The term Yankee (sometimes shortened to Yank) has several interrelated meanings, referring to people from the United States. Outside the US it is used to refer to people from the US in general, whereas within the US it refers to people originating in the northeastern US, or still more narrowly New England, where application of the term is largely restricted to descendants of the English settlers of the region.

The meaning of Yankee has varied over time. In the 18th century, it referred to residents of New England descended from the original English settlers of the region. Mark Twain, in the following century, used the word in this sense in his novel A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court, published in 1889. As early as the 1770s, British people applied the term to any person from what became the United States. In the 19th century, Americans in the southern United States employed the word in reference to Americans from the northern United States (though not to recent immigrants from Europe; thus a visitor to Richmond, Virginia, in 1818 commented, "The enterprising people are mostly strangers; Scots, Irish, and especially New England men, or Yankees, as they are called").

Don Omar (born William Omar Landrón Rivera; February 10, 1978 ), a Puerto Rican reggaeton singer-rapper and actor. He is sometimes referred to by his nickname El Rey (Spanish: "The King").

William Omar Landrón Rivera is the oldest son of William Landrón and Luz Antonia Rivera. He was raised in Santurce, a barrio in the Villa Palmeras area of San Juan, Puerto Rico. From an early age, he showed interest in the music of Vico C and Brewley MC.^{[citation needed]} During his youth, he became an active member of a Protestant church, Iglesia Evangélica Restauración en Cristo in Bayamón where he occasionally offered sermons. However, after four years, he left the church to dedicate himself to singing.

His first public performance in a night club was accompanied by disc jockey Eliel Lind Osorio. Afterwards he appeared regularly on compilation albums from popular DJs and producers including Luny Tunes, Noriega, and DJ Eric. He also worked as a backup singer for the duo Héctor & Tito. One of the members, Héctor Delgado, helped him produce his first solo album.