Cotillon (co-tilʹ-yon)
means properly the “under-petticoat.” The word was applied to a brisk dance by eight persons, in which the ladies held up their gowns and showed their under-petticoats. The dance of the present day is an elaborate one, with many added figures.
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Entry taken from
Dictionary of Phrase and Fable,
edited by the Rev. E. Cobham Brewer, LL.D. and revised in 1895.