As many of you know, I spent almost 6 years of my life living and working in Egypt at the Meridien-Heliopolis in Cairo. During my time there I conducted a lot of field research, seeking out people to interview about the various dances found throughout the country and more. Since my return I have been […]
Sa’idi Tahtib – Local Professionals During the Journey through Egypt intensives we look at each region of Egypt from six different viewpoints, seeking to organize the information into six “jigsaw puzzles” on six different tables. Table 1: Non-Professionals “Home-style” Last week we viewed a video that showed the more informal homestyle tahtib with a “play” […]
What is the Sa’idi “Tahtib” Part II – Video Examples To continue our Sa’idi Tahtib subject, this week we have two fun videos! An Informal Game of Tahtib The first video shows the “play” aspect that the tahtib can employ. This was not a formal tournament nor was it an event that normally includes the tahtib contest. […]
Tahtib is a martial arts fight popular in the Sa’idi region for well over 3300 years. This article explores the definition of Tahtib and where it is usually found.
A description of the Nubian Sabou’a and Blessing of the River ritual done when a woman leaves her confinement after the birth of her baby.
I first became aware of the “Blessing of the River” ritual a couple years ago while we were visiting the Nubian House in Luxor. I always ask Mr. Gamal Latif to explain the stories in the rugs to us, and every year we would see this carpet and listen to this baby ritual. So far […]
Sun Day at Abu Simbel Temple As I write this the sun is rising in Egypt, the sky is getting light, soon the rays of the sun will enter the darkness of Abu Simbel Temple, piercing the complete length of the halls, into the “Holy of the Holies” where it will illuminate the statues of […]
The Siwa Oasis & A Project Announcement The Siwa Oasis is a private, unique, and interesting place, it is also a notoriously difficult place to find. For years Mme. Farida Fahmy (female main dancer of Firqa Reda) would tell me of her experiences in this fascinating oasis in the midst of the vast Western desert, […]
Part II – What If We Viewed Egyptian Folklore As A Puzzle? Last week we introduced the concept of looking at each region of Egypt from six perspectives; six tables, each with a jigsaw puzzle of information pieces. Click here to read Part I. The first three “tables” all had the dancers and their audience […]
What If We Viewed Egyptian Folklore As A Puzzle? When I first started Belly Dancing I was also an Anthropology major, so of course I was very interested in finding the cultural roots of this wonderful dance. I was able to find a video rental store run by an Egyptian and he had videos of […]
