jitterbug, exuberantballroom dance popular in the 1930s and ’40s, originating in theUnited States and spread internationally by U.S. armed forces duringWorld War II. Its original freewheeling acrobatic swings and lifts were modified for moreconservative ballroom versions. Couples did most versions while holding one or both hands. Step patterns varied widely and included such dances as the lindy hop (c. 1927, named forCharles Lindbergh’s transatlantic flight), in which dancers usually did two slow “dig” steps (ball of the foot, then the heel) and two quicksteps (one foot back, one in place), and thejive, in which dancers took a step to each side and then executed two “shuffles” (side step, almost close other foot, side step). Jitterbug music—also called jive, or jump—is in4/4 time with syncopated rhythm.