A céilidh (pronounced ) is the traditional Gaelic social dance in Ireland and Scotland. Other spellings encountered are ceilidh, céilí (Irish reformed spelling) and cèilidh (Scottish Gaelic reformed spelling). Before discos and nightclubs, there were Céilidhs in most town and village halls on Friday or Saturday nights and are still common today. Originally céilidhs facilitated courting and prospects of marriage for young people and, although discos and nightclubs have displaced céilidhs to a considerable extent, they are still an important and popular social outlet in rural parts of Ireland and Scotland, especially in the Gaelic-speaking west coast regions. Céilidhs are sometimes held on a smaller scale in private or public houses, for example in remote rural hinterlands and during busy festivals. It is common for some clubs and institutions such as sports clubs, schools and universities and even employers to arrange céilidhs on a regular or at least annual basis. The formality of these can vary. Some mix modern pop music with a Scottish country dancing band and dress codes range from compulsory highland dress to informal. Knowledge and use of the basic dance steps is not always strictly necessary, and dances often alternate with songs, poetry recitals, story telling and other types of "party piece".

Céilidh music is provided by any assortment of fiddle, flute, tin whistle, accordion, bodhrán (pronounced or ) (a drumlike instrument, traditionally with a wooden frame covered with stretched goat hide), and in more recent times also drums and electric bass guitar. The music is cheerful and lively, and the basic steps can be learned easily; a short instructional session is often provided for new dancers before the start of the dance itself.

The general format of céilidh dancing is the "Set". A Set consists of four couples, with each pair facing another in a square or rectangular formation. Each couple exchanges position with the facing couple, and also facing couples exchange partners, while all the time keeping in step with the beat of the music.

However, about half of the dances in the modern Scots céilidh are couple dances performed in a ring. These can be performed by fixed couples or in the more sociable "progressive" manner, with the lady moving to the next gentleman in the ring at or near the end of each repetition of the steps.

There is also a form of dancing which in the US would be called square or line dancing - the "Siege of Ennis", "The Walls of Limerick" and "The Stack of Barley" being the most popular dances in this genre; some of the céilidh dance formations are named after famous historical battles and events, others after items of daily rural life as the last three examples show.

Step dancing is another form of dancing often performed at céilidhs, the form that was popularised in the 1990s by the world-famous Riverdance ensemble. Whereas Set dancing involves all present, whatever their skill, Step dancing is usually reserved for show, being performed only by the most talented of dancers.

The céilidh has been internationalised by the Scottish and Irish diasporas in Canada, the United States, Australia and New Zealand, where local céilidhs and traditional music competitions are held. In recent years, céilidh and traditional music competitions have been frequently won by descendants of emigrants.

Modern Scottish céilidh

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Between 1997 and 2001 the Scottish céilidh grew in popularity again amongst youths. Since then a subculture in some Scottish cities has evolved where some people attend céilidhs on a regular basis and at the céilidh they find out from the other dancers when and where the next céilidh will be.

Modern céilidh dancing is a mixture of three things, all done to a less exacting standard than the groups of people who originally devised them.

• Scottish country dancing
• Old time dancing
• Ballroom dancing

English Céilidh

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What is now called English céilidh (also known in England as barndance) has many things in common with the Scottish/Irish social dance tradition. The dance figures are similar but English tunes tend to be slower and accentuate the beat, so dancers will often use a skip, step hop or rant step (hop on left twice, step on right, hop on right twice, step on left) rather than the smoother motion seen in Ireland and Scotland. There is often a 'spot' halfway through the evening to give the band a rest, often involving the local Morris side. English céilidhs always use a caller, who calls the dance figures the dancers need to make. There are a good number of Progressive dances, with many dances coming from the English Country Dance repertoire, many dances for sets of 6, 8 or 10 people. Partner changing dances are rare but people will likely chose different partners after every one or two dances; if you stick with someone for more than three, it's often assumed you're emotionally involved with them!

Many English céilidh bands have strong influences from other forms of music, for example ska for Whapweasel, French traditional for Token Women, jazz for Chalktown, rock for Tickled Pink or West African and Indian for Boka Halat.

See also

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• List of Scottish country dances

External links

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• Military Two Step
• Gay Gordons
• Webfeet has a list of English ceilidh bands and dances in England, Wales and Scotland, with a map and RSS/iCal feeds.
• Sheffield University Ceilidh SocietyProbably one of the most well established and largest English Ceilidh Societies in England.
• The Round is the website of the Cambridge University English Dance society, and an excellent resource on e-ceilidh.
• Gremlinuk has a page about Scottish ceilidh dancing, with some dances written out.

Music genres | Folk music | European folk dances | English folk dance | English music | Irish culture | Irish styles of music | Irish dance | Scottish country dance | Scottish music | Scottish society | Scottish cultural icons | Scottish styles of music