Zeybek (dance)

The zeybek is a form of Turkish folk dance particular to Western, Central and southern Anatolia in Turkey.

It originates from two ancient Greek dances, the Dionysiac and the Pyrrhic, and it is named after the Zeybeks.

The dance is hierarchic, with a group of companions performing it while wearing a particular decorative costume and a typical headdress.

[3] Zeybek melodies can be divided according to their tempo: ağır (slow) and kıvrak (fast).

The ağır zeybek have rhythmic patterns of 92 or 94, which begin with an introduction called gezinleme in free style where the dancers wander freely before starting to dance in time with the rhythm.