spiritual
n. countablen. a religious folk song that was first created by enslaved African Americans. These songs often have deep emotional meanings and strong rhythms.
n. a religious folk song of African American origin, typically characterized by Christian themes and the historical experience of slavery. Often used to refer to the genre as a whole or a specific composition within it.
The choir sang a beautiful spiritual during the service.
Many famous spirituals use coded language to talk about freedom and the journey to the North.
Music historians often trace the roots of blues and jazz back to the rhythmic and melodic structures found in the traditional African American spiritual.
From Middle English spiritual, spirituel, from Old French spirituel, from Late Latin spīrituālis, from Latin spīritus. By surface analysis, spirit + -ual.
Commonly used in the plural form when referring to the musical genre or a collection of songs.