Niagara Highland
Dance Academy
History of Highland Dance
Curious about the origins of the traditional highland dances that we teach at our studio? Read about them below!
Highland Fling
This was a victory dance for ancient Scots. Today, dancers must stay on one spot while dancing. This originated from warriors who danced on their shields after successful battles. Years ago, shields had a large spike on it, thus it was very important that when you did a victory dance, you stay on one spot to avoid the spike.
Sword Dance
Another name for this dance is the “Ghillie Callum”, and it is best known for being a war dance that was done before battle. Warriors would perform it dancing wildly to the pipes around the swords. It was said to be bad luck if the warrior touched the sword, and they would expect to be wounded following the battle.
Seann Triubhas
This dance stands for “old trousers.” It originates from the time when the English argued that Scots could no longer wear their kilts and insisted they wore trousers. The dance became a celebration dance in response to the restoration of Scots gaining the right to wear their kilts again. Many of the movements in this dance mimic the Scots shedding off their trousers.
Hornpipe
This is a very energetic dance, which recreates many of the chores done by a sailor on board his ship. Some of the demonstrated movements include hauling the ropes, looking out to sea and waving the farewell flag.
Jig
There are several variations of the history of this dance. It may seem out of place at Scottish games, but it is meant to be a parody of an Irish washerwoman in an agitated state of mind. Legend has it that the woman was angry because her husband had come home late from the pub and spent all of his wages.