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.