Understanding the Term Texian: History and Usage
By: Herbert Fletcher
Published: 1952
Updated: July 30, 2020
The term Texian is generally used to apply to a citizen of the Anglo-American section of the province of Coahuila and Texas or of the Republic of Texas. Texian was used in 1835 as part of the title of the Nacogdoches Texian and Emigrant's Guide. As president of the Republic, Mirabeau B. Lamar used the term to foster nationalism. Early colonists and leaders in the Texas Revolution, many of whom were influential during the Civil War and who were respected as elder statesmen well into the 1880s, used Texian in English and Texienne in French. However, in general usage after annexation, Texan replaced Texian. The Texas Almanac still used the term Texian as late as 1868.
Bibliography:
Dorman H. Winfrey, "Mirabeau B. Lamar and Texas Nationalism," Southwestern Historical Quarterly 59 (October 1955).
The following, adapted from the Chicago Manual of Style, 15th edition, is the preferred citation for this entry.
Herbert Fletcher, “Texian,” Handbook of Texas Online, accessed March 09, 2026, https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/texian.
Published by the Texas State Historical Association.
TID:
PFT05
- 1952
- July 30, 2020
