Afro-Cuban dances Dance
Grounded in rhythm and tradition, these forms connect dancers to African roots, Cuban culture, and sacred movement.
Dances
- Abakuá
Abakuá is an Afro-Cuban secret society of men. It arose around 1820 among enslaved people from Calabar (the Carabalí, in present-day Nigeria); from 1836 the potencias spread across Cuba from Regla. Its ceremonies, drums and masked íreme dancers have strongly influenced Cuban music, especially rumba.
- Arará
Arará is the name given in Cuba to enslaved Ewe, Adjá and Fon people from the former kingdom of Dahomey (present-day Benin). Their religion, the Regla Arará, now survives only in Matanzas, according to EcuRed.
- Congos Bantu
The Congos-Bantú tradition covers the language, religion, music and dance of enslaved people from the Kongo region and other Bantu-speaking peoples in Cuba. Its religion is the Regla de Palo Monte; its best-known dances are makuta and yuka.
- Franco-Haitian
The Franco-Haitian tradition of eastern Cuba, brought by Haitian migrants: the processional gagá, the Yoruba-rooted nagó and the sacred vodú dances.
- Orishas
Afro-Cuban Orishas are deities from the Yoruba religion, brought to Cuba through the transatlantic slave trade, who embody natural forces and human traits, and are honored through music, dance, and ritual in Santería.
- Tumba Francesa
Tumba francesa is music and dance that French colonists and their enslaved people brought to eastern Cuba after the Haitian Revolution: West African music, mainly from Congo and Dahomey, combined with French salon dances. UNESCO recognised it in 2003 as a masterpiece of intangible heritage.
- Güemilere
A güemilere (also wemilere, tambor or toque de santo) is a public ceremony for the orishas in santería, with batá drums, song and dance. Sometimes an orisha takes possession of a believer.
Afro-Cuban dances by African origin
| African region / people |
Cuban religion / tradition |
Dances on this site |
| Yoruba (Nigeria) |
Santería (Regla de Ocha) |
Orisha dances, güemilere |
| Kongo and other Bantu peoples |
Palo Monte, Congo cabildos |
Palo, makuta, yuka; yuka gave rise to the yambú |
| Ewe, Adjá and Fon (Dahomey, now Benin) |
Regla Arará (Matanzas) |
Arará: Afrekete, Asojano, Hebioso |
| Carabalí (Calabar, Cross River) |
Abakuá society |
Íreme; the columbia arose where Abakuá potencias held sway |
| Haiti (with roots in Dahomey and Congo) |
Vodú, Franco-Haitian sociedades |
Tumba francesa, gagá, vodú |
📝 Sources