National Square dance day

Square dance is the national dance of the United States, having originated when Europeans arrived in the country between the 18th and 19th centuries. Each brought with them their own country’s dance traditions. It was difficult to dance together because everyone knew their own dances but not each other’s. It instantly became clear that if someone led the dance and declared what would happen next, everyone could dance together, and thus the modern square dance was born.

Square dance depends on dancers learning short turns, or calls, as they are known in English. The dance leader or caller shouts the names of the short turns in various combinations, both expected and unexpected.

The dance originally emerged in Sweden from the United States in 1978, and in the early 1980s, a number of square dance clubs were established throughout the country.