Carl Moore, Cedric Moore, and Jacob Fields performing a Native American Hoop Dance, courtesy Wikipedia.

Going back centuries, the Hoop Dance is a storytelling dance that incorporates one to 40 hoops to create static and dynamic shapes. These formations represent the movements of various animals and other storytelling elements. In its earliest form, the dance is believed to have been part of a healing ceremony designed to restore balance and harmony in the world. With no beginning or end, the hoop represents the never-ending circle of life. The hoops, typically made of reeds or wood, create symbolic shapes, including butterflies, turtles, eagles, flowers, and snakes.

There are several tales of how the dance originated. Some say the Creator gave a series of wooden hoops and the “dance” to a dying man from the Northern Plains who wanted a gift to leave behind. Another story from the American Southwest tells that cliff dwellers developed hoops for children to learn dexterity.

A more prominent legend has the Hoop Dance originating in the Chippewa culture, where an unearthly spirit was born to live among the people. The boy was not interested in typical boys’ activities, such as running and hunting; instead, he preferred to be alone and watch the animals. This caused his father to shun him, earning him the name Pukawiss, meaning “the disowned or unwanted.” However, the boy continued to watch the movements of eagles, bears, snakes, and birds, and before long, he was spinning like an eagle in flight, hopping through the grass like a rabbit, and creating the Hoop Dance to teach the other Indians about the ways of the animals. Before long, Pukawiss was so popular that every village wanted to learn the dance.

Today, the Hoop Dance remains a popular tradition. It is generally performed by a solo dancer who begins with a single hoop, evoking the circle of life. Additional hoops represent other life elements, including humans, animals, wind, water, and seasons. The dance incorporates rapid moves in which the hoops are made to interlock and extend from the body, forming appendages such as wings and tails. Practiced by several tribes today, it has evolved over the years, becoming faster and incorporating many non-traditional influences. It has also become a highly competitive event, with the first World Hoop Dance Competition held at the New Mexico State Fair in 1991. Today, the most popular competition is held annually at the Heard Museum in Phoenix, Arizona.

Native American hoop dance in Molalla Buckeroo. Molalla, Oregon, in 1936. Photo by Arthur Rothstein.