Latins

Following the spread of Christianity, it came to indicate the Catholics of the Latin Church, especially those following Western liturgical rites.

The Latin-speaking Western Roman Empire ended in AD 476, while the Greek-speaking eastern half survived on until 1453.

Nonetheless, it did not share this negative connotation in the West, where many self-identified with the term, such as Petrarch, when he states "Sumus enim non greci, non barbari, sed itali et latini."

The term Latin Europe is sometimes used in reference to European nations and regions inhabited by Romance-speaking people.

[18] The term is usually used to refer to Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking countries, namely Hispanic America and Brazil.

[20][21][22][23] Many of the present-day independent states of Africa have main official languages that are Romance, as a result of colonization by Romance-speaking European nations in the 19th century.

Map of 5th century-BC Latium ( Latium Vetus ) and surrounding regions in central Italy that were eventually annexed by Rome to form "New Latium". The Alban Hills , a region of early Latin settlement (from c. 1000 BC ) and the site of the Latiar , the most important Latin communal festival, are located under the "U" in LATIUM . The region's two main lakes, Nemi and Albanus, are visible under the "I". The leading Latin city-states of Rome, Tibur ( Tivoli ), Praeneste ( Palestrina ), Ardea and Gabii are shown.
12th century depiction of Latin Crusaders