Dance styles have of course changed over time. In modern Irish step dancing, arms and hands are held rigid during solo dances. This was not always the case. Previously they were sometimes more relaxed and were even placed on hips. The lack of arm movement in modern step dancing may have been the influence of parish priests. Some dance historians believe that stiff arms were considered less provocative. Others argue that the Church was trying to increase dancers' self control. The hands held stiffly at the side are today one of the most distinctive charateristics of Irish step dancing. Hand movements, however, still occur in figure (group) dances, in part required by the interactions between the dancers.

Irish dance has developed quietly in Ireland for centuries. Irish immigrants brought their traditional dances to America beginning in the 1840s, driven from their homeland by the Great Famine. Their dances had a profound influence on traditional American folk dances like square dancing and their music was a powerful ingredient in country music. Modern Irish dance, however did not begin to become popular until after World War II. The independence of Ireland in 1921, rising income levels after the War, and the increasing interest in Irish heritage by Irish Americans all contributed to the expanding interest in Irish dance. This interest was almost entirely within the Irish community until River Dance [see photo] introduced Irish dancing to the public at large in the 1990s.