A national celebration to honor the history, culture, and influence of those who came from Spain, Latin America, and the Caribbean.

Hispanic Heritage Month has become a big celebration in the U.S. For the last 40 years, Hispanics across the country have commemorated this month with pride and joy, highlighting the importance of diversity.

What is Hispanic Heritage Month?
It is a national celebration to honor past generations’ history, culture, and influence from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central and South America.

The celebration began in 1968 under the administration of President Lyndon Johnson as the Hispanic Heritage Week. Years later, President Ronald Reagan proposed extending the commemoration to one month, and it became law on August 17, 1988, officially designated for the 30 days between the 15th. September and October 15th as National Hispanic Heritage Month.

It begins in the middle of the month because September 15th marks the anniversary of the independence of five countries: Costa Rica, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemala.

It is followed by Mexico’s Independence Day, on September 16th and Chile’s, on September 18th. Another important date that falls within these 30 days is the “Dia de la Raza” on October 12.

What does Hispanic mean?
While many people use LatinX (or Latino (a)) and Hispanic interchangeably, these two words mean different things. A Hispanic person is a descendant of a Spanish-speaking country. LatinX refers to someone from Latin America or descendant of a Latin American country.

One person may be Hispanic and Latino, but not all Latinos are Hispanic. Brazilians, for example, are LatinX, but their mother tongue is not Spanish. On the other hand, not all Hispanics are LatinX. Spaniards consider themselves Hispanic, but not LatinoX, as they are part of the European Union.

What’s the Hispanic population in the United States?
Pew Research Center says the U.S. Hispanic Population is the Second Largest Ethnic Group in rapid growth after Asians. ACCORDING TO THE CENSUS BUREAU, the U.S. Hispanic population as of the year 2020 totaled 62.1 million. Hispanics make up 18.7% of the total U.S. population.

How to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month?
People take advantage of this celebration to show the importance of Hispanics in the United States. To do this, support your local Hispanic charities, eat food from any of the celebrated countries, learn from their cultures, and honor influential Hispanics who have impacted society.