This passionate and electric music has Dominican origins, though there is a variation that also comes from Venezuela. Although it's not clearly known why it is named merengue, one solution could be the circular motion of the dance, representing the whisking of an egg when preparing meringue. The dance was created back in the 1920s by Ñico Lora, a folk musician who, although he had no musical education, learned to play the accordion and went on to create important songs. It was a style of music that gained popularity in the United States through Angel Viloria and his band.
Its popularity can be credited to some of the well known singers of the genre, including Johnny Ventura, who was the lead singer of a popular merengue band. Others include Ramon Orlando, a talented guitarist form whom merengue was a family affair, as his father, Cuco Valoy, was also a talented musician.