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The other thread, which was closed (probably for good reason) brings up an interesting linguistic question about the origins of the terms Hispanic and Latino. So keeping this discussion strictly linguistic and historical, a quick internet search and the ability to read both English and Spanish reveals the following:
* The term "Latin America" was coined in France (and in French) in the 1800s as a political thing, in an effort to unite South American countries as allies of France against Anglo and Germanic countries. The terms "Latin America" and "Latin Americans", in both English and Spanish, started being used in the early 1900s as replacements for "Spanish America."
* The term Hispanic is the English equivalent of "Hispano" and "Hispano-americano" which were being used in Spanish language publications in the 1800s to refer to the countries in North and South America that were derived from the rule of Spain and which shared the common language and culture.
What would be interesting would be to delve further back and see whether the terms "hispano" and hispano-americano were being used in the 18th century and prior and where these terms were being used (Europe, France, the Southwest U.S., South America, etc.)
Official Adoption of the Terms “Hispanic” and “Latino”
After a number of years of lobbying by Mexican-American and Hispanic organizations, in 1976 the U.S. Congress passed Public Law 94-311.
Called the “Joint resolution relating to the publication of economic and social statistics for Americans of Spanish origin or descent” and sponsored by Rep. Edward Roybal of California, the law mandated the collection of information about U.S. residents of Mexican, Cuban, Puerto Rican, Central American, South American and other Spanish-speaking country origins (Pub. L. No. 94-311, 1976). Subsequent directives from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) in 1977 outlined the details of data collection for the federal government. A second OMB directive in 1997 added the term “Latino” to “Hispanic” (Rumbaut, 2006).
The use of the terms “Hispanic” and “Latino” to describe Americans of Spanish origin or descent is unique to the U.S. and their meaning continue to change and evolve. Outside of the U.S., these terms are not widely used (National Research Council, 2006) and may also have different meanings.
According to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), which defines race and ethnicity for the U.S. federal government and all federal agencies and programs (including recipients of federal funds) (see https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov..._1997standards), one can use the terms "Latino" or "Spanish Origin" in addition to "Hispanic" without prejudice.
Again, according to OMB, Hispanic or Latino: A person of Cuban, Mexican, Puerto Rican, South or Central American, or other Spanish culture or origin, regardless of race. The term, "Spanish origin," can be used in addition to "Hispanic or Latino."
So, this means if all my grandparents are from China and I was raised in Panama, I can be Hispanic, Latino, or Spanish origin. Or if all my grandparents are Dutch-German Mennonites in Durango and l am a Mexican national or if all my grandparents are Ashkenazi Jews and I grew up in Argentina, I can be Hispanic, Latino, or Spanish origin.
Maybe, too, if I am Anglo, English-ethnic origin and grew up in Brownsville, Texas and learned Spanish from neighbors, and feel a bit Mexican-American culturally, I guess I could also claim to be Hispanic, Latino or Spanish origin, according to federal guidelines. Hey, everyone in the U.S. could claim to be Hispanic, Latino or Spanish origin, if push comes to shove... because they are a cultural designation in addition to a designation based on "origin".
Last edited by Schwartzmann; 02-22-2019 at 06:58 PM..
“We have these categories: white, black, and now this new, ludicrous category that Richard Nixon invented for me, Hispanic. In 1972, I became Hispanic,” says [Richard] Rodriguez.
As part of an effort in the 1970s to better measure who was using what kind of social services, the federal government established the word “Hispanic” to denote anyone with ancestry traced to Spain or Latin America, and mandated the collection of data on this group.“The term is a U.S. invention,”explains Mark Hugo Lopez, associate director of the Pew Hispanic Center. “If you go to El Salvador or the Dominican Republic, you won’t necessarily hear people say they are ‘Latino’ or ‘Hispanic.’ ”
Thinking of Hispanics as a single demographic group is a creation of Washington. It was first used on the Census ballot of 1970, to classify everyone south of the Rio Grande. “Hispanic” is a label that exists only in the context of the United States and it severely limits us from understanding the behavior of people of different races and ethnicities who come from totally different (and sometimes adversarial) countries.
I'm not talking about the reappropriation of those terms as ethnic terms in the 1970s by the U.S. government. I'm talking about the historical use of those terms prior to 1900.
The following article was written in 1918. Obviously it has a political agenda of its own, but it talks about the history of the terms "Latin America", "Spanish America" and "hispano-america" and shows that they predate any 1970s stuff that you guys are claiming:
According to this 1918 article, the terms "Spanish-American" ("hispano-americano") were in use for four centuries prior to the 1900s. In other words, since the early days of the first exploration and colonization of the Americas by the Spaniards.
The following attached photo is a newspaper in 1907 (founded in 1891) where you clearly see the term "hispano-americano" (hispanic) in use long before the 1970s that you're claiming the term first came into existence:
You guys are correct in saying the U.S. government rebranded those terms in the 1970s. But you're wrong in saying those terms did not exist prior to the 1970s. Prior to the 1970s those terms were used to describe all Hispanic peoples of the Americas.
Obviously the OMB and Nixon were unfamiliar with Spanish-language literature.
But you're wrong in saying those terms did not exist prior to the 1970s.
A term is not just the word. It's a word with a specific meaning.
If you rebrand a word and give it a completely different meaning, it's not the same term. "Hispanic" as introduced in the 1970s was a concept that didn't exist prior to then.
In Texas, people used to be called "Spanish-American" or just "Spanish", and those were white ethnic labels - not minority labels. The same with "Latin". Latin people used to be white.
The new "Hispanic" term introduced in the 70s was the concept that people of Spanish origin are a minority group comparable to black people. That concept didn't exist before.
A term is not just the word. It's a word with a specific meaning.
If you rebrand a word and give it a completely different meaning, it's not the same term. "Hispanic" as introduced in the 1970s was a concept that didn't exist prior to then.
In Texas, people used to be called "Spanish-American" or just "Spanish", and those were white ethnic labels - not minority labels. The same with "Latin". Latin people used to be white.
The new "Hispanic" term introduced in the 70s was the concept that people of Spanish origin are a minority group comparable to black people. That concept didn't exist before.
This is somewhat how the term is generally understood by the American public you are correct "a minority group comparable to black people" Hispanics are viewed as non white in general and I'm not surprised that white Americans have a poor understanding of the diversity found in Latin American when the typical "Hispanic" I run across isn't knowledgeable about this topic.
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