rastafarian
UK[ˌræstəˈfeəriən]US[ˌræstəˈferiən]
n
a member of a religious movement of jamaican origin that regards haile selassie i, the former emperor of ethiopia, as the messiah and promotes the eventual return of black people to africa.
adj
relating to or characteristic of rastafarians or their beliefs and lifestyle.
Etymology
the term originates from the pre-imperial name of haile selassie i, ras tafari makonnen. 'ras' is an ethiopian semitic (amharic) title meaning 'head' or 'duke,' and 'tafari' was his personal name. in the early 1930s, jamaican religious thinkers, drawing upon biblical prophecy and pan-african ideology, identified him as the returned messiah. the english suffix '-ian' was then appended to form 'rastafarian,' denoting an adherent of this belief system centered on the figure of ras tafari. thus, the word evolved from a specific personal name and title into an identifier for a global religious and cultural movement.
Analysis
this is a proper noun derived from a name and a suffix. it is not segmentable into meaningful, independent morphemes based on its current english spelling without losing its core referential meaning to ras tafari makonnen.
Examples
the musician's rastafarian faith deeply influenced his lyrics and lifestyle.
she wore her hair in long dreadlocks in the rastafarian tradition.
the community center hosted a discussion on rastafarian philosophy.