tarantella

noun

Etymology: Borrowed from Italian tarantella, a diminutive of Taranto, a town in southern Italy (but popularly associated with tarantola (“tarantula”), on the belief that the dance was variously a result of, or cure for, its bite).

1. A rapid dance in 6/8 time, originating in Italy, or a piece of music for such a dance.

   “The set in which they found themselves was composed of English, and Amy was compelled to walk decorously through a cotillion, feeling all the while as if she could dance the tarantella with relish.”

   “"A tarantella, I presume?" blandly suggested the doctor. Miss Mannersley stopped, and rose carelessly from the piano. "It is a Moorish gypsy song of the fifteenth century," she said dryly.”