Hora, also known as horo and oro, is a type of
circle dance
Circle dance, or chain dance, is a style of social dance done in a circle, semicircle or a curved line to musical accompaniment, such as rhythm instruments and singing, and is a type of dance where anyone can join in without the need of par ...
originating in Jewish communities and the
Balkans
The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who ...
but also found in other countries.
Etymology
The name, spelled differently in various countries, is derived from the
Greek
Greek may refer to:
Greece
Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe:
*Greeks, an ethnic group.
*Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family.
**Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...
(''
khorós''): "dance" which is cognate with the
Ancient Greek
Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic pe ...
art form of (''
khoreía''). The original meaning of the Greek word may have been "circle".
Also, the words ''hora'' and ''oro'' are found in many
Slavic languages
The Slavic languages, also known as the Slavonic languages, are Indo-European languages spoken primarily by the Slavic peoples and their descendants. They are thought to descend from a proto-language called Proto-Slavic, spoken during the ...
and have the meaning of "round (dance)"; the verb ''oriti'' means "to speak, sound, sing" and previously meant "to celebrate".
The
Greek
Greek may refer to:
Greece
Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe:
*Greeks, an ethnic group.
*Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family.
**Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...
() is cognate with
Pontic Greek
Pontic Greek ( pnt, Ποντιακόν λαλίαν, or ; el, Ποντιακή διάλεκτος, ; tr, Rumca) is a variety of Modern Greek indigenous to the Pontus region on the southern shores of the Black Sea, northeastern Anatolia, ...
(), and has also given rise to the names of
Bulgarian (),
Macedonian
Macedonian most often refers to someone or something from or related to Macedonia.
Macedonian(s) may specifically refer to:
People Modern
* Macedonians (ethnic group), a nation and a South Slavic ethnic group primarily associated with North Ma ...
(),
Romanian
Romanian may refer to:
*anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Romania
** Romanians, an ethnic group
**Romanian language, a Romance language
***Romanian dialects, variants of the Romanian language
**Romanian cuisine, traditiona ...
, / in
Serbo-Croatian
Serbo-Croatian () – also called Serbo-Croat (), Serbo-Croat-Bosnian (SCB), Bosnian-Croatian-Serbian (BCS), and Bosnian-Croatian-Montenegrin-Serbian (BCMS) – is a South Slavic language and the primary language of Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia an ...
, the
Turkish form and in
Hebrew
Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...
(). The dance of
Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States
Georgia may also refer to:
Places
Historical states and entities
* Related to the ...
also might be connected to the
Horon
Horon ( pnt, χορόν, khorón) is a traditional folk dance from Pontus or Eastern Black Sea Region in Turkey.
Name Etymology
The term ''horon'' derives from Greek ''choros'' ( el, χορός, khorós), which means "dance." The earliest ins ...
dance in the neighbouring Turkish regions, as it rose out of the
Adjara
Adjara ( ka, აჭარა ''Ach’ara'' ) or Achara, officially known as the Autonomous Republic of Adjara ( ka, აჭარის ავტონომიური რესპუბლიკა ''Ach’aris Avt’onomiuri Resp’ublik’a'' ...
region, where
Kartvelian Laz people
The Laz people, or Lazi ( lzz, ლაზი ''Lazi''; ka, ლაზი, ''lazi''; or ჭანი, ''ch'ani''; tr, Laz), are an indigenous ethnic group who mainly live in Black Sea coastal regions of Turkey and Georgia. They traditionally speak ...
co-existed for centuries with Greek
Pontians
The Pontic Greeks ( pnt, Ρωμαίοι, Ρωμίοι, tr, Pontus Rumları or , el, Πόντιοι, or , , ka, პონტოელი ბერძნები, ), also Pontian Greeks or simply Pontians, are an ethnically Greek group i ...
.
Variants
Romania and Moldova
Horă (plural: hore) is a traditional
Romanian
Romanian may refer to:
*anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Romania
** Romanians, an ethnic group
**Romanian language, a Romance language
***Romanian dialects, variants of the Romanian language
**Romanian cuisine, traditiona ...
and where the dancers hold each other's hands and the circle spins, usually counterclockwise, as each participant follows a sequence of three steps forward and one step back. The dance is usually accompanied by musical instruments such as the
cymbalom,
accordion
Accordions (from 19th-century German ''Akkordeon'', from ''Akkord''—"musical chord, concord of sounds") are a family of box-shaped musical instruments of the bellows-driven free-reed aerophone type (producing sound as air flows past a ree ...
,
violin
The violin, sometimes known as a '' fiddle'', is a wooden chordophone ( string instrument) in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and thus highest-pitched instrument ( soprano) in the family in regu ...
,
viola
; german: Bratsche
, alt=Viola shown from the front and the side
, image=Bratsche.jpg
, caption=
, background=string
, hornbostel_sachs=321.322-71
, hornbostel_sachs_desc=Composite chordophone sounded by a bow
, range=
, related=
*Violin family ...
,
double bass
The double bass (), also known simply as the bass () (or #Terminology, by other names), is the largest and lowest-pitched Bow (music), bowed (or plucked) string instrument in the modern orchestra, symphony orchestra (excluding unorthodox addit ...
,
saxophone
The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of Single-reed instrument, single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed (mouthpi ...
,
trumpet
The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitched one octave below the standard ...
or the
pan pipes.
The hora is popular during wedding celebrations and festivals, and is an essential part of the social entertainment in rural areas. One of the most famous hore is the "''
Hora Unirii''" ("Hora of the Union"), which became a Romanian patriotic song as a result of being the hymn when
Wallachia
Wallachia or Walachia (; ro, Țara Românească, lit=The Romanian Land' or 'The Romanian Country, ; archaic: ', Romanian Cyrillic alphabet: ) is a historical and geographical region of Romania. It is situated north of the Lower Danube and s ...
and
Moldavia
Moldavia ( ro, Moldova, or , literally "The Country of Moldavia"; in Romanian Cyrillic: or ; chu, Землѧ Молдавскаѧ; el, Ἡγεμονία τῆς Μολδαβίας) is a historical region and former principality in Centr ...
united to form the
Principality of Romania
The United Principalities of Moldavia and Wallachia ( ro, Principatele Unite ale Moldovei și Țării Românești), commonly called United Principalities, was the personal union of the Principality of Moldavia and the Principality of Wallachia, ...
in 1859. During the 2006/2007 New Year's Eve celebration, when
Romania
Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...
and
Bulgaria
Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedo ...
joined the
European Union
The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are located primarily in Europe, Europe. The union has a total area of ...
, people were dancing ''
Hora Bucuriei
Hora, also known as horo and oro, is a type of circle dance originating in Jewish communities and the Balkans but also found in other countries.
Etymology
The name, spelled differently in various countries, is derived from the Greek ('' kho ...
'' ("Hora of Joy") over the boulevards of
Bucharest
Bucharest ( , ; ro, București ) is the capital and largest city of Romania, as well as its cultural, industrial, and financial centre. It is located in the southeast of the country, on the banks of the Dâmbovița River, less than north o ...
as a tribute to the EU anthem,
Ode to Joy
"Ode to Joy" (German language, German: , literally "To heJoy") is an ode written in the summer of 1785 by German poet, playwright, and historian Friedrich Schiller and published the following year in ''Thalia (magazine), Thalia''. A slightl ...
( ro, Odă bucuriei). Some of the biggest hora circles can be found on early 20th century movies filmed by the
Manaki brothers
The Manaki brothers ( rup, Frats Manachia), Yanaki and Milton ( and ), were Greek photography and cinema pioneers of the Balkan Peninsula and the Ottoman Empire. They were the first to bring a film camera and create a motion picture in the cit ...
in
Pindus
The Pindus (also Pindos or Pindhos; el, Πίνδος, Píndos; sq, Pindet; rup, Pindu) is a mountain range located in Northern Greece and Southern Albania. It is roughly 160 km (100 miles) long, with a maximum elevation of 2,637 metres ...
, Greece, and performed by local
Aromanians
The Aromanians ( rup, Armãnji, Rrãmãnji) are an ethnic group native to the southern Balkans who speak Aromanian, an Eastern Romance language. They traditionally live in central and southern Albania, south-western Bulgaria, northern and ...
.
Horo in Bulgaria
The traditional
Bulgarian dance ''
horo'' ( bg, хоро) comes in many shapes. It is not necessary to be in a circle; a curving line of people is also acceptable. The steps used in a horo dance are extremely diverse. The horo may vary between three and seven or eight steps forward and one to five or six steps back, depending on the specific type.
There are more than five types of horo that are usually danced at every wedding. They differ by the rhythm of the music and the steps taken. There are no two horo dances with similar steps. There are probably over one hundred types of horo dances in the
Bulgarian folklore The main Bulgarian celebration events are :
* Martenitsa, all of March, beginning with the 1st of march
* Nestinari
* Kukeri
* Koleda (Christmas), Koledari
* Velikden (Easter)
* Name Days
* International Mother's Day, March 8
* Independence Day, ...
.
In the past, the horo dance had a social role in Bulgarian society. It was mainly for fun, as a contest of skills, or for show, leading to the development of the variety of horo dances. There are hora for people with little skill that can be learned in five to ten minutes, but there are also very sophisticated dances that cannot be learned unless one is fluent in many of the simpler dances.
Oro in North Macedonia
North Macedonia
North Macedonia, ; sq, Maqedonia e Veriut, (Macedonia before February 2019), officially the Republic of North Macedonia,, is a country in Southeast Europe. It gained independence in 1991 as one of the successor states of Socialist Feder ...
uses the
Cyrillic
The Cyrillic script ( ), Slavonic script or the Slavic script, is a writing system used for various languages across Eurasia. It is the designated national script in various Slavic, Turkic, Mongolic, Uralic, Caucasian and Iranic-speaking co ...
spelling of ''oro'' ( mk, оpo). The origins of Macedonian oro vary from its use in socializing and celebrating, to historical dancing before going into battle. ''Teshkoto'', translated "The difficult one", is one of those, danced by men only, the music of which reflects the sorrow and mood of war. The oro is danced in a circle, with men and women holding one another by hand. They are used to celebrate occasions such as weddings, christenings, name-days, national and religious holidays, graduations, birthdays.
Romani horo
The horo is also popular among the
Romani people
The Romani (also spelled Romany or Rromani , ), colloquially known as the Roma, are an Indo-Aryan peoples, Indo-Aryan ethnic group, traditionally nomadic Itinerant groups in Europe, itinerants. They live in Europe and Anatolia, and have Ro ...
of Southeastern Europe, and the dancing is practically the same as that of the neighboring ethnicities. Romani Horos, and
Romani music
Romani music (often referred to as gypsy or gipsy music, which is sometimes considered a derogatory term) is the music of the Romani people who have their origins in northern India but today live mostly in Europe.
Historically nomadic, though n ...
in general, are very much appreciated among non-Romani people in the Balkans, as they also have a reputation as the skillful performers of other folk music there.
Jewish horah
Klezmer horah
In
klezmer
Klezmer ( yi, קלעזמער or ) is an instrumental musical tradition of the Ashkenazi Jews of Central and Eastern Europe. The essential elements of the tradition include dance tunes, ritual melodies, and virtuosic improvisations played for l ...
music, the horah refers to a circle dance. The horah has a slow, limping gait in triple meter, often three/eight time (
), and generally leads into a faster and more upbeat duple meter, usually a
freylekh or a
bulgar. Among Yiddish-speaking Jews, the triple-meter hora has also been called ''zhok'' or ''krumer tants'' (meaning "crooked dance").
Israeli horah
The horah (הורה), which differs somewhat from that of some of the Eastern European countries, is widespread in the
Jewish diaspora
The Jewish diaspora ( he, תְּפוּצָה, təfūṣā) or exile (Hebrew: ; Yiddish: ) is the dispersion of Israelites or Jews out of their ancient ancestral homeland (the Land of Israel) and their subsequent settlement in other parts of th ...
and played a foundational role in modern
Israeli folk dancing. It became the symbol of the reconstruction of the country by the socialistic-agricultural Zionist movement. Although considered traditional, some claim it rose to popularity due to Hora Agadati, named after dancer and choreographer
Baruch Agadati and performed for the first time in 1924. According to
Gurit Kadman
Gurit Kadman ( he, גורית קדמן ; b. March 2, 1897 - March 27, 1987) was an Israeli dance instructor and choreographer, and is considered the mother of Israeli folk dancing.
Biography
Gertrude (Gert) Loewenstein (later Gurit Kadman) was bo ...
, the original melody was a Moldavian folk tune, which in mid-1940s was recognized by composer
Uriya Boskovitz as an anti-Semitic one, and Gurit asked Boskovitz to write a new one. About the same time
Ze’ev Havatselet wrote a lyrics to the tune (found, e.g., in the
Library of Congress
The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The libra ...
). Now the dance is usually performed to
Israeli folk songs, and sometimes to Jewish songs, often to the music of "
Hava Nagila".
To start the dance, everybody forms a circle, holding hands or interlocking arms behind their backs or on their shoulders and steps forward toward the left with the right foot, then follows with the left foot. The right foot is then brought back, followed by the left foot. This is done while holding hands and circling together in a fast and cheerful motion to the left. Large groups allow for the creation of several
concentric
In geometry, two or more objects are said to be concentric, coaxal, or coaxial when they share the same center or axis. Circles, regular polygons and regular polyhedra, and spheres may be concentric to one another (sharing the same center p ...
circles, or a large spiral formation.
In the early days, horah was popular mainly in
kibbutz
A kibbutz ( he, קִבּוּץ / , lit. "gathering, clustering"; plural: kibbutzim / ) is an intentional community in Israel that was traditionally based on agriculture. The first kibbutz, established in 1909, was Degania. Today, farming h ...
im and small communities, often continuing for hours.
The horah became popular in group dances throughout
Israel
Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
, and at weddings and other celebrations by Jews in Israel, the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...
,
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...
, and
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by to ...
. The dance appeared in North America in the early 20th century, well before modern Israeli independence, brought directly from Eastern Europe by Jewish immigrants. It also existed before that from Ashkenazi Jews who had made Aliyah to Eretz Yisroel as early as the 1600's/
At Jewish weddings during the horah it is customary to raise the bride and groom, each on their own chair and holding a handkerchief between them, following Jewish tradition. This is also done at
b'nai mitzvah, where the honoree and sometimes his, her or their family members are also raised on a chair, copying the wedding tradition.
The song "
Hora", sung by
Avi Toledano
Avi Toledano ( he, אבי טולדנו; born April 4, 1948) is an Israeli singer and songwriter.
Biography
Avraham ("Avi") Toledano was born in Meknes, Morocco to a Jewish family. At the age of 5, the family relocated to Casablanca, where Toled ...
, who represented Israel in the
Eurovision Song Contest 1982, is based on this dance.
Other variants
Horon in Turkey
Horon
Horon ( pnt, χορόν, khorón) is a traditional folk dance from Pontus or Eastern Black Sea Region in Turkey.
Name Etymology
The term ''horon'' derives from Greek ''choros'' ( el, χορός, khorós), which means "dance." The earliest ins ...
in several variants is danced in
Black Sea Region
The Black Sea Region ( tr, Karadeniz Bölgesi) is a geographical region of Turkey. The largest city in the region is Samsun. Other big cities are Trabzon, Ordu, Tokat, Giresun, Rize, Amasya and Sinop.
It is bordered by the Marmara Regio ...
/
Pontos of modern-day
Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula ...
.
Oro in Montenegro
The oro ( sr-Cyrl, оро) circle dance should not be confused with the
oro dance in
Montenegro
)
, image_map = Europe-Montenegro.svg
, map_caption =
, image_map2 =
, capital = Podgorica
, coordinates =
, largest_city = capital
, official_languages = ...
and
Herzegovina
Herzegovina ( or ; sh-Latn-Cyrl, Hercegovina, separator=" / ", Херцеговина, ) is the southern and smaller of two main geographical region of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the other being Bosnia. It has never had strictly defined geogra ...
, which is a paired courtship dance. Its name comes from the
Serbian
Serbian may refer to:
* someone or something related to Serbia, a country in Southeastern Europe
* someone or something related to the Serbs, a South Slavic people
* Serbian language
* Serbian names
See also
*
*
* Old Serbian (disambiguation ...
''оrао'', meaning "eagle".
Perinița
Perinița is a traditional Romanian wedding folk dance. The dance is typical in the
Muntenia
Muntenia (, also known in English as Greater Wallachia) is a historical region of Romania, part of Wallachia (also, sometimes considered Wallachia proper, as ''Muntenia'', ''Țara Românească'', and the seldom used ''Valahia'' are synonyms in R ...
region.
See also
*
Adana (dance), a Macedonian oro
*
An Dro, a
Breton circle dance
*
Attan
Attan ( ps, اتڼ) is a traditional dance originating from the tribal Pashtun regions of Afghanistan and North Western Pakistan. It is now considered the national dance of Afghanistan. Some believe it has spiritual roots connecting it to Zoroa ...
, a dance performed by Pashtun people in Afghanistan and Pakistan
*
Circle dance
Circle dance, or chain dance, is a style of social dance done in a circle, semicircle or a curved line to musical accompaniment, such as rhythm instruments and singing, and is a type of dance where anyone can join in without the need of par ...
*
Dabke
*
Faroese dance
*
Horae
In Greek mythology the Horae () or Horai () or Hours ( grc-gre, Ὧραι, Hōrai, , "Seasons") were the goddesses of the seasons and the natural portions of time.
Etymology
The term ''horae'' comes from the Proto-Indo-European ("year").
F ...
*
Khigga
Khigga is a style of Assyrian folk dance in which multiple dancers hold each other's hands and form a semi-circle or a curved line. There are multiple foot patterns that dancers perform. Its thought to have been danced for thousands of years. It i ...
, an
Assyrian
Assyrian may refer to:
* Assyrian people, the indigenous ethnic group of Mesopotamia.
* Assyria, a major Mesopotamian kingdom and empire.
** Early Assyrian Period
** Old Assyrian Period
** Middle Assyrian Empire
** Neo-Assyrian Empire
* Assyri ...
circle dance
*
Khorovod
The khorovod or horovod ( rus, хорово́д, p=xərɐˈvot, uk, хоровод, translit=khorovod or uk, коло, translit=kolo, label=none, be, карагод , bg, хоро, pl, korowód) is an East Slavic and pagan art form and on ...
, an Eastern European circle dance
*
Kochari
*
Kolo (dance), Serbian, Croatian and Bosnian circle dance
* , Belarusian circle dance
*
Syrtos
*
Tamzara
*
Tresenica, a Macedonian oro performed by women
*
Yalli
References
{{Balkan music
Circle dances
European folk dances
Romanian folk dances
Moldovan folk dances
Turkish dances
Greek dances
Macedonian dances
Klezmer
Dance in Israel
Slavic carnival
Bulgarian dances