Galician rumba is a term used to describe songs and dances that emerged in Galicia in the 19th century mixing Spanish and Cuban musical elements. They are often described as “cantes de ida y vuelta” similarly to Rumba Flamenca as some of the Spanish influences on Cuban music were brought back to Galicia to form Galician rumba. While some of the Rhythms in this musical genre may also be characteristic of the original Cuban Rumba music, Galician rumba was equally influenced by other Cuban genres such as Guaracha and Habanera not to mention the European aspects that dominate this form such as the inclusion of bagpipes.
The song names of Galician rumbas are usually attributed to their author if known (i.e. Rumba de Pucho) or to the region where they were collected (i.e. Rumba de Vergara).
La Rumba Criolla is the name given to a category of various dance forms in Colombia that developed in the Tolima region, particularly in Fresno. It was influenced by such musical genres as Rumba Flamenco, Bambuco and the original Cuban Rumba complex and was developed at the start of the 20th century. Over time different types of Rumba Criolla emerged according to their meter and the culture surrounding the area in Colombia where they emerged such as Rumba Antioqueña, Rumba Cundí and Rumba Criolla Tolimense.
During the 1940s some Afro-Cuban songs and musicians became popular in Congo thanks to Radio Congo Belge playing Cuban music. Congolese bands started to create their own versions of what they heard on Radio singing in French or Lingala adding their own musical and cultural influences to the new sounds they had discovered. Despite the fact that the songs they tried to emulate were predominantly Son Cubano, the new music that was created became known as Congolese Rumba or Rumba Lingala. This style of music in turn became popular in various African countries and later led to the development of Soukous creating yet another point of confusion as to what is understood by Rumba internationally.
