Open main menu

Search
Show my notifications

Pocho
 Read in another language

 Watch this page
 Edit
Learn more

This article has multiple issues. Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page.

Pocho (feminine: pocha) is a term used by Mexicans(frequently pejoratively) to

describe Chicanos and those who have left Mexico. Stereotypically, pochos
speak English and lack fluency in Spanish. Among some Mexican Americans, the term
has been embraced to express pride in having both a Mexican and an American
heritage[1] asserting their place in the diverse American culture. The word derives
from the Spanish word pocho, used to describe fruit that has become rotten or
discolored.
UsageEdit
Pochos are usually identified by their use of poorly-spoken Spanish. Code
switching and the use of loanwords is common as is the use of phrases popular in
American culture translated to Spanish, sometimes literally. Code switching often
involves inserting English preposition or objective nouns, such as, "Voy a
irshopping ahora en el supermarket" (I am going shopping now at the supermarket).
Modified loanwords are referred to as "pochismos". Examples
include mopear for trapear (to mop), parquear for estacionar (to park),
or chequear for mirar or verificar (to check, to inspect or to verify). A clear example of
a popular American phrase that has been adopted by people familiar with both
cultures would be Clint Eastwood's famous quote "Make my day", which has been
increasingly used in Spanish as "Hacer mi día."

In general, the word "pocho" can sometimes have these different meanings:

 A Mexican-American who can speak little or no Spanish.

 An American who speaks Spanish and acts "Mexican".
 The Anglicized Spanish spoken by a "Pocho" (known in English as "Spanglish") [2]
 A person who frequently crosses the US-Mexican border and feels at home on both sides of the
border.
 A nickname in Argentina (Pocho or Pocha). For example, the popular president Juan Domingo
Perónwas called "El Pocho" as well as the Argentinian football players Ezequiel Iván
Lavezzi and Federico Insua.
 A 1959 Chicano novel by José Antonio Villarreal.

See alsoEdit
 Pochano

ReferencesEdit
1. ^ Handbook of Hispanic Cultures in the United States: Anthropology, Volume 4 By Nicolás
Kanellos, Thomas Weaver, Claudio Esteva Fábregat (1994) pg.182
2. ^ D'Amore, Anna Maria (2009). Translating Contemporary Mexican Texts: Fidelity to Alterity.
New York: Peter Lang. p. 79. ISBN 978-1-4331-0499-2.

External linksEdit
 Definition of pocho
 "A Note on 'Pochismo'" by William E. Wilson, The Modern Language Journal, Vol. 30, No. 6
(Oct., 1946), pp. 345–346 (Available online at JSTOR - membership required)

Talk

Last edited 12 days ago by an anonymous user

RELATED ARTICLES
 Spanglish
hybrid language
 Caló (Chicano)
 Pochano

Content is available under CC BY-SA 3.0 unless otherwise noted.

 Terms of Use
 Privacy
 Desktop