OLD CHINA LOVES TO DANCE!

asciaadubai
Nov 23, 2018
2 min read

We can't deny that Asia is a big continent with so many cultures..

If we talk about all the fascinating dance types of Asia we can go on forever... and ever...and ever! They are too much to consider at a glance!

So let's just talk about the GREAT China and how they love to dance!

Dance in China traced back since 4000 BC, back in the days it was pretty simple dances, starting with moving around with weapons which seemed like choreographed dance routines and hunting-dance rituals depicted on pottery shards, later traditions evolved over the years across China.

Chinese dances could be simplified into 3 - the folk dances , the traditional dances and the modern dances....

Chinese dances

China's folk dances expresses it's roots and cultures. It includes dances for festivals, rituals and religious ceremonies. Many still live till today and are performed all around the world too!

Dances often have specific goals and mostly signify certain events in the Chinese people's life. They have their unique bright colored costumes and choreography. Besides the well known Chinese folk dances in China, there are local signature dances for China's 56 minorities too! One of the popular Han Chinese dances - The dragon dance (wǔlóng) alone.. has 700 versions performed all over China!!

There are many factors that make them unique, like the musical rhythms, dance patterns, the costumes and it passes from generations to generations - they could be preserved just as it is and some change with time. Because folk dances are storytelling, Chinese people have the element of invoking good fortune engraved in performing many of their folk dances. The dragon/lion dance are symbols of the Chinese Lunar new year festivities.

The Dai ethnic groups have created the (kǒngquèwǔ) peacock folk dance and often symbolize heaven , elegance and good fortune by recreating the bird's movement.

Asian countries like Japan and China have similarities in their cultures, specially their fan and sword dances.

The Fan dance is one of the traditional dances in China which is not unique to China only, Han Dynasty is where the first (shànziwǔ) started it's Chinese fan dance history. The movements symbolize beauty and grace through the dancer's hand.

Before the sword dance developed to acrobatic dance it was initially training exercises for military soldiers! Asians seem to develop art out of anything! The fan and sword dances are historically both in Military and Civilian life, Civilian fan dances being more of entertainment.

To add a little bit of extra Chinese touch to the sword, tassels are often attached to the end.