Ethnochoreology (also dance ethnology, dance anthropology) is the study of dance through the application of a number of disciplines such

as anthropology, musico logy (ethnomusicology), ethnography, etc. The word, itself, is relatively recent and means, literally, the study of folk dance , as opposed to, say, the formalized entertainment of classical ballet. Thus, ethnochoreology reflects the relativel y recent attempt to apply academic thought to why people dance and what it means . It is not just the study or cataloging of the thousands of external forms of d ances the dance moves, music, costumes, etc. in various parts of the world, but the attempt to come to grips with dance as existing within the social events of a g iven community as well as within the cultural history of a community. Dance is n ot just a static representation of history, not just a repository of meaning, bu t a producer of meaning each time it is produced not just a living mirror of a cul ture, but a shaping part of culture, a power within the culture: The power of dance rests in acts of performance by dancers and spectators ali ke, in the process of making sense of dance and in linking dance experience to ot her sets of ideas and social experiences. [1] Ethnologic dance is native to a particular ethnic group. They are performed by d ancers associated with national and cultural groups. Religious rituals (ethnic d ances) are designed as hymns of praise to a god, or to bring in good fortune in peace or war.