A large, lively gathering or celebration, often with music, games, and special events. The word is especially used for big meetings of Scouts from many places.
Popularized in English by the Boy Scouts in the early 1900s for their large international gatherings. The exact origin is uncertain; it may be a made-up word or related to older words for noisy fun or drinking parties. Its playful sound helped it stick as a name for big, cheerful events.
“Jamboree” feels like party confetti in word form, and that’s part of why it caught on. The Boy Scouts basically branded their mega-campouts with a word that sounds like a musical jam plus a burst of energy. It shows how organizations can invent or boost words that then escape into everyday speech.
'Jamboree' is strongly associated with scouting, a movement that historically separated boys and girls into different organizations with gendered expectations and leadership roles. Early jamborees were often male-centered events.
Use 'jamboree' for large gatherings without assuming participants’ gender; when discussing scouting, recognize both boys’ and girls’/mixed organizations and their members.
["gathering","festival","rally"]
Girls and women in scouting and guiding movements have played major roles in youth education and community service, though their events have sometimes been treated as secondary to boys’ jamborees.
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