Social Latin Dance
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Social Latin Dance
July 11, 2021 April 22, 2020 by Emma Bolton
Dancebibles > Ballroom > List of Latin Dances
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We don't know if you can tell samba from salsa and rumba from bachata, but we bet – you don't know the FULL list of Latin dances . We get it. Below is a list of all Latin American dances with detailed explanations and videos of the respective dance.
Latin dances are a collection of dances that have formed in Latin America. They include both folk (so-called social) and sports ballroom dances (International Latin).
The Latin program consists of 5 main dances such as:
(this list specified in the order of performance of dances at the contest, only in the category of professionals the first dance - chacha, the second - samba).
Ballroom Latin dances are strictly standardized, as part of the competition, there are clear rules and requirements for dresses and costumes of dancers, for their hairstyles. For each age category, there are strictly defined permitted dance figures and movements.
And it is only by moving into higher categories that the dancer has more and more opportunities to express himself: dresses become more unusual and brighter, the heel of the ballroom shoes is higher, and movements more diverse, sensual and technically complex. This is the magic of ballroom dancing : when you come to the dance class as a child, you look at the senior dancers and look forward to being able to dance and perform just like them.
Well, let's discuss each dance separately.
Samba is a dance characterized by hip movements and springy movements by the knees, the so-called “Samba Bounce”. The movement of the partners takes place along the line of the dance.
Cha-Cha-Cha got its name and character because of the special repetitive main rhythm and specific instrument of maracas. In the cha-cha-cha, the dancers step on each beat, be sure to straighten their knees after each step, and actively work with their hips. The main characteristic movement for the cha-cha is the lock-step - the attachment of the non-supporting leg to the supporting one so that they join at the knee (when moving back and forth).
This is a very sensual and romantic dance, unlike his Cuban rumba. This dance is quite slow, but every score and every moment of the music is filled with sensual and elaborated movements of partners. The peculiarity of performing rumba figures - transferring body weight to the “one” account without taking a step - makes the dance more interesting due to accented stops and accelerations; the dance seems to have its own breath.
The Spanish Pasodoble dance imitates bullfighting, where the male partner is the toreador, and the girl is the muleta. The main characteristic of paso doble is the position of the body. It is distinguished by its highly elevated breasts, hips forward. Bodyweight is on the front of the foot; most steps are done with the heel.
Fast and incendiary jive is the last dance of the competitive Latin program, so the dancers must show that they are not tired and are ready to perform it with greater return. Jive has basic steps made up of a fast syncopated steps left and right, together with a slower step back and return to the front. Jive is also characterized by the clear and quick kick movements.
The types of Latin dances described below are folk dances, that is, they were created on the streets of Cuba directly by the local population. These dances are not as standardized as a ballroom, but no less energetic and sensual.
Salsa has managed to harmoniously combine typical African folk dances with Cuban folklore. It dances in pairs as well as in groups. It has two main types - circular and linear. The main movements consist of a fast, fast, and slow step with 4 musical scores.
Read about the history of the salsa dance in our article - " Salsa Dance Origins ".
Bachata is a pair dance, which is distinguished by its intimacy, romanticism, sensuality. Its basis is very close finding partners in relation to each other. This is the main feature of the style - sensual romanticism. The movements are very smooth, wavy, the bodies of dancers often touch. The main movement of bachata is 4 steps from side to side, the last of which is highlighted by the accent (putting your foot forward or putting your foot on the sock).
Merengue is characterized by dance movements in close contact paired with the soft swaying of the hips. It has a faster tempo than bachata, although the two dances are very similar in many ways. In the merengue, improvisation of partners and flirting is important.
Reggaeton can be very different (duro, romantico, perreo), everything depends on the music, the dancer, and his preferences. The main characteristic is muscle isolation, i.e. moving one part of the body relative to a fixed body or another part of the body. This gives the dance contrast and distinguishes it from other Latin dances.
Greater temperament, freedom of expression of emotions, and luxurious musical accompaniment distinguish this dance. At the end of each tact, there is a slowdown, on the count of "four", in the amount of 4/4. The dance is characterized by a clear rhythm and fast tempo.
The dance is performed slowly and very smoothly. It is danced exclusively in pairs. Slow and smooth movements, very close contact with a partner, mesmerizing Portuguese music create the atmosphere of dance kizomba.
Zouk consists of three counts. Dance moves are saturated with beautiful bends of the upper part of the body and deflections. The steps and turns are complemented by circular rotations, wave-like movements, and turns of the head. There are several types of Zouk, such as the Caribbean and Brazilian Zouk.
This well-known dance appeared under the influence of the popular song of the same name by the group Los del Río, in the clip of which the dance movements were shown.
Well, did you find out some new styles of Latin dances for yourself?
If so, write to us about it in the comments below.
And also be sure to share your impressions if you've tried at least one of them. We are very interested!
Read about the history of the ballroom dances in our article - " Ballroom Dance History ".
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Do you offer Latin dance lessons? I’m asked this question all the time. When I answer yes. Many students then ask what it is Latin dancing? They know they like it and want to learn it, but aren’t sure what is. Why is jive one of the five dances in Latin dance competitions, while Argentine tango isn’t? That’s another question I often hear. So, here’s a break down.
There are generally two different meanings. There is social Latin dancing, and there’s formal ballroom/Latin dancing. Formal Latin dancing has five dances: cha-cha, jive, paso doble, rumba and samba. When you see an international Latin or American Latin dance competition, these are the dances they are doing.
Then there’s social Latin dancing. This is what most people are doing in a dance clubs, what you hear on Spanish radio stations, and what most students want to learn. These are dances that originated in Latin American and Caribbean countries. Salsa , bachata, merengue, cha-cha, rumba, and samba are the most popular. There are many many others. Popularity depends on where you are. In the Dominic Republic, bachata and merengue are more popular than salsa. In Cuba, salsa is way more popular than bachata . But over all, salsa is the most popular and bachata comes in 2nd. This is right now. Ten years ago, bachata was not as popular. And ten years from now, something else might become popular. In certain parts of Mexico, cumbia is very popular.
It might seem weird, but Argentine tango is not classified as a” Latin dance.” Here are some reasons why. It’s not danced in place and it doesn’t have hip motion like the other above mentioned dances. Argentine tango moves around the room like a ballroom dance and has no hip motion. It’s more like a ballroom dance, but isn’t. It has its own classification. So why is Jive, which is American, one or the five Latin dances in formal competitions? Well, It’s danced in place, has lots of hip motion, and kind of looks more like the other Latin dances, and less like a ballroom dance. The people who organize these competitions wanted to have five dances make up the competition, and wanted an American dance to be one of them, so they choose jive.
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American Rhythm Dances (Ballroom Latin Style):
International Latin Dances (Ballroom Latin Style):
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There are many different Latin dances out there and in this article I break down the most popular dances by Latin dance styles including: Club Latin dances and Latin Ballroom dances which break down into 2 further styles (American Rhythm and International style).
Originated in Dominican Republic. The Merengue is one of the simplest dances beginners can learn. It is based on “Marching” as both partners switch weight from foot to foot – Accentuating the strong beats of the music. This dance has less structure than some of the other dances because of how easy it is.
Salsa on 1 is one of the most popular social dances and is danced all over the world. Salsa on 1 is danced in a “slot” and has a lot of turns, spins and crossbody lead moves. It gets a lot of influence from other Ballroom dances , as well as other styles of dancing. In this style both partners start dancing on count 1 – hence the name “Salsa on 1”. Overall this style of Salsa has a sharper, more direct feel to it – which makes it perfect for beginners.
Salsa on 2 is almost identical to the moves danced in the “on 1” style, however the biggest difference is that dancers start dancing on count 2. Furthermore, Salsa on 2 dancers say that by dancing “on 2” they connect better with the different musical instruments of Latin songs including: Bajo (bass), Conga and Clave. Overall the “On 2” style has a smoother and slower feeling to it than the “on 1” style.
This Latin dance originated from the Dominican Republic. In this dance both partners move from side to side, incorporating body action and hip action. A key aspect of this dance is that for every 4 count, there are 3 full side steps (weight changes) and 1 step with no weight change (“tap” the foot). The Bachata music tends to be very sensual with strong, distinct beats – which helps characterize the styling of this dance.
This Latin dance originated in Angola. The character of this dance is slow, sensual movement, with easy basic steps done in a close embrace position – similar to Argentine Tango. There are a lot of walking type of movements, Swivels and hip movements in this dance, accentuating the music. This dance is gaining popularity in recent years.
The Cha Cha originated in Cuba. In this dance you need to use very quick, sharp steps in order to keep up with the fast rhythm of the music. A key feature of the Cha Cha basic steps is that they usually include Chasse steps (Series of three steps) to the side, forward and back. The Club style Cha Cha is danced in many Latin clubs and the moves used are similar to the ones used in Salsa and Merengue. It’s important to note that the Ballroom style Cha Cha (below) is different from the Club style Cha Cha.
The American style Rumba is one of the most social dances you can learn because its music fits many popular songs. This dance is characterized with smooth body and hip movement – while accentuating the Slow, Quick, Quick, timing with the feet. The main basic step consists of a box step pattern.
This American style Cha Cha is different from the Club style Cha Cha (mentioned above). In this dance the partners accent the strong beats of the music by pushing off their feet and showing a strong hip action. In this Cha Cha style the movements are big and defined – Especially accenting count “1” – which is the strongest beat in the music.
The East Coast Swing style is derived from the Lindy hop. It is a very fun and playful dance where the main basic steps include triple steps from side to side. This dance includes lots of underarm turns, loops, and spins. The music is not too fast, and not too slow – allowing for plenty of shaping and arm styling.
This dance originated in Cuba and later had a lot of influence from New York to make it what it is today. The moves in the American style Mambo are very similar to what is done in Salsa, however it has a Ballroom flare to it – where the moves and turns are more exaggerated/pronounced. This dance is danced on “2”.
The Bolero is the slowest of the American Rhythm Latin dances. In this dance the partners push off their feet strongly in order to make big steps and there is a rise and fall used through out. Lastly, this dance has a lot of upper body shaping (similar to Waltz and other smooth dances).
The International style Latin Cha Cha dance is similar to the above Cha Cha styles, however the main difference is that in this style the dancers step on a “straight leg” as they transfer weight from foot to foot. The moves in this style are more “linear” with a strong emphasize on accenting the timing which is: 1,2,3, Cha Cha.
The International style Samba originated from the Brazilian Samba carnivals. In this dance there is a “bounce” technique used, where the partners are constantly bending and straightening their knees as they move from foot to foot. Because of the “bouncing action” this dance allows for a lot of body and hip movement.
The Int. style Rumba is quite different from the Am. style Rumba (mentioned above). In this Rumba the dancers arrive mostly on a straight leg, and the figures are “linear”. There is a very strong emphasize on doing “sensual” hip movement (figure 8) and arm extensions to express the slow tempo Rumba music.
This dance originated from Spain and is mostly done in Int. Style competitions, as opposed to social dance events. In this dance the couples use a strong “marching” walk technique to cover the floor, and there is a lot of big shaping movements and “Apels” used. “Apel is when the dancer stomps their foot strongly on the floor (At times creating a loud stomping noise).
The Jive has a very similar character to the Swing, but this dance is much faster. There are a lot of turns, spins and kicks in this dance. The couples must keep their posture more forward than usual, in order to keep up with the fast paced music. The technique used in this dance includes “hopping/jumping” on almost every single step.
Hello Leon,
Will you be adding Mambo to your online lessons?
Yes we hope to in the future. Don’t know exactly when yet. For now you can refer to our Salsa lessons which use almost the same steps, just the counts are different.
You named each dance and where it originated except for SALSA which is probably the most popular Latin dance. It originated in my country, Puerto Rico. It would be nice to see this posted in your description. Thank you.
Very very informative. Your research on all dance forms will help others to know more about latin dances.
Thank you!! for sharing so many other Latin dance forms with us! I barely knew a few of them like salsa, bachata, kizomba…..
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