Square dance

A group dance in which four couples form a square and perform coordinated figures, either in response to a caller or from a memorized sequence.

Square dance caller: A leader who announces figures for dancers to perform during a square dance. The caller selects and times figures while dancers respond in real time.
English country dance: A social dance tradition in which groups perform choreographed figures to music, especially in lines or circles. It supplied dance forms and figures that influenced early square dancing.
Contra dance: A social dance in which couples form two long lines and perform figures with changing neighbors. Its long-line formation contrasts with square dancing's four-couple sets.
Modern western square dance: A standardized square dance form using a large vocabulary of calls and levels of instruction. It is the widely organized contemporary form built around a caller's spoken commands.
Square dance figures: Named movement patterns that direct dancers to change partners, positions, or formations. Figures are the basic instructions assembled into a dance sequence.
Quadrille: A social dance for four couples arranged in a square, popular in Europe and the Americas during the nineteenth century. The quadrille helped establish the square formation and figure-based structure.
Round dance: A choreographed ballroom-style dance performed by couples following a leader's cues around a floor. It uses cued choreography but keeps couples dancing in a flowing circle rather than a square.
Traditional square dance: A regional square dance practice with locally maintained figures, music, and calling styles. Its local variation contrasts with standardized modern western repertoires.
Promenade (dance move): A partnered dance movement in which dancers travel together around a formation. Promenades move couples around the square and often connect larger figures.
New England contra dance: A North American social dance in long lines, shaped by English country dance and French dance traditions. Its figures and calling practices developed alongside early American square dancing.

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