the term 'frevo' comes the portuguese word for 'boil' (ferver) - while no one knows how this came to be, the metaphorical meaning is has to do with the chaos that happens when something is boiling, such as agitation, effervescence, and elements going in every single direction all the while physics keeping a constant order on it.

that is clearly demonstrated on the way it is danced, with dancing being an important component in the genre, like a somewhat chaotic mixture of maxixe, marcha and capoeira.

this genre has been declared a masterpiece of the oral and intangible heritage of humanity by unesco, the united nations educational, scientific and cultural organization.