Shaker (Christian sect)

Refers to a Christian millenarian sect that arose in 1747 in England out of a group of radical Quakers that had adopted the French Camisards' ritual practices of shaking, shouting, dancing, whirling, and singing in tongues; the sect was later spread to the United States by Ann Lee and her disciples. The sect advocates communal living, productive labor, and celibacy. Shaker communities in the United States flourished economically and created a distinctive and influential style of architecture, furniture, and handicraft before the sect declined in the late 19th and 20th centuries. Shaker dances and songs are also admired as folk art and the Shakers are responsible for numerous important inventions.