References to Latin Americans

The Spanish language (like most Romance languages) uses gendered terms to refer to groups of people:

• The -o and -a endings of nouns and adjectives in the Spanish language are masculine and feminine.
• When we refer to a mixed-gender group or a collective of individuals the masculine form is used.

In English, this raises two issues:

• Spanish speaking feminists would rather not have men and masculinity to be considered a “default” perspective and where the plural form erases the existence of women.
• Spanish speakers who are gender fluid, or who don’t identify exclusively within gender binaries, prefer using terms that respects and is inclusive of multiple gender identities.

Referring to individuals and collectives with terms like Latin American/s (or Latinx /Latine) address both of these issues by offering a gender-neutral term that can be used in the singular and plural.

Can we use the term Hispanic instead of Latin American?

The terms Hispanic and Latin American refer to two different, partially overlapping groups:

• Hispanic refers to a person with ancestry from a country whose primary language is Spanish.
• Latin American refer to a person with geographic in Latin America (Mexico, South and Central America) and the Caribbean.

According to these definitions:

• A person from Brazil (where Portuguese is spoken) would be considered Latin American (but not Hispanic).
• A person from Spain would be considered Hispanic (but not Latin American).
• A person from Mexico would be considered both Hispanic and Latin American.

Which is the most inclusive term?

It depends on the context.

• Is the reference to a group of people who speak the Spanish language? Hispanic is appropriate.
• Is the reference to a geographic grouping of people? Latin American is appropriate.

Want to learn more?

• This Hispanic Executive article describes the most inclusive terms to use when referring to a group of people with Latin American roots
• A great comic by Terry Blas that describes the complexities of Hispanic and Latin American heritage.