The History of Barbeque

The etymology of the term is vague, but the most plausible theory states that the word "barbecue" is a derivative of the West Indian term "barbacoa," which denotes a method of slow-cooking meat over hot coals.

Bon Appetit magazine blithely informs its readers that the word comes from an extinct tribe in Guyana who enjoyed "cheerfully spitroasting captured enemies."

The Oxford English Dictionary traces the word back to Haiti, and others claim (somewhat implausibly) that "barbecue" actually comes from the French phrase "barbe a queue" , meaning "from head to tail."

Proponents of this theory point to the whole-hog cooking method espoused by some barbecue chefs. Tar Heel magazine posits that the word "barbecue" comes from a nineteenth century advertisement for a combination whiskey bar , beer hall, pool establishment and purveyor of roast pig , known as the BAR-BEER-CUE-PIG .

From this sitehttp://www.barbecuen.com/

After extensively searching for the origin of the word, our own illustrious C. Clark "Smoky" Hale has uncovered the truth behind the word. In all honesty, the truth came to him! You see, Barbecue'n On The Internet had been "live" for about a year when Smoky was contacted by Peter Guanikeyu Torres, President and Council Chief of the Taino Indigenous Nation of the Caribbean and Florida. While most authorities go back to this tribe without any problem, only Smoky was able to obtain the real translation - - - from the great grandson of the Taino Chief himself! Torres translated "barbecue" for Smoky as follows: " Ba from Baba (father) Ra from Yara (place) Bi from Bibi (beginning) Cu from Guacu (the sacred fire) or 'the beginning of the sacred fire father' . He further explained that 'Taino barabicoa' means 'the stick stand with four legs and many sticks of wood on top to place the cooking meat.' He advised that 'Taino Barabicu' means 'the sacred fire pit.'

 

The most convincing explanation is that the method of roasting meat over powdery coals was picked up from indigenous peoples in the colonial period, and that "barbacoa" became "barbecue" in the lexicon of early settlers.

Modern barbecuing possibly came to the United States in the early 1700's during General George Washington's time. Stories of cooking whole animals at large political gatherings abound. The southern influences came in and cooking of the pig became an ideal meat. Thus was born the phrase " going whole hog. "

Resources

http://xroads.virginia.edu/~CLASS/MA95/dove/history.htm

http://www.barbecuen.com/

S. Jonathan Bass, How 'bout a Hand for the Hog': The Enduring Nature of the Swine as a Cultural Symbol of the South, Southern Culture, Vol. 1, No. 3, Spring 1995.