Since I live in Ireland, I thought I should do our own national dance, Irish Dancing. The dancing traditions of Ireland grew with traditional Irish music, however its origins are quite blurry, it is known to have begun in and around the 16th century.
The earliest recorded practitioners of this form are the Druids. They did Irish dancing to honour the oak tree and the sun in religious rituals. The dance was supposed to express their praise and love of their beliefs. When the Celts came to Ireland, they brought with them new moves to the original dances and methods which made the dance slightly more difficult. Then the Anglo-Normans came who brought their Norman cultures with them. They learned the dance from the native people and altered it with styles of their own. As you can see, Irish dancing has been influenced by many dance forms from over the continent, especially by Quadrille from France, which introduced the formations. Travelling Irish Dance Masters also largely contributed to Irish Dancing by introducing new movements and teaching others. Irish Dancing is a popular dance, with many different versions, performed all over the world.
Riverdance is a concert of Traditional Irish Dancing and Music. Heres a video of Ireland's performance at the Eurovision Contest in 1994:
Sources:
http://www.irelandseye.com/dance.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irish_dance
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The earliest recorded practitioners of this form are the Druids. They did Irish dancing to honour the oak tree and the sun in religious rituals. The dance was supposed to express their praise and love of their beliefs. When the Celts came to Ireland, they brought with them new moves to the original dances and methods which made the dance slightly more difficult. Then the Anglo-Normans came who brought their Norman cultures with them. They learned the dance from the native people and altered it with styles of their own. As you can see, Irish dancing has been influenced by many dance forms from over the continent, especially by Quadrille from France, which introduced the formations. Travelling Irish Dance Masters also largely contributed to Irish Dancing by introducing new movements and teaching others. Irish Dancing is a popular dance, with many different versions, performed all over the world.
Riverdance is a concert of Traditional Irish Dancing and Music. Heres a video of Ireland's performance at the Eurovision Contest in 1994:
http://www.irelandseye.com/dance.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irish_dance
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