Tamzara

Tamzara (Armenian: Թամզարա, romanized: T'amzara; Aramaic: ܬܐܢܙܐܪܐ, romanized: Tanzara; Azerbaijani: Tənzərə; Greek: Τάμσαρα, romanized: Támsara; Turkish: Tamzara) is a folk dance native to Armenian Highlands. It is today performed by Armenians, Assyrians, Azerbaijanis (in the regions of Sharur, Nakhchivan and parts of Iranian Azerbaijan), and Greeks.

The word Tamzara means "half gilt" or "half decoration". The women dancing used to wear golden items including necklaces, beads, rings, ear-rings and other jewelry and those women expressed beauty and brightness, to which the name alludes.

This dance was also especially popular in the formerly Armenian-populated regions of Erzincan, Erzurum, Kigi, Arapgir, Harput, and Malatya. There are many versions of Tamzara, with slightly different music and steps, coming from the various regions and old villages in the Armenian Highlands.