Roda (formation)

A capoeira roda in Farroupilha Park, Porto Alegre, Brazil (2007)

Roda (Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈʁɔdɐ] - wheel or circle) is the circular formation within which participants perform in any of several African and Afro-Brazilian dance art forms, such as engolo, capoeira, maculelê and samba de roda. By extension, the whole event may be called a roda (as in "We will have a roda next Saturday").

Part of the etiquette of the roda means that the people in it should try to keep the roda circular and fill in any "gaps" that may appear if someone leaves the roda; in other words, the people should be evenly distributed in the circumference of the roda, especially if there are not many people in it.