The merged Northern and Southern Traditional class for dancers aged 40 to 69 at a competition powwow, run as four separate individual lists: Senior and Golden Age, women and men.
No./So. Traditional is the merged Northern and Southern Traditional class that a competition powwow uses for its older dancers. “No.” is short for Northern and “So.” for Southern. In the younger bands those two traditions keep separate lists; once dancers reach the Senior band, the source folds them into a single class so that a smaller field is not split into lists too thin to place fairly.
On the template behind this page the item is assigned to four groups: Senior (aged 40 to 59) and Golden Age (aged 60 to 69), each for women and for men. That makes four parallel entrant lists, every dancer entering as an individual under one number issued by the registrar. A dancer is placed by age and by gender, not by choosing between a Northern and a Southern list, because here the two are one.
The class sits beside a second merged item in each older list. Senior and Golden Age women choose between No./So. Traditional and Fancy Shawl/Jingle, and Senior and Golden Age men choose between No./So. Traditional and Grass/Fancy/Chicken. Each of those is its own item with its own entrants and placings. A dancer in the 40 to 69 range is registered for exactly one of the choices, since the rules allow one category per contestant.
Dancers under 40 are handled in other items: adult men dance No. Traditional or So. Straight, adult women dance No. Buckskin/Cloth or So. Buckskin/Cloth, and Junior and Teen dancers use the plain Traditional item. Dancers aged 70 and over are not in this item either; the source carries a combined Living Treasure division for them, which the template holds as its own all-styles item.
There is no single judged round. The rules the template follows describe a point system built up across the weekend, beginning with the Friday grand entry, with each contestant’s number recorded at every grand entry. Dancers register in advance, cannot switch category once registered and dance in full regalia. The committee may combine any category with fewer than five registered dancers, which matters in the older bands where a list can be small. This page covers how the class is organised for the people who run it; the steps, the dress and the regalia belong to the communities who practise them and are deliberately not described.
Where No./So. Traditional is run
On eTalenter this item is used in one template, the competition powwow template, assigned to Senior and Golden Age women and men. Competition powwows are held across the United States and Canada, normally over a weekend, and each organiser publishes its own style names, age bands and merges. The merged Northern and Southern Traditional class appears here because the powwow the template is built from lists it that way for older dancers; another event may keep Northern and Southern apart at every age, use different age cut-offs, or call the class something else, so always read that organiser’s own notice first.
- United States (the competition powwow the template is built from)
- Canada and other competition powwows in North America, each with its own published rules
Key facts
- An Individual item: one dancer, one registrar-issued number, one entry
- Four template classes: Senior (40 to 59) and Golden Age (60 to 69), each for women and for men
- “No.” means Northern and “So.” means Southern; in this item the two traditions share one list rather than two
- Older women also have Fancy Shawl/Jingle and older men have Grass/Fancy/Chicken as separate items; a dancer enters one category only
- Dancers under 40 use the adult or junior items; dancers aged 70 and over use the combined Living Treasure division
- Placings come from points accumulated over several sessions starting with the Friday grand entry, not from one round
- The template uses a 100-mark working scale and no time limit because the source prints neither
On eTalenter, No./So. Traditional is filed under On Stage and typically scored with Marks. It appears in 1 ready-made event templates — each one can adjust its time limit, age-group assignment and scoring setup independently.
Across the templates that use it, No./So. Traditional is most often entered as an Individual competition, commonly run for Male, typically scored out of 100.
What judges look at in No./So. Traditional
What a No./So. Traditional panel is actually weighing up, and where the marks are usually won or lost:
- The source prints no scoresheet for this class, so the points below are organiser guidance for agreeing yardsticks with the head judges, not rules from the source
- Right list, right age: confirm the dancer is in the correct age band (Senior or Golden Age) and gender list, and is being marked as a Traditional dancer rather than against the Fancy Shawl/Jingle or Grass/Fancy/Chicken field in the same band
- Fair comparison across traditions: because Northern and Southern dancers share this list, judges should agree beforehand to mark each dancer against the conventions of the tradition he or she dances, so neither is penalised for not looking like the other
- Timing against the drum: whether the dancer picks up changes in the singing on the beat and finishes exactly as the song ends
- Steadiness across the weekend: points accumulate over several grand entries, so a consistent run through every session generally counts for more than one standout song followed by tired ones
- Arena conduct and presentation: following the arena director’s calls, keeping to the dancing area, and regalia that stays in place so nothing needs adjusting mid-song
Treat these as the judging focus, not a fixed rubric: publish your own weighted criteria for No./So. Traditional under Scoring Setup, or start from judge scoring and tabulation software.
How to prepare for No./So. Traditional
How entrants and their teachers usually get No./So. Traditional right on the day:
- Confirm the dancer’s list at registration: Senior or Golden Age by age on the day, women’s or men’s, and No./So. Traditional rather than the other style choice for that band; explain that the registrar’s record is final once registered
- Check ages carefully at the desk: 40 to 59 is Senior, 60 to 69 is Golden Age, and 70 or over belongs in the Living Treasure division
- Register before the online closing date and diarise the Saturday onsite cut-off, because a late entry can mean missing the first points of the weekend
- Plan the weekend as an endurance event: practise several full songs back to back, then schedule water, food, rest and a seat in the shade between sessions
- Rehearse to songs not heard before so that following the drum and ending on the last beat is a habit rather than a memorised routine
- Check every fastening on the regalia a week ahead and pack a small repair kit, so a loose piece never costs a grand entry
- If your list is small, expect the committee to combine it with another under the fewer-than-five rule and ask the registrar early what your category may be merged with
Ready-made event templates that include No./So. Traditional
Open any template to preview it in eTalenter and install it as a live, editable event.
| Template | Category | Score label | Competitions |
|---|---|---|---|
| Powwow Dance & Drum Competition (Denver March Powwow) | On Stage | Marks | 4 |
Frequently asked questions
Is No./So. Traditional judged individually or as a team?
Across eTalenter’s templates it’s most often run as an Individual entry, commonly for Male, though an organiser can set either participation type when assigning the item to an age group.
What do No. and So. mean in No./So. Traditional?
Northern and Southern. In the younger bands the source keeps Northern and Southern Traditional on separate lists; for Senior and Golden Age dancers it merges them into this single class.
Which age groups use this item?
On the template, Senior (40 to 59) and Golden Age (60 to 69), each for women and men. Dancers aged 70 and over are in the combined Living Treasure division, and younger dancers use the adult or junior items.
Is this the same as Fancy Shawl/Jingle or Grass/Fancy/Chicken?
No. Those are the other merged items in the same older age bands, one for women and one for men. Each has its own entrants and placings, and a dancer enters one category only.
Can a dancer change class after registering?
Not at the powwow the template follows. Contestants enter one category only and cannot switch once registered, so settle the choice before the registration desk closes.
How are winners decided, and is there a time limit?
Winners come from points accumulated across sessions, beginning with the Friday grand entry, with each number recorded at every grand entry. The source gives no mark scale or time limit; the template uses a working scale of 100 marks and no limit, and an organiser who wants either should set it in their own event and publish it with their rules.
Want the full judging picture? Read judge scoring and tabulation software, or browse every on stage competition item.
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