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SAMEDA (the San Diego Area Middle Eastern Dance Association) is a non-profit organization dedicated to the promotion, research, and discussion of Middle Eastern dance and music. Our members include Middle Eastern Dancers, dance instructors, dance students, musicians, photographers, artists, costumers, ethnologists, and historians of this ancient and beautiful art form.

Middle Eastern Dance includes "belly dance" or "Raqs Sharki" (Egyptian style belly dance), modern and traditional components of Egyptian, Moroccan, Lebanese, Iraqi, Iranian, Turkish, Uzbekistani, East Indian, Balinese, and even Chinese dance. Middle Eastern Dance also includes Tribal and Tribal Fusion Dance which contains additional components of Folkloric dance, Gypsy, African, jazz, modern and creative impressionistic dance.

People from all walks of life enjoy and involve themselves in Middle Eastern dance as a hobby or a profession. Many of the movements are believed to be thousands of years old, borrowed from religious rites and ethnic dances.

SAMEDA produces events through out the year, including the annual SAMEDA Faire during the summer. Not only did SAMEDA help Sahar Sami raise funds (almost $5000) for the Salvation Army South Asia Relief Fund, SAMEDA has donated services/proceeds to local charities, including the Navy Wives Club of America Food Locker, the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation and National Philanthropic Breast Cancer Fund, the Hurricane Katrina Fund, and this year, the Women's Resource Center in Oceanside. (Please click here for our wish list.)

» Click here for SAMEDA's ByLaws