Rastafari
adj, name, noun ·Rare ·Advanced level
Definitions
- 1 A Rastafarian.
"At the same time, social, economic, and even political relations remain individualistic and personal rather than communitarian as in the case of the Bobo. Thus most Rastafari are allowed to lead their own lives as members of a religion but without the risk of violating collective discipline. They have a sense of identity but without ritual obligation."
- 2 (Jamaica) a Black youth subculture and religious movement that arose in the ghettos of Kingston, Jamaica, in the 1950s; males grow hair in long dreadlocks and wear woolen caps; use marijuana and listen to reggae music wordnet
- 1 Rastafarian. not-comparable
"“Are you from Jamaica?” he blurted out. / The Rastafarian stopped and looked at the reporter with soft red eyes. “Who, I? Sí.” / “Are you Rastafari?” Sloman pressed."
- 1 Rastafarianism.
Example
More examples"At the same time, social, economic, and even political relations remain individualistic and personal rather than communitarian as in the case of the Bobo. Thus most Rastafari are allowed to lead their own lives as members of a religion but without the risk of violating collective discipline. They have a sense of identity but without ritual obligation."
Etymology
Etymology tree Proto-Semitic *raʔš- Amharic ራስ (ras) Amharic ተፈሪ (täfäri) English Rastafari From Amharic ራስ (ras, “Duke”, literally “head”) and ተፈሪ (täfäri, “revered”) from ተፈሪ መኮንን (täfäri mäkonn, “Haile Selassie”, literally “feared (son of) Makonnen”). More at Haile Selassie.
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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.