West Africa Dance Steps
- West Africa includes Benin, Burkina Faso, Cote d'Ivoire, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone and Togo. Each country has its own dances, and within each country, each tribe also performs distinct dances. They're usually accompanied by drums. Dancing is a social pastime in West Africa: often, everyone joins in, no matter how young or old. Other dances are for couples or specific members of the community such as young women, or men about to go to war. There are different dances for performing at social gatherings, marking puberty and marriage, preparing for battle and calling on the spirits. West African dances often involve steps such as short sideways movements, foot taps, knee raises and arm raises.
- Agbekor is a Ghanaian war dance performed by the Foh and Ewe tribes. Its movements mimic battlefield tactics such as ambush, hand-to-hand combat and reconnaissance. The dancers swish horsetail switches that they hold as they dance. They perform distinctive kicking and shuffling steps, as well as bouncing lightly on the soles of their feet.
Gota comes from Benin and was a dance performed by the Kabre tribe as homage to their god of war. The Southern Ewe tribe of Ghana learned the dance in the 18th century, and now performs it recreationally. It's characterized by stops and starts, performed by all the dancers at once.
Adzohu dates back to the first days of European occupation of Africa. It prepared the dancers mentally and spiritually for battle, and reminded them to fight the influences of the West. Now it's performed recreationally, but it still holds the same meanings: the importance of self-respect and cultural identity. It incorporates jumping and hopping as ways to travel around the dance space. - Boboobo is a social dance from Ghana and Togo, performed by the Ewe tribe. It's performed in a circle.
Gahu is from Nigeria. It's a circle dance in which the dancers sing about how rich they are, and how silly Europeans are. Dancers often wear expensive clothing and headgear when they perform Gahu. Dancers shuffle-walk in a circle, taking short steps. They also perform stomping steps, stomping twice on each foot as they move around the circle.
Kassah is a Ghanaian dance that comes from the Lobi tribe. It celebrates the harvest and is often performed on market days. Women dance Kassah to show their husbands how much they appreciate all the work these men do. - Tokoe comes from the Ga tribe of Ghana. Its purpose, much like a debutante ball, is to present newly marriageable young women to the community. Klama is a similar coming-out dance, performed by the Krobo tribe of Ghana. Both dances involve hip-swaying motions. Dancers also perform a side-to-side step that is similar to Western social dance.
Kpatsa is a Ghanaian puberty dance. Young girls must perform Kpatsa before they get married or their family and community will refuse to accept them. Dancers jump and hop in a circle, pumping their elbows and arching their backs. They also run on the spot and bounce on the balls of their feet, using these moves to change positions within the dance circle.
Soko is a Guinean dance that marks young boys' initiation into manhood. During this dance, young men traditionally have their heads shaved. Dancers hold cloth switches and wave them in the air during this energetic dance, in which they also shimmy their shoulders and throw their heads back. - Bata is a fast, energetic dance done by the Yoruba tribe of Nigeria. Dancers call upon Shango, the god of thunder and lightning. It's characterized by sharp, jerky, angular shoulder movements, which the dancers perform when the drummers play certain rhythms.
Afa is a religious sect that uses dance to communicate with the West African god of divination, also named Afa. This style of dance is also used as a form of prayer before important events, including recreational events such as baseball games.
Yeve is a religious dance style that the Ewe tribe practices. Yeve, like the Nigerian god Shango, represents thunder and lightning. Yeve dance is structured into seven to nine distinct movements, each one representing a different stage of worship.