Booger Dance
The Booger Dance is a significant ritual primarily associated with the Cherokee, though it also involves the Creek, Yuchi, and Catawba tribes. This masked dance, which has its roots in the Eastern Mountain Cherokee community, serves as a symbolic critique of European immigrant culture, portraying it as clumsy and threatening. The term "booger," which refers to a ghost or frightening creature, underlines the dance's intent to mock and express disdain for elements perceived to contribute to cultural degradation.
Typically performed during night dances, the Booger Dance is preceded by a ritual of divination to identify if an ailment is attributed to malevolent spirits. Masks, often grotesquely painted, play a central role, and the performance usually involves a group of men and occasionally women. Although historically limited to winter months, the dance evolved in the 19th century to respond to the growing presence of White settlers. Today, it continues to be performed in North Carolina, reflecting a blend of traditional practices and contemporary adaptations, and remains an essential aspect of Cherokee cultural preservation.
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Booger Dance
- TRIBE AFFECTED: Cherokee (main), Creek, Yuchi, Catawba
- SIGNIFICANCE: The Booger Dance is a major symbolic feature of the night dances of the Cherokee
The term “booger,” equivalent to “bogey” (ghost), is used by English-speaking Cherokee for any ghost or frightful animal. The Booger Dance originated among Eastern Mountain Cherokee as a way to portray European immigrants as awkward, ridiculous, lewd, and menacing. The dance dramatizes hostility and disdain for White culture by mocking elements that cause cultural decay and defeat.
A ritual of divination precedes the dance. Should divination devices conclude that an illness was caused by “boogers” (bogeymen), the Booger Dance is determined to be the means of relief. The dance is conducted to “scare away” the spirit causing the sickness. It is a masked dance, in which masks made from gourds are often garishly painted with hideous designs. The dance is not an independent rite, but it is a prominent symbolic feature of Cherokee night dances. Early forms of the Booger Dance were limited to winter performances, as killing frost and bitter cold were associated with ghosts. This Indigenous American dance then evolved during the nineteenth century to deal with the appearance of White people in their community. Performed by four to ten men and sometimes two to four women, it incorporates profane, lewd, and even obscene dramatic elements.
In the twenty-first century, the Cherokee continued to perform the Booger Dance, especially in communities in North Carolina. Continuing the tradition was vital to preserving the culture of Indigenous Americans. Although the spirit of the tradition remained, the Booger Dance has also been adapted for more modern times.
Bibliography
"Cherokee Booger Dance Mask - Infinity of Nations: Art and History in the Collections of the National Museum of the American Indian." National Museum of the American Indian, americanindian.si.edu/exhibitions/infinityofnations/woodlands/237839.html. Accessed 26 Sept. 2024.
"Cherokee Booger – Second Face." The Museum of Cultural Masks, www.maskmuseum.org/mask/cherokee-booger-3. Accessed 26 Sept. 2024.
"Native American Cherokee Booger Mask." Ulster Museum, www.ulstermuseum.org/resources/native-american-cherokee-booger-mask. Accessed 26 Sept. 2024.