Abrivado

The abrivado , word Of Provence meaning “dash, haste”, noted abrivada (traditional standard) or abrivado (Standard mistralienne), is a Tradition taurine of Provence and Languedocien, consisting in releasing bulls in the closed streets of a city or a village.

Origins

At the origin (before the time of the conveying trucks of cattle, which one still calls the Char S of bulls), the abrivado consisted in leading the bulls of the pastures to the arenas where the animals were to take part in races. In order to make this way without incident, the bioù or buòus (bulls into of Provence) were framed by ten riders. At the time of the crossings of villages, it often happened that the young villagers try to make escape the animals, in order to have fun some. In order to limit the risks to see their bulls escaping to them, the gardians thus made them cross the village to the gallop, at the highest possible speed.

Nowadays

Nowadays the abrivado are organized especially at the time of the local festivals of many villages and cities of the Rhone delta, the Gard and the Herault. The streets are barred by barriers great height in order to prevent the bulls from escaping in open country, the gardians make pretense prevent the atrapaïre (“attrapeurs” into of Provence) from making escape the bull, lily atrapaïre (N. Mistralienne) or lei atrapaires (N. traditional) compete of address and temerity. It is even organized contests of abrivado , several stockbreeders taking part in it and being judged on the number of bulls that they bring back to the fold.

An alternative (which is in fact a return to the sources) is the long abrivado . The departure takes place far from the village (several kilometers) and is often preceded by a lunch of the participants (“to lunch with the meadows”). One then leads the bulls framed by 10 to 20 riders with the step. The pedestrians run in front of and try to create a breach in the troop by hanging with the neck horses, by drawing aside them and making them pull up. These people there are called the “charbonneurs” (for an unknown reason). If an animal escaped, to capture it is then a perilous and difficult operation.

Another form to release bulls is the bandido or bandida in traditional standard, (of the Provençal to bandir or to fòrabandir , “to expel” the bulls). It takes place the evening around 6 p.m. and the course is much smaller. In general one attends several passages. The animals pass each one once only, framed with the gallop by 2 or 3 riders. Then they generally pass 2 times by 2 and framed by more riders and once by 4. Sometimes it happens that the Manade gratifie the public of one passage “at old” i.e. all the animals are carried out by one or two riders with the step of race. The pedestrians try here to capture the bulls by behind by seizing them by the tail and the horns. They are still the atrapaïre .

Orthography and pronunciation

Abrivado is a female word; like all the provençaux words noted according to the Mistralienne standard, it is invariable in the plural. Indeed the Mistralienne C-W communication does not note the final S which are dumb into of Provence. One thus writes a abrivado , abrivado according to the Mistralienne standard, but a abrivada , abrivadas according to the traditional standard. As in the majority of the Romance languages the tonic accent must be place in occitan on before last syllable ( abri' va' C ), and not on the last as in French. Of this fact the pronunciation of the O or has final into of Provence., is practically that of a dull vowel.

Bandido is also a female word; the formation of plural and the pronunciation of O final call the same ones notices as for abrivado .

References

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