Explore information about the Ute Bear Dance.

The Bear Dance is an annual Ute gathering that traditionally takes place in the spring, dating back to before the 1600s. The bear is sacred to Ute people, and Bear Dance songs show respect for the animal and give the people strength.

The history of the state’s original inhabitants: the Utes. Historians trace their origins from pre-colonial days and early interactions with American trappers and explorers through the escalating friction with new settlers and gold seekers, to their ultimate expulsion to reservations. The first reservations were established in the 1860’s, and the question of land rights remains a topic of dispute.  Full documentary: https://video.rmpbs.org/video/colorado-experience-original-coloradans/


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History Colorado

Bear Dance Excerpt Clip from The Original Coloradans

The bear’s awakening signals the end of winter and the beginning of spring. When the first thunder in the spring was heard, it is time for the Bear Dance. Lasting three or more days, the Bear Dance lets men, women, and children celebrate spring’s promise of renewal with friends and family.

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Bear Dance Song Excerpt Clip from The Original Coloradans

Tribal elders tell a variety of stories about how the Bear Dance started. In one version, the sound of the year’s first thunderstorm led two Ute brothers to a female bear. The great animal, just out of hibernation, stood upright and clawed a tree while moving back and forth. After watching for a while, one of the brothers stayed with the bear to learn from it, including songs and ceremony. He later returned to his people and taught them the Bear Dance.

This Bear Dance flag is rectangular and made from tightly woven, machine made cotton fabric. It has been painted with poster paint and water colors. The design consists of three brown bears on their hind legs, one black bear on all fours, one man with long black hair and a blue loincloth, trees and mountains in the background and the rest of the flag is blank.

Flag, Bear Dance

In Ute, the Bear Dance is mama-kwa-nhká-pú, or the “woman-return dance” because women choose their partners. The couples dance to Ute songs sung by the men, who accompany themselves by rubbing notched sticks called moraches, or “growlers.” Moraches are supposed to resemble the sound of bear claws scratching a tree. Music, gambling, sporting contests, and feasts complement the dance.

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Bear Dance

The Bear Dance takes place for a number of days. It takes place within a circular corral lined with freshly cut cedar boughs. The corral’s single opening faces east, toward the morning sun.  Women wear fringed shawls or blankets and long skirts; men usually wear modern western clothing with a scarf around the neck. Lined up in parallel rows, participants move three steps forward and three steps back to the sounds of the morache.

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The dance is a lighthearted endurance test by the end of its final day. Bear Dance chiefs begin singing the last dance, and the dancing continues until a couple falls from exhaustion. Participants symbolically leave their worries behind in the Bear Dance corral.

Standards for We Are Still Here-Bear Dance