Bulgarian Folk Dances
People who visit Bulgaria are surprised that the nationals don’t know how to dance Bulgarian folk dances. This is because their knowledge of their own folk dances is limited to the simple pravo horo and improvised rachenitsa.
Regional Bulgarian Folk Dance Styles
There are several regional style differences of Bulgarian folk dance and we tried to identify them here with a short description:
Severnyashko - Dances from the North of Bulgaria are danced with an upright body carriage, with weight over the balls of the feet which allows the dancer to perform very fast footwork. The steps are similar to those found in dances from southern Romania.
Dobrudza - Hands are joined crossed in front, in belt hold, in "W" hold or placed with back of hand on hips palms open and facing outwards. Men and women usually dance together.
Trakia (Thrace) - It is easy to learn and the most important key to Thracian style is to dance with relaxed knees.
Rhodopes - The dance style has been subject to religious influences as this is the area of Bulgaria which has the largest Muslim population. That’s why men and women usually dance separately.
Shopsko - Shop style is probably the most difficult Bulgarian style because of the speed of the dances
Pirin (Macedonia) - Dances from this Region are more similar to Yugoslav and Greek Macedonian dances than with dances from the rest of Bulgaria. Men and women usually dance separately.
There are several regional style differences of Bulgarian folk dance and we tried to identify them here with a short description:
Severnyashko - Dances from the North of Bulgaria are danced with an upright body carriage, with weight over the balls of the feet which allows the dancer to perform very fast footwork. The steps are similar to those found in dances from southern Romania.
Dobrudza - Hands are joined crossed in front, in belt hold, in "W" hold or placed with back of hand on hips palms open and facing outwards. Men and women usually dance together.
Trakia (Thrace) - It is easy to learn and the most important key to Thracian style is to dance with relaxed knees.
Rhodopes - The dance style has been subject to religious influences as this is the area of Bulgaria which has the largest Muslim population. That’s why men and women usually dance separately.
Shopsko - Shop style is probably the most difficult Bulgarian style because of the speed of the dances
Pirin (Macedonia) - Dances from this Region are more similar to Yugoslav and Greek Macedonian dances than with dances from the rest of Bulgaria. Men and women usually dance separately.
