Glossary of belly dance terms the back hip is pushed back in imitation of a [horse]. Hafla, from the Arabic meaning get-together, party, or ceremony. Outside of Arabic-speaking countries it began to be used after 2000 to refer to a gathering of belly dancers, often with a formal stage show and vendors. Karsilamas (Greek: καρσιλαμάς, Turkish: karşılama), pronounced carshulamah, is a folk dance spread all over Northwest Asia Minor and carried to Greece by Asia Minor refugees. The term "karsilamas" comes from the Turkish word "karşılama" meaning "face to face greeting" The dance is still popular on Northwestern areas of Turkey, especially on wedding parties,
Religions of the ancient Near East and Arabian religion. Judaism is a development of Canaanite religion, both Indo-European and Semitic religions influenced the ancient Greek religion, and Zoroastrianism was a product of ancient Indo-Iranian religion. In turn these religious traditions strongly influenced the later monotheistic religions of Christianity, Mandeanism, Sabianism, Gnosticism, Islam, and Manicheanism, which inherited their monotheism from Judaism and Zoroastrianism. The history of the ancient Near East spans more than two millennia, from the Bronze Age to the Early Iron Age, in the region now known as the Middle East, centered on the Fertile Crescent. There was much cultural contact, so that it is