Is the term 'Belly Dance' the same as 'Raqs Sharqi'?

A common term used for what some people call "belly dance" is "raqs sharqi". But what does it mean and is it the same as "belly dance"?
(replaces video with scrambled Arabic)

[genevieve_loveofdance]

Hi Kashmir. I happened to chance upon your video & so glad that I've found someone who has given voice to my very own understanding of Oriental or Middle Eastern Dancing. I personally feel that the term bellydance is a misrepresentation of the dance. The dance in its originality has nothing to do with the belly. Egyptian dancers (the ghawazee and classical dancers) of yesteryear showed us that it was much to do with the hips and so ideally there is no need to expose the belly. Plus there was always that element of expression which accompanied the dance, more like a feeling that one gets caught up in whilst dancing. As someone who has devoted myself to the art of middle eastern dance and delved into the history of the dance, I'd like to thank you for setting the record straight.

[Ludmillawings]

Thanks for your information. Great! You mention Suraya Hilal. I happen to have trained with her and I am also trained in contemporary dance. Her dancing was nothing like Martha Graham. In fact all her hip moves were taken from the Golden Age dancers as well as Fifi Abdou. We often studied the film footage of these dancers in her living room. She did develop this dance form to be suitable for the large western dance stages. She added more drama, larger movements combined with very subtle qualities.

[kckazcoll]

hi Kashmir, I first heard of raqs sharqi in relation to Suraya Hilal, back in the 90s. I attended a workshop taught by Anne Ashcroft, one of Suraya's students/top dancers. She spoke of the different styles as raqs sharqi (classical dance) raks beledi (urban folk style with a distinctive style of music) and raks sha'abi (folk dance). I used to love watching the performances on DVD of Hilal and her students/dancers. I see that "Hilal dance" is now a very different style and I get your reference to Martha Graham

[finsterthecat]

I call it both. Living in the USA to advertise Raks Sharki the majority of the public would not know what I meant.
I have no problem with the term Raks Sharki since I am doing dance as a performance.

[theradancer]

Just to clarify, what was belly dance called before the term raqs sharqi became common?