An introduction to Vlach folk dances
Who are the Vlachs?
There are Vlach regions throughout the Balkans, generally differentiated between "black" Vlachs of Greece and Macedonia and the "white" Vlachs of Serbia, Bulgaria, and Romania.
The Karagounides, literaly black cloaks in Turco-Greek and Serbian, refers to the black cloaks worn by the Vlachs of Serbia, Bulgaria, Macedonia, and northern Greece. Some of these Vlachs migrated to Hercegovina and Dalmatia, where they became known as Morovlah, meaning sea or coastal Vlach. The ones that stayed in Thessaly became farmers and their dances are characterized by a steady, pulsating rhythm.
Although their Slav neighbours gave them the name Vlachi (or Vlasi, in East Slavic Volokhi), from which the term Vlachs is derived, the Vlachs call themselves Romani, Romeni, Rumeni, or Aromani. The Greeks also call the Aromanians in Greece Kutsovlahi (lame or little Vlach); also Karavlahi and Karagouni (Black Vlachs or Black Coats, referring to their dark dress).
Vlachs in Romania, Serbia, and Bulgaria
The dances of the Vlach populations in northeast Serbia, northwest Bulgaria, and south Romania haven't let the political borders bother them too much. In fact, at least one of the Romanian Vlach dances on our site is from the region of Negotin, which is actually in northeast Serbia.
[See Negotin on the map]
The dances from this region are generally to fast music with fast, fancy footwork, and a lot of "playing" steps.
Vlachs in Greece
Vlach dances from Greece and Macedonia bear almost no resemblance to the music and dances of the Vlach regions in Serbia, Bulgaria, and Romania. Greek Vlach are generally simple dances to slow music.
[See map of Vlachs in Greece]
You can see the common ancestry from their costumes but the music - and the dances - of the Greek Vlachs bear almost no resemblance to the music and dances of the Vlach regions in Serbia, Bulgaria, and Romania.
Greek Vlach are generally simple dances to slow music. Many dances which are presented as being from Epirus are in fact, Vlach, and there are Vlach versions to many Greek dances. For example, the Vlach Tsamikos starts on the left foot. The dances of Thessaly, which are characterized by a slow, steady rhythm, are in fact, also Vlach.