Ghawazi (also ghawazee) () are female dancers who dance in return for money; the male equivalent is khawal. While the performative and traditional raqs sharqi in urban Egypt was more classical and influenced by more formal and classical Western styles such as classical ballet or Latin American dance, the term ghawazi in Egypt refers to the dancers in rural Egypt who have preserved the traditional 18th- to 19th-century styles. The practice began as a few Egyptian Domari refused to dance for free, unlike the custom among all Egypt. Rural Egyptians or Fellahin adopted the practice, developing a more rural and traditional style accompanied by rural Egyptian songs and the colorful dresses of the Fellahin, becoming a theme of rural Egypt. Over the years, Upper Egyptians (Sa'idis) mastered and then developed a different style of traditional Saidi dancing that is accompanied by the Egyptian mizmar and Qena and Assuit's traditional female clothing of Telli () , a silky type of local fabric. That Upper Egyptian style is the most famous, in which the dancer is accompanied by a traditional Upper Egyptian mizmar and a singer singing and narrating folk songs in Saidi Arabic about local heroes and popular love stories in towns. Traditional Ghawazi dancers are becoming harder and harder to find as time passes. There are main movements and positioning of two of the most popular Ghawazi groups that are found in modern Egypt; the Banat Mazin () of Luxor and the Sumbati Ghawazee () of the Nile Delta. The Banat Mazin are famous for their traditional Upper Egyptian vintage-style costume, so you can see how the movements would be affected by the costuming. The Sagat (finger cymbals), are optional but recommended in the Upper Egyptian/Saidi style. Name [[File:167 Egyptian types and scenes - Arab Dancing Girls.jpg|thumb|Postcard photograph of two dancing girls posing in a dance costume with the name of "Egyptian types and scenes (c. 1900).]] The Arabic ghawāzī (singular ghāziya) means "conqueror", as the ghaziya is said to "conquer" the hearts of her audience. They were also known as awālim (singular alma, transliterated almeh in French as almée), but in Egypt, Awalim are the traditional Egyptian dancers and singers of the city, not rural areas, who used to perform in respectable events such as the weddings and festivities of notable people. Both terms are 19th-century euphemisms for "erotic dancer"; almeh literally means "learned woman" and came to be