Kahomani dances foster friendships in and between Sioux communities

Sweethearts, friends and family dance a two-step style around drum groups, all coming together to dance in what is called a kahomani.

A kahomani (gah-ho-mah-NEE) is a Nakota/Dakota/Lakota couples dance, or sweethearts dance, where people dance in pairs.

The event in January on Pheasant Rump Nakota First Nation, about 160 kilometres southeast of Regina, was also a fourth year memorial for Armand McArthur, one of the men who helped bring the dance back.

Keegan McArthur, from Pheasant Rump, was taught how to be a stickman for kahomani by his grandpa Armand McArthur. As a stickman, he has to keep the dance organized.

McArthur said a kahomani will dedicate one song for couples to dance, usually at the start, and then after that they must dance with others.

He said it starts off with a man or a woman's choice, whatever he decides. For example, he hands the stick to a man, who then chooses a woman to dance with, and the woman will hand off the stick to another man to pick his partner.

"It'll keep going back and forth like that and what this does is creates a friendship and then also what it does is helps with dealing with jealousy," said McArthur.

It's also for those who may be looking for a partner.

"If someone is single and they get a stick and they go pick someone and maybe make a connection as they're dancing around," he said.

McArthur said the stickman also keeps the area clean, and runs the games that happen during the dance like doing animal calls and potato dance.

"I learned it through trial and error and discipline," he said.

"My grandpa Armand, he just threw me right in there and as I made the mistakes, he corrected me and taught me along the way."

McArthur said a difference between a round dance and kahomani dance is in kahomani, the drum beat is slower like a heartbeat and a round dance song has the speed of a triple beat.

"Don't be shy of a kahomani," he said.