vaquero

/vɑˌkɛˈroʊ/

Other forms: vaqueros

In Mexico and the American Southwest, a cowboy is known as a vaquero. The vaquero tradition dates back to the sixteenth century, when Spain colonized Mexico.

The earliest vaqueros were native Mexicans who learned to herd cattle that belonged to Spanish colonizers. Over the centuries, the tradition spread from Mexico south to Argentina and as far north as British Columbia. Vaqueros were the original cowboys, inspiring the iconic North American horseback rancher and herder. The word vaquero derives from the Spanish vaca, or "cow."

Definitions of vaquero

1. noun

   local names for a cowboy ('vaquero' is used especially in southwestern and central Texas and 'buckaroo' is used especially in California)
   synonyms: buckaroo, buckeroo

   type of:

   cattleman, cowboy, cowhand, cowherd, cowman, cowpoke, cowpuncher, puncher

   a hired hand who tends cattle and performs other duties on horseback