[Ads-l] Can We Please Stop Using =?utf-8?Q?=E2=80=98Latinx=E2=80=99=3F_?=Thanx. | by Kurly Tlapoyawa | Human Parts

[Laurence Horn]

> On Aug 19, 2020, at 2:50 PM, Salikoko S. Mufwene <mufw at UCHICAGO.EDU> wrote:
> 
> Larry, one thing that prompted me to share the article with the list is that, according to Tlapoyawa, "Latinx" was used as a substitute for "Chicana" and "Chicano." My understanding is that the denotation of "Latinx" is now much, much more inclusive, applying to people from the geographical area called "Latin America." For some, that also includes former French colonies and current French overseas departments, as "the Americas" sometimes include the Caribbean islands. So, it appears to me that the inclusiveness of "x" in "Latinx" now also applies to diversity of national origins.
> 
> Another relevant fact is that you asked yesterday, if I remember well, whether the label applies to the Portuguese and Spanish people.

Yes, and I was also wondering about applicability to Brazilians.  My impression is yes on Brazilians, maybe no on Iberians, while we would be hard-pressed to defend the position that Spaniards are not “Hispanic”. Chicano/a was always specifically used for Mexican-American(s) (not Mexican(s) per se) when I lived in California in the 1960s-70s, but it may have broadened since then.  If not, “Latinx” would clearly be a superordinate category label, not a substitute one.  

I hadn’t realized that “Latinx" is more likely to encompass those from (former) French colonial domains than “Latino/a” are.  Not for the first time it comes down to how to solve for x.  

LH

> The article does not suggest that interpretation but leads Tlapoyawa to deplore neocolonialism (my interpretation) in the choice of the label "Latin," which, from the Chevalier's perspective much earlier, includes not only Portugal and Spain but also France.
> 
> On 8/19/2020 10:54 AM, Laurence Horn wrote:
>> With respect to Sali, it should be stressed that (as he notes) the point of
>> the Medium piece linked to is not at all connected with that of the ADS
>> thread. The former is an objection to the "Latin" part of "Latinx" on
>> etymological grounds, not to the "x" part, which was the focus of the ADS
>> thread. (Nobody in that thread was discussing attitudes toward "Latino" and
>> "Latina", just attitudes toward "Latinx".)  Indeed, the subhead notes the
>> importance of gender inclusivity. Whether Tlapoyawa's objection to the
>> "Latin-" forms is well-taken or not depends on your attitude toward what
>> Mill called the etymological fallacy.
>> 
>> LH
>> 
>> On Wed, Aug 19, 2020 at 12:14 PM Salikoko S. Mufwene <mufw at uchicago.edu>
>> wrote:
>> 
>>> I find this Medium article so relevant to the discussion yesterday about
>>> "Latinx," though its focus is not the same as that on the ADS List.
>>> 
>>> 
>>> https://humanparts.medium.com/can-we-please-stop-using-latinx-thanx-423ac92a87dc
>>> 
>>> --
>>> **********************************************************
>>> Salikoko S. Mufwene                    s-mufwene at uchicago.edu
>>> The Frank J. McLoraine Distinguished Service Professor of Linguistics and
>>> the College
>>> Professor, Committee on Evolutionary Biology
>>> Professor, Committee on the Conceptual & Historical Studies of Science
>>> Professor, Committee on African Studies
>>> Extraordinary Professor, University of Western Cape, 2018-2021
>>> University of Chicago                  773-702-8531; FAX 773-834-0924
>>> Department of Linguistics
>>> 1115 East 58th Street
>>> Chicago, IL 60637, USA
>>> http://mufwene.uchicago.edu/
>>> **********************************************************
>>> 
>>> ------------------------------------------------------------
>>> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
>>> 
>> ------------------------------------------------------------
>> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
> 
> -- 
> **********************************************************
> Salikoko S. Mufwene                    s-mufwene at uchicago.edu
> The Frank J. McLoraine Distinguished Service Professor of Linguistics and the College
> Professor, Committee on Evolutionary Biology
> Professor, Committee on the Conceptual & Historical Studies of Science
> Professor, Committee on African Studies
> Extraordinary Professor, University of Western Cape, 2018-2021
> University of Chicago                  773-702-8531; FAX 773-834-0924
> Department of Linguistics
> 1115 East 58th Street
> Chicago, IL 60637, USA
> http://mufwene.uchicago.edu/
> **********************************************************
> 
> ------------------------------------------------------------
> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org

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The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org