Highland Dancing Origins
Highland Dancing is undoubtedly one of the most important art forms within Scottish culture.

And what gives it this focus is its wonderful combination of colour, intricate movements and music.
The Scottish national costume is portrayed in all its glory in a dazzling variety of tartans, each relating to a family name with centuries of history to tell. The footwork of the dancers is bewildering and one is drawn to the precision and skill and indeed the physical fitness of the participants. And of course, the accompanying music of the highland bagpipes stirs the soul of any and everyone with even the slightest trace of Scotland in their blood.

The joy experienced through dance manifests itself throughout all aspects of Scottish life; fairs, concerts, receptions and all manner of outdoor events, and takes the form of spontaneous and informal displays straight through to formal and choreographed events.

The common dances may be divided into Highland, National and Lesser Known. The Highland group consists of four dances whose origins go back in time to the early days of Scottish civilisation. There is little doubt that they signify important events in the life of our forefathers, but today it is difficult to separate fact from myth, and yet it is nice to muse on some of the stories told, and consider the possibilities behind these tales.

The Highland Fling; dance of victory or ritual pagan dance celebrating nature? This dance is the only one danced on the spot, and it has been suggested that warriors would dance on the round shield called a targe with a large protruding spike. An unskilled warrior would undoubtedly injure himself by dancing off the spot. Others would have you believe that the Highland Fling is inspired by the grace of a courting stag, with the fingers shaped to resemble antlers.

The Sword Dance, known in Gaelic as Ghillie Callum, is certainly an ancient dance of war. Clans or family groups who used to live in scattered communities in the highlands did not always get on, and skirmishes between them were frequent. It is understood and quite believable that after these small battles, the clan leader or chieftain would celebrate his victory by dancing over a cross of his own sword placed on top of his defeated foe.
It has been suggested that Malcolm Canmore carried out this celebratory ceremony when he defeated Macbeth of Shakespeare fame to revenge the death of his father.

Seann Triubhas is the Gaelic for old trews or trousers, is a solo dance which originated after the 1745 Rebellion. The Scots were defeated, and certainly wearing of the kilt was forbidden and only Sassenach trousers permitted, as indeed was playing of the bagpipes. One hundred years later, the ban was lifted and Scots rejoiced at this freedom.
And so we have a wonderful story, an invention almost certainly, but again it is nice to think that it could, just possibly, be true. The tale goes that the dance initially interprets contempt and displeasure at wearing this garment, and the latter quicker section of the dance displays delight at kicking off these restricting trousers and symbolises the eventual return of kilt wearing.

Then, we have the Strathspey and Reel. Of all the Highland dancing events, this dance is the closest to a team dance, with the dancers weaving intricate patterns in both slow and quick tempos. Strathspey is a dance movement as well as an area in Scotland, and legend are the stories that abound as to how strathspeys and reels originated.

The many Scottish National and Lesser Known dances comprise various dances quite different in style and origin from the character dances the sailor's Hornpipe and Irish Jig (no relationship at all to traditional Irish dancing), to the soft Hebridean dances. An explanation of these is left for a later time.

( Thanks to Mr George Mitchelson SOBHD for compiling the above article )