I am a lover of dance. I love simply moving my body to music to express my joy for living and learning, regardless of whether it’s a song I know well or am just hearing for the first time. Although I may not always understand the lyrics of songs I listen to, somehow my body learns to understand the rhythms and begins to move to the music. This raw love and passion for dance are what attracted me to learn about the Palestinian traditional folk dance known as Dabke. I first came across dabke during my first year at University, as I attended many events by the Arab Students’ Association where the dance was commonly performed. At first, I was just interested in it because it was fun, easy and everyone was encouraged to join; since being in Ramallah and learning about the history, symbolism and significance of dabke in Palestinian culture, I’ve fallen even more in love with it.
The Dance: Dabke is a traditional folk dance that is performed not just in the Palestinian Territories, but in the wider Levantine region, which consists of Jordan, Syria and Lebanon, and in parts of Iraq and northern Saudi Arabia. Dabke is a mostly liner and at times, circular chain dance that is danced from right to left.
