Al-Ayallah is the most traditional dancing style in my country, the United Arab Emirates. Al-Ayallah means victory dance because it is usually performed after a victory in a war or after coming home from successful pearl diving. The music and dances which accompanying this celebration have an important social function and both males and females are represented. Al-Ayallah is very distinctive in both its music and dancing. Goatskin bagpipes, flute and drums are the traditional musical instrument used in this dance. The instruments release sounds like American Indian tunes when Al-Ayallah is celebrated at midnight. When the group, "Fergah" decides to dance "Al-Ayallah," the first thing they do is divide the group of men into two lines as you would divide a piece of cake into two parts. Each man should hold his neighbor's arm, and hold a stick in the other hand, to move it up and down, as they move their bodies with the songs. The stick movement is similar to a herder's stick when he is raising his herd. The group which holds the musical instruments stands in the middle, between the lines, and they are called "Tabballah." While dancing, one line sings a poem in a traditional tune. After they finish, the second line starts to sing the second part of the poetry the same way. Sometimes, when I hear the songs, I recall a Beethoven symphony. However, it seems hard for me to understand what they are saying because the words are joined together like a train. Therefore, it sounds like a foreign language. At the same time, the women's group, which is called "Naeeshat," cheers by moving their hair to the right and left side like sea waves surging when it is raining. In addition, there is a row of two to four dancers moving in a circle in the middle, between the two lines, wielding their sticks, foils or guns, moving them forward and backward; they are moving around like a fan. These dancers also sing while they are dancing. The dance has a unique pattern and holds a lot of meaning for me. If you looked down at the dance from above, it would seem like a box, with four open corners, with the men lining up opposite from each other. Actually, whenever, I see or remember this dance the smell of aloe wood an odd, special perfumed wood imported from India, comes to my mind. I feel my hand beat the drum as the group does. Also, it reminds me of the taste of camel milk, maybe because this dance has a relationship with a desert, so it reminds me about desert food and drink. I really Al-Ayallah because it makes me joyous; it makes me want to sing and dance.

 

Click here to see the writing assignment.