The Difference between the Terms Latino and Hispanic and How They Overlap

Ultimately, experts say, it's about how you self-identify. Mostly.

Oprah Daily, 2022

5 min read

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Learn to correctly use the terms “Hispanic” and “Latino, Latina or Latinx.”

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This Oprah Daily article delivers most of the information you need to avoid embarrassing or possibly offensive references to the ethnicity of people sometimes called Hispanic, Latino or Latina or Latinx, people who are sometimes white, sometimes Black or described in other ways. As writer Samantha Vincenty explains, “It’s complicated.” In the contemporary workplace, where ethnic sensibilities and language about ethnicity can be major issues, you want to avoid inadvertently using offensive language. This article will help anyone – especially managers and senior leaders – avoid errors of ignorance or insensitivity.

Summary

For a microcosm of the controversy regarding the terms “Latino” and “Hispanic,” note the public reaction to the Associated Press’s 2020 guidance on usage.

In 2020, the usually well-regarded AP Stylebook drew outraged feedback when it tweeted definitions of “Latino” and “Hispanic” and explained how to use them. The distinctions are complex and shift often because “race and ethnicity” are not synonymous, though they share certain elements. And both terms can refer to individuals, to groups and to cultures. It’s complex.

Cultural change can aggravate misunderstandings and confuse people from outside groups who plunge in and insist on using their own designations indiscriminately.

Nor are the distinctions always clear even to people who live in cultures with Spanish roots. For example, the daughter of a Puerto Rican married a Filipino-American man. Because of her light complexion and his darker one – plus...

About the Author

Samantha Vincenty is the former senior staff writer at Oprah Daily.

Samantha Vincenty

The Difference between the Terms Latino and Hispanic and How They Overlap

Ultimately, experts say, it's about how you self-identify. Mostly.

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Summary

For a microcosm of the controversy regarding the terms “Latino” and “Hispanic,” note the public reaction to the Associated Press’s 2020 guidance on usage.

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