Rodat (dance)

Rodat is a folk dance of the Malays and Acehnese believed to have originated from the Middle East and was spread to Maritime Southeast Asia by traders in Aceh as far as Terengganu in the beginning of the 19th century. Rodat may have come from the Arabic phrase حَضْرَة بَغدَاد‎ hadrat Baghdad, which means "praises (of Allah and Muhammad) from Baghdad".

Until the 1900s, Rodat was performed in all male groups with the original style of singing zikir with rebana accompaniment to celebrate Muhammad’s birthday and Malay weddings. However, by 1930, the dancing part was included and performed by transvestite dancers, who were later replaced by women dancers after World War II. With the addition of dancing and singing of popular Malay and Hindustani tunes and female dancers, the performance became popular at secular events such as the harvest celebration, Sultan’s birthday, and festivities for Malaysian National Day.

A rodat performance involves singing of 8 to 12 verses from the Kitab Zikir book filled with advice, customs, fun, contemplation and awareness, corresponding between the male and female groups of chorus members, and is accompanied by the rhythmic patterns of the rebana drum. The number of performers ranges from 20 to 26 and consisted of three separate group of performers: pelenggok (12 male dancers), pengadi (eight drummers) and mak inang (four to six female dancers). The basic dance movements are divided into sitting-kneeling, a combination of squatting and standing (performed mainly by male dancers) and standing movements.