page_title: Folk dance of Mexico
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Folk dance of Mexico / History
caption_attribution_description: Français&#160;: Danses appellées Mitoles - Gravure en taille douce de Van Beecq English: Mitoles (Indian Dance) - Copper-plate engraving from Van Beecq
context_page_description: Folk dance of Mexico, commonly known as baile folklorico, is a term used to collectively describe traditional Mexican dances. Ballet folklórico is not just one type of dance, it encompasses each region's traditional dance that has been influenced by their local folklore and has been entwined with ballet characteristics to be made into a theatrical production. Each dance represents a different region in Mexico illustrated through their different zapateado, footwork, having differing stomps or heel toe points, and choreography that imitates animals from their region such as horses, iguanas, and vultures.
context_section_description: Mexico's modern folk dance tradition is a blending of elements from its Indigenous, African, and European heritage. Before the arrival of the Spanish, indigenous dance developed with strong ties to the religious practices. For the Aztecs, there were two levels of dance, one for the common people, often related to the agricultural cycle and those for the elite. After the Conquest, the Spanish initially worked to eradicate indigenous dances, considering them “too pagan” and succeeded with a number of forms, especially those associated with the priest and ruling classes. However, they were unable to eradicate the more popular forms, especially in the rural and more inaccessible regions of New Spain. Instead, evangelizers worked to adapt dances to Christianity, giving them new meanings. For this reason, most of these dances have suffered at least some modification since the pre Hispanic era.
  Dance evolved drastically from 1520 to 1750, mostly among the indigenous and mestizo descendants. One of the first adaptations was allowing the indigenous to continue dances with religious aspects but in homage to the Virgin Mary or other Catholic personage. One of the first areas to begin innovation was Tlaxcala, were dances to reenact the Conquest are traced. In addition, a number of European dances, music and instruments were introduced including Moros y cristianos (a mock battle between Moors and Christians brought t the central states), Los Archos, Las Escadas, Los Machetes, El Paloteo, Las Cintas and Los Doce Pares. Other European dances include La Zambra, La Zarabanda, La Contradanza, seguidillas, fandangos, huapangos, jotas, boleros, zambras and zapateados. In some cases, these dances were modified or given entirely new choreography in Mexico. Most of the traditional dances performed today took on their forms during the colonial period but they were not firmly part of Mexican identity until after the Mexican War of Independence when it received its first surge in popularity. For example, the jarabe dance of Jalisco, became a political tool to evoke feelings of patriotism and “liberty.” In fact, this dance became intricately linked to the independence movement, causing it to be called the Jarabe Mexicano. Its popularity led to interest in other Mexican traditional dances, especially those danced to son music.
  Despite modern and foreign influences in Mexico's culture in the 19th and 20th centuries, waves of nationalism have kept much of the country's folk dance tradition alive to the present day. The next wave of popularity came after the Mexican Revolution, which also created new songs in folk styles such as the still popular La Adelita, La Valentina, and La Cucaracha. The years after the Revolution also sparked interest in Mexico's indigenous heritage shifting away from the European emphasis of the Porfirian era. This was reinforced by the muralists and other artists of the 1920s and 1930s whose political aims were to forge a Mexican identity, rejecting foreign influences and politics. In the 1930s, the popularity of the dance prompted education and more formal training in it, with educational centers all over Mexico offering classes including the Departamento de Bellas Arts (Fine Arts Department) of Mexico City. Interest in folk dance declined in the 1950s and 1960s, but the Mexican government continued to subsidize it for its aesthetic and social value. This included the support of folk dance or ballet folklórico companies, the most famous of which is the Ballet Folklórico de México founded by Amalia Hernández in 1952.
  Today, traditional Mexican folk dance is a defining element of Mexico's popular culture nationally and internationally. Preservation and promotion of dances nationally have depended on whether they are seen as part of Mexico's national identity. It is one of the few areas where indigenous practices are conserved and promoted rather than depreciated or eliminated. One reason for this is “indigenismo” the ongoing struggles of a number of indigenous communities to resist outside influences into their cultures and Me
caption: Representation of indigenous dance of the 19th century.
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