Gauchos

Gaucho Culture

In terms of the actual way of living for the Gaucho people, it is a very simple lifestyle. For the most part, my reference point for the Gaucho lifestyle is that of their earlier presence, so it will sound much freer than what the Gaucho lifestyle consists of today because of government intervention throughout the years. Gauchos have their own language and in terms of religion, prefer one of an older roman catholicism (The Editors of Encyclopedia). When speaking about the day-to-day activities regarding the Gauchos, it consists of either roaming the land, drinking, gambling, hunting, or engaging in music whether it be playing it or singing it. They use their own tools when it comes to hunting, gaining a lot of inspiration from Indians using what is called lasos and their own creation called bolas which were balls thrown at the legs of animals to immobilize it (The Editors of Encyclopedia).

Gaucho has been reduced greatly in size since the 1700s when they were very prominent because of their specialization in hunting cattle and the European need for them when they brought over cattle from Europe (“19th-Century Conflicts Continued.” ). As mentioned before, because of the government and land being sold, the Gaucho was reserved for cattle herders for owners of the land. Rich ranch owners then were able to use their power to manipulate government policies in the mid-1700s to draft Guachos to fight for their land from the Indians of the land and all winnings went to the ranch owners, not the Gauchos (“19th-Century Conflicts Continued.” ). This oppression led the Gauchos to change from their cattle hunting to working for ranch owners.

In the more recent history of the Gaucho, they mostly reside in Argentina although they were scattered throughout Latin America and are a huge part of the culture of Argentina. People like Sarmiento who was the president of Argentina in 1865, wrote in 1845 his accounts of the Gaucho from his point of view and he wrote about the life of a Gaucho man. He said, “The bounds of ownership are unmarked; the more numerous the flocks and herds the fewer hands are required; upon the women devolve all the domestic duties and manufactures; the men are left without occupations, pleasures, ideas, or the necessity of application. Homelife is wearisome and even repulsive to them. They need, then, factitious society to remedy this radical want of association. Their early acquired habit of riding gives them an additional incentive to leave their houses. (“Sarmiento Describes the Gaucho, 1845”” Another prominent speaker about the Gaucho people along with Sarmiento is Charles Darwin, who recounted his encounter with the Gauchos in his visit to the pampa in Argentina. He said, “During the evening a great number of Gauchos came in to drink spirits and smoke cigars: their appearance is very striking; they are generally tall and handsome but with a proud and dissolute expression of countenance. They frequently wear their mustaches and long black hair curling down their backs. With their brightly-colored garments, great spurs clanking about their heels, and knives stuck as daggers (and often so used) at their waists, they look a very different race of men from what might be expected from their name of Gauchos, or simple countrymen. Their politeness is excessive: they never drink their spirits without expecting you to taste it” (“19th-Century Conflicts Continued.” ).

Gaucho are simple people that if not pointed out directly, would blend in very well with the Latin American people, as many of their cultural aspects are derived from Latin America, as well as India and Europe. Sadly enough, as history has shown repeatedly, the Gaucho people have lost much of their land and resources they once had because of government greed and intervention. Although the Gaucho coped well with the change, their perseverance throughout history has made them a staple in Latina America history, especially in Argentina.

Learn More

• High production video going into depth of modern Gaucho life. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2lTmvHk0mMc

• Quick video interviewing some Gaucho people https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l7KovwMiHJ4

• Quick article talking about the quick main points about the Gaucho culture even talking about the decline of Gaucho culture in Latin America https://yerbamatero.com/blogs/history/what-is-a-gaucho-the-culture-and-history

Work Cited

• “19th-Century Conflicts Continued.” Slatta HI 216 Online Intro Lectures 5-9, faculty.chass.ncsu.edu/slatta/hi216/lectures/lectures59.htm. faculty.chass.ncsu.edu/slatta/hi216/lectures/lectures59.htm

• “Sarmiento Describes the Gaucho, 1845”, Slatta HI 216 Online Lectures, faculty.chass.ncsu.edu/slatta/hi216/documents/sarm1.htm

• The Editors of Encyclopedia, "Gaucho", Encyclopedia Britannica, October 09, 2013 www.britannica.com/topic/gaucho