Horon

<p style="color:#dbdbdb ;padding:20px; border-left:5px solid #cecece;">From the Aegean area to the middle region of Turkey, people love dancing and have a variety of dance forms and types. There are various folk dances that are classified on the basis of its region. These regions include the Central Anatolia, East Anatolia, Aegean, Black Sea and the Mediterranean. Let us discuss about Horon, a dance from the Black Sea. ‘Horon’ as a word has different meanings. Sometimes, it is referred to the colour ‘black’ whereas sometimes, the bunch of reaped crops after harvest. In its most simple terms, it is the name of the dance which is played with a violin called ‘kemence’ and shrill pipe in the Black Sea region of Turkey. As this region is known for its mountains, fresh air, corn bread and anchovy fish, the Horon Dances represent vibrations of the anchovy in its few dance steps. Retaining the aspects of Greek and Persian dance styles, the unique styles described such as ‘Horoi’ and ‘Horo’ comes from the ancient Greek language. Hence, Horon is a group of circular folk dances characterized by distinct small steps.</p>
Read More

Hora Dance

<p style="color:#dbdbdb ;padding:20px; border-left:5px solid #cecece;">Balkans is one of the most ethnically diverse cultures of Europe. It has a complex history as it reflects the genuine importance and influence of European landforms. Churchill has described it as ‘having too much history to consume’. ‘Balkan’ means ‘mountains’ and most of the ethnic groups and cultures have been fragmented by this mountainous relief and is identified under the term ‘Balkanization’. One such ancient evidence of Balkan is the Hora Dance. With the music strands of Bulgaria, it is inevitably a part of every feast on this ancient land. According to the Balkanians, it is the Horo as it reflects the joy and sadness of the local people and their hope of assimilating to nature. Originated from the Balkans, the Hora is basically a circle dance that predates the State of Israel and many other countries. Hora, popularly performed at the celebrations such as birth and weddings, it is also known as the traditional folk dance of Romania.</p>
Read More

Hambo

<p style="color:#dbdbdb ;padding:20px; border-left:5px solid #d6ff68;">Sweden, the Land of the Midnight Sun, has contributed a diverse array of ingenuity to the world culture. From the trends of Vikings, H & M, the Pirate Bay and Ikea, the world has been gifted with the Hambo dance of Sweden as well. It would be rare if a folk dancer does not know about the Hambo dance. The Hambo is one of those top favourite numbers that might be well called as one of the Sweden’s most famous exports. In fact, it would be appropriate to symbolize the dance as the northern land’s contributions to Folk and Old–time Dancing as it bears the tradition of being the oldest of all Swedish dances, after Polska. Originated in Sweden, the Hambo is one of the most traditional and widely performed couple dances of Sweden and has been continuously danced since the last hundred years. Despite the regional as well as individual characteristics, the Hambo is basically the same dance throughout Sweden. Hence, in simple words, the Hambo is a part of the family of Swedish dances called Polska. It is rightly called as Hambopolska. Compared to all the other polskas, an important attribute of the Hambo is the partner turn. These turns have made the Hambo typically Swedish and have alone remained essentially the same.</p>
Read More