In the footsteps of the name: the history of Latin America and the Caribbean

The name Latin America began to be used in the 19th century, when the independence movements of the former Spanish and Portuguese colonies ended. Previously, these lands were known as “The Indies” or the “New World.”

However, why was the “New World” called “America”? The origin dates back to the expeditions of Amerigo Vespucci, a Florentine navigator and explorer who accompanied excursions to the northern coasts of South America between 1499 and 1502.

Vespucci embarked on his first expedition in 1499 and although there are doubts about exactly how many expeditions he accompanied to map South America, in various letters and stories he published he referred to this region as the “New World.” These writings were widely disseminated in Europe and aroused the interest of many geographers and cosmographers, who began to represent the new continent on their maps.

One of them was the German Martin Waldseemüller, who in 1507 published a planisphere (map) with the new continent calling it “America”, in honor of Amerigo Vespucci. In this way, the name of the famous Italian explorer was recorded in history.

Once this vast hemisphere was named, its regions began to be differentiated according to the territory corresponding to the English and Spanish empire. In this sense, Anglo-Saxon America included the North and Spanish America included those countries that were under Spanish rule. The use of South America was intended to also include Brazil, which was a Portuguese colony.  

So how did we come to use the name Latin America and the Caribbean to refer to our region?

First, the concept of Latinidad emerged in the 19th century as a way to oppose Anglo-Saxon influence on the American continent. France, which was a country with great political weight in Europe and which supported the liberal and republican struggles of the Latin American people, was the promoter of this idea. This is how a distinction was established between two Americas: Anglo-Saxon America and Latin America.

The name Latin referred to the presence of Latin cultures and languages ​​in the region, that is, those that came from Latin. Such is the case of the Spanish, Portuguese and French languages.

There are different opinions about who was the first to use this term. Some authors attribute it to the Chilean Francisco Bilbao, who mentioned it for the first time in a conference in Paris in 1856. Other studies indicate that in the same year, the Colombian José María Torres Caicedo used it in his poem titled: “The Two Americas.” In this ode, Torres Caicedo defended the independence and unity of Latin American countries against the intervention of the United States. However, the concept of Latin America became popular in 1861, when the French emperor Napoleon III sought to create a sphere of French influence on the American continent, based on the “supposed” cultural affinity between peoples of Latin origin. This idea was rejected by the Latin American countries, which opposed the French intervention and supported the Mexican resistance led by Benito Juárez.

Regarding the “Caribbean”, this has its origin in the indigenous word intimate which means “brave man.” The Caribs were a group of native peoples who inhabited the current Caribbean islands and part of the northern coast of South America. They were characterized by their resistance to Spanish colonization, as well as by their warrior and seafaring culture.

Now, the term Latin America and the Caribbean was consolidated in the 20th century in the context of the creation of various organizations and initiatives for regional cooperation and integration, such as the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), founded in 1948; and the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) in 1973.

As I close this text, I want to emphasize the importance of knowing the origin of the meaning behind the name “Latin America and the Caribbean”, since it allows us to better understand the identity crisis of the region; recognizing that this name is forged among a diversity of historical, social and cultural factors in a framework of interests, tensions and contradictions linked to the desire for external influence. Likewise, I encourage you to delve deeper into the history of our region, since only then can we build a more equitable, supportive and democratic future for all of us who inhabit the region. Abya Yala, becoming the true name of this territory. However, that will be another story...