# Latinx (Your thoughts on the term) **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [April 5, 2022, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latinx-your-thoughts-on-the-term/962358 "2022-04-05T23:03:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![DPRK](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4491bb/32.png) [@DPRK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPRK)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2022, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latinx-your-thoughts-on-the-term/962358/82 "2022-04-10T21:57:13Z")
When speaking Spanish, you can talk about “latinos” and, e.g., “la gente latina”, “la población latina” and it is the same word, despite the morphological differences (putting aside for the moment questions of whether it is cool to refer to lump together peruanos, mexicanos, etc. as “latinos”). This nuance may be lost on English speakers, who, understandably, then seek a single gender-neutral word, which is not always going to be so easy in English any more than it would be in Spanish. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2022, 2:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latinx-your-thoughts-on-the-term/962358/83 "2022-04-11T02:44:48Z")
Personally, I think it’s silly, but as I’m not Latina, it’s not really impacting me all that much. I guess if someone wants to use it, fine, whatever, but a big movement to make it the official term for good, (which I haven’t seen) would be stupid and doomed to failure. But, at least it’s not “folx”. For the life of me, I cannot understand the point of that, unless it’s just slang like “bux” or “flix”. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2022, 9:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latinx-your-thoughts-on-the-term/962358/84 "2022-04-11T09:11:20Z")
> [@HMS\_Irruncible](#): > > It’s so amusing to me that on this very board, if you start a thread bemoaning the loss of a word to slang or other natural erosion, people will crawl out of the woodwork to attack the evils of prescriptivism. Yet when it comes to “Latinx”, all that easy-breezy descriptivism goes right out the window. We’re to speak as the academy has decided we must speak, and to hell with how native Spanish speakers actually use _their_ language. When has this ever actually happened on this board? The opinions here seem to run the gamut from “It’s the dumbest thing ever,” or, “it’s dumb, but no big deal if people want to use it for themselves.” Where have you ever seen anyone on this board demand that someone use “Latino”? ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2022, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latinx-your-thoughts-on-the-term/962358/85 "2022-04-11T13:34:13Z")
Is “cis” sort of an opposite situation? I’m not sure who coined the term but my understanding is that the context was transgender issues. I’m not aware of a lot of “cis” people eager to use that term. I do not have the impression that it is a desired descriptor by “cis” people. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2022, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latinx-your-thoughts-on-the-term/962358/86 "2022-04-11T13:46:24Z")
> [@HMS\_Irruncible](#): > > . Yet when it comes to “Latinx”, all that easy-breezy descriptivism goes right out the window. We’re to speak as the academy has decided we must speak, and to hell with how native Spanish speakers actually use _their_ language. As said above, I don’t think that is this board culture at all, unless you are deliberately trying to misread it. Most of the posts in this thread seem to come down to describing how the word is used, in what contexts/venues it seems to be used, and how, at least at the moment, the target groups that the term is supposed to cover don’t seem to have strongly adopted the term for themselves. That apprears to be a textbook descriptivist approach. My own post says I don’t see this term catching on, but I’ll use be curious to watch it and see how it develops. If that’s not descriptivism, I don’t know what is. Out of common politeness, I will use the term if asked, just like I’m not going to call someone “Bob” when they ask me to use “Robert” instead. Nor do I insist others use the term “Latinx,” nor do I see others in this thread saying one must. ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2022, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latinx-your-thoughts-on-the-term/962358/87 "2022-04-11T13:46:28Z")
I was watching a show (originally aired on ABC, I think) about the Spielberg _West Side Story_ where the white people used “Latinx” (which was pronounced “Latinex”, which to me sounds like the name of a 1940s brand of leather furniture polish). The actual Puerto Ricans - not so much (DeBose described herself as a “Latina”). I’ll go with whatever people prefer, but I’m not seeing a strong move to “Latinx” at the moment among the people to whom the term would apply. ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2022, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latinx-your-thoughts-on-the-term/962358/88 "2022-04-11T14:21:07Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > Out of common politeness, I will use the term if asked, just like I’m not going to call someone “Bob” when they ask me to use “Robert” instead. Nor do I insist others use the term “Latinx,” nor do I see others in this thread saying one must. But what if you are in a group of non-Latins, and discussing something related to Latins? You use the word Latino, and some non-Latin corrects you. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2022, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latinx-your-thoughts-on-the-term/962358/89 "2022-04-11T14:26:19Z")
Whoops mis-read. I use whatever term is preferred by the group I’m conversing with. No skin off my back. ---
**Author:** ![ShadowFacts](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shadowfacts/32/2934_2.png) [@ShadowFacts](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ShadowFacts)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2022, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latinx-your-thoughts-on-the-term/962358/90 "2022-04-11T14:38:21Z")
> [@HMS\_Irruncible](#): > > Nobody has ever been confused about this until a handful of academics made their own prescriptive decision to fix what’s “wrong” with Spanish. Cite, please. We’ve seen this handful of “academics” (or elites or activists) mentioned several times in this thread. Who are these nefarious people ruining the Spanish language? ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2022, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latinx-your-thoughts-on-the-term/962358/91 "2022-04-11T14:51:32Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > Whoops mis-read. I use whatever term is preferred by the group I’m conversing with. No skin off my back. So if you happen to find yourself in a group of racist bigots? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2022, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latinx-your-thoughts-on-the-term/962358/92 "2022-04-11T14:53:47Z")
Then I won’t use the word that is commonly acknowledged as racist or bigoted. ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2022, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latinx-your-thoughts-on-the-term/962358/93 "2022-04-11T14:59:21Z")
Aww - you might hurt someone’s feelings! 😉 ---
**Author:** ![ISiddiqui](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/97f17d/32.png) [@ISiddiqui](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ISiddiqui)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2022, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latinx-your-thoughts-on-the-term/962358/94 "2022-04-11T15:11:49Z")
> [@Shalmanese](#): > > If you don’t like Latinx, then propose a better solution and I’m down with it. Hasn’t that already been done with the term: Latine, as discussed above in this thread? ---
**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2022, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latinx-your-thoughts-on-the-term/962358/95 "2022-04-11T15:27:16Z")
> [@Dinsdale](#): > > But what if you are in a group of non-Latins, and discussing something related to Latins? You use the word Latino, and some non-Latin corrects you. I would be happy to politely give them a brief explanation of why I choose not to use the word. And at that point I would expect them to just accept that I use Latino. It’s not like I jump in to correct people for using Latinx. Not that I’ve heard anyone say Latinx in conversation. ---
**Author:** ![HMS\_Irruncible](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hms_irruncible/32/7394_2.png) [@HMS\_Irruncible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HMS_Irruncible)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2022, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latinx-your-thoughts-on-the-term/962358/96 "2022-04-11T19:22:43Z")
> [@ShadowFacts](#): > > We’ve seen this handful of “academics” (or elites or activists) mentioned several times in this thread. Who are these nefarious people ruining the Spanish language? Are you suggesting the term arose organically from native Spanish use? Because I think everyone pretty much agrees that didn’t happen. That means someone contrived it. Nobody knows exactly who was the “patient zero” of this particular epidemic, but Wikipedia suggests that its earliest appearances all come from academic authors, institutions, and listservs: [origins of Latinx](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Latinx#Origins) ---
**Author:** ![ShadowFacts](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shadowfacts/32/2934_2.png) [@ShadowFacts](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ShadowFacts)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2022, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latinx-your-thoughts-on-the-term/962358/97 "2022-04-11T19:55:02Z")
> [@HMS\_Irruncible](#): > > Are you suggesting the term arose organically from native Spanish use? Because I think everyone pretty much agrees that didn’t happen. That means someone contrived it. I’m not suggesting anything, because I don’t know where it originated, which is why I asked for a cite. All I’ve seen in this thread to date is unfounded assertions, which may or may not be true. So thanks for the cite, I will check it out right now! ---
**Author:** ![Chingon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chingon/32/17645_2.png) [@Chingon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chingon)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2022, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latinx-your-thoughts-on-the-term/962358/98 "2022-04-11T19:59:32Z")
Is the implication that Latinos and Latinas in academia aren’t real enough Latinos and Latinas? Or were they tricked into it? ---
**Author:** ![HMS\_Irruncible](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hms_irruncible/32/7394_2.png) [@HMS\_Irruncible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HMS_Irruncible)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2022, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latinx-your-thoughts-on-the-term/962358/99 "2022-04-11T20:33:54Z")
The implication, as I said, is that it’s an academic contrivance. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2022, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latinx-your-thoughts-on-the-term/962358/100 "2022-04-11T20:44:27Z")
How about _Latínoa_, pronounced La-TEEN-wa ? (pronunciation analogous to quinoa?) ---
**Author:** ![HMS\_Irruncible](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hms_irruncible/32/7394_2.png) [@HMS\_Irruncible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HMS_Irruncible)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2022, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latinx-your-thoughts-on-the-term/962358/101 "2022-04-11T21:00:38Z")
> [@Senegoid](#): > > How about _Latínoa_ , pronounced La-TEEN-wa ? Why _anything_? Spanish already works as it is. If we are collectively decided that this problem _must_ be solved, that we’re too good to use the same words used by the people we’re describing, how about simply “Latin?” i.e. “I am Latin” or “the Latin people”. There is precedent for it. It doesn’t conflict with any other usage of “Latin people”. There is the cultural hint of “Latin America” which nobody seems to confuse with the former Roman empire. And there’s no real chance somebody will misunderstand it as “I am the Latin language itself.” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latinx-your-thoughts-on-the-term/962358.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latinx-your-thoughts-on-the-term/962358.md?page=6)