Territorial Rule in Colombia and the Transformation of the Llanos Orientales

Glossary

Glossary altiplano: highland bandolerismo: banditry bañadera: tank used to disinfect cattle bascule: weighing of animals to be slaughtered bulto: measure of weight equal to 140 pounds cabacillero: rancher worker in charge of organizing horses cachilapeo: rustling by changing the brand on a steer cachiporro: derisive epithet for Liberal camino de herradura: unpaved road capitanía: band of Indians caporal: foreman on a roundup carga: originally the capacity of a pack mule weighing 125 kilograms, currently the capacity of a truck carretera: highway caserío: hamlet cédula: identity card verifying Colombian citizenship chiquichiqui: palm tree fiber used by Indians to make cord, baskets, and hats chulavitas: derogatory name given to conservatively oriented policemen during the Violencia who were sent to persecute Liberals or other alleged subversives chusma: rabble colegio: high school coleo: a man on horseback throwing a bull by grabbing its tail. comisaría especial: territorial division less important than an intendancy compadre: godparent concejal: member of a municipal council concertado: contract worker conoquero: small landholder owning no cattle contrabandista: smuggler corregimiento: district corrido: typical Llanero song with verses in the style of the Mexican corrida that recorded events of the popular insurrection cuatrero: cattle thief DAS: Departamento Administrativo de Seguridad, the agency created in 1953 to handle matters of intelligence, security, and constitutional enforcement degüello: tax placed on slaughtering of cattle ECOPETROL: Empresa Colombiana de Petroleos, the government petroleum corporation founded in 1951. ELN: Ejército de Liberación Nacional, the guerrilla movement begun in the Department of Santander in 1964 entrega: surrender escuela hogar: boarding school established by missionaries for native children FARC: Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia, the oldest and largest of guerrilla movements, formed in 1964 ferrocarril: railroad finca: small farm frigorífico: plants designed to freeze meat from slaughtered cattle fundación: ranch with three hundred to one thousand head of cattle gamonal: local boss ganadero: rancher guarnición de fuera: border garrison guate: characteristic not of the Llanos but of the Andean highlands hato: ranch with more than one thousand cattle INCORA: Institución Colombiana de la Reforma Agraria, the institution created in 1961 to undertake agricultural reform informe: report joropo: dance accompanied by harp, cuatro, and maracas, characteristic of the Llanos latifundista: owner of a large estate llanos arriba: piedmont zone of the plains llanos abajo: open plains lying east of the piedmont mamona: typical Llanero dish of roasted beef manzana: street block mañoco: yucca flour matadero: slaughterhouse Glossary 148 mayordomo: overseer of an hato or hacienda memoria: annual report metense: inhabitant of the department of Meta municipio: township or county párroco: parish priest personería juridical: legal incorporation pistolero: armed gangster Quinquenio: term applied to five-year rule of Rafael Reyes (1904–9) reducción: native settlement converted to Christianity resguardo: reservation set aside for Indians revancha: revenge saca: roundup of cattle SATENA: Servicio de Aeronavegación de las Territorios Nacionales, the official air service created in 1962 to serve the national territories SCADTA: Sociedad Colombo-Alemana de Transportes Aereos, founded in 1919, was Colombia’s first airline to offer regularly scheduled service. selva: forest terrateniente: large landholder tierra baldía: public land tonelado: ton troche: trail vaquero: cowboy veguero: small farmer and fisherman who might also own some cattle vereda: small hamlet visitador: inspector Glossary 149 ...