Raï (/ r aɪ. i /, / r aɪ /; Arabic: راي, rāʾy, ), sometimes written rai, is a form of Algerian folk music that dates back to the 1920s. Singers of Raï are called cheb (شاب) or cheba (شابة), i.e. young, as opposed to sheikh (شيخ, shaykh), i.e. old, the name given to Chaabi singers.