Welcome to
Your Bii Bielgee Learning Guide

This collaboration started in 2018 and it is after years of research that we start sharing the fruit of our labour. In this guide you will find the knowledge to become a fantastic Biich. You will learn the meaning and legend behind the Bii, their melody and their specific choregraphy as well as the symbolism hidden behind each movements.

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What is Bii Bielge ?

It is believed that the Bii Bielgee dance tradition originated at the same time as the emergence of nomadic culture and the Mongol ger (yurt). Musicologist and State Prize laureate S. Soronzonbold concluded in a paper on Xiongnu-era music that Bii Bielgee likely originated during that period. Furthermore, The Secret History of the Mongols (a primary source on the art, culture, and history of the 13th century) describes a dance scene: “The Mongols celebrated by dancing in a circle around a spreading tree, dancing until their knees wore down to the ground and their ribs were rubbed raw.”

“Bielgee” is a dance art form that embodies, in a broad sense, the history, traditions, customs, music, folklore, epics, attire, and games of various ethnic groups; it expresses their lifestyles, unique ways of living, cultural practices, and mindsets through physical movement. Traditionally performed inside a ger (yurt) amidst a seated audience in a confined space, the dance features highly refined movements of the upper body and arms, with the dancer conveying the essence of Mongolian life (including daily activities, rituals, and character) through artistic grace and emotional expression. The combination of Ikel music and Bielgee dance creates a form of intimate, theatrical performance within the ger and stands as a magnificent part of Mongolia’s cultural heritage. As a source of immense pride in the folk art created by Oirat Mongols, Ikel and Bielgee are indispensable elements of any celebration or festive gathering.

The essence of Bielgee lies in how the dance, set to the melodies of the Ikel (a traditional bowed string instrument), passes from one person to another, engaging the entire community from eight-year-old children to eighty-year-old elders, and captivating audiences with the graceful fluidity of movement and the magic of the music. Constrained by the limited space of the traditional ger, Bielgee movements are primarily performed in a semi-squatting or “bent-knee” posture; key elements include specific hand gestures (clasping, releasing, and scattering motions), sharp chest and shoulder accents and vibrations, intricate footwork and stepping patterns, and fluid, swaying body movements. While the Bielgee traditions of Western Mongolian ethnic groups (such as the Uriankhai, Torgut, Dörvöd, Bayad, Zakhchin, Khoton, and Myangad) share similarities rooted in a common way of life, each possesses unique, distinctive characteristics, preserving its own specific style, nuance, and meaning.

Bii bielgee encompasses a wide variety of forms, including those with ritual significance, those depicting daily life, and the “bowl dance”, among others. Ritual dances include the satsal (offering of the first drops of tea) and acts of worship. Most ethnic groups perform the satsal dance; it embodies the practice, still observed today, of offering the first portion of one’s tea to Tngri. There is also a dance known as örgöl (offering), which is associated with Buddhism and depicts the act of devout worship.

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BII BIELGEE LEARNING GUIDE

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Happy practice and have fun!