In certain parts of the South, the word “Coke” refers to any soft drink, from Dr. Pepper to Sprite. Fortunately, the regional dialects are not as severe – or bizarre – when applied to rodeo. But there are differences.
In Salinas, the rodeo is pronounced with the traditional Spanish emphasis, “ro-DAY-oh.” In other places, such as the Fort Worth Stockshow and Rodeo in Texas, it’s pronounced “RO-dee-oh.”
Other places avoid the matter entirely. The rodeo in Pendleton, Oregon? That’s called the Pendleton Round-Up.
I say ro-dee-oh, you say ro-day-oh. But call the whole thing off?
Rodeo has been around for awhile. Although often seen as a Wild West activity that began as ranch work and developed into sport during the late 19th century, rodeo is rooted in Spanish and Mexican culture. Colonial Spaniards introduced horses and cattle to the Southwest of what would become the United States.
It was vaqueros – not cowboys – who were essential in introducing both the skills and terminology that would later become the rodeos of today. The word “rodeo” itself stems from the Spanish word for round up, according to Mandy Linquist, who runs marketing and public relations for the California Rodeo Salinas.
“It’s pronounced ro-DAY-oh here because of the Spanish word rodear, which means “to round up” – and we still use that pronunciation for our name as a nod to the Spanish heritage,” Linquist reports.
After the Civil War, as settlers moved west, English-speaking cowboys became more common than Spanish-speaking vaqueros. Like their predecessors, they continued to work the range. They also held competitions to test their skills including roping, branding, herding, and other forms of training wild horses, according to the Texas State Historical Association.
These are some of the same skills practiced as sport today by rodeo competitors. (They’re also still skills that apply on working ranches.)
The California Rodeo Salinas will have historical figures and information booths about the rodeo and those who have participated throughout the years. It’s a way to tell spectators where the sport came from, just as the Spanish pronunciation continues to serve as a reminder of the historical background that created what we know today as a rodeo – however you say it.