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 ...

is a performing art form consisting of purposefully selected sequences of human movement. Dance (

Nepal Bhasa Newar (; , ) is a Sino-Tibetan language spoken by the Newar people, the indigenous inhabitants of Nepal Mandala, which consists of the Kathmandu Valley and surrounding regions in Nepal. The language is known officially in Nepal as Nepal Bhas ...

:प्याखं/प्याखङ)() in

Nepal Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mainly situated in the Himalayas, but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China Ch ...

comprises numerous styles of dances, including folk, ethnic, classical to modern dances. Lakhey is the dance of a demon in the carnival of God. Durbar Square, a historic plaza in

Kathmandu Kathmandu () is the capital and largest city of Nepal, situated in the central part of the country within the Kathmandu Valley. As per the 2021 Nepal census, it has a population of 845,767 residing in 105,649 households, with approximately 4 mi ...

, facing ancient palaces and adorned by

Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...

temples, is always full of eager crowds on the last day of

Indra Jatra Indra Jātrā, also known as Yenyā Punhi is the biggest religious street festival in Kathmandu, Nepal. "Ye" means the old Newar people, Newari name for "Kathmandu", "Ya" means “Celebration”, and "Puhni" means full moon so together means the ...

, the festival celebrating Indra, the Hindu king of heaven. In this divine stage, Lakhe the demon dances among gods and deities relentlessly and carelessly.

Origin

Legends state that dances in this country originated in the abode of Lord Shiva — the

Himalayas The Himalayas, or Himalaya ( ), is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the Earth's highest peaks, including the highest, Mount Everest. More than list of h ...

, where he performed the

tandava Tandavam (also spelled as ), also known as , is a divine dance performed by Hindu god Shiva. Shiva is depicted as dancing the Tandava in his form of Nataraja. The ''Natya Shastra'', a Sanskrit treatise on the performing arts, describes variou ...

dance. This indicates that dance traditions of Nepal are very ancient and unique. With altitudes and ethnicity, the dances of

slightly change in style as well as in the

costumes Costume is the distinctive style of clothing, dress and/or cosmetics, makeup of an individual or group that reflects class, gender, occupation, ethnicity, nationality, activity or epoch—in short, culture. The term also was traditionally used ...

Ethnic and cultural dances

* Lakhey Pyakhan: performed during the

Yenya Indra Jātrā, also known as Yenyā Punhi is the biggest religious street festival in Kathmandu, Nepal. "Ye" means the old Newari name for "Kathmandu", "Ya" means “Celebration”, and "Puhni" means full moon so together means the birthday of ...

festival in the month of September. * Bhairab Pyakhan: popular among

Newar Newar (; , endonym: Newa; , Pracalit script: ), or Nepami, are primarily inhabitants in Kathmandu Valley of Nepal and its surrounding areas, and the creators of its historic heritage and civilisation. Page 15. Newars are a distinct linguisti ...

community in

Kathmandu valley The Kathmandu Valley (), also known as the Nepal Valley or Nepa Valley (, Newar language, Nepal Bhasa: 𑐣𑐾𑐥𑐵𑑅 𑐐𑐵𑑅, नेपाः गाः), National Capital Area, is a bowl-shaped valley located in the Himalayas, Hima ...

. * Chacha Pyakhan: is a Buddhist ritual dance with a history going back more than 1,000 years. It is performed by Newar Buddhist priests known as

Bajracharya A vajrācārya (vajra + acharya, Tibetan: རྡོ་རྗེ་སློབ་དཔོན་, ''dorje lopön'', Wyl. ''rdo rje slob dpon,'' Chinese: 金剛阿闍梨, pinyin: ''jīngāng āshélì''; rōmanji: ''kongō ajari'') (alternativel ...

as part of their esoteric meditation practices and rituals. The dancers represent various deities like the Five Buddhas,

Manjusri Manjushri () is a ''bodhisattva'' who represents ''Prajñā (Buddhism), prajñā'' (transcendent wisdom) of the Buddhas in Mahāyāna Buddhism. The name "Mañjuśrī" is a combination of Sanskrit word "wikt:%E0%A4%AE%E0%A4%9E%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%9C%E0 ...

Vajrayogini Vajrayoginī (; , Dorjé Naljorma) is an important figure in Buddhism, especially revered in Tibetan Buddhism. In Vajrayana she is considered a female Buddhahood, Buddha and a . Vajrayoginī is often described with the epithet ''sarvabuddhaḍā ...

and Tara. * Kumha Pyakhan: is a sacred dance of the

Tuladhar Tulādhar (Devanagari: तुलाधर) is a Nepali/Nepalese caste from the Newar community of the Kathmandu Valley in Nepal. The name Tuladhar is derived from the Sanskrit words "tula" (weighing scale) and "dhar" (possessor), thus meaning scal ...

and

Kansakar Kansakār () or Kasāh (कसाः) is a Nepalese caste group belonging to the Newar community of the Kathmandu Valley in Nepal. In Sanskrit, Kansakar means bronze worker, and their traditional occupation has been metal working and trading. Tod ...

caste groups of the Newars of

. The dance is performed in temple and market squares during religious festivals. * Gathu Pyakhan: is a sacred masked dance of the

people of the Kathmandu Valley, Nepal. * Nava Durga Pyakhan: starts from mohani and ends in Bhagasti. It is famous around Newar community in

Bhaktapur Bhaktapur (Nepali language, Nepali and Sanskrit: भक्तपुर, ; "City of Devotees"), known locally as Khwopa (Nepal Bhasa: , ) and historically called Bhadgaon, is a city in the east corner of the Kathmandu Valley in Nepal located abou ...

. * Maruni Dance: traditional dance popular in Eastern Nepal, Sikkim,

Assam Assam (, , ) is a state in Northeast India, northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra Valley, Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . It is the second largest state in Northeast India, nor ...

, and Darjeeling, popular among Magar,

Gurung Gurung (exonym; ) or Tamu (endonym; Gurung language, Gurung: ) are a Tibetan people, Tibetan ethnic group living in the hills and mountains of Gandaki Province of Nepal. Gurungs speak Tamu kyi which is a Sino-Tibetan language derived from the ...

Kirati The Kirati people, also spelled as Kirat or Kirant or Kiranti, are Tibeto-Burman ethnolinguistic groups living in the Himalayas, mostly the Eastern Himalaya extending eastward from Nepal to North East India (predominantly in the Indian state ...

and It is believed to be originated from Magar Army during 14 the century on the behalf of sick King Balihang Rana Magar of Palpa,

Pokhara Pokhara ( ) is a metropolis, metropolitan city located in central Nepal, which serves as the capital of Gandaki Province. Named the country's "capital of tourism" it is the List of cities in Nepal, second largest city after Kathmandu, with 599,5 ...

Butwal. * Deuda naach: popular in Karnali and far-west provinces. *

Chyabrung The ''Chyabrung'' also ''Kay/Ke'' in Limbu language is a traditional drum of the Limbu community in Nepal, Sikkim, Darjeeling hills and Northeast India.The Chyabrung is a hollow, oblong, wooden drum about a two meters in diameter and two feet in ...

Naach: the traditional dance of the

Limbu people The Limbu (Limbu language, Limbu: ) are a Sino-Tibetan ethnolinguistic group indigenous to the Himalayan region of eastern Nepal, northeastern India and western Bhutan. In India, the Limbus live in the Indian state, states of Sikkim, Assam, N ...

, living mainly in the Eastern part of Nepal. *

Dhan Nach Dhan Nach () / ''Yalang'' ( Limbu: Yalang) or ( English: Paddy dance) is a traditional Limbu folk dance, which originated in the Limbuwan region of Nepal. It is performed by people from Limbu (Yakthung) communities, native to Eastern Nepal a ...

: the traditional dance of the

, living mainly in the Eastern part of Nepal. * Mayur Naach; Peacock Dance: performed by western magar specially Kham Magar, popular in the Mid-Western part of Nepal, especially Rolpa and Rukum. * Sakela Naach: the traditional dance of the Khambu (

Rai (), commercially styled as since 2000 and known until 1954 as (RAI), is the national public broadcasting company of Italy, owned by the Ministry of Economy and Finance. RAI operates many terrestrial and subscription television channels a ...

) community worshipping Lord Paruhang and Goddess Sumnima. * Ghatu Nritya: performed among the Gurung community in western Nepal. * Sorathi Nritya: performed among the Gurung and Magar community in western Nepal. * Hanuman Nritya: Popular in central Nepal * Dishka Dance: performed at weddings, includes intricate footwork and arm movements. *Hurra Dance: performed by Eastern Magar community * Jhijhiya Dance: popular in the western and central Terai among Maithili community and some Bhojpuri communities of

Madhesh province Madhesh Province () is a Provinces of Nepal, province of Nepal in the Terai region with an area of covering about 6.5% of the country's total area. It has a population of 6,126,288 as per the 2021 Nepal census, making it Nepal's most densely po ...

. Women put holey earthen pot with fire inside, on their head and dance in a group during Dashain. *Jatjatin Dance: It is based on folk songs of Maithili and Tharu community which they perform from Shrawan Purnima to Bhadra Purnima. It is based on the love story of hero jat and heroine Jatin and their lives. * Sakhiya dance: It is a traditional dance of Tharu community performed during the Dashain and Tihar festivals by the unmarried young girls and boys. *

Lathi Nach Lathi Nach or Jharra Nach also known as Tharu stick dance is a cultural dance of the Tharu people. This dance is mainly performed during the Dashain festival. It is danced striking the small sticks with each other and on its rhythm. It is similar ...

: It is also known as Tharu stick dance and is mainly performed during the Dashain festival. *Gauna Dance: It belongs to the Mithila tradition and is popular in the Janakpur region and is performed on religious and festive occasion. *Baalan Dance: It is performed by depicting the character of Lord Ram and Lord Krishna etc. especially by brahmin and Chhetri community. * Syabru Dance: It is a folk dance of Sherpa and other Himalayan communities of Nepal.

Folk dances

Gallery

File:Deuda Tudikhel.jpg, alt=People performing Deuda dance in Tudikhel, Kathmandu, People performing Deuda dance in Tudikhel, Kathmandu File:Maruni Dance Sikkim.jpg, alt=Maruni dancer, Maruni dancer File:Traditional Nepali folk dances.jpg, alt=Lakhey dance, Lakhey dance File:Traditional Nepali folk dance 2.jpg, Tamang selo dance File:Tharu Dance Sauraha Chitwan 2018.jpg, alt=Lathi nach, folk dance of Tharu community, Lathi nach, folk dance of Tharu community File:Kirati Limbu women performing Kelang dance.jpg, alt=Kelang, Limbu folk dance, Kelang, Limbu folk dance File:Kartik Dance 02.JPG, alt=Kartik Nach, 17th century dance form performed in Patan, Kartik Nach, a 17th century dance form performed in Patan

References

External links