reggae

Reggae's etymology is uncertain. It may come from 'rege-rege' (Jamaican for 'ragged clothes' or 'a quarrel'), or from 'streggae' (slang for a loose woman). The word first appeared in 1968 in the song 'Do the Reggay.'

The music evolved from ska and rocksteady in late 1960s Jamaica. Bob Marley made reggae global, carrying Rastafarian philosophy and anti-colonial politics to the world.

Reggae became the sound of resistance: in Africa, Latin America, and anywhere people fought oppression. The genre that emerged from Kingston's poverty became a universal language of liberation.

The word's unclear origin is fitting: reggae emerged from the streets, not from musicologists. Its roots are as organic and disputed as the culture that created it.