Undocumented vs. Illegal Migrant: Towards Terminological Coherence

This article offers a terminological reflection on the expression "illegal immigrant".In particular, it argues against the arbitrary choice of terminology used to refer toundocumented migration in academic and scientific texts. On the basis of certainlegal, linguistic, and sociopolitical c...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autor: Mila Paspalanova
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Estado:Versión publicada
Fecha de publicación:2008
País:México
Institución:Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey
Repositorio:Redalyc-ITESM
OAI Identifier:oai:redalyc.org:15140304
Acceso en línea:https://www.redalyc.org/articulo.oa?id=15140304
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Demografía
terminology
irregular migrants
"illegal migrants"
conceptual analysis
undocumented migrants
Descripción
Sumario:This article offers a terminological reflection on the expression "illegal immigrant".In particular, it argues against the arbitrary choice of terminology used to refer toundocumented migration in academic and scientific texts. On the basis of certainlegal, linguistic, and sociopolitical concerns, it suggests that the use of "illegal migrant/alien" should be seriously reconsidered and replaced with alternative terms, such as"undocumented" or "irregular immigrant," which are both terminologically correctand lack the negative social implications of the phrase "illegal immigrant/alien" or"clandestine alien".