What does Chicano mean? A Chicano is a person who is Mexican American. In other words, it’s someone of Mexican descent who was born in or now lives in the United States, as in Although Jorge loves living in the United States, he remains a proud Chicano, frequently visiting his Mexican hometown. Chicano is also used as an adjective to describe Mexican American people or things involving them or their culture, as in Rosa loved Chicano food so much that she became a chef and opened a popular Chicano restaurant. Chicano comes from Mexican Spanish, a language that uses gendered nouns. Chicano is the masculine form, while Chicana is the feminine form. Chican@ and Chicanx are sometimes used as gender-neutral forms. As with any term that refers to a person’s identity, it is best to ask the person what term they prefer to identify themselves with. Even if a person fits the dictionary definition of Chicano, they might prefer to be identified by another term, such as Mexican American, American, Mexican, Hispanic, or Latino. Example: The ad campaign was targeted at the city’s large Chicano population, who were proud of their Mexican heritage.
First recorded in 1960–65; from Mexican Spanish, by shortening and alteration of mexicano Mexican ( def. )
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
There are many dedicated figures devoted to Chicano empowerment in America.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2026
Martinez has an impressive roster of his own, having interviewed many stars in the Mexican and Chicano music scenes, from Fuerza Regida to Natalia Lafourcade.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 24, 2026
The classic Chicano film “Zoot Suit” is celebrating its 45th anniversary this year in style.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 18, 2026
They directly inspired his latest book: “The Dreamy Side: Rhythm & Blues and Chicano Culture in 1950s Los Angeles.”
From Los Angeles Times ● May 4, 2026
I was invited to Chicano student meetings and social events sponsored by La Raza.
From "Hunger of Memory" by Richard Rodriguez
Anti-gentrification activists in the United States and Europe have studied Boyle Heights, a cradle of the chicano movement, as a potential model.
From The Guardian ● Oct. 18, 2017
A chicano, Mario Obledo, 46, is Brown's secretary of health and welfare, the highest ranking Mexican-American official in the state government.
From Time Magazine Archive
But, even with some 19% of chicano families below the poverty line, Martinez concedes that a middle class is "clearly emerging."
From Time Magazine Archive
At one chicano fund-raising cocktail party, guests anted up $20,000 for Jerry Brown's re-election campaign.
From Time Magazine Archive
Paying 250 to chicano children," says he, "is an insult to the chicano community.
From Time Magazine Archive
One of the core themes within the documentary is how we as Chicanos view the American Dream: Can we achieve it by being ourselves, or do we have to assimilate?
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 21, 2026
When I first talked with Asco, they spoke a lot about the entire enterprise of Asco and wanting to shift how Chicanos are seen.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 19, 2025
Chicanos have largely dropped Aztlán as an aspirational legend, as the Latino population in the U.S. has diversified.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 16, 2024
“They account for 25% of the national box office by themselves. And we are the most underrepresented population in Hollywood by far. When you consider Mexican Americans and Chicanos, we’re even worse off.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 9, 2024
“Yeah, God forbid you should ever get out of touch with us poor Chicanos up here,” Ernie Maestas laughed, slapping the agent’s shoulder as he went by.
From "The Milagro Beanfield War" by John Nichols
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
