Voters in several states are casting ballots on Tuesday to determine their Republican and Democrat nominees in several key races, but two big races with almost certain outcomes in each state are the ones

By the late 19th century, the term gringo was applied almost universally to white Americans, and it was well established across Latin America, with apparent origins in Mexico. Yet, the word remained intriguing and ambiguous. More than a century later, the debate over its origins and implications remains unresolved. Where did the word gringo truly come from, what does it actually mean, and why does it still spark controversy?Gringo: A Word That Intrigues and DividesAlexander von Humboldt and Aim Bonpland at the Foot of the Chimborazo, by Friedrich Georg Weitsch, 1806. Source: Smart HistoryIn 1896, as he was about to begin his journey through South America, American journalist and traveler Harry Foster wrote in one of his famous travelogues:Colonel Charles Jeffs, our guide in Honduras, made us understand that it was as gringos, or foreigners, we were thereafter to be designated and disliked.As travelers like Foster and his companions ventured deeper into Latin America, they often wondered what the sobriquet truly meant, what connotations it carried, and, more importantly, what kind of reception they could expect: warm hospitality, indifferent tolerance, or something more hostile?The debate over the terms meaning and origins has persisted for centuries. Where did gringo come from, and why do people still argue about its roots?The Mexican-American War and the LegendsGringos are worse than savages! Unknown artist, 1890. Source: Gutenberg ProjectOne of the most widespread myths (perhaps due to the sheer number of people who believe it) is that the word gringo originated in the 1840s during the Mexican-American War (1846-1847), a conflict that resulted in Mexico losing over half of its territory, including California, New Mexico and parts of other current US states. Even 170 years later, this war remains a fresh wound in Mexican memory.The term gringo was certainly in use right after the war. In 1849, Lieutenant Henry Wise, who wrote under the pen name Harry Gringo, published a novel titled Los Gringos, in which he explained:The word gringo is an epithetand rather a reproachful oneused in California and Mexico to designate the descendants of the Anglo-Saxon race. The definition of the word is somewhat similar to that of greenhorns in modern parlance.During his stay in Mexico, Wise tells us, he was mocked for being a gringo; an inexperienced, naive, and easily ridiculed outsider.Battle of Monterrey. Mexican-American War, by James S. Baillie, ca. 1850. Source: MeisterdrurckeAccording to legend, gringo comes from the phrase Green, go! with two main variations. One theory suggests that since American soldiers wore green uniforms (except they actually wore blue), Mexicans shouted this phrase during the military occupation of their country. Another claim is that green referred to U.S. dollars, though this explanation quickly falls apart because dollar bills as known today did not exist in the 1840s.Furthermore, the word had already appeared in newspapers and books before Wises account. In 1825, two decades before the Mexican-American war, an article in a London newspaper called The Morning Chronicle reported on turmoil in newly independent Mexico. The piece described how protesters in the streets shouted:Death to the gringos who plunder us, and luck to the gachupines (Spaniards) who always treated us like brethren!Barely four years after their declaration of Independence from Spain, Mexicans had apparently changed their minds about their former colonial rulers. But in this early reference, gringo didnt actually refer to Americans, it referred to the British.Spain, the French, and the Origins of GringoPage from an 18th-century Spanish dictionary defining gringo. Source: Google BooksDespite this early Mexican usage, evidence proves that Latin Americans did not actually invent the term gringo. In another article from the same London newspaper, discussing anti-French sentiment in Spain during the French invasion of 1823, Spaniards referred to the invading soldiers as gringos:Those terms of opprobrium, such as gabacho, gringos, feotas, etc., by which the French were denominated in the time of Napoleons invasion (1808), are being applied to them.Further, the term appears in even older sources. A Spanish dictionary published in 1787 explains:Gringos is the name given in Malaga to foreigners who have a certain type of accent that prevents them from easily and naturally pronouncing Castellano [Spanish].Given Mlagas long history under Islamic rule, is it possible that gringo has deeper roots? Could a word like gharb (pronounced greeb with a rolled r), meaning stranger or foreigner in Arabic, have evolved into a similar-sounding term in Andalusian Spanish?Another interesting suggestion is that gringo derives from griego (Spanish for Greek). In much the same way that Romans referred to incomprehensible languages as barbarian, Spaniards may have called anything unintelligible to them Greek. This characterization survives today in the Spanish expression Esto me suena a griego (Sounds Greek to me, nearly matching the English idiom Its all Greek to me).But, how then did griego become gringo? One possibility (this authors particular theory) is that it resulted from a typographical error. Ive found a few cases where 18th- and 19th-century newspapers wrote gringo when they clearly meant griego, for example, when referring to Greek philosophers. Could gringo have originated from a printing mistake?Of course, these theories have their limitations. For instance, to 18th-century Spaniards, the French language was not so incomprehensible as to call them Greek. However, as far as etymology goes, these remain the most plausible explanations.Literature, Cinema, and the Cultural Weight of GringoMovie poster for Duello Nel Texas (Duel in Texas), also called Gringo, unknown artist, 1963. Source: KinoboxA word of caution: the word gringo can be offensive in certain contexts, especially in Mexico, where people stubbornly refuse to call U.S. citizens Americanos, arguing that America and Americans originally referred to the entire continent and their inhabitants, which is true.However, gringo has been used so freely in literature and film that it has largely lost its sting. The laureate Mexican writer Carlos Fuentes titled one of his novels Gringo Viejo (The Old Gringo), and Ennio Morricone produced the song A Gringo Like Me, a proud cowboy anthem, for the 1963 Western film Duello nel Texas.Every man is a liar.Theres just one kind of man who tells the truth,thats a dead man, or a Gringo like me.A Word That Still ResonatesPancho Villa calls gringos to join his army for glory and gold, unknown artist, 1915. Source: Wikimedia CommonsThough its true origins remain in question, its clear that what began in 18th-century Spain as a neutral term for someone with an odd accent became, in the 19th century, a pejorative label for a foreign white invader. By the 20th century, it had come to mean simply American, though its also worth noting that in modern Latin American usage, gringo specifically applies to white people born in the US.Today, the word carries a wealth of cultural meaning.As Harry Foster wrote in A Gringo in Maana-Land (1924):The term gringo, a word of vague origin, once applied with contempt to the American in Mexico, is now used throughout Latin America, without its former opprobrium, to describe any foreigner.Words change over time, and gringo is no exception. It can amuse, offend, or simply describe, depending on who says it and how. In some contexts, it carries an air of casual familiarity, while in others, it is sharpened into an insult. Sometimes, it is used with irony or endearment, and other times, it reflects deep-seated historical tensions.Regardless of its intent, the word has embedded itself in the cultural lexicon, acquiring new shades of meaning with each passing generation. Like the Spanish language that created and reinvented it, gringois a story in motion, a term that changes faces with the times, a mix of prejudice and affection, a spark for legends, and, like any well-told tale, it never stops reinventing itself.

Wikimedia CommonsMalcolm Shabazz, the brilliant but disturbed grandson of Malcolm X.Malcolm Shabazz had a large legacy to live up to. His grandfather, Malcolm X, was one of the most significant and most polarizing figures of the civil rights movement. Though he died long before Shabazz was born, his reputation loomed over the boy from an early age. Indeed, Shabazzs life turned out to be just as controversial as his grandfathers. When he was 12, he intentionally set a fire that led to the death of his grandmother, Betty Shabazz. He spent the next few years in juvenile detention, and he ultimately joined a gang and began dealing drugs.He was later imprisoned for attempted robbery, but upon his release, he seemed to turn his life around. He embarked on a career of activism but it came to a tragic end in 2013.That May, he was traveling through Mexico to draw attention to the rights of Mexican construction workers in the United States. While in Mexico City, he was brutally beaten by waiters after a dispute over a bill. Malcolm Shabazz died at just 28, bringing an end to his dreams of redemption.The Turbulent Early Life Of Malcolm ShabazzMalcolm Shabazz was born on Oct. 8, 1984, to Qubilah Shabazz, one of the daughters of Malcolm X and Betty Shabazz. His life was turbulent from the very beginning. His father wasnt around, and Qubilah never truly settled down, moving young Malcolm from Paris to Los Angeles to New York City. According to The New York Times, three-year-old Shabazz once set fire to his shoes an eerie omen of what was to come.In 1997, 12-year-old Malcolm was sent to live with his grandmother Betty in New York City after he allegedly physically attacked his mother. Despite their disagreements, he was desperate to return to Qubilah, so he began lashing out.John Mathew Smith/Wikimedia CommonsBetty Shabazz, the wife of Malcolm X and grandmother of Malcolm Shabazz.I start acting up, Shabazz told The New York Times in 2003. Being bad, doing anything to get them to send me back to my mother. And nothings working. Then I get the idea to set the fire. On June 1, 1997, he deliberately started a fire in Bettys apartment. She suffered burns to 80 percent of her body and died three weeks later at age 62. I didnt think the whole thing through thoroughly, Malcolm Shabazz later recalled, but she didnt have to run through that fire. There was another way out of the house from her room. I guess what she thought was I was stuck, and she had to run out and get me I did not picture that happening, that she would do that.Francis Specker / Alamy Stock PhotoYoung Malcolm Shabazz at his arraignment in 1997.Shabazz pleaded guilty to manslaughter and arson, and he was sentenced to 18 months in juvenile detention. While incarcerated, the weight of what hed done truly hit him. He would talk to his dead grandmother while sitting in his room, begging for a sign that she forgave him.It never came. From Gang Life To ActivismAfter serving his time in juvenile detention, Malcolm Shabazz was transferred to a series of other youth homes where he was mostly free to do what he wanted. I would leave the campus and sell drugs, he recalled in 2003. Shabazz also joined the Bloods at age 14, and he quickly rose through the ranks thanks to his famous lineage. But in January 2002, he was arrested for attempted robbery and sentenced to three-and-a-half years in prison. Upon his release in 2005, 21-year-old Shabazz racked up several additional charges and spent more time behind bars before deciding to turn his life around. While he still had run-ins with the law for the rest of his life, he began speaking to youth groups about the dangers of drugs and gang life. He made the Hajj to Mecca in 2010. And ultimately, he took up his grandfathers activism.Public DomainMalcolm X speaking at a rally in 1963.In 2010, as reported by Metro Silicon Valley, Shabazz told an interviewer, Like my grandfather, I dont necessarily come from the streets, but I gravitated towards that. But if you look at my life today, its a lot different.The legacy goes on, said Shabazz. They say you can kill the revolutionary, but you cant kill the revolution.Tragically, this would soon prove true not only for Malcolm X but also for Malcolm Shabazz himself.The Murder Of Malcolm ShabazzIn 2013, Shabazz traveled to Mexico to bring attention to construction workers rights. There, he met up with Miguel Surez, a labor activist who had recently been deported from the United States. On the night of May 8, the two men went to a bar in Mexico City near the popular Plaza Garibaldi. They drank around six beers each but when the bill came, it added up to $1,200 in U.S. currency. Shabazz and Surez began arguing with employees about the tab, but the waiters insisted that the amount was correct because theyd also been dancing with women. Unbeknownst to the men, this cost extra much extra.We pretty much got hassled, Surez said, as reported by NPR at the time. A short dude came with a gun.JEDIKNIGHT1970/Wikimedia CommonsMalcolm Shabazz was found beaten in Plaza Garibaldi, a popular tourist location in Mexico City.The employees separated Surez and Shabazz, taking Surez to another room, where he heard a fight break out in the hallway. He managed to escape, but he couldnt find Shabazz. Shortly after, Malcolm Shabazz was found brutally beaten and dumped in the street. His skull, jaw, and ribs had been fractured by a pipe or bat. He was rushed to the hospital, but he succumbed to his injuries on May 9, 2013. He was just 28 years old.Mexican authorities arrested waiters David Hernndez Cruz, Manuel Alejandro Prez de Jess, and Juan Dircio Guzmn in connection with the murder. They were sentenced to 27 years in prison.However, these convictions were later overturned due to a lack of evidence. When the police investigated the bar, they found that the security cameras were turned toward the walls, and there was no footage of the incident. Restaurant employees claimed that Shabazz had not been beaten but rather had jumped from the roof of the building to avoid paying the bill. Official reports allegedly support this version of events but there have long been claims of corruption and a cover-up.In a statement following Shabazzs death, his family praised his kindness, encouragement, and hope for a better tomorrow.Robert Diaz/FindAGraveThe gravestone of Malcolm Shabazz.While critics saw Malcolm Shabazz as a disturbed young man from a controversial family, he rejected that framing of his life.People often describe me as troubled, he told News One in 2012. Im not going to say that Im not. But Im not crazy. I have troubles. A lot of us do. But you need to understand where Im coming from and why I am the way I am.Considering what Ive been through, Shabazz continued, its a miracle that Ive been able to hold it together. Im just trying to find my way.After reading about the life and death of Malcolm Shabazz, go inside the mystery of who really killed Malcolm X. Then, look through these powerful photos from the civil rights movement.The post Inside The Turbulent Life And Death Of Malcolm Shabazz, The Troubled Grandson Of Malcolm X appeared first on All That's Interesting.

Cantieri NarrantiArchaeologists found stucco designs on the ceilings of the house.Students in Italy have stumbled upon an ancient Roman structure right beneath their high schools gym. Situated just minutes from the Colosseum in Rome, the school had apparently been built right atop these ruins. After making this incredible find, the students alerted their history teacher, who then notified officials.Following an archaeological excavation that began in September 2025, the team led by Professor Filippo Coarelli announced in late May that the students had found the ruins of a luxurious house from the mid-second century C.E.The Elite Roman Dwelling Discovered Right Beneath A High School GymIn January 2021, students at Liceo Scientifico Cavour (Cavour Scientific High School) protested the schools plans to extend remote learning in order to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. The students staged a sit-in and camped out at the school then they made their exciting discovery.Not long after this protest, students told their history teacher, Claudia Marino, about what they had found. Upon investigating herself, Marino alerted the Special Superintendency of Rome, a branch of the government that is responsible for preserving and researching the history of the capital.Research has shown that, in the late 19th century, the building that now houses this high school served as the headquarters of Catholic missionaries. In 1895, when digging beneath a street outside, the Via degli Annibaldi, authorities discovered the easternmost section of the house, also known as a domus the term for a residence of a wealthy family in ancient Rome. But, until the recent discovery made by the students, the domus had gone largely forgotten by Italian authorities.The house had clearly not gone completely forgotten by everyone, however. The recent excavation revealed graffiti on the houses walls that dates back to the mid-20th century, when the building was still occupied by missionaries. More recent graffiti might have been left by high school students, who had been known to spread stories of an ancient structure beneath the school.Ten years ago, a student told me the story, but I didnt give it much thought, Marino told The Times.Cantieri NarrantiPrevious explorers of the house, perhaps other high schoolers, had left graffiti on the walls.But now, following the structures first bona fide archaeological excavation, all of its secrets have finally come to light.The houses rooms remain well-preserved while its walls and vaulted ceilings still display paintings and elegant stucco decorations, according to a statement from the Special Superintendency of Rome. Archaeologists also discovered a decorative mosaic that features tiles of varying shapes arranged in a particular style that was popular during the mid-second century C.E. Researchers also found art with both floral designs and depictions of several human figures.At the same time, archaeologists filled 48 crates with artifacts taken from the domus, including an amphora a jar for storing oil, wine, or grain and various cups from several historical periods.Researchers do also have some idea of who this all belonged to.In fact, during the 1895 discovery of a section of the house, excavators found an inscription on a lead pipe with the names of its residents: L. Fabius Gallus and Umbria Albina. While the history of the Umbrius family is poorly documented, there is evidence linking the family to Samnium, an ancient region of southern Italy not far from Mount Vesuvius.An Important Discovery In An Historic Roman NeighborhoodThe newly-uncovered ancient house is situated within an historically important neighborhood of Rome, one that was both close to the Colosseum and nestled between the elite residential districts Carinae and Esquiline Hill. Known as the Monti district, this neighborhood was home to important ancient Roman figures such as Cicero, Pompey, and Octavian, the leader who defeated Mark Antony.Despite this neighborhoods rich history, archaeological excavation there has been scarce, due to the especially heavy amount of modern construction and the damage it has done to the ancient layers beneath it.Cantieri NarrantiSome of the walls of the house had mural-sized paintings.Now, this discovery of an elite familys domus could pave the way for more archaeological investigations in the Monti neighborhood that could further illuminate the history of this important area.This particular house, dubbed Domus del Liceo Cavour, could reveal new information about ancient Roman society during the second century C.E. That period part of Romes Imperial era (roughly, the first through fifth century C.E.) is a time when the Empire included vast swathes of territory in Europe, Asia, and Africa.One historical finding confirmed by this recent excavation is that wall paintings in a domus were indicative of an elite social and political position in Roman society. The mosaic work found in this domus also sheds light on the role that mosaics played during the Imperial period. As the empire expanded, so did the expression of wealth in the homes of elites, as seen in this new discovery.And with only one part of the house uncovered by archaeologists so far, findings like these are just the beginning. The archaeological team hopes to collaborate with the high school in continuing to excavate the additional rooms of the domus in order to uncover more artwork and artifacts that will help bring the legacy of this historic neighborhood to life.After reading about the discovery of an ancient Roman house beneath a high school gym, look through the story of an ancient Roman swimming pool found beneath another Italian school. Then, learn all about the fall of Rome.The post Teenagers In Italy Broke Into Their School And Found An 1,800-Year-Old Roman House Right Beneath The Gym appeared first on All That's Interesting.

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