General Columns are formations you could get if you started from a Column and directed certain people to U-Turn Back.   Only formations with symmetric facing directions are addressed.   "Symmetric facing direction" means that no single dancer may U-Turn Back without their mirror opposite dancer also U-Turning Back.   You may think of "General Columns" as any "tall" 2x4 formation.

All 16 of the possible symmetric facing directions for General Columns are shown below.

Note all formations not designated by a single letter are not recognized by Callerlab.

Click here for an explanation of L. F. and X. prefixes
Click here for alternate naming system for general columns

General Columns

Box / 8 Chain [B]

Trade By [T]

Double Pass Thru [P]

Completed DPT [M]

Columns

R-H Column [C]

L-H Column [L.C]

R-H Magic Column [F.C]

L-H Magic Column [X.C]

Click here for an explanation of L. F. and X. prefixes

General Quarter Box

R-H 1/4 Box [QB]

L-H 1/4 Box [L.QB]

R-H 3/4 Box [RB]

L-H 3/4 Box [L.RB]

Column Couples   (name not in common use)

R-H Column Couples Facing [CP]

L-H Column Couples Facing [L.CP]

R-H Column Couples Back to Back [CM]

L-H Column Couples Back to Back [L.CM]

Alternate Naming System for General Columns

Note this notation is not recognised by Callerlab.

This notation, developed with help from Stewart Kramer, addresses the same 16 symetric facing directions for general columns as shown above.   It uses a the form [Cxx]:   A "C" followed by two lower case letters optionally enclosed in brackets.   The lower case letters may each be one of the following...

  i = "In" = Facing couples
  o = "Out" = Couples back-to-back
  r = "Right" = R-H miniwave box
  l = "Left" = L-H miniwave box

• C stands for General Column (i.e. a "tall" 2x4 formation).
• The first lowercase letter desribes the facing direction of the outer 4 dancers (the outer concentric box).
• The second lowercase letter desribes the facing direction of the inner 4 dancers (the inner concentric box).

I remember that the outer couples' facing direction is listed first by thinking that you reach the outside before the inside when you move into the formation.