Sogdian Whirl dance

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6th-century flask showing a performer dancing the Sogdian whirl

The Sogdian Whirl dance or Sogdian Whirl (in Chinese huxuan wu, Chinese: 胡旋舞) was a Sogdian dance imported in China in the first half of the first millennium AD. The dance was imitated by the Chinese, and became extremely popular in China, where it went on to be performed at court.

History[]

Buddhist cave art, a dancer spins while the orchestra plays. Grotto 46 Left interior wall, second panel. Also called cave 112.
Cave 220 “Hu xuan” dancer in mural from Mogao.

The Sogdian Whirl and other similar, imported dances were extremely popular in China during the Tang Dynasty, especially in the area of Chang'an and Luoyang.[1][2]

The Sogdian merchant-dancers, who performed different dances[3] but were especially renowned for this dance, were very famed in China.[4] In the Sogdian Whirl, a young woman was spinning inside a circle.[1] The Sogdian Whirl became enormously popular in China. It was performed both in the Chinese court and in China itself. Sources from the Tang dynasty attest to it being performed at court. The dance was performed at court by, among others, the Emperor Xuanzong of Tang and Yang Guifei, his favorite concubine.[5]

The Sogdian Whirl was depicted in the funerary art of Sogdians in China.[3] Further, it was depicted on many native Chinese tombs, which further shows its popularity in China.[5]

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ a b The Silk Road Encyclopedia. Seoul Selection. 2016. p. 778. ISBN 9781624120763.
  2. ^ China Archaeology and Art Digest. Art Text (HK) Limited. 1997. p. 3.
  3. ^ a b Lerner, Judith A. "Sogdian Dancer". Freer, Sackler - Smithsonian. Archived from the original on 11 September 2021. Retrieved 12 September 2021.
  4. ^ James C. Y. Watt, Prudence Oliver Harper, Jiayao An, Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York, N.Y.) (2004). China Dawn of a Golden Age, 200-750. Metropolitan Museum of Art. p. 251. ISBN 9781588391261.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  5. ^ a b Furniss, Ingrid. "Retracing the Sounds of Sogdiana". Freer, Sackler - Smithsonian. Archived from the original on 11 September 2021. Retrieved 11 September 2021.
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