| Afterparty | Get-together after the official end of an event |
| Alcohol | Before and during the dance absolutely taboo! |
| Angel | Experienced dancer who dances on class evenings helping new dancers. |
| Attire | This term describes the clothes of the Square Dancer. Often it is Western style. For the ladies skirt and blouse or a gown, both combined with petticoat, as appropriate. Men wear long pants, long-sleeved shirts and appropriate footwear. In addition there are scarves, collars corners and “Bolo Ties”. |
| Badge | An identification plate to wear. Every dancer gets this after the graduation to document that he/she masters the dance program of his club. Each club has its own badge. For special Events special badges serve as admission tickets. |
| Banner | Club flag. It is often an enlarged edition of the badge and serves to demonstrate the presence of the club at events. Many clubs decorate their banner with the badges of attended events. |
| Banner Steeling | If a Club visits another club with at least 8 dancers they can “stesl”, the the banner of the visited club. This is an invitation for a return visit to get it back. |
| Board | Board of directors, elected by the members. |
| Call | A figure announced (called) by the Caller |
| Caller | One of the most important people in the Square Dance. The caller combines the step sequences of a program into a flowing dance and “calls” them to the dancers. It is the object to his/her skills and ingenuity, to offer an interesting and fun time the dancers. As teacher for classes he is responsible for the training of students. |
| Class | A group that wants to learn square dancing. Classes are usually affiliated to a club whose caller is responsible for the class. The participant in a class are called “students”. A class takes app 42 weeks to learn the mainstream program and ends with the graduation. |
| Club | A group of graduate square dancers, which meets regularly to dance. The number of members ranging from 9 (absolute minimum) to over 100. Clubs usually meet once a week. |
| Definition | Description of how a square dance step sequence is performed by the dancers. |
| Flyers | Leaflet with information about classes, special dances, jamborees and much more. |
| Formation | The (current) layout of all the dancers in a square. |
| Graduation | Final examination for a class. Here Students in a practical, written and oral exam have to show their newly aquired skills. Be sure this is fun and no stress. |
| Jamboree | A dance event on a large scale. In Europe there are 2 Jamborees each year where 800-2000 dancers from Germany, Europe and overseas dance together.. There also is a Jamboree adressed to students and their angels. |
| Mainstream | The basic program of square dancing. It includes 68 step sequences. |
| Open House | An event organized by a club, where interested people can get a first, non-binding impression of the Square Dance. |
| Outfit | Same as attire |
| Patter-Call | Patter calls are based on a quick and fluid succession of spoken (“pattered”) or sing-song delivered calls, often to the accompaniment of an instrumental piece of music that it is not necessarily recognizable as a song. Choreography may appear “on-the-fly” with calls randomly strung together, but it conforms to strict choreographic rules. Most patter calling is improvised by the caller as the dancers are moving. |
| Petticoat | A petticoat or underskirt is an article of clothing for women; specifically an undergarment to be worn under a skirt or a dress. The petticoat is a separate garment hanging from the waist. |
| Program | An official compilation of square dance step sequences. Currently, the following programs are active: Basic, Mainstream, Plus, Advanced 1, Advanced 2 and Challenge 1 to 4 Mainstream is the default Program in Germany, also Plus is widespread. Some clubs deal with Advanced and Challenge. |
| Singing Call | Singing calls are based on a sung delivery of calls, most often to a recognizable melody, and square dance calls are mixed in with the song’s original lyrics. Many widely recognized songs have been turned into singing calls. The primary purpose of singing calls is to help the dancers relax, dance well together as a group, and enjoy the song and the caller’s performance |
| Special Dance | A regional square dance event, which is usually hosted by a club (eg Dance on 1. May, Birthday of club, etc.). The number of visitors often is between 100 and 500. In Germany almost every weekend several special dances take place. |
| Square | Basic Formation of Square Dance. 4 couples form a Square |
| Student | A person who wants to learn square dancing and therefore participates in a class. |
| Tip | A normal tip consists of some patter-calling and a singing-call |
| Workshop | One or more tips in which the dancers learn new patterns or variations of known elemens. |
