Plural of bransle; a lively French Renaissance dance with a sideways hopping step, often performed in groups.
From French 'branle' (a shaking movement). The term entered English during the Renaissance when French dances were popular in English courts.
Bransles were actually named for their signature move—'branle' means 'shake'—and they were so popular that dance teachers in 1600s England wrote whole books about the different types!
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