shimmy
American Heritage Dictionary:
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shim·my
(shĭm'ē) 
n., pl., -mies.
n., pl., -mies.
- Abnormal vibration or wobbling, as of the wheels of an automobile.
- A dance popular in the 1920s, characterized by rapid shaking of the body.
- A chemise.
- To vibrate or wobble abnormally.
- To shake the body in or as if in dancing the shimmy.
[Perhaps from shimmy, alteration of CHEMISE.]
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A dance popular in the USA in the 1910s and particularly the 1920s. It originated among African-Americans but became a national craze when introduced in the revue Ziegfeld Follies (1922).
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Aviation:
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shimmying
A tendency of the tail- or nosewheel assembly to oscillate violently and rapidly from side to side while taking off, landing, or taxiing. Friction dampers (also called shimmy dampers) normally are provided to prevent shimmying.
Random House Word Menu:
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categories related to 'shimmy'
- Lingerie and Support Garments - shimmy: chemise
- Dances of the World - shimmy: ragtime dance characterized by shaking of shoulders and hips (1920’s)
- Mood and Intent - shimmy: shake, vibrate, or wobble with a dancelike motion
Wikipedia on Answers.com:
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Shimmy
This article is about the dance move. For other uses, see Shimmy (disambiguation).
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This article does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (March 2007) |
A shimmy is a dance move in which the body is held still, except for the shoulders, which are alternated back and forth. When the right shoulder goes back, the left one comes forward. It may help to hold the arms out slightly bent at the elbow, and when the shoulders are moved, keep the hands in the same position. In 1917, a dance-song titled "Shim-Me-Sha-Wabble" by Spencer Williams was published, as was "The Jazz Dance, which included the "Shimmy-She", among others. Flappers often performed the dance in the 1920s. The origin of the name is often attributed to Gilda Gray, a Polish emigrant to America. An anecdote says that when she was asked about her dancing style, she answered, in heavy accent, "I'm shaking my chemise". However, in an interview Gilda denied having said this, and earlier usages of the word are recorded. In the late 1910s others were also attributed as being the "inventor" of the shimmy, including Bee Palmer. Mae West, in her autobiography Goodness Had Nothing to Do with It, claimed to have retitled the "Shimmy-Shawobble" as the Shimmy herself, after seeing the moves in some black nightclubs.
The move is also known under different names in various folk dances, in Gypsy dances. In Russian this move is called "Tsyganochka", or "gypsy girl", and is done by gypsy female dancers to produce a chime of costume decorations made of the sewn-on coins.
The dance move with this name is used in various modern dances.
The shimmy is also a class of belly dance moves. Depending on the desired effect, style, teacher, and country of origin of the particular dance, a shimmy might be executed differently, but altogether, the shimmy will manifest as a fast shaking or shuddering movement that can be rhythmic or arrhythmic. The movement may be localized, such as in the hips, shoulder, chest, etc., or the move might be loose and general, reverberating through the entire body. Shimmies in belly dance can also have orientation, such as an up/down movement or a twisting movement of the hips.
External links
- Shimmy at "Dance History Archives"
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Translations:
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Shimmy
Dansk (Danish)
n. - forhjulsvibrationer, shimmy (dans)
v. intr. - vibrere, danse shimmy
Nederlands (Dutch)
(abnormale) slingering, hemd, (abnormaal) slingeren
Français (French)
n. - chemise (de femme), (Aut) flottement des roues avant, shimmy (danse)
v. intr. - danser le shimmy, (Aut) vibrer, osciller (des roues)
Deutsch (German)
n. - Shimmy (Tanzart), (ugs.) Damenhemd, Flattern (der Vorderräder)
v. - Shimmy tanzen, flattern
Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - (ΗΠΑ) στραβογύρισμα τροχών (οχήματος), (ενδυμ.) (απαρχ.) (γυναικεία) καμιζόλα, πουκαμίσα, (καθομ.) κραδασμοί αεροσκάφους από ανωμαλίες στο διάδρομο προσγειώσεως
v. - δονούμαι
Italiano (Italian)
shimmy, camicia, ballare lo shimmy
Português (Portuguese)
n. - oscilação aut. (f), camisa (f) (coloq).
v. - oscilar, vibrar, dançar o shimmy
Русский (Russian)
шимми (танец), танцевать шимми, вибрировать
Español (Spanish)
n. - baile con música de jazz
v. intr. - bailar el shimmy
Svenska (Swedish)
n. - shimmy (dans), linne
v. - dansa shimmy, vippa, skaka
中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
西迷舞, 摇动, 跳狐步舞, 摆动, 震动
中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 西迷舞, 搖動
v. intr. - 跳狐步舞, 擺動, 搖動, 震動
한국어 (Korean)
n. - 시미 (몸을 떨며 추는 재즈 춤의 일종), (자동차 앞바퀴의) 이상 진동, 슈미즈
v. intr. - 시미춤을 추다, 몹시 흔들리다
日本語 (Japanese)
n. - シミー, 異常な震動, シュマンドフェール
v. - シミーを踊る, 震動する
العربيه (Arabic)
(الاسم) قميص, رقصه أمريكيه من رقصات ألجاز (فعل) يهتز, يتذبذب
עברית (Hebrew)
n. - כותונת, שימי (ריקוד משנות ה-02), תחתונית, רעידה של הגלגלים הקדמיים ברכב או מטוס
v. intr. - רקד את ריקוד השימי, רקד, רטט
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American Heritage Dictionary
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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The Concise Grove Dictionary of Music. Copyright © 1994 by Oxford University Press, Inc.. All rights reserved.
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An Illustrated Dictionary of Aviation.. Copyright © 2005 by McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
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Wikipedia on Answers.com
This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article Shimmy.
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