guarimba

Spanish

Etymology

Of Germanic origin, from Frankish *warjan, related to guarecer and garita.

In 2014, the Nicolás Maduro government began using the word with its current definition, referring to opposition protests that they thought were childish. For Maduro supporters, the word has strongly negative connotations. However, it has been used to refer to street barricades since at least 2005, stemming from the equivalent in children's games, with the barricades originally considered places of refuge from protesting, still in the streets but protecting from harm.

Noun

guarimba f (plural guarimbas)

1. (Venezuela) a protest against Nicolás Maduro
   • 2015 November 16, Ewald Scharfenberg, “Táchira, la vida en estado de excepción”, in El País‎^[1]:

     En febrero de 2014 fue el epicentro de las protestas sociales, llamadas guarimbas, contra el Gobierno de Nicolás Maduro que durante tres meses se extendieron a otras ciudades venezolanas y pusieron en jaque la gobernabilidad del país.

     In February 2014 it was the epicentre of the social protests, called guarimbas, against the Nicolás Maduro government that had been extending to other Venezuelan cities for three months and keeping the governance of the country in check.

   • 2017 June 13, “Sobre búnkers y trincheras: el papel de los edificios en las guarimbas”, in Misión Verdad‎^[2], archived from the original on 18 January 2018:

     La palabra guarimba está relacionada con el refugio o escondite que salva de quedar fuera a los niños o adolescentes que juegan en grupos, en los últimos años se refiere a un estilo de protesta.

     The word guarimba is related to the refuge or hiding place that protects children playing in groups from the elements, in recent years it refers to a style of protest.

2. (Venezuela) a street blockade used in protest against the government, often set on fire
   • 2014 February 20, Vladimir Hernández, “Caracas vivió una intensa noche de disturbios”, in BBC Mundo‎^[3]:

     ...consistía en bloquear en acciones relámpago calles o avenidas neurálgicas, con basura, objetos o cualquier cosa que sirva para detener el tránsito. En Venezuela eso tiene un nombre clave: "guarimba".

     ...this consists of blockades of streets and main avenues, with rubbish, objects, and any item that will serve to stop movement. In Venezuela this has a key name: "guarimba".

3. (Venezuela, uncommon, dated) a social building, specifically to protect children from bad weather
   • 2017 June 13, “Sobre búnkers y trincheras: el papel de los edificios en las guarimbas”, in Misión Verdad‎^[4], archived from the original on 18 January 2018:

     La palabra guarimba está relacionada con el refugio o escondite que salva de quedar fuera a los niños o adolescentes que juegan en grupos, en los últimos años se refiere a un estilo de protesta.

     The word guarimba is related to the refuge or hiding place that protects children playing in groups from the elements, in recent years it refers to a style of protest.

4. (Venezuela, uncommon) a "safe" location in children's chasing games
   • 2014 March 26, “'Guarimba'”, in Fundéu BBVA‎^[5]:

     La palabra guarimba significa, según el Diccionario de americanismos de las Academias de la Lengua, 'en los juegos infantiles, lugar en el que los jugadores se ponen a salvo de una persecución'.

     The word guarimba means, according to the Dictionary of Americanisms of the Academy of Language, 'in children's games, a place in which the players are safe from persecution'.

Related terms

• guarimbero

 

Further reading

• “guarimba” in Diccionario de americanismos, Asociación de Academias de la Lengua Española, 2010.