The cowboy — that enigmatic, larger-than-life icon of our culture —has long been considered a figure of fast hands, steel nerves, and few words. But according to Ramon Adams, cowboys, once among themselves, enjoyed a vivid, often boisterous repartee. You might say that around a campfire they could make more noise than “a jackass in a tin barn.” Here in one volume is a complete guide to cowboy-speak. Like many of today’s foreign language guides, this handy book is organized not alphabetically but situationally, lest you find yourself in Texas at a loss for words. There are sections on the ranch, the cowboy’s duties, riding equipment, the roundup, roping, branding, even square dancing. There are words and phrases you’ll recognize because they’ve filtered into everyday language — “blue lightnin’,” “star gazin’,” “the whole shebang” — plus countless others that, sadly, are seldom heard in current speech: “lonely as a preacher on pay night,” “restless as a hen on a hot griddle,” “crooked as a snake in a cactus patch.” As entertaining as it is authoritative, COWBOY LINGO captures the living speech of the Great Plains and serves as a window into the soul of the American West.
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Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com Review
"The cowboy was not a highly educated man as a rule," says Ramon F. Adams in his introduction to Cowboy Lingo, "but he never lacked for expression." After years of keeping his own notes on the "terse, crisp, clear-cut language of the range," Adams decided that it would be "selfish" not to pass them along. Thus was born Cowboy Lingo, which was first published by Houghton Mifflin in 1936 and appears now after being long out of print. Adams's book is arranged thematically--with chapters on ropes, cattle, brands, the trail, outlaws, and the like--telling as much about the life of the cowboy (or cow-puncher or buckaroo or ranahan or saddle-slicker or waddie) as about his language. As might be expected from a pioneer of the western range, the cowboy "respected neither the dictionary nor usage," says Adams, "but employed his words in the manner that best suited him." And perhaps no other group has come up with a better collection of insults. A bad tracker "couldn't find a calf with a bell on in a corral"; a worthless person's "family tree was a scrub"; and an ignorant person "couldn't drive nails in a snow bank." Great fodder for word mavens, writers of Western fiction, and Wild West enthusiasts alike. --Jane Steinberg
Review
"The cowboy was not a highly educated man as a rule," says Ramon F. Adams in his introduction to Cowboy Lingo, "but he never lacked for expression." After years of keeping his own notes on the "terse, crisp, clear-cut language of the range," Adams decided that it would be "selfish" not to pass them along. Thus was born Cowboy Lingo, which was first published by Houghton Mifflin in 1936 and appears now after being long out of print. Adams's book is arranged thematically--with chapters on ropes, cattle, brands, the trail, outlaws, and the like--telling as much about the life of the cowboy (or cow-puncher or buckaroo or ranahan or saddle-slicker or waddie) as about his language. As might be expected from a pioneer of the western range, the cowboy "respected neither the dictionary nor usage," says Adams, "but employed his words in the manner that best suited him." And perhaps no other group has come up with a better collection of insults. A bad tracker "couldn't find a calf with a bell on in a corral"; a worthless person's "family tree was a scrub"; and an ignorant person "couldn't drive nails in a snow bank." Great fodder for word mavens, writers of Western fiction, and Wild West enthusiasts alike. (Amazon.com Review -Jane Steinberg )
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
From the "Lonesome Dove" reference shelf,
By
This review is from: Cowboy Lingo (Paperback)
Larry McMurtry once said he based "Lonesome Dove" on a handful of reference books about the Old West. This classic compendium of cowboy terminology first published in 1936 by Ramon Adams is surely one of them. In the chapter on cowboy nicknames, there is told the story of Dishwater Martin, who like Dish Boggett in the novel, got his name by mistaking dishwater for drinking water. And if you've read "Lonesome Dove" much of the early material in this book will be a little familiar. Adams discusses at length the duties of cowboys on the job in open rangeland, on cattle drives, and on ranches. Their manners, habits, attitudes, and codes of behavior are discussed, especially the close bond between cowboys and their horses. And interwoven through all of this are the words, terms, and phrases borrowed and invented by cowboys, observed and noted by Adams over many years as an amateur lexicographer. I found the reading got more interesting as Adams explored topics that spilled over into storytelling and something I guess we'd call socio-linguistics today. The chapter on cooks, cooking, food, meal-time etiquette, the chuckwagon itself, and the sharp wit of cooks is especially enjoyable. Adams also makes good reading out of his chapters on cattle rustling, guns, the afore-mentioned nicknames, and (much too briefly) cowboy dances, also known as 'hoe-digs,' 'shin-digs,' 'hoe-downs,' and 'stomps.' I learned square dancing as a boy but never heard calls as arcanely mystifying as the ones Adams records here. While Adams observes that cowboys were also notoriously profane and wildly inventive in their profanity, the mores of 1936 prevent him from giving any examples. Sad to say, that's the only chapter I have to report as missing from this otherwise entertaining and informative book. "Cowboy Lingo" is one of those rare reference books you can read for pleasure. It opens a wide and richly detailed window into a uniquely Western world.
14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
"Tie yer Hats to the saddle and let's go!",
By
This review is from: Cowboy Lingo (Paperback)
Ramon F. Adam's book of Cowboy lingo is a great addition to the growing library of reference books dealing with cowboy culture and the cowboy way of life. This book is great for writers and cowboy enthusiasts alike.Here's why: The Author Adam's divides his 'dictionary' into chapters, with specific themes ranging terms for cattle, to nicknames for people. Chapters include the commentary of modern cowboys and the author's own observations. (This is NOT a dictionary in the traditional sense, so don't expect a sterile list of terms with definitions or you might be disappointed). =-) Words and phrases are scattered throughout each chapter in no particular order. Find out for yourself what the words "Buckaroo," "Fence-Stretcher" and "Talk Turkey" mean. Saddle up, and prepare yourself for an exciting adventure into the ways and words of a Cowboy life!
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Perfect Research Tool,
By Paula J. Miller "Author of One-Eyed Jack" (Minnesota) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Cowboy Lingo (Paperback)
I must say that I'd never grinned so much as I did in reading Adam's COWBOY LINGO. Not only did it make me chuckle, it made me appreciate the 'uneducated' cowboy and his ingenious way with words.
Having need of a character who could 'talk a cow out of her calf' in a recent children's novel, I found this book invaluable. Now Grandpa Albert drinks coffee that's 'strong enough to kick up in the middle and carry double' and when aiming at a rattlesnake he has as much luck in hitting it as he would 'tryin' to scratch his ears with his elbow'. Adams covers a multitude of topics ranging from brands and cattle, to a cowboy's riding equipment. I learned more about cowboys and roping in one chapter than I did in any other book I'd used for research. Not only is this a fun read, it's an excellent resource.
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