
A curtsy (also spelled curtsey or incorrectly as courtsey) is a traditional gendered gesture of greeting, in which a
girl
A girl is a young female human, usually a child or an adolescent. While the term ''girl'' has other meanings, including ''young woman'',Dictionary.com, "Girl"'' Retrieved January 2, 2008. '' daughter'' or '' girlfriend'' regardless of age ...
or
woman
A woman is an adult female human. Before adulthood, a female child or Adolescence, adolescent is referred to as a girl.
Typically, women are of the female sex and inherit a pair of X chromosomes, one from each parent, and women with functi ...
bends her knees while bowing her head. In Western culture it is the feminine equivalent of
bowing
Bowing (also called stooping) is the act of lowering the torso and Human head, head as a social gesture in direction to another person or symbol. It is most prominent in Asian cultures but it is also typical of nobility and aristocracy in many E ...
by males, although men will commonly curtsy in some churches as a simplified
genuflection
Genuflection or genuflexion is the act of bending a knee to the ground, as distinguished from kneeling which more strictly involves both knees. From early times, it has been a gesture of deep respect for a superior. Today, the gesture is common ...
.
Miss Manners characterizes its knee bend as deriving from a "traditional gesture of an inferior to a superior." The word "curtsy" is a phonological change from "courtesy" known in
linguistics
Linguistics is the scientific study of language. The areas of linguistic analysis are syntax (rules governing the structure of sentences), semantics (meaning), Morphology (linguistics), morphology (structure of words), phonetics (speech sounds ...
as
syncope.
Overview
According to
Desmond Morris
Desmond John Morris FLS ''hon. caus.'' (born 24 January 1928) is an English zoologist, ethologist and surrealist painter, as well as a popular author in human sociobiology. He is known for his 1967 book ''The Naked Ape'', and for his televis ...
, the motions involved in the curtsy and the
bow were similar until the 17th century, and the sex differentiation between the actions developed afterwards. The earlier, combined version is still performed by
Restoration comedy actors.
In more formal variants of the curtsy, the girl/woman bends the knees outward (rather than straight ahead), often sweeping one foot behind her. She may also use her hands to hold her skirt out from her body. In the Victorian era, when women wore floor-length, hooped skirts, they curtsied using the
plié
Because ballet became formalized in France, a significant part of ballet terminology is in the French language.
A
À la seconde
() (Literally "to second") If a step is done "à la seconde", it is done to the side. 'Second position'. It can also ...
movement borrowed from
second-position in
classical ballet
Classical ballet is any of the traditional, formal styles of ballet that exclusively employ classical ballet technique. It is known for its aesthetics and rigorous technique (such as en pointe, pointe work, turnout (ballet), turnout of the legs, ...
in which the knees are bent while the back is held straight. Both feet and knees point out so the torso lowers straight down. This way, the lady lowers herself evenly and not to one side.
Traditionally, women and girls curtsy for those of senior social rank just as men and boys bow. Today this practice has become less common. In Victorian courts, the curtsy was done as a signal for courtship availability, and social status dominance or submissiveness, in order to be successful socially. Further, some female
domestic worker
A domestic worker is a person who works within a residence and performs a variety of household services for an individual, from providing cleaning and household maintenance, or cooking, laundry and ironing, or care for children and elderly ...
s curtsy for their
employer
Employment is a relationship between two parties regulating the provision of paid labour services. Usually based on a contract, one party, the employer, which might be a corporation, a not-for-profit organization, a co-operative, or any ot ...
s.
The "
Texas dip" is an extreme curtsy performed by a Texan
debutante
A debutante, also spelled débutante ( ; from , ), or deb is a young woman of aristocratic or upper-class family background who has reached maturity and is presented to society at a formal "debut" ( , ; ) or possibly debutante ball. Origin ...
. The young woman slowly lowers her forehead towards the floor by crossing her ankles, then bending her knees and sinking. The escort's hand is held during the dip. When the debutante's head nears the floor, she turns her head sideways, averting the risk of soiling her dress with lipstick.
It is also acceptable in some cultures for the female to curtsy if wearing trousers or shorts.
Royalty
In many
Europe
Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...
an cultures it is traditional for women to curtsy in front of
royalty
Royalty may refer to:
* the mystique/prestige bestowed upon monarchs
** one or more monarchs, such as kings, queens, emperors, empresses, princes, princesses, etc.
*** royal family, the immediate family of a king or queen-regnant, and sometimes h ...
. It may then be referred to as a court curtsy and is often especially deep and elaborate.
During
her coronation,
Queen Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...
performed a curtsy, or rather a half-curtsy, half-neck bow to
King Edward's Chair.
During the
funeral of Diana, Princess of Wales
The funeral of Diana, Princess of Wales, started on Saturday 6 September 1997 at 9:08am in London, when the tenor bell of Westminster Abbey started tolling to signal the departure of the cortège from Kensington Palace. Diana's coffin was ...
the Queen bowed her head in a half-curtsey as the Princess's coffin passed her.
Dance
Female dancers often curtsy at the end of a performance to show gratitude or to acknowledge applause from the audience. At the end of a ballet class, students will also curtsy or bow to the teacher and pianist to show gratitude. According to Victorian
dance
Dance is an The arts, art form, consisting of sequences of body movements with aesthetic and often Symbol, symbolic value, either improvised or purposefully selected. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoir ...
etiquette
Etiquette ( /ˈɛtikɛt, -kɪt/) can be defined as a set of norms of personal behavior in polite society, usually occurring in the form of an ethical code of the expected and accepted social behaviors that accord with the conventions and ...
, a woman curtsies before beginning a dance. Female
Scottish highland dancers performing the national dances and the Irish
jig also curtsy (at both the beginning and end for the national dances and at the end for the Irish jig). Some female
ballroom dancers will curtsy to their partners before beginning the
Viennese Waltz
Viennese waltz () is a genre of ballroom dance. At least four different meanings are recognized. In the historically first sense, the name may refer to several versions of the waltz, including the earliest waltzes done in ballroom dancing, dance ...
.
It is also common for female
square dancers to curtsy as a method of greeting their male dance partners prior to the dance, while her partner bows. This square dancing practice is called "Honor your partner." Female
cloggers also sometimes curtsy at the end of their performance.
It is customary for female figure skaters to curtsy at the end of their performances at figure skating competitions or shows.
See also
*
Partial squat
Squatting is a versatile List of human positions, posture where the weight of the body is on the feet but the knees and hips are bent. In contrast, sitting involves supporting the weight of the body on the ischial tuberosities of the pelvis, with ...
References
External links
The Lady's Courtesy in the Victorian Ballroom
{{Gestures
Dance moves
Gestures
Gestures of respect
Bowing
Partial squatting position