While belly dancing wasn’t invented in the West, the name certainly was. It’s a catch-all phrase to describe a certain type of dance popular in the Middle East, one that involved deliberate manipulation of abdominal muscles and hips. It’s actually a translation of the term “danse du ventre”, which, in the Victorian era, was French for a specific cultural dance from Algeria.
Belly dancing is a folk dance appearing in different forms in several countries and its origins are wildly debated amongst scholars. Found in decorative engravings in temples from 1000 BC, belly dancing may have originated in ancient fertility rites. But it wasn’t a spectator sport. Men and women were segregated and wouldn't have performed the dances together or even in front of each another. There wasn't a fancy costume worn either. Dancers were modestly covered and used a belt around their hips to draw attention to their movements.
That all changed in Egypt in the 1930s, when a dancer, with the help of western choreographers, adapted the Middle Eastern folk dance, Raks Baladi, for a new night club. Thanks to early Hollywood films as well as the new vaudeville and burlesque acts, a decorative costume was also added at the time, featuring the fringed and beaded bra tops and sparkling belts we're familiar with today.
Portrait of mixed race woman in belly dancer costume © Masterfile
Mixed race woman belly dancing © Masterfile