A List of Some Traditional Dances From Different African Countries
Cultural dances play a huge role in African societies. These dance forms are used to teach moral values, social etiquette and to help people mature and celebrate members of the community while celebrating festivals and other occasions.
African dances are largely participatory and every ritual dance often have a time when spectators must participate.
Here are a couple of examples of some amazing traditional dances from different countries in Africa.
Gambia
Guinea
10
Mandinka Dance
Moribayasa
Usually danced by the women while the men are drumming for them, the Mandinka dance is a popular dance amongst the people of Gambia With over 73 ethnic groups, the cultural heritage of the Gambians is one that is very rich and taken very seriously. The dancers are mostly known for their expressive arm movements and footwork. There are different dance styles when it comes to the Mandinka dance. The first one is called lenjeng which is a fertility dance and the other one is called bara’wullo this one is the work song dance. The dancers while dancing show movements of their head cocked to the side, stamping of their feet to the ground and their arms flapping up and down. It is often said all these make the dance look like a graceful bird flying
From the Malinke people in Guinea, this dance is done by women who have overcome great adversity. The woman starts the dance wearing old ragged clothes. Accompanied by musicians she circles the village several times, singing and dancing. The women of the village follow her and sing too. The woman then changes her clothes and buries her old clothes in a special area.