If you've ever line-danced at a wedding or two-stepped across a honky-tonk floor, you already get it. The govend is the Kurdish version. The whole room links hands and moves as one. No partner, no experience, no Kurdish roots required.
You don't need to be Kurdish. You just need to love the feeling of people coming together and moving in rhythm.
You've done the two-step, the Cotton-Eyed Joe, a barn dance or a wedding line. This is your next favorite floor.
You love folk festivals, world music and traditions with real roots. The govend is 3,000 years of them.
You want a wholesome night out that gets neighbors, families and newcomers holding hands, literally.
Older than any two-step, but the feeling is one you already know.
Everybody links hands and steps together. It starts as a slow walk and builds until the whole floor is moving as one line.
A leader called the serçopî heads the line and waves a handkerchief to call each change of step and tempo. It's danced to a booming frame drum (the daf) and a soaring reed horn (the zurna). For three thousand years it has pulled strangers into one circle at weddings and spring festivals, and that welcome is exactly what we're bringing to your town.
Shoulder to shoulder, hands joined. No partner needed. The line is your partner.
Watch it →The head dancer twirls a handkerchief to signal every new step and speed.
Watch it →A big frame drum and a reed horn drive the rhythm, impossible to sit still to.
Hear it →Begins at a walk, then climbs through the gears until the floor is flying.
Join a night →Pick your group: women only, men only, kids, or say "no preference" and we'll place you.
Open govend evenings for adults of every level.
Gentle steps and culture videos made for kids.
Prefer a women only or men only room? Just say so.
Bring a teacher and the govend to your celebration.
You handle step one. We take care of the rest.
Drop your email and zip so we know where you are.
We group people near you, assign a teacher, and provide the time and address for the govend.
A guided govend night: steps, songs and the wave.
One flat per-person fee, charged securely by card.
Press play. The video opens right here, no leaving the page.
A growing library of culture videos and simple steps, made just for kids.
All clips play from govend's own hosting.
Pay only when your group is confirmed. The more people who join, the lower the price per person.
Try your first community night at a lower price. Available at selected events.
Pay now →6 to 9 people, $25 each. 10 to 19, $20 each. 20 or more, $15 each.
Pay now →$8 for each additional sibling. Simple steps, rhythm and culture in a welcoming room.
Pay now →Up to 90 minutes with an instructor. Extra time, travel or larger groups quoted separately.
Pay now →No membership fee. No registration fee. No monthly payment. You pay only when you take part.
Your email and zip are all we need. The zip is how we find dancers near you. Everything else is optional.
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On your live govend.com hosting (with the videos/ folder in place) it plays right here, autoplaying on open.