Qué Pasa/Gringo history: The evolution of a word
Tagged: MexicoPosted on: April 19th, 2007“One is that during the Mexican-American war of 1846-1848 U.S. soldiers marching through the deserts of northern Mexico would sing an old ballad, “Green Grow the Rushes, Oh” and because of this Mexicans began identifying the song with Americans, and shortened “green grow” to gringo, in reference to any American or English-speaking Caucasian.
Another explanation is that gringo, an old term meaning “gibberish,” was originally used to describe anyone who could not speak Spanish well.”
Curation from Tomás
Filed Under: 1. Hispanic News, Tomás' Picks
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