If you thought that belly dancing was simply moving your stomach around in circles, you're wrong. There are also a lot of common misconceptions, which accuse belly dancers of being "strippers" because of the types of movements involve. However, there is a much more extensive history to this style of dance than most people realize. According to Wikipedia, belly dancing is a western name for an Arabic style of dance that developed in the Middle East. It can also, sometimes, be referred to as "Middle Eastern Dance".
Belly dancing is based on one of the oldest social dances in world history. There are two forms of belly dancing:
1) raqs baladi and
2) raqs sharqi.
Raqs baladi is a social dance performed by people of all ages and by both sexes during festive occasions such as weddings and other social gatherings. Raqs sharqi is the most popular form of bell dancing in America today and can be performed by both female and male dancers alike. Just like a lot of social dance forms, children learn how to belly dance from an early age by watching their parents and other elders do it. Due to the fact that it incorporates so many different dance styles into its art form, there has been much speculation as to where exactly belly dancing originated from. Perhaps one of the most noticeable things about this dance style is the outfit. The type of outfit that is typically worn by belly dancers is called bedlah, which in Arabic means suit. This outfit was adopted by dancers in Egypt in the 1930s, and its style stems from vaudeville, burlesque and Hollywood rather than the actual Middle Eastern dress. This outfit was largely adopted due to the fact that the most popular venue for belly dancers was and still remains in night clubs.
1) raqs baladi and
2) raqs sharqi.
Raqs baladi is a social dance performed by people of all ages and by both sexes during festive occasions such as weddings and other social gatherings. Raqs sharqi is the most popular form of bell dancing in America today and can be performed by both female and male dancers alike. Just like a lot of social dance forms, children learn how to belly dance from an early age by watching their parents and other elders do it. Due to the fact that it incorporates so many different dance styles into its art form, there has been much speculation as to where exactly belly dancing originated from. Perhaps one of the most noticeable things about this dance style is the outfit. The type of outfit that is typically worn by belly dancers is called bedlah, which in Arabic means suit. This outfit was adopted by dancers in Egypt in the 1930s, and its style stems from vaudeville, burlesque and Hollywood rather than the actual Middle Eastern dress. This outfit was largely adopted due to the fact that the most popular venue for belly dancers was and still remains in night clubs.
It is largely an improvisational dance form that focuses on moving the muscles around the hip and pelvic area. The idea of the dance seems to be to isolate this one area while keeping the rest of the body as still as possible. Many of the dance moves that belly dancer incorporates require a lot more flexibility than one would realize at first glance. Americans fascination with belly dancing began around the 1950s and has since spread throughout the United States. People can now attend belly dancing classes and seminars to learn how to move like a belly dancer. You can also go to popular cities like New York or Las Vegas and see professional belly dancers at nightclubs and other venues.
There is still a lot of speculation by some as to the criticism that belly dancing is somewhat sexual in nature and not something that children should be exposed to. Also, usually we see female belly dancers as the primary gender in belly dancing. However, although not as common, male belly dancers can also be found such as in Turkey and other countries. Male belly dancers are not as popular or as commonplace as female belly dancers in the United States.
