What is Salsa - 
Salsa has many roots but the style that gave rise to and shaped it more than any other is the 'Son'. The son is the most important and influential music to have evolved in 20th Century Cuba.
Where did it come from ?
Son originated in the 1800's from 'changui', a form of music rooted in African music, brought to Cuba by the African slaves in the early 1800's and carried on by their descendants.

In the 1920's, son was the most popular music and dance for Cubans and by synthesizing African and Spanish music styles, son essentially became Cuba's national music.

Various musicians developed and expanded the son - son montuno (montuno (or mambo) - which brought about mambo in the 40's), influencing Latin popular music for years to follow. African-American big-band jazz stimulated the formation of Latin big bands in the 40's, expanding the mambo section of the son, creating its own style and form, the first major 'cross-over' from Afro-Caribbean music. 

The cha cha cha and the mambo, both internationally popular, were also incorporated into this style, forming the foundation of 'Salsa'. 

The term'Salsa' began to circulate in the late 1960's as a cover term describing a range of popular Latin musical styles including a broad range of musical genres, instrumental combinations and cultural influences, ranging from Cuban son montuno, to bebop, cubop, Puerto Rican bomba and plena, Dominican merengue, Cuban Yoruba ritual music and Afro-American jazz, and rhythm and blues.The main source being Cuban son montuno.
¡Salsa was born in Cuba!