Standardized English form, from the Gullah and Afro-Carib, "bifalla ohtdareef", the headman of a subtropical or tropical
community, who is nominally
responsible for the well-being of its members. The Chief Reefster's actual function is more totemic and dramatic than administrative, and his power is thought to emanate divinely from the surrounding or nearby ocean's reef , which power is also believed to enable flight itself.