in 1962 and performed on the Ed Sullivan Show.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a4e84306-b719-4a59-8d55-3db254fd8f20"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Pre-colonization period","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"88jhed1vp4","content":[{"text":"Prior to Spanish colonization of the Americas, dance in what is now Venezuela was used predominantly in religious ceremonies.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a4e84306-b719-4a59-8d55-3db254fd8f20"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Colonial Venezuela","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0h4e8y3vd7","content":[{"text":"The Spanish fandango was danced widely in Venezuela during the colonial era.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a4e84306-b719-4a59-8d55-3db254fd8f20"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Independent Venezuela","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"24vxgqs2p0","content":[{"text":"After the Venezuelan independence in the early 19th century, dancing for entertainment became more common. These dances included the zarzuela, sainete, and musical comedies.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a4e84306-b719-4a59-8d55-3db254fd8f20"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"20th century","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"z3r98aakyk","content":[{"text":"In 1917, Anna Pavlova and her touring ballet company visited Venezuela; it was the first time ballet had been performed in the country. Later, in 1930, Gally de Mamay began teaching ballet in private Venezuelan homes. One of de Mamay's students, Nena Coronil founded the National School of Ballet in 1948. This was followed in 1957 by the founding of the National Ballet of Venezuela by Irma Contreras in 1957; the company disbanded in 1968. One of the students of the National Ballet was Zhandra Rodríguez, who left the National Ballet to become the principal dancer of the American Ballet Theatre. Other troupes, including Ballet Internacional de Caracas and Ballet Nuevo Mundo de Caracas, directed by Rodríguez, were successors to the original company.\nIn the 1950s, singer Yolanda Moreno formed the group Danzas Venezolanas, which adapted traditional Venezuelan dances for the stage. The troupe was known in English as the Venezuelan Folklore Ballet and toured across 18 American states in the early 1960s.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a4e84306-b719-4a59-8d55-3db254fd8f20"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Baile de San Juan","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zk516t4eh3","content":[{"text":"Baile de San Juan, also known as tambor, is a dance of Afro-Venezuelan origins.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a4e84306-b719-4a59-8d55-3db254fd8f20"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9xhmwscs53","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Dance in Venezuela”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"a4e84306-b719-4a59-8d55-3db254fd8f20"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dgdq179das","content":[{"text":"Venezuelan dance is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"538c8338-5650-49f4-a271-e89e07eb6387"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-05T01:44:06.517Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/venezuelan-dance"}
{"id":"c7f2cd58-acd9-418e-8ba7-629652b85a8d","type":"art_form","slug":"viennese-waltz","title":"Viennese waltz","summary":"Viennese waltz (German: Wiener Walzer) is a form of ballroom dance. At least four different meanings are recognized.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2p3mqvcynr","content":[{"text":"Viennese waltz (German: Wiener Walzer) is a form of ballroom dance. At least four different meanings are recognized. In the historically first sense, the name may refer to several versions of the waltz, including the earliest waltzes done in ballroom dancing, danced to the music of Viennese waltz.\nWhat is now called the Viennese waltz is the original form of the waltz. It was the first ballroom dance performed in the closed hold or \"waltz\" position.  The dance that is popularly known as the waltz is actually the English or slow waltz, danced at approximately 90 beats per minute with 3 beats to the bar  (the international standard of 30 measures per minute), while the Viennese waltz is danced at about 180 beats (58-60 measures) per minute. To this day however, in Germany, Austria, Scandinavia, and France, the words Walzer (German), vals (Danish, Norwegian, and Swedish), and valse (French) still implicitly refer to the original dance and not the slow waltz.\nThe Viennese waltz is a rotary dance where the dancers are constantly turning either toward the leader's right (natural) or toward the leader's left (reverse), interspersed with non-rotating change steps to switch between the direction of rotation.\nAs the waltz evolved, some of the versions that were done at about the original fast tempo came to be called specifically \"Viennese waltz\" to distinguish them from the slower waltzes.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2b088c9b-12f8-4920-b92b-0ab8caf0e286"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Early history","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6yr0sfae7v","content":[{"text":"The Viennese waltz, so called to distinguish it from the waltz, is the oldest of the current ballroom dances. It emerged in the second half of the 18th century from the German dance and the Ländler in Austria and was both popular and subject to criticism. At that time, the waltz, as described in a magazine from 1799, was performed by dancers who held on to their long gowns to prevent them from dragging or being stepped on. The dancers would lift their dresses and hold them high like cloaks, and this would bring both their bodies under one cover. This action also required the dancers' bodies to be very close together, and this closeness attracted moral disparagement. In 1797, Wolf published a pamphlet against the dance entitled \"Proof that Waltzing is the Main Source of Weakness of the Body and Mind of our Generation\". But even when faced with all this negativity, it became very popular in Vienna. Large dance halls like the Zum Sperl in 1807 and the Apollo in 1808 were opened to provide space for thousands of dancers. The dance reached and spread to England sometime before 1812. It was introduced as the German waltz and became a huge hit. It gained ground through the Congress of Vienna at the beginning of the 19th century and by the famous compositions by Josef Lanner, Johann Strauss I and his son, Johann Strauss II, and since then has been known as the Viennese waltz.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2b088c9b-12f8-4920-b92b-0ab8caf0e286"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"r7zezyqeq0","content":[{"text":"Initially, the waltz was significantly different from its form today. In the first place, the couples did not dance in the closed position as today. The illustrations and descriptions make it clear that the couples danced with arm positions similar to that of the precursor dances, the Ländler and the Allemande. The hold was at times semi-closed and at times side by side.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2b088c9b-12f8-4920-b92b-0ab8caf0e286"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Technique and styles","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"es7q21xchx","content":[{"text":"The Viennese waltz is a rotary dance where the dancers are constantly turning either in a clockwise (\"natural\") or counter-clockwise (\"reverse\") direction interspersed with non-rotating change steps to switch between the direction of rotation. A true Viennese waltz consists only of turns and change steps. Other moves such as the fleckerls, American-style figures and side sway or underarm turns are modern inventions.\nThe competitive styles of Viennese waltz has a reduced number of steps, depending on the style and competition level or medal exam level.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2b088c9b-12f8-4920-b92b-0ab8caf0e286"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"International-style Viennese waltz","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"qjycyte3k7","content":[{"text":"International-style Viennese waltz is danced in closed position. The syllabus is limited to natural and reverse turns, closed and open changes, fleckerls, contra check, left whisk, and canter-time pivot turns (canter pivots).\nIn World Dance Council competition, canter pivots are excluded.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2b088c9b-12f8-4920-b92b-0ab8caf0e286"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"American-style Viennese waltz","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3cpgz80ad5","content":[{"text":"American-style Viennese waltz has much more freedom, both in dance positions and syllabus.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2b088c9b-12f8-4920-b92b-0ab8caf0e286"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vns7j6kjcb","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Viennese waltz”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2b088c9b-12f8-4920-b92b-0ab8caf0e286"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"58ss4atepm","content":[{"text":"Viennese waltz is genre of ballroom dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"84f6385d-975e-459d-8940-81a046519f91"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rbbmqmftt1","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 9 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"84f6385d-975e-459d-8940-81a046519f91"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"The making of this work was supported by Wikimedia Austria . For other files made with the support of Wikimedia Austria, please see the category Supported by Wikimedia Österreich . WDSF World Open Standard am 17. November 2012 in Wien: Vadim Garbuzov und Kathrin Menzinger beim…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ed/World_Open_Standard_20121117_Garbuzov_Menzinger_9942.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Ailura","height":1920,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"The making of this work was supported by Wikimedia Austria . For other files made with the support of Wikimedia Austria, please see the category Supported by Wikimedia Österreich . WDSF World Open Standard am 17. November 2012 in Wien: Vadim Garbuzov und Kathrin Menzinger beim…","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ed/World_Open_Standard_20121117_Garbuzov_Menzinger_9942.jpg/960px-World_Open_Standard_20121117_Garbuzov_Menzinger_9942.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:World_Open_Standard_20121117_Garbuzov_Menzinger_9942.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ed/World_Open_Standard_20121117_Garbuzov_Menzinger_9942.jpg/1280px-World_Open_Standard_20121117_Garbuzov_Menzinger_9942.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:26.247Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/viennese-waltz"}
{"id":"6e273c0e-475a-491d-b552-5322641e5aec","type":"art_form","slug":"vimbuza","title":"Vimbuza","summary":"The Vimbuza is a traditional dance of the Tumbuka people of Malawi, Tanzania and Zambia, used in healing rituals. \n\nIn 2005, it was recognized by UNESCO's Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jrmk997z4z","content":[{"text":"The Vimbuza is a traditional dance of the Tumbuka people of Malawi, Tanzania and Zambia, used in healing rituals.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e9402ced-8f60-49ae-9790-d0fa3464d4d6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"782c146hnd","content":[{"text":"In 2005, it was recognized by UNESCO's Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity. 2008, it was added to UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e9402ced-8f60-49ae-9790-d0fa3464d4d6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origins","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pqkh7yqc64","content":[{"text":"The Vimbuza dance originated in the 16th century in the Nkhamangam, located in what is now northern and central Malawi, and southern Tanzania and eastern Zambia.\nThe models of Tumbuka traditional religion and ghost beliefs have developed through exchanges with neighboring peoples and under the influence of Christian missionaries since the end of the 19th century.\nReligious shrines were located in central locations, where a possessive nature spirit or a lowly deity called chiŵanda (pl. viŵanda) was worshiped. Men or women who were possessed by this spirit were henceforth to serve him at his shrine. The possessed could go into trance and communicate with the spirit, and in economic emergencies, they received messages about how humans could restore the lost harmony with nature. Regardless of their gender, they were called \"women of the spirit\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e9402ced-8f60-49ae-9790-d0fa3464d4d6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"myb5edr7w9","content":[{"text":"In the 1850s, the Nguni invaded the southern part of the settlement area from the south and subjugated the simple Tumbuka population that had not fled. There were  changes in the economic and cultural fields. The Nguni suppressed the religious practices of the Tumbuka, causing the shrines to largely disappear. By the end of the 1870's, the population had grown too large for the previous methods of cultivation. Farmers began to burn down forests to fertilize the fields with the ashes. Deforestation has dried up rivers and reduced overall agricultural production. There were several hunger uprisings of the Tumbuka against their social oppression and increased religious activities to counter the loss of their own culture. The Tumbuka and other Nguni-dependent lower classes, as they became increasingly impoverished, created an increasingly powerful spiritual counterworld.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e9402ced-8f60-49ae-9790-d0fa3464d4d6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Classes of spirits","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"j4yp63dqjj","content":[{"text":"The spirits worshiped by the Tumbuka today have evolved from various cultural influences. According to their mythological origins, they can be divided into several groups: Vimbuza are explained with the spirits of fallen warriors, the end of the 19th century. The European Parliament has already expressed its views on the Commission's proposal for a directive on the protection of workers from the risks related to exposure to asbestos. Vilombos are powerful animal spirits of lions, leopards, and pythons that originate from the widespread African cosmogony. The animals must be characterized as wild and alien. The most dangerous are the vyanusi, who are the returned spirits of the Nguni of deceased powerful healers and witch-finders (nchimi). The word vyanusi comes from izanusi, \"the stinkers\". Another spirit that does not appear in the ceremony, however, is the mzungu (European), probably because it is difficult to imagine a dancing missionary or a dancing British colonial official. Nor are ancestral spirits (pl. mizimu) suitable for the ceremony. Ancestors are one's own, they can speak to people in dreams or visions and give instructions, but they are not trusted to take possession of a person. Structurally different, Ancestors stands for culture (above) and Vimbuza for nature (below).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e9402ced-8f60-49ae-9790-d0fa3464d4d6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Animal sacrifice and dancing ceremony","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ktq5dn5919","content":[{"text":"Health is understood as a balance between inner heat and cold. Once a person is diagnosed an obsession, the patient gets too hot. To find out, the woman visits a botanist (ng'anga/mzamba) who used to be obsessed herself. She can talk to the spirit and maybe classify it. For treatment, she prescribes a medicine and thus becomes the mbuya (spiritual protector) of the patient. If necessary, she organizes the public therapeutic dance ceremony.\nAn animal sacrifice (kusawiska) is offered to the Vimbuza patient, as is the case with other African possession spirits. Ghosts need fresh blood (chilopa), and if this desire is not satisfied, the ghost may take the patient's blood. An animal sacrifice is the basic prerequisite for the healing process. In the chilopa ritual, the patient drinks the blood that has just gushed from the throat, soothing the mind and alleviating the patient's suffering, at least in the short term. Ghosts are often described as mphepo. The sacrificial animals are usually suffocated, the killing is seen as drinking the animal's air. Drinking the warm gushing blood is equivalent to taking in the essence of life, so the process is not taking life, but taking in life. Unlike other sacrificial rituals performed by priests, in the chilopa the patient himself makes the sacrifice, meaning that the Vimbuza spirits directly receive the life energy in the form of animal blood. The first animal sacrifice begins with a chicken, to increase to a goat or, rarely, even a cow. If after the victim's symptoms have disappeared, meaning the spirit has cooled, the patient does not need further treatment, he can live with the spirit inside.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e9402ced-8f60-49ae-9790-d0fa3464d4d6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Development after independence","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"p0bv97k3c2","content":[{"text":"With the independence of Malawi and Zambia in 1964, the official attitude towards Vimbuza changed. The ceremony was no longer dismissed with contempt, but in the course of Africanization, it was recognized as an important part of traditional culture. However, the therapeutic aspect and the mythological meaning disappeared, a form of entertainment dances purified of their ghostly ideas developed, in which men participated. At the instigation of the Ministries of Culture of Malawi and Zambia, shows were created for tourists. In 1968, a Zambian postage stamp featured a male Vimbuza dancer. In this context, Vimbuza was included in the UNESCO Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity Programme in 2005.\nThe events have been commercialized. The witch hunters (nchimi) compete as paid organizers of the dances. In addition, they treat the possessed patients without public attention in \"private clinics\" with herbal medicine and Christian prayers. Diseases arising from the social situation and formerly treated within the village community have become the private problem of an individual who, as in Western countries, needs psychological counselling. Public dance events are no longer affordable for most women.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e9402ced-8f60-49ae-9790-d0fa3464d4d6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Missionary intervention","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"chdjwesp7w","content":[{"text":"Despite being forbidden by Christian missionaries, Vimbuza continued to thrive, providing a vital outlet for people to express their emotions and find healing.\nIn the cultural heritage of the Tumbuka people of northern Malawi and eastern Zambia, Vimbuza encompasses possessive spirits, the bodily manifestations they trigger, and the therapeutic performances aimed at alleviating these symptoms.\nDiagnosed by healers, patients undergo a dance healing ritual treatment that spans several weeks or months, accompanied by spirit-specific drum rhythms created by men.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e9402ced-8f60-49ae-9790-d0fa3464d4d6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3cd462spvk","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Vimbuza”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e9402ced-8f60-49ae-9790-d0fa3464d4d6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ar7fhw18xq","content":[{"text":"Vimbuza is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9ba365e1-e77c-4024-8be2-52c3e0864e61"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8pez4dfx2g","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"9ba365e1-e77c-4024-8be2-52c3e0864e61"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-03T05:47:53.753Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/vimbuza"}
{"id":"00ba1c87-b42c-410a-9bfe-b9bf066b5a2d","type":"art_form","slug":"vogue","title":"vogue","summary":"Vogue, or voguing, is a highly stylized, modern house dance originating in the late 1980s that evolved out of the Harlem ballroom scene of the 1960s.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8xvcsz7jts","content":[{"text":"Vogue, or voguing, is a highly stylized, modern house dance originating in the late 1980s that evolved out of the Harlem ballroom scene of the 1960s. It is inspired by the poses of models in fashion magazines, especially the American magazine Vogue, which gave the dance its name.\nIt gained mainstream exposure when it was featured in Madonna's song and video \"Vogue\" (1990), and when showcased in the 1990 documentary Paris Is Burning (which went on to win the Grand Jury Prize at the 1991 Sundance Film Festival). In its modern form, this dance has become a global phenomenon that continues to evolve both stylistically and demographically.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5c3d597e-d247-4270-9e5d-9357f77b9a26"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"z0vf7g849d","content":[{"text":"This style of dance arose from African American Harlem ballroom cultures, as danced by African-American and participating Latino gay men and transfeminine individuals, from the early 1960s through the 1980s. The Harlem Renaissance shaped a distinctly African American and Latino LGBTQ culture in Harlem from 1920 to 1935, which included advancement in literature, arts and music and attempted to demonstrate that aspects of identity like race, gender and sexuality can be fluid and intersecting.\nThe balls that began during this time eventually shifted from elaborate pageantry to vogue dance battles. The dance battles consisted of dance learned during prison years. Inspired by the style of ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs and the famous images of models in Vogue magazine, voguing is characterized by striking a series of poses as if one is modeling for a photo shoot. Arm and leg movements are angular, linear, rigid, and move swiftly from one static position to another.\nDance competitions often involved throwing \"shade\", or subtle insults directed at one another in order to impress the judges and the audience. The competition style was originally called \"presentation\" and later \"performance\". Over the years, the dance evolved into the more intricate and acrobatic form that is now called \"vogue\".\nVogue dance presents gender as a performance. Drag queens pretend to apply makeup (\"beat face\"), style hair and don extravagant clothing through the dance moves. Depending on the competition category, participants may perform the traditional behaviors of their assigned gender to demonstrate \"realness\", or passing as straight. Although there are varying gender and sexuality classifications and categories, each fits into either female figure (FF) or male figure (MF).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5c3d597e-d247-4270-9e5d-9357f77b9a26"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Styles","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8a4cxyzpng","content":[{"text":"There are currently three distinct styles of vogue: old way (pre-1990); new way (post-1990); and vogue fem (circa 1995).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5c3d597e-d247-4270-9e5d-9357f77b9a26"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Old way","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vt46z5s0sq","content":[{"text":"Old way is characterized by the formation of lines, symmetry, and precision in the execution of formations with graceful, fluid-like action. Egyptian hieroglyphs and fashion poses serve as the original inspirations for old way voguing. In its purest, historical form, old way vogue is a duel between two rivals. Traditionally, old way rules dictated that one rival must \"pin\" the other to win the contest. Pinning involved the trapping of an opponent so that they could not execute any movements while the adversary was still in motion (usually voguing movements with the arms and hands called \"hand performance\" while the opponent was \"pinned\" against the floor doing \"floor exercises\" or against a wall).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5c3d597e-d247-4270-9e5d-9357f77b9a26"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"New way","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"y2yvr5kj28","content":[{"text":"New way is characterized by rigid movements coupled with \"clicks\" (limb contortions at the joints) and \"arms control\" (hand and wrist illusions, which sometimes includes tutting and locking). New way can also be described as a modified form of mime in which imaginary geometric shapes, such as a box, are introduced during motion and moved progressively around the dancer's body to display the dancer's dexterity and memory. New way involves incredible flexibility.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5c3d597e-d247-4270-9e5d-9357f77b9a26"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Vogue femme","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zht8nqxb4h","content":[{"text":"Vogue femme (\"fem\" is derived from the French word femme, meaning \"woman\") is fluidity at its most extreme with exaggerated feminine movements influenced by ballet, jazz and modern dance. Styles of vogue fem performances range from dramatics (which emphasizes stunts, tricks, and speed) to soft (which emphasizes a graceful, beautiful, and easy flow continuations between the five elements). There are currently five elements of vogue fem:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5c3d597e-d247-4270-9e5d-9357f77b9a26"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"skgzy3019p","content":[{"text":"Duckwalk: The duck walk receives its name from the appearance the name references (a duck walking) that involves squatting on the heels and kicking the feet out while moving forward on the beat.\nCatwalk: Catwalking is an exaggerated feminine walk where the legs are crossed over each other, the hips are thrust from side to side, and the hands are thrown forward in opposition to the legs.\nHands: In performance, the hands of the performer often told a story (demonstrated in the category hand performance/arms control) This is the component of performing used to throw shade. For example, miming an expression of horror at the way the opponents face looks.\nFloorwork: This component demonstrates the competitors' sensuality as they roll, twist, and otherwise move on the ground in such a way as to capture the attention of the judges.\nSpins and dips: The most recognizable feat in vogue fem. Dips (commonly miscalled death drops) can be described as a ground-level stunt. This can be executed by spiraling down to the floor and tucking one leg, while the other is extended and creating the illusion that one's head has touched the floor. This is to be executed on what is called the HA! a loud metallic crash in the music or verbal \"HA!\" heard throughout music to accent this specific movement.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5c3d597e-d247-4270-9e5d-9357f77b9a26"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5dpc7f44x3","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Vogue (dance)”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5c3d597e-d247-4270-9e5d-9357f77b9a26"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"h36xgmw4fd","content":[{"text":"vogue is dance and performance style, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ddcd90ae-6511-41bb-beea-9fd13737a855"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"g0fe8spzvr","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 9 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"ddcd90ae-6511-41bb-beea-9fd13737a855"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"by LGBT folks at National Museum of African Arts","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/03/Voguing_Masquerade_Ball_%2830384506411%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"S Pakhrin from DC, USA","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"by LGBT folks at National Museum of African Arts","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/03/Voguing_Masquerade_Ball_%2830384506411%29.jpg/960px-Voguing_Masquerade_Ball_%2830384506411%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Voguing_Masquerade_Ball_(30384506411).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/03/Voguing_Masquerade_Ball_%2830384506411%29.jpg/1280px-Voguing_Masquerade_Ball_%2830384506411%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:05.274Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/vogue"}
{"id":"9e42eb38-13fd-4b91-a352-5440da72da74","type":"art_form","slug":"waltz","title":"waltz","summary":"The waltz (from German  Walzer [ˈvaltsɐ] , meaning \"to roll or revolve\") is a ballroom and folk dance, in triple ( 34 ) time, performed primarily in closed position, originating from German-speaking regions of Europe in the 18th century.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rn9s131zr2","content":[{"text":"The waltz (from German  Walzer [ˈvaltsɐ] , meaning \"to roll or revolve\") is a ballroom and folk dance, in triple ( 34 ) time, performed primarily in closed position, originating from German-speaking regions of Europe in the 18th century. Along with the ländler and allemande, the waltz was sometimes referred to by the generic term German Dance in publications during the late 18th and early 19th centuries.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bf1d11d7-8839-4d6e-8318-e95e2e4fbf72"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f5n1a6wtj4","content":[{"text":"There are many references to a sliding or gliding dance, including the volta, that would evolve into the waltz that date from 16th-century Europe, including the representations of the printmaker Hans Sebald Beham. The French philosopher Michel de Montaigne wrote of a dance he saw in 1580 in Augsburg, where the dancers held each other so closely that their faces touched. Kunz Haas (of approximately the same period) wrote, \"Now they are dancing the godless Weller or Spinner.\" \"The vigorous peasant dancer, following an instinctive knowledge of the weight of fall, uses his surplus energy to press all his strength into the proper beat of the bar, thus intensifying his personal enjoyment in dancing.\" Around 1750, the lower classes in the regions of Bavaria, Tyrol, and Styria began dancing a couples dance called Walzer. The Ländler, also known as the Schleifer, a country dance in 34 time, was popular in Bohemia, Austria, and Bavaria, and spread from the countryside to the suburbs of the city. While the eighteenth-century upper classes continued to dance the minuets (such as those by Mozart, Haydn and Handel), bored noblemen slipped away to the balls of their servants.\nIn the 1771 German novel Geschichte des Fräuleins von Sternheim by Sophie von La Roche, a high-minded character complains about the newly introduced waltz among aristocrats thus: \"But when he put his arm around her, pressed her to his breast, cavorted with her in the shameless, indecent whirling-dance of the Germans and engaged in a familiarity that broke all the bounds of good breeding—then my silent misery turned into burning rage.\"\nDescribing life in Vienna (dated at either 1776 or 1786), Don Curzio wrote, \"The people were dancing mad ...","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bf1d11d7-8839-4d6e-8318-e95e2e4fbf72"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Variants","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nj0tjq0hfb","content":[{"text":"In the 19th and early 20th century, numerous different waltz forms existed, including versions performed in 34, 38 or 68 (sauteuse), and 54 time (54 waltz, half and half).\nIn the 1910s, a form called the Hesitation Waltz was introduced by Vernon and Irene Castle. It incorporated \"hesitations\" and was danced to fast music. A hesitation is basically a halt on the standing foot during the full waltz bar, with the moving foot suspended in the air or slowly dragged. Similar figures (Hesitation Change, Drag Hesitation, and Cross Hesitation) are incorporated in the International Standard Waltz Syllabus.\nThe Country Western Waltz is mostly progressive, moving counterclockwise around the dance floor. Both the posture and frame are relaxed, with posture bordering on a slouch. The exaggerated hand and arm gestures of some ballroom styles are not part of this style. Couples may frequently dance in the promenade position, depending on local preferences. Within Country Western waltz, there is the Spanish Waltz and the more modern (for the late 1930s- early 1950s) Pursuit Waltz. At one time it was considered ill treatment for a man to make the woman walk backward in some locations.\nIn California, the waltz was banned by Mission priests until 1834 because of the \"closed\" dance position. Thereafter a Spanish Waltz was danced. This Spanish Waltz was a combination of dancing around the room in closed position, and a \"formation\" dance of two couples facing each other and performing a sequence of steps.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bf1d11d7-8839-4d6e-8318-e95e2e4fbf72"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2rypvspx7b","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Waltz”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bf1d11d7-8839-4d6e-8318-e95e2e4fbf72"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wmb990rtke","content":[{"text":"waltz is dance in 3/4 time, distinct from the musical form, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6ee70cbf-9a74-47f2-a65b-44ef54adf09b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8y3n2tc3af","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 36 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6ee70cbf-9a74-47f2-a65b-44ef54adf09b"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:05.619Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/waltz"}
{"id":"0dd7e09a-018b-41e1-a36b-caa7749c4435","type":"art_form","slug":"war-dance","title":"war dance","summary":"A war dance is a dance involving mock combat, usually in reference to tribal warrior societies where such dances were performed as a ritual connected with endemic warfare.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"y2gkr1m33h","content":[{"text":"A war dance is a dance involving mock combat, usually in reference to tribal warrior societies where such dances were performed as a ritual connected with endemic warfare.  \nMartial arts in various cultures can be performed in dance-like settings for various reasons, such as for evoking ferocity in preparation for battle or showing off skill in a more stylized manner. It could also be for celebration of valor and conquest. Many such martial arts incorporate music, especially strong percussive rhythms.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c28d66a4-bbdd-431e-b3b7-ef3689eb4a58"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b9mdry87q0","content":[{"text":"War dances can overlap with sword dances and other forms of weapon dance, utilizing weapons or replications as part of the artistic performance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c28d66a4-bbdd-431e-b3b7-ef3689eb4a58"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"War dances","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vdfnv1sjhr","content":[{"text":"Examples of war dances include:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c28d66a4-bbdd-431e-b3b7-ef3689eb4a58"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jwc30hxn55","content":[{"text":"Aduk-Aduk – Brunei\nAlbanian war dances\nArdah – Arabian Peninsula, Kuwait\nAyyalah – Arabian Peninsula\nAttan - Afghanistan and Pushtun Areas of Pakistan\nBaris – Bali, Indonesia\nBende War Dance – Nigeria\nBuza – Russia\nBlood walk – Bloods of United States\nCakalele – Maluku, Indonesia\nCapoeira, as well as some similar Afro-Caribbean arts\nCibi – Fiji\nCrip Walk – Crips of United States\nDirk dance and Scottish sword dances – Scotland\nDier Dance- upper East, Bolgatanga-Ghana\nEuropean sword dance or weapon dance of various kinds\nHaka - Māori people of New Zealand\nHako (Rapa Nui) – Easter Island\nHopak – Ukraine\nOdzemek - Slovakia and Moravian Wallachia\nHula and Kapu Kuialua – Native Hawaiians\nIndlamu – Zulu people\nJuego de maní – Cuba\nKabasaran – Minahasan people, North Sulawesi, Indonesia\nKailao – Wallis, adopted by Tonga\nKhattak – Afghanistan and Pakistan\nKhorumi (ხორუმი) – Georgia\nOhafia War Dance – Eastern Nigeria\nPanther Dance – Burmese Bando with swords (dha)\nPentozali – Crete\nPyrrhichios – Greece\nRazfah – Oman and the United Arab Emirates\nReggada – Morocco\nSagayan – Philippines\nSiva Tau – Samoan war dance\nTahtib – Egypt\nTakalo - Niue\nYarkhushta (Յարխուշտա) – Armenia\nYowlah – Oman and the United Arab Emirates","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c28d66a4-bbdd-431e-b3b7-ef3689eb4a58"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rh160xtyvp","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “War dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c28d66a4-bbdd-431e-b3b7-ef3689eb4a58"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"y3dhmz2sk3","content":[{"text":"war dance is dance involving mock combat, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"599009fc-67db-4418-842e-8cef7b278209"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bpkz79tsdt","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 5 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"599009fc-67db-4418-842e-8cef7b278209"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"The Papuan dance from Yapen regency in Papua province, depicting a tribal war between Menawai and Ambai tribes that inhabit Yapen area. The dance ended with peace ceremony between two tribes under great Ondoafi guidance that unite the two tribes that actually share common…","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1e/Papuan_Dance_from_Yapen.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Gunawan Kartapranata","height":736,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"The Papuan dance from Yapen regency in Papua province, depicting a tribal war between Menawai and Ambai tribes that inhabit Yapen area. The dance ended with peace ceremony between two tribes under great Ondoafi guidance that unite the two tribes that actually share common…","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1e/Papuan_Dance_from_Yapen.jpg/960px-Papuan_Dance_from_Yapen.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Papuan_Dance_from_Yapen.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1e/Papuan_Dance_from_Yapen.jpg/1280px-Papuan_Dance_from_Yapen.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:17.091Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/war-dance"}
{"id":"c8b04495-0734-42ff-af24-e025029c3669","type":"art_form","slug":"wayang-wong","title":"wayang wong","summary":"Wayang wong (Javanese: ꦮꦪꦁꦮꦺꦴꦁ (in the ngoko register)), also known as wayang orang (lit. 'human-form wayang'), is a type of classical Javanese and Balinese dance theatrical performance with themes taken from episodes of the Ramayāna or Mah…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"agqgnxn1gs","content":[{"text":"Wayang wong (Javanese: ꦮꦪꦁꦮꦺꦴꦁ (in the ngoko register)), also known as wayang orang (lit. 'human-form wayang'), is a type of classical Javanese and Balinese dance theatrical performance with themes taken from episodes of the Ramayāna or Mahabharāta. Performances are stylised, reflecting Javanese court culture:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1b612c1a-7343-4e9e-8432-1e2025391e2a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f5q2b9n0as","content":[{"text":"Wayang wong dance drama in the central Javanese Kraton (royal court) of Yogyakarta represents the epitome of Javanese aesthetic unity. It is total theatre involving dance, drama, music, visual arts, language, and literature. A highly cultured sense of formality permeates every aspect of its presentation.\nDespite being closely associated with Javanese and Balinese tradition, variants of wayang wong dance drama can also be found in neighboring Javanese ethnic traditions, including Sundanese tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1b612c1a-7343-4e9e-8432-1e2025391e2a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gdnk86vze5","content":[{"text":"The bas relief panels on the ninth-century Prambanan temple show episodes of the Ramayana epic. The adaptation of Mahabharata episodes has been integrated in the Javanese literature tradition since the Kahuripan and Kediri era, with notable examples such as Arjunawiwaha, composed by Mpu Kanwa in the 11th century. The Penataran temple in East Java depicts themes from the Ramayana and Mahabharata in its bas reliefs. The Javanese dance drama associated with wayang's epic themes from the Ramayana and Mahabharata would have existed by then.\nWayang in Kawi (Old Javanese) means \"shadow\" and wong means \"human\". Wayang wong was a performance in the style of \nwayang kulit (the shadow theatre of Central Java), wherein actors and actresses took the puppets' roles. The first written reference to the form is on the stone inscription Wimalarama from East Java dated 930 CE. The genre is currently done in masked and unmasked variations in Central Java, Bali, and Cirebon, as well as in Sunda (West Java).\nWayang wong is closely associated with Javanese culture. Originally, it was performed only as an aristocratic entertainment in the four palaces of Yogyakarta, Pakualaman, Surakarta, and Mangkunegaran. In the course of time, it evolved into a popular and folk form as well. Javanese wayang wong performances are regularly staged on the Trimurti Ramayana open-air stage in Prambanan temple, compound as Ramayana Ballet, Purawisata cultural hall in Yogyakarta, Sriwedari park in Solo, and also Ngesti Pandawa in Semarang.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1b612c1a-7343-4e9e-8432-1e2025391e2a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Variations","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fjvgnkt06w","content":[{"text":"Other than in the Javanese dance tradition, the variants of wayang wong dance drama can also be found in other traditions, including in Balinese and Sundanese traditions.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1b612c1a-7343-4e9e-8432-1e2025391e2a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Wayang wong Bali","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b52wwnztxm","content":[{"text":"Wayang wong Bali refers to a Balinese version of wayang dance drama. Its contemporary presentation is usually included within the kecak dance, where fragments or episodes of the Ramayana are performed amidst the chanting kecak dancers. However, a Balinese wayang wong version that does not include kecak dancers has also existed, especially in Ubud. Wayang wong Bali is usually associated with Buleleng District.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1b612c1a-7343-4e9e-8432-1e2025391e2a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Wayang wong Cirebon","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5dd82v3b4w","content":[{"text":"Wayang wong Cirebon refers to a tradition of wayang dance drama in the city of Cirebon, West Java. Cirebon has two styles of wayang wong. The first is a commoner's or village version in which the performers are masked. The second is a Cirebon palace variant where the\nperformers are unmasked. Cirebonese wayang wong developed at the beginning of the nineteenth century, and influenced the wayang wong Priangan by the end of that century.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1b612c1a-7343-4e9e-8432-1e2025391e2a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Wayang wong Priangan","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f5bb1hfppp","content":[{"text":"Wayang wong Priangan refers to a Sundanese version of wayang dance drama, developed in the Priangan region in the heartland of West Java. Wayang wong Priangan developed in the late nineteenth century, peaked in the regencies of Bandung, Sumedang, Garut and Sukabumi in the period before World War II, and receded by the late 1960s as audiences waned. In the Sundanese tradition, the most prevalent wayang tradition is wayang golek, a wooden rod puppet performance. Nevertheless, the wayang-themed dance drama performance also exists, usually performed in Sundanese sandiwara traditional drama form.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1b612c1a-7343-4e9e-8432-1e2025391e2a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3869twmd3j","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Wayang wong”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1b612c1a-7343-4e9e-8432-1e2025391e2a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wz09aqsd64","content":[{"text":"wayang wong is form of Indonesian theatre, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"610af9d0-7c1c-498e-91a1-fcc0f419d293"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"d7fev6kdhq","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"610af9d0-7c1c-498e-91a1-fcc0f419d293"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Wayang Wong (Wayang Orang) Javanese dance performance in Wayang Orang Bharata Theatre, Senen, Jakarta. Depicting the character Pandawa Lima with their guard in left, and Sri Kresna in the right.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/23/Wayang_Wong_Bharata_Pandawa.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Gunawan Kartapranata","height":712,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Wayang Wong (Wayang Orang) Javanese dance performance in Wayang Orang Bharata Theatre, Senen, Jakarta. Depicting the character Pandawa Lima with their guard in left, and Sri Kresna in the right.","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/23/Wayang_Wong_Bharata_Pandawa.jpg/960px-Wayang_Wong_Bharata_Pandawa.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Wayang_Wong_Bharata_Pandawa.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/23/Wayang_Wong_Bharata_Pandawa.jpg/1280px-Wayang_Wong_Bharata_Pandawa.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-30T05:47:04.840Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/wayang-wong"}
{"id":"c964afff-254a-4dee-8e63-68568a1c58df","type":"art_form","slug":"west-coast-swing","title":"West Coast swing","summary":"West Coast Swing is a partner dance with roots in Lindy Hop, characterized by an elastic look that results from its extension-compression technique of partner connection. It is danced primarily in a slotted area on the dance floor.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ry9rxhz9a4","content":[{"text":"West Coast Swing is a partner dance with roots in Lindy Hop, characterized by an elastic look that results from its extension-compression technique of partner connection. It is danced primarily in a slotted area on the dance floor. The dance allows for both partners to improvise steps while dancing together, putting West Coast Swing in a short list of dances that emphasize improvisation.\nTypically the follower is led forward into new patterns traveling forward on counts \"1\" and \"2\" of each basic pattern, rather than rocking back. Traditional figures include 6-count and 8-count patterns of one of the four basic varieties: (1) Starter Step, (2) Side Pass, (3) Push Break / Sugar Push, (4) Whip. The Anchor Step is a common ending pattern of many West Coast Swing figures.\nAlternatively the basic patterns in West Coast Swing are defined as: Push Break (or Sugar Push); Left Side Pass; Right Side Pass; Tuck Turn; and Whip. Virtually all other moves in West Coast Swing are variations of these basic patterns.\nWest Coast Swing has the leader using \"body leads\" versus the \"arm leads\" of East Coast Swing.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1000f8f2-74de-42a8-80de-5e4189705a86"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6b0wp2mf10","content":[{"text":"The origins of the West Coast Swing are in the Lindy Hop. Western swing, country boogie, and, with a smaller audience, jump blues were popular on the West Coast throughout the 1940s and into the 1950s when they were renamed and marketed as rock and roll in 1954. Dancers danced \"a 'swingier' more smooth and subdued\" form of jitterbug to Western swing music.\nDean Collins, a lindy hop dancer who arrived in the Los Angeles area around 1937, was influential in developing the style of swing dance on the West Coast of the United States as both a performer and teacher. Collins was humble about his contributions to the style. According to one of his former students, a member of his last dance troupe, Collins himself said that he had nothing to do with the West Coast Swing style.\nLessons in \"The New West Coast Swing\" were offered at the Arthur Murray Dance Studios in San Bernardino and Riverside, California in December 1948. By 1954 West Coast Swing was taught from Southern California to Vancouver B.C. and from Eastern Washington to Hawaii. By 1957 the dance had reached as far east as Missouri.\nLaure' Haile, an Arthur Murray Dance Studio National Dance Director, documented the unique style of swing dancing in Los Angeles in 1951 using the name \"Western Swing\" to describe it. Arthur Murray Dance Studios developed a syllabus for West Coast Swing from her notes. The Arthur Murray style taught Western Swing beginning from a closed position and the possibility of dancing single, double, or triple rhythm. After \"Throwout\" patterns began with the woman \"walking in\" and the man doing a \"rock step\", or step together for counts one and two.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1000f8f2-74de-42a8-80de-5e4189705a86"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Slot","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rrspm9f1pp","content":[{"text":"West Coast Swing is a slotted dance, which means that the steps of the dance are confined to an imaginary \"slot\" on the dance floor. For West Coast Swing, the slot is a long, thin, rectangular area whose length depends on the tempo of the music – it can be eight or nine feet long for slower songs, but will be shorter for faster music. The follower travels back and forth in the slot, while the leader moves only minimally. When the follower reaches the leader, the leader moves a minimal amount (at mid-way point) to the side, barely out of the follower's way. The follower in turn lightly brushes against the leader each time they pass.\nThe use of the \"dance slot\" for energetic and improvisational dances like the West Coast Swing allows for dancers to dance on a crowded dance floor without colliding with other couples; remaining within one's slot is considered proper etiquette. Couples usually establish their own slot parallel with dancers who have already established a space on the dance floor. If the dance floor is not crowded and the couple is afforded more space, such as during a competitive event, the dancers may move the slot around the floor more liberally.\nThere are urban myths regarding the origin of the slotted style. According to one version, it was an invention of Hollywood film makers who wanted \"dancers to stay in the same plane, to avoid going in and out of focus\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1000f8f2-74de-42a8-80de-5e4189705a86"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Associated musical styles","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gp162vgj90","content":[{"text":"West Coast Swing can be traced to the swing era of jazz. During this period many jazz, blues, and country musicians incorporated swing in their music. Writing in the Arthur Murray Silver Dance Notebook, Laure Haile, who first described \"Western Swing\", listed the following songs as \"Good Swing or Fox Trot Records\":","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1000f8f2-74de-42a8-80de-5e4189705a86"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"n3gcezdh9e","content":[{"text":"\"Let's Dance\" by Ray Anthony ((Capitol L-258)(1951))\n\"Be-Bop's Spoken Here\" by Les Brown Columbia 38499 (4/14/49)\n\"One Mint Julep\", Buddy Morrow, Victor 20-4869 (June/July 1952)\n\"Dry Bones\", Tommy Dorsey, Victor 20-3523 (1949?)\nWestern Swing was documented in the 1971 edition of the Encyclopedia of Social Dance, listing the \"Coaster Step\" (with a forward step as the last step of the second triple) rather than the Anchor Step. The one song that was listed for this dance was \"Comin' On\" by Bill Black's Combo (1964 Hi #2072).\nWest Coast Swing can be danced to almost any music written in 44 time. In the past, the ideal speed for West Coast Swing was cited as 32 measures per minute or 128 bpm, compared to the recommended 112 bpm for Western Swing. In its 2014–2016 rules, the United Country Western Dance Council (UCWDC) specified a range of 102–114 bpm with a preferred speed of 108 bpm \"for all.\" West Coast Swing dancers have adopted music genres such as hip hop and blues, both of which often range well below 100 bpm.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1000f8f2-74de-42a8-80de-5e4189705a86"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Basic guidelines","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"88wtmz2j1e","content":[{"text":"West Coast Swing is an evolving social dance that has gone through many changes throughout its short history, over time incorporating techniques from numerous dance styles. However, there are many guidelines that should be followed to maintain the true character of the dance. A dance's character is typically defined by a basic philosophy, principles of movement, and traditional steps and figures. While these guidelines can be violated, by committing too many violations one risks departing from the defining features of the dance.\nModern West Coast Swing is in large part defined by an emphasis on musicality and connection. Movement is based on a principle borrowed from ballroom and Latin dance in which the dancer moves their center of gravity immediately over the foot when a weight transfer is desired. Traditional figures include 6-count and 8-count patterns of one of the four basic varieties: (1) Starter Step, (2) Side Pass, (3) Push Break / Sugar Push, (4) Whip. Many common West Coast Swing figures are derived from simple variations of these basic figures. West Coast Swing is also a fundamentally improvised dance, and thus such defined figures are simply starting points for the skilled dancer. Additionally, West Coast Swing can be said to rely on the leader creating and redirecting the momentum of the follower in order to communicate how they wish to lead the dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1000f8f2-74de-42a8-80de-5e4189705a86"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Basic figures","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ka7p6h755k","content":[{"text":"The following are some examples of basic West Coast Swing patterns.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1000f8f2-74de-42a8-80de-5e4189705a86"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ste1ejq9j1","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “West Coast Swing”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"1000f8f2-74de-42a8-80de-5e4189705a86"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zrzcke2je4","content":[{"text":"West Coast swing is slotted dance that originated in USA in the 50's, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8ee2c000-01ae-40b0-8dba-1b746559a98d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7sy3r1c65b","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8ee2c000-01ae-40b0-8dba-1b746559a98d"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Nicolas BOURGEAIS & Delphine COTTET (FRANCE) in a Classic West Coast Swing competition at the French Open of West Coast Swing","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8c/Nicolas%26Delphine_-_Strictly_West_Coast_Swing.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Goel land","height":863,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Nicolas BOURGEAIS & Delphine COTTET (FRANCE) in a Classic West Coast Swing competition at the French Open of West Coast Swing","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8c/Nicolas%26Delphine_-_Strictly_West_Coast_Swing.jpg/960px-Nicolas%26Delphine_-_Strictly_West_Coast_Swing.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Nicolas%26Delphine_-_Strictly_West_Coast_Swing.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8c/Nicolas%26Delphine_-_Strictly_West_Coast_Swing.jpg/1280px-Nicolas%26Delphine_-_Strictly_West_Coast_Swing.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:22.424Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/west-coast-swing"}
{"id":"fbfa82c4-5890-4f15-8bca-310b1a39df8a","type":"art_form","slug":"wheelchair-dancesport","title":"Wheelchair dancesport","summary":"Wheelchair dancesport, also known as Para dance sport, is a form of competitive dancesport where at least one of the dancers is in a wheelchair. The sport corporates the rules of the World DanceSport Federation (WDSF).","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0by5ah9shf","content":[{"text":"Wheelchair dancesport, also known as Para dance sport, is a form of competitive dancesport where at least one of the dancers is in a wheelchair. The sport corporates the rules of the World DanceSport Federation (WDSF).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bcfeed78-2028-4a19-bed2-3a03784136cc"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Sport","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vz9v70znqg","content":[{"text":"Wheelchair couple dances are for two wheelchair users or for one wheelchair user with a \"standing\" partner and include standard dances such as waltz, tango, Viennese waltz, slow foxtrot and quickstep and Latin American dances such as samba, cha-cha-cha, rumba, paso doble and jive. There are also formation dances for four, six or eight dancers.\nWheelchair dancing started in Sweden in 1968, originally for recreation or rehabilitation, with the first competition held in 1975. The first international competition was also held in Sweden, in 1977. Several regional and international competitions followed and the first World Championship was held in Japan in 1998. From 1998 to 2024, Wheelchair dancesport was governed by World Para Dance Sport, a subcommittee of the International Paralympic Committee (IPC). As part of the rebranding of the IPC's governing subcommittees as World Para Sports, the IPC began to refer to the sport as \"Para dance sport\" in 2016. The rebranding was also part of an effort to \"further grow participation in the sport beyond wheelchair users\", such as governing dancesport events involving competitors with prosthetics.\nIn 2021, the IPC began the process of transferring the governance of its self-governed sports to third-parties. In January 2024, the IPC transferred governance of the sport to World Abilitysport (formerly IWAS). \nPara dance sport was considered for inclusion in the 2024 Summer Paralympics, but the IPC did not select it for consideration, and ultimately chose against adding any new sports.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bcfeed78-2028-4a19-bed2-3a03784136cc"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Classification","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"zeg2y220pd","content":[{"text":"Combi: dancing with an able-bodied (standing) partner\nDuo: dance for two wheelchair users together\nFormation: dances for four, six or eight couples dancing in formation\nAthletes are placed into one of two classes:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bcfeed78-2028-4a19-bed2-3a03784136cc"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0ew5zc5t4t","content":[{"text":"LWD 1: 14 points or less\nLWD 2: more than 14 points","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bcfeed78-2028-4a19-bed2-3a03784136cc"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Social","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ayxsf07x1f","content":[{"text":"Wheelchair dancing is a popular social and recreational activity, with participants in over 40 countries. The physical benefits of wheelchair dancing include the maintenance of physical balance, flexibility, range of motion, coordination and improved respiratory control. The psychological effects of ballroom dancing are social interaction and the development of relationships. For social dancers, it is an opportunity to engage in a fun and a friendly event with others. For competitors, it assists in the development of fair play, sportsmanship and communication skills. Wheelchair dancing is an activity that integrates the wheelchair user and able-bodied person.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bcfeed78-2028-4a19-bed2-3a03784136cc"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Courses","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"45hr0fdk57","content":[{"text":"In February, 2008 the University of Delaware Collegiate DanceWheels Program was created to instruct students in wheelchair dancing. This is the first accredited course of its kind in the United States. The program was developed in conjunction with the American DanceWheels Foundation through a grant from the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bcfeed78-2028-4a19-bed2-3a03784136cc"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2v08v4q5dg","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Wheelchair dancesport”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"bcfeed78-2028-4a19-bed2-3a03784136cc"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"aqaryfbqy1","content":[{"text":"Wheelchair dancesport is dancesport adapted for participants in wheelchairs, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c2f7817f-54fd-40eb-834d-d1bc5a0156b2"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cvacam0azs","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 4 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c2f7817f-54fd-40eb-834d-d1bc5a0156b2"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Pyörätuolitanssin SM-kisat Lohjalla 23.9.2012.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d4/Py%C3%B6r%C3%A4tuolitanssia.JPG?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"J.Pullinen","height":1920,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Pyörätuolitanssin SM-kisat Lohjalla 23.9.2012.","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d4/Py%C3%B6r%C3%A4tuolitanssia.JPG/960px-Py%C3%B6r%C3%A4tuolitanssia.JPG?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Py%C3%B6r%C3%A4tuolitanssia.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d4/Py%C3%B6r%C3%A4tuolitanssia.JPG/1280px-Py%C3%B6r%C3%A4tuolitanssia.JPG?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:22.496Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/wheelchair-dancesport"}
{"id":"3dba327b-776e-4bc1-a84e-0bbe7fcdc84a","type":"art_form","slug":"wotagei","title":"Wotagei","summary":"Wotagei (ヲタ芸), also known as otagei (オタ芸), is a type of dancing and cheering gestures performed by wota, fans of Japanese idol singers (and thus seen as Akiba-kei), involving jumping, clapping, arm-waving and chanting slogans.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"naaqy146qm","content":[{"text":"Wotagei (ヲタ芸), also known as otagei (オタ芸), is a type of dancing and cheering gestures performed by wota, fans of Japanese idol singers (and thus seen as Akiba-kei), involving jumping, clapping, arm-waving and chanting slogans. Wotagei is performed at concerts, or at events such as anime and manga conventions and meetings of idol fan groups, and it is thought to have developed from the ōendan, organised cheering squads common at sporting events in Japan. Wotagei is particularly associated with fans of Hello! Project, AKB48, and Vocaloid idols including Hatsune Miku, as well as fans of anime and game voice actresses (seiyuu), who often perform theme songs for the series in which they appear.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c6e7dfd7-f8ea-4934-b6ef-695bd6cc6915"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Chants","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"d38ahrgtse","content":[{"text":"There are specific actions associated with \"wotagei\", such as physical poses and chants (shout or yell).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c6e7dfd7-f8ea-4934-b6ef-695bd6cc6915"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Cheers","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"e9xe6y13h5","content":[{"text":"The \"Call\" is commonly used shout or yell","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c6e7dfd7-f8ea-4934-b6ef-695bd6cc6915"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6g8ts1v5yt","content":[{"text":"\"urya\" and \"oi\"","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c6e7dfd7-f8ea-4934-b6ef-695bd6cc6915"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Mixing","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vcv9agnx6f","content":[{"text":"The most commonly used chant is known as the mix, which follows a set rhythm and is typically shouted during the introduction and instrumental breaks of an idol's song. However, it is generally considered improper to use it during a slow or emotional song. The mix is universal and is not associated with a specific idol group. It consists of three main variations: the Standard Mix, the Japanese Mix, and the Ainu Mix. Some idols also have their own specific versions of the Mix unique to them.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c6e7dfd7-f8ea-4934-b6ef-695bd6cc6915"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"20c79zkgn5","content":[{"text":"Standard Mix\nThe Standard Mix is the most commonly used mix of the three, and is also known as the First Mix as it is typically heard during the introduction of the song. In English, it follows the order below.\n\"Tiger, Fire, Cyber, Fiber, Diver, Viber, Jyaa jyaa!!\"\n\"タイガー、ファイヤー、サイバー、ファイバー、ダイバー、バイバー、ジャージャー\" (\"Taigā, Faiyā, Saibā, Faibā, Daibā, Baibā, Jā jā!!\")\nThis mix is used by AKB48, Hello! Project and Hatsune Miku fans.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c6e7dfd7-f8ea-4934-b6ef-695bd6cc6915"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"v12xraddm0","content":[{"text":"Japanese Mix\nThe Japanese Mix is the translated Standard Mix, and is typically heard at the end of the first instrumental break, leading into the second verse of the song. Due to this, the Japanese Mix is sometimes referred to as the Second Mix.\n\"虎、火、人造、繊維、海女、振動、化繊飛除去\"\n\"トラ、ヒ、ジンゾウ、センイ、アマ、シンドウ、カセントビジョキョ\" (\"Tora, Hi, Jinzō, Sen'i, Ama, Shindou, Kasentobijokyo!!\")\nOftentimes, \"Kasentobijokyo\" is abbreviated to \"Kasen.\" This is also used by AKB48, Hello! Project and Hatsune Miku fans as well.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c6e7dfd7-f8ea-4934-b6ef-695bd6cc6915"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1aw04h170y","content":[{"text":"Ainu Mix\nThe Ainu Mix is another translated version of the mix. It is also known as the Third Mix, but is only used when there is a third instrumental in the song.\n\"チャペ、アペ、カラ、キナ、ララ、トゥスケ、ミョーホントゥスケ\" (\"Chape, Ape, Kara, Kina, Rara, Tusuke, Myōhontusuke!!\")","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c6e7dfd7-f8ea-4934-b6ef-695bd6cc6915"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Performance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"d4ms4jq9hn","content":[{"text":"Wotagei is performed with a glow stick. Here are some common dances in wotagei:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c6e7dfd7-f8ea-4934-b6ef-695bd6cc6915"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9chngw0x4v","content":[{"text":"Romance\nThunder Snake\nOAD (Over Action Dolphin)\nRosario","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c6e7dfd7-f8ea-4934-b6ef-695bd6cc6915"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5ntrycetps","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Wotagei”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c6e7dfd7-f8ea-4934-b6ef-695bd6cc6915"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pjpczx23nk","content":[{"text":"Wotagei is Dancing and cheering by fans of Japanese idol singers, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e122157e-2f7c-41b2-bb2a-5605e9bfa9d1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ktbfeb6ynq","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"e122157e-2f7c-41b2-bb2a-5605e9bfa9d1"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Wotagei in Akihabara, Tokyo","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f5/Wotagei_in_Akihabara.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Ryo FUKAsawa","height":850,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Wotagei in Akihabara, Tokyo","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f5/Wotagei_in_Akihabara.jpg/960px-Wotagei_in_Akihabara.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Wotagei_in_Akihabara.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f5/Wotagei_in_Akihabara.jpg/1280px-Wotagei_in_Akihabara.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:14.310Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/wotagei"}
{"id":"33a5a8d8-11c9-4300-92e7-7c598bf3f2e9","type":"art_form","slug":"xiringuelu","title":"xiringüelu","summary":"xiringüelu is a tradition recorded in open cultural data. This page is a machine-generated stub awaiting review by someone who knows the tradition.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"w5072qxx9b","content":[{"text":"xiringüelu is a tradition recorded in open cultural data, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"24aed66c-3d15-4b67-b6de-de9326fe421f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"x3445rapm0","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"24aed66c-3d15-4b67-b6de-de9326fe421f"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-05T02:44:08.187Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/xiringuelu"}
{"id":"31cc94a0-6339-40fc-848d-0ed657511f9b","type":"art_form","slug":"yablochko","title":"Yablochko","summary":"Yablochko (Russian: Яблoчко, lit. 'little apple') is a chastushka-style folk song and dance, traditionally presented as a sailors' dance.\nThe choreographed version of the dance first appeared in the 1926 Reinhold Glière ballet The Red Poppy…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2f0wag8c6d","content":[{"text":"Yablochko (Russian: Яблoчко, lit. 'little apple') is a chastushka-style folk song and dance, traditionally presented as a sailors' dance.\nThe choreographed version of the dance first appeared in the 1926 Reinhold Glière ballet The Red Poppy and from there is known in the West as the Russian Sailors Dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0987f479-d73b-407d-8bd5-b01347163fc6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Song","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bnkwnxm6jd","content":[{"text":"There is no \"canonic\" song under this name, although numerous texts are known, their common part being only its tune and the signature lines starting with \"Эх, яблочко...\" (\"Ekh, Yablochko\", \"Eh, little apple\"), in numerous versions: \"Eh little apple, where are you rolling?\" (Эх, яблочко, Да куда котишься?), \"Eh little apple on the saucer\" (Эх яблочко, да на тарелочке!), etc.  Verses of this kind proliferated during the Russian Civil War, in Red, Black and White camps. The song itself has nothing to do with apples, with its verse commonly being related to the political issues of the time.\nA variant of this song, written by Yuliy Kim, is sung by Sharikov (transformed from a stray dog) before the medical commission in the 1988 film Heart of a Dog: \"Эх, яблочко, да с голубикою. Подходи, буржуй, глазик выколю!\" (Erh, little apple, with bog blueberry, Come here bourgeois man, I'll gouge out your eye!).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0987f479-d73b-407d-8bd5-b01347163fc6"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"b1tn24avsd","content":[{"text":"Researchers believe that the \"Yablochko\" dance appeared as a synthesis of the British and Ireland hornpipe dance and Russian traditional dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0987f479-d73b-407d-8bd5-b01347163fc6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"n5kwq6d123","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Yablochko”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0987f479-d73b-407d-8bd5-b01347163fc6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t093zgz9ey","content":[{"text":"Yablochko is type of dance and song, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5295958d-b8ad-40e4-809c-e1e10d96a1b6"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"54d3wps8qe","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"5295958d-b8ad-40e4-809c-e1e10d96a1b6"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"St. Petersburg","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/aa/St._Petersburg_%288383261555%29.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"jimmyweee","height":1920,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"St. Petersburg","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/aa/St._Petersburg_%288383261555%29.jpg/960px-St._Petersburg_%288383261555%29.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:St._Petersburg_(8383261555).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/aa/St._Petersburg_%288383261555%29.jpg/1280px-St._Petersburg_%288383261555%29.jpg?utm_source=www.wikidata.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:22.337Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/yablochko"}
{"id":"08485193-0dbc-4bf8-bca3-17d022f56ba8","type":"art_form","slug":"yakshagana","title":"Yakshagana","summary":"Yakshagana is a traditional stage performance and semi classical Indian dance drama, found in Tulunadu, that is Dakshina Kannada, Udupi, Kasaragod district and  Uttara Kannada, Shimoga and western parts of Chikmagalur districts, in the stat…","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bh2spz39hp","content":[{"text":"Yakshagana is a traditional stage performance and semi classical Indian dance drama, found in Tulunadu, that is Dakshina Kannada, Udupi, Kasaragod district and  Uttara Kannada, Shimoga and western parts of Chikmagalur districts, in the state of Karnataka and in Kasaragod district in Kerala that combines dance, music, dialogue, costume, make-up, and stage techniques with a unique style and form. It is believed to have evolved from proto-classical music and Sanskrit theatre during the period of the Bhakti movement. This theatre style is mainly found in coastal regions of Karnataka in various forms. Towards the south from Dakshina Kannada to Kasaragod of Tulu Nadu region, the form of Yakshagana is called Thenku thittu and towards the north from Udupi up to Uttara Kannada it is called Badaga thittu. Both of these forms are equally played all over the region. Yakshagana is traditionally presented from dusk to dawn. Its stories are drawn from Ramayana, Mahabharata, Bhagavata and other epics from both Hindu and Jain and other ancient Indic traditions.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"80924021-16d3-4692-be0b-a69a546f3cd1"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1pcrehpx7n","content":[{"text":"Yakshagāna literally means the song (gāna) of the yaksha (nature spirits). Yakshagana is the scholastic name in Kannada (used for the last 200 years) and Tulu for art forms formerly known as āṭa, kēḷike, bayalāṭa, and daśāvatāra. Performance of this Yakshagana literature or the play is called āṭa.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"80924021-16d3-4692-be0b-a69a546f3cd1"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Music genre","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"g44cxhc2d8","content":[{"text":"Yakshagana has a tradition of music separate from Karnataka Sangeetha and the Hindustani music of India. Yakshagana and Karnatak Sangeetha may have a common ancestor but are not descendants of one another.\nA typical Yakshagana performance consists of background music played by a group of musicians (known as a himmela); and a dance and dialogue group (known as the mummela), who together enact poetic epics on stage. The himmela is made up of a lead singer (bhagawatha)—who also directs the production—and is referred to as the \"first actor\" (modalane vesha). Additional himmela members are players of traditional musical instruments, such as the maddale (hand drum), the pungi (pipe), the harmonium (organ), and the chande (loud drums). The music is based on ragas, which are characterised by rhythmic patterns called mattu and tala (or musical meter in Western music).\nA Yakshagana(ಯಕ್ಷಗಾನ) performance typically begins in the twilight hours, with an initial beating of the drums of several fixed compositions, called abbara or peetike. This may last for up to an hour before the actors finally arrive on the stage. The actors wear resplendent costumes, head-dresses, and face paints.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"80924021-16d3-4692-be0b-a69a546f3cd1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fk2yxfh5ra","content":[{"text":"A performance usually depicts a story from the \"Kavya\" (epic poems) and the \"Puranas\" (ancient Hindu texts). It consists of a story teller (the bhagawatha) who narrates the story by singing (which includes prepared character dialogues) as the actors dance to the music, portraying elements of the story as it is being narrated. All components of Yakshagana—including the music, the dance, and the dialogue—are improvised. Depending on the ability and scholarship of the actors, there will be variations in dances as well as the amount of dialogue.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"80924021-16d3-4692-be0b-a69a546f3cd1"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origins","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"9dz8rztyv4","content":[{"text":"Yakshagana can refer to a style of writing, as well as the written material itself. It was probably used for poems enacted in bayalaata (or open theatre drama), such as the ballads of Koti and Chennayya. Yakshagana in its present form is believed to have been strongly influenced by the Vaishnava Bhakti movement. Yakshagana was first introduced in Udupi during the 12th century by Madhvacharya's disciple Naraharitirtha. Naraharitirtha was a minister in the Kalinga Kingdom and is also believed to be the founder of Kuchipudi. \nThe first written evidence regarding Yakshagana is found on an inscription at the Lakshminarayana Temple in Kurugodu, Somasamudra, Bellary District, and is dated 1556 CE. A copy is available at the University of Madras. The inscription mentions land donated to the performers of the art, so as to enable people to enjoy tala maddale programs at the temple. Another important piece of evidence is available in the form of a poem authored by Ajapura Vishnu, the Virata Parva, inscribed on a palm-leaf found at Ajapura (present day Brahmavara). Another historic palm-leaf manuscript, dated 1621 CE, describes Sabhalakshana.\nYakshagana bears some resemblance to other members of the 'traditional theatre family:' Ankhia Nata (found in Assam); Jathra (in Bengal); Chau (Bihar, Bengal); Prahlada Nata (Orissa); Veedhinatakam & Chindu (Andhra); Terukoothu Bhagawathamela (Tamil Nadu), and Kathakali (Kerala). However, some researchers have argued that Yakshagana is markedly different from this group.\nExperts have placed the origin of Yakshagana somewhere in the period of the 11th to 16th centuries CE. Yakshagana was an established performance art form by the time of the noted Yakshagana poet, Parthi Subba (c. 1600).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"80924021-16d3-4692-be0b-a69a546f3cd1"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Early poets","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5hd6k3yqvj","content":[{"text":"Early Yakshagana poets included Ajapura Vishnu, Purandaradasa, Parthi Subba, and Nagire Subba. King Kanteerava Narasaraja Wodeyar II (1704–1714) authored 14 Yakshaganas in various languages in the Kannada script. Mummadi Krishnaraja Wodeyar (1794–1868) also wrote several Yakshagana prasanga, including Sougandhika Parinaya. Noted poet, Muddana, composed several Yakshagana prasanga's, including the very popular Rathnavathi Kalyana.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"80924021-16d3-4692-be0b-a69a546f3cd1"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Evolution","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"0eeyf04b97","content":[{"text":"In the 19th century, Yakshagana began to move away from the strict traditional forms. Practitioners of the day produced a number of new compositions. Also, a large number of troupes arose across coastal Karnataka.\nThe early 20th century saw the birth of 'tent' troupes, giving performances to audiences made up of common people who were admitted by ticket. These troupes were responsible for the commercialisation of Yakshagana. The genre saw major changes in form and organisation. Electrical lights replaced the gas lights; seating arrangements improved; the inclusion of folk epics, Sanskrit dramas, and fictional stories formed the modern thematic base of the discipline.  Popular entertainment became the criterion, replacing the historic classical presentations.\nAt this time, writer Kota Shivaram Karanth, experimented with the dance form by introducing Western musical instrumentation. He reduced the time of a Yakshagana performances from 12 hours to under three hours, incorporated movie plot lines, and added Shakespearean themes. Today, female artists perform in Yakshagana shows.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"80924021-16d3-4692-be0b-a69a546f3cd1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"xkn4dqm8qd","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Yakshagana”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"80924021-16d3-4692-be0b-a69a546f3cd1"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f8hdshn748","content":[{"text":"Yakshagana is traditional theatre form in India, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"677d1da9-c8ad-4dea-a1f9-bd1c8b48a5f9"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5nyxzy4h3g","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 4 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"677d1da9-c8ad-4dea-a1f9-bd1c8b48a5f9"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Yakshagana is a traditional Indian theatre form, developed in Karnataka, India. In this photo, a female artist (playing a male role) is prepping for a performance.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a0/Yakshagana_prepping.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Sahana M S","height":1919,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Yakshagana is a traditional Indian theatre form, developed in Karnataka, India. In this photo, a female artist (playing a male role) is prepping for a performance.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a0/Yakshagana_prepping.jpg/960px-Yakshagana_prepping.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Yakshagana_prepping.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a0/Yakshagana_prepping.jpg/1280px-Yakshagana_prepping.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"This photo has been taken in the country: India","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c7/Yakshagana_on_stage.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Sandeep Kasaragod","height":2275,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"This photo has been taken in the country: India","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c7/Yakshagana_on_stage.jpg/960px-Yakshagana_on_stage.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Yakshagana_on_stage.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c7/Yakshagana_on_stage.jpg/1280px-Yakshagana_on_stage.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"A Yakshagana artist putting on make up in the green room before a show. Yakshagana is a traditional Indian theatre form, developed in Karnataka, India.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c9/Yakshagana_make_up.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Sahana M S","height":1919,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"A Yakshagana artist putting on make up in the green room before a show. Yakshagana is a traditional Indian theatre form, developed in Karnataka, India.","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c9/Yakshagana_make_up.jpg/960px-Yakshagana_make_up.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Yakshagana_make_up.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c9/Yakshagana_make_up.jpg/1280px-Yakshagana_make_up.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:17.638Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/yakshagana"}
{"id":"17752e59-0e11-4ef5-af56-c3dc74ea03a2","type":"art_form","slug":"yangge","title":"Yangge","summary":"Yangge (Chinese: 秧歌; pinyin: yānggē; lit. 'Rice Sprout Song') is a form of Chinese folk dance developed from a dance known in the Song dynasty as Village Music (村田樂).","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3m3c3sr3ww","content":[{"text":"Yangge (Chinese: 秧歌; pinyin: yānggē; lit. 'Rice Sprout Song') is a form of Chinese folk dance developed from a dance known in the Song dynasty as Village Music (村田樂). It is very popular in northern China and is one of the most representative form of folk arts. It is popular in both the countryside and cities in northern China. It is especially popular among older people. Crowds of people will go out into the street in the evening and dance together in a line or a circle formation.\nSome dancers dress up in red, green, or other colorful costumes, and typically use a red silk ribbon around the waist. They will swing their bodies to music played by drum, trumpet, and gong. More people will join in as they see Yang Ge going on and dance along. Some dancers use props like the waistdrum, dancing fan, fake donkey, or litter. In different areas Yangge is performed in different styles, but all types express happiness.\nIn the 1940s, the Chinese Communist Party launched the new yangge movement where the dance was adopted as a means of rallying village support.  The dance was simplified into a pattern of three-quick-steps forward, one-step-backward, pause and repeat.  This version of the dance incorporated socialist elements, for example the leader of the dance group would hold a sickle instead of umbrella, and it is also known as \"Struggle Yangge\" (斗争秧歌; Dòuzhēng yānggē) or \"reform yangge\".","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"67838701-5b7a-4851-bcfc-f8de7cfd879f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Types","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jvhswx8qwc","content":[{"text":"There are two major types of yangge, one is Stilt Yangge which is performed on stilts, the other is Ground Yangge which is more common and is performed without stilts.   Another version of the yangge is the village play, an anthology of which was published by Sidney D. Gamble in 1970, based on transcriptions made by Li Jinghan as part of the Ding Xian Experiment's surveys in the 1930s.\nThe Yangge drama or Yangge opera (秧歌剧) usually consists of a quatrain of seven stanzas or long and short sentences. An example is the founding piece of the China National Opera when it was founded in Yan'an in 1942, which was with a performance of a Yangge drama  Brothers and Sisters Opening up the Wasteland (兄妹开荒). The Yangko owed something to normal spoken drama (huaju), but with dance, and songs added.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"67838701-5b7a-4851-bcfc-f8de7cfd879f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Struggle (Reform) Yangge and the Chinese Communist Party","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7wzy0g4w06","content":[{"text":"The new struggle yangge had roots in the traditional folk rite yangge that was performed in the rural parts of Northern China prior to the Japanese invasion of 1937. The folk rite was performative and was often associated with New Year’s celebrations, incorporating spirited dance, garish costumes, and loud music. The dance troupe was led by a leader dancer known as santou (umbrella head) and consisted of dancers, ranging from a few dozen to more than one hundred dancers. Simple plays were enacted during the dance, mostly about everyday life in rural China. The songs that accompanied the folk rite were conversations between young men and women about love or congratulatory greetings, and the swinging movements of the dances were generally sexually suggestive.\nDuring the Republican era, Nationalist officials and rural reformers such as the Mass Education Movement pushed for various reform initiatives that sought to use yangge performances to inculcate their desired objectives of abolishing certain traditional customs and strengthening national identity.\nIn Yan'an, the Yangge Movement (late 1942 to 1946) adapted yangge to incorporate socialist themes. The Lu Xun Academy of Arts had a significant role in the movement.\nThe struggle yangge that was popularized by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in urban settings from 1949 to 1951 was a political instrument used to communicate the socialist ideals of the CCP to the people.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"67838701-5b7a-4851-bcfc-f8de7cfd879f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"North Shaanxi","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nrzbqk639z","content":[{"text":"The dance may be in large groups of a dozen to a hundred people, or in two or three-person groups. The dancers move from location to location, visiting different parts of the town. The leader of the procession of dancers is called the santou or \"Umbrella\" who wields an umbrella to lead the movement of the group.  He also sings, usually improvised, while the others will repeat his last line.  Various characters may appear in the procession, such as the two comic characters Big-Headed Monk and Liu Cui (柳翠), and the Eight Immortals.  The procession first follows the santou in a single file to form a large simple circle, and later then forms other more intricate patterns.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"67838701-5b7a-4851-bcfc-f8de7cfd879f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Shandong","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"ht0pn21aa7","content":[{"text":"The Shandong yangge is thought to be the purest forms of yangge.  There are three major types of yangge in the Shandong province, the Haiyang yangge, Jiaozhou yangge, and the guzi (鼓子 \"drum\") yangge. In guzi yangge each dancer takes one of five roles - \"Umbrella\", \"Drum\", \"Stick\", \"Flower\", \"Clown\" - the first three are named after the props the dancer holds, while the fourth refers to a female dancer.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"67838701-5b7a-4851-bcfc-f8de7cfd879f"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Liaoning","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nmdekvxh3d","content":[{"text":"In Liaoning and Beijing, a popular form is the stilt yangge where the dancers perform on stilts. There are many types of stilt yangge, for example \"Jietang\" is a group dance performed in the street; \"Jiaxiang\" involves the formation of a pyramid of different poses; \"Dachang\" is group dance done in a large open air space; and \"Xiaochang\" characterized by its love-story plot.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"67838701-5b7a-4851-bcfc-f8de7cfd879f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"rd0wjq5hwa","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Yangge”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"67838701-5b7a-4851-bcfc-f8de7cfd879f"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"923k4szt8a","content":[{"text":"Yangge is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8ff38f34-abc9-43d2-8134-bcf435ce7142"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bahz1ft6yh","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"8ff38f34-abc9-43d2-8134-bcf435ce7142"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"Traditional Yangge Dance by Dream Butterfly Dance Group 蝶梦舞团. Performed at Binus University's Mandarin's Day 2009: Legend of The Moon Goddess. Photo by: Gaby Andriany Ongso","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b8/Binus_Operet_24-10-2009_Yangge.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"01Raina","height":826,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Traditional Yangge Dance by Dream Butterfly Dance Group 蝶梦舞团. Performed at Binus University's Mandarin's Day 2009: Legend of The Moon Goddess. Photo by: Gaby Andriany Ongso","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b8/Binus_Operet_24-10-2009_Yangge.JPG/960px-Binus_Operet_24-10-2009_Yangge.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Binus_Operet_24-10-2009_Yangge.JPG","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b8/Binus_Operet_24-10-2009_Yangge.JPG/1280px-Binus_Operet_24-10-2009_Yangge.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"},{"alt":"​松原市人民广场，秧歌表演的现场吹鼓乐队，2025年2月2日（正月初五）","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ef/A_musical_ensemble_for_Yangge%2C_People%27s_Square_Songyuan.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"纳瓦拉的亨利","height":1280,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"​松原市人民广场，秧歌表演的现场吹鼓乐队，2025年2月2日（正月初五）","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ef/A_musical_ensemble_for_Yangge%2C_People%27s_Square_Songyuan.jpg/960px-A_musical_ensemble_for_Yangge%2C_People%27s_Square_Songyuan.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:A_musical_ensemble_for_Yangge,_People%27s_Square_Songyuan.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ef/A_musical_ensemble_for_Yangge%2C_People%27s_Square_Songyuan.jpg/1280px-A_musical_ensemble_for_Yangge%2C_People%27s_Square_Songyuan.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"​雪乡秧歌队","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0c/%E9%9B%AA%E4%B9%A1%E7%A7%A7%E6%AD%8C%E9%98%9F_1.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"EditQ","height":960,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"​雪乡秧歌队","licence":"CC0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0c/%E9%9B%AA%E4%B9%A1%E7%A7%A7%E6%AD%8C%E9%98%9F_1.jpg/960px-%E9%9B%AA%E4%B9%A1%E7%A7%A7%E6%AD%8C%E9%98%9F_1.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:%E9%9B%AA%E4%B9%A1%E7%A7%A7%E6%AD%8C%E9%98%9F_1.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0c/%E9%9B%AA%E4%B9%A1%E7%A7%A7%E6%AD%8C%E9%98%9F_1.jpg/1280px-%E9%9B%AA%E4%B9%A1%E7%A7%A7%E6%AD%8C%E9%98%9F_1.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:25.413Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/yangge"}
{"id":"34307e12-c6fa-4c60-ac27-e1a5b3d739fa","type":"art_form","slug":"yosakoi","title":"Yosakoi","summary":"Yosakoi (よさこい) is a unique style of dance that originated in Japan and that is performed at festivals and events all over the country. The first yosakoi festival was held in 1954 in Kōchi, Japan, on the island of Shikoku.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"99q6scxz1p","content":[{"text":"Yosakoi (よさこい) is a unique style of dance that originated in Japan and that is performed at festivals and events all over the country. The first yosakoi festival was held in 1954 in Kōchi, Japan, on the island of Shikoku. Yosakoi-style dancing has spread throughout much of Japan. The style of dance is highly energetic, combining traditional Japanese dance movements with modern music. The choreographed dances are often performed by large teams. Along with a number of professional yosakoi schools and town dance teams, yosakoi is also a popular event during the sports festivals held by Japanese elementary, junior, and senior high schools. Its participants include men and women of almost all ages – sometimes within a single team.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d1029e07-28e9-4312-a424-77378d5c0a8c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Costumes and naruko","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nb2nj30k3w","content":[{"text":"The costumes used by yosakoi teams vary widely. Happi coats and yukata are the most predominant costumes and can be seen in a wide variety of colors. However, some groups choose costumes that are based on historical attire, popular fashions, or ethnic fashions. Typically, all members of a team wear similar costumes.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d1029e07-28e9-4312-a424-77378d5c0a8c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fdp7cwe2k6","content":[{"text":"One of the defining aspects of yosakoi dance is the use of naruko: small wooden clappers that are held in the hands of each dancer. Naruko were originally used in Kōchi Prefecture to scare birds away from rice fields. The traditional naruko has black and yellow beaters on a wooden body, but most modern yosakoi groups create their own naruko, choosing colors and materials that match their costumes. The use of naruko is required in traditional yosakoi dance, but many groups also use other hand-held instruments or props, such as drums, other percussion instruments, flags, batons, and floats.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d1029e07-28e9-4312-a424-77378d5c0a8c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Yosakoi Naruko Dancing","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"3ckgxm46p5","content":[{"text":"The official yosakoi dance is based on a song called \"Yosakoi Naruko Dancing\", written by Eisaku Takemasa. This song was created by combining elements of three songs: \"Yosakoi-bushi\" (\"yosakoi melody\"), \"Yocchore\" (a children's song), and \"Jinma-mo\" (a folk song of Kōchi Prefecture). The original competition in Kōchi requires that each team's music include some part of this original music. Competitions and festivals in other areas may not have this requirement (thus allowing teams to compose their own music), or may require that elements of different local folk songs are worked into the dance routines. Takemasa has given the copyright on \"Yosakoi Naruko Dancing\" to the public.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d1029e07-28e9-4312-a424-77378d5c0a8c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Yosakoi Matsuri","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"q4eg7wcaa1","content":[{"text":"Yosakoi Matsuri (\"yosakoi festival\") is a festival in the city of Kōchi, Japan. The original yosakoi festival, it has taken place every August since 1954, except 2020 due to COVID-19. In this festival, teams of dancers and floats crowd to dance the yosakoi naruko dance together. The number of participants has increased yearly: as of 2005 over 10,000 dancers participate in this competition every year.\nThe rules of the Kōchi yosakoi competition are as follows:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d1029e07-28e9-4312-a424-77378d5c0a8c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cc130c3bag","content":[{"text":"Participants must use the naruko clappers in the dance\nAny musical arrangement is acceptable, but the music must contain at least some part of Takemasa's original \"Yosakoi Naruko Dancing\" song\nTeams are limited to 150 participants","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d1029e07-28e9-4312-a424-77378d5c0a8c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Growth","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hg7qehxp5j","content":[{"text":"Since its introduction in 1954, yosakoi has become popular throughout the country of Japan. Yosakoi festivals are now held all over Japan throughout the year. They vary in size from small villages hosting a few teams of dancers in conjunction with another annual festival, to large cities like Sendai, which hosts the Michinoku Yosakoi Festival, the third largest festival in Japan.\nAs of 2005, there were yosakoi festivals and competitions in over 200 locations.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d1029e07-28e9-4312-a424-77378d5c0a8c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"hf98ab0h7g","content":[{"text":"In Tōkyō, the Harajuku Omotesando Genki Matsuri Super Yosakoi is a two-day yosakoi festival that takes place in five locations in Harajuku and Yoyogi Park. This festival has occurred annually since 2001.\nThe Sakado, Saitama Yosakoi started in 2001 with 67 teams and 4600 participants. The 11th festival was in 2011.\nSapporo, Hokkaido held its inaugural Yosakoi Sōran Festival in 1992. The 16th festival began on June 6, 2007, in Odori Park and other venues.\nSasebo, Nagasaki hosts the largest Yosakoi festival on Kyushu at the end of every October.\nYosakoi has appeared on the television drama \"Kinpachi Sensei\" (3年B組金八先生).\nIn Surabaya, there is an annual Yosakoi competition. In 2007, the prize was presented by the mayor of Kōchi, Seiya Okazaki.\nIn Sekolah Alam Shah, Putrajaya, Malaysia, during the Form 1 Cultural Night one of six sport houses will perform yosakoi.\nIn Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada, the first-ever North American International Yosakai Festival occurred at the Nikka Yuko Japanese Garden during late September, 2025.\nAn example of yosakoi dancing can be seen in the feature film The Harimaya Bridge, which was filmed in Kōchi Prefecture. The 2011 manga series, Hanayamata, which received an anime adaptation in July 2014, also focuses on yosakoi.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d1029e07-28e9-4312-a424-77378d5c0a8c"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Internationally","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"20e90eb094","content":[{"text":"Yosakoi has been celebrated in Penang - a UNESCO Heritage City in Malaysia every year since 2013.  It was originally held in March to commemorate the Japan Tohoku Earthquake but has since changed its schedule to the 2nd Saturday of September.  The event is organised by local enthusiasts called the Pink Hibiscus together with the Penang City Council with over multiple teams (27 teams in 2023) from all over Malaysia and SE Asia participating in what is now known as the Penang Yosakoi Parade held at Karpal Singh Drive, Penang.  Yosakoi is also celebrated as well as in Accra, Ghana as an annual celebration to strengthen ties between Japan and Ghana.\nIn Vietnam, yosakoi is performed annually in Japan Sakura Matsuri which is usually held in April in Hanoi by Japan Foundation Vietnam (JPF) to introduce Japanese culture. This festival showed over 10 enthusiastic Yosakoi teams of Vietnam and guest teams from Japan. Yosakoi also appears in anime-manga-cosplay events in large cities such as Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City and Haiphong. Up to now, there are total 4 Vietnamese yosakoi teams participating in Harajuku Omotesando Super Yosakoi Festival, including Hanoi Sennen Yosakoi Team, Nakama Yosakoi Team, Hanuyo and Nui Truc Sakura Yosakoi Team.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d1029e07-28e9-4312-a424-77378d5c0a8c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"nqyq6y441p","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Yosakoi”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"d1029e07-28e9-4312-a424-77378d5c0a8c"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wy829gt80p","content":[{"text":"Yosakoi is Japanese style of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"03f5afc7-6845-4971-96c8-23e624be4e09"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gec6hvgfm6","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"03f5afc7-6845-4971-96c8-23e624be4e09"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"高知よさこい祭り2008","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b9/Yosakoi_Performers_at_Kochi_Yosakoi_Matsuri_2008_40.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"工房 やまもも","height":853,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"高知よさこい祭り2008","licence":"CC BY 2.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b9/Yosakoi_Performers_at_Kochi_Yosakoi_Matsuri_2008_40.jpg/960px-Yosakoi_Performers_at_Kochi_Yosakoi_Matsuri_2008_40.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Yosakoi_Performers_at_Kochi_Yosakoi_Matsuri_2008_40.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b9/Yosakoi_Performers_at_Kochi_Yosakoi_Matsuri_2008_40.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail_unscaled","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0"},{"alt":"Naruko pour Yosakoi à la Japan Addict Z de Strasbourg","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/64/Naruko_pour_Yosakoi_%C3%A0_la_Japan_Addict_Z_de_Strasbourg_-_2.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Mickaël Schauli","height":1920,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Naruko pour Yosakoi à la Japan Addict Z de Strasbourg","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/64/Naruko_pour_Yosakoi_%C3%A0_la_Japan_Addict_Z_de_Strasbourg_-_2.jpg/960px-Naruko_pour_Yosakoi_%C3%A0_la_Japan_Addict_Z_de_Strasbourg_-_2.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Naruko_pour_Yosakoi_%C3%A0_la_Japan_Addict_Z_de_Strasbourg_-_2.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/64/Naruko_pour_Yosakoi_%C3%A0_la_Japan_Addict_Z_de_Strasbourg_-_2.jpg/1280px-Naruko_pour_Yosakoi_%C3%A0_la_Japan_Addict_Z_de_Strasbourg_-_2.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"Yosakoi Soran dancers perform during the 25th Annual Japan Day at Misawa Air Base, Japan, April 7, 2012. Yosakoi is a highly energetic dance, combining traditional Japanese dance movements with modern music.","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/78/Misawa_Yosakoi_dancers.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Kaleb Snay","height":875,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"Yosakoi Soran dancers perform during the 25th Annual Japan Day at Misawa Air Base, Japan, April 7, 2012. Yosakoi is a highly energetic dance, combining traditional Japanese dance movements with modern music.","licence":"Public domain","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/78/Misawa_Yosakoi_dancers.jpg/960px-Misawa_Yosakoi_dancers.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Misawa_Yosakoi_dancers.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/78/Misawa_Yosakoi_dancers.jpg/1280px-Misawa_Yosakoi_dancers.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-28T05:47:27.082Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/yosakoi"}
{"id":"537756b8-b964-4bbe-9dbc-41859e9e95ed","type":"art_form","slug":"yowlah","title":"yowlah","summary":"The yowlah  (Arabic: اليولة, al-yawlah, or العيالة, al-ʿayyalah or al-ʿiyyalah), is a weapon dance of the United Arab Emirates and Oman, traditionally performed during weddings, celebrations, and other events.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fc2z3ah7ew","content":[{"text":"The yowlah  (Arabic: اليولة, al-yawlah, or العيالة, al-ʿayyalah or al-ʿiyyalah), is a weapon dance of the United Arab Emirates and Oman, traditionally performed during weddings, celebrations, and other events. The dance is accompanied by traditional music (drums and other instruments), and men and women are represented in separate groups of dancers. The yowlah originated as a Bedouin war dance where men would spin rifles after victory in a battle. There is also a variation from the standard yowlah known as the razfah (Arabic: الرزفة al-razfah, الرزفة العيالة‎ al-razfat al-ʿayyalah, or العيالة أهل البحر al-ʿayyalat ʾahl al-baḥr); and the ardah is sometimes considered a form of the yowlah (as العرضة العيالة‎ al-ʿarḍat al-ʿayyalah).","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2ba4a450-8067-440d-946a-fccd55f3fd2a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Dance routine","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"v5pp8snpm5","content":[{"text":"The yowlah, or Al Ayyala dance, involves dance, drum music, and chanted poetry; its routine is meant to simulate a battle scene. Two rows of about twenty men face each other, carrying thin sticks of bamboo to signify spears or swords. (The performance can alternatively make use of dummy rifles made entirely of wood and metal plating or real rifles, swords, or spears.) Between the rows musicians play Emirati music on large and small drums and tambourines, brass cymbals, leather bagpipes, or flutes. The rows of men move their heads and sticks in and up and down synchronously with the drum rhythm while chanting poetic lyrics, and other performers move around the rows holding swords or guns, which they spin, throw, and perform tricks with. In the United Arab Emirates, girls wearing traditional dresses stand at the front, tossing their long hair from side to side. \nThe melody has seven tones in an irregular repeated pattern, and the chanted poetry varies according to the occasion.\nThe yowlah is performed during weddings and other festive occasions in the Sultanate of Oman, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. Performers come from diverse backgrounds and age groups. The lead performer is usually an inherited role and is responsible for training others performers. The yowlah is inclusive of all ages, genders and social classes.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2ba4a450-8067-440d-946a-fccd55f3fd2a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"cqrd48jxd3","content":[{"text":"The yowlah is considered a victory dance, and it used to be performed after a victory in a tribal war or after returning from a successful pearl diving.\nThe highly successful reality series Al Meydan on Sama Dubai took the yowlah (which was not widely known at the time) and created competition similar to the format American Idol whereby viewers can vote on the best dancers.\nThe yowlah is recorded (as al-ayyala) on UNESCO's Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage Items of Humanity in November 2014. It is hoped that being a part of this important list will contribute towards reviving and promoting the yowlah as part of the region's national identity and the heritage of humanity as a whole. Additionally, this listing is thought to help in transferring knowledge, skills, and the values of the yowlah from one generation to another—and to contribute towards achieving respect, mutual understanding, and peace amongst the people of the UAE.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2ba4a450-8067-440d-946a-fccd55f3fd2a"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"In popular media and politics","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"me4qq7etmy","content":[{"text":"The Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing since 2002 has organized the Shaikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Championship, which includes the Yowlah Championship.\nAccording to Guinness World Records, the largest yowlah dance as of 2019 took place in Fujairah on 26 November 2010, with 285 participants from three different tribes taking part in a traditional sword competition performed for the Crown Prince of Fujairah.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2ba4a450-8067-440d-946a-fccd55f3fd2a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"dm0pcypeeq","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Yowlah”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"2ba4a450-8067-440d-946a-fccd55f3fd2a"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2hhe6vxpqg","content":[{"text":"yowlah is type of dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0361f8cf-eca1-4ca8-b1f4-3c90dda7dd8b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"2pp2hty1q3","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"0361f8cf-eca1-4ca8-b1f4-3c90dda7dd8b"}]}],"media":[],"revision":1,"updatedAt":"2026-10-01T05:47:15.995Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/yowlah"}
{"id":"ac279cc8-72d9-4453-a309-9bd9cb7c47cc","type":"art_form","slug":"zajal","title":"zajal","summary":"Zajal (Arabic: زجل) is a traditional form of oral strophic poetry declaimed in a colloquial dialect. The earliest recorded zajal poet was Ibn Quzman of al-Andalus who lived from 1078 to 1160.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jwvjeay0rw","content":[{"text":"Zajal (Arabic: زجل) is a traditional form of oral strophic poetry declaimed in a colloquial dialect. The earliest recorded zajal poet was Ibn Quzman of al-Andalus who lived from 1078 to 1160. Most scholars see the Andalusi Arabic zajal, the stress-syllable versification of which differs significantly from the quantitative meter of classical Arabic poetry, as a form of expression adapted from Romance languages' popular poetry traditions into Arabic—first at the folkloric level and then by lettered poets such as Ibn Quzman.\nIt is generally conceded that the early ancestors of Levantine dialectical poetry were the Andalusian zajal and muwashshaḥah, brought to Egypt and the eastern Mediterranean by Moors fleeing Spain in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. An early master of Egyptian zajal was the fourteenth century zajjāl Abu ʿAbd Allāh al-Ghubārī. Zajal's origins may be ancient but it can be traced back to at least the 12th century. Today, it is most alive in the Levant—especially in Lebanon (see below), Palestine, Syria, and in Jordan where professional zajal practitioners can attain high levels of recognition and popularity—as well as the Maghreb, particularly Morocco and Algeria. Zajal is semi-improvised and semi-sung and is often performed in the format of a debate between zajjalin (poets who improvise the zajal).  It is usually accompanied by percussive musical instruments (with the occasional wind instrument, e.g.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"49e52ec5-9a39-4db4-a242-8951f3401c6d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Etymology","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"wz3y4yndbc","content":[{"text":"According to Lane's Lexicon, the root verb zajila means variously to make a sound, to utter a cry, to evince emotion, to play or sport. Adnan Haydar, a scholar specializing in Arabic language and literature, cites Ibn Manzur's 14th century lexicon Lisan al-Arab in attributing the meaning of \"to raise the voice in singing\" to the root verb zajala. Focusing on one of the meanings given by Lane, another scholar maintains that the etymology of zajal is related to play and musical entertainment.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"49e52ec5-9a39-4db4-a242-8951f3401c6d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Andalusi zajal","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"v05eqfzc21","content":[{"text":"Zajal poetry is in the colloquial Arabic of al-Andalus rather than Standard Arabic. Zajal differs from classical Arabic poetry in that the former has strophic form and the latter is monorhymed. Zajal's stress-syllable versification, or qualitative meter, also differs significantly from the quantitative meter of classical Arabic poetry.\nMost scholars see the Andalusi Arabic zajal as a form of expression adapted from Romance languages' popular poetry traditions into Arabic—first at the folkloric level and then by lettered poets such as Ibn Quzman. The versification patterns of Andalusi zajal resemble those of Galician cantigas, Castilian villancicos, Italian dansas and ballatas, and French rondeau and virelai.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"49e52ec5-9a39-4db4-a242-8951f3401c6d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Lebanese zajal","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"g9aw2nvwr9","content":[{"text":"Lebanese zajal is a semi-improvised, semi-sung or declaimed form of poetry in the Lebanese variety of Levantine Arabic. Its roots may be as ancient as Pre-Islamic Arabic poetry, but various similar manifestations of zajal can be traced to 10th- to 12th-century Moorish Spain (Al-Andalus), and specifically to the colloquial poet Ibn Quzman (Cordoba, 1078–1160). Zajal has close ties in prosody, delivery, form and spirit with various semi-sung colloquial poetry traditions, including such seemingly disparate traditions as nabati and troubadour poetry. Many Near Eastern, Arabian and Mediterranean cultures (including Greece, Algeria, Morocco, Spain and southern France) had, or still have, rich semi-improvised, semi-sung colloquial poetry traditions, which share some traits with Lebanese zajal, such as the verbal duel (e.g. the jeu parti of the troubadours), the use of tambourines or other minimalist percussion instruments, and a chanting chorus of men (Reddadi, in Lebanese) who repeat key verses or refrains recited by the poets.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"49e52ec5-9a39-4db4-a242-8951f3401c6d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Roots and development","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"j6x8nh2v5j","content":[{"text":"The earliest practitioner of zajal in what is present-day Lebanon is thought to be the Bishop Gabriel ibn al-Qilai Al-Hafadi (1440–1516), although some scholarship traces Lebanese zajal back almost two centuries earlier to a poet by the name of Souleiman Al-Ashlouhi (1270–1335) and a few of his contemporaries, and in particular to a single poem in 1289, the year of the destruction of Tripoli (in present north Lebanon) by the Mamluks.\nZajal had its great ascendency as a popular art form in the 19th century when numerous poets contributed to its refinement in content and form. The format of the modern Lebanese zajal evening was set in the 1930s mostly by the master poet Assad Al-Khuri Al-Fghali (1894–1937), known as Shahrur Al-Wadi (Merle of the Valley), who is also credited with introducing many innovations in form and genre. The most common format for a modern evening of Lebanese zajal is a debate (or verbal duel) between two or more poets followed by a recitation of love poetry (ghazal). The format typically consists of recitation in the qasida form (ode), followed by debates in the m3anna and qerradi forms (a popular sub-form of the latter is sometimes called moukhammas mardoud [answered quintain]), leading to ghazal recitations in various forms such as the muwaššah, which, in its Lebanese zajal incarnation, is a joyous and flirtatious genre. The whole is accompanied by a chorus with tambourines and other percussion instruments. The meeting often concludes with a love lament, typically in the Shruqi form.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"49e52ec5-9a39-4db4-a242-8951f3401c6d"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Regional and thematic aspects","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"mzdghm8fwq","content":[{"text":"The regional variation in the appreciation of zajal in Lebanon mirrors to a remarkable extent the ethnic and sectarian fragmentation, which remains despite six decades of national co-habitation. Traditionally cosmopolitan communities (e.g. the Sunnis, Greek Orthodox and Armenians of the littoral cities) have had relatively little affinity for zajal and have produced, with some notable exceptions, few important zajjali. On the other hand, the Maronites, Druze and Shiites who inhabit, or have their roots, in the Lebanese mountains and rural areas, have disproportionately populated the ranks of zajjali over zajal's centuries-long evolution. This regional bias is also reflected in the imagery of zajal, which mirrors more the bucolic and sensual sensibilities of the rural countryside than the cerebral and formal concerns of urban intellectuals. However, many colloquial poets were able to transcend these fluid boundaries and have composed verse that expressively tackles virtually the whole spectrum of humanistic concerns.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"49e52ec5-9a39-4db4-a242-8951f3401c6d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"amy2gs8e44","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Zajal”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"49e52ec5-9a39-4db4-a242-8951f3401c6d"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kqx1yg2bgy","content":[{"text":"zajal is form of oral strophic poetry, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"07bfa975-5e52-463c-9ab0-297c4d496cf0"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"x1yxj6wxh7","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 9 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"07bfa975-5e52-463c-9ab0-297c4d496cf0"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-05T01:44:15.335Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/zajal"}
{"id":"17439ff5-520a-4c82-97a2-369416a519d5","type":"art_form","slug":"zaouli","title":"Zaouli","summary":"Zaouli or Zawli is a traditional dance of the Guro people (who speak the Guro language) of central Ivory Coast. It is performed by a single masked and costumed dancer, accompanied by musicians.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"kzqnyeh59z","content":[{"text":"Zaouli or Zawli is a traditional dance of the Guro people (who speak the Guro language) of central Ivory Coast. It is performed by a single masked and costumed dancer, accompanied by musicians.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"603af2c6-1cf6-41c3-8d6a-ef2003a1bb93"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"History","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bma70a2x54","content":[{"text":"The Zaouli mask, used in the dance, was created in the 1950s, reportedly inspired by a girl named \"Djela Lou Zaouli\" (meaning \"Zaouli, daughter of Djela\"). Claudie Haxaire traces its origin to the village of Zougounéfla. However, stories on the origins of the characteristic mask are varied, and each mask may have its own symbolic history. It was inscribed in 2017 on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO. Zaouli is also one of the most difficult dances in the world due its unique and difficult steps.\nThe dance is performed by a single male dancer wearing a mask depicting a girl. Each Guro village has a local Zaouli dancer (always male), performing during funerals and celebrations. The dance is believed to increase the productivity of the village that it is performed in and is seen as a tool of unity for the Guro community, and by extension the whole country.\nZaouli rose in prominence within the Ivory Coast because it was the favorite dance of Ivorian president Félix Houphouet-Boigny and was regularly broadcast on national TV as a result.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"603af2c6-1cf6-41c3-8d6a-ef2003a1bb93"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"In popular culture","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bhybbwhbxe","content":[{"text":"The British-Sri Lankan rapper M.I.A. included a clip of a Zaouli dancer in her music video for the song \"Warriors\", released as part of the video Matahdatah Scroll 01: Broader Than A Border in 2015.\nIn 2022, the K-pop girl group Nature released a music video for their single \"Rica Rica\", featuring choreography which is heavily inspired by Zaouli dance. Some internet users have criticised this use as inappropriate.\nShort videos of traditional Zaouli dances are also circulating on the Internet, the soundtrack of which has been replaced by fast, seemingly appropriate rhythms of psytrance music.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"603af2c6-1cf6-41c3-8d6a-ef2003a1bb93"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vywp81kxrc","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Zaouli”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"603af2c6-1cf6-41c3-8d6a-ef2003a1bb93"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"89yth9n9tm","content":[{"text":"Zaouli is type of dance in Ivory Coast, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"75a53a43-015c-4bd8-adb9-b68fdf2f046b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"1cvfyqggzs","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"75a53a43-015c-4bd8-adb9-b68fdf2f046b"}]}],"media":[{"alt":"This is an image from","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/81/Masque_gouro_%28zaouli%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Emmanuel Dabo","height":2276,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"This is an image from","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/81/Masque_gouro_%28zaouli%29.jpg/960px-Masque_gouro_%28zaouli%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Masque_gouro_(zaouli).jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/81/Masque_gouro_%28zaouli%29.jpg/1280px-Masque_gouro_%28zaouli%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"The Zaouli de Manfla dance of the Ivory Coast, West Africa","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bd/The_Zaouli_de_Manfla_dance_of_the_Ivory_Coast%2C_West_Africa.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Amhogas","height":855,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"The Zaouli de Manfla dance of the Ivory Coast, West Africa","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bd/The_Zaouli_de_Manfla_dance_of_the_Ivory_Coast%2C_West_Africa.jpg/960px-The_Zaouli_de_Manfla_dance_of_the_Ivory_Coast%2C_West_Africa.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:The_Zaouli_de_Manfla_dance_of_the_Ivory_Coast,_West_Africa.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bd/The_Zaouli_de_Manfla_dance_of_the_Ivory_Coast%2C_West_Africa.jpg/1280px-The_Zaouli_de_Manfla_dance_of_the_Ivory_Coast%2C_West_Africa.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"},{"alt":"This is an image from","src":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8f/Portrait_du_zaouli_2.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=original","kind":"photo","width":1280,"credit":"Emmanuel Dabo","height":2276,"source":"wikimedia_commons","depicts":"This is an image from","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","thumb640":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8f/Portrait_du_zaouli_2.jpg/960px-Portrait_du_zaouli_2.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","sourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Portrait_du_zaouli_2.jpg","thumb1280":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8f/Portrait_du_zaouli_2.jpg/1280px-Portrait_du_zaouli_2.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail","attributionUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0"}],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-09-29T05:47:03.872Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/zaouli"}
{"id":"0e7eb94d-8b8e-4499-994e-f5098b5f5d0f","type":"art_form","slug":"zapin","title":"Zapin","summary":"Zapin (Jawi: زافين) is one of the most popular dance and musical forms in traditional Malay performing arts.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t4pmc514k4","content":[{"text":"Zapin (Jawi: زافين) is one of the most popular dance and musical forms in traditional Malay performing arts. Dance movements are choreographed to melodies, which are performed using musical instruments such as the gambus (short-necked lute), accordion, and rebana.\nIt is believed to have been introduced by Persian and Arab Muslim missionaries from the Middle East to the Malay Archipelago around the fourteenth century, where back then only males were allowed to perform; nowadays, female dancers are included. It had been performed exclusively for religious ceremonies, but through the years, it has become a form of traditional entertainment, hence the participation of female dancers is allowed.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"090bf8f3-c5ff-4a30-a563-d48a68d0f9fe"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Instruments","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"c9tjwqp48t","content":[{"text":"The dancers usually perform in pairs and are accompanied by musicians playing the accordion, violin, gambus, gendang, marwas/marawis, and rebana.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"090bf8f3-c5ff-4a30-a563-d48a68d0f9fe"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Distributions","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"gqfb508rs4","content":[{"text":"Presently, zapin remains an integral part of the regional Malay performing arts scene, particularly in Malaysia, Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia and Singapore. \nIn Malaysia, Zapin is mostly associated with the Malaysian southern state of Johor.\nIn Indonesia, Zapin is mostly associated and classified as part of Malay cultures, especially in terms of traditional dances and traditions in Malay-populated areas in Sumatra, Riau Islands, Bangka Belitung Islands, and Kalimantan.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"090bf8f3-c5ff-4a30-a563-d48a68d0f9fe"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Types","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"155gnsr6em","content":[{"text":"There are numerous types of Zapin, and each type varies by the movement and style of dance:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"090bf8f3-c5ff-4a30-a563-d48a68d0f9fe"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"pcaq5hvv56","content":[{"text":"Zapin 12 Kuala Kampar (Pelalawan and Penyalai)\nZapin Api (Riau)\nZapin Anak Ayam (North Sumatra)\nZapin Asli (North Sumatra)\nZapin Banjar (Banjarmasin)\nZapin Batuah (South Kalimantan)\nZapin Bedana (Lampung)\nZapin Bengkalis (Bengkalis, Riau)\nZapin Betawi (Jakarta)\nZapin Brunei (Brunei and North Borneo)\nZapin Bujang (Riau)\nZapin Bujang Marindu (South Kalimantan)\nZapin Carita (Banjarmasin)\nZapin Cek Esah (Riau Islands)\nZapin Dana (Jambi, South Sumatra and Bengkulu)\nZapin Dana-Dana (Gorontalo)\nZapin Dana-Dani (Nusa Tenggara)\nZapin Dana Sarah (Jambi)\nZapin Dara (Riau and West Sumatra)\nZapin Deli (Deli Serdang, North Sumatra)\nZapin Diang Marindu (South Kalimantan)\nZapin Dua Saudara (South Kalimantan)\nZapin Duo (Riau)\nZapin Empat-Empat (West Kalimantan)\nZapin Eroh (Kutai Kartanegara, East Kalimantan)\nZapin Galuh Langkar South Kalimantan\nZapin Gambus (Perak)\nZapin Genjoh (Mahakam)\nZapin Ghalet (Kedah)\nZapin Hadrah (South Kalimantan)\nZapin Istana (Siak)\nZapin Jambi (Jambi)\nZapin Kaltara (North Kalimantan)\nZapin Kamang (West Sumatra)\nZapin Kampong Bolak (Riau)\nZapin Kampung Manggis (Jambi)\nZapin Kasih dan Budi (South Sumatra and Riau)\nZapin Kepri (Riau Islands)\nZapin Kerinci (Kerinci, Jambi)\nZapin Keris (West Kalimantan)\nZapin Kinsat Suara Siam (North Kalimantan)\nZapin Kipas (West Kalimantan and Riau)\nZapin Kores (Johor)\nZapin Kuala (Banjar Kuala, South Kalimantan)\nZapin Kute (Riau Islands)\nZapin Lancang Kuning (Riau)\nZapin Langkah (West Kalimantan)\nZapin Langkah Bujur Serong (Pontianak, West Kalimantan)\nZapin Langkah Penghibur Pengantin (West Kalimantan)\nZapin Langkah Simpang (Pontianak, West Kalimantan)\nZapin Lapis Batu Putih (Johor)\nZapin Lembut (West Kalimantan)\nZapin Lenga (Johor)\nZapi…","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"090bf8f3-c5ff-4a30-a563-d48a68d0f9fe"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"bz9dd5jg62","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Zapin”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"090bf8f3-c5ff-4a30-a563-d48a68d0f9fe"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jqggnfn1sn","content":[{"text":"Zapin is one of the dances in Indonesia, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7bc1569b-425c-469c-80f7-12b55e33955b"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"a15vfffs4y","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7bc1569b-425c-469c-80f7-12b55e33955b"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-03T05:47:04.498Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/zapin"}
{"id":"4cbbe1b3-faac-431a-825d-3f58068ddccc","type":"art_form","slug":"zeibekiko","title":"zeibekiko","summary":"Zeibekiko (Greek: Ζεϊμπέκικο, IPA: [zei̯ˈbeciko]) is a Greek folk dance, similar to the Turkish Zeybek dance.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"fzxkx6dc0t","content":[{"text":"Zeibekiko (Greek: Ζεϊμπέκικο, IPA: [zei̯ˈbeciko]) is a Greek folk dance, similar to the Turkish Zeybek dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7642fc39-6d33-43f8-8b15-34a0e3d984df"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Origin and history","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"7m3wht1gn7","content":[{"text":"The dance takes its name from the Zeybeks, an irregular militia who lived in Prousa, and Erythrai in the Ottoman Empire from the late 17th to the early 20th centuries. The dance was first popularised at the end of the 17th century in cities such as Constantinople and Smyrna. Evliya Çelebi mentions in his writings that it was danced in Magnesia and in Aydın at local feasts. Originally a dance for two armed people facing one another, it evolved into an improvised dance for one male performer.\nAfter the population exchange between Greece and Turkey in 1922, the dance became popular in mainland Greece, and was associated with many songs of Laïko music.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7642fc39-6d33-43f8-8b15-34a0e3d984df"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Characteristics","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"tjma8dhndn","content":[{"text":"The Zeibekiko follows the Byzantine metre, and thus usually has a rhythmic pattern of 94, or else 98. It is most commonly broken down as:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7642fc39-6d33-43f8-8b15-34a0e3d984df"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"5rbf6ppwar","content":[{"text":"or as:","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7642fc39-6d33-43f8-8b15-34a0e3d984df"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"aa9bm01jm8","content":[{"text":"As a solo dance, it was traditionally performed exclusively by men, though it is now common for women to dance the Zeibekiko. Due to the movements of the dancer, it is sometimes known as the \"dance of the eagle\". The dance has no set steps, only certain figures and a circular movement, and often uses elements of the Tsamiko and Kalamatianos. It takes place in an area not surpassing one square metre, and mostly consists of improvised movements. Its exact rhythm differs depending on the time and place the backing song was composed. Originally considered a rebetiko dance, since the 1980s it has been considered a Panhellenic dance which evolves along with the Greek musical tradition. Occasionally dancers perform feats such as standing on a glass of wine or a chair or fireplace, or picking up a table, adding a sense of a little braggadocio and humor.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7642fc39-6d33-43f8-8b15-34a0e3d984df"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"6htqm41p9z","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Zeibekiko”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"7642fc39-6d33-43f8-8b15-34a0e3d984df"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"z6xhd85nz1","content":[{"text":"zeibekiko is Greek folk dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6fb58217-256f-4969-851e-ddfa325114ed"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"t0z40sy62e","content":[{"text":"The source record links this tradition to 3 external registers, which can be verified through the citation.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"6fb58217-256f-4969-851e-ddfa325114ed"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-05T02:44:00.266Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/zeibekiko"}
{"id":"d80cdaea-67f7-4b68-926f-abbd73dc475a","type":"art_form","slug":"zimbabwean-dance","title":"Zimbabwean dance","summary":"Dancing in Zimbabwe is an important aspect of the Zimbabwean culture, tradition, spirituality and history. There are many dances that reflect the culture of the people, although the dances may have changed throughout the years.","body":[{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"jvmbz26pe6","content":[{"text":"Dancing in Zimbabwe is an important aspect of the Zimbabwean culture, tradition, spirituality and history. There are many dances that reflect the culture of the people, although the dances may have changed throughout the years. Ethnic diversity is also a key factor in influencing the dances of the Zimbabwean culture.  These dances are self-reflective, for the entire community because all music and dance are communal events. Dance to Zimbabweans is a very spiritual, powerful tool that carries on traditions, and chronicles the important events of their history and culture.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c74d8e85-86eb-4d97-af50-fabde692affe"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Background","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8hahb8g3fe","content":[{"text":"The Republic of Zimbabwe has a population that is about 16 million people; the majority, about 76%, live in rural areas.  This is a very important detail in light of how many crops are produced by Zimbabwe: coffee, corn, wheat, sugar, tea, and cotton. This agricultural aspect of life is apparent in many of the dances they perform The official language is English, although the Muslim, Hindu, Bahá'í, and traditional ethnic religions are also practiced.  There are at least 20 ethnic groups in Zimbabwe, the majority being Shona (about 5 million people), Ndebele (about 2 million people). and others are Ndau, Venda, Tonga just mention but a few. There is some division between these groups due to battles between the Shona and Ndebele people in the previous century.  Each group has its own history, subculture, and political significance, yet they share many religious and cultural beliefs as well.  Every aspect of their culture influences the dances in which they perform.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c74d8e85-86eb-4d97-af50-fabde692affe"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Music yaTakudzwa","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"8r491agf1t","content":[{"text":"The three distinctive instruments of Zimbabwe include drums (ngomas), the mbira, (hosho) and the marimba.  Different sizes, shapes, tightness of the membranes, and materials used to make drums produce different tones and pitches, just as the different sized wood strips of a marimba create different tones.  The mbira is perhaps the most important instrument used.  It is plucked with the fingers to produce the melody, and is often used during religious rituals by spirit mediums in order to communicate with ancestral spirits.  The mbira, and consequently the mbira dance, has been around for a long time, according to archaeological digs.  Mbiras have been uncovered and dated back to the twelfth century.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c74d8e85-86eb-4d97-af50-fabde692affe"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Character and Purpose","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"v1aqfn4h05","content":[{"text":"Dances may be performed for enjoyment or entertainment, during many rituals including spirit possession, to re-create history, as an art form, and as a means of courting. Zimbabwean dance has a very distinct, individual style because the tempo of the music and dance is influenced by the spirit of the dancers. This brings a unique, personal element to the dance culture, as well as flexibility in interpretation of the dances.  The dances can be very powerful and can be interpreted differently by each performer and each member of the audience.  There are many distinguishing characteristics that define Zimbabwean dance.  Rhythm is the most important element to all African dance.  Polyrhythms are extremely important, just as they are in the music of Zimbabwe, and all of Africa.  The performer can pace their movements in a way that creates a new rhythm to the dance.  There is a very downward, earth-bound orientation to all Zimbabwean dances.  The knees are often flexed, or soft, and there are flat-footed, shuffling movements that represent the belief in the spirit of the earth being the provider of fertility.  Other elements to Zimbabwe dances include isolations, angularity (with the body bent at the waist), asymmetry, improvisation, a swinging quality, and movements outward from the hip.  Dances are very self-reflective, evident in the improvisation and emotion expressed, and as with the music of Africa, participation is a key element.  People either sing, play an instrument, or dance along; there are rarely spectators. Spirituality is very influential to Zimbabwean dance.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c74d8e85-86eb-4d97-af50-fabde692affe"}]},{"type":"heading","level":2,"content":[{"text":"Traditional dance","type":"text"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"f9rfkkt8ds","content":[{"text":"Traditional dance in Zimbabwe is constantly changing.  Traditional dance must adapt to the changing times without becoming too Westernized in order for the traditional culture to remain.  The people of Zimbabwe encourage change, but they want to do it within themselves, not change through outside cultural influences.  Traditional dances must accommodate change in order to remain tradition, and continue to withstand the test of time.  The traditional purposes for many dances have changed, the reason for performing dances change, however the meaning and significance of the dances remain constant. Conventionally, the people of Zimbabwe dance for important people, for example, on the tarmac at the airport at the arrival of Government officials.  Traditionally, Zimbabwean dance is not set for the concert stage.  A dance, such as a ritual of spirit possession, may last twelve hours, or even days in length.  Time is a very important aspect of these dances because the dancer must have time to enter the spirit world of possession, and re-enter the material world.  This spiritual experience is difficult to perform on a concert stage with limited time, and is often acted out, or abbreviated in concert-type settings.  These dances are preferably performed in a natural setting. In neo-traditional dances, on the other hand, the contexts of the dances have changed, and are considered to be 'traditional-like'.  The dance may carry the same importance, and even comprise the same movements, but since the context has changed, the dance is no longer considered strictly traditional.  These neo-traditional dances are wonderful keepers of history, and chroniclers of time change for this reason.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c74d8e85-86eb-4d97-af50-fabde692affe"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"627v3az94c","content":[{"text":"The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Dance in Zimbabwe”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"c74d8e85-86eb-4d97-af50-fabde692affe"}]},{"type":"paragraph","claimId":"vbsp2b5fpj","content":[{"text":"Zimbabwean dance is a tradition recorded in open cultural data, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition.","type":"text"},{"type":"citation_marker","sourceId":"b271f588-c87a-4cd0-bded-9813b3708e2e"}]}],"media":[],"revision":2,"updatedAt":"2026-10-04T05:47:06.093Z","url":"https://folkroom.org/art-forms/zimbabwean-dance"}