Whether it is the swaying of hips, the delicate moving of the hands in the air, or the colourful costumes, Egyptian culture is rich with iconic dances with unique histories, origins, and meanings. Here are five dances that reflect the many different shades of Egypt’s culture: 1. ‘Sai’di’ (Upper Egyptian) Egyptian movies based in Upper Egypt (Al-Sai’d) often show two men dancing with sticks at weddings. This dance is referred to as ‘Raqs Assaya’ (stick dancing) or ‘Tahteeb’. The latter refers to the symbolic conflict between men using the sticks to demonstrate their power. ‘Tahteeb’ is also considered a byproduct of the oldest Egyptian form of martial arts that survived from Ancient Egyptian times. 2. The North of Delta Dances in the Northern Delta vary in many ways, but most of them share the theme of colourful costumes. Some of these dances include ‘Ghawazi El-Sonbat’ (Descendants of Gypsies of Sonbat) in rural areas in the Delta and the ‘El-Hagala’ dance in Marsa Matrouh. In Alexandria, each dance tells a story of the relationship between sailors and Alexandrian women. One of these stories is ‘Welad El-Sayala’ (The Sons of Sayala) which…
