The Syrtaki, the folk dance most commonly associated with Greece, was originally choreographed for a 1964 film. The dance was created specifically for the film Zorba the Greek rather than a traditional form of dance. It is an amalgamation of three different dance styles.
During the filming of Zorba the Greek, Stelios Katsivelakis taught choreography to Anthony Quinn, including various Greek dances such as the Kalamatianos, Chaniotikos syrtos (syrtos of Chania), pentozali with the psalidia (scissor-like) movements, and hasapiko. The zeibekiko was initially omitted, as the director felt it was not a suitable dance for a non-Greek and that the hasapiko looked better on screen. Quinn claimed that because he had problem doing a hopping motion due to a broken foot, he invented the dragging-sliding dance steps that he said a villager taught him, as well as coming up with its name on the fly when the film was being shot.
The dance has become popular in Greece and is identified with the Greeks, becoming an invented tradition.