Couples and positions

The four positions

A square has four positions, at the four sides of the square. Each is home to one couple for the whole tip.

Numbered from the caller's point of view in the manual's convention:

Couple numbers are identity, not location. In a Static Square, Couple 3 is standing in the position nearest the caller — but they are still Couple 3. See Naming the dancers.

Heads and Sides

The same four couples, grouped the other way:

Heads and Sides is the grouping callers use most, because it is the easiest to see. From the dancers' point of view it is also the most natural: you can tell at a glance whether you are a Head or a Side without counting anything.

Who stands where in a couple

A couple is two dancers side by side, facing the same way. Within the couple:

That is the 2026 manual's rule, and it is about position rather than people.

Both dancers of a couple usually hold hands — a couple handhold. See Hands and holds.

Partner, Corner, Opposite

Standing at home:

All three change during a tip as dancers are sent round the square. Your Original partner and corner are the ones you started with, and callers say "original" when they mean those.

Where this matters for a beginner

Almost none of it, at first. You need to know:

  1. which couple you are in — because callers say "Heads", "Sides", "Couples 1 and 3";
  2. which side of your couple you are on — because that is Boy or Girl;
  3. where your home position is — so you can find your way back.

Everything else you can learn by dancing.

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