Rastafarian

American  

[ras-tuh-fair-ee-uhn, -fahr-, rah-stuh-] / ˌræs təˈfɛər i ən, -ˈfɑr-, ˌrɑ stə- /

noun

1. a follower of Rastafarianism.

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adjective

1. of, relating to, or characteristic of Rastafarianism or Rastafarians.

Rastafarian British  

/ ˌræstəˈfɛərɪən /

noun

1. a member of an originally Jamaican religion that regards Ras Tafari (the former emperor of Ethiopia, Haile Selassie) as God

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adjective

1. of, characteristic of, or relating to the Rastafarians

Etymology

Origin of Rastafarian

First recorded in 1935; from Amharic ras täfäri “Prince Tafari,” the pre-coronation name of Haile Selassie ( ras “prince,” originally, “head”; täfäri an Amharic personal name, literally, “(one to be) feared, respected,” present participle from passive stem of the verb färra “fear, respect”) + -an

Example Sentences

He handed the intake officer a copy of a ruling by the Fifth Circuit Appeals Court, which held that federal law requires accommodating Rastafarian inmates.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 9, 2025

Damon Landor, the petitioner, wore long dreadlocks for almost 20 years as an expression of his beliefs as a Rastafarian – part of a biblical practice known as the “Nazarite vow.”

From Salon • Nov. 9, 2025

Follow-ups like “The Marshall” and “Come Again” incorporated more spiritual Rastafarian lyrical themes, and he joined a supergroup with Shabba Ranks and Home T that scored a big hit with “Holding On.”

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 12, 2025

When the case reached the Fifth Circuit, the same court that had ruled that the law protected Rastafarian prisoners’ dreadlocks, a different three-judge panel said that “we emphatically condemn the treatment that Landor endured.”

From New York Times • May 13, 2024

The famous reggae singer Bob Marley was himself a Rastafarian and helped spread the word beyond the Jamaican shores.

From "The Sun Is Also a Star" by Nicola Yoon