The Rice University Neologisms Database

a class of Latino music characterized by a low-toned beat and rap reflective of Puerto Rico reggae. Reggaetón is a genre of music that is reflective of Spanish reggae with a heavy, bass beat. Reggaetón is a class of music that sounds like rap and hiphop; Reggaetón is usually blasted loudly from speakers in a night club. Because of its resemblance to reggae beats, the writer felt that he should include a new class of music that closely resembles reggae. However, the author did not want the readers to confuse reggae with this new, energized form of reggae that has a Latino and Hispanic flair. As a result, the author used the Spanish suffix –tón, which is equivalent to –ful in English. –Tón can be glossed as ‘characterized by and full of.’ For example, in Spanish, juguetón means playful. The writer may have wanted to describe something that is full of reggae. However, reggaetón is not reflective of typical, Jamaican reggae music. Reggaetón music usually consists of Spanish lyrics coupled with a resounding bass beat. The author chose to utilize a Spanish suffix to describe this pseudo-reggae Latino music to express and indicate the true, Hispanic roots of this class of music. –Tón could also come from the Spanish word ‘tono,’ which means tone or sound in Spanish. As a result, the writer clearly wants the reader to understand this novel form of music that mixes old-fashioned reggae beats with the sexual flair and mysticism of Spanish lyrics and sounds. Reggaetón is a fairly new class of music that has quickly risen in popularity among youth. The author could have easily characterized the music as Hispanic reggae, but by adding the Spanish suffix –tón to an existing word, the author preserves the music’s authentic Latino personality and identity. In addition, ‘Hispanic reggae’ sounds quite bland and uninspiring. ‘Reggaetón’ makes the music sound exotic and intriguing such that the readers will be interested in exploring the cultural Hispanic roots that are constantly evolving with time.