conga

The story

1. Spanish · borrowed fromCongo“Congo dance”
2. English todayconga

For the dance: * Borrowed from Spanish Congo (“Congo dance”), so-called for being of sub-Saharan African origin.

First known use, by meaning

• from 1935 A march of Cuban origin in four-four time in which people form a chain, each holding the hips of the person in front of them; in each bar, dancers take three shuffle steps and then kick alternate legs outwards at the beat; the chain weaves around the place and allows new participants to join the back of the chain.