| 1225 | "Summer is icumen in," probably the earliest English Round dance. |
| 1385 | The first French court ball at the wedding of Charles VI & Isabella of Bavaria. |
| 1490 | Beginnings of ballet at Italian courts. |
| 1581 | Coroso: "Il Ballerino," treatise on ballet dance technique. |
| 1589 | Thoinot Arbeau (1519-95): "Orchesographie," early treatise on dancing. |
| 1609 | Thomas Ravenscroft: "Pammelia," collection of rounds and catches. |
| 1617 | J. H. Schein: "Banchetto musicale," first dance suite. |
| 1651 | The young King Louis XIV of France appears as a dancer in a court ballet. |
| 1652 | John Hilton: "Catch as Catch Can," collection of catches, rounds, and canons. |
| 1652 | The Minuet comes into fashion at French court. |
| 1681 | Female professional dancers appear for the first time at the Paris Opera. |
| 1745 | The Quadrille becomes a fashionable dance in France. |
| 1751 | The Minuet becomes Europe's most fashionable dance. |
| 1773 | The Waltz becomes fashionable in Vienna. |
| 1780 | Spanish dance "Bolero" invented by dancer Sebastiano Carezo. |
| 1791 | The Waltz becomes fashionable in England. |
| 1813 | The Waltz conquers the European ballrooms. |
| 1836 | The Lancers becomes the fashionable dance throughout Europe. |
| 1842 | The Polka, of Czech (Bohemian) origin, comes into fashion. |
| 1867 | Johann Strauss II, the "Waltz King" (1825-1899), composes "Blue Danube". |
| 1880's | Waltz, Polka, and Schottische are the most popular dances. |
| 1890's | Two-Step, the Brazilian Maxixe compete with the other ballroom dances. |
| 1900 | The Cake Walk becomes the most fashionable dance. |
| 1902 | The One-Step, also called the Turkey Trot, becomes popular. |
| 1905-1915 | The animal dances (Grizzly Bear, Camel Walk, Snake Dip, Bunny Hop, Fishwalk, Crab Steps, Chicken Scratch, Kangaroo Dip) become popular among the young; shocking their elders. |
| 1912 | The South American Tango gains immense popularity in Europe. |
| 1913 | Vernon & Irene Castle make their New York debut in "The Sunshine Girl". |
| 1914 | The Foxtrot and Tango come into fashion in the U.S. |
| 1918 | Vernon Castle dies in an airplane crash. |
| 1920's | Shimmy, Charleston (1925), and Black Bottom (1926) are the fashionable dances among the youth. |
| 1927 | The Slow Foxtrot becomes the fashionable dance among the elders. |
| 1930's | Big Apple, Shag, Rumba (1935), Conga. |
| 1935 | "Jazz" becomes "Swing". |
| 1938 | Lambeth Walk becomes fashionable among the elders. |
| 1940's | Lindy Hop, Jitterbug (1943), Bebop (1945), Samba (1949). |
| 1956 | "Rock and Roll" dance is in vogue. Jive replaces Jitterbug. |
| 1958 | Cha Cha and "The Stroll" hit it big. |
| 1960's | The Twist becomes popular, and ends the era of swing dances. Followed by the Limbo, then Swim, Frug, Mashed Potato, ... |
| 1978 | "Disco" dancing becomes the latest fashion. |
Primary source: The Timetables of History, Bernard Grun.
Other sources:
Dancing Made Easy, Coll & Rosiere;
World History of the Dance, Curt Sachs.