Lezginka Dance

The Lezginka, also spelled Lezghinka, is the Russian-language collective name for the traditional folk dances, as well as musical accompaniment to the dances, originating in the Caucasus Mountains (present-day countries of Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia). The Lezginka is characterized by musical accompaniment in the rhythm of 6/8 and is performed in a fast, energetic pace. The Lezginka can be either a male solo dance, often with a sword, or a couples dance, and is traditionally performed in national costumes and accompanied by a musical ensemble.

Traditionally, the movements of the Lezginka imitate those of a warrior in battle. The dance contains a series of complex steps and each subsequent movement represents an additional element of battle. When the dance is performed in pairs, couples do not touch. The man, imitating the movements of an eagle, performs a series of fast, intricate, and challenging steps while the the woman dances quietly in forms imitating a swan as she regards the man’s display. The woman increases the pace of her dance as the pace of the man increases. Each national or ethnolinguistic group within the Caucasus region has a traditional variation of the Lezginka dance, named for the groups that perform them, including the Azerbaijani, Abkhaz, Avar, Talysh, Adyghe, Armenian, Georgian, Dargin, Ingush, Kabardian-Circassian, Karachay-Balkar, Kumyk, Lak, Lezghin, Ossetian, and Chechen variations.