Dea Dance Academy

You are almost certainly not too old to tango!

The oldest competitive ballroom dancer on record was Frederick Salter, who passed his IDTA Gold Bar Level 3 examinations in Latin and Ballroom *with honours* in 2011, just a few months shy of his 101st birthday.

Frederick started ballroom dancing in his 90s and pursued his hobby relentlessly, even after suffering a stroke. He passed away in 2016 at the grand old age of 105, having remained active until just a few weeks before his death.

So what’s stopping you?

💠 Did you know?!
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The Argentine Tango originated in the streets of Buenos Aires, Argentina, and Montevideo, Uruguay, in the late 19th century. The roots of this dance lie in African candombe, Cuban habanera as well as waltzes and polkas.

It was a popular dance among European immigrants, former slaves and the working and lower classes. It came about through the nostalgia and melancholy felt by those who were far from home.

During Argentina’s political struggles with prohibition and dictatorships, the dance was forced underground where some say performing it was considered an illegal act. It later came back to light in the 1980’s and its popularity soared again before spreading throughout the rest of the world.

🔹What does “Tango” mean ?!••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
There are several theories regarding the origin of the
word tango, none of which has been proven. An
African culture is often credited as the creator of this
word; in particular, it is theorized that the word
derives from the Yoruba word shangó, which refers
to Shango, the God of Thunder in traditional Yoruba
religion.
This theory suggests that the word
"shangó" was morphed through the dilution of the
Nigerian language once it reached South America
via slave trade.

According to an alternative theory,
tango is derived from the Spanish word for "drum"
tambor. This word was then mispronounced by
Bueno Aires' lower-class inhabitants to become
tambo, ultimately resulting in the common tango.

It is also sometimes theorized that the word is derived
from the Portuguese word tanger, which means "to
play a musical instrument". Another Portuguese
word, tangomão, a combination of the verb tanger
("to touch") with the noun mão ("hand") meaning
"to play a musical instrument with one's hands", has
been suggested as the etymon of tango.!

According to some authors, tango is derived from
the Kongo word ntangu which means "sun", "hour" "space-time".
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