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A Brief History of Belly Dancing
Introduction
The French called it La Danse du Ventre, and the Arabs called it Beledi. When it was introduced in United States, by a dancer named "Little Egypt" at the Chicago World's Fair in 1893, it was called Belly Dance.
"Little Egypt"
Chicago World's Fair, 1893
Its focus on the movements of the hips and the abdomen make it a uniquely women's dance, although in some times and places men have danced as well. Caricatured by western popular culture, frowned upon or banned by religious extremists everywhere, and generally misunderstood, the dance touches that sensitive intersection between our spiritual and physical human selves.
Belly dancing is a beautiful, powerful, expressive art form with deep roots in a rich and ancient history as old as civilization itself. In spite of censure and the passage of time, it is as vibrantly alive and vital today as ever.
Ancient Origins
Considered a derivative of the world's oldest known documented dance forms, it is likely that elements of belly dance can be traced back to the beginning of civilization. Artifacts from Sumer, the first civilization that arose in the fertile crescent between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers (in present-day Iraq – "Uruk" in Sumerian), thousands of years ago, portray dancers.
Many experts believe the roots of belly dance go back to ancient temple rites, particularly in the worship of the goddess Inanna, "Queen of Heaven". A great and clever goddess, Inanna had many roles, including goddess of fertility, birth, and nature; she was also the goddess of war. Battle was called "the dance of Inanna." Sumerian culture spread throughout the ancient world.
The dance was known to the Babylonians, the Egyptians, the Mycenaeans, Minoans, Persians, and the Greeks. In 1628 B.C., the great volcanic eruption of Thera, the Greek island of Santorini, destroyed the existing Mediterranean world. Survivors were scattered in great migrations away from the region. Perhaps the dance was carried east to Afghanistan and northern India then; perhaps it travelled to the Indus River with Alexander the Great's army in 327 B.C. Perhaps both...
Clay larnake painted with dancers.
Found in the
Mycenaean cemetery at Tanagra. 13th century B.C.
Throughout the long millennia, through the rise and fall of great civilizations and empires, the ancient dance endured.
Migrations of the Roma
Sometime around the 11th century A.D., an ethnically distinct people called the Roma migrated from northern India west through Afghanistan and into Persia. One theory is that the initial group were musicians summoned to entertain the Persian Great King's court. The region they came from remained virtually unchanged until the 20th Century. People living there still speak of the passage of Alexander the Great as a relatively recent event. It seems probable that the ancient dance forms were still practiced there even in the 11th century.
The Roma migrated in waves, and some continued west into Egypt and Africa, while others passed north into Turkey, the Caucasus Mountains, and then into Hungary and Eastern Europe. Some passed into Russia, while others continued on into Western Europe and finally down into Moorish Spain. In Hungary, they are called Czingany. In Russia, they are Tsingane. In India they are Banjara, and in Spain the are the Gitano. In Egypt they are called Nawar and Ghawazee. There are dozens of proper names for this race of people, none of which is "Gypsy." Mislabeled "Gypsies" by Europeans who mistook them for Egyptians, the Roma left their beautiful music and ancient dance in every country through which they passed. These were re-integrated with ancient tribal dances in the Middle East and North Africa, and combined with various regional European folk dances that sprang from different historic roots.
Traditional Women's Dance
Each culture integrated the music and dance forms in its own way. In North Africa, the dance was traditionally a women's-only activity. Women danced for one-another as private entertainment, and to mark the rites of life's passage. Women's social dancing eventually evolved into belly dancing as cabaret-style entertainment, called Dans Oryantal in Turkey, and Raqs Sharqi in Arabic.
The Nineteenth Century
Photogravure of the painting La
Danse du Sabre,
by Jean Leon Gerôme.
The Roma gypsies and traditional native dancers inspired the Pre-Raphaelites and the Victorian Orientalists of the 19th century. Additionally, the British and the French were fascinated by the exotic cultures of their empires, and romanticized the harems and dancing girls of North Africa, Egypt, the Middle East, and India. The French printed thousands of postcards (available on eBay today), and their interest encouraged the urban, cabaret dance style that evolved in Egypt to please a colonial audience.
The Americans
At the Chicago World's Fair in 1893, the moves of "Little Egypt" and the music to which she danced, scandalized and captivated a fascinated American public. The country was enormously influenced by Oriental and Middle Eastern styles and designs; both Art Nouveau and Art Deco bear witness to the ancient influences. Isadora Duncan invented modern dance by turning for inspiration to nature and to the dances of the ancient past, as revealed in ancient and classical sculpture, pottery, and architecture by the new science of archaeology.
Promotional photograph for Famous
Players-Lasky's 1923 film, Bluebeard's Eighth Wife,
starring Gloria Swanson.
This is the "Mummy Dance"
sequence.
Egypt mania swept the entire world in the 1920's with the discovery and opening of King Tut's tomb, and the Egyptian style was incorporated into American pop culture.
Early Hollywood loved the romance of the "Middle Eastern" fantasy, and really did it justice, giving us movies that shimmered with sumptuous harems and dancing girls in gorgeous flowing costumes. They were viewed by rapt audiences in theatres that rivaled the splendor of palaces from the Arabian Nights. American movies were distributed world-wide. Dancers in the Middle East, who were continuing to develop belly dance as a traditional dance form, in turn adopted the colorful interpretations and costumes of Hollywood.
American Tribal Style Belly Dance
A distinctive style of belly dance emerged from California over 20 years ago, which has spread rapidly throughout the United States and beyond. Called "American Tribal Style" (ATS), this innovation was pioneered by Jamila Salimpour, director of Bal-Anat; Carolena Nericcio, director of FatChance Belly Dance; and Masha Archer, director of the San Francisco Classic Dance Troupe. Furthermore, the global spread of ATS seems to be picking up speed, and is now incorporating elements of Gothic and Industrial pop culture.
Desert Veils, Moab Utah
Founded by
Jamilla (rt.), this is one of Utah's premier American
Tribal Fusion dance troupes.
ATS belly dance is distinctive in two ways. First is the elaborate costume, which includes an ornate headpiece wrapped of multiple layers of fabric and decorated with additional antique jewelry. The jewelry comes from the rich cultural heritage of this dance, from India, Afghanistan, Persia, Iraq, the Middle East, North Africa. The jewelry is a connection between women of the past and the future, as these treasures are passed down from one generation of dancers to the next.
The second style characteristic is the dance itself. American Tribal Style is a group performance, and this more than anything else sets it apart as a belly dancing style.
The cabaret, or Raqs Sharqi dance consists of solo performances with intricate subtle musical interpretation, and a flirtatious, sensuous style. (Think of the dance performance in the gypsy camp scene in From Russia With Love.) ATS is a group presentation; the dancers perform together as a "tribe". A tribe is defined as two or more dancers. While the featured dancer performs, the other dancers in the troupe provide a supporting backdrop or "chorus line" for her. The steps and movements of the group compliment the movements of the featured dancer, who cues the rest of the group with hand gestures, etc. Members take turns in the spotlight, then fade back into the group.
Strict ATS style entails no choreography. All performance is improvisation. The discipline of working long hard hours in class and practice sessions together gives the group the cohesion they need to follow one another's lead.
Each ATS dance troupe develops its own, unique dance style over time as its members gain experience in their art and with one another. Each troupe also develops a distinctive costume style; many are hand-made.
Authenticity
The American Tribal Style of belly dance is a fusion of many ethnic elements, from Spain to India. The dance movements, costumes, and jewelry are drawn together from the many different cultures that have contributed and participated in the development of the dance over a period of thousands of years.
Member of Desert Veils Tribe, 2004
Member of
the Ouled Nail Tribe, Algeria
French postcard
circa. 1870.
Belly dancing comes down to us from the ancient origins of civilization. How can we speak of "authenticity" given the thousands of years of its practice, across such a wide spectrum of human history? It's like trying to determine the "authenticity" of the use of fire.
The Desert Veils of Moab and other tribal fusion dancers are dedicated to their art. In a world that changes daily, that often turns its back to the past, the ancient dance provides a direct connection back through layers of time and cultural strata. The future unfolds, and the dance endures.
– Mary Ecsedy, October 5, 2005, Moab Utah
