Are Brazilians Latinos, Hispanics or que?
At a business luncheon, I was casually asked by a colleague if Brazilians were considered Hispanic or Latinos. I knew we were not Hispanic because the term is tied to language. Latino, I thought would be a little more accurate since it was more of a geographical reference. At the end of that 10 second delay, I chose what I thought was appropriate and said South American. I didn’t want to break it down any further fearing a two hour diatribe. I was really more interested in getting at the lobster ravioli on my plate.
Sitting next to me was my friend Kaila Wijdenbosch (smooches dahling) who is from Surinam. She gave me a look as if to say I’d done well in my response. I knew she would appreciate my efforts since she is also from a non-Spanish speaking country in South America. The truth is that if you ask any Brazilian which term is correct they would simply tell you they are…well…BRAZILIAN.
Out of curiosity, I revisited Webster’s and Encarta so see how they are defining the following terms:
Hispanic: derives from the latin word for “Spain”, referring to Spanish speaking peoples in North and South America and Spain.
Latino (or Latin): refers to persons or communities of Latin-American origin.
South/Latin American: peoples of the Americas south of the United States especially those speaking Spanish, Portuguese and French.
In case you were wondering…
Luso: is the term describing Portuguese language and culture. It derives from the words “Lusitan” or “Lusitania”, the ancient Roman name for Portugal.
Here is some political correctness stuff if you must…
100% correct: Brazilian, Brazilian-American, South American
Acceptable: Latin-American (as a geographical indicator)
Not!: Hispanic (relating to Spanish language and culture)
Duh: Spanish, Spanish-American
But seriously folks, the important thing to remember here is that we are human and love to party just like the rest of you.
Beijos (kisses)!
thank you for shedding light on that subject Xica. – Xica West Oak Lane
Thanks for letting me in on this. I must admit I often find myself at a loss for words on the subject. I hope you don’t mind if I use this in my own diatribe.-Zuri
Hi, the language of Brasil has nothing to do with being latino or not. Yes brazilians ethnicity are latino, only because the country is in latin america.Also Brasil have alot of words that is similar to spanish .I’m brazilian and all the brazilians I know don’t get offended when they are called latinos!Brazil’s location it shows that Brasil is a latin american country. Brazil has alot of similarity that other latin american country do.Yes I’m Brazilian,and I’m not ashmed to be a latina either!!!
Brasil after all is the largest country in latin america.
In response to Marianna…
First, thank you for your post. I appreciate you taking the time to comment.
Topics like this are always touchy and we all have an opinion. I do hope you are not assuming that I have some shame in being Latina. This is not the case. I understand that geographically I am part of Latin-America no matter what language I speak and that this would make me Latina.
I don’t think there is such a thing as a Latino ethnicity as you refer to in your comments. Perhaps you meant that our culture is Latino?
I just want you to consider this: although French Guiana(part of the European Union), Guyana(formally British Guyana and culturally associates with English speaking Caribbean countries) and Dutch speaking Suriname(has a 37% East Indian and 31% creole population)are Latin-American countries geographically, do you think they consider themselves Latino? It is interesting don’t you think?
The fact that someone had to ask me the question of what we, Brazilians are considered points to a bit of misinformation about the terms Hispanic and Latino. This is what I was highlighting in my post colored by my own experience.
I meant ethnecity as a culture.I know that you have different opinions.I have my own.Yes I was born in Brasil, but in my family there are mixed nationalities.That is another reason why I call myself latina too.
I hear you and respect your opinion Marianna. This is what is wonderful about blogging. Everyone has an opportunity to be heard.
Um abraço amigável.
Marrianna dear,
Brazilians are not LATINOS. They are Latin Americans. ‘Latin American’ and ‘Latino’ are not synonyms.
Julia,
Thank you for your comments. So glad to know someone out there understands what I am trying to convey. It’s an interesting subject and a touchy one at that.
Hi. i love the topic, good job. interesting topic here. me 2 have mixed nationalities, i’m sure that all brazilians have it different cultures, but i have brazlians n colombians in my family. i’m proud 2 b part of both.
Kari,
Thanks for the comment. It is a very interesting topic. Yes. You should be proud of all that you are. I too have a mixed background. My father’s family is Syrian-Lebanese and Portuguese. I have Japanese-Brazilian and Dutch-Brazilian cousins. So when I get together with my family it is a blast. The world is full of beautiful colors and people.
LATINO ……………
“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”.[5] 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:[6]
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
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.”[7]
Neither term refers to a race, as a person of Latino or Hispanic ethnicity can be of any race.[8][4]
Note that Latino as officially defined in the United States includes neither Brazilian Americans nor Haitian Americans, although Brazil is a Latin American country, and Haiti is often considered one as well. However, neither country is of “Spanish culture or origin”, as stipulated in the definition.[4]
SOOOO……………….
-Spain can be hispanic and latin but not latino.
-Any country in the Americas that speaks spanish is Hispanic or Latin (or refer to themselves as latino)
-Brasil and Portugal can be latin but not latino and defenitly not hispanic
LATIN ……………..
The expansion of the Roman Empire spread Latin throughout Europe, and, eventually, Vulgar Latin began to dialectize, based on the location of its various speakers. Vulgar Latin gradually evolved into a number of distinct Romance languages, a process well underway by the 9th century. These were for many centuries only oral languages, Latin still being used for writing.
For example, Latin was still the official language of Portugal in 1296, after which it was replaced by Portuguese. Many of these “daughter” languages, including Italian, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Romanian, Catalan, and Romansh, flourished, the differences between them growing greater and more formal over time.”
SOOOO ………………
– You can use the word “LATIN” to refer to anyone from Latin ‘Europe’ – [Portugal, Spain, Italy, France] or Latin America – ['Central America' (except the Canary Islands) and 'South America']
LATIN ……………..
The expansion of the Roman Empire spread Latin throughout Europe, and, eventually, Vulgar Latin began to dialectize, based on the location of its various speakers. Vulgar Latin gradually evolved into a number of distinct Romance languages, a process well underway by the 9th century. These were for many centuries only oral languages, Latin still being used for writing.
For example, Latin was still the official language of Portugal in 1296, after which it was replaced by Portuguese. Many of these “daughter” languages, including Italian, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Romanian, Catalan, and Romansh, flourished, the differences between them growing greater and more formal over time.”
SOOOO ………………
– You can use the word “LATIN” to refer to anyone from Latin ‘Europe’ – [Portugal, Spain, Italy, France] or Latin America – ['Central America' (except the Canary Islands) and 'South America'] }}}
Thais,
Thank you for the definitions. I appreciate you taking the time to share with all of us.
people that r born in Spain r called Spanish.
Yup.
Hey my personal opinion is that every brazilian has different opinions on specially on ethinicity,cuz the country itself is mixed with different cultures,most brazilian are mixed with different nationalities.The country has everything.Not only portuguese emigrated to Brasil, but also did the russians,italians,danish,germans,dutch,spain,also other european countries that I don’t know the name.From Asia,Japan, Koreans,Chinese,also Africa.Also a few countries from latin america that are border with Brazil.Some people may say that they are brazilian/Italian/Portuguese, or Brazilian/Portuguese/Spanish,or Brazilian/African/Dutch.I guess it depends really on the individual point of view,cuz every brazilain has a different view.
May all the brazilian – spanish stand up… I’m brazilian and spanish, cuz my family origin are from Brasil and Spain.
Yes, I was always under the impression, as someone else commented above, that you were Latin based on either being from one of the Latin European countries or being from Latin America. I wouldn’t consider Brazilians Hispanic, but Latino (being from Latin America).
correcting. Brazil, is not hispanic at all. Brazil is home of the biggest japanese population outside of japan, the biggest italian population outside Italy, the second biggest german population outside of Germany followed by USA, (there are lots of brazilians cities that the population is made up of 75% to 97% germans) so i think is not fair calling these people latinos or hispanic, Brazilian people are mainly white.
55% white and the rest are made up of mixed black and white, blacks, and asians, natives make UP less than 0,3% of Brazils population… Brazil is a multiculture country, so they may be classified as latinos just because they speack a latin laguage, but its just weird calling german, japanese, italian, or somebody else “hispanic” its is an absurd. LETS FIGHT AGAINST THE IGNORANCE…….LOL
i dont know why people are so stupid, go read a book before u afirm something.
Brasil is mostly comprised of people of Portuguese , native brasiiians , spanish and Africans.
Brasilians of African Ancestry comprises around 75% of the population.
Lets stop hiding or ignoring ,the fact that Brasil is a Non White country,.
Germans, italians, japanese and so forth ,are well represented and the mostly live in the south of the country .
Many of these * imigros * mixed through generations and only a few remain purely white.
We Brazilians are latinos 100%
Immigrants came from all over the world to SouthAmerica or LatinoAmerica
Long live to all latinos!!!!!
Mostly everyone here is very educated about their opinion of “Brazilians”, let me start out by saying, this is a very diverse subject as many Brazilians see themselves differently.
For the most part, we consider ourselves latino(Latin).. We’re from Latin America, even though the term which is the same in spanish may be used by others to describe people from a Spanish decent, and lots of times they include Brazilians in that manner.
Brazil is a very diverse country and because we hold the largest populations of many countries outside that country Brazilians most often than not see themselves differently than most Spanish speak countries, especially since they speak Portuguese, so they themselves might use the term Latino to describe Spanish America.
Overall, in the 21st century people should be characterized only by their Nationality, maybe ethnicity. As people immigrate at a very fast pace trying to characterize them by a broad term can get really tricky.
We are Humans, that is for sure!
So I decided to leave my two cents…
The term Hispanic was coined in the ’70s when the US was trying to find a way to “describe” (or a way to covertly discriminate) the massive amount of Spanish-speaking people now living in the US. At that time it was mainly Puerto Ricans and Mexicans. Many people found that the term was discriminatory and demeaning, setting the groundwork for a better term that was the opposite: Latino. Hence, Latino/Hispanic mainly refers to people of origin FROM colonized Spanish-speaking countries (from the Caribbean, Central and South America) who LIVE in the United States. It is a purely US phenomenon, although it is my understanding many people believe the terms Latinoamericano and Latino are interchangeable.
From that definition I have researched and learned, Brasilians would not be considered Latino per se. They are Latin Americans.
From some work I have read regarding the opinions from Brazilians about the term Latino, most if not all agreed they aren’t Latino, ranging from language differences, cultural differences, etc. But depending on one’s definition, it can range. =]
My parents are Brazilian. Mostly European decent by the looks of it. I do consider myself latin, latina, and even hispanic. A little different than someone who moved here because I was born and raised here. For me it’s not genetic nor historic, more of a cultural thing.