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More than 5000 entries on the history, culture and life of Britain (published in 1993 by Macmillan, now out of print)
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morris dance
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In the 15C, and probably earlier, the term 'morris' was applied to a wide variety of popular entertainments, including *mummers and even sword dancers. It is believed to derive from 'moorish' (similar dances on the Continent were known as moresque or moresca), and the reason may be that many of the performers disguised themselves with black faces. Like many popular art forms, morris dancing had almost died out by the late 19C. The present enthusiastic revival derives from the recording by Cecil Sharp (1859–1924) of a few surviving dances that he came across in the Cotswolds region. The familiar morris dance of today (performed by male dancers in white, with bells on their calves, clashing sticks and waving handkerchiefs) is therefore in origin just one regional variant.
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