When you mention you 'belly dance' to people, they have this preconceived idea of what they imagine we get up to at classes - dressed in a two piece costume, shaking our bellies, and generally learning the art of a dance with sexual connotations. In reality, it is very different - in my classes anyway! Belly dancing has evolved over the years & now takes on varying styles and interpretations. I think in modern times, women are using this dance form to not only get fit and remain active, as an alternative method of exercise, but to also boost their self esteem and confidence, and it becomes a social gathering within the troupe.
It is said that belly dance began as a 'birthing' dance, a celebration between women & fertility, where a group of women would join a pregnant women when she was in labour & would dance around her, encouraging her to participate in the types of moves thought to ease the labour pains and encourage the arrival of the baby. The sharp hip movements, muscular contractions & undulations used in the dance had strong connections to the body's reaction during labour.
This dance form, thought to originate from the Middle East, was a traditional dance passed down through generations, and would be performed at weddings and joyful celebrations. However, even before this, it is said that it was the gypsy tribes who bought the dance form out into the streets to perform to the public. The gypsies originated from India & spoke a Hindi-based language called Romany. They began to migrate to other parts of the world, some went north to Turkey & others went south, until they reached Egypt. One of the ways for them to earn some money was to perform their dance in the communities where they migrated to, and this influenced other cultures. However, due to the strict Muslim religion, women were only allowed to celebrate this dance form in the company of other women.
The gypsies also danced for the public at celebrations and in market places, and their group were referred to as the ghawazee, with a mix of music and improvised dance, with the addition of props such as sticks, swords and veils. Some say that it was when dancing in public that the idea of attaching coins to the costumes came about. As the gypsies danced, people would throw coins as tips and the dancers would sew them to their costumes for safekeeping. The more coins on display, represented how good their dancing was thought of, hence why we now use 'hip scarves' heavily adorned with coins!
It is generally believed that in the late 1800's Turkish dancers performed at the San Francisco Fair and the Americans labelled it with the name 'bellydance' based on the French term 'danse du ventre' meaning 'dance of the belly'. Since then, the term 'belly dance' has been used to represent the Middle Eastern dance form, particularly in the Hollywood movie industry, where they portrayed belly dancers in a glamourous light. This lead to belly dancers being portrayed in a burlesque style, with the focus on sexuality, that appealed to the male population. It is only in recent years that women have rediscovered the true form of the dance and have fused other dance styles with it to create modern belly dance as it is today.