Information AboutChicano |
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, July 1972. Photograph by Danny Lyon .]] THE TERM ''CHICANO'' Etymology The origin of the word is debatable.Mexican researcher Villar Raso traces the origin to 1930s and 1940s California. "the inability of native Nahuatl speakers from Morelos state to refer to themselves as ''Mexicanos,'' and instead spoke of themselves as ''Mesheecanos,'' in accordance with the pronunciation rules of their language." The pronunciation was met with derision by settled Mexican Americans, who exaggerated the sound to mock the recently-arrived. In both cases, the term and its pronunciation are analogous to the Nahuatl word '' Mexica ''.2 An alternate etymology holds that the conversion of the pronunciation of the "x" in ''Mexicano'' was converted to or as either a term of endearment or of derisiveness. One theory supported by a noted labor economist in Los Angeles, California describes the term "chicano" as a 1950's invention of the Federal Census Bureau to collectively describe any person of Latin American descent living in the United States. ''Chicamo'' eventually became ''chicano,'' which, unlike ''chicamo,'' reflects the grammatical conventions of Spanish-language ethno- and demonyms, such as ''americano,'' ''castellano,'' or ''peruano.'' Meanings The term's meanings are highly subjective but usually consist of one or more of the following elements: Slur |
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