Puerto Rico

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Puerto Rico (abbreviated PR), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is a self-governing Caribbean archipelago and island organized as an unincorporated territory of the United States under the designation of commonwealth. Located about southeast of Miami, Florida, between the Dominican Republic in the Greater Antilles and the U.S. Virgin Islands in the Lesser Antilles, it consists of the eponymous main island and numerous smaller islands, including Vieques, Culebra, and Mona. With approximately 3.2&nbsp;million people, it is divided into 78 municipalities, of which the most populous is the capital municipality of San Juan, followed by those within the San Juan metropolitan area. Spanish and English are the official languages of the government,

Puerto Rico was settled by a succession of Indigenous peoples of the Americas beginning 2,000 to 4,000 years ago; these included the Ortoiroid, Saladoid, and Taíno. It was claimed by Spain following the arrival of Christopher Columbus in 1493 and subsequently colonized by Juan Ponce de León in 1508. By the late 19th century, a distinct Puerto Rican identity began to emerge, centered on a fusion of European, African, and Indigenous elements. In 1898, following the Spanish–American War, Puerto Rico was acquired by the United States.

Puerto Ricans have been U.S. citizens since 1917 and can move freely between the archipelago and the U.S. Residents of Puerto Rico are disenfranchised from federal elections and pay federal taxes and Puerto Rico income taxes; most are exempt from federal income tax on personal income earned in Puerto Rico. Puerto Rico sends a nonvoting representative to the U.S. Congress, called a resident commissioner, and participates in presidential primaries; as it is not a state, Puerto Rico does not have a vote in the U.S. Congress, which oversees it under the Puerto Rico Federal Relations Act of 1950. Congress approved a territorial constitution in 1952, allowing residents to elect a governor in addition to a senate and house of representatives. The political status of Puerto Rico is an ongoing debate.

Beginning in the mid-20th century, the U.S. government, together with the Puerto Rico Industrial Development Company, launched a series of economic projects to develop Puerto Rico into an industrial high-income economy. It is classified by the International Monetary Fund as a developed jurisdiction. It ranks 47th on the Human Development Index. The major sectors of the economy are manufacturing, primarily pharmaceuticals, petrochemicals, and electronics, followed by services, namely tourism and hospitality.

Etymology

Puerto Rico is Spanish for 'rich port'., derived from the Indigenous term (or Borinquen), which is popularly said to mean 'Land of the Valiant Lord'. The terms , , and are commonly used to identify someone of Puerto Rican heritage, and derive from the term /. The island is popularly known in Spanish as , meaning "the island of enchantment".

Christopher Columbus named the island in honor of Saint John the Baptist, while the capital city was named ("Rich Port City").

The name was changed to Porto Rico by the United States after the Treaty of Paris of 1898. The anglicized name was used by the U.S. government and private enterprises. The name was changed back to Puerto Rico in 1931 by a joint resolution in Congress introduced by Félix Córdova Dávila.

The official name in Spanish is ("Free Associated State of Puerto Rico"), while its official English name is Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. Puerto Rico remains a colony of the United States, exercising substantial internal self-government but subordinated to the U.S. Constitution in areas such as foreign affairs or defense. For this reason, it is not considered to be a full-fledged associated state under either international or U.S. domestic law.

History

Early settlement and European conquest

thumb|left|A 20th-century reconstruction of an 8th-century [[Taíno village, located at the spot in which their remains were discovered in 1975, in the aftermath of Hurricane Eloise]]

The history of Puerto Rico began with the settlement of the Ortoiroid people before 430 BC. At the time of Columbus's arrival in the New World in 1493, the dominant Indigenous peoples were the Taíno. The Taíno people's numbers went dangerously low during the later half of the 16th century because of new infectious diseases carried by Europeans, exploitation by Spanish settlers, and warfare.

Located in the northeastern Caribbean, Puerto Rico formed a key part of the Spanish Empire from the early years of the exploration, conquest and colonization of the New World. The island was a major military post during many wars between Spain and other European powers for control of the region in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries.

left|thumb|Spanish Planter of Puerto Rico with House [[Afro–Puerto Ricans|Slave, ca.1808]]

In 1593, Portuguese soldiers, sent from Lisbon by order of Phillip II, composed the first garrison of the San Felipe del Morro fortress in Puerto Rico. Some brought their wives, while others married Puerto Rican women, and today there are many Puerto Rican families with Portuguese last names. The smallest of the Greater Antilles, Puerto Rico was a stepping-stone in the passage from Europe to Cuba, Mexico, Central America, and the northern territories of South America. thumb|upright=1.3|Map of the [[Department (country subdivision)|departments of Puerto Rico during Spanish provincial times (1886)|left]]Throughout most of the 19th century until the conclusion of the Spanish–American War, Puerto Rico and Cuba were the last two Spanish colonies in the New World; they served as Spain's final outposts in a strategy to regain control of the American continents. Realizing that it was in danger of losing its two remaining Caribbean territories, the Spanish Crown revived the Royal Decree of Graces of 1815. The decree was printed in Spanish, English and French in order to attract Europeans, with the hope that the independence movements would lose their popularity and strength with the arrival of new settlers. Free land was offered to those who wanted to populate the islands on the condition that they swear their loyalty to the Spanish Crown and allegiance to the Catholic Church.

U.S. era

thumb|Map of Puerto Rico from 1952

In 1898, during the Spanish–American War, Puerto Rico was invaded and subsequently became a possession of the U.S. The first years of the 20th century were marked by the struggle to obtain greater democratic rights from the U.S.

The Foraker Act of 1900 established a civil government, ending rule by American generals and the Department of War. A 1906 U.S. Supreme Court ruling, Ortega v. Lara, , involving the Foraker Act and referring to the island as "the acquired country", affirmed that the U.S. Constitution applied within its territory and that any domestic Puerto Rican laws which did not conflict with it remained in force.

The Jones–Shafroth Act of 1917 made Puerto Ricans U.S. citizens. The act paved the way for the drafting of Puerto Rico's Constitution and its approval by Congress and Puerto Rican voters in 1952. During the Cold War period, Puerto Rican politics continued to be shaped by debates over political status-particularly independence and the meaning of the commonwealth arrangement established in 1952. In the early commonwealth years, pro-independence organizing continued bit it faced significant legal and policing restrictions, including the 1948 Ley de la Mordaza (Law 53), which curtailed a range of political expression associated with the independence movement. The period also included high-profile nationalist actions intended to draw attention to independence demands, including the 1950 uprisings and the 1954 attack in the U.S. House of Representatives. During this time, the constitution took effect after congressional review required amendments as a condition of approval, most notably the removal of Article II, Section 20 (a social and economic rights provision), before Puerto Rico's constitutional convention accepted the revisions and put into effect the final text.Puerto Ricans also served in U.S. military operations; the 65th Infantry Regiment (the "Borinqueneers") fought in the Korean War between 1950-1953. Puerto Rico is one of five territories with less representation in the federal government, along with Washington, D.C.

21st century

thumb|Puerto Rico from space, 2008

In 2009 the United Nations Special Committee on Decolonization approved a draft resolution calling on the U.S. government to expedite a process that would allow the Puerto Rican people to exercise fully their inalienable right to self-determination and independence. In 2012, a two-question referendum took place, simultaneous with the general elections. The first question, voted on in August, asked voters whether they wanted to maintain the current status under the territorial clause of the U.S. Constitution. 54% voted against the status quo, effectively approving the second question to be voted on in November. The second question posed three alternate status options: statehood, independence, or free association. 61.16% voted for statehood, 33.34% for a sovereign free-associated state, and 5.49% for independence. A 2017 status referendum also indicated a desire for statehood, although voter turnout was meager.

The 2016 Puerto Rico Oversight, Management, and Economic Stability Act established financial oversight board to oversee debt restructuring in response to the Puerto Rican government-debt crisis. In particular, the authority to establish the control board derives from the federal government's constitutional power to "make all needful rules and regulations" regarding U.S. territories. By May 2017, with $123 billion in debt owed by the Puerto Rican government and its corporations, the board requested the appointment of a federal judge to resolve the "largest bankruptcy case in the history of the American public bond market."

thumb|Rainfall totals from Hurricane Maria

In 2017, Puerto Rico suffered back-to-back large hurricanes: the Category 5 Hurricane Irma and the Category 4 Hurricane Maria. The storms caused an extreme amount of damage to the island, causing the following effects: all power was knocked out, 95% cell service, 43% of waste water treatment plants, 40 thousand land slides, 97% of roads blocked, 28% of health facilities damaged, leading to over 90% of the population applying for assistance after the storms.

Puerto Rico held its statehood referendum during the November 3, 2020, general elections; the ballot asked one question: "Should Puerto Rico be admitted immediately into the Union as a State?" The results showed that 52 percent of Puerto Rico voters answered yes. In the United States in the early 2020s, the Puerto Rico Status Act was being worked on by Congress, and H.R. 8393 passed the House in 2022—though it did not pass the Senate. In the November 5, 2024, elections, Puerto Ricans again voted for statehood. Jenniffer González-Colón, who is pro-statehood, won the office of governor with nearly 40% of the vote.

Geography

thumb|Beach and coastline at [[Patillas, Puerto Rico|Patillas, in southeast Puerto Rico|alt=]]

Puerto Rico consists of the main island and various smaller islands, including Vieques, Culebra, Mona, Desecheo, and Caja de Muertos. Of these, only Culebra and Vieques are inhabited year-round. Mona, which has played a key role in maritime history, is uninhabited most of the year except for employees of the Puerto Rico Department of Natural Resources. There are many other islets, like Monito, located near Mona, and Isla de Cabras and La Isleta de San Juan, both located on the San Juan Bay. The latter is the only inhabited islet with communities like Old San Juan and Puerta de Tierra, which are connected to the main island by bridges.

thumb|NOAA Bathymetry Image of Puerto Rico (2020)

The Commonwealth of Puerto Rico has an area of , of which is land and is water. The maximum length of the main island from east to west is , and the maximum width from north to south is . Puerto Rico is the smallest of the Greater Antilles.

The topography is mostly mountainous with large flat areas in the northern and southern coasts. The main mountain range that crosses the island from east to west is called the Cordillera Central. The highest elevation, Cerro de Punta ,thumb|Map by USGS

Puerto Rico has 17 lakes, all man-made, and more than 50 rivers, most of which originate in the Cordillera Central. Rivers in the north are typically longer and of higher water flow rates than those of the south, since the south receives less rain than the central and northern regions.

Puerto Rico is composed of Cretaceous to Eocene volcanic and plutonic rocks, overlain by younger Oligocene and more recent carbonates and other sedimentary rocks. Most of the caverns and karst topography on the island occurs in the northern region. The oldest rocks are approximately years old (Jurassic) and are located at Sierra Bermeja in the southwest. They may represent part of the oceanic crust and are believed to come from the Pacific Ocean realm.

Puerto Rico lies at the boundary between the Caribbean and North American plates and is being deformed by the tectonic stresses caused by their interaction. These stresses may cause earthquakes and tsunamis. These seismic events, along with landslides, represent some of the most dangerous geologic hazards in the island and in the northeastern Caribbean. The 1918 San Fermín earthquake had an estimated magnitude of 7.5 on the Richter scale. It originated off the northern coast and was accompanied by a tsunami. It caused extensive property damage and widespread losses, damaging infrastructure, especially bridges. It resulted in an estimated 116 deaths and $4&nbsp;million in property damage. The failure of the government to move rapidly to provide for the general welfare contributed to political activism by opponents and eventually to the rise of the Puerto Rican Nationalist Party. On January 7, 2020, the island experienced its largest earthquake since 1918, estimated at magnitude 6.4. Economic losses were estimated to be more than $3.1 billion.

The Puerto Rico Trench, the largest and deepest trench in the Atlantic, is located about north of Puerto Rico at the boundary between the Caribbean and North American plates. It is long. At its deepest point, named the Milwaukee Deep, it is almost deep.

Climate

thumb|upright=1.2|Köppen climate types in Puerto Rico indicating that the island primarily has rainforest and monsoon climate types

The climate of Puerto Rico in the Köppen climate classification is mostly tropical rainforest. Temperatures are warm to hot year round, averaging near in lower elevations and in the mountains. Easterly trade winds pass across the island year round. The wet season stretches from April into November, and the dry season occurs from December to March. The mountains of the Cordillera Central create a rain shadow and are the main cause of the variations in the temperature and rainfall that occur over very short distances. The mountains can also cause wide variation in local wind speed and direction due to their sheltering and channeling effects, adding to the climatic variation. Daily temperature changes seasonally are quite small in the lowlands and coastal areas.

Between the dry and wet seasons, there is a temperature change of around . This change is due mainly to the warm waters of the tropical Atlantic Ocean, which significantly modify cooler air moving in from the north and northwest. Coastal water temperatures during the year are about in February and in August. The highest recorded temperature was at Arecibo, while the lowest temperature was in the mountains at Adjuntas, Aibonito, and Corozal. The average yearly precipitation is . Climate change in Puerto Rico has had a large impact on the ecosystems and landscapes.

Puerto Rico experiences the Atlantic hurricane season, similar to the rest of the Caribbean Sea and North Atlantic Ocean. On average, a quarter of its annual rainfall is contributed from tropical cyclones, which are more prevalent during periods of La Niña than El Niño. On average, a cyclone of tropical storm strength passes near Puerto Rico every five years, and a hurricane passes in its vicinity every seven years. Since 1851, the Lake Okeechobee Hurricane (also known as the San Felipe Segundo hurricane in Puerto Rico) of September 1928 is the only hurricane to make landfall as a Category 5 hurricane. In 2017, Puerto Rico was affected by Category 5 Hurricane Irma and Category 4 Hurricane Maria, causing widespread and devastating impacts, particularly to the electric grid. two biosphere reserves are recognized by the UNESCO Man and the Biosphere Programme: Luquillo Biosphere Reserve represented by El Yunque National Forest and the Guánica Biosphere Reserve.

thumb|left|alt=In this image there is a brown coquí. The species resembles a small frog.|[[Eleutherodactylus coqui|Common coquí]]

Endemic species include 239 plants, 16 birds, and 39 amphibians/reptiles. Most of these are found on the main island. The most recognizable endemic species and a symbol of Puerto Rican pride is the coquí, a small frog easily identified by the sound of its call, from which it gets its name. Most coquí species (13 of 17) live in the El Yunque National Forest, the only tropical rainforest in the U.S. Forest Service system, located in the northeast of the island. El Yunque is home to more than 240 plants, 26 of which are endemic to the island. It is also home to 50 bird species, including the critically endangered Puerto Rican amazon.

The moist forest ecoregion is represented by protected areas such as the Maricao and Toro Negro state forests. These areas are home to endangered endemic species such as the Puerto Rican boa (Chilabothrus inornatus), the Puerto Rican sharp-shinned hawk (Accipiter striatus venator), the Puerto Rican broad-winged hawk (Buteo platypterus brunnescens) and the elfin woods warbler (Setophaga angelae). The Northern Karst Belt is home to one of the remaining rainforest tracts in the island, with the Río Abajo State Forest being the first focus for the reintroduction of the highly endangered Puerto Rican amazon.

In the southwest, the Guánica State Forest and Biosphere Reserve contains over 600 uncommon species of plants and animals, including 48 endangered species and 16 endemic species, and is considered a prime example of the Puerto Rican dry forest ecoregion and the best-preserved dry forest in the Caribbean. Examples of endemic species found in this ecoregion are the higo chumbo (Harrisia portoricensis), the Puerto Rican crested toad (Peltophryne lemur), and the Mona ground iguana (Cyclura stejnegeri), the largest land animal native to Puerto Rico.

Puerto Rico has three of the seven year-long bioluminescent bays in the Caribbean: Laguna Grande in Fajardo, La Parguera in Lajas and Puerto Mosquito in Vieques. These are unique bodies of water surrounded by mangroves that are inhabited by the dinoflagellate Pyrodinium bahamense. However, tourism, pollution, and hurricanes have highly threatened these unique ecosystems.

Government and politics

Puerto Rico has a republican form of government based on the American model, with separation of powers subject to the jurisdiction and sovereignty of the United States. All governmental powers are delegated by the United States Congress, with the head of state being the President of the United States. As an unincorporated territory, Puerto Rico lacks full protection under the U.S. Constitution.

The government is composed of three branches. The executive is headed by the governor, currently Jenniffer González-Colón. The legislative branch consists of the bicameral Legislative Assembly, made up of a Senate as its upper chamber and a House of Representatives as its lower chamber; the Senate is headed by a president, currently José Luis Dalmau, while the House is headed by the speaker of the House, currently Tatito Hernández. The governor and legislators are elected by popular vote every four years, with the last election held in November 2024. The judicial branch is headed by the chief justice of the Supreme Court of Puerto Rico, currently Maite Oronoz Rodríguez. Members of the judiciary are appointed by the governor with the advice and consent of the Senate.

Puerto Rico is represented in the U.S. Congress by a nonvoting delegate to the House of Representatives, the resident commissioner, currently Pablo Hernández Rivera. Current congressional rules have removed the commissioner's power to vote in the Committee of the Whole, but the commissioner can vote in committee.

Puerto Rican elections are governed by the Federal Election Commission and the State Elections Commission of Puerto Rico. Residents of Puerto Rico, including other U.S. citizens, cannot vote in U.S. presidential elections but can vote in primaries. Puerto Ricans who become residents of a U.S. state or Washington, D.C. can vote in presidential elections.

Puerto Rico has eight senatorial districts, 40 representative districts, and 78 municipalities; there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the U.S. government. Municipalities are subdivided into barrios. Each municipality has a mayor and a municipal legislature elected for a four-year term. The municipality of San Juan is the oldest, founded in 1521.

Political parties and elections

thumb|right|The difference between the incumbent party, the PPD, and its opponent, the PNP, was a mere 0.6% in the last election. This difference is common as the political landscape experiences political cycles between both parties, with the PPD ruling all branches of government for 36 of the past 64 years. The PNP, on the other hand, has ruled both the executive and legislative branch concurrently for 16 years. The other 12 years experienced a [[Divided government in the United States|divided government.]]

Since 1952, Puerto Rico has had three main political parties: the Popular Democratic Party (PPD), the New Progressive Party (PNP) and the Puerto Rican Independence Party (PIP). The three parties stand for different political status. The PPD, for example, seeks to maintain the island's status with the U.S. as a commonwealth, while the PNP seeks to make Puerto Rico a U.S. state. Meanwhile, the PIP seeks to make Puerto Rico a sovereign nation free from U.S. authority. In terms of party strength, the PPD and PNP usually hold about 47% of the vote each while the PIP holds about 5%.

After 2007, other parties emerged on the island. The first, the Puerto Ricans for Puerto Rico Party was registered that same year. The party claims that it seeks to address the islands' problems from a status-neutral platform. But it ceased to remain as a registered party when it failed to obtain the required number of votes in the 2008 general election. Four years later, the 2012 election saw the emergence of the Movimiento Unión Soberanista (Sovereign Union Movement) and the Partido del Pueblo Trabajador (Working People's Party) but none obtained more than 1% of the vote. Other non-registered parties include the Puerto Rican Nationalist Party, the Socialist Workers Movement, and the Hostosian National Independence Movement.

Political status

The nature of Puerto Rico's political relationship with the U.S. is the subject of ongoing debate in Puerto Rico, the U.S. Congress, and the United Nations. Specifically, the basic question is whether Puerto Rico should remain an unincorporated territory of the U.S., become a U.S. state, or become an independent country.

thumb|The [[Capitol of Puerto Rico, home of the Legislative Assembly in Puerto Rico|alt=|left]]

Constitutionally, Puerto Rico is subject to the plenary powers of the U.S. Congress under the territorial clause of Article IV of the U.S. Constitution. Laws enacted at the federal level in the U.S. apply to Puerto Rico as well, regardless of its political status. Their residents do not have voting representation in the U.S. Congress. Puerto Rico lacks "the full sovereignty of an independent nation", for example, the power to manage its "external relations with other nations", which is held by the U.S. federal government. The U.S. Supreme Court has indicated that once the U.S. Constitution has been extended to an area (by Congress or the courts), its coverage is irrevocable.

Puerto Ricans were collectively made U.S. citizens in 1917 as a result of the Jones–Shafroth Act. U.S. citizens residing in Puerto Rico cannot vote in U.S. presidential elections, though both major parties, Republican and Democratic, hold primary elections in Puerto Rico to choose delegates to vote on the parties' presidential candidates. Since Puerto Rico is an unincorporated territory and not a U.S. state, the U.S. Constitution does not fully enfranchise U.S. citizens residing in Puerto Rico. Fundamental rights under the constitution and adjudications are applied to Puerto Ricans. Various other U.S. Supreme Court decisions have held which rights apply in Puerto Rico and which ones do not. Puerto Ricans have a long history of service in the U.S. Armed Forces and have been included in the U.S. compulsory draft when it has been in effect.

Though the commonwealth government has its own tax laws, residents of Puerto Rico, contrary to a popular misconception, do pay U.S. federal taxes: customs taxes (which are subsequently returned to the Puerto Rico Treasury), import/export taxes, federal commodity taxes, social security taxes, etc. Residents pay federal payroll taxes, such as Social Security and Medicare, as well as Commonwealth of Puerto Rico income taxes. All federal employees, those who do business with the federal government, Puerto Rico-based corporations that intend to send funds to the U.S., and some others, such as Puerto Rican residents that are members of the U.S. military, and Puerto Rico residents who earned income from sources outside Puerto Rico also pay federal income taxes. In addition, because the cutoff point for income taxation is lower than that of the U.S. IRS code, and because the per-capita income in Puerto Rico is much lower than the average per-capita income on the mainland, more Puerto Rico residents pay income taxes to the local taxation authority than if the IRS code were applied to the island. This occurs because "the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico government has a wider set of responsibilities than do U.S. State and local governments."