Buey Vaca Beach and the origin of a unique name

AREQUIPA, Peru – Located at the entrance, or exit, to the city of Matanzas, Buey Vaca beach is one of the most famous beach resorts in the Athens of Cuba, especially for university students and soldiers from nearby military units who have enjoyed for generations of its waters.

Buey Vaca owes its name to the river that flows right next to it; nomenclature that has led many curious people to question the possible relationship of two mammals with the Matanzas beach.

The most widespread version claims that it comes from the English words “way back” (something like “one step back” or “retreat”), protagonists of the supposed sign that announced the private nature of its arenas in the last century.

Another variant of the origin of the name states that the territory of the city reached right up to what is today Cabarroca, and said sign invited travelers to retrace their steps.

However, it is curious that the river and the beach were known in this way long before the 20th century, as some maps and plans preserved from colonial Matanzas point out.

The most accurate answer to this dilemma of Buey Vaca was recorded by Dr. Américo Alvarado in his book Seven legends from Matanzaswhere it rescues the original nomenclatures of the Matanzas rivers: Babonao (Yumurí), Guainey (San Juan), Jibacabuya (Canímar), and a smaller one known to the aborigines as Güeybaque.

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