Pumpkin spice and everything nice, that’s what basic white girls are made of! She’s wearing plaid, cute boots, and walking through autumn leaves to a pumpkin patch or apple orchard. And most importantly, come mid-October, she’s unabashedly carrying the unmistakable takeout coffee cup filled with pumpkin spice latte. She is also hailed as laughable, ditzy, and ironic—at best. Yet despite the social scoffs, countless numbers of girls across the nation continue to gear up and celebrate some of the wonderful things autumn brings. Why?

Whether we know it or not, so-called basic white girl fall is an expression of American heritage.

First, obviously, we can look at pumpkins themselves. Although pumpkins are native to Southwestern North America (as well as Central and South America), Columbus is credited with bringing pumpkin seeds back to Europe. The climate of Europe was less than ideal for growing pumpkins, but New England colonists relied heavily on pumpkins as a diet staple.

The colonists became very creative, in fact, and invented the first types of pumpkin pie! As one colonist wrote, “the English [colonists], who are fond of tasty food, like pumpkins very much and use them also in pies, and know how to make a beverage from them.” This beverage was pumpkin ale, but it does bring to mind today’s ever-popular pumpkin spice latte!

What else is in pumpkin spice? Cinnamon and nutmeg, of course. One of the earliest spices to be traded in the ancient world, cinnamon was brought to the Roman market from the Indonesian “cinnamon route.” Nutmeg soon followed, and eventually, Holland came to control the spice market as a staple in both European cuisine and the medicine market. Interestingly, Danish culture also historically incorporates hot drinks and beverages into regular daily life in what we know as hygge living. So, we can add hot Turkish coffee and classic Irish cream to create the pumpkin spice latte as we know it today. A nod to European history indeed!

What else is the basic white girl armed with today? Plaid and a cozy sweater of some kind. As the origin of plaid, tartan is historically a Scottish print, and the Highland association only grew over the centuries. Knitting is one of the oldest skills in the world and perhaps most famous in Scandinavia and the British Isles, including the Shetland and Fair Isles. Various isolated communities developed niche styles, from heavy outerwear to fine lace. Perhaps the most famous sweater we know is the Irish fisherman sweater, complete with unmistakable knotwork and cable patterns. Still popular today, this Aran style is hailed as a classic piece for anyone who lives in a chilly climate.

We might last consider why the basic white girl is so actualized in autumn itself. Deciduous trees are the only species which boast bright colors upon the changing of the seasons and are only found in temperate forests of the mid-latitudes. These are precisely the climate zones where Western Civilization originated, and the same zone where North American colonists settled on this side of the pond. It is in these zones where classic autumn themes originate, including pumpkins, apples, corn, harvest, and Halloween. So, geographically speaking, European—and American—civilization itself is naturally associated with autumn itself.

Perhaps the basic white girl is on to something. Without even knowing it, every October she is celebrating the fruition of centuries of her cultural heritage. In fact, we might consider the season of fall to be her natural habitat in the first place. And why should she not celebrate it? We live in a society deemed a “melting pot” where the public claims to celebrate all cultures and welcome all types of diversity. Yet why is European culture the subject of scoff and disdain? Where another ethnicity might be lauded for embracing their unique heritage, we earn eye rolls and even white supremacy accusations. This hardly seems fair. We might do well to take a closer look at basic white girl stereotypes and consider whether they are actually laughable.

And while we do that, I’m going to enjoy my hot pumpkin spice latte to the fullest.

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