Historical War Dance

• The leader of a Cherokee war dance was the brave closest in command to the war chief. War whoops punctuated the ceremony as dancers methodically moved to pulsating drumbeats around the fire and nearby war flag--a long, red-painted pole with red-painted deerskin attached to the top. The Cherokee war dance drum consisted of a pottery jar covered on top with raccoon hide and adorned with small bells along the rim.
  
  

War Dance Names

• War dance names vary among Indian communities. The fancy dance of the Kiowa, Cheyenne, Arapaho, Comanche, and Kiowa-Apache tribes is so named because of the fast pace that tests the endurance of the dancers. To the Shoshoni and Arapaho tribes, the wolf is symbolically linked to a warrior--thus, the term "wolf dance." The Lakota Indians' Omaha dance is named after the Omaha tribe, who taught the dance to the Lakotas. The war dance is known to Utah's Paiute tribe as the fancy bustle, in reference to part of the dancer's costume.
  
  

Dance Regalia

• Elaborate attire is an imperative part of a war dance ceremony, according to the Paiute Indian Tribe website. Intricate, bright-colored beads and ribbons, along with two large bustles of brilliant-hued feathers set Paiute dancers apart from those of other tribes. Atop the headdress, one or two feathers are fixed upon a rocking base to allow movement that coincides with the rhythmic drumbeat. Nanticoke Indians of Delaware wear a roach headdress during the fancy dance that is made of porcupine hair and a deer's tail and tied under the chin. Moccasins are still worn although some performers prefer beaded dance sneakers.
  
  

Dance Steps

• Among the Plains Indians, there are no synchronized dance movements. Sometimes words are sung while participants move intermittently en masse in either a clockwise or counterclockwise direction to the sound of drumbeats. Native American men are the main performers in a war dance but, depending on the tribe, women sometimes take part in a lesser capacity and use more conventional steps. The Louisiana Folk Life website maintains that women in the Choctaw Indian tribe dance right beside the men.
  
  

Modern Venues

• Today, annual war dances are performed during patriotic and religious ceremonies, either outdoors or in community centers located on Indian reservations. These dances, featured at Native American powwows, are a popular tourist attraction. Native American war dances no longer signify impending warfare but instead exhibit the deep sense of tradition and pride of the Indian people.