A square dance is a dance for four couples, or eight dancers in total, arranged in a square, with one couple on each side, facing the middle of the square. Square dances are part of a broad spectrum of dances known by various names: country dances, traditional dances, folk dances, barn dances, ceilidh dances, contra dances, Playford dances, etc. These dances appear in over 100 different formations, of which the Square and the Longways Set are by far the most popular formations.
Square dances contain elements from numerous traditional dances including English country dances, which were first documented in 17th-century England, and 18th-century French quadrilles and cotillions; square dancing travelled to North America with the European settlers and developed significantly there.
Square dancing is done in many different styles all around the world. In some countries and regions, through preservation and repetition, square dances have attained the status of a folk dance. Square dancing is strongly associated with the United States, in part due to its association with the romanticized image of the American cowboy in the 20th century, and 31 states have designated it as their official state dance. The main North American types of square dances include traditional square dance and modern western square dance, which is widely known and danced worldwide. Other main types popular in England, Ireland, and Scotland include Playford dances, regional folk dances, ceili, Irish set dances, and Scottish country dances.
The couples in a square are numbered, although numbering varies among different types. In many of the types, two of the couples are known as heads and the other two are called sides. In most American forms of square dance, the dancers are prompted or cued through a sequence of steps by a caller to the beat (and, in some traditions, the phrasing) of music. In other variations, dancers have no caller and instead memorize and perform a specific routine and sequence of steps. Square dance music varies widely, with some forms using traditional tunes and others employing more modern types.
Dances can be organized by square dance clubs, bands, individuals, or similar organizations. Attire varies by type, with some forms possessing a specific dress code and others having no requirements. The standard square formation can also vary at times to include more or fewer dancers or arrange dancers in a different shape.
History
The origins of Square dances can be traced back to steps and figures used in traditional folk dances and social dances from many countries. One of the earliest influences may have been the Morris dance, an English dance for six men involving a line formation and energetic steps.Shaw, Dorothy, Bob Osgood, and Kenny Reese (2000). History and Heritage of Modern American Square Dancing. www.eaasdc.de. pp. 3–4, 7, 27–28. Retrieved 2020-10-09. This dance is closely related to another ancestor of square dancing, English country dance, which included a variety of dances for groups of couples arranged in circles, lines, or squares. In 1651, John Playford published 105 of these dances in The English Dancing Master, eight of which are square dances exhibiting concepts still in use, such as the head couples performing an action and the side couples repeating it. Three of the dances, such as "Dull Sir John", specifically use the term square dance in the phrase, "A Square Dance for eight thus".Playford, John (1651). The English dancing master: or, Plaine and easie rules for the dancing of country dances, with the tune to each dance. London: Printed by Thomas Harper. Accessed through ProQuest Database: Early Modern Books. p. 81. In the early 1800s, English country dances merged with French dances to form the quadrille, a dance for four couples in a square.
These dances further evolved in America, where they arrived with European settlers. After the American Revolution, the quadrille became especially popular. Quadrilles were originally danced from memorized steps and sequences, but as African American slaves played music for the dances, they began calling out the steps. This practice became common by the early 1900s and gave rise to the modern caller. Between 1940 and 1960, modern western square dance evolved from the western style of traditional square dance that had formed in the United States. Traditional western square dancing was promoted beginning in the 1930s by Lloyd Shaw, who solicited definitions from callers across the country in order to preserve that dance form and make it available to other teachers.Friedland, LeeEllen (1998). "Square Dancing". In Cohen, Selma Jeanne (ed). International Encyclopedia of Dance, vol. 5. New York: Oxford University Press. p. 685–89. The American folk music revival in New York City in the 1950s was rooted in the resurgent interest in square dancing and folk dancing there in the 1940s, which gave musicians such as Pete Seeger popular exposure.Szwed, John, Alan Lomax: The Man who Recorded Music, Penguin, 2010. Cf. p.144: "Margot Mayo was a Texan who pioneered folk music in New York and spearheaded the revival of folk dancing and square dancing there in the 1940s"Cf. Cantwell, Robert, When We Were Good (1996), Harvard University Press, pp. 110, 253."To Hear Your Banjo Play", film short, 1947 with Pete Seeger, Woody Guthrie, Sonny Terry, Margot Mayo's American Square Dance Group and others. Written by Alan Lomax and narrated by Pete Seeger.
Starting in the 1970s, many U.S. states adopted square dance as their state dance, the result of a campaign by square dancers to make it the national dance.
Main types Square dances are considered folk dances in many countries and regions, although the term square dance varies. In the United States the term is used for dances in square formations and also refers to the dance events where square dances are performed. In England, Ireland, and Scotland, the term is used less frequently, and many dance events involve dances in square, circle, and line formations. The term has also become associated with barn dances, where many different formations of dance are used.
United States and Canada
Traditional square dance
Also called old-time square dance or quadrilles by some older New England callers in recognition of the dance it descended from, traditional square dance is not standardized and can be subdivided into three main regional styles: Northeast/New England, Southeast/Appalachian, and Western. The New England and Appalachian styles have been particularly well documented in the early U.S. and have survived to the 21st century. There are several other styles, some of which have survived or been revived while others have not. Where traditional square dance has been revived, it encompasses a wide range of new choreography.
Traditional square dance structure varies by region, but it usually consists of a limited number of calls occurring in a set order. Traditional square dance is frequently presented in alternation with contra dances, particularly in revival groups, or with some form of freestyle couple dancing at surviving local events.
Modern western square dance
Modern western square dance, which is also called western square dance, contemporary western square dance, or modern American square dance, evolved from the western style of traditional square dance.
Industrialist Henry Ford popularized the form, believing that Jews invented jazz as a plot to corrupt society and that this plot could be counteracted by returning America to dances and musical styles that he saw as traditional and white. As a result, beginning in the early 1920s, he used his wealth to promote square dancing, through books and square dancing events. Ford also promoted square dance classes in public school, which were present in half of all American schools by 1928 as part of the standard physical education curriculum. Modern western square dance evolved in square dance events funded by Ford, using direction and guidance prepared by Colorado school superintendent Lloyd "Pappy" Shaw.
Since the 1970s, modern western square dance has been promoted and standardized by Callerlab, the International Association of Square Dance Callers.The initial stage reached by all dancers is called Mainstream. This program consists of a core list of about 70 moves which is revised periodically.Callerlab (2020-02-22). "History." Basic Dance Program Definitions. Callerlab.org, http://www.callerlab.org/Dance-Programs p.6. Accessed 2020-10-10.Callerlab (2020-02-22). "History." Mainstream Dance Program Definitions. Callerlab.org, http://www.callerlab.org/Dance-Programs p.5. Accessed 2020-10-10. Modern western square dance is sometimes presented in alternation with round dances. This modern form of square dancing is taught in around 30 countries, including the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, Belgium, France, Germany, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Australia, China, Japan, and Russia. Within Europe, the majority of square dance clubs are in Germany and the United Kingdom. All teach the Callerlab syllabus, but there are slight style and call title variations throughout the world. Because of this standardization, anyone with the proper training can dance modern western square dancing in many countries around the world. Instruction is typically given in the local language, but the calls are always in English, allowing people to dance internationally once they learn the calls.
United Kingdom and Ireland
Playford dances Also called English country dances, Playford-style dances originated from the dances published in John Playford's book The English Dancing Master. Some of the square dances listed in the book, such as "Newcastle", have survived to the 21st century, and countless new dances have been written in the Playford style. These dances include a range of moves, from smooth, gentle steps to more energetic leaps. They are supported by the English Folk Dance and Song Society.
Regional folk dances Many traditional English regional folk dances are square dances that have survived into the 21st century. For instance, in both the Goathland square eight and the Cumberland square eight, which originated from different English villages, dancers perform a series of memorized moves in a square formation. Many of these dances are danced at folk or barn dances, along with other types of square dances including Playford dances; dances derived from the quadrille, such as "La Russe" published by H.D. Willock in the Manual of Dancing (); American traditional square dances; and countless new square dances written in the 20th and 21st centuries.
Ceili
Irish ceili dances cover a wide range of formations, including many square dances. They are often performed at traditional Irish and Scottish social gatherings called cèilidhs. Cèilidhs are also held in England, where the same squares may be done as at folk dances or barn dances but with more stepping, including skip steps, hop steps, polka steps, and rants.
Irish set dance
Irish set dance is a square dance with strong regional associations. The dance involves stepping, often with a flat-foot polka step. Unlike in traditional and modern western square dancing, where couples are designated as heads or sides, couples in Irish set dances are either tops or sides. It is traditional to have 4 couples dance together on the sides of a square.
Scottish country dance
Scottish country dances cover a wide range of formations, including many square dances. These dances, which are standardized by the Royal Scottish Country Dance Society, involve specific steps and formations that are performed in different sequences for different dances.
Continental Europe