Maypole dance
Encyclopedia
Folk dance
The term folk dance describes dances that share some or all of the following attributes:*They are dances performed at social functions by people with little or no professional training, often to traditional music or music based on traditional music....
from western Europe
Western Europe
Western Europe is a loose term for the collection of countries in the western most region of the European continents, though this definition is context-dependent and carries cultural and political connotations. One definition describes Western Europe as a geographic entity—the region lying in the...
, especially England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, Basque Country, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
, Galicia, Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
and Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
,
History
According to the polemic anti-Catholic pamphlet, The Two BabylonsThe Two Babylons
The Two Babylons is an anti-Catholic religious pamphlet produced initially by the Scottish theologian and Presbyterian Alexander Hislop in 1853. It was later expanded in 1858 and finally published as a book in 1919...
, the origin of the maypole
Maypole
A maypole is a tall wooden pole erected as a part of various European folk festivals, particularly on May Day, or Pentecost although in some countries it is instead erected at Midsummer...
dance began in ancient Babylon during sex worship and fertility rites. The church of St Andrew Undershaft
St Andrew Undershaft
St Andrew Undershaft is a Church of England church located at St Mary Axe, in Aldgate ward of the City of London, near the Lloyd's Building. It is a rare example of a City church that has managed to escape both the Great Fire of London in 1666 and the Second World War bombing during the London...
in the City of London is named after the maypole that was kept under its eaves and set up each spring until 1517 when student riots put an end to the custom. The maypole itself survived until 1547 when a Puritan
Puritan
The Puritans were a significant grouping of English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries. Puritanism in this sense was founded by some Marian exiles from the clergy shortly after the accession of Elizabeth I of England in 1558, as an activist movement within the Church of England...
mob seized and destroyed it as a "pagan idol".
Forms
There are two distinctive traditions of maypoleMaypole
A maypole is a tall wooden pole erected as a part of various European folk festivals, particularly on May Day, or Pentecost although in some countries it is instead erected at Midsummer...
dancing, the circle dance and the ribbon dance.
Circle Dance
Dancers perform circle dances around a tall pole which is decorated with garlands, painted stripes, flowers, flags and other emblems . The circular dance is regarded as the most common and ancient form and is thought by some to have Germanic paganGermanic paganism
Germanic paganism refers to the theology and religious practices of the Germanic peoples of north-western Europe from the Iron Age until their Christianization during the Medieval period...
fertility symbolism
Fertility rite
Fertility rites are religious rituals that reenact, either actually or symbolically, sexual acts and/or reproductive processes: 'sexual intoxication is a typical component of the...rites of the various functional gods who control reproduction, whether of man, beast, cattle, or grains of seed'..They...
, although there is a lack of evidence to support this. The circular dance is traditionally performed in the spring around the festival of May Day
May Day
May Day on May 1 is an ancient northern hemisphere spring festival and usually a public holiday; it is also a traditional spring holiday in many cultures....
, but in Sweden it is during the midsummer
Midsummer
Midsummer may simply refer to the period of time centered upon the summer solstice, but more often refers to specific European celebrations that accompany the actual solstice, or that take place on a day between June 21 and June 24, and the preceding evening. The exact dates vary between different...
festivities.
Ribbon Dance
Dancers gather in a circle, each holding a coloured ribbon attached to a much smaller pole. As the dance commences the ribbons are intertwined and plaited either on to the pole itself or into a web around the pole. The dancers may then retrace their steps exactly in order to unravel the ribbons. This style of maypole dancing originates in the 18th century, and is derived from traditional and 'art' dance forms popular in ItalyItaly
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
and France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. These were exported to the London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
stage and reached a large audience, becoming part of the popular performance repertoire. Adopted at a large teacher training institution, the ribbon maypole dance then spread across much of England, and is now regarded as the most 'traditional' of May Day's traditional characteristics.
Examples
Both dance forms can be seen on the same day at the triennial maypole festival held in the village of Barwick-in-ElmetBarwick-in-Elmet
Barwick-in-Elmet is a village east of the centre of but still part of the City of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It is one of only three places in the area to be explicitly associated with the ancient Celtic kingdom of Elmet, the others being Scholes-in-Elmet and Sherburn-in-Elmet. It is part of...
, West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire is a metropolitan county within the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England with a population of 2.2 million. West Yorkshire came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972....
. Children of the village school perform a ribbon dance around a small maypole, and later a group of morris dancers perform a circle dance around the main maypole.
External links
- Dance History Archives A history of Maypole dancing
- Maypole Dancing FAQ Frequently Asked Questions
- Beltane Activities Maypole Dance Photo Gallery
- A Decade of Maypole Dancing Maypole Dance photos
- whatisguide.net What is Maypole Dancing?
- Barwick-in-Elmet Maypole Trust Children maypole dancing at the triennial maypole festival held in the village of Barwick-in-ElmetBarwick-in-ElmetBarwick-in-Elmet is a village east of the centre of but still part of the City of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It is one of only three places in the area to be explicitly associated with the ancient Celtic kingdom of Elmet, the others being Scholes-in-Elmet and Sherburn-in-Elmet. It is part of...
, West YorkshireWest YorkshireWest Yorkshire is a metropolitan county within the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England with a population of 2.2 million. West Yorkshire came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972....
.