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A hand holds a magnifying glass over an Absolut Vodka label, highlighting “80 PROOF” with question marks in the background.
A piña colada, a bottle of brown liquor, a full shot glass, a cocktail in a coupe glass, and a bottle of gin sit on a bar. A sign labeled Britannica Bar hangs above them.
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rum

liquor
Also known as: kill-devil, rumbullion
Written and fact-checked by
Britannica Editors
Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree....
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History

rum, distilled liquor made from sugarcane products, usually produced as a by-product of sugar manufacture. It includes both the light-bodied rums, typified by those of Cuba and Puerto Rico, and the heavier and fuller-flavoured rums of Jamaica. Rums originated in the West Indies and are first mentioned in records from Barbados in about 1650. They were called “kill-devil” or “rumbullion” and by 1667 were simply called rum. Rum figured in the slave trade of the...

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