Sadie Hawkins Dance

In the United States and Canada, the Sadie Hawkins Dance is usually an informal dance sponsored by a high school, middle school or college, in which female students invite male students. This is contrary to the custom of male students typically inviting female students to school dances such as prom in the spring and Homecoming in the fall.

The Sadie Hawkins dance is named after the Li'l Abner comic strip character Sadie Hawkins, created by cartoonist Al Capp. In the strip, Sadie Hawkins Day fell on a given day in November (Capp never specified an exact date). The unmarried women of Dogpatch got to chase the bachelors and "marry up" with the ones that they caught. The event was introduced in a daily strip which ran on November 15, 1937. This is unlike traditional dances, where the men chase the women, this empowers women to chase after what they want and not just wait for it to walk their way.

In the U.S. and Canada, this concept was popularized by establishing dance events to which the woman invited a man of her choosing, instead of demurely waiting for a man to ask her. The first known such event was held on November 9, 1938. Within a year, hundreds of similar events followed suit. By 1952, the event was reportedly celebrated at 40,000 known venues. It became a woman-empowering rite at high school and college campuses, and the tradition continues in some regional American cultures.

Other names may be used regionally

Similar dances, sometimes called Spinsters' Balls, have been organized for adults. The custom of holding Spinsters' Balls has spread outside the U.S., and exists in countries such as Australia. If held during the winter months, the Sadie Hawkins dance may be called the Snow Ball or some other wintry name. In a variation on pure Sadie Hawkins custom, a particular song may be designated a snowball dance by the DJ or master of ceremonies.

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