polka

polka
/pohl"keuh, poh"keuh/, n., pl. polkas, v., polkaed, polkaing.
n.
1. a lively couple dance of Bohemian origin, with music in duple meter.
2. a piece of music for such a dance or in its rhythm.
v.i.
3. to dance the polka.
[1835-45; < Czech: lit., Polish woman or girl; cf. Pol polka Polish woman, polak Pole]

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Lively couple dance of Bohemian folk origin.

The polka (Czech for "Polish woman") is characterized by three quick steps and a hop and is danced to music in 24, or duple, time. It originated in the early 19th century and became popular in ballrooms across Europe and in North and South America. It has remained popular into the 21st century as both a folk dance and a ballroom dance.

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▪ dance
 lively courtship dance of Bohemian folk origin. It is characterized by three quick steps and a hop and is danced to music in 2/4 time. The couples cover much space as they circle about the dance floor. Introduced in Paris in about 1843, it became extraordinarily popular in ballrooms and on the stage, sweeping across Europe and the Americas from Scandinavia to Latin America and developing many varieties. Still popular in the 20th century both as a folk dance and as a ballroom dance, polkas also appear in stage works—e.g., in Jaromir Weinberger's opera Schwanda the Bagpiper and in Bedřich Smetana's opera The Bartered Bride.

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Universalium. 2010.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • polka — polka …   Dictionnaire des rimes

  • POLKA — Danse tournée, qui apparut vers 1830 en Bohême. Un couple l’exécute sur une mesure à 2/4, fortement rythmée, en sections de huit battues, dans un mouvement assez rapide, mais au tempo plus modéré que celui du galop. Il semble que l’analogie soit… …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • Polka — Art: Paartanz (Gesellschaftstanz, Volkstanz) Musik: Klassik, Popmusik, Volksmusik Taktart: 2/4 Takt Tempo …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Polka — Polka: Der im Jahre 1831 in Prag aufgekommene und von dort übernommene Rundtanz im 2/4 Takt trägt seinen Namen zu Ehren der damals unterdrückten Polen: tschech. polka »polnischer Tanz« (poln. Polka »Polin«, polka »Polka«). – Siehe auch den… …   Das Herkunftswörterbuch

  • Polka — Pol ka, n. [Pol. Polka a Polish woman: cf. F. & G. polka.] 1. A dance of Polish origin, but now common everywhere. It is performed by two persons in common time. [1913 Webster] 2. (Mus.) A lively Bohemian or Polish dance tune in 2 4 measure, with …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • polka — (n.) 1844, from French, from Czech polka, the dance, lit. Polish woman (Polish Polka), fem. of Polak a Pole. The word may also be an alteration of Czech pulka half, for the half steps of Bohemian peasant dances. The dance was in vogue first in… …   Etymology dictionary

  • Polka — Polka, Rundtanz modernen Ursprungs, aus Elbeteinitz in Böhmen stammend, wo ihn ein Landmädchen, Anna Slezak, 1830 erfand, hat den Namen von dem in ihm waltenden Halbschritt (tschech. pûlka). Nachdem derselbe in Prag sowie 1840 in Wien und Paris… …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

  • polka — [pōl′kə] n. [Czech, Polish dance, lit., Polish woman < Pol, fem. of Polak, Pole] 1. a fast dance for couples, developed in Bohemia in the early 19th cent.: the basic step is a hop followed by three small steps 2. music for this dance, in fast… …   English World dictionary

  • Polka — Polka, Tanz, welcher entweder von Polen nach Böhmen gekommen od. in Böhmen erfunden u. wegen des diesem Tanze eigenthümlichen Halbschrittes von dem böhmischen Worte Pulka (d. i. die Hälfte) P. genannt worden ist. Wenigstens hat sich die P. von… …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • Polka — Polka, Rundtanz im 2/4 Takt, hervorgegangen aus der Ekossaise; zuerst 1835 in Prag getanzt …   Kleines Konversations-Lexikon

  • Polka — Polka, bekannter Tanz …   Herders Conversations-Lexikon

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