The proper use of the terms Hispanic and Latino has become confusing to many Americans who utilize the terms interchangeably without really understanding their history and meaning. Hispanic is actually a term created for census purposes in the early 1970’s and originally referred to anyone from a Spanish speaking nation. This would have lumped Spain and Equatorial Guinea with Mexico and Argentina. Latino was originally a contraction of the phrase “Latin American” which is generally considered to be just Central America, but quickly grew to include anyone who spoke Spanish. Technically, “Latino” should refer to or at least include Italy and a number of other European countries and languages since it is referring to linguistic descent from Latin.

While it is generally considered acceptable in our society to use Latino and Hispanic interchangeably, some groups have distinct preferences that should be respected and most prefer to reference their nation of origin, such as “Guatemalan”, or “Argentinian”. Many persons may feel insulted if they are referred to by the labels Hispanic or Latino if they were born in the US and consider themselves to be Americans first. 

The use of the term Hispanic causes discomfort among many when it is used to group persons by race when it includes persons of a variety of different races. A Hispanic might be a person who has blond hair and blue eyes, people of American Indian descent or the descendants of Africans. There are over 20 countries that can be referred to as Hispanic with populations that vary widely in racial. economic  and cultural make up. 

In Latin America, the term “Hispano” is used to describe those directly descended of the Spanish conquerors who now make up the economic elite in many nations. This term can be seen as an insult to those whose ancestors were subjugated by the Spanish conquistadors and feel that they now have no relation to the Spanish people. These people frequently prefer the terms Latino or Latina since the use of the term to describe themselves with these terms was indigenous. There is the added advantage that the terms give the gender of the individual who is being described. 

During the most recent American Census (2000 & 2010), the Census Bureau has allowed individuals to describe themselves based on nation of origin or through use of the terms “Spanish”, “Hispanic”, or “Latino/Latina” based on preference. This reflects the confusion and that many people feel about these terms - in Central and South America people are known by their nationality, a person is Peruvian or Panamanian and may not self-identify with other descriptions.  We might as readily refer to them as “Americans” since they come from nations that are on the continents of North and South America.