FAQ
Search
Members
Groups
Register
User Control Panel
Log in to check your private messages.
Login
The archaic wooden plow (plough, in British English) usually driven by oxen in rural Asturias. The plow is used to till the land and loosen the upper layer of soil ahead of the sementeira (the sowing). It brings fresh nutrients to the surface while allowing the remains of previous crops to break down in the carbon cycle.
Plows in many parts of the world were initially driven by oxen. They were later replaced by draft horses and mechanical means. The coulter, or metallic piece affixed to the plow shovel, is called a reya (Central Asturias) or rea (West Asturias) and is the only non-wooden piece in the tool. If large, it can be referred to as a llabegon.
Usage examples:
Jaime meteu sou l.labieguin na l.lariega de Ca Gayon. [Jaime put his wooden plow in the kitchen of Ca Gayon.]
Esi l.labiegu tien la rea de fierru. [That plow has a metallic coulter.]
Ties la pia grande cumo un l.labiegu. [Your foot is as big as a plow.]
El l.labiegu al.lomba muitu. [The plow makes deep furrows in the soil.]
Folk wisdom:
El llabiegu mal llevau dexa’l cuerpu quebrantau. [A plow that is not well driven can break your back.]
L.labra bien fondu pa ter pan abondu. [Plow deep into the soil for a better crop of buckwheat.]
Here are pictures of two l.labiegos. The first one is small, from the West Asturian county of Samartin d’Ozcos (San Martin de Oscos). The second one is longer and hangs from an Asturian horriu (granary) in the village of Llaeces, County Ayande (Allande), also in West Asturias:
