Dance in Malaysia encompasses dance traditions from many different ethic origins. Malay dances include Dance Dramas, Court Dramas, and Folk Dances. Other dances come from Javanese, Orang Asli, Portuguese, Siamese, Dayak, Moro, and Chinese traditions. This article includes a list of dances, organised by ethic origin.

List of dances

Malay Dance-Dramas

Jikey ''Jikey'' or ''Yikey'' ( Yawi: ; km, យីកេ, ; th, ลิเก, likey, ) is a form of traditional religious dance originated from India and commonly practiced by communities in several Southeast Asian countries such as Cambodia, Mal ...

Mek Mulung Mek Mulung ( Jawi: مق مولوڠ) is a traditional Malay theatre that unique to the northwest state of Kedah in Malaysia. It became popular since the late 18th century and incorporates most elements of Mak Yong, Menora and Hadrah. The th ...

Bangsawan ''Bangsawan'' ( Jawi: بڠساون) is a type of traditional Malay opera or theatre performed by a troupe, and accompanied by music and sometimes dances. The ''bangsawan'' theatrical performance encompasses music, dance and drama. It is wide ...

* Mak Yong *

Randai ''Randai'' ( Jawi: رنداي) is a folk theater tradition of the Minangkabau ethnic group in West Sumatra, Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and ...

Malay Court Dances

Mak Inang Mak Inang ( Jawi: مق عناڠ) is a traditional Malay dance that originated from the time of Malacca Sultanate. The dance is accompanied by a unique music which is believed to have been composed by the order of Sultan Mahmud Shah Sultan M ...

* Terinai *

Asyik Asyik (literally "beloved"/"besotted") is a classical royal court dance popular in Patani and Kelantan. According to Hikayat Patani, the dance was created in 1644 to entertain the grieving Ratu Kuning over the loss of her favorite bird. The da ...

* Inai * Joget Gamelan

Malay Folk Dances

* Boria * Ghazal Parti * Canggung *

Dabus DABUS (Device for the Autonomous Bootstrapping of Unified Sentience) is an artificial intelligence (AI) system created by Stephen Thaler. It reportedly conceived two inventions. The filing of patent applications designating DABUS as inventor has led ...

* Dikir Barat *

Ulek Mayang Ulek Mayang ( Jawi: ) is a classical Malay dance from the state of Terengganu in Malaysia. It is a ritualistic dance performed to appease or invoke the spirits of the sea and is always accompanied by a unique song also called Ulek Mayang. An o ...

* Rodat *

Saba Saba may refer to: Places * Saba (island), an island of the Netherlands located in the Caribbean Sea * Şaba (Romanian for Shabo), a town of the Odesa Oblast, Ukraine * Sabá, a municipality in the department of Colón, Honduras * Saba (river), ...

Joget Joget ( Jawi: جوڬيت) is a traditional Malay dance that originated in Malacca. It was influenced by the Portuguese dance of Branyo which is believed to have been spread to Malacca during the spice trade. In Malacca, it is better known a ...

* Joget Lambak * Asli *

Silat is the collective term for a class of indigenous martial arts from the Nusantara and surrounding geocultural areas of Southeast Asia. It is traditionally practised in Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Southern Thailand, Southern Philip ...

Zapin , image = Zapin.jpg , image_size = , caption = Schoolchildren performing Zapin in Batu Pahat, Johor. , genre = , signature = , instruments = Gambus, Gendang, Marawis, Rebana , inventor ...

* Masri *

Indang Indang, officially the Municipality of Indang ( tgl, Bayan ng Indang), is a 1st class municipality in the province of Cavite, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 68,699 people. The municipality is situated in the c ...

Lilin Lilin () were hostile night spirits that attacked men in ancient Mesopotamian religion and Jewish folklore. Judaism In Jewish mythology, ''Lilin'' is a term for night spirits. Biblical apocrypha In the Syriac Apocalypse of Baruch, ''lilin'' c ...

* Piring *

Dansa A ''dansa'' (), also spelt ''dança'', was an Old Occitan form of lyric poetry developed in the late thirteenth century among the troubadours. It is related to the English term "dance" and was often accompanied by dancing. A closely related form, t ...

Javanese Folk Dances

* Kuda Kepang *

Barongan or ( jv, ꦫꦺꦪꦺꦴꦒ꧀) is a traditional Indonesian dance in an open arena that serves as folk entertainment, contains magical elements, the main dancer is a lion-headed person with a peacock feather decoration, plus several masked dan ...

Ronggeng Ronggeng ( jv, ꦫꦺꦴꦁꦒꦺꦁ, translit=ronggèng) is a type of Javanese dance in which couples exchange poetic verses as they dance to the music of a rebab or violin and a gong. Ronggeng might have originated from Java in Indonesia. Ro ...

Orang Asli

* Sewang

Portuguese

* Branyo

Siam

* Menora * Rambong * Tomoi

Dayak

* Magutanip * Ngajat * Sumazau * Lansaran * Datun Julud

Moro

Pangalay Pangalay (also known as Daling-Daling or Mengalai in Sabah) is the traditional "fingernail" dance of the Tausūg people of the Sulu Archipelago and eastern coast Bajau of Sabah. The dance has a similarity to classical Balinese and Thai dances, ...

Chinese

Fan dance In the West, a fan dance (i.e., a dance performed with fans) may be an erotic dance performance, traditionally by a woman, but not exclusively. Beyond eroticism it is a form of musical interpretation. The performer, sometimes entirely nude o ...

Lion dance F Lion dance () is a form of traditional dance in Chinese culture and other Asian countries in which performers mimic a lion's movements in a lion costume to bring good luck and fortune. The lion dance is usually performed during the Chinese New ...

Dragon dance Dragon dance () is a form of traditional dance and performance in Chinese culture. Like the lion dance, it is most often seen during festive celebrations. The dance is performed by a team of experienced dancers who manipulate a long flexible ...

* 24 Festive Drum