Country Line Dancing
Also known as: Country line dance, Line dancing (country/western)
- Origin
- United States
- Era
- 1970–Present
- Rhythm
- Country / pop-country
- Tempo
- Social tempos
- Character
- Upbeat, communal, repetitive
History & Cultural Context
Country line dancing is the choreographed, partnerless line-dance culture of country and western music, which surged in popularity in the 1990s. Dancers perform set sequences of steps in unison, arranged in lines and facing a 'wall,' rotating quarter- or half-turns as the dance repeats. Well-known examples include the Tush Push, Boot Scootin' Boogie, and the Electric Slide family. It is distinct from country/western partner dances such as two-step.
Cultural Significance
A widespread social-dance culture of country bars, clubs, and classes.
Characteristic Movement & Technique
Repeating choreographed step sequences danced in unison, facing a wall, with rotating turns.
Partnering Dynamics
Partnerless; group/line.
Competitive Context
Social dancing plus line-dance competitions and conventions.
Regional Variations
Many named dances and regional favorites.
Common Misconceptions
Country line dancing is partnerless and choreographed, separate from country/western partner dances; not all line dances are country (line dancing exists across many genres).
Dance Lineage
Country Line Dancing Music & Tempo
Drawn from 20 Country Line Dancing tracks in the LODance music library.
Example tracks at practice tempo
- Whose Bed Have Your Boots Been Under? — Shania Twain132 BPM
- A Bar Song (Tipsy) — Shaboozey81 BPM
- Man! I Feel Like a Woman! — Shania Twain125 BPM
- Boot Scootin' Boogie — Brooks & Dunn131 BPM
- The Git Up — Blanco Brown98 BPM
- Austin (Boots Stop Workin') — Dasha115 BPM
Who governs Country Line Dancing
Federations, councils and examining bodies with a recorded role in this style. No single organization can tell you this — each one knows only itself.
Country Line Dancing on screen
Films and television where Country Line Dancing appears, with the sequences worth watching for.
This site uses TMDB and the TMDB APIs but is not endorsed, certified, or otherwise approved by TMDB.
Sources & Further Reading
Cultural & Historical Context
Country Line Dancing emerged from United States during the 1970s—present day. Understanding the cultural roots, musical traditions, and social circumstances of this era enriches appreciation for the dance's characteristics and significance.
Primary Source Documents
The Library of Dance contains public-domain primary sources for dance history. Copyrighted modern syllabi are indexed with purchase links to their respective copyright owners. Search by dance name or codifier to discover primary source documents.
Last reviewed: November 2026 — This dance profile synthesizes historical research, cultural documentation, and contemporary practice knowledge to provide authoritative context.
Related Dances
More in Regional Folk Traditions
Laendler
The Laendler was an Austrian peasant couple dance with turning action that influenced the development of the modern waltz and remains part of Alpine folk traditions.
Modern Western Square Dance
Caller-led club square dancing with standardized programs—four couples execute called figures in a square, modeled on but distinct from historic square dance.
Sevillanas
Andalusian folk couple dance of the Seville fair, danced in four set coplas—related to but distinct from flamenco.
Klezmer Dance
Celebratory Ashkenazi Jewish dance tradition—circle, line, and couple figures such as the hora, freylekhs, sher, and bulgar—danced to klezmer music at weddings and simchas.
High Caul Cap
An eight-hand Irish ceili figure dance for four couples in a square, danced to a double jig, built from a recurring body that returns between the figures. It is one of the standard dances of the ceili repertoire and has a genuine double life, danced socially at ceilithe and rehearsed by teams for competition.
Reel
A fast dance in even duple time built on an alternation between an interweaving travelling figure and setting steps danced on the spot. It is one of the oldest continuously danced forms in the British Isles and the structural ancestor of a great deal of Scottish, Irish and North American social dance. The name refers at once to a tune type, a floor figure and a whole family of dances.
Strathspey
A Scottish dance and tune type in 4/4 distinguished by the Scotch snap, a short note on the beat followed by a longer dotted one, which gives it a jagged rhythm and a stately, sustained movement quality. It takes its name from the strath, or broad valley, of the River Spey. In both Highland and country dance it is conventionally paired with a reel, the slower dance setting up the faster one.
Country Line Dancing in art
Browse the gallery →Works our catalog identifies as depicting country line dancing.
Una chingana - Chile
Gay, Claudio, 1800-1873 · 1854
Public Domain
French Folk Dance
laurent guidali
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/
Mary Stéphan. Dans la Cracovienne
Unknown artist
Public Domain
Dancing.
Unknown artist · 1981
Public Domain
Barn dance
Unknown artist · 1895
Public Domain
Continue Exploring
Lineage of Dance
500 years of dance evolution
Champions of Dance
Winners of marquee national & world titles
Language of Dance
161 dance terms & translations
Listening of Dance
Tempo, timing & musicality tools
Gallery of Dance
5,700+ artworks from museum collections
Attire of Dance
Evolution of dance dress across eras
Keep the thread going
Dance history, technique, and the occasional rabbit hole — in your inbox. Thoughtful, infrequent, unsubscribe anytime.
Free. No spam. One click to leave.