" Kum ba yah " ("Come by here") is an African-American spiritual of disputed origin, known to have been sung in the Gullah culture of the islands off South Carolina and Georgia, with ties to enslaved Central …

The meaning of KUMBAYA is characterized by or exhibiting a belief in harmony between people and in their essential goodness. How to use kumbaya in a sentence.

Sep 5, 2024 · “Kumbaya” is often referred to as an African folk song. But its most likely origin story actually begins with Black Americans.

Apr 12, 2025 · By the 1990s, ‘Kumbaya’ was a joke, sung as a punchline in The Addams Family Values ‘ summer camp by the sadistically bubbly camp leaders. So what does ‘Kumbaya’ mean? Research …

Nov 20, 2025 · “Kumbaya” (in slang) means unrealistic or naïve peace talk, fake unity, or shallow positivity that does not solve real problems. It’s often used in sentences that reject or mock …

Nov 13, 2025 · What Does “Kumbaya” Actually Mean? Let’s start with the basics: “Kumbaya” means “Come by here.” Specifically, it’s a rendering of the English phrase “come by here” in the Gullah dialect.

Feb 6, 2018 · In honor of African American History Month, we thought we’d present a classic article from Folklife Center News. This one concerns the early history of the African American spiritual …

Mar 1, 2018 · What does kumbaya mean? Rooted in an American spiritual and folk song of the same name, kumbaya refers, often disparagingly, to moments of or efforts at harmony and unity.

However, a man named H. Wylie sang Kumbaya into Gordon’s hand-cranked wax cylinder in 1926. The word “Kumbaya” is shorthand for “Come by here.” The song Kumbaya asks the Lord to “come by …

Definition of 'kumbaya' kumbaya in British English (ˌkʊmbaɪˈjɑː ) adjective mainly US derogatory