Puerto Rico

This article is about the Comm.
Capital

Language
Main article: Puerto Rican Spanish
The official languages are Spanish and English with Spanish being the primary language. English is taught as a second language in public and private schools from elementary levels to high school and at the university level.
The Spanish of Puerto Rico has evolved into having many idiosyncrasies invocabulary and syntax which differentiate it from the Spanish spoken in other Spanish-speaking countries. While the Spanish spoken in all Iberian, Mediterranean and Atlantic Spanish Maritime Provinces was brought to the island over the centuries, the most profound regional impact on the Spanish spoken in Puerto Rico has been from the Spanish spoken in present day Canary Islands.
As a result of thenatural inclusion of indigenous vocabulary in all New World former European colonies (English, French, Spanish, Dutch, etc.), the Spanish of Puerto Rico also includes occasional "Taino" words, which are typically in the context of vegetation, natural phenomenon or primitive musical instruments. Similarly, African-attributed words exist within the contexts of foods, music or dances developed incoastal towns with concentrations of descendants of former Sub-Saharan slaves.
Since the acquisition of the Island by the US from Spain in 1898, the linguistic impression of American English increasingly leaves its linguistic impact on the island in all aspects of social, commercial and educational exchange.[173][not in citation given]
According to a study by the University of Puerto Rico, nine ofevery ten Puerto Ricans residing in Puerto Rico do not speak English at the advanced level.[174] More recently, according to the 2005–2009 Population and Housing Narrative Profile for Puerto Rico, among people at least five years old living in Puerto Rico in 2005–2009, 95 percent spoke a language other than English at home. Of those speaking a language other than English at home, 100 percent spokeSpanish and less than 0.5 percent spoke some other language; 85 percent reported that they did not speak English "very well."[175]

(and largest city) San Juan
Puerto Rico the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico (Spanish: "Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico—literally Associated Free State of Puerto Rico), is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean Sea,east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.
Puerto Rico (Spanish for "rich port") comprises an archipelago that includes the main island of Puerto Rico and a number of smaller islands, the largest of which are Vieques, Culebra, and Mona. The main island of Puerto Rico is the smallest by land area of the Greater Antilles. It,however, ranks third in population among that group of four islands, which also include Cuba, Hispaniola, and Jamaica. Due to its location, Puerto Rico enjoys a tropical climate and also experiences the Atlantic hurricane season.
Originally populated for centuries by indigenous aboriginal peoples known as Taínos, the island was claimed by Christopher Columbus for Spain during his second voyage tothe Americas on November 19, 1493. Under Spanish rule, the island was colonized and the indigenous population was forced into slavery and nearly wiped out due to, among other things, European infectious diseases. The remaining population was emancipated by King Carlos I in 1520. Spain possessed Puerto Rico for over 400 years, despite attempts at capture of the island by France, the Netherlands, andEngland.

Culture
Main article: Culture of Puerto Rico
See also: Cuisine of Puerto Rico and Music of Puerto Rico


Kapok tree (Ceiba), the national tree of Puerto Rico
Modern Puerto Rican culture is a unique mix of cultural antecedents, including African (from the slaves), Taíno (Amerindians), Spanish, and more recently, North American.
From the Spanish Puerto Rico received the Spanish...