What Dance Should I Learn

One press picks a dance to learn, with where it comes from and how it is danced.

What Dance Should I Learn

Show all 71
  1. BharatanatyamFrom Tamil Nadu in South India. Traditionally one solo dancer, with musicians and one or more singers.

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How it works

Wondering what kind of dancing you should learn? Press the button for one of 71 dance styles, from waltz and salsa to tap, hip-hop and Bharatanatyam, each with where it comes from.

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Which type of dance should I learn

Start with how you want to dance. Ballroom dances are for a pair, and so are most Latin and swing dances. Street styles are often freestyle. Folk dances are mostly for a group: a square, a circle or a line.

Ten ballroom dances, eight Indian classical

Competition ballroom has five standard dances (waltz, tango, Viennese waltz, foxtrot, quickstep) and five Latin, and India’s national academy of the performing arts recognizes eight classical dances. The list holds every one of the eighteen.

  • Not sure what type of dance you should do? Pick three and look up a short video of each.

Questions and answers

Which Latin dance should I learn?

For parties, the social Latin dances: salsa, bachata, merengue and mambo. For competition, the five international Latin dances: cha-cha-cha, rumba, samba, paso doble and jive. Rumba is the slowest of the five.

Which Indian classical dance should I learn?

The Sangeet Natak Akademi, which Wikipedia calls the main organization for preserving India’s arts, recognizes eight: Bharatanatyam, Kathak, Kathakali, Kuchipudi, Odissi, Manipuri, Mohiniyattam and Sattriya. Each belongs to one region of India, from Tamil Nadu to Assam, and Bharatanatyam and Mohiniyattam are traditionally solo dances.

Which style of ballroom dance should I do?

Foxtrot is smooth, with long flowing movements. Quickstep is fast and light. Viennese waltz turns constantly, and tango keeps a closed position in its International style, while the American style lets partners separate.

What kind of dance should I learn without a partner?

Highland dance is solo, Irish stepdance can be, and the Charleston is danced alone or with a partner. Line dancers never touch, and a contra dance is a social dance you can attend without a partner.

What dance style should I learn as a beginner?

Wikipedia’s articles point to two. Merengue is a kind of danced walk, open to people with or without dance experience, and East Coast Swing was created by dance studios in the 1940s as a simpler Lindy Hop.

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All 71 dances

Ballroom 10

  • Cha-cha-cha From Cuba in the early 1950s, named for the shuffling sound of the dancers’ feet. In a pair.
  • Foxtrot First danced in 1914: long, smooth, flowing movements across the floor, to big band music. In a pair.
  • Jive From African Americans in the United States in the early 1930s. Counted as Latin, with roots in swing.
  • Paso doble From Spain, grown out of a military march and tied to the bullfight. Danced mostly in competition.
  • Quickstep English in origin, from the 1920s: fast and light, grown out of the foxtrot and the Charleston. In a pair.
  • Rumba American big band music joined to Afro-Cuban rhythms in the 1930s. The slowest competition Latin dance.
  • Samba (ballroom) A lively dance with a bounce that travels around the floor. It differs a good deal from the samba of Brazil.
  • Tango (ballroom) Branched away from the tango of Argentina and Uruguay. A pair in closed position.
  • Viennese waltz The original, faster waltz: a pair turning constantly, to the right or to the left.
  • Waltz From German-speaking Europe in the 1700s. A pair in closed position, in triple time.

Latin 9

  • Argentine tango A social dance from the suburbs of Buenos Aires at the end of the 1800s, improvised by a pair.
  • Bachata A social couple dance from the Dominican Republic: a side-to-side step with a hip accent on counts 4 and 8.
  • Brazilian zouk A partner dance that began in Brazil in the early 1990s, grown out of the lambada.
  • Cumbia A folk dance from the coast of Colombia. Pairs dance in a circle without touching.
  • Forró From the Northeast of Brazil. Danced in pairs, one leading and one following.
  • Mambo A Latin dance of Cuba, developed in the 1940s with the music of the same name. Free, with complex footwork.
  • Merengue The national dance of the Dominican Republic: a kind of danced walk, partners in closed position.
  • Salsa Latin American dances done to salsa music. Usually with a partner, with some solo footwork.
  • Samba (Brazilian) Afro-Brazilian: fast footwork and rhythmic hips, seen in Carnival parades. Solo, in pairs or in groups.

Swing 5

  • Balboa A swing dance from Southern California in the early 1930s. Partners stay upright in a close hold.
  • Charleston Named after Charleston, South Carolina, and a hit of the 1920s. Danced alone or with a partner.
  • East Coast Swing Created by dance studios in the 1940s, based on Lindy Hop and made for beginners. A social partner dance.
  • Lindy Hop Born in Harlem, New York City, in 1928. A swing dance that mixes partnered and solo dancing.
  • West Coast Swing A partner dance with roots in Lindy Hop, danced in a slot on the floor. Both partners may improvise.

Indian classical 8

  • Bharatanatyam From Tamil Nadu in South India. Traditionally one solo dancer, with musicians and one or more singers.
  • Kathak From northern India, where traveling storytellers danced the epics. Rhythmic footwork with ankle bells.
  • Kathakali From Kerala: a story play in large costumes and makeup. All roles were traditionally played by men.
  • Kuchipudi From the village of Kuchipudi in Andhra Pradesh. A dance-drama, danced solo or in teams.
  • Manipuri From the state of Manipur. Gentle eyes and soft, peaceful movements, with many dances done in groups.
  • Mohiniyattam From Kerala. Traditionally a solo dance performed by women; men also dance it today.
  • Odissi From the temples of Odisha on India’s east coast. Its pure and expressive dances are solo.
  • Sattriya From Assam, developed by monks in Hindu monasteries as dance-dramas. Has solo and group pieces.

Street and club 7

  • Breaking From the Bronx in New York City: toprock, footwork, power moves and freezes. An Olympic sport in 2024.
  • Hip-hop A range of street dance styles from the United States, done to hip-hop music. Often freestyle.
  • House dance Freestyle footwork from the house music scene of Chicago and New York.
  • Krump From South Central Los Angeles in the early 2000s: free, exaggerated and highly energetic movement.
  • Locking A funk dance from the late 1960s: fast arm and hand moves that freeze, or lock, for a moment and then go on.
  • Popping From California: muscles are quickly tensed and released so the body jerks, or pops, to funk music.
  • Waacking From the clubs of Los Angeles in the 1970s disco era: rotating arm movements and poses.

Stage and studio 8

  • Acro dance Classical dance technique combined with acrobatics.
  • Ballet Began in the Italian Renaissance, then grew into a concert dance in France and Russia. Highly technical.
  • Contemporary Developed in the mid-1900s from classical, modern and jazz styles. Uses floor work and improvisation.
  • Irish stepdance From traditional Irish dance: a stiff upper body over fast, precise feet. Solo or in groups.
  • Jazz dance Arose in the United States in the early 1900s from African American dance styles. Seen on Broadway.
  • Lyrical Ballet technique with the freedom of jazz and contemporary, often to slow songs that set the mood.
  • Modern dance Arose in Europe and the United States around 1900 as a rebellion against classical ballet.
  • Tap An American dance that grew from Black American and Irish dance. The shoes strike the floor as percussion.

Folk and traditional 19

  • Belly dance A Middle Eastern dance, raqs sharqi in Arabic, built on movements of the hips and torso.
  • Bhangra A folk dance of the Punjab, tied to the harvest festival of Vaisakhi: kicks, leaps and bends to a dhol drum.
  • Clogging A folk dance of the United States: the heel and toe strike the floor to make the rhythm.
  • Contra dance An American folk dance in long lines of couples, led by a caller. You can come without a partner.
  • Dabke A folk dance of the Levant that joins circle and line dancing, done at weddings and celebrations.
  • Flamenco From Andalusia in southern Spain: proud carriage, expressive arms and rhythmic stamping of the feet.
  • Garba A circle dance from Gujarat in India, danced at the festival of Navaratri.
  • Highland dance A competitive solo step dance from the Scottish Highlands, danced on the balls of the feet.
  • Hopak A Ukrainian folk dance with acrobatic jumps, danced by soloists, couples or groups.
  • Hora A circle dance of Southeast Europe, popular at weddings and festivals.
  • Hula Developed in the Hawaiian Islands by Native Hawaiians. Hand motions stand for the words of a song or chant.
  • Line dance A group in rows repeats one sequence of steps, with no contact between dancers.
  • Morris dance An English folk dance: a group in costume, bells on their shins, stepping with sticks or handkerchiefs.
  • Polka From Bohemia, now part of the Czech Republic, in the 1800s. A lively dance in 2/4 time.
  • Scottish country dance Scotland’s social dance: sets of three or more couples trace patterns to jigs and reels.
  • Square dance Four couples in a square, steered through the steps by a caller. Strongly associated with the United States.
  • Stepping A percussive dance of African-American culture: footsteps, claps and spoken word, mostly in groups.
  • Tarantella Fast folk dances of southern Italy, danced to tambourines.
  • Tinikling A folk dance of the Philippines: dancers step between bamboo poles that two people tap and slide.

More partner dances 5

  • Carolina shag A partner dance done to beach music. The official state dance of South Carolina since 1984.
  • Country two-step A country-western dance for two, often called the Texas two-step, danced to country music.
  • Hustle The partner dance of 1970s disco nightclubs, with steps in common with mambo and salsa.
  • Kizomba From Angola in the late 1970s and early 1980s. A couple dance to slow, romantic music.
  • Nightclub two step A partner dance from the mid-1960s, made of rock steps and glides, often danced to mid-tempo ballads.