Bucan
/ˈbuːkən/noun
A wooden framework used for roasting or smoking meat, especially in historical Caribbean contexts.
Did you know?The word is closely tied to the origin of “buccaneer,” because early buccaneers were named for using these frames to smoke meat in the Caribbean.
Etymological Timeline
Pre-17th Century
Cariban
bucan
“A wooden frame used for roasting or smoking meat”
Early 17th Century
French
boucan
“A wooden roasting frame; also a place where meat was smoked”
Early 17th Century
French
boucanier
“A person associated with the boucan, especially a meat smoker in the Caribbean”
17th Century
English
buccaneer
“A Caribbean hunter or meat smoker, later a pirate”
Modern English
English
bucan
“A historical variant referring to the meat-smoking frame”
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