folk dance

noun

1. a dance that originated among, and has been transmitted through, the common people.

2. a piece of music for such a dance.

folk dance

noun

1. any of various traditional rustic dances often originating from festivals or rituals

2. a piece of music composed for such a dance

verb

1. to perform a folk dance

Other Word Forms

• folk dancing noun
• folk dancer noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of folk dance¹

First recorded in 1905–10

Example Sentences

At the forefront is Unitree, which went viral in January after its humanoid robots performed a Chinese folk dance live, marching rhythmically while tossing and twirling handkerchiefs.

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Other festival-goers joined hands in a circle for a folk dance.

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Kids scrambled up rehabbed trails, and some danced the schuhplattler, a Bavarian folk dance with lots of foot stomping and thigh and foot slapping.

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Arm in arm, young people of different faiths perform the dabke, an Arabic folk dance, in the Italian port of Ostia, elated by a visit from Pope Leo XIV.

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It has no single origin, but draws on folk dance traditions across Europe and Africa and was consolidated as a dance style within the US country music scene in the 20th Century.

Read more on BBC