Square dance Square dance A square dance is a dance for four couples (eight dancers in total) arranged in a square, with one couple on each side, facing the middle of the square. Square dances were first documented in 16th-century England but were also quite common in France and throughout Europe. They came to North America with the European settlers and have undergone considerable development there. In some countries and regions, through preservation and repetition, square dances have attained the status of a folk dance. The Western American square dance may be the most widely known form worldwide, possibly due to its
Modern western square dance as Denmark and Germany where there are flourishing numbers of teenage, student, and family dancers. Modern western square dance Modern western square dance (also called western square dance, contemporary western square dance, modern American square dance or modern square dance) is one of two American types of square dancing, along with traditional square dance. As a dance form, modern western square dance grew out of traditional square dance in the American West. The term "western square dance", for some, is synonymous with "cowboy dance" or traditional western square dance. Therefore this article uses the term "modern western square dance" to