Gaucho
Gaucho or
gaúcho are residents of the South American pampas, Gran Chaco, or Patagonian grasslands, found principally in parts of Argentina, Southern Brazil, Uruguay, Paraguay, eastern and southern Bolivia and Southern Chile. In Brazil,
gaúcho is also the main demonym of the people from the state of Rio Grande do Sul. Gaucho is an equivalent of the North American "cowboy". Like the North American word cowboy, the Chilean
huaso, the Cuban
guajiro, the Venezuelan or Colombian
llanero, the Puerto Rican
jibaro, and the Mexican
charro, the term often connotes the 19th century more than the present day; then
gauchos made up the majority of the rural population, herding cattle on the vast
estancias, and practicing hunting as their main economic activities. There are several hypotheses concerning the origin of the term. It may derive from the Spanish term
chaucho. The first recorded use of the term dates to Argentine independence in 1816.