Folk Dances Around the World

Stomp, stomp, clap. Can you hear the happy music from a fiddle or a deep drum? Can you feel the floor shake just a little bit from all the tapping feet? People are laughing, holding hands, and spinning in a big circle or moving together in a long, winding line. No one is on a big stage with a spotlight shining just on them. Everyone is part of the fun, moving as one big, happy family. It’s a feeling that tickles your toes and makes you want to jump right in, a special kind of magic that happens when people move to the same rhythm. It's not about being perfect; it's about sharing a moment. Do you know who I am? I am that feeling of joy when you dance with your friends and family. I am Folk Dance, the dance of the people.

I am very, very old, so old that I was here long before people wrote down stories in books. In fact, some of the very first pictures people ever drew on cave walls thousands and thousands of years ago were of people dancing together. I was a way to share big news and even bigger feelings. In places like ancient Egypt and Greece, way back around 2000 BCE, communities would gather to dance with me. They danced to thank the earth for a good harvest of food, to celebrate when two people got married, or to tell the stories of their heroes. I was their special language for times when words just weren't enough. Over many, many years, I traveled all over the world and learned so many new steps. In 15th-century England, people tied bells to their shins and waved colorful ribbons to do a bouncy dance called the Morris dance. Jingle, jangle, swish. In the Philippines, dancers became quick-footed birds in a dance called the Tinikling, where they would hop and skip between two big bamboo poles that clacked together. And in Ireland, people created a very energetic dance with super-fast feet during big festivals in the 18th century called Irish Stepdance. The best part was that you didn’t have to be a special performer to join in. I was for everyone: moms, dads, grandparents, and kids.

I am still here today, and I love a good party just as much as I did long ago. You can find me at lively cultural festivals where people wear beautiful, traditional outfits from places their families came from. You can find me at family weddings where everyone from the littlest cousin to the oldest grandpa gets up to dance in a circle. You might even meet me in your school gym during a special celebration. When people dance with me, they are sharing a piece of their family’s history and their culture. It’s a wonderful way to tell someone, "This is who we are and where we come from," without saying a single word. I am a happy language that everyone can speak with their feet. I am a wonderful way to make new friends and celebrate being together. So next time you hear music that makes you want to tap your toes, remember me. Everyone is invited to join the fun.