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The Polka became quite a popular dance form in the United States of America, especially during the post-war period, thanks to the Polish immigrants, who actually came to regard the Polka as their ‘national’ dance. Credit must also be given to gifted artists like Lawrence Welk, who contributed much to the growing popularity of the Polka among the Americans.

The Polka has also made its mark in bagging Grammy Awards where eminent musicians like Frank Yankovic, Brave Combo, Jimmy Sturr, etc proved to be straight winners with their polka musical compositions and Albums.
Several cultural organizations have also come up in USA with the intention of preserving and continuing the heritage of Polka dancing. Cultural groups like the International Polka Association that is based in Chicago, and the United States Polka Association that is situated at Cleveland, Ohio, works with the intention of preserving the rich heritage of Polka music and promotes such musicians and their talents. Another institution which promotes and supports Polka music is the Polka America Corporation which has its base at Ringle, Wisconsin.

Polka dances are of various types, especially when we take into account the contemporary dance styles. One of the main types of Polka dance that is found in America is the Polish style Polka which is supposed to have originated in Chicago. This style has two further sub styles, namely the Chicago Honky and the Chicago push, which are mainly characterized by the use of different musical instruments.

Another style of Polka that we can come across the USA is the Slovenian style Polka which is normally supposed to have originated in Cleveland. This has a fast stride and steps to match.

The Dutchman style of North America is another style of Polka dancing that is deep rooted in the American Midwest. This style of Polka is characterized by its ‘oom-pah’ sound to which it is danced.

Another Polka dancing style which originated in Northern Mexico and Texas is the Conjunto style or ‘Norteno’ as it is otherwise known and which is actually influenced by the traditional dances of the region.

The 1980’s and the 1990’s are significant in the history of the Polka as it is during this period that several contemporary styles evolved such as the Rock style, Punk Polka, Alternative Polka, San Francisco style, etc. A notable Mexican style of Polka dancing is the Duranguense Style Polka which uses a variety of musical instruments as accompaniment.

This popular dance form was supposed to have originated in Czechoslovakia when a peasant woman named Anna Slezak composed it to the tune of a popular folk song called ‘Strycek Nimra Koupil Simla’ (Uncle nimra brought a white horse) in 1834. Initially named by her as the ‘Madera’ due to its quickness and vigor of steps, it was successfully introduced to the ballrooms of Prague a year later.

In 1835, at Paris, the Polka was introduced in the stage of the Odeon theatre by a Czech dance teacher. It attained immense popularity thereafter, and the success of it led the Parisian dance teachers to modify it suitably for their ball rooms and salons.

It was only by the middle of the nineteenth century that the Polka reached England. But unfortunately, it couldn’t get the sort of popularity it merited. It was around the same time that the Polka reached the shores of America too, where it found a lot of takers. In fact, it has been recorded that for the 1849 Philadelphia Assembly, a new polka was composed by Breiter’s band.

Of all the dances that originated in the nineteenth-century, the Polka seems to be the only one which has survived. Its immense popularity also led to the invention of several other dances.

It is actually believed that the Polka was invented by a Czech peasant girl, Anna Slezak in 1834 with the intention of providing a bit of amusement for herself. originally composed in tune to ‘Strycek Nimra Koupil Simla’ (Uncle Nimra brought a white horse), a popular folk song of the times, Anna named the dance ‘Madera’ considering its quick ‘hop-step-close-step’ movements and lively and exuberant nature. Called as ‘Pulka’ (half step) in Czech, because of the speedy shift from one foot to the other with rhythmic consistency, this dance soon found staunch fans and had become a rage in the ballrooms of Prague by 1835.

Five years later, the Polka was introduced in Paris when a Prague dance teacher put up a show at the famous Odeon Theatre. Needl

ess to say, it was a great success and was eagerly lapped up by the Parisian teachers who modified it to a certain extent to suit their styles.

By the end of the 19th century, the Polka came to England, but unfortunately it was not very popular there. It was somewhere around the same time that it was introduced in the United States too. This well-liked dance form also resulted in the invention of various other styles of dance like the gallopade, waltz, etc.