Standardized Abbreviations
for International Folk Dance DescriptionsPrevious Page Home Page
ABBREVIATIONS
& a secondary ct between two major cts, as in "1 & 2" beg beginning bt, bts beat, beats bwd backward CCW counter-clockwise, often meaning turning that direction in place (see LOD) cir circle cpl, cpls couple, couples ct, cts count, counts ctr center CW clockwise, often meaning turning that direction in place (see RLOD) diag diagonal, diagonally dir direction dn down dnwd downward fig, Fig figure ft foot, feet ftwk footwork fwd forward H hand, hands handwk handwork L left (side, dir, ft, arm, hand, etc.) LOD line of direction around the floor, counter-clockwise M man, man's, men, men's meas measure, measures opp opposite orig original pos position prev previous ptr, ptrs partner, partners R right (side, dir, ft, arm, hand, etc.) RLOD reverse line of direction around the floor, clockwise shldr, shldrs shoulder, shoulders swd sideward twd toward uh that bt between a major ct and a secondary ct, as in Lawrence Welk's "uh-1-&-uh-2" upwd upward var variation, variations W woman, woman's, women, women's wt weight
ARM POSITIONS
"A" pos Hand on own hip with elbow turned outward; called "akimbo." Often used to mean both hands in this pos.
"B" pos Hands joined with second person on either side in a back-basket hold. When the cir alternates exactly M, W, M, W, etc., W hands tend to be joined over M arms to allow the M to give better support.
"F" pos Hands joined with second person on either side in a front-basket hold. If the dance moves predominantly to the L, L arm is under. Elbows are not locked, but rather are held with a "dancer's tension" so that the line may expand and contract with the natural movements of the dance. (When middle fingers are held, the pos is called "Slavonian hold.")
"Q" pos Hand on hip ("akimbo") with other hand through elbow of next dancer in line as if being "escorted." The hand through the elbow looks relaxed with wrist over forearm of that person, but has a "dancer's tension," so that the line may slightly expand and contract with the natural movements of the dance.
"T" pos Hand extended out to side, firmly (but not strongly) grasping shldr of next dancer in line. If line moves predominantly to R, R arm is under. Elbows, rather than locked, are held with a "dancer's tension" so that the line may expand and contract slightly with the natural movements of the dance. This prevents the awkward and sometimes painful situation where the next dancer receives a "straight arm," football style, to the side of the neck!
"V" pos Hand joined with the next dancer and extended down between you and that dancer.
"W" pos Hand joined with next dancer and held comfortably at shoulder level between you and that dancer. Hands are usually held slightly forward of shldrs.
"X" pos Hold next dancer's belt halfway between hip and navel. If the dance moves predominantly to the R, R arm is under. Elbows are not locked, but rather are held with a "dancer's tension" so that the line may expand and contract with the natural movements of the dance.
"Y" pos Hand joined with that of the next dancer in line and extended upward high between you and that dancer. The "Y" is the image portrayed when both hands of a dancer are held in this pos.
Copyright © 2004 by Dick Oakes