I'm setting out on an adventure to discover just what exactly is happening to this thing called a hop jig. First of all, what is a hop jig? I have never had a chance to dance it myself, so I rely 100% on the net and you guyus for information on matters such as these. Various sources on the internet tell me two rather varying things:

1. Hop Jig is danced to 9/8 time (same as Slip Jig)
2. Hop Jig is danced to 12/8 time (same as Single Jig)

Have you danced it, and can tell me which is correct? I know that in the music circles 'Hop Jig' is used to talk about both 9/8 time tunes and 12/8 tunes (like Pop goes the weasel). Some even claim that The Butterfly is a Hop Jig, not a Slip Jig. Confusing..

Second of all, why is this dance disappearing from the dance scene, at least in CLRG? I know that it is no longer obligatory to have Hop Jig in feisanna which are recognized by the North American Feis Commission (NAFC). What is the case in your organization / region?

I hope to incorporate any knowledge learned here into my article on Music used for Irish Dance. I posted it in an edited form here on this forum, and I will give full credit to writers for anything learned through this thread on anything I publish - on the internet of otherwise.

Setting out on the continued quest for knowledge,

Teashark

I've danced it before, but I don't know why it's disappearing. I don't know whether the timing is 12/8 or 6/8, but it's certainly not 9/8, you can't dance the steps to that because they won't fit. The way it's danced is a bit like a light jig, except there's no "hop back 234" at the end. The steps tend to include more jumps and moving steps than "234." The Butterfly, assuming there's only one piece called that, is a slip jig tune.

All I can tell you is that in the MW USA it is only offered at 1 or 2 feises-I think in the South and West it is offered much more often?

im pretty sure that hop jig is just another name for the single jig, there are other danes that have more than one name and i really think this is one of them

hope this helps
jono xoxo

In my opinion, Hop Jig is just another expression for Single Jig (like Jono said).

Trish

^ They're separate. I guess since a hop jig is a jig, done in light shoes, a jig that is light, you could technically call it a "light jig," but it's different than a light jig in the movements generally associated with it (and generally the music is played a little bit faster). I can only speak for the regions I compete in for it's popularity. I'm in the US Mid-Atlantic region and I've also competed in the US Southern and US New England regions as well. None of the Mid-Atlantic region feisanna I've been to have offered it (at least not that I remember), but it was offered at one NE and one SR feis that I went to, in addition to light jig.

1.) The Single Jig is danced in 12/8 time and is often called the Hop Jig.

2.) The Slip Jig is danced is 9/8 time.

I think some of the issue is the fact that the term "hop jig" is very loosely used. The dance you are referring to as vanishing or not widely offered at feiseanna is the "single jig."

(Sidebar: There is some discussion among musicians as to also being able to count the single jig in 6/8 time, but mostly it is referred to and written as 12/8 time.)

If you type in single jig an Youtube you should be able to find some decent examples of it. I dance in the Southern Region were some of our feiseanna offer this dance. It is offered as optional. I am not sure why it is an optional dance and does not have much emphasis placed on it. Some TCRG's don't teach it. Luckily, mine does. Once again, I'm not sure why the lack of popularity.

I've heard it being a single jig. I'm in the midwest, and like someone above said, I've only ever seen it offered at maybe 1 or 2 feises, and then even that was only for advanced beginner (and maybe novice?). We don't learn it at my school, so I was never really concerned about it.

I've only encountered "hop jig" as a synonym for "single jig." Single jigs are practically universal in the Western US Region up through Prizewinner but are optional or unknown elsewhere.

About ten years ago, I asked Dr. John Cullinan, the historian of ID, about the relationship among the different dances (Dr. Cullinan was still adjudicating in the United States at that time.) He said that way back when, the idea among Irish ID teachers was that the light jig was the entry-level dance and the single jig was going to be a more advanced dance. However, since it isn't competed in championships, it declined in favor and eventually fell out of favor among many teachers. Our single jig steps are very traditional, as you can tell because we still use the signature "step out-step in" movement. Modern ID steps are entirely centerline focused and sideways steps like those are all old ones.

Most single jigs are notated in 6/8; even the ones which are notated in 12/8 are danced as though they were in 6/8 (ie, the 8 bars of music actually take 4 measures).

I've also heard it as another name for a single jig. I have never danced it (under either name), but I remember seeing 'Hop Jig' on a feis syllabus, too, and wondering what it might be and why they left out the single jig instead - duh. Later I found a short definition somewhere, saying the hop jig or single jig uses the same 6/8 rhythm as the light jig, but follows the overlying slower rhythm, similar to the slip jig. I sort of understood it when I read it, but it's difficult to explain
Let me try:

In Slip Jig you have a 9/8 rhythm, going 1-2-3 4-5-6 7-8-9 in each bar.
but most of the time you don't dance every single one of those very quick beats, but rather dance 1 - 2 - 3
(1-2-3) (4-5-6) (7-8-9)

which would be a 3/4 rhythm,
or you dance like we do in our slip jig: (and)1 - 2-3 - 4-5
(1-2-3) (4-5-6) (7-8-9)
which would be a jig-like 6/8 rhythm.

So if I take that and transfer it to the Single Jig/Hop Jig
I'd guess it'd look like that:

The regular rhythm is a 6/8: 1-2-3 4-5-6
but you rather dance something like: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4
(1) (2-3) (4) (5-6)
or in song: pop goesthe wea- sel

Whew, that was complicated.
Don't quote me on that though, that's just how I understand it. And as I said, I have never danced the single jig/hop jig, so I'm not even sure what rythm you use for the actual dancing.
We should probably connect that rhythm question with teashark's music post Maybe then it'll be easier to understand.

pop goes the weasle is a popular tune for the single jig. in a few feiseanna i go to it is only offered to the younger beginners, so the musicians often play tunes such as pop goes the weasle and humpty dumpty (i love that one)

So great that 10 people replied to my question while I was at dance class. I get the best of both worlds

I will draw the conclusion from above posts that in Irish Dance a Hop Jig = Single Jig (this also seems to be the consensus among feis musicians on The Sessions). In music, on the contrary the hop jig is used to signify a tune in 9/8. There seems to be some discussion on this matter, as some musicians clearly distinguish between 9/8 hop jigs and 9/8 slip jigs (different patterns in music, or something to that extent). Maybe I won't add the confusing musicians view to my music post, it might just get messy..

I'll start editing my music post right away, should be up later this evening.

Thank you to all of you who answered my question! It really helped me.

Teashark

Sounds like you have this figured out, but I'll just reinforce what you've posted-

O'Neill's Music of Ireland heads the section of 9/8 tuns as "Slip Jigs and Hop Jigs". Most musicians I know don't distinguish between the two, but for those who do, the rhythm of the 9/8 time "hop jig" (humpty-dumpty-dumpty) is more like a single jig (humpty-dumpty). A "slip jig" would be more like humpity-dumpity-dumpity. The Butterfly or The Snowy Path are common 9/8 tunes that fits the musicians "hop jig".

A hop jig is an ole term for single jig.- only musicians tend to use hop jigs while dancers refer to them as single jigs. Sometimes it's also called a slide, and it's most prevalent in the music from the west of Ireland, like Connemara.

It's music signature is NOT 9/8, which is excusively the slip jig (port luisce); it's a jig time tune (it's called port single in Irish (at least according to my old TC in Ireland)). The difference is that instead of dancing all beats as in the light jig (sometimes called a double jig) (i.e. 1 and 2 and 1-2-3-4) the foot hits the ground less times (more like 1 2 3 4). The key is that if you hear a jig where you can _comfortably_ (i.e. without straining to adapt steps to music) dance baby reel steps, it's a single jig.

It used to be considered a vital part of a dancer's curriculum on her/his way to the higher levels, but generally it's being discarded more and more often, so dancers only ever dance reel, light jig, slip jig on their way up the ranks until they get to focus on just reel or slip jig.
I think it's a shame because it's such a lovely dance, it's so very energetic without ever straining (my beginners still struggle to manage the and 1 and 2 and 1-2-3-4 (which is more like 1234)). So it's an easy dance to perform with because despite being high-energetic there's still an ease in the dance which allows the dancer to enjoy what she's doing, smiling, looking out for drunk people crossing the dance floor (if they're doing Paddy's Day exhibitions anyway).
My students actually asked me recently to dump the light jig in favour of their single jig...

In my old school we always called the Single Jig "Hop Jig". But interestingly, I have heard the Slip Jig being called "Hop Jig" at a few occasions.

We learned the Hop-Jig after the Easy Reel & Light Jig as beginners,but on Feis Programmes,it was called Single Jig. I always thought the Hop Jig was just another name! x