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The demonym Latino, along with its feminine Latina, sometimes used as well, are variously defined in English language dictionaries as:

• "a person of Latin-American or Spanish-speaking descent"
• "a Latin American"
• "A person of Hispanic, especially Latin-American, descent, often one living in the United States"
• "Latin inhabitant of the United States"
• "a usually Spanish-speaking person of Latin American birth or descent who lives in the U.S."

The two words originate in American Spanish latino and latina (from Latin Latinus, Latina), either meaning "Latin", or possibly a clipped form of latinoamericano, "Latin American".

In the United States, the term is in official use in the ethnonym Hispanic or Latino, defined as "a person of Cuban, Mexican, Puerto Rican, South or Central American, or other Spanish culture or origin regardless of race."

Usage in the United States

Official definitions

The term Latino was officially adopted in 1997 by the United States Government in the ethnonym Hispanic or Latino, which replaced the single term "Hispanic". U.S. official use of the term "Hispanic" has its origins in the 1970 census. The Census Bureau attempted to identify all Hispanics by use of the following criteria in sampled sets:

• Spanish speakers and persons belonging to a household where Spanish was spoken
• Persons with Spanish heritage by birth location
• Persons who self-identify with Spanish ancestry or descent

Other current definitions

Nevertheless, some authorities of American English maintain a distinction between the terms "Hispanic" and "Latino":

"Though often used interchangeably in American English, Hispanic and Latino are not identical terms, and in certain contexts the choice between them can be significant. Hispanic, from the Latin word for "Spain," has the broader reference, potentially encompassing all Spanish-speaking peoples in both hemispheres and emphasizing the common denominator of language among communities that sometimes have little else in common. Latino—which in Spanish means "Latin" but which as an English word is probably a shortening of the Spanish word latinoamericano—refers more exclusively to persons or communities of Latin American origin. Of the two, only Hispanic can be used in referring to Spain and its history and culture; a native of Spain residing in the United States is a Hispanic, not a Latino, and one cannot substitute Latino in the phrase the Hispanic influence on native Mexican cultures without garbling the meaning. In practice, however, this distinction is of little significance when referring to residents of the United States, most of whom are of Latin American origin and can theoretically be called by either word."

Neither term refers to a race, as a person of Latino or Hispanic ethnicity can be of any race.

Although as officially defined in the United States, "Latino" does not explicitly include Brazilian Americans, and specifically refers to "Spanish culture or origin", some of the dictionary definitions may include them and/or Brazilians in general. Furthermore, Hispanic or Latino origin is, like race, a matter of self-identification in the US, and government and non-government questionaires, including the census form, usually contain a blank entry space wherein respondents can indicate a Spanish/Hispanic/Latino origin other than the few (Mexican, Puerto Rican, and Cuban) which are specified; presumably, Brazilian Americans can thus self-identify as being of Hispanic or Latino ethnicity — as can anyone with no Latin American background, however.

Similar and related terms

Besides "Hispanic", "Latino" is sometimes used interchangeably with the terms "Latin" (e.g. "Latin jazz", "Latin Cuisine", "Latin music", "Latin Grammy Awards") and "Latin American", especially in popular speech.

As a demonym, though, "Latin" can have other meanings:

• a native or inhabitant of Latium; an ancient Roman
• a member of any of the Latin peoples, or those speaking chiefly Romance languages, esp. a native of or émigré from Latin America
• a member of the Latin Church; a Roman Catholic, as distinguished from a member of the Greek Church
• a Latino or Latina

"Latin American" may also not mean the same as "Latino", depending on which definition of the latter is used. It is defined as:

• related to Latin America
• a native or inhabitant of Latin America
• a person of Latin-American descent

The Countries of Latin Europe and Latin America

Controversy

The term Latino is rejected by some, for various reasons. It is rejected by some indigenists who state that Native American 'Latinos' are disappropriated from their Native American origins and histories by the application of what they consider a racist, Eurocentric term that improperly associates people of different races, i.e. associating both the Spanish colonizers and the indigenous inhabitants, especially the descendants of both groups, as the same ethnic group.

Many U.S. hospitals and health centers also use the term Latino/Hispanic incorrectly as if it were a race. In cases where a particular race may be more prone to particular medical conditions or diseases, using only the generic terms "Hispanic" or "Latino" causes confusion and can be costly, as it does not identify the Latinos at risk, thus putting some of them in danger: The affected Latinos may not seek medical help as soon as they would if they were identified by race. Many consider this a disservice and negligent. Given that Hispanics and Latinos can be of any race — White, Black, American Indian, Asian, or multiracial; just as the non-Latino population — important medical studies should indicate the race of any Latinos used to measure susceptibility to particular diseases.

Do Latinos enjoy racial Equality? / Other Civil Rights Issues

When it is said that a Latino can be of any race what does it mean? There is much confusion and as many as 96% of the "some other race" category was chosen by Latinos, filling in entries such as "mestizo", which constitutes a bi racial person of American Indian Ancestry and White European ancestry. The meanings of both categories are the same however, one is said in popular Spanish terms and the other is in the categorization as inputed is the United States Census Bureau. People of Hispanic origin may be of any race and should answer the question on race by marking one or more race categories shown on the questionnaire, including White, Black or African American, American Indian or Alaska Native, Asian, Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander, and Some Other Race. The OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT AND BUDGET - Revisions to the Standards for the Classification of Federal Data on Race and Ethnicity states that The racial and ethnic categories should be comprehensive in coverage and produce compatible, nonduplicative, exchangeable data across Federal agencies.] Much of the Latino population is stated to be either predominantly White of European descent ] ], or of Native American descent ] ] or a combination of these racial classifications. There are also Latinos of the African American race.] Other groups considered racial groups categories also contain mixtures of other groups. ]

In other languages

Latino (feminine latina) in the Romance languages, such as Italian, Portuguese, and Spanish, literally means "Latin", a person from the Lazio (ancient name: Latium) region in Italy and most notably, someone of ancient Italy's capital, Rome, as well as a member of any of the modern European Romance-speaking nations or peoples, and Romance-speaking nations or peoples of the Americas. The dictionary of the Real Academia Española defines ten meanings for latino. In Spanish, latino, just like any other gentilic, is by convention not capitalized.

See also

• Boricua
• Casta
• Chicano
• Criollo
• Hispanic
• Hispanic America
• Ibero-America
• Indio
• Isleños
• Ladino
• Latin America
• Latin American British
• Latino Canadian
• Latino Australian
• Latins
• Mexican American
• Race and ethnicity in the United States Census
• Racial demographics of the United States
• Tejano
• White Latin American

References

1. ^ Dictionary.com
2. Merriam-Webster Online
3. YourDictionary
4. ^ "Revisions to the Standards for the Classification of Federal Data on Race and Ethnicity". Retrieved 2008-01-11.
5. ^ United States Census Bureau (March 2001). "Overview of Race and Hispanic Origin" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2007-07-15.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: year (link)
6. "Revisions to the Standards for the Classification of Federal Data on Race and Ethnicity". Retrieved 2008-01-11. Terminology for Hispanics.--OMB does not accept the recommendation to retain the single term "Hispanic." Instead, OMB has decided that the term should be "Hispanic or Latino." Because regional usage of the terms differs -- Hispanic is commonly used in the eastern portion of the United States, whereas Latino is commonly used in the western portion -- this change may contribute to improved response rates. (Bolding in the original)
7. Gibson, Campbell (2002). "Historical Census Statistics on Population Totals By Race, 1790 to 1990, and By Hispanic Origin, 1970 to 1990, For The United States, Regions, Divisions, and States". Working Paper Series No. 56. Retrieved 2006-12-07. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |coauthor= ignored (|author= suggested) (help); Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
8. "American Heritage Dictionary". Retrieved 2007-03-18.
9. "U.S. Census Bureau Guidance on the Presentation and Comparison of Race and Hispanic Origin Data". Retrieved 2007-03-18. Race and Hispanic origin are two separate concepts in the federal statistical system. People who are Hispanic may be of any race. People in each race group may be either Hispanic or Not Hispanic. Each person has two attributes, their race (or races) and whether or not they are Hispanic. {{cite web}}: line feed character in |quote= at position 87 (help)
10. U.S. Census form U.S. Census Bureau. See question 7
11. http://www.mccormick.com/content.cfm?id=10104
12. Oboler, Suzanne. Ethnic Labels, Latino Lives: Identity and the Politics of (Re) Presentation. {{cite book}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help)
13. http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/latin
14. "Latino (definition)". Merriam-Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (login required). Retrieved 2007-07-15.
15. http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/latin%20american Dictionary.com
16. http://www.m-w.com/dictionary/latin%20american Merriam Webster
17. "Mexica Movement". Mexica Movement. Retrieved 2007-07-15.
18. Tezcatlipoca, Olin (2003-08-13). "The Crimes of Hispanic and Latino Racist Labels: Everything You Need To Know About The Racism Of Hispanic And Latino Labels as Applied to People of Mexican and "Central American" Descent". Retrieved 2007-03-18.
19. "The Taino People: A Jatibonicu' Taino History in Puerto Rico & New Jersey". indigenouspeople.net. June 8, 2004. Retrieved 2007-07-15.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: year (link)
20. http://buscon.rae.es/draeI/SrvltGUIBusUsual?LEMA=latino

Bibliography

• The Oxford Encyclopedia of Latinos and Latinas in the United States, 4 vls, Oxford University Press 2006, ISBN 0195156005

External links

• Latin Union
• Ballare Latino Portal community about Latin music
• Latino History
• Mexica Movement Indigenous rights and education organization
• PBS 'A Cultural Identity' Examines the creation of the Hispanic label by Richard Nixon.
• Latino USA The Radio Journal of Latino news and Culture.
• Soy-latino.de Latin Community People in Germany.
• Latino Issues Forum Nonprofit Public Policy and Advocacy Institute
• Latino Sports Legends
• Latin America Network Information Center
• What's In A Name?
• Latin Dictionary and Grammar
• Latinomigrante.com: Latino Community Portal in US,Canada
• National Young Lords
• Latino Cultural Heritage Digital Archives
• Racial Classifications in Latin America
• PoliticosLatinos.com Information about significant US Latino/Hispanic politicians, and links to bios and official Websites and other important information.
• Dia De La Mujer Latina Hispanic or Latino?

• Latin American culture
• Ethnic groups in the United States