Reasons for Dancing

You hear some good music, and your body starts to move. It's dancing, right? Yes, but there's much more to dance than just grooving to your favorite music. There are many kinds of dance, and many reasons for dancing. One might first think of ballet, or modern dance, or even hip-hop dancing.    

People throughout the world and throughout history have danced to express themselves, but there have been other other interesting reasons as well:

• To tell a story, to re-enact a historical moment
• To prepare warriors for battle, such as the Maori of New Zealand's "haka" dance
• To pay respect to animals, such as the "buffalo dance" performed by Native American Indians
• To celebrate a good farming year, done at harvest festivals around the world
• As part of a religious ceremony

Here are some web sites that can give you more information about dance:

History of Ballet

Dance History

Baryshnikov's Dance Foundation

African influences on swing dance

If you would like to learn more about dance, you may want to consider these books: