page_title: Culture of Indonesia
section_title: Dance
hierarchical_section_title: Culture of Indonesia / Traditional performing arts / Dance
caption_attribution_description: English: Legong dance itself comes from the origin of the word "Leg" which means flexible and "gong" which can be interpreted as gamelan. For this reason, this dance has a graceful movement accompanied by a traditional Balinese gamelan called Semar Pegulingan. In addition, the dancers who play Legong use hand fans.
context_page_description: The culture of Indonesia has been shaped by long interaction between original indigenous customs and multiple foreign influences. Indonesia is centrally-located along ancient trading routes between the Far East, South Asia and the Middle East, resulting in many cultural practices being strongly influenced by a multitude of religions, including Buddhism, Christianity, Confucianism, Hinduism and Islam, all strong in the major trading cities. The result is a complex cultural mixture very different from the original indigenous cultures.
  Examples of the fusion of Islam with Hinduism include Javanese Abangan belief, the fusion of Hinduism, Buddhism and animism in Bodha, and the fusion of Hinduism and animism in Kaharingan; others could be cited. Balinese dances have stories about ancient Buddhist and Hindu kingdoms, while Islamic art forms and architecture are present in Sumatra, especially in the Minangkabau and Aceh regions. Traditional art, music and sport are combined in a martial art form called Pencak Silat.
  The Western world has influenced Indonesia in science, technology and modern entertainment such as television shows, film and music, as well as political system and issues.
context_section_description: Indonesian dance reflects the diversity of culture from ethnic groups that composed the nation of Indonesia.
  Austronesian roots and Melanesian tribal dance forms are visible, and influences ranging from neighbouring Asian countries; such as India, China, and Middle East to European western styles through colonisation. Each ethnic group has their own distinct dances; makes total dances in Indonesia are more than 3000 Indonesian original dances. However, the dances of Indonesia can be divided into three eras; the Prehistoric Era, the Hindu/Buddhist Era and the Era of Islam, and into two genres; court dance and folk dance.
  There is a continuum in the traditional dances depicting episodes from the Ramayana and Mahabharata from India, ranging through Thailand, all the way to Bali. There is a marked difference, though, between the highly stylised dances of the courts of Yogyakarta and Surakarta and their popular variations. While the court dances are promoted and even performed internationally, the popular forms of dance art and drama must largely be discovered locally.
  During the last few years, Saman from Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam has become rather popular and is often portrayed on TV. Reog Ponorogo is also a dance that originated from the district Ponorogo, East Java, which is a visualisation of the legendary story Wengker kingdom and the kingdom of Kediri.
  A popular line dance called Poco-poco was originated in Indonesia and also popular in Malaysia, but at early April 2011 Malaysian Islamic clerics banned the poco-poco dance for Muslims due to them believing it is traditionally a Christian dance and that its steps make the sign of the cross.
caption: Balinese Legong dance.
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