How does the Apache gahan dance mark a girl’s coming of age?

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Native American dance Aztec round dance for Quetzalcóatl and Xolotl (a dog-headed god who is Quetzalcóatl's companion), detail from a facsimile Codex Borbonicus (folio 26), c. 1520; original in the Chamber of Deputies, Paris, France.

The Apache gahan is a spectacular masked dance performed primarily to celebrate a girl’s coming of age. While the dance is also utilized for cures, its role in marking a young woman's transition into adulthood is a central feature of the ceremony.1

The performance is characterized by a strong, angular, and even acrobatic male dance style, which contrasts with the more subdued style of the women. Through these rituals, the Apache engage with a universe they perceive as inhabited by a variety of powerful entities—including animals, plants, and superhuman beings—that require individual propitiation to ensure personal success and well-being.12