ELN194
Puerto Rican Culture
There are many characteristics to Puerto Rican ethnicity. A multicultural
background characterizes Puerto Ricans as their identity developed from a cultural and
racial diversity. Three main groups that makeup the community are the Taino Indians, the
Spaniards, and the West Africans. Each of these groups contributed to the formation of
the modern Puerto Rican nation.
Puerto Rico at first was the home for many tribes of Taino Indians. The Tainos
influenced the names of many rivers, towns, and cities of the island. For example, the
Tainos influenced cultural towns and cities such as Mayaguez, Caguas, and Humacao.
Language was one of their major influences on the modern Puerto Rican nation.
Approximately 500 words from the Taino language have enhanced in modern Spanish.
Spanish words such as “caoba”, manatee, yucca, and “batata” were words that Tainos
used and are still being used today. They also influenced modern day Puerto Ricans by
the musical instruments that they used such as the guiro, and maracas. DNA such as dark
straight hair, copper color skin, almond-shaped eyes, and high cheek bones were some
features that the Tainos had. These are also features that are seen on modern day Puerto
Ricans and are mostly seen on Puerto Rican women. The Tainos were decimated because
of harsh conditions during the colonial times.
Spaniards contributed to the formation of the modern day Puerto Rican
nation by the following; people, language, religion, music, and values. Many Spaniards
settled in Puerto Rico as well as French, Italians, and Greeks. Like the Tainos one of the
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major contributions to Puerto Rico from the Spaniards was also language. Spanish is the
spoken language of Puerto Ricans. A large amount of people from the Puerto Rican
community are Roman Catholic. This was the religion that the Spaniards introduced to
the island and the Spaniards also named many towns and cities in Puerto Rico after
saints. For example, cities such as Santa Isabel, San Sebastian, and San German are all
cities named after saints. Musical instruments like the guitar and the trumpet are musical
instruments that the Spaniards used. Puerto Ricans use these instruments today to play
their modern day tropical music, for instance salsa. Societal values of the Spaniards are
personalismo, family, fatalism, respect, dignity, machismo, hospitality, and humanistic
view of the world. These are the same values that mostly all Spanish speaking countries
go by and follow. The Spaniards introduced various animals to Puerto Rico. For example,
horses, pigs, sheep, and chickens.
Africans were brought to and enslaved in Puerto Rico by the Spaniards. They
contributed to modern Puerto Rican culture with religion, language, people, and music.
While being enslaved, “African slaves were forbidden to practice their own religion in
the plantations and had to accept Christianity under colonial law, a new religious
experience emerged over time embracing characteristics of both Roman Catholicism and
African rites”(Morales). This new religion of the Africans is known as Santeria. It is
confused as being witch craft and is being used in modern Puerto Rican culture. Food for
instance, “mofongo” was African food and is one of the main Puerto Rican dishes.
Secular music such as Bomba, Plena, and Salsa would not sound the same if it weren’t
for the Africans. Music was one of the major contributions that the Africans made to
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Puerto Rican culture. The Africans played their music using drums and drums is one of
the major aspects of what makes up Puerto Rican music.
The racial blends of Tainos, Spaniards, and Africans provided the genetic base for
the modern Puerto Ricans. These were the three major groups that contributed to the
formation of Puerto Rican ethnicity. Puerto Rican culture would not be as rich and the
same as it is today if it weren’t for these three major groups.
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