Difference between revisions of "Belly dance" - New World Encyclopedia

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[[Image:Bauchtanz Chryssanthi Sahar.jpg|thumb|Raqs Sharqi dancer Chryssanthi Sahar Scharf, Heidelberg.]]
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'''Belly dance''' is a [[Western]] term for a traditional [[Middle Eastern]] and North African[[dance]] form.  In  [[Arabic]] language it is known as '''raqs sharqi''' ('''رقص شرقي'''; literally translated as"dance of the Orient" or "dance of the East or oriental dance") or sometimes  called '''raqs baladi''' ('''رقص بلدي'''; literally "national" or "[[folk]]" dance).  In Greece and the Balkans, belly dance is called [[tsiftetelli]] (τσιφτετέλι).  The term ''belly-dance'' is a creation of [[Orientalism]], and is first attested in English in 1899, translating French ''danse du ventre''.<ref>Danse du Ventre is  a colonial term given to women's dances of North Africa and the Middle East. Carlton, Donna. Looking For Little Egypt. Bloomington Indiana: IDD Books (1994): ix.  </ref>  It was so named because of the exposure of the midriff. Belly dance is a considered misnomer as all parts of the body are involved in the dance, especially the hips. The dancer’s goal is to visually communicate to the audience the emotion and rhythm of the music.
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[[File:Dancing Girl, Harem Girl, Belly Dancer, Fabio Fabbi (1861-1946).png|thumb|300px|''Belly Dancer'', Fabio Fabbi (1861-1946)]]
  
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==History==
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'''Belly dance''' ({{lang-ar|رقص شرقي|Raqs sharqi|oriental dance}}) is a [[Middle East]]ern [[dance]] which features movements of the hips and torso. The Egyptian styles and costumes are the most recognized worldwide as several dancers rose to fame during the golden years of the Egyptian [[film]] industry. However, belly dance has evolved to take many different forms depending on the country and region, both in costume and dance style.  
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===Origin ===
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{{toc}}
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[[Image:Jean-Léon Gérôme 011.jpg|thumb|Artistic depiction of Belly dancing]]
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Today, belly dancing in its various styles and forms is popular worldwide, and practiced in many schools around the globe. Its popularity is not limited to the entertainment value of the dance, but also because the style of movement has a number of health benefits. As a low-impact, weight-bearing exercise, belly dance is suitable for all ages and levels of fitness.  
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Oriental dance is very old dance form in the history of mankind. It can be seen the hieroglyphics of Egypt dating as far back as 4000 B.C.E. <ref>http://www.jasminjahal.com/articles//99_03.html</ref>. During the nomadic days, dance was performed for the purposes of entertainment and for  religious reasons.  The early pagan communities often worshipped a matriarchal deity and extolled the magic and fascination of the ability of women to create life. Belly dance movement s are believed to demonstrate and imitate “birthing practices" and involves the rework of movements traditionally utilized to ease childbirth.  This basic form of the dance covers a sub-set of dance movements in modern raqs sharqi.  There is a lot of historical evidence which links the ritual of fertility dances at that time, with symbolic re-creations of giving birth, to modern belly dancing. The sharp hip movements, deliberate muscular contractions and spasms, as well as sinewy undulations, demonstrate strong connections to the body's responses during labour and delivery. This concept is      strongly publicized by the [http://www.casbahdance.org/ROOTS.htm research] of the dancer/layperson anthropologist Morocco (also known as Carolina Varga Dinicu).  Also with numerous oral historical references, and is backed by a commentary in the work [http://eres.geneseo.edu/farrellk/web/record.asp?id=53 The Dancer of Shamahka]. 
 
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Today belly dance has remained an indispensible feature at weddings in North African and Middle Eastern countries and has it has maintained its connection to love as it is performed for the purpose of acquainting the bride and bride groom and creating an erotic atmosphere, while making a benediction for fertility on the couple, and at the same time providing entertainment for the guest.
 
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===Survival and propagation===
 
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The today oriental dance form spread from Mesopotamia to North Africa, Rome, Spain and [ India] and thrived until 600 C.E., when the Islamic religion became popular and banned all music and dance. In paintings, depiction of people was also banned. <ref>http://www.jasminjahal.com/articles//99_03.html Jasmin Jahal </ref>.  Yet, during this time and for 500 years thereafter, Arabic music and dance did find a way to survive. In Ottoman Empire, particularly in the caliph's courts in Baghdad, the dance was protected and nurtured. This time period is referred to as the "golden age" of Arabic music. The music and dance was artistic, creative, and enjoyed for the effect it had on the human soul. The complicated musical scales and modes were produced during this age, and largely remain the same to the present day.  Despite the restrictions in [[Islam]] regarding portraying humans in paintings, there are several depictions of dancers throughout the pre-Islamic and Islamic world. Books such as ''The Art and Architecture of Islam 650-1250'' show images of dancers on palace walls, as do [[Persian Empire|Persian]] miniature paintings from the 12th and 13th centuries.
 
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===Indian troupes the early Roma===
 
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At the very beginning of the 11th century, India came under attack by the Muslim general Mahmud of Ghazni, who was trying to push Islam eastwards into India, which was mainly Hindu territory. The Aryans moved into India many centuries before, and had pushed the original population down into the south, or else had absorbed them into the lowest strata of their own society, which began to separate into different social levels or castes, called varnas ("colors") in Sanskrit. During this time in Indian the Aryans regarded Aryan life as being more precious than non-Aryan life, and would not risk losing it in battle. So the troops that were assembled to fight the armies of Mahmud of Ghazni were all taken from non-Aryan populations, and made honorary members of the Kshattriya, or warrior caste, and allowed to wear their battledress and emblems.
 
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These non-Aryan population were taken from many different ethnic groups who spoke many different languages and dialects. Some were Lohars and Gujjars, some were Tandas, some were Rajputs, non-Indian peoples who had come to live in India some centuries before, and some may also have been Siddhis, Africans from the East African.  This composite army moved out of India through the mountain passes and west into Persia, battling with Muslim forces all along the eastern limit of Islam. Because Islam was not only making inroads into India to the east, but was also being spread westwards into Europe, this conflict carried the Indian troops-the early Roma-further and further in that direction, until they eventually crossed over into southeastern Europe about the year 1300. In Europe, Roma were either kept in slavery in the Balkans (in territory that is today Romania). <ref>http://www.orientaldancer.net/articles/origins-of-the-romani-people.html  Origins of the Romani People- By Ian Hancock </ref>  Because they arrived in Europe from the East, they were thought by the first Europeans to be from Turkey or Nubia or Egypt, or any number of vaguely acknowledged non-European places, and they were called, among other things, Egyptians or 'Gyptians, which is where the word "Gypsy" comes from.  The Roma’s  were able to move on and up into the rest of the continent, reaching every northern and western country by about 1500. The [[Roma people|Roma]], and other related groups, are seen as either having brought the dance form over as they traveled, or picked it up along the way and spread it around.  Thanks to the conflation of Roma forms of dance into the raqs sharqi sphere in the West. 
 
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=== Popularization of Oriental Dance ===
 
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The term "belly dancing" (believed by some to be a mis-transliteration of the term for the dance style [[Beledi]] or Baladi) is generally credited to [[Sol Bloom]], entertainment director of the 1893 [[World's fair|World's Fair]], the [[World Columbian Exposition]] in [[Chicago]].  Although there were dancers of this type present at the 1876 Centennial in Philadelphia, it was not until the 1893 fair that it gained national attention. There were authentic dancers from several Middle Eastern and North African countries, including Syria, Turkey and Algeria, but it was the dancers in the Egyptian Theater of The Street in Cairo exhibit who gained the most notoriety. The rapid hip movements and the fact that the dancers were uncorseted, was considered shocking to the Victorian sensibilities of the day. In fact, there were attempts by many, most notably [[Anthony Comstock]], head of the [[New York Society for the Suppression of Vice]], to have the Egyptian theater closed.
 
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The popularity of these dancers spawned dozens of imitators after the Fair, many of whom claimed to have been dancers at the Chicago Fair.  The most well known being Farida Mazar Spyropoulos, who it was said stayed in the States after the Fair and married a Greek man named Spyropoulos. Oddly enough she was neither Egyptian nor Algerian, but Syrian.  Although she was Middle Eastern, there is no evidence that she was one of the dancers in the Egyptian theater.
 
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Although it is popularly believed that a dancer named  "Fatima", also known as [[Little Egypt (dancer)|Little Egypt]], stole the show, and continued to popularize this form of dancing, there is in fact no evidence to support this claim.<ref name="Carlton">Donna Carlton (1995). ''Looking for Little Egypt''. Bloomington, Indiana: International Dance Discovery Books. ISBN 0-9623998-1-7.</ref>  Neither photographs, nor reviews of the Egyptian Theater mention any such person.  The truth is that photographs as well as accounts of the entertainments, show that there was not one solo dancer, but an entire troupe who performed in the Egyptian Theater. The dance performed by the many dancers calling themselves "Little Egypt" was nicknamed the "[[Hootchy-Kootchy]]" or "[[Hoochee-Coochee]]", or the shimmy and shake.  
 
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Outside of the Middle East, raqs sharqi dancing was further popularized during the [[Romanticism|Romantic]] movement in the 18th and 19th centuries as [[Orientalist]] artists depicted their interpretations of harem life in the [[Ottoman Empire]].  Around this time, dancers from different Middle Eastern countries began to exhibit such dances at various World's Fairs; they often drew crowds that rivaled the technological exhibits.  Because this dance style created such a craze, [[Thomas Edison]] made several [[film]]s of dancers in the 1890s.  Included in these are the [http://memory.loc.gov/mbrs/varsmp/1347.mpg Turkish dance, Ella Lola, 1898] and [http://memory.loc.gov/mbrs/varsmp/1143.mpg Crissie Sheridan in 1897] both available for on-line viewing through the [[Library of Congress]].  Another in this collection is [http://memory.loc.gov/mbrs/varsmp/1821.mpg Princess Rajah dance from 1904] which features a dancer playing [[Zil]]s (finger cymbals), doing "floor work", and balancing a chair in her teeth.
 
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===colonization and immigration===
 
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Egyptian belly dance was among the first styles to be witnessed by Westerners. During Napoleon's invasion of Egypt (the campaign which yielded the [[Rosetta stone]], leading to the translation of Egyptian [[Egyptian hieroglyphs|hieroglyphics]]), Napoleon's troops encountered the [[Ghawazee]] tribe. The Ghawazee made their living as professional entertainers and musicians.  Some Western began to learn from and imitate the dances of the Middle East, which at this time was subject to colonization by European countries.  The dance continued to spread when immigrants from Turkey, [[Iran]], and the Arab states began to immigrate to New York in the 1930s and 1940s, dancers started to perform a mixture styles in nightclubs and restaurants.  Often called "Classic Cabaret" or "American Cabaret" belly dance. 
 
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== Censor and Restrictions
 
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Belly dancing has been banned, censored or restricted in some jurisdictions. In Egypt, the Gypsies dance for the public at celebrations , in front of coffees houses and in market places and were popularly referred to as Ghawazee.  In 1834 in the city of Cairo, Egypt the ghaweezee dancing was outlawed due to religious complaint. Which far outweighed the financial benefits earned through revenue generated from taxing performer’s profit. Between 1849 and 1856 the ban was lifted and dancing was allowed in Cairo again, although the sanction against dancing in public remained. The dance moved inside to a music-hall type environment and Egyptian cabaret-style dancing was born. Elements of these sanctions remain till date as the costuming and dance styles are still restricted as dancers must cover certain parts of their body and some movements like the floor work is also not allowed. Dancer practicing the Egyptian dance style also respect these rules. Some dancers were captured on early film; the short film ''Fatima's Dance'', was widely distributed in the [[nickelodeon movie theater]]s. It drew criticism for its "immodest" dancing, and was eventually censored due to public pressure.  Again In [[Egypt]], there was a ban on foreign belly dancers for a year, until it was overturned in September 2004. <ref name="WashingtonTimesEgyptOverturn"> [[Washington Times]]: [Egypt allows foreigners to belly dance] [[September 5]] [[2004]].</ref>
 
  
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==Forms==  
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==Names and terminology==
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There are two forms of belly dancing.
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[[File:Jean-Léon Gérôme 011.jpg|thumb|400px|''The Dance of the Almeh'' (The Dance of the Almeh) by Jean-Léon Gérôme, 1863]]
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===raqs baladi===
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"Belly dance" is a translation of the [[French (language)|French]] term ''danse du ventre''. The name first appeared in 1864 in a review of the [[Orientalism|Orientalist]] painting ''La danse de l'almée'' (The Dance of the Almeh).<ref>Ainsley Hawthorn, [https://www.euppublishing.com/doi/abs/10.3366/drs.2019.0250?journalCode=drs Middle Eastern Dance and What We Call It] ''Dance Research'' 37(1) (May 2019):1-17. Retrieved April 19, 2024.</ref>
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The first is called '''raqs baladi''', a social dance performed by people of all ages and by both sexes, during festive occasions- such as weddings- and other social gatherings for fun and celebration.
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However, it is not translated from any Middle Eastern term: "belly dance" is known as "Oriental" or "Eastern" dance in Arabic and Turkish (''raqs sharqi'' and ''Oryantal dans'', respectively).<ref>Teri Williams, [https://euppublishingblog.com/2019/05/23/middle-eastern-dance-belly-dance/ Why do we call Middle Eastern dance "belly dance"?] ''Edinburgh University Press Blog'', May 23, 2019. Retrieved April 19, 2024.</ref>
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===raqs sharqi===
 
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The second form and more theatrical version- is called '''raqs sharqi,''' and it is this type that is most popular practice  in America  and around the world. Like raks baladi, raks sharqi is performed by both male and female dancers.
 
  
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== Movement==
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The first known use of the term "belly dance" in English is found in Charles James Wills, ''In the land of the lion and sun: or, Modern Persia'' (1883).<ref>[https://www.oed.com/dictionary/belly-dance_n?tl=true Belly Dance, Noun] ''Oxford English Dictionary''. Retrieved April 19, 2024.</ref>
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Raqs Sharqi belly dancing consists of movements that are executed throughout the body.
 
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The focus of the dance is the pelvic and hip area.
 
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It is, fundamentally, a solo improvisational dance with its own unique dance vocabulary that is fluidly integrated with the music’s rhythm.  Though the basic movements of Raqs Sharqi have remained the same, the dance form continues to evolve, through a combination of styles from many regions where the dance is practiced North Africa, Egypt, the Arabian Gulf, Turkey, Syria and Lebanon.
 
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The movement express in belly dance are continuously interchanged as a result of intermingling of people and culture through travel, trade and cross national boundaries.
 
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While Middle Easterners make the distinction between "city dance" (stage, cabaret) and "country dance" (regional folk dances), Westerners use the umbrella term of "bellydance" to refer to a broad range of styles united in the use of certain isolation movements, the most prominent and pervasive of which are the isolations of the hips. In addition, isolations of the chest, shoulders, head, hands as well as serpentine and undulating movements of the torso are often common movement found in belly dance. Another common trademark is a varying degree of movement depicting flirtation and coquetry.
 
  
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==Rhythms and instrumentation==
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===Movements found in belly dance===
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The rhythms and instrumentation used varies from area to area.  They Often have some commonalties despite great regional variations but in all there is an emphasis on the use percussion.<ref> </ref>
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Belly dance is primarily a [[torso]]-driven dance, with an emphasis on articulations of the hips.<ref>C. Varga Dinicu (Morocco), ''You Asked Aunt Rocky: Answers & Advice About Raqs Sharqi & Raqs Shaabi'' (Hypatia-Rose Press, 2013, ISBN 978-0983069041).</ref> 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 those used in jazz ballet, they are sometimes driven differently and have a different feeling or emphasis.
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===Costume===
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[[File:Randa Kamel Egyptian Bellydancer 2007 1.jpg|thumb|right|300px|Belly dancer Randa Kamel performing in Cairo, 2007]]
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[[Image:Belly_costume_veil.jpg|thumb|June 11, 2006 performing with my belly dance troupe Desert Odyssey in a student show in Northampton, MA.]]
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In common with most [[folk dance]]s, 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:<ref name=Wise>Josephine Wise, ''The JWAAD Book of Belly Dance'' (JWAAD, 2012, ISBN 978-0957310506).</ref>
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[[Image:Belly_costume.jpg|thumb|belly dance costume]]
 
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The costumes associated with belly dance is called '''bedlah''' in Arabic (meaning "suit") and was adopted by dancers in Egypt in the 1930s, from where it spread to other countries in the region. It owes its creation to the harem fantasy productions of [[vaudeville]], [[burlesque]] and [[Hollywood]] during the turn of the last century, rather than to actual authentic Middle Eastern dress.  An enterprising dancer, singer and night club owner in [[Cairo]] named '''Badia Masabni''' is credited with adopting this costume because this was the image that Western tourists came to expect, rather than the native costumes, caftans/kaftans, which covered and concealed the contours of the body, with only a scarf or belt tied around the hips to highlight the movements. However, the caftan is still used by performers to cover their costumes when not on stage.
 
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The mainstay of costuming in belly dances include a fitted top or bra (usually with fringe of beads or coins), a fitted hip belt (again with a fringe of beads or coins), and skirt/s (straight, layered, circular, or paneled). A veil made from a three-and-a-half to four-yard piece of fabric may also be used.  In the western world a "veil" may also be used for an
 
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In Egypt, dancers will also wear full beaded dresses, to do the folkloric and baladi routines.  In the 1940s [[King Farouk]] of Egypt employed Russian ballet instructor '''Ivanova''' to teach his daughters, and it was she who first taught the great dancer [[Samia Gamal]] to use the veil to improve her arm carriage. Most Egyptian dancers have continue to use the veil as an opening prop which they discard within the first few minutes of their routines. While in the western world veil may be used for an entire dance or in part of the dance moves and it occasional help in framing the dancers’ movements.
 
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Belly dance costumes  in Egypt are designed according to the dance and the tradition. The western belly dancers have more freedom and may choose freely according to taste and fantasy.  Costuming generally, often varies with the particular style of dance.
 
  
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===technique===
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* '''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.  
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Most of the basic steps and techniques used in belly dance are circular motions isolated in one part of the body; for example, a circle parallel to the floor isolated in the hips or shoulders. Accents using "[[Popping|pop]] and [[Locking (dance)|lock]]" where a dancer either [[Shimmy|shimmies]] or makes a striking motion in her shoulders or hips are common, as are feats of flexibility, rolling one's belly muscles, balancing various props like baskets, swords or canes, and dancing with chiffon or silk veils. Nelly Mazloum and '''Mahmoud Reda''' are noted for incorporating elements of ballet into Raqs Sharqi and their influence can be seen in modern Egyptian dancers who stand on relevé as they turn or travel through their dance space in a circle or figure eight.
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* '''Fluid''': 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.
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==Music:==
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* '''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 (instrument)|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.
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Raqs Sharqi dancers internalize and express the emotions evoked by the lyrics and the music.  
 
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Appropriately, the music is integral to the dance. The most admired Raqs Sharqi dancers are those who can best project their emotions through dance, even if their dance is made up of simple movements. The dancer’s goal is to visually communicate to the audience the emotion and rhythm of the music.
 
  
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==Dance Styles==
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In addition to these torso movements, dancers in many styles will use level changes, traveling steps, turns, and spins. The arms are used to frame and accentuate movements of the hips, for dramatic gestures, and to create beautiful lines and shapes with the body. Other movements may be used as occasional accents, such as low kicks and arabesques, back bends, and head tosses.
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===Egyptian-style ===
 
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[[Image:Egyptian_Bellydance.jpg|thumb|Tina-Louise School of Egyptian Belly Dancing, wowing the crowds at the Chilterns show, Great Missenden. ]]
 
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'''Egyptian-style''' raqs sharqi is based on Baladi and later the work of belly dance legends [[Samia Gamal]], [[Tahiya Karioka]], [[Naima Akef]], and other dancers who rose to fame during the golden years of the Egyptian film industry.  Later dancers who based their styles partially on the dances of these artists are Sohair Zaki, [[Fifi Abdou]], and [[Nagwa Fouad]].  All rose to fame between 1960 and 1980, are still popular today, and have nearly risen to the same level of stardom and influence on the style as their predecessors.
 
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In Egypt, three main forms of the traditional dance are associated with belly dance:
 
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# '''Baladi/Beledi'''
 
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#  '''Sha'abi'''
 
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#  '''Sharqi'''
 
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=== [[Syria]]n/ [[Lebanon|Lebanese]]===
 
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Lebanese Oriental is different from Egyptian Oriental. The basic moves are the same but the styling, musical interpretation, and folkloric traditions developed separately. Western dance elements, Debke/dabka (folkloric line dance of the Levantine region), upward hip articulations, glut accents, and Khaleeji influences (Arabian Gulf Dance) are characteristic of Lebanese style. The larger use of space and faster music is also characteristic of Lebanese Oriental. <ref>http://www.atlantabellydance.com/Overview/lebanese.html Arabian Gulf dance<
 
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</ref>
 
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===[[Persia|Persian]]===
 
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The art of dancing embellished events in the courts of the Sasanians, the pre-Islamic rulers of Persia. In the Islamic period, solo and ensemble forms of dance were an integral part of the intense musical activity in the palaces of the caliphs and in wealthy houses. Iran is perhaps the only Muslim country with a tradition of dance regarded as an art form. When revived after World War II, folk dancing was encouraged and adapted for the foundation of a national ballet with government support after World War II, and ancient customs were revived. Until it was closed in 1979, the Iranian ballet company was outstanding in the Muslim world.  Persians do not consider themselves as Arabs. <Ref>http://www.zehara.co.uk/bellydancingstyles.htm Overview of Belly Dance styles</ref>  Persian Bandari dancing is quite different from the dance of most Middle Eastern countries in that there are few abdominal movements and undulations. The graceful arm movements, shoulder shimmies, and twirls are similar Hip movements do not play a really big part  and the emphasis is on the upper body. As a dance form it is very "expressive" using hand and face gestures extensively.  Like the Arabian Gulf dance (Khaleegy) this dance uses the pelvis-rolling R-L-R, L-R-L stepping pattern. Persian people perform this at parties, travelling around in a circle and sometimes stepping into the centre for a solo with encouragement from their friends. The main variations are in the arm movements. <ref>http://www.atlantabellydance.com/Overview/persian.html"> Persian Bandari<
 
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</ref>
 
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==== [[Turkey|Turkish]] style====
 
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Turkish belly dance have developed  from the [[Ottoman Empire|Ottoman]] ''rakkas'' to the oriental dance known worldwide today.  As Turkish law does not impose restrictions on Turkish dancers' movements and costuming as in Egypt, where dancers are prevented from performing floor work and certain pelvic movements, Turkish dancers are often more outwardly expressive than their Egyptian counterpart. Many professional dancers and musicians in Turkey continue to be of Romani heritage as well. (However, it should be noted that people of Turkish Romani heritage also have a distinct dance style which is uniquely different from the Turkish Oriental style.)  Turkish dancers are known for their energetic, athletic (even gymnastic) style, and particularly, until the past few years, their adept use of finger cymbals, also known as [[zils]].  Connoisseurs of Turkish dance often say that a dancer who cannot play the zils is not an accomplished dancer.  Another distinguishing element of the Turkish style is the use of the [[Karsilama]] rhythm in a 9/8 time signature, counted as 12-34-56-789. 
 
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===Gypsy===
 
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===American Cabaret ===
 
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===American Tribal ===
 
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==Cultural context==
 
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Due to cultural misunderstanding about the nature of the dance and misrepresentations by the many imitators in Burlesque halls and carnival sideshows, the western world considered it risqué, leading to the stereotype of an erotic suggestive dance. 
 
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In addition, the sensational stories about the pseudo-Javanese dancer [[Mata Hari]], who was convicted in 1917 by the French for being a German spy during [[World War I]], and the fact that belly dancing could be seen only at [[vaudeville]] and in [[burlesque]] shows gave belly dancing a questionable reputation in polite society.  Hollywood did not help the reputation by only having three roles for a belly dancer (those of slave to be saved, a background dancer while the main characters talk, or a deceitful woman who uses her wiles to trick the main character), which created stereotypes of belly dancers that many dancers and instructors today are working hard to overcome. It is due to these stereotypes that many practitioners refer to the art as "Middle Eastern Dance".
 
  
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==Belly dancing in the Western world==
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==Costume==
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[[Image:bellydancer costume.jpg|thumb|Fantasy-inspired non-historical Belly dancing costume, with coin bra, face veil, and beaded hip belt over skirt.]]
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[[File:Tracy Rhaj Dancer.jpg|thumb||300px|Belly dancer in costume]]
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While the beautiful classical Raqs Sharqi is still popular in the West, many dancers have created fusion forms such as [[American Tribal Style Belly Dance|American Tribal Style]] inspired by the folkloric dance styles of India, the Middle East and North Africa and even flamenco. Dancers in the United State and other Western States, while respecting the origins of belly dance, are also exploring and creating within the dance form to address their own needs.
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The costume most commonly associated with belly dance is the ''bedlah'' ({{lang-ar|بدلة}}; literally "suit") style, which typically includes a fitted top or bra, a fitted hip belt, and a full-length skirt or harem pants. The bra and belt may be richly decorated with beads, sequins, crystals, coins, beaded fringe, and embroidery. The belt may be a separate piece, or sewn into a skirt.  
  
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===United States===
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The bedlah has changed over the years, as has the dance itself.<ref>Leyla Amir, [http://www.gildedserpent.com/cms/2013/03/28/leyla-amir-bedlah-not-from-hollywood/ Is the Bedlah from Hollywood? The Origin of Our Costume] ''Gilded Serpent'', March 28, 2013. Retrieved April 20, 2024.</ref> For example, earlier costumes were made up of a full skirt, light chemise and tight cropped vest with heavy embellishments and jewelry.  
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[[Image:BellyDancer1.jpg|thumbnail|right|Tribal-style belly dancers.]]
 
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With its emergence at the 1876 Philadelphia Centennial, the last four decades of the 20th century moved belly dance in the U.S. more into the mainstream.  The current interest in the dance can be traced back to the 1950s and '60s.  It was in the ethnic nightclubs in  major cities like New York, that most Americans first became acquainted with the dance. These clubs were owned, operated and patronized by members of the ethnic communities of Mediterranean countries like Greece, Turkey, Lebanon and Syria. At the time, most of the dancers were Greek or Turkish, but in time their ranks would grow to include Americans as well.  One example of this is the dancer "Morocco" of New York, who started her career in the night clubs of Greek Town on 8th Avenue.  These American dancers learned the dance by watching and imitating their Greek and Turkish sisters, as well as the patrons.
 
  
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In the late 1960s and early '70s many of these dancers began offering dance classes. With increasing exploration of the East in the late 1960s, many people became interested in everything Eastern, including dance.  Many touring Middle Eastern or Eastern bands took dancers with them as they toured to provide a visual representation of their music, which helped to spark interest in the dance.  This had the effect of creating many beautiful dancers who have generated greater interest in belly dancing.  The increased interest in belly dancing created diverse names for the same simple movements and the need to have a "style" as each teacher tried to distinguish differences in their way of teaching from other teachers.  This has hampered belly dance from acceptance with the more established dance forms because there is no nationally recognized choreography terminology that can be used to create repeatable dances.
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As well as the two-piece bedlah costume, full-length dresses are sometimes worn, especially when dancing more earthy ''baladi'' styles. Dresses range from closely fitting, highly decorated gowns, which often feature heavy embellishments and mesh-covered cutouts, to simpler designs which are often based on traditional clothing.
  
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A recent movement in the U.S. called [[American Tribal Style Belly Dance]], or ATS, represents everything from folklore-inspired dances to the fusion of ancient dance techniques from North India, the Middle East, and Africa.  Created in the early 1990s by Carolena Nericcio, founder of FatChanceBellydance in San Francisco, ATS has a format consisting of a vocabulary of steps that are designed to be performed improvisationally in a lead-follow manner. Pure ATS is performed in a group, typically with a chorus of dancers using ''zills'', or finger cymbals, as accompaniment.  The music can be folkloric or modern, and the costume is heavily layered, evoking traditions of any or all of its fusion of cultural influences.
+
==Origins and history==
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[[File:شفيقة القبطية.jpg|thumb|250px|right|Egyptian belly dancer ''Shafiqa El qibtia'' (1851–1926) wearing the dancing suit]]
 +
Belly dancing is believed to have had a long history in the [[Middle East]].<ref>Andrea Deagon, [https://people.uncw.edu/deagona/raqs/origins.htm In Search of the Origins of Dance] ''Andrea Deagon's Raqs Sharqi''. Retrieved April 12, 2024.</ref> 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.<ref>Wendy Buonaventura, ''Serpent of the Nile: Women and Dance in the Arab World'' (Interlink Books, 2009, ISBN 978-1566567916).</ref> Later, particularly in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, European travelers in the Middle East such as [[Edward William Lane|Edward Lane]] and [[Flaubert]] wrote extensively of the dancers they saw there, including the [[Almah (Egyptian dancer)|Awalim]] and [[Ghawazi]] of Egypt.<ref> Kathleen W. Fraser, ''Before They Were Belly Dancers: European Accounts of Female Entertainers in Egypt, 1760-1870'' (McFarland & Company, 2014, ISBN 978-0786494330).</ref>
  
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===Canada===
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In his book, Andrew Hammond agrees that belly dance was recognized during early times in Egyptian culture:
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[[Image:Kensington Belly Dance 1.JPG|right|thumb|A belly dancer in [[Calgary]], [[Alberta]], [[Canada]] in 2008]]
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<blockquote>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.<ref>Andrew Hammond, ''Popular Culture In The Arab World'' (The American University in Cairo Press, 2007, ISBN 978-9774160547).</ref></blockquote>
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Canada has a thriving belly dance community much like the United States with many different styles ranging from Raqs Sharqi to Gypsy style. Many schools offer belly dance classes and Canada has produced some of the finest belly dancers in the world including Master teacher Yasmina Ramzy, Hadia, and the internationally renowned Badia Star. Ramzy is the driving force behind the [http://www.bellydanceconference.com International Bellydance Conference of Canada] which is Canada's largest Bellydance conference, with workshops, panel discussions and speeches.
+
The courtly pleasures of the [[Umayyad Caliphate|Umayyad]], [[Abbasid Caliphate|Abbasid]] and [[Fatimid Caliphate|Fatimid]] caliphs included belly dancing, soirée, and singing. Belly dancers and singers were sent from all parts of the vast empire to entertain.<ref>Muhammed Al Da'mi, ''Feminizing the West: Neo-Islam's Concepts of Renewal, War and the State'' (AuthorHouse, 2014, ISBN 978-1491865224).</ref>
 +
 
 +
==Middle East==
 +
Throughout the [[Middle East]] and the [[Arab diaspora]], belly dancing is closely associated with [[Arabic music]] that is modern classical (known as "al-jadid").<ref>Andrew R. Martin and Matthew Mihalka (eds.), ''Music around the World: A Global Encyclopedia'' (ABC-CLIO, 2020, ISBN 978-1610694988). </ref>
 +
 
 +
The Egyptian styles and costumes are the most recognized worldwide.
 +
 
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[[File:20111110 Egypt 0421 Cairo dinner cruise (cropped).jpg|thumb|300px|Belly dancer on a [[Cairo]] dinner cruise]]
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===Egypt===
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[[File:The_belly_dancer_Taheyya_Kariokka..jpg|thumb|300px|The belly dancer [[Taheyya Kariokka]]]]
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Belly dancing is part of [[Egypt]]ian culture, with tremendous influence on [[Arabic culture|Arabic]] culture as a whole. In Egypt belly dance has two distinct social contexts: as a folk or social dance.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Overview of Belly Dance: Egyptian Folkloric style belly dancing |url=https://www.atlantabellydance.com/Overview/EgyptianFolkloric.html |access-date=2022-11-08 |website=www.atlantabellydance.com}}</ref>
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''[[Raqs sharqi]]'' ({{lang-ar|رقص شرقي}}; literally "Eastern Dance" or "Dance of the Orient") is the classical Egyptian style of belly dance that developed during the first half of the twentieth century. It 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. Belly dancers in Egypt have restrictions placed on their costume and movements. Most notably, no floor work is permitted and the dancer's midriff must be covered.
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 +
The informal, social form of the dance is known as ''[[Raqs Baladi]]'' ("Dance of the Country" or "Folk Dance") in Egyptian Arabic. As a social dance, belly dance is performed at celebrations and social gatherings by ordinary people (male and female, young and old), in their ordinary clothes.<ref name=Wise/> In more conservative or traditional societies, these events may be segregated, with men and women dancing separately.<ref> Rosina-Fawzia al-Rawi, ''Grandmother's Secrets: The Ancient Rituals and Healing Power of Belly Dancing'' (Olive Branch Press, 2012, ISBN 978-1566563260).</ref>
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 +
Raqs sharqi was developed 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]]. These dancers had a great influence on the development of the Egyptian style, attracting the eyes of the world to the Egyptian belly dance. 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 Lebanese-born actress and dancer [[Badia Masabni]]. <ref>[https://www.artemisyadancewear.com/the-golden-era-of-belly-dance/ The "Golden Era" of Belly Dance] ''Artemisya Dancewear'', March 27, 2020. Retrieved April 23, 2024. </ref>
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 +
The changes introduced by Badia Masabni to the oriental dance were aimed at adapting the intimate and improvised Egyptian folk dance into a crowded show and with the spirit of the variety theater or music hall. In order to achieve this Masabni aimed to fill the space, add visual dynamism and give a sensual air to the show. She pioneered theatrical dance tools such as group choreography, movement-extending props, the deliberate use of space on stage, and many more elements of modern entertainment.<ref>Farah Rafik, [https://egyptianstreets.com/2022/05/21/badia-masabani-the-force-behind-modern-belly-dance-in-egypt/ Badia Masabani: The Force Behind Modern Belly Dance in Egypt] ''Egyptian Streets'', May 21, 2022. Retrieved April 23, 2024</ref> 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.
 +
[[File:Layla Taj wikipedia article.jpg|thumb|400px|Layla Taj, Egyptian belly dancer, performing in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt]]
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Later dancers who were influenced by these artists are [[Soheir Zaki]], [[Nagwa Fouad]], [[Fifi Abdou]], and [[Dalilah (bellydancer)|Dalilah]]. All rose to fame between 1960 and 1980. Some of these later dancers were the first to choreograph and perform dances using a full orchestra and stage set-up.
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Professional belly dance in Cairo has not been exclusive to native Egyptians, although the country prohibited foreign-born dancers from obtaining licenses for solo work for much of 2004 out of concern that potentially inauthentic performances would dilute its culture. (Other genres of performing arts were not affected.) The ban was lifted in September 2004, but a culture of exclusivity and selectivity remained. The few non-native Egyptians permitted to perform in an authentic way invigorated the dance circuit and helped spread global awareness of the art form.<ref> Shannon Arvizu, "The Politics of Bellydancing in Cairo" ''The Arab Studies Journal'' 12/13(2/1) (2004):165.</ref> American-born [[Layla Taj]] is one example of a non-native Egyptian belly dancer who has performed extensively in Cairo and the Sinai resorts.<ref>[https://www.laylataj.com/home Bio] ''Layla Taj''. Retrieved April 23, 2024. </ref>
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===Turkey===
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Belly dance is referred to in [[Turkey]] as "''Oryantal Dans''," or simply "''Oryantal''" literally meaning "[[orient]]." Many professional dancers and musicians in Turkey continue to be of [[Romani people|Romani]] heritage, and the Roma people of Turkey have had a strong influence on the Turkish style. In Turkey the style of belly dance is lively and playful, with a greater outward projection of energy than the more contained Egyptian style.<ref name=Enright>Maura Enright, [https://babayagamusic.com/Encyclopedic-Dictionary-Ethnic-Arts/turkish-oriental-belly-dance.htm Turkish Orientale Belly Dance] ''Baba Yaga Music''. Retrieved April 18, 2024.</ref>
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 +
In Turkey dancers are known for their energetic, athletic (even [[gymnastics|gymnastic]]) style, and their adept use of [[finger cymbals]], also known as [[zill|zils]], which are commonly used in Egyptian style and movies. Floorwork is also a part of Turkish belly dance. Another distinguishing element of Turkish style is the use of a 9/8 rhythm, divided into 2+2+2+3. This is often referred to as the [[Karsilama]] rhythm which is borrowed from the Karşilama folk dance.<ref name=Enright/>
 +
 
 +
==Outside the Middle East==
 +
Belly dancing has become popular outside the [[Arab world]], and American, European, and Japanese women who have become professional belly dancers dance all over Europe and the Middle East.<ref>L.L. Wynn, ''Pyramids and Nightclubs: A Travel Ethnography of Arab and Western Imaginations of Egypt, from King Tut and a Colony of Atlantis to Rumors of Sex Orgies, Urban legends about a Marauding Prince, and Blonde Belly Dancers'' (University of Texas Press, 2007, ISBN 978-0292717022).</ref>
 +
 
 +
===North America===
 +
Although there were dancers of this type at the 1876 Centennial in Philadelphia, it was not until the 1893 Chicago [[World's Fair]] that belly dancing gained national attention. The term "belly dancing" is often credited to [[Sol Bloom]], the Fair's entertainment director, but he referred to the dance as ''danse du ventre'', the name used by the French in Algeria:
 +
<blockquote>When the public learned that the literal translation was "belly dance," they delightedly concluded that it must be salacious and immoral ... I had a gold mine.<ref>Sol Bloom, ''The Autobiography of Sol Bloom'' (G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1948, ISBN 978-1125599662).</ref></blockquote>
 +
 +
Authentic dancers from several Middle Eastern and North African countries performed at the Fair, including Syria, Turkey, and Algeria—but it was the dancers in the Egyptian Theater of The Street in the Cairo exhibit who gained the most notoriety. The fact that the dancers were uncorseted and gyrated their hips was shocking to Victorian sensibilities. The popularity of these dancers subsequently spawned dozens of imitators, many of whom claimed to be from the original troupe. Belly dance drew men in droves to [[burlesque]] theaters. [[Victorian]] society continued to be affronted by the dance, and dancers were sometimes arrested and fined.<ref>[https://www.nytimes.com/1893/12/07/archives/no-more-midway-dancing-three-of-the-egyptian-girls-finded-each.html No More Midway Dancing; Three of the Egyptian Girls Fined $50 Each] ''The New York Times'' (December 7, 1893). Retrieved April 21, 2024. </ref>
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[[File:Rachel Brice 1 DSC 0126.jpeg|thumb|300px|American tribal fusion dancer Rachel Brice]]
 +
[[Ruth St. Denis]] also used Middle Eastern-inspired dance in D. W. Griffith's silent film ''[[Intolerance (film)|Intolerance]]'', her goal being to lift dance to a respectable art form at a time when dancers were considered to be women of loose morals. Hollywood began producing films such as ''[[The Sheik (film)|The Sheik]]'', ''[[Cleopatra (1917 film)|Cleopatra]]'', and ''[[Salomé (1923 film)|Salomé]]'', to capitalize on Western fantasies of the orient.
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In 1987, a distinctively American style of group improvisational dance, [[American Tribal Style Belly Dance]], (ATS), was created, representing a major departure from the dance's cultural origins. A unique and wholly modern style, it makes use of steps from existing cultural dance styles, including those from India, the Middle East, and Africa.<ref> Kajira Djoumahna, ''The Tribal Bible, Exploring The Phenomenon That Is American Tribal Style Bellydance'' (BlackSheep BellyDance, 2003, ISBN 978-0972848602).</ref>
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Many forms of [[Tribal Fusion (dance form)|"Tribal Fusion"]] belly dance have also developed, appropriating elements from many other dance and music styles including [[flamenco]], ballet, [[burlesque]], [[hula hoop]] and even [[hip hop]].<ref> Jasmine June, [https://www.gildedserpent.com/cms/2010/11/03/jasmine-june-intro-tribal-fusion-belly-dance/#axzz2IHiCaBX7 An Intro to Tribal Fusion Belly Dance] ''Gilded Serpent'', October 28, 2010. Retrieved April 21, 2024.</ref>
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===Australia===
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The first wave of interest in belly dancing in Australia was during the late 1970s to 1980s with the influx of migrants and refugees escaping troubles in the [[Middle East]], including Lebanese [[Jamal Zraika]]. These immigrants created a social scene including numerous Lebanese and Turkish restaurants, providing employment for belly dancers. [[Rozeta Ahalyea]] is widely regarded as the "mother" of Australian belly dance, training early dance pioneers such as [[Amera Eid]] and [[Terezka Drnzik]].<ref>Natalie O'Brien, [https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/a-night-in-the-life-of-a-bellydancer-georgette-bowden-shimmers-across-sydney-20141011-113fw0.html A night in the life of a bellydancer: Georgette Bowden shimmers across Sydney] ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (October 12, 2014). Retrieved April 21, 2024.</ref>
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Belly dance has now spread across the country, with belly dance communities in every capital city and many regional centers, brought together annually for the Australian Belly Dance Convention.<ref>[https://bellydanceconvention.com.au/ Australian Belly Dance Convention]. Retrieved April 21, 2024.</ref>
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===Spain===
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[[File:Dalilah bailando danza oriental en la Esfinge.jpg|thumb|300px|alt=Spaniard Dalilah, 1957|Spaniard [[Dalilah (bellydancer)|Dalilah (''Adelaida Angulo'')]] in front of the [[Great Sphinx of Giza]], 1957]]
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In [[Spain]] and the [[Iberian Peninsula]], the idea of exotic dancing existed throughout the [[Islamic]] era and sometimes included [[slavery]]. When the Arab [[Umayyads]] conquered Spain, they sent [[Basque]] singers and dancers to Damascus and Egypt for training in the Middle Eastern style. These dancers came to be known as Al-Andalusian dancers. It has been suggested that the fusion of the Al-Andalus style with the dances of the [[Romani people]] led to the creation of [[flamenco]]. Many moves in modern Flamenco are very similar to belly dance.<ref>Stacy R. Webb, [https://parrotsgrl.wordpress.com/my-red-bones/roma-gypsy/belly-dance-flamenco/ Belly Dance & Flamenco] Retrieved April 21, 2024.</ref>
  
 
===United Kingdom===
 
===United Kingdom===
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With its growing popularity in the western world, belly dance classes are thriving throughout the UK, though the belly dance culture has been evidenced since the early 1960s, with many styles being taught including traditional, modern, tribal, Persian, Oriental, Turkish, Greek, Egyptian, American Tribal.
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Belly dance has been in evidence in the UK since the early 1960s. During the 1970s and 1980s, there was a thriving Arabic club scene in London, with live Arabic music and belly dancing a regular feature,<ref>Asmahan, [http://www.gildedserpent.com/cms/2012/01/15/asmahan-arabic-nightclubs-london-part1/ The Golden Era of the Arabic Nightclubs in London] ''Gilded Serpent'', January 15, 2012. Retrieved April 21, 2024. </ref> Several prominent members of the British belly dance community began their dance careers working in these clubs.
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Many festivals and workshops are held over the various regions, with two of the most popular being the Annual Glastonbury Majma. [http://www.majmadance.org.uk/] and Raqs Britannia [http://www.raqsbritannia.co.uk/]
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September 2007 sees the first Annual International Bellydance Congress being held in the UK. [http://www.bellydancecongress.com/index.htm]
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Today, there are fewer traditional venues for Arabic dance in the UK; however, there is a large amateur belly dance community. Several international belly dance festivals are now held in Britain such as The International Bellydance Congress, The London Belly Dance Festival, and Majma Dance Festival.<ref>[https://www.worldbellydance.com/uk-congress/ The Annual UK Belly Dance Congress] ''World Belly Dance''. Retrieved April 21, 2024.</ref> In addition, there are a growing number of competitions, which have increased in popularity in recent years.
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===Australia===
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The first wave of interest for belly dancing in Australia was during the late 70s to 80s with the influx of migrants and refugees escaping troubles in the Middle East, particularly the war in Lebanon. This was also the period that marked the increase in Middle Eastern musicians escaping the tensions in the region. Notable musicians of this period include drummer [[Jamal Zraika]].
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==Health==
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There were notable performers during this period. These included [[Amera Eid]] who started the first belly dance boutique in Australia, Amera’s Palace, and [[Terezka Drnzik]] who established the first full time belly dance school in Sydney, The Akademi of Danse Orientale. Both of these experienced dancers and teachers have pedigrees linked back to [[Rozeta Ahalyea]] whose career spanned four decades.
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Belly dance is a low-impact, weight-bearing exercise and is thus suitable for all ages and levels of fitness.<ref>Tamalyn Dallal, ''Belly Dancing For Fitness: The Ultimate Dance Workout That Unleashes Your Creative Spirit'' (Ulysses Press, 2004, ISBN 978-1569754108).</ref> Many of the moves involve isolations, which improves flexibility of the torso. Belly dance moves are beneficial to the spine, as the full-body undulation moves lengthen (decompress) and strengthen the entire column of spinal and [[Rectus abdominis muscle|abdominal muscles]] in a gentle way.
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The biggest belly dancing event is the annual Sydney Middle Eastern Dance Festival which started out in 1990 as a Bellydance-a-thon to raise money for charity.
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Tribal style belly dance in Australia is gaining popularity as well. The most notable figure in this scene is Devi Mamak, the first Australian to have been accepted as a certified Fat Chance Bellydance teacher under the guidance of Carolena Nerricio. New Fat Chance moves developed in Australia by Devi Mamak and her troupe, Ghawazi Caravan, will be added to the official list of repertoire in the 8th video. The new moves are Arabic with a turn, triangle and the crazy camel.
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Dancing with a veil can help build strength in the upper body, arm, and shoulders. Playing the finger cymbals ([[zill|sagat/zill]]s) trains fingers to work independently and builds strength. The legs and long muscles of the back are strengthened by hip movements.<ref> Pina Coluccia, Anette Paffrath, and Jean Pütz, ''Belly Dancing: The Sensual Art of Energy and Spirit'' (Rochester, VT: Park Street Press, 2005, ISBN 978-1594770210).</ref>
  
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==Male belly dancing==
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==In popular culture==
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[[Image:MaleBellyDance.jpg|thumb|right|Male belly dancer in Istanbul Turkey.]]
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===In films===
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There is much debate over where and when men became part of the belly dance world.
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Egyptian belly dancer and film actress [[Samia Gamal]] is credited with bringing belly dancing from Egypt to [[Hollywood]] and from there to the schools of Europe. In 1954, she famously starred as a belly dancer in the American [[Eastmancolor]] [[adventure film]], [[Valley of the Kings (film)|''Valley of the Kings'']], and the French film [[Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves (1954 film)|''Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves'']].<ref>[https://www.artemisyadancewear.com/samia-gamal-the-barefoot-dancer/ Samia Gamal, "The Barefoot Dancer"] ''Artemisya Dancewear'', March 27, 2020. Retrieved April 21, 2024.</ref>
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Pictorial evidence in the form of Turkish miniatures made during the [[Ottoman Empire]] show public performances being done by young men and boys called ''köçeks''.  The Köçek dancers can still be found in the rural communities of today Turkey, most notably in the region of [[Kastamonu]]. These dancers were widely popular; in fact, the Sultan employed a troupe of these male dancers in addition to a troupe of female dancers, (Metin And: A pictorial history of Turkish Dance). This is evidence  in [[Laurel Victoria Gray]] works.<ref>Laurel Victoria Gray, "Dancing Boys," ''Arabesque'' magazine, Vol. 12 (May-June 1986). Gray discusses historical examples of male dancers, including those from the early centuries after the establishment of Islam, as well as the famous [[Bacchá|baccha]]s of Central Asia.</ref>.
 
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It has long been assumed that these dancers were female impersonators, because they performed in wide flamboyant skirts. A comparison with the female dancers however, shows that this was merely a costume worn for the dramatic effect caused by the swirling fabric. The female dancers did not wear specialized costumes at this time, but the ordinary dress of all women, which consisted of a pair of "harem pants", a long shirt, tight fitting vest covered by a flowing robe tied at the waist by a belt or shawl. Nevertheless, some of these male dancers did at times impersonate women. This was because they were not simply dancers but musicians and actors as well. As was the case in Shakespearean times, all dramatic roles were played by males since women were not allowed to entertain in public.
 
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===Recent trends in Male Belly Dancing===
 
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Even though the current professional version of raqs sharqi, developed in Egypt in the 1930s, was deliberately designed to display an idealized notion of feminine grace beauty and glamour.  Men continued to play a ''behind the scenes'' role in its development. Many of the most renowned choreographers and coaches are in fact men, such as Ibrahim Akef (cousin of the dance star Naima Akef) and Mahmoud Reda (founder of the renowned Reda Ensemble, the first theater dance troupe of Egypt).
 
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The recent trend of male performers of this dance form started in the '60s and 70s in the United States by such performers and teachers as Ibrahim Farrah (an American of Lebanese descent from Pennsylvania), Roman "Bert" Balladine and John Compton to name a few. These modern performers have also begun to resurface in the Middle East in Greece, Turkey, Lebanon and Egypt. Most male dancers face artistic as well as social challenges. Such issues as whether there are or should be differences in costuming, attitude, and the dynamics of choreography between male and female belly dancing is a subject of debate among both male and female dancers.
 
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===Male Bell dancing Hall of fame===
 
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Well-known male dancers in the U.S. and Latin America from the 1970s onward include Bert Balladine, John Compton, Sergio, Horacio Cifuentes, Kasim of Boston,famous Zill player on George Abdo's albums, Amir of Boston, Adam Basma, Ibrahim Farrah, Yousry Sharif, Aziz, Kamaal, Amir Thalib, Mark Balahadia, Francisco Carranza (Mr. Bellydance U.S. 1989) Canadian dancer Valizan, Jim Boz, and Tarik Sultan. Some of these dancers are American-born, others were immigrants from the Middle East and Europe. Basma was born in Lebanon. Sharif (who comes from Egypt and relocated to the U.S. in the early 1990s) was a member of the Reda Ensemble, the first national dance troupe in Egypt. Directed by Mahmoud Reda, a former gymnast who represented Egypt in the Olympics, the Reda Ensemble has existed continuously for over four decades. Other male belly dancers across the globe have made an impact on this dance form, most notably Horacio Cifuentes, who now resides in Germany and who has infused his ballet background with various types of Middle Eastern dance to create an impact on both male and female belly-dance styles. Tarik Sultan of New York has made a great contribution in the documentation of the history of the male role in the dance. His article "Oriental Dance, it isn't just for women any more", is one of the most historically and culturally accurate article on the subject. Also, Dr. [[Anthony Shay]], the author of ''Choreophobia'', in his article "The Male Dancer", tackles the myths that the dance is a strictly female form and that men who did perform it were only imitating women. He offers historical and cultural sources to show that men have always been present in Middle Eastern dance, not only on the social level, but in the professional arena as well. Many dancers are now fast gaining recognition around the world as a dancers of exceptional skill such as; Egyptian male dancer Tito Seif, who performs in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el Sheikh; Syrian male Dancer Jamil and Shiva, renowned performers in Sydney, Australia; Israeli born Asi Haskal, who holds many concerts in Israel.  
 
  
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==Benefits of belly dancing==
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In [[British cinema]], belly dancing features prominently in several [[James Bond movies]], such as the 1963 movie [[From Russia With Love (film)|''From Russia With Love'']], the 1974 movie [[The Man with the Golden Gun (film)|''The Man with the Golden Gun'']], and the 1977 movie [[The Spy Who Loved Me (film)|''The Spy Who Loved Me'']].<ref>Steven Jay Rubin, [https://spymovienavigator.com/spydata/belly-dancers/ Belly Dancers] ''Spy Movie Navigator''. Retrieved April 21, 2024.</ref>
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===Health ===
 
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The benefits of belly dance are both mental and physical. Dancing provides a good cardio-vascular workout and helps increase both flexibility and strength, focusing on the torso or "core muscles", although it also builds leg strength. Many belly dance styles emphasize muscular "isolations", teaching the ability to move various muscles or muscle groups independently. Veil work can also build arm, shoulder, and general upper-body strength, and playing the zils can build strength and independence of the fingers. Belly dance is suitable for all ages and body types, and can be as physical as the participant chooses.  The art form tones the arms, strengthens and tightens the abs and obliques, and improves flexibility. As a form of exercise, it can burn as many calories as light jogging, swimming or riding a bike.<ref>http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/belly-dancing/AN01491 Belly-dancing: A good exercise for weight loss? MayoClinic.com</ref>
 
  
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===Economic ===
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Belly dancing has been shown in many [[Bollywood]] films, and is often accompanied with Bollywood songs and dance sequences instead of the traditional Arabic style. While Bollywood choreographies are based on classical Indian dances, it evolved from a combination of classical Indian dance and folk dancing such as Bhangra, and was merged with Latino and Arabic/belly dance style moves.<ref>[https://www.atlantabellydance.com/Classes/Dances/CountryBollywood.html Bollywood Belly Dance] ''Atlanta Belly Dance''. Retrieved April 21, 2024.</ref>
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Many women today in the U.S. and Europe approach belly dance as a tool for empowerment and strengthening of the body, mind, and spirit.  
 
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While a small percentage of enthusiasts use belly dance as an income supplement, others derive their sole income from performance regularly as amateurs or semi-professionals and/or teaching. Bellydance communities worldwide are notable for their energy and enthusiasm in putting on collaborative performances, workshops and other events. The elements of virtues and potential in the dancers are nurtured as issues of body-image, sisterhood, self-esteem, self-empowerment, and self-authentication are regularly addressed in belly dance classes.
 
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===Others===
 
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Many belly dance enthusiastic pursue the dance for several other reason or benefit where include but not limited to getting to learn new art form, music and the culture of the origin of the dance.  Others see the dance as a way to express themselves while making new friends and being a part of a community.
 
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==Contemporary Trend==
 
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Today, these ancient dances are taught in classes offered throughout the world, and skilled dancers are able to share their knowledge that has been passed down from the indigenous peoples who created them.
 
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Multicultural trends that have shaped Western and U.S. belly dance are still at work. Ever evolving, this versatile dance keeps absorbing a blend of influences; modern fashion, film and television imagery, the world of rock and hip hop, underground subcultures, and many other contemporary influences. The umbrella term used to describe these hybrid forms of belly dance is "belly dance fusion", including "tribal fusion". One of the newest belly dance fusion trends is [[Gothic bellydance|gothic belly dance]] that incorporates many belly dance styles and motifs and seeks to express the darkness of the unknown that has inspired the music, philosophies, and lifestyles of the [[Goth subculture]]. [http://www.gothicbellydance.com/gothicbellydance/]
 
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Continuously, in the U.S. more fusion and personal styles are added into Belly Dance. From ballet, Urban Tribal, Techno Tribal, Afrocuban Tribal, World Fusion, Popping Fusions, Hip Hop Fusions, Jazz, contemporary, Indian, Asian gymnastics, fire dancing, stilt walking, hoop twirling and the reintroduction of burlesque type movements, are influencing the creation of fusion and personal styles. With dancers seeking out education in more than one dance form in order to incorporate something new into their Belly Dance choreographies; this has lead to creating diversity in the dance form and it has continue to evolve.
 
  
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===Belly dancing in pop culture===
+
=== In pop music ===
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The modern pop culture incorporates some belly dancing inspired movements. Some pop icons fused belly dancing into the modern hip-hop dancing.  Variations and twist of the dance form are done to fit the desired named styles through the combination of different dance styles and rhythms.  Recently, Belly dancing has  been made widely popular by Latin superstar [[Shakira]], whose dancing combines belly dance, [[Latin America|Latino]], and modern dance styles.
+
Belly dance today is a dance used by various artists, including [[Rihanna]], [[Beyoncé]], and [[Fergie (singer)|Fergie]]. However, the greatest representative of this dance is the [[Colombia]]n singer [[Shakira]], whose songs "Whenever Wherever" and "[[Hips Don't Lie]]" made her dance skills famous worldwide, popularizing belly dancing in a large part of Latin America and later taking it to the United States. Over time Shakira began mixing this dance with Latin dances, like [[Salsa (dance)|Salsa]]<ref>Shanice Davis, [https://www.vibe.com/features/viva/shakira-drops-salsa-version-of-chantaje-484628/ Shakira Drops Salsa Version Of "Chantaje" Just In Time For Her Birthday] ''Vibe'', February 2, 2017. Retrieved April 20, 2024.</ref>
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An R&B singer [[Aaliyah]] used the belly dance as her signature move, which she called the belly roll, and it was featured in many of her music videos. Other singers who have performed belly dance in their music videos include [[Hilary Duff]], [[Beyoncé]], [[Ciara]], [[Rihanna]], [[Nelly Furtado]], [[Britney Spears]], and [[Christina Aguilera]]. Only Shakira has had professional belly dance training.
 
  
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==See also==
+
==Notes==
−
* [[Köçek]]
+
<references/>
−
* [[Tsifteteli]]
 
−
* [[Dance basic topics]]
 
−
* [[List of dances]]
 
−
* [[Samia Gamal]]
 
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* [[Taheyya Kariokka]]
 
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* [[Serena Wilson]]
 
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* [[Shakira]]
 
−
* [[Didem (Belly Dancer)]]
 
  
 
==References==
 
==References==
−
* Donna Carlton (1995). ''Looking for Little Egypt''. Bloomington, Indiana: International Dance Discovery Books. ISBN 0-9623998-1-7.
+
* Al Da'mi, Muhammed. ''Feminizing the West: Neo-Islam's Concepts of Renewal, War and the State''. AuthorHouse, 2014. ISBN 978-1491865224
−
* [http://www.eijkhout.net/rad/dance_specific/bellydance4.html Belly dancing]
+
* Al-Rawi, Rosina-Fawzia. ''Grandmother's Secrets: The Ancient Rituals and Healing Power of Belly Dancing''. Olive Branch Press, 2012. ISBN 978-1566563260
−
* Serena and Alan Wilson (1973). ''The Serena Technique of Belly Dancing''. New York, NY: Pocket Books.
+
* Bloom, Sol. ''The Autobiography of Sol Bloom''. G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1948. ISBN 978-1125599662
−
* Julie Russo Mishkin and Marta Schill (1973). ''The Compleat Belly Dancer''. Garden City, New York: Doubleday and Company Books. ISBN 0-385-03556-X
+
* Buonaventura, Wendy. ''Serpent of the Nile: Women and Dance in the Arab World''. Interlink Books, 2009. ISBN 978-1566567916
 +
* Coluccia, Pina, Anette Paffrath, and Jean Pütz. ''Belly Dancing: The Sensual Art of Energy and Spirit''. Rochester, VT: Park Street Press, 2005. ISBN 978-1594770210
 +
* Dallal, Tamalyn. ''Belly Dancing For Fitness: The Ultimate Dance Workout That Unleashes Your Creative Spirit''. Ulysses Press, 2004. ISBN 978-1569754108.
 +
* Dinicu, C. Varga (Morocco). ''You Asked Aunt Rocky: Answers & Advice About Raqs Sharqi & Raqs Shaabi''. Hypatia-Rose Press, 2013. ISBN 978-0983069041
 +
* Djoumahna, Kajira. ''The Tribal Bible, Exploring The Phenomenon That Is American Tribal Style Bellydance''. BlackSheep BellyDance, 2003. ISBN 978-0972848602
 +
* Fraser, ‎Kathleen W. ''Before They Were Belly Dancers: European Accounts of Female Entertainers in Egypt, 1760-1870''. McFarland & Company, 2014. ISBN 978-0786494330
 +
* Hammond, Andrew. ''Popular Culture In The Arab World''. The American University in Cairo Press, 2007. ISBN 978-9774160547
 +
* Martin, Andrew R., and Matthew Mihalka (eds.). ''Music around the World: A Global Encyclopedia''. ABC-CLIO, 2020. ISBN 978-1610694988
 +
* Wise, Josephine. ''The JWAAD Book of Belly Dance''. JWAAD, 2012. ISBN 978-0957310506
 +
* Wynn, L.L. ''Pyramids and Nightclubs: A Travel Ethnography of Arab and Western Imaginations of Egypt, from King Tut and a Colony of Atlantis to Rumors of Sex Orgies, Urban legends about a Marauding Prince, and Blonde Belly Dancers''. University of Texas Press, 2007. ISBN 978-0292717022
  
−
==Notes==
+
== External links ==
−
{{reflist}}
+
All links retrieved April 23, 2024.
  
−
==External links==
+
* [https://www.danceus.org/belly-dance/what-is-belly-dance/ What is Belly dance?] ''Dance US''
−
*[http://www.rakkasah.com Rakkasah Dance Festivals]
+
* [https://www.worldbellydance.com/myths-and-misconceptions/ 10 Myths about Belly Dance] ''World Belly Dance''
−
*[http://www.mecda.org/ The Middle Eastern Culture and Dance Association]
+
* [https://www.city-academy.com/news/5-benefits-belly-dance/ 5 Benefits of Belly Dance] ''City Academy''
−
*[http://www.bollypoptv.com Bollypop – World’s first online Bollywood dance competition]
+
* [https://www.worldbellydance.com/health-benefits-belly-dance/ Health Benefits of Belly Dance] ''World Belly Dance''
−
*[http://www.joyofbellydancing.com/bdstyle.htm Many Belly Dancing Styles]
 
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*[http://www.bellydancingcostumes.net/ Know More about Belly Dancing]
 
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[http://www.atlantabellydance.com/Overview/Overview.html Belly Dancing Overview]
 
  
  
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{{Credits|223700588}}
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[[Category:Dance]]
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[[Category:Performing arts]]
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{{Credits|Belly_dance|1216665477|Raqs_sharqi|1189285886}}

Latest revision as of 16:20, 24 April 2024

Belly Dancer, Fabio Fabbi (1861-1946)

Belly dance (Arabic: رقص شرقي) is a Middle Eastern dance which features movements of the hips and torso. The Egyptian styles and costumes are the most recognized worldwide as several dancers rose to fame during the golden years of the Egyptian film industry. However, belly dance has evolved to take many different forms depending on the country and region, both in costume and dance style.

Today, belly dancing in its various styles and forms is popular worldwide, and practiced in many schools around the globe. Its popularity is not limited to the entertainment value of the dance, but also because the style of movement has a number of health benefits. As a low-impact, weight-bearing exercise, belly dance is suitable for all ages and levels of fitness.

Names and terminology

The Dance of the Almeh (The Dance of the Almeh) by Jean-Léon Gérôme, 1863

"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 La danse de l'almée (The Dance of the Almeh).[1] However, it is not translated from any Middle Eastern term: "belly dance" is known as "Oriental" or "Eastern" dance in Arabic and Turkish (raqs sharqi and Oryantal dans, respectively).[2]

The first known use of the term "belly dance" in English is found in Charles James Wills, In the land of the lion and sun: or, Modern Persia (1883).[3]

Movements found in belly dance

Belly dance is primarily a torso-driven dance, with an emphasis on articulations of the hips.[4] 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 those used in jazz ballet, they are sometimes driven differently and have a different feeling or emphasis.

Belly dancer Randa Kamel performing in Cairo, 2007

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:[5]

  • 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.
  • Fluid: 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.
  • 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.

In addition to these torso movements, dancers in many styles will use level changes, traveling steps, turns, and spins. The arms are used to frame and accentuate movements of the hips, for dramatic gestures, and to create beautiful lines and shapes with the body. Other movements may be used as occasional accents, such as low kicks and arabesques, back bends, and head tosses.

Costume

Belly dancer in costume

The costume most commonly associated with belly dance is the bedlah (Arabic: بدلة; literally "suit") style, which typically includes a fitted top or bra, a fitted hip belt, and a full-length skirt or harem pants. The bra and belt may be richly decorated with beads, sequins, crystals, coins, beaded fringe, and embroidery. The belt may be a separate piece, or sewn into a skirt.

The bedlah has changed over the years, as has the dance itself.[6] For example, earlier costumes were made up of a full skirt, light chemise and tight cropped vest with heavy embellishments and jewelry.

As well as the two-piece bedlah costume, full-length dresses are sometimes worn, especially when dancing more earthy baladi styles. Dresses range from closely fitting, highly decorated gowns, which often feature heavy embellishments and mesh-covered cutouts, to simpler designs which are often based on traditional clothing.

Origins and history

Egyptian belly dancer Shafiqa El qibtia (1851–1926) wearing the dancing suit

Belly dancing is believed to have had a long history in the Middle East.[7] 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.[8] Later, particularly in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, European travelers 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.[9]

In his book, Andrew Hammond agrees that belly dance was recognized during early times in Egyptian culture:

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.[10]

The courtly pleasures of the Umayyad, Abbasid and Fatimid caliphs included belly dancing, soirée, and singing. Belly dancers and singers were sent from all parts of the vast empire to entertain.[11]

Middle East

Throughout the Middle East and the Arab diaspora, belly dancing is closely associated with Arabic music that is modern classical (known as "al-jadid").[12]

The Egyptian styles and costumes are the most recognized worldwide.

Belly dancer on a Cairo dinner cruise

Egypt

The belly dancer Taheyya Kariokka

Belly dancing is part of Egyptian culture, with tremendous influence on Arabic culture as a whole. In Egypt belly dance has two distinct social contexts: as a folk or social dance.[13]

Raqs sharqi (Arabic: رقص شرقي; literally "Eastern Dance" or "Dance of the Orient") is the classical Egyptian style of belly dance that developed during the first half of the twentieth century. It 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. Belly dancers in Egypt have restrictions placed on their costume and movements. Most notably, no floor work is permitted and the dancer's midriff must be covered.

The informal, social form of the dance is known as Raqs Baladi ("Dance of the Country" or "Folk Dance") in Egyptian Arabic. As a social dance, belly dance is performed at celebrations and social gatherings by ordinary people (male and female, young and old), in their ordinary clothes.[5] In more conservative or traditional societies, these events may be segregated, with men and women dancing separately.[14]

Raqs sharqi was developed 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. These dancers had a great influence on the development of the Egyptian style, attracting the eyes of the world to the Egyptian belly dance. 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 Lebanese-born actress and dancer Badia Masabni. [15]

The changes introduced by Badia Masabni to the oriental dance were aimed at adapting the intimate and improvised Egyptian folk dance into a crowded show and with the spirit of the variety theater or music hall. In order to achieve this Masabni aimed to fill the space, add visual dynamism and give a sensual air to the show. She pioneered theatrical dance tools such as group choreography, movement-extending props, the deliberate use of space on stage, and many more elements of modern entertainment.[16] 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.

Layla Taj, Egyptian belly dancer, performing in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt

Later dancers who were influenced by these artists are Soheir Zaki, Nagwa Fouad, Fifi Abdou, and Dalilah. All rose to fame between 1960 and 1980. Some of these later dancers were the first to choreograph and perform dances using a full orchestra and stage set-up.

Professional belly dance in Cairo has not been exclusive to native Egyptians, although the country prohibited foreign-born dancers from obtaining licenses for solo work for much of 2004 out of concern that potentially inauthentic performances would dilute its culture. (Other genres of performing arts were not affected.) The ban was lifted in September 2004, but a culture of exclusivity and selectivity remained. The few non-native Egyptians permitted to perform in an authentic way invigorated the dance circuit and helped spread global awareness of the art form.[17] American-born Layla Taj is one example of a non-native Egyptian belly dancer who has performed extensively in Cairo and the Sinai resorts.[18]

Turkey

Belly dance is referred to in Turkey as "Oryantal Dans," or simply "Oryantal" literally meaning "orient." Many professional dancers and musicians in Turkey continue to be of Romani heritage, and the Roma people of Turkey have had a strong influence on the Turkish style. In Turkey the style of belly dance is lively and playful, with a greater outward projection of energy than the more contained Egyptian style.[19]

In Turkey dancers are known for their energetic, athletic (even gymnastic) style, and their adept use of finger cymbals, also known as zils, which are commonly used in Egyptian style and movies. Floorwork is also a part of Turkish belly dance. Another distinguishing element of Turkish style is the use of a 9/8 rhythm, divided into 2+2+2+3. This is often referred to as the Karsilama rhythm which is borrowed from the Karşilama folk dance.[19]

Outside the Middle East

Belly dancing has become popular outside the Arab world, and American, European, and Japanese women who have become professional belly dancers dance all over Europe and the Middle East.[20]

North America

Although there were dancers of this type at the 1876 Centennial in Philadelphia, it was not until the 1893 Chicago World's Fair that belly dancing gained national attention. The term "belly dancing" is often credited to Sol Bloom, the Fair's entertainment director, but he referred to the dance as danse du ventre, the name used by the French in Algeria:

When the public learned that the literal translation was "belly dance," they delightedly concluded that it must be salacious and immoral ... I had a gold mine.[21]

Authentic dancers from several Middle Eastern and North African countries performed at the Fair, including Syria, Turkey, and Algeria—but it was the dancers in the Egyptian Theater of The Street in the Cairo exhibit who gained the most notoriety. The fact that the dancers were uncorseted and gyrated their hips was shocking to Victorian sensibilities. The popularity of these dancers subsequently spawned dozens of imitators, many of whom claimed to be from the original troupe. Belly dance drew men in droves to burlesque theaters. Victorian society continued to be affronted by the dance, and dancers were sometimes arrested and fined.[22]

American tribal fusion dancer Rachel Brice

Ruth St. Denis also used Middle Eastern-inspired dance in D. W. Griffith's silent film Intolerance, her goal being to lift dance to a respectable art form at a time when dancers were considered to be women of loose morals. Hollywood began producing films such as The Sheik, Cleopatra, and Salomé, to capitalize on Western fantasies of the orient.

In 1987, a distinctively American style of group improvisational dance, American Tribal Style Belly Dance, (ATS), was created, representing a major departure from the dance's cultural origins. A unique and wholly modern style, it makes use of steps from existing cultural dance styles, including those from India, the Middle East, and Africa.[23]

Many forms of "Tribal Fusion" belly dance have also developed, appropriating elements from many other dance and music styles including flamenco, ballet, burlesque, hula hoop and even hip hop.[24]

Australia

The first wave of interest in belly dancing in Australia was during the late 1970s to 1980s with the influx of migrants and refugees escaping troubles in the Middle East, including Lebanese Jamal Zraika. These immigrants created a social scene including numerous Lebanese and Turkish restaurants, providing employment for belly dancers. Rozeta Ahalyea is widely regarded as the "mother" of Australian belly dance, training early dance pioneers such as Amera Eid and Terezka Drnzik.[25]

Belly dance has now spread across the country, with belly dance communities in every capital city and many regional centers, brought together annually for the Australian Belly Dance Convention.[26]

Spain

Spaniard Dalilah, 1957
Spaniard Dalilah (Adelaida Angulo) in front of the Great Sphinx of Giza, 1957

In Spain and the Iberian Peninsula, the idea of exotic dancing existed throughout the Islamic era and sometimes included slavery. When the Arab Umayyads conquered Spain, they sent Basque singers and dancers to Damascus and Egypt for training in the Middle Eastern style. These dancers came to be known as Al-Andalusian dancers. It has been suggested that the fusion of the Al-Andalus style with the dances of the Romani people led to the creation of flamenco. Many moves in modern Flamenco are very similar to belly dance.[27]

United Kingdom

Belly dance has been in evidence in the UK since the early 1960s. During the 1970s and 1980s, there was a thriving Arabic club scene in London, with live Arabic music and belly dancing a regular feature,[28] Several prominent members of the British belly dance community began their dance careers working in these clubs.

Today, there are fewer traditional venues for Arabic dance in the UK; however, there is a large amateur belly dance community. Several international belly dance festivals are now held in Britain such as The International Bellydance Congress, The London Belly Dance Festival, and Majma Dance Festival.[29] In addition, there are a growing number of competitions, which have increased in popularity in recent years.

Health

Belly dance is a low-impact, weight-bearing exercise and is thus suitable for all ages and levels of fitness.[30] Many of the moves involve isolations, which improves flexibility of the torso. Belly dance moves are beneficial to the spine, as the full-body undulation moves lengthen (decompress) and strengthen the entire column of spinal and abdominal muscles in a gentle way.

Dancing with a veil can help build strength in the upper body, arm, and shoulders. Playing the finger cymbals (sagat/zills) trains fingers to work independently and builds strength. The legs and long muscles of the back are strengthened by hip movements.[31]

In popular culture

In films

Egyptian belly dancer and film actress Samia Gamal is credited with bringing belly dancing from Egypt to Hollywood and from there to the schools of Europe. In 1954, she famously starred as a belly dancer in the American Eastmancolor adventure film, Valley of the Kings, and the French film Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves.[32]

In British cinema, belly dancing features prominently in several James Bond movies, such as the 1963 movie From Russia With Love, the 1974 movie The Man with the Golden Gun, and the 1977 movie The Spy Who Loved Me.[33]

Belly dancing has been shown in many Bollywood films, and is often accompanied with Bollywood songs and dance sequences instead of the traditional Arabic style. While Bollywood choreographies are based on classical Indian dances, it evolved from a combination of classical Indian dance and folk dancing such as Bhangra, and was merged with Latino and Arabic/belly dance style moves.[34]

In pop music

Belly dance today is a dance used by various artists, including Rihanna, Beyoncé, and Fergie. However, the greatest representative of this dance is the Colombian singer Shakira, whose songs "Whenever Wherever" and "Hips Don't Lie" made her dance skills famous worldwide, popularizing belly dancing in a large part of Latin America and later taking it to the United States. Over time Shakira began mixing this dance with Latin dances, like Salsa[35]

Notes

  1. ↑ Ainsley Hawthorn, Middle Eastern Dance and What We Call It Dance Research 37(1) (May 2019):1-17. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  2. ↑ Teri Williams, Why do we call Middle Eastern dance "belly dance"? Edinburgh University Press Blog, May 23, 2019. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  3. ↑ Belly Dance, Noun Oxford English Dictionary. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  4. ↑ C. Varga Dinicu (Morocco), You Asked Aunt Rocky: Answers & Advice About Raqs Sharqi & Raqs Shaabi (Hypatia-Rose Press, 2013, ISBN 978-0983069041).
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Josephine Wise, The JWAAD Book of Belly Dance (JWAAD, 2012, ISBN 978-0957310506).
  6. ↑ Leyla Amir, Is the Bedlah from Hollywood? The Origin of Our Costume Gilded Serpent, March 28, 2013. Retrieved April 20, 2024.
  7. ↑ Andrea Deagon, In Search of the Origins of Dance Andrea Deagon's Raqs Sharqi. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
  8. ↑ Wendy Buonaventura, Serpent of the Nile: Women and Dance in the Arab World (Interlink Books, 2009, ISBN 978-1566567916).
  9. ↑ Kathleen W. Fraser, Before They Were Belly Dancers: European Accounts of Female Entertainers in Egypt, 1760-1870 (McFarland & Company, 2014, ISBN 978-0786494330).
  10. ↑ Andrew Hammond, Popular Culture In The Arab World (The American University in Cairo Press, 2007, ISBN 978-9774160547).
  11. ↑ Muhammed Al Da'mi, Feminizing the West: Neo-Islam's Concepts of Renewal, War and the State (AuthorHouse, 2014, ISBN 978-1491865224).
  12. ↑ Andrew R. Martin and Matthew Mihalka (eds.), Music around the World: A Global Encyclopedia (ABC-CLIO, 2020, ISBN 978-1610694988).
  13. ↑ Overview of Belly Dance: Egyptian Folkloric style belly dancing.
  14. ↑ Rosina-Fawzia al-Rawi, Grandmother's Secrets: The Ancient Rituals and Healing Power of Belly Dancing (Olive Branch Press, 2012, ISBN 978-1566563260).
  15. ↑ The "Golden Era" of Belly Dance Artemisya Dancewear, March 27, 2020. Retrieved April 23, 2024.
  16. ↑ Farah Rafik, Badia Masabani: The Force Behind Modern Belly Dance in Egypt Egyptian Streets, May 21, 2022. Retrieved April 23, 2024
  17. ↑ Shannon Arvizu, "The Politics of Bellydancing in Cairo" The Arab Studies Journal 12/13(2/1) (2004):165.
  18. ↑ Bio Layla Taj. Retrieved April 23, 2024.
  19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 Maura Enright, Turkish Orientale Belly Dance Baba Yaga Music. Retrieved April 18, 2024.
  20. ↑ L.L. Wynn, Pyramids and Nightclubs: A Travel Ethnography of Arab and Western Imaginations of Egypt, from King Tut and a Colony of Atlantis to Rumors of Sex Orgies, Urban legends about a Marauding Prince, and Blonde Belly Dancers (University of Texas Press, 2007, ISBN 978-0292717022).
  21. ↑ Sol Bloom, The Autobiography of Sol Bloom (G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1948, ISBN 978-1125599662).
  22. ↑ No More Midway Dancing; Three of the Egyptian Girls Fined $50 Each The New York Times (December 7, 1893). Retrieved April 21, 2024.
  23. ↑ Kajira Djoumahna, The Tribal Bible, Exploring The Phenomenon That Is American Tribal Style Bellydance (BlackSheep BellyDance, 2003, ISBN 978-0972848602).
  24. ↑ Jasmine June, An Intro to Tribal Fusion Belly Dance Gilded Serpent, October 28, 2010. Retrieved April 21, 2024.
  25. ↑ Natalie O'Brien, A night in the life of a bellydancer: Georgette Bowden shimmers across Sydney The Sydney Morning Herald (October 12, 2014). Retrieved April 21, 2024.
  26. ↑ Australian Belly Dance Convention. Retrieved April 21, 2024.
  27. ↑ Stacy R. Webb, Belly Dance & Flamenco Retrieved April 21, 2024.
  28. ↑ Asmahan, The Golden Era of the Arabic Nightclubs in London Gilded Serpent, January 15, 2012. Retrieved April 21, 2024.
  29. ↑ The Annual UK Belly Dance Congress World Belly Dance. Retrieved April 21, 2024.
  30. ↑ Tamalyn Dallal, Belly Dancing For Fitness: The Ultimate Dance Workout That Unleashes Your Creative Spirit (Ulysses Press, 2004, ISBN 978-1569754108).
  31. ↑ Pina Coluccia, Anette Paffrath, and Jean Pütz, Belly Dancing: The Sensual Art of Energy and Spirit (Rochester, VT: Park Street Press, 2005, ISBN 978-1594770210).
  32. ↑ Samia Gamal, "The Barefoot Dancer" Artemisya Dancewear, March 27, 2020. Retrieved April 21, 2024.
  33. ↑ Steven Jay Rubin, Belly Dancers Spy Movie Navigator. Retrieved April 21, 2024.
  34. ↑ Bollywood Belly Dance Atlanta Belly Dance. Retrieved April 21, 2024.
  35. ↑ Shanice Davis, Shakira Drops Salsa Version Of "Chantaje" Just In Time For Her Birthday Vibe, February 2, 2017. Retrieved April 20, 2024.

References
ISBN links support NWE through referral fees

  • Al Da'mi, Muhammed. Feminizing the West: Neo-Islam's Concepts of Renewal, War and the State. AuthorHouse, 2014. ISBN 978-1491865224
  • Al-Rawi, Rosina-Fawzia. Grandmother's Secrets: The Ancient Rituals and Healing Power of Belly Dancing. Olive Branch Press, 2012. ISBN 978-1566563260
  • Bloom, Sol. The Autobiography of Sol Bloom. G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1948. ISBN 978-1125599662
  • Buonaventura, Wendy. Serpent of the Nile: Women and Dance in the Arab World. Interlink Books, 2009. ISBN 978-1566567916
  • Coluccia, Pina, Anette Paffrath, and Jean Pütz. Belly Dancing: The Sensual Art of Energy and Spirit. Rochester, VT: Park Street Press, 2005. ISBN 978-1594770210
  • Dallal, Tamalyn. Belly Dancing For Fitness: The Ultimate Dance Workout That Unleashes Your Creative Spirit. Ulysses Press, 2004. ISBN 978-1569754108.
  • Dinicu, C. Varga (Morocco). You Asked Aunt Rocky: Answers & Advice About Raqs Sharqi & Raqs Shaabi. Hypatia-Rose Press, 2013. ISBN 978-0983069041
  • Djoumahna, Kajira. The Tribal Bible, Exploring The Phenomenon That Is American Tribal Style Bellydance. BlackSheep BellyDance, 2003. ISBN 978-0972848602
  • Fraser, ‎Kathleen W. Before They Were Belly Dancers: European Accounts of Female Entertainers in Egypt, 1760-1870. McFarland & Company, 2014. ISBN 978-0786494330
  • Hammond, Andrew. Popular Culture In The Arab World. The American University in Cairo Press, 2007. ISBN 978-9774160547
  • Martin, Andrew R., and Matthew Mihalka (eds.). Music around the World: A Global Encyclopedia. ABC-CLIO, 2020. ISBN 978-1610694988
  • Wise, Josephine. The JWAAD Book of Belly Dance. JWAAD, 2012. ISBN 978-0957310506
  • Wynn, L.L. Pyramids and Nightclubs: A Travel Ethnography of Arab and Western Imaginations of Egypt, from King Tut and a Colony of Atlantis to Rumors of Sex Orgies, Urban legends about a Marauding Prince, and Blonde Belly Dancers. University of Texas Press, 2007. ISBN 978-0292717022

External links

All links retrieved April 23, 2024.

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