<P> Although there were dancers of this type at the 1876 Centennial in Philadelphia , it was not until the 1893 Chicago World 's Fair that it gained national attention . The term `` belly dancing '' is often credited to Sol Bloom , its entertainment director , but referred to the dance as danse du ventre , the name used by the French in Algeria . In his memoirs , Bloom states , `` when the public learned that the literal translation was `` belly dance '' , they delightedly concluded that it must be salacious and immoral ... I had a gold mine . '' </P>
<P> Although there were dancers of this type at the 1876 Centennial in Philadelphia , it was not until the 1893 Chicago World 's Fair that it gained national attention . The term `` belly dancing '' is often credited to Sol Bloom , its entertainment director , but referred to the dance as danse du ventre , the name used by the French in Algeria . In his memoirs , Bloom states , `` when the public learned that the literal translation was `` belly dance '' , they delightedly concluded that it must be salacious and immoral ... I had a gold mine . '' </P>
when did belly-dance become popular in the us
when did belly-dance become popular in the us
1893
1893