"Sin Rumbo Fijo"

Perdido entre el maizal

Su rancho allí levantó,

Y feliz con su china

Siempre vivió.

Después, cual bendición

Su lindo hijito llegó,

Y trajo aun más

Alegría a su corazón.

Notes

Rumbo fijo = Fixed direction so "Sin rumbo fijo" is aimlessly. The title is odd as the lyrics and music are quite purposeful to me.

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China

A la mujer gaucha tradicionalmente se la ha llamado «china» quechua

= A female gaucho is traditionally called "china" in Quechua [source Wikipedia]

The image at the head of this page is described as:

La pisadora de maíz (c. 1868) de Pallière, acuarela costumbrista que representa a un gaucho y a una "china" de mediados del siglo XIX. Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes

= The corn treader (ca. 1868) by Pallière, a watercolor painting depicting a gaucho and a "china" from the mid-nineteenth century. National museum of Fine Arts

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China [Source Travelsur.net]

Argentina > China, chinita or gaucha - The gaucho counterpart

The "Gaucha" was also called "China". She was the loyal companion of the "gaucho". Her occupation was to grow corn, watermelon and onion. She baked their bread and used the mortar and pestle for crushing the charque, the wheat and corn.

She brought up the children and she also wove her companion’s ponchos. She was as a good rider as he was. She used to wear a cotton shirt, underskirt and headscarf. She usually wore two braids. Sometimes she would also wear a loose and low-cut dress. She liked smoking.