as such because they developed from Latin,spread by the Roman Empire. Fast forward tothe 1850s, when French economist MichelChevalier was credited with the first use of theterm “Amerique Latine,” which translates fromFrench to “Latin America,” to distinguishbetween people colonized by Europeancountries of Latin descent, including Spain andPortugal, versus those colonized by NorthernEuropean, or Anglo-Saxon countries, such as16England and France. All that to say, the originsof Latin and Latino refer to geography throughthe lens of colonialism.Latino is used to describe a person thatdescends from a Latin American country. Useof the term was spurred by rejection of theSpanish rule so evident in the word “Hispanic”and the desire for indication of independence of17Latin American countries. However, thisnotion disregards the European traces of anyword derived from the stem “Latin-.” The termLatino, more often used in the United States,should not be confused with Latin American,that describes someone who lives in a LatinAmerican country.What about Latinx? By this point in time,anyone who’s seen the internet has come acrossnewer, gender neutral terms such as Latin@,Latinx, Latine, and Chicane (American bornperson with Mexican descent). The terms“Latinx/e,” and “Chicanx/e,” are ethnicdescriptions that include folks who do notidentify with the gender binary and have LatinAmerican roots. Many argue that, in the Spanishlanguage, Latino already accounts for allgenders. However, Spanish is a gendered16 Origin of Everything. “Why Do We Say "Latino"?” Youtube, 23 July 2020,www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQPAJ-2LsMY.17 Simón, Yara. “Latino, Hispanic, Latinx, Chicano: The History Behind theTerms.” History, A&E Television Networks, 16 Sept. 2020,www.history.com/news/hispanic-latino-latinx-chicano-background.language that uses the masculine form inumbrella terms. By using the masculine form ofa word as the umbrella term, the Spanishlanguage has caused the erasure of womxn andnon-binary folks. Gendered terms like Latinoare not inclusive and should not be used whenreferring to large audiences, in order to ensureeveryone is addressed and folks aren’tmisgendered. Some argue that the “x” in Latinxbreaks Spanish conventions and anglicizes thelanguage in a negative way. However, LatinAmerican citizens may use the ungenderedending of an “e,” already existent in thelanguage, rather than an x to flow better in their18native tongue of Spanish.If you are not familiar Spanishconventions or with gender neutral terms, theseseemingly infinite combinations of letters mightseem confusing and intimidating at first. Andthat is completely understandable. Changes inlanguage can be stressful or overwhelming tokeep up with, but it is important to rememberthat language is a social construct. It is everchanging and does not need to adhere to rules orregulations. We saw this decades ago in theevolution from Hispanic to Latino. Themovement for Latinx/e/@ is simply ourgeneration’s new wave of seeking moreaccurate, more inclusive terms for our people.However, we should acknowledge that as longas our terms include “Latin,” they will include areference to colonialism. With this in mind,language is ours to mold and evolve, torepresent and empower.Will we see more terms for our people in ourlifetime? What should they look like? ◻18 Slemp, Katie. “Latino, Latina, Latin@, Latine, and Latinx: Gender InclusiveOral Expression in Spanish .” Western Graduate & Postdoctoral Studies, 27Aug. 2020, ir.lib.uwo.ca/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=9794&context=etd.9
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