|
History of Scottish
Country Dancing
Scottish Country
Dancing is the social form of Scottish dancing that has been danced in
homes, barns and halls all over Scotland for hundreds of years. When
friends and family got together, and there was a fiddle - and there was
always a fiddle! - the dancing would begin. Dances were often
created to commemorate a royal personage, feats of valor, events, places, or a
really tasty dessert. The story is told through the dance formations and steps,
and the music.
With the
popularity of jazz and more modern music and dance forms favored after
World War I, traditional country dances began to disappear. In the
early 1920's two women from Glasgow, Scotland decided to form a group
for the preservation of these lively and elegant traditional country
dances and the Scottish Country Dance Society was born. In
1952 Queen Elizabeth II granted royal patronage to the society giving it
its present name of
The
Royal Scottish Country Dance Society (RSCDS).
There are branches
and affiliates of the RSCDS all over the world. That's one of the
exciting parts of SCD, being able to literally go anywhere in the world
and find an SCD dance. We speak the same language through the dance no
matter the culture no matter our differences.
For a
list of area RSCDS branches and affiliate clubs, and additional
information about Scottish Dance and Culture, visit our
Links page.
|
