Jitterbug is a generalized term used to describe swing dancing. It is often synonymous with the lindy hop dance but might include elements of the jive, east coast swing, collegiate shag, charleston, balboa and other swing dances.
Jitterbugging at a juke joint, 1939. Photo by Marion Post Wolcott
Dancing the jitterbug, Los Angeles, 1939
Jitterbug dancers in 1938
Jitterbug dancing competition, Trocadero, Sydney, 1948
Swing dance is a group of social dances that developed with the swing style of jazz music in the 1920s–1940s, with the origins of each dance predating the popular "swing era". Hundreds of styles of swing dancing were developed; those that have survived beyond that era include Charleston, Balboa, Lindy Hop, and Collegiate Shag. Today, the best-known of these dances is the Lindy Hop, which originated in Harlem in the early 1930s. While the majority of swing dances began in African-American communities as vernacular African-American dances, some influenced swing-era dances, like Balboa, developed outside of these communities.
Peter Loggins and Mia Goldsmith swing dancing at the Moore Theatre, Seattle, Washington.
San Francisco Sunday Streets: Valencia