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ABOUT MY PROJECT
This year I have learned how African dance has impacted many dances and cultures around the world. Through extensive research, I have explored in depth how Caribbean dance has been influenced by African dance history. Throughout my website, I will describe several Afro-Caribbean dances and their aspects that directly correlate to African dance.
AFRO-CARIBBEAN
Defining What it Means
Af•ro-Car•ib•be•an | noun
A person living in, or originally from, the Caribbean whose ancestors came from Africa (via the Transatlantic slave trade).
MY THESIS
By the transport of slaves through the Transatlantic slave trade to the Caribbean, the dances were heavily impacted by Africa.
THE CARIBBEAN & COLONIAL INFLUENCE
Understanding Origins
European countries and the Americas competed for control of the Caribbean, along with Central and South America.
These countries included Spain, Holland, Portugal, France, & British Isles.
The European colonies created as a result were Jamaica, Haiti, Cuba, Trinidad, Puerto Rico, Martinique, Curacao, Grenada, St. Lucia.
These colonies and slaves brought from Africa were used for sugar and tobacco plantations and domestic work.
The spread of Christianity was also a big influence of colonization.
Today, the Afro-Caribbean population is prominent in Miami, NYC, Chicago, New Orleans, LA, & Boston.
AFRICAN-DERIVED CARIBBEAN DANCE STYLES
Below are eight Afro-Caribbean dances that I will be covering in further detail.
Listed are their names and countries of origin.
BAMBOULA
Virgin Islands
BELE/BELA
Carriacou
BÈLÈ
Martinique
DINKI-MINI
Jamaica
GERREH
Jamaica
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GWOKA
Guadeloupe
MYAL
Jamaica
QUADRILLE
Jamaica
DANCE STYLES IN DEPTH
Below are the eight dance styles listed above described and analyzed in more detail.
Click the arrows to read on all of the dances!
BAMBOULA
Virgin Islands
Bamboula is still performed today in New Orleans. It was brought to the Virgin Islands by enslaved Africans. The dance is characterized by fluid hip movements and pulsing drum beats as the movements of the dancers mimic the sounds of the drums. Bamboula was created to be a dance that connects us to our heritage as a spiritual and rhythmic channel to our roots. Traditionally, in church, only women were allowed to dance and wore long white skirts which they used to emphasize their movements.
You can see the African roots of Bamboula in the consistent bend of the knees, torso contractions, acute torso, and use of a dancer-spectator circle that closely resembles the traditional African dance circle.
Click the photo above to see Bamboula being performed in Bordeaux, St. Thomas, USVI.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
“Afro-Caribbean.” Tanenbaum.org. Accessed November 12, 2019. https://tanenbaum.org/religion-at-work-resource/religions-of-the-world/afro-caribbean/.
“Afro-Caribbean: Definition in the Cambridge English Dictionary.” Afro-Caribbean | definition in the Cambridge English Dictionary. Accessed November 12, 2019. https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/afro-caribbean.
Alzuphar, Adolf. “World Music Central.org.” World Music Centralorg, March 14, 2016. https://worldmusiccentral.org/2016/03/14/the-bele-dance-of-the-caribbean/.
“Caribbean Dances & Cultural Dance Styles.” Caribbean Dance Explosion (DanceTNT). Accessed November 12, 2019. https://caribbeandanceexplosion.org/caribbean-dances-cultural-dance-styles/.
“Five(Ish) Minute Dance Lesson: African Dance: Lesson 1: Dinhe.” belekawe. Accessed November 12, 2019. http://users.rowan.edu/~conet/rhythms/CulturalDances/belekawe.html.
“Gwoka: Music, Song, Dance and Cultural Practice Representative of Guadeloupean Identity.” UNESCO. Accessed November 12, 2019. https://ich.unesco.org/en/RL/gwoka-music-song-dance-and-cultural-practice-representative-of-guadeloupean-identity-00991.
“Jamaica Journal.” UFDC Home - All Collection Groups. Accessed November 12, 2019. https://ufdc.ufl.edu/UF00090030/00055.
“Jamaica's Heritage in Dance.” Jamaica Information Service. Accessed November 12, 2019. https://jis.gov.jm/information/jamaicas-heritage-dance-music/jamaicas-heritage-dance/.
“Jamaica's Heritage in Dance.” Jamaica Information Service. Accessed November 12, 2019. https://jis.gov.jm/information/jamaicas-heritage-dance-music/jamaicas-heritage-dance/.
THANK YOU
For viewing my website, I hope you enjoyed!