Zonaradiko () is a traditional Greek
folk dance
A folk dance is a dance that reflects the life of the people of a certain country or region. Not all ethnic dances are folk dances. For example, Ritual, ritual dances or dances of ritual origin are not considered to be folk dances. Ritual dances ...
from
Thrace (Greece)
Thrace (, ; ; ; ) is a geographical and historical region in Southeast Europe roughly corresponding to the province of Thrace in the Roman Empire. Bounded by the Balkan Mountains to the north, the Aegean Sea to the south, and the Black Se ...
that is named after the dance's
handhold. Dancers hold the adjacent dancer's ''zonaria'' (
belt) during the dance. Zonaradiko is a village
line dance
A line dance is a choreographed dance in which a group of people dance along to a repeating sequence of dance step, steps while arranged in one or more lines or rows. These lines usually face all in the same direction, or less commonly face each ot ...
done in one form or another all over Greece. In each village the dance will look somewhat different, but the basic structure is essentially the same. The same dance is done in
Bulgaria
Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...
under the name
Pravo.
The variations below are a collection of steps commonly done by folk dancers throughout the US and as seen done by various groups in Greece.
Many variations of the dance exist. In northern Thrace, zonaradikos turns into a fast tsestos. In western Thrace, the dance is led by the males, and the females follow towards the end of the line. As the dance nears the end, the first dancer moves to the centre and the others twist around him, then they "untwist" and go back to their normal positions.
Mixed lines of men and women, holding belts. The leader is on the right. When the tsestos portion starts, either the entire line does the tsestos steps, or those doing the tsestos steps form a new belt-hold line inside (towards the center) of the original line. Traditionally, some or all of the men would leave the line and the women would either stop and watch or continue the pravo around the men's line. The entire dance is done with the knees bent. This position is especially evident in the tsestos.
Songs like Lianohortarouthyia (Λιανοχορταρούδια), Steryios Pismanipsi (Στέργιος Πισμάνιψι), and Vasilkouda (Βασιλκούδα) are all zonaradika.
See also
*
Greek music
The music of Greece is as diverse and celebrated as its History of Greece, history. Greek music separates into two parts: Greek folk music, Greek traditional music and Byzantine music. These compositions have existed for millennia: they originat ...
*
Greek dances
Greek dance (''choros''; ) is an old tradition, being referred to by authors such as Plato, Aristotle, Plutarch and Lucian. There are different styles and interpretations from all of the islands and surrounding mainland areas. Each region formed ...
References
External links
Zωναράδικος Θράκης - Γιάννης Κατέβας (Zonaradiko Thrace - Yiannis Katevas, YouTube) (live)
Greek dances
Line dances
Group dances
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