A glass fiber (22) has a core (24) provided with Raman laser effect particles (28) embedded in a glass matrix (30), with glass cladding (26) around the core. The refractive index of the glass matrix (30) is matched to that of the Raman laser effect particles (28) so as to avoid scattering. It is not necessary to have a single crystal of Raman laser material to create a laser effect in the glass fiber. A length of fiber in the order of meters or tens of meters can produce optical laser light. It is possible to have a single fiber (22) emit laser light at different frequencies due to Stokes and Anti-Stokes emissions. A simple laser device can therefore produce several colors of laser beams.