Pavan
Preserved but no longer current.
Also seen as: Pavin
A stately Spanish dance of the 16th and 17th centuries, said to be so called because in it the dancers stalked like peacocks (Lat, pavones), the gentlemen with their long robes of office, and the ladies with trains like peacocks' tails. The pavan, like the minuet, ended with a quick movement called the galhard, a sort of gavotte.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “Pavan” mean?
A stately Spanish dance of the 16th and 17th centuries, said to be so called because in it the dancers stalked like peacocks (Lat, pavones), the gentlemen with their long robes of office, and the ladies with trains like peacocks' tails. The pavan, like the minuet, ended with a quick movement called the galhard, a sort of gavotte.
Is “Pavan” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.