Do you have different criteria for the terms latino(a) and hispanic?

I tend to use the word Latino or Latina more often than Hispanic, unless I am referring to a specific group of people or culture. Latina or Latino refers to some from a Latin-American culture, and in general can include Brazil (where they speak Portuguese). I believe the term Hispanic is more specific to the Spanish language.

No, I don’t have any occasion to use either term.

as to ‘latino’ and ‘hispanic’- i think there are regional differences in use preference but bottom line, folks in the ethnic group should be able to use the term for themselves with which they feel most comfortable.

seems to me that non-minorities seem to come up with the official terms for the minorities! one term that irks me still is ‘people of color’. where’d that come from? i think it hilarious that the folks who use that term are trying to be the most poltically correct but the term itself focuses on skin color (and the shallowness of appearances). hispanic is an ethnic label, hispanic is not a race; therefore, hispanics can be of any race and any color.

@marcosthecuban , maybe a difference in perspective, but I hear that term (people of color) from folks in the “black” community.

@YARNLADY: You must live in a very narrow world. That’s a pity. I hope someday you have some reason to to talk about hispanics. We’re doing some great things in this world!

I grew up knowing I was of Latin descent in a world full of Latin influences. In that community we referred to one another as Latinos and Latinas. Same way for our food, music, etc.

It wasn’t until circa PC came around that I started hearing (and being referred to) as Hispanic.

I think @marcosthecuban has a point here in how the labels we use in society are chosen.

@La_chica_gomela Maybe, but I think it’s just because I don’t see any need to label people. I am more likely to say “My neighbors on the left side” than I would “Those Latino (Hispanic) people next door”.

Also, my first husband was 1/2 Mexican, and our son is 1/4 Mexican (Latino/Hispanic).

Seems to me you just did…but whatever…

@La_chica_gomela I said that is not what I call them. Maybe you have an issue with ethnicity, but in my life, I don’t see any point in making a big deal about it. I certainly am not going to go around introducing my boys as “this is my Mexican (hispanci/latino)son and this is my white son, or some such thing. Where I grew up, it was perfectly alright to say Mexican when referring to ones ethnicity, rather either of the PC words that Master has chosen to ask about.

Yes, perhaps this was only a misunderstanding. I understand what you said @YARNLADY. I can see why @La_chica_gomela could have misinterpreted your first response, it could have expressed one of two views and I have to say I like the one you’ve expressed very much.

I believe hispanic is a term coined in the Reagan era for census purposes. Most Latinos I know do not like the term hispanic, and refer to themselves as Latinos or Chicanos. But, Chicano is a term used by those of Mexican-American descent, and primarily in So.Cal.

@tinyfaery Well, I tend to think we Hispanics don’t really have a preference over one term or another. But I guess if there was perceived inclination towards one term it would definitely vary across the spectrum of nationalities, races and individual cultures among the Latin Americas and Iberian countries.

@Master I corrected my previous comment In my case, my Hubby really was Mexican (from Mexico), so maybe it is not quite the same.

@Master or anyone else, what about the term chicano(a)? I have heard some Spanish speaking Americans embrace it and others actually decry its use.

@YARNLADY: I never said there was anything wrong with the word Mexican. I love it. I say Mexican all the time! I also say things like, “I went to a poetry reading of young Latinas, there was this Domincan girl who was awesome.” I guess something like that has never happened to you.

@Yetanotheruser: The word Chicano used to be a slang term, that was “reclaimed” in the 1970s, and people started using it with pride. There are a lot of chicano and chicana websites now, but on the other hand, the term is kind of fading. I hardly ever hear young people use it. And some people that live in Mexico still use it as a slang “not-so-nice” term for those born in ‘El norte’. It’s a pretty complicated term. I once wrote a short paper about it for a class. Lots of fun, I got to talk to a lot of friends and family about the meaning of the word for them.

@Yetanotheruser I don’t decry it’s use. I don’t see it fit for myself but if it was I would not have a problem identifying myself as such.

@YARNLADY I didn’t see a need to correct it. I understood the context of it. I believe it was just a misunderstanding, possibly even a cause of minor linguistic differences. And no, I don’t see why it would not be the same, either.

i’ve never heard anyone use the term ‘chicano’ for themselves when they were not of mexican or mexican american heritage. but not all mexican/mexican-americans use that term. in part because it has political connotations, but also because there’s a very broad spectrum as to how close to mexico one feels. in many places, ‘chicano’ is its own ethnic group/culture.

Hispanic is anyone of Hispanic descent anywhere in the world. Latino is someone of Hispanic descent from Latin America.

A lot of people who should know better use the terms interchangeably.

I was taught in Sociology that the different terms are for different points of cultural origin, as Yetanotheruser and daloon said.

@daloon But that leaves Brazil out. Is not about changing interchangeably, is about knowing which applies.

Brazil, Chile, Argentina—if they are of Hispanic descent, they are Hispanic. I believe Latin America stops somewhere just South of the equator, but I’m not sure about this at all.

[edit]
Well, according to Wikipedia, all of South America is Latin America. So I guess they’re all Latinos, but, again, it’s difficult to say, because self-identification has a lot to do with it—certainly as far as the US census is concerned.

@daloon: In Brazil they speak Portugese; in terms of Euopean heritage, Brazil’s is Portuguese, not Spanish (Hispanic).

edit: after reading your edit, i decided to delete this section, because you had already realized the mistake.

@daloon Incorrect. Countries like Guyana, Surinam, and French Guiana are not considered to be Latin America.

Yes they are! The very term “Latin America” was coined by the French! That fact is documented in the text book The Idea of Latin America by Walter Mignolo, and if I’m not mistaken, it’s appears in Venas Abiertas by Eduardo H. Galeano, the famous book that Hugo Chavez presented to President Obama.

Now Belize, as far as I know, is not technically considered to be Latin America because their official language is English, or at least it was a few years ago.

Hispanic descent? My dad does not come from Hispania. I’ve never understood that term. As far as Chicano is concerned, where I grew up (the barrios of L.A.) almost everyone of Mexican descent used that term.

@La_chica_gomela That’s interesting. I was aware the term was coined by the French originally, but I didn’t think it applied. I’ve met many people from Guyana specially, and they seem to identify with India a lot talk as South Americans. Wikipedia has something on this too, it seems to distinguish Latin American population in the countries I mentioned.

And yes, that is a book I’m still yet to read, looking forward to it soon.

I think there are all kinds of definitions, and it’s a complete mess to sort out. In fact, it’s not sort-outtable.

The wikipedia entry on Latino has both my definition and other definitions. Some people use the term interchangeably. The US Census at one time used the Spanish language and Central and South American origin definition, which does not include Brazilians as Latinos.

Like I say, it’s a mess. Personally, I suppose it doesn’t matter so long as you know what the person means. I’ve defined the way I use it, and others define the way they use it. There is no correct or incorrect.

@Master: Yeah, it’s something I just learned too, actually pretty soon after this question was asked. I had no idea then either. I put a lotttt of guesses into that thread, but @fireside has the real answer.

Apparently the French coined it because they wanted it to seem like they had some claim in all the “loot” (if you will) of land and resources from the continent, where really they only had that teeny tiny little area of the French countries you mentioned . Then intellectuals of the area now known as “Latin America” sort of seized on the term because it connected them with Europe and the West instead of some “backwards indio name” or what have you. Plus there was the whole “black legend” thing going on, and Spanish intellectuals like the term because it connected them to a greater Western tradition, (France, Italy, etc) than just being “Spanish”. That whole story sounds a lot more eloquent when my prof says it.

Also, which book? I mentioned two ;-)

@marcosthecuban The term people of color was coined by People of Color in strategy against the term “Minorities”. So although it is not a perfect term it is better than what was coined previously. It is also better because it was coined by People of Color.

To answer the question I never use the term Hispanic.

When you are part of academia and part of a Community of Color you learn the PC terms and the terms preferred by People of Color (well in that region anyhow). Latino is now preferred over Hispanic so that is what I use. It is also better because most of us cannot tell which country a Latino person is from so by using the general broad term you are being inclusive (vs. calling everyone Mexican for example or Hispanic which has it’s own “issues”).

Essentially, I believe in self-determination. When a group chooses what they prefer to be called that is the term I use. If I know more specifically where an individual comes from then I will use the correct terminology in place of the broader term. (i.e. I can call them Puerto Rican or Chicano instead of Latino). I was told that the term Latino is more appropriate ( by Latino people) so that is the term I use unless I know specifically what that individual prefers to be called.

And I believe it is not about being PC, it is about honoring self-determination.

If I find myself in a verbal situation where it is necessary to make some distinction pertaining to ethnicity, I generally try follow the usage preferred by that group, if I know it. Most of the time I don’t have any need to make ethnic distinctions among people.

I would refer to Latino music but Hispanic dialects and Mexican food. If I have to default to one of these terms without guidance, I guess I generally choose Latino.

@Jeruba “Latino music”—Now there’s a broad brush! Everything from Tango to Salsa to Afro-cuban to Nortena to…well you get the picture