Kizomba
Kizomba comes from Angola, where the word means "party" in Kimbundu. The music emerged in the late 1970s and early 1980s as a fusion of Angolan semba with Antillean zouk, slower and more romantic than semba. An Angolan government decree of 2024 states that kizomba originated in Luanda Province and has since spread across the world.
In 2024 Angola's Ministry of Culture declared kizomba national intangible cultural heritage in the field of social practices, rituals and festive acts, and charged the National Institute of Cultural Heritage with registering it. As a couple dance it stresses smooth body movement and close connection. It spread through Portugal and other countries, and later reached communities in China and Ghana.
Sources
- Angola, Executive Decree No. 91/24 declaring Kizomba national intangible cultural heritage (Angolex)
- Ver Angola: Kizomba, an Angolan feeling that exploded around the world (2024)
- Wikipedia: Kizomba
Organisations connected with this dance
Listed as references; being listed is not an endorsement by or of the organisation.