A small canoe or boat, often a dugout, used by indigenous and local peoples in Central and South American waterways.
Spanish term from indigenous Amazonian and Caribbean languages; entered English through Spanish colonial and trade contexts. The word reflects indigenous boat-building traditions documented by Spanish conquistadors and colonizers.
A 'cayuco' crossing the ocean with migrants became a term for small unauthorized boats in modern times—the ancient indigenous word got a totally new meaning in contemporary border stories!
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