By: Daniel Nardini
Here is a fact. More Latinos in the United States are registering themselves as Amerindians. An Amerindian is a native indigenous person who was born into a culture that has been part of the Americas since time immemorial. Such indigenous peoples of the Americas include the Nahuas (descendants of the Aztecs), the Quechua (descendants of the Incas), the Zapotecs, the Mayans, etc. Many immigrants from Latin America claim they have no European ancestry at all and that they know little or no Spanish (or Portuguese).
This trend of calling themselves indigenous is growing. Latinos who either immigrated to the United States or who were born and raised here are now labeling themselves as indigenous peoples of the Americas. Others are calling themselves mixed race but closer to indigenous than anything else. The term “Latino” has been applied very loosely in so many ways in the United States, and this term is not always seen as accurate. The term “Latino,” like Hispanic, refers more to someone who can trace their ancestry back to Spain or Portugal or maybe even Italy and France. A person from Argentina will not see themselves as the same as a person from a Mayan community in Guatemala.
Interestingly, a person who immigrated from Argentina or Uruguay will see themselves as strictly of European origin. Most of the people who were born and raised in these two countries had ancestry that came for the most part from Europe. In parts of Central and South America you will find people whose ancestry is mixed or totally Amerindian. The number of Amerindians who immigrated to the United States has grown considerably. In 2000, there were 400,000 immigrants from Latin America who identified themselves as Amerindian. Today, that number is 1.2 million.
The point that must be made is that contrary to popular American myths, people from Latin America, whom we call “Latinos,” are not and never were of one ethnic or racial group. And like the United States, immigrants from Latin America do not all speak the same language nor believe in one religion. Latin America is a mosaic of so many different peoples and cultures, and this is reflected in the “Latino” communities in the United States as well.
Latino or Indigenous?
By: Daniel Nardini
Here is a fact. More Latinos in the United States are registering themselves as Amerindians. An Amerindian is a native indigenous person who was born into a culture that has been part of the Americas since time immemorial. Such indigenous peoples of the Americas include the Nahuas (descendants of the Aztecs), the Quechua (descendants of the Incas), the Zapotecs, the Mayans, etc. Many immigrants from Latin America claim they have no European ancestry at all and that they know little or no Spanish (or Portuguese).
This trend of calling themselves indigenous is growing. Latinos who either immigrated to the United States or who were born and raised here are now labeling themselves as indigenous peoples of the Americas. Others are calling themselves mixed race but closer to indigenous than anything else. The term “Latino” has been applied very loosely in so many ways in the United States, and this term is not always seen as accurate. The term “Latino,” like Hispanic, refers more to someone who can trace their ancestry back to Spain or Portugal or maybe even Italy and France. A person from Argentina will not see themselves as the same as a person from a Mayan community in Guatemala.
Interestingly, a person who immigrated from Argentina or Uruguay will see themselves as strictly of European origin. Most of the people who were born and raised in these two countries had ancestry that came for the most part from Europe. In parts of Central and South America you will find people whose ancestry is mixed or totally Amerindian. The number of Amerindians who immigrated to the United States has grown considerably. In 2000, there were 400,000 immigrants from Latin America who identified themselves as Amerindian. Today, that number is 1.2 million.
The point that must be made is that contrary to popular American myths, people from Latin America, whom we call “Latinos,” are not and never were of one ethnic or racial group. And like the United States, immigrants from Latin America do not all speak the same language nor believe in one religion. Latin America is a mosaic of so many different peoples and cultures, and this is reflected in the “Latino” communities in the United States as well.