[1][2] Since the early 20th century the term has been used in different countries to refer to distinct styles of music and dance, most of which are only tangentially related to the original Cuban rumba, if at all.
In addition, "rumba" was the primary marketing term for Cuban music in North America, as well as West and Central Africa, during much of the 20th century, before the rise of mambo, pachanga and salsa.
[6] During the second half of the 19th century, several secular dance-oriented music styles were developed by Afro-Cuban workers in the poor neighbourhoods of Havana and Matanzas.
Although still a purely folkloric genre, numerous innovations have been introduced in rumba since the mid 20th century, including new styles such as batá-rumba and guarapachangueo.
[8] By 1935, with the release of "The Peanut Vendor" by Don Azpiazú and the popularity of Xavier Cugat and other Latin artists, the genre had become highly successful and well-defined.
[11] In this context, rumberas were Cuban and Mexican divas, singers and actresses who sang boleros and canciones, but rarely rumbas.
[12] In the 1970s, with the emergence of salsa as a popular music and dance genre in the US, rhythmic elements of Cuban rumba (particularly guaguancó) became prevalent alongside the son.
[20] In the 1930s and 1940s, Afro-Cuban son groups such as Septeto Habanero, Trio Matamoros and Los Guaracheros de Oriente were played over Radio Congo Belge in Léopoldville (Kinshasa), gaining widespread popularity in the country during the following decades.
A faster subgenre known as soukous (from the French word secouer, "to shake") was developed in the late 1960s by bands such as African Fiesta and is often used as a synonym of the former.