Borrowed from Spanish, “barranca” refers to a winding river gorge. In English, we have several words for natural landscape features that we have taken from Spanish (“canyon,” “mesa,” “arroyo”), because these elements are primarily found in regions that were explored and colonized by the Spanish. The type of river gorge called a barranca is often found in the Southwest area of the United States, where there is a dry climate and easily eroded soil along the river. In an area without much Spanish-language influence, what could be called a barranca might be described as a steep bank or a cliff along the river.