Origins of the blues
Little is known about the exact origins of the music now known as the blues. No specific year can be cited as the origin of the blues, largely because the style evolved over a long period of time and existed in approaching its modern form before the term blues was introduced, before the style was thoroughly documented. However, it is thought that the blues were brought over by slaves. One important early reference to something closely resembling the blues comes from 1901, when an archaeologist in Mississippi described the songs of black workers which had lyrical themes and technical elements in common with the blues.