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InterNations
China

How Belly Dancing In China Has Become The Hip New Thing

Belly-dancing in Beijing
Belly-dancing in Beijing
Mark Godfrey

BEIJING — Belly dancing has long been associated with the Middle East, but there seems to be plenty of evidence to suggest that its future may be here in China.

There has been a huge growth in popularity of belly dance shows, contests and schools across the country. A recent belly dancing convention in Beijing brought stars from around the world for a weekend of workshops and performances.

Two dozen dancers are going through their routines at an afternoon class at the Wen Kexin Belly Dancing School, located in a plush new commercial complex on Beijing’s east side.
Fan Hui Mi, 25, is a regular student here who, over her parents’ objections, gave up her white-collar job in financial services to become a full-time belly dancing teacher.

“They were really against me starting to belly dance because the outfits weren’t appropriate for a young Chinese woman,” she says. “But then gradually they changed their minds when they saw how artistic and pretty the dance was. And then they saw our performances on TV, and when I danced on a well-known TV show I know my mom was proud.”

This belly dancing school was opened by former singer Wen Kexin, who learned to belly dance a decade ago when she went to Egypt to record a music video. Hers was Beijing’s first belly dancing club and school. Today she has 63 licenced belly dancing schools around China serving 100,000 students.

“There are three kinds of people who learn belly dancing with us,” she says. “There are quite a lot who come to learn to be belly dancing teachers and open their own schools because belly dancing is hot right now. Secondly, we have students who want to be belly dancing stars. They don’t necessarily want to dance in bars or Arab restaurants, rather they want to join a dance troupe and perform in theaters and stadiums, which is popular in China. Many would like to be in my dance troupe or in another troupe called the China Belly Dancing Superstars. And then, finally, we have many students who dance to keep fit. For them it’s a hobby.”

Tao Xue Lie, 30, a business graduate from Zhengzhou in central China, learned to belly dance in 2007. “When I started, it was very hard, but all students find it hard at the start. I had a very helpful teacher. She gave me encouragement, she kept saying, ‘Come on, don't worry, one step at a time, do it again.’ And slowly, slowly I started to build confidence and get better.”

After a week of special training in Beijing, she now sees her future as a belly-dancing tutor. She’s ready to set off to a new Wen Kexin Academy in the southern island province of Hainan.

But it’s not just women who are taking up belly dancing in China. Yao Peng Bu, 32, is a male belly dancing superstar with his own Beijing school and a busy performance schedule. He travels regularly to the Middle East and around Asia to take part in workshops and performances.

“I was talking with a famous Egyptian belly dancing instructor who told me that our belly dancing events are the best attended in the world,” he says. “She attends these events around the world. I have been to other countries, and I think our belly dancing is of a very high artistic standard. In Western countries the cost of staff and property are much higher, so they do things on a smaller scale compared to China.”

Wen Kexin has big plans to grow the art form further in China. “Next year we’ll add five to eight more Wen Kexin academies in regional cities,” Wen says. “Also we’re planning a big Egyptian festival, and I plan to bring some of the biggest stars of belly dancing to China for performances and workshops.”

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FOCUS: Russia-Ukraine War

A "Third Rome": How The Myth of Russian Supremacism Fuels Putin's War

Tracing the early roots of the concept of the "Russian world" that sees the Russian state as eternal and impervious to change. Its primary objective is the establishment of a robust national state, a realm of expansionism where autocracy is the only form of governance possible.

Russia's President Vladimir Putin gives a gala reception at the Grand Kremlin Palace

Russia's President Vladimir Putin gives a gala reception at the Grand Kremlin Palace

Alexei Nikolsky/TASS/ZUMA
Vazhnyye Istorii

-Analysis-

Looking back at the start of the 16th century, the Grand Duchy of Moscow had emerged victorious over its Orthodox rivals, including principalities such as Tver and the Novgorod Republic. At the time, a significant portion of the eastern Slavic lands was under Catholic Lithuania's control.

So, how did Moscow rise to prominence?

On the surface, Moscow appeared to fill the void left by the Mongolian Golden Horde. While Moscow had previously collected tributes from other principalities, it now retained these resources for itself. There was an inclination for Muscovy to expand further eastward, assimilating fragments of the Genghisid empire. However, aligning the descendants of ancient Rus’ with the heirs of Genghis Khan would necessitate a fundamental shift in the state's identity. This was particularly complex due to the prevalent ideology built around religion, with the Tatar khans, unlike the Russian princes, adhering to Islam.

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In the early 16th century, a Pskov monk named Philotheus introduced a new idea: that Moscow represented the "third Rome."

According to Philotheus, the first Rome had succumbed to Latin heresy (Catholicism), and the second, Constantinople, had fallen to Turkish conquest. He believed Moscow was now the capital of the only Orthodox state remaining in the world. Philotheus presented his worldview to Grand Duke Vasily III, advocating for the unification of all Christian kingdoms into one.

The descendants of ancient Rus’ sought to trace their lineage back to Prus, the legendary brother of the first Roman emperor Augustus Octavian, establishing a link between Russia and the first Rome. Even though historical evidence doesn't support these claims, Ivan IV, better known as Ivan the Terrible, proudly asserted his connection to Augustus Octavian. He took the concept of the third Rome very seriously and became the first Russian ruler to take on the title of the tsar.

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