Entry · catalog no. 1702
legendary
/ /ˈlɛdʒənˌdɛri/ /LEJ-un-dair-ee
adj. · Ballroom scene, New York City · 1980s
✓ Verified
1.
In ballroom culture, the status earned by a performer or house that has won consistently over years — the peak of reputation on the floor.
“She walked her category so long she went legendary.”
Origin & Attribution
Ball culture of New York, built by Black and Latino gay and trans people across the 20th century and documented in 'Paris Is Burning' (1990). There 'legendary' is a rank, not a loose compliment — the reward for winning walks again and again until your name carries weight. One of the ballroom words, alongside house, shade, and reading, that the wider culture later borrowed.
20th c.
Ball culture nurtured by Black & Latino LGBTQ communities
1990
'Paris Is Burning' documents 'legendary' status
2010s–present
Carried mainstream via vogue and television
Region of origin
West
Midwest
N.East
South
Nationwide
Ballroom scene, New York City · 1980s
Spoken by
Ballroom houses; Black and Latino LGBTQ community
$LEGENDThe Record · cultural traction
▲ Steady46 yrs
ahead of the mainstream
64/100
peak cultural energy
Introduced to English by the culture — logged here before the mainstream caught on.
Cultural usage — the recordMainstream search interest
First used
1980
in the culture
Cultural energy indexed from documented usage, search interest, and citation frequency. The recorded date is the archive’s permanent point of record.
Hear it spoken
By region — how it actually sounds
@auntiereg
Atlanta, GA
@deltasoul
Memphis, TN
Contribute your pronunciation
Citations & Sources
■
'Paris Is Burning' (dir. Jennie Livingston) — 1990
film · cited
■
+ Cite a sourceDocumented ballroom hierarchy
reference
See also