The lively and rhythmic Juba (aka: Giouba) which may have been related to the Ring Shout which was a group dance consisting of a mix of European Jigs, Reel Steps, Clog dance with African Rhythms thrown in, becoming popular in the Minstrel circuit around 1845.
Onlookers would form a circle and two men would be in the center doing hand clapping, vigorous foot stomping and hand patting of the thighs, with feet turned out, and heels clicking together, generally the dancers had one leg raised as they danced a counter-clockwise circle... they would end the dance with a step called the 'Long Dog Scratch.' When the singers forming the circle (dancers doing a call and response form) said "Juba, Juba!, the whole circle would join in for a brief time.
When the law allowed, the dance used only a drummer. Later Juba music was supposedly named after William Henry Lane [1825-1862 (or 1848?)] who was more famously known as "Master Juba". Henry Lane was a master
of the Jig, Clog, Giouba and the Ring Shout. The Juba dance consisted of steps called the Long Dog Scratch, Jubal Jew, Yaller Cat, Pigeon Wing and Blow that Candle Out.
It's predecessor was also known as "Pattin' Juba" done by traditional West African tribes and was brought to the states by the slaves. Pattin' Juba "started" any dance form with a clapping or slapping of the thighs, the chest, knees and body thus creating a rhythm pattern. Many times the slaves would be involved in an impromptu gathering and had no instruments to dance, so they would "Pat" there own rhythms (as well as use their feet).
Later during the slave revolt, slave owners were starting to get wise to the use of drums being used for more than just dancing and feared the potential of talking drums (the Yoruba Drum namely) to "speak" in a tongue unknown to the slave traders and thus to incite rebellion, these and other drums were once banned from use by African American slaves in the United States. Dancing was generally not banned however and the slaves had to use other device, such as Pattin' Juba to create the sounds for dance as well as to hide messages in the rhythms as the pattin' sounds could be heard for a distance. Not unlike how the Indians used smoke signals, the slaves used sounds. The clip on the right shows a basic Pattin' Juba as a group ringshout with the addition of the Buzzard Lope. The clip below shows the "Hambone" and Tap dance which are both related to the Juba. Combine all this together and you might imagine how Master Juba danced.
It is also called "Djouba" and in Haiti, where it is done as a set dance called "The Martinique." The Juba dance was supposedly the indirect creation of Tap dance in America as an theatrical art form and American Jazz dance. Master Juba was in a few dance contests held at Vauxhall Gardens as well as a few other locations and he beat all comers, including the famous white dancer "John Diamond," who was the previous Worlds Clog Champion, not once but twice!.
Note: Historically, the name Juba (Joob) as well as his son, was a king of Numidia in N Africa 85 BC- 46 BC. He fought on the side of Metellus Scipio and took his life after Caesar's victory at Thapsus. His son gained the title and married Cleopatra Selene who was daughter to Cleopatra and Antony.
Also Juba is the capital of Bahr el Gebel State and headquarters of the Bahr el Jebel province; it is also the historic capital of Southern Sudan. There also is a River named Juba in NE Africa, rising in S central Ethiopia and flowing south across Somalia to the Indian Ocean: the chief river of Somalia. Jubal in the Old Testament is the alleged inventor of musical instruments (Genesis 4:21) and probably is related to the dance step above called the 'Jubal Jew.'
Ballrooms