Only 4% of Latinos use the term 'Latinx' but awareness has almost doubled in the last five years

Back in January, a study by Collage Group provided insights into the major trends concerning how people with Latin American heritage feel about the various terms used to identify them. According to the survey, conducted exclusively with people of Spanish-speaking Latin American origin for this portion, the preferred term was "Hispanic" (35%) over "Latino" (21%).

However, there's another term that's been gaining popularity in recent years, one that emphasizes gender neutrality: "Latinx". The term has been championed by academics, activists and entertainers as an alternative to gendered words like Latino but, as a new Pew Research study reveals, the use of the label among the demographic still lags way behind, with only 4% of Latinos use "Latinx" to describe themselves, a figure virtually unchanged since 2019.

The survey also found that 75% of Latinos who are aware of the term believe it should not be used to describe the broader Hispanic or Latino population, an increase from 65% in 2019. Additionally, 36% of those aware of the term view its growing usage as negative, while only 12% see it as positive.

Findings did reveal, however, that awareness of the term "Latinx" among U.S. Latinos has significantly increased, with 47% of Latino adults claiming they have heard of it, nearly doubling from 23% in 2019.

Awareness for the word did vary significantly across demographic groups. College graduates (74%), lesbian, gay, or bisexual adults (67%), and younger adults aged 18 to 29 (60%) are more likely than the general Latino population to be familiar with the term yet no major Latino demographic subgroup shows a majority preference for using "Latinx."

The rising awareness and the associated controversies have led to efforts to ban the term in some states. For instance, in 2023, Arkansas became the first state in the country prohibit the use of "Latinx" in state government documents.

Overall, most U.S. Latinos continue to prefer the traditional terms "Hispanic" or "Latino," with 81% favoring these labels. Only 3% express a preference for "Latinx" or "Latine," although 24% of those who use "Latinx" personally prefer it for describing the population as a whole.