Xote (, ) is a Brazilian music genre and dance with a binary or quaternary rhythm. It is the local equivalent of the German

schottische The schottische is a partnered country dance that apparently originated in Bohemia. It was popular in Victorian era ballrooms as a part of the Bohemian folk-dance craze and left its traces in folk music of countries such as Argentina ("chotis"Span ...

. Xote is a common type of

forró The term forró (*) refers to a musical genre, a rhythm, a dance and the event itself where forró music is played and danced. Forró is an important part of the culture of the Northeastern Region of Brazil. It encompasses various dance type ...

dancing. The word ''xote'' is a

corruption Corruption is a form of dishonesty or a criminal offense which is undertaken by a person or an organization which is entrusted in a position of authority, in order to acquire illicit benefits or abuse power for one's personal gain. Corruption m ...

of the German word ''schottisch'' meaning Scottish; the ''schottische'' is related to the Scottish

polka Polka is a dance and genre of dance music originating in nineteenth-century Bohemia, now part of the Czech Republic. Though associated with Czech culture, polka is popular throughout Europe and the Americas. History Etymology The term ...

. The schottische was brought to Brazil by José Maria Toussaint in 1851,"Xote". ''Nova enciclopédia Barsa'' (electronic version). and it was a dance popular among the upper classes during the reign of Emperor Pedro II. Later,

black slaves The Atlantic slave trade, transatlantic slave trade, or Euro-American slave trade involved the transportation by slave traders of enslaved African people, mainly to the Americas. The slave trade regularly used the triangular trade route and i ...

danced their own adaptations of the dance, adding their own influences, converting it into a dance that was more popular and well known. This period was when the style came to be known as ''xote'' or ''xótis''. The xote is a very versatile dance and has a number of local versions, such as the southern version called ''xote gaúcho''. The dance may incorporate steps from other

Latin American dance Latin dance is a general label, and a term in partner dance competition jargon. It refers to types of ballroom dance and folk dance that mainly originated in Latin America. The category of Latin dances in the international dancesport competi ...

s, such as

salsa Salsa most often refers to: * Salsa (Mexican cuisine), a variety of sauces used as condiments * Salsa music, a popular style of Latin American music * Salsa (dance), a Latin dance associated with Salsa music Salsa or SALSA may also refer to: A ...

rumba The term rumba may refer to a variety of unrelated music styles. Originally, "rumba" was used as a synonym for "party" in northern Cuba, and by the late 19th century it was used to denote the complex of secular music styles known as Cuban rumba ...

and

mambo Mambo most often refers to: * Mambo (music), a Cuban musical form *Mambo (dance), a dance corresponding to mambo music Mambo may also refer to: Music * Mambo section, a section in arrangements of some types of Afro-Caribbean music, particul ...

References

Brazilian music Dance in Brazil Social dance Square dance Polka derivatives {{brazil-arts-stub

See also

References