Egypt, 19th-20th centuries
ORIENTAL DANCE (RAQS SHARQI)
The speaking hips of Cairo
Oriental Dance ("Raqs Sharqi," literally "dance of the East") is a female solo dance born in the café-concerts of Cairo at the end of the 19th century, drawing on rural Egyptian, Syrian, and Lebanese folk traditions. Its modern form was codified in the 1920s-30s by great Egyptian dancers — Badia Masabni, Tahia Carioca, Samia Gamal — on the stages of Cairo's cinema-cabarets.
Long confused in the West with "belly dance," or worse, with fantastical colonial orientalism, true Raqs Sharqi is an extremely codified, demanding dance requiring years of work on isolations. It is now practiced worldwide, with regional styles (Egyptian, Lebanese, Turkish, rural Saïdi) and major figures such as Randa Kamel, Dina, and Aida Nour.
How it's danced
Technique & figures
Raqs Sharqi is danced to classical Arabic music (takht, Egyptian orchestra) or modern music, at varying tempos (60-140 BPM). The technique relies on extremely precise isolations of the hips, torso, shoulders, hands, and head — each part of the body working independently of the others.
Styles and fundamentals
Three main registers coexist. Classical Raqs Sharqi (Egypt) is the most refined theatrical form, with embroidered costumes and deep musical interpretation. Baladi (popular, urban) is more grounded, worn with the long "baladi dress." Saïdi (rural, Upper Egypt) incorporates the cane, a symbol of Nile peasants. To these are added Khaligi folklore (Gulf) and Dabké (Levant).
Main figures
- 01
Shimmy
A continuous, rapid vibration of the hips or shoulders. A foundational move requiring total muscle release.
- 02
Hip circle
A horizontal circle of the hips, in either direction. Can be small or very wide.
- 03
Undulation
A wave that travels through the body from chest to hips (or the reverse), in slow or fast oscillation.
- 04
Hip drop
A sharp contraction of one hip upward or downward, on a musical accent.
- 05
Chest isolation
The chest moves forward-backward or in a circle while the hips remain still. Extreme dissociation.
- 06
Raqs al-Assaya
A cane dance borrowed from Saïdi folklore. The cane becomes an extension of the body.
Reading the music
The great classics of Oum Kalthoum and Farid al-Atrash, orchestral tracks from Cairo, modern songs (Hakim, Amr Diab), and traditional rhythms: maqsoum, saïdi, baladi, malfouf.