Vato

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Vato (also Bato) is Chicano slang equivalent to "man", "dude", pal, or brother. It can also be used to refer to a fellow gang member. According to the Chicano poet Luis Alberto Urrea, the word originated in Pachuco slang of the 1940s, and is derived from "the once-common friendly insult chivato, or goat. It had a slightly unacceptable air to it, which the Locos and Weesas of the Chuco world enjoyed. They were able to take the sting out of racism by calling themselves a bunch of names assimilated 'good Mexicans' didn't like."

The bato loco, ("crazy dude", "cool guy") is someone who is "fully immersed in la vida loca" ("the crazy life"). According to Rafaela Castro[citation needed], "He may be a gang member, a drug user, or just an entertaining street person". Some scholars have characterized the bato loco as an archetype in Chicano culture.

[edit] See also

[edit] Sources

  • Castro, Rafaela G. Chicano Folklore: A guide to the folktales, traditions, rituals and religions practices of Mexican Americans. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2000. ISBN 0-19-514639-5
  • Urrea, Luis Alberto and José Galvez. Vatos. El Paso: Cinco Puntos Press, 2000. ISBN 0-938317-52-0
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