Where did the cyclo come from?

The cyclo is a three-wheeled, human-powered vehicle (using pedals), experimentally invented by Pierre Coupeaud (a Frenchman) in Paris in the early 1930s under the initial name tri-porteur . Coupeaud later brought this type of vehicle to Cambodia in 1935, calling it a cyclo-pousse . In 1939, Coupeaud organized a trip from Phnom Penh to Saigon using a cyclo-pousse driven by two people taking turns. Later, the Vietnamese simply called this type of vehicle " cyclo ".

However, Pierre Coupeaud was not the inventor of the world's first pedal rickshaw, as this type of vehicle was manufactured in the 1880s, originating from rickshaws in Japan. By 1929, rickshaws were widely used in Singapore (David Edgerton (2011). The Shock of the Old: Technology and Global History Since 1900. Oxford University Press. p.46).

The term cyclo in French and English is a Latinized version of the Greek word kyklos , meaning "wheel, ring, circle." Depending on the country, cyclos have various corresponding names. The French call them vélo-taxi ( or vélotaxi) ; the Portuguese call them ciclorriquixá, ecotáxi, riquixá , or riquexó… ; the Spanish call them bicitaxi, tricitaxi , and others; and the Russians call them Veloríksha ( Велори́кша ) or Velotaksi (Велотакси)…

In American English, the most common term for a rickshaw is "cycle rickshaw," also known as a pedicab or bike taxi (depending on the region); in Mexico, the terms "bicitaxi" and "taxi ecologico" are often used to refer to a type of rickshaw that closely resembles the German Fahrradtaxi (or Fahrradrikscha ). The fietstaxi in the Netherlands and Belgium also originates from Germany.

In Asia, the Chinese call the rickshaw " Sanluncha" (三轮车), but this name is also used to refer to electric vehicles and children's vehicles, including sanitation and garbage trucks; the Japanese generally call it jitensha takushi (自転車タクシー) - a type of two- or three-wheeled vehicle powered by human strength; however, the most equivalent to the rickshaw is wa taku (輪タク), a type of vehicle created in the early Taisho period (1912-1926).

In India, the rickshaw is called rikisha (रिकिशा) in Hindi, a word meaning a pedal-powered, human-powered cart. In Indonesia, it's called becak , derived from the Hokkien word 馬車 or 马车 (bé-chhia), meaning "horse-drawn carriage," but becak is actually very similar to the rickshaws and carts in Vietnam.

In Malaysia, there is a type of vehicle called a beca , written in Javanese as বিচা, a three-wheeled vehicle derived from the lanca – a two-wheeled, hand-pulled vehicle popular in China a few centuries ago. In Myanmar, the rickshaw is called a sitekarr ( - / ), pronounced after the English word for sidecar .

Generally, in the latter half of the 20th century, rickshaws had diverse designs and appeared in many places around the world, including Europe and America (as a means of entertainment for tourists ). Some types have the driver sitting in front of the passenger while pedaling (as in India, Bangladesh, and China); others have the driver sitting behind the passenger, as in Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Vietnam (in the Mekong Delta, there is a type called a "xe lôi," where the driver sits in front of the passenger); and in Myanmar, the Philippines, and Singapore, passengers usually sit in the back of the rickshaw next to the driver.

Only Vietnam and Cambodia call them cyclos , based on the French word "cyclo" - Cambodians call them ស៊ីក្លូ (xich-lo) . Besides pedal cyclos, there are also motorized cyclos, which use gasoline or electricity (rechargeable batteries).

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/xich-lo-tu-dau-toi-185241025223321493.htm