Introducción
The first free black
man to arrive to Puerto Rico according to historians in the field of the
discovery of the New World was named Juan Garrido who was a member of Juan
Ponce de Leon's crew. From the first
free black man to arrive in Puerto Rico the bestows of Africans and the culture
that they bought in the New World including Puerto Rico only grew. From Canada to Argentina the contributions of
Africans can be appreciated in almost every aspect of our daily lives including
food, music, art, and religion. The African diaspora in the Americas has been
one of the paramount migrations in world history. Puerto Rico is just one of
the many places in the Americas where a distinct African presents can be felt.
The history of Black people in Puerto Rico beings with Puerto Rico’s former mother country: Spain. It is not well known but blacks in the eyes of the Spanish were not always seen as inferior beings like their Anglo-Saxon counterparts. Spain is geography separated from the rest of Europe by mountain ranges and its close proximity allowed for early contact, centuries of contact before the finding of the new world. A little knowledge about blacks in Spain’s history is important to know because it is the reason why the dominate culture of Puerto Rico is that of the mulatto and mestizo. Spain’s long history with people of diverse backgrounds allowed them, unlike their other European conquests to mix with people of color. The mixture of Puerto Ricans is due to the radical social attitudes of the first Spanish settlers.
The history of Africans in Puerto Rico began with the transportation of slave on ships from Africa to work. The Spanish needed slaves to work in the fields, to cultivate the land, and to build large fortifications like El Morro in Puerto Rico and throughout their new found land. The need for slaves in Puerto Rico was a necessity in the eyes of the Spanish because after enslaving the native Tainos conjoined with their lack of immunity to European infections and disease had left their population by the end of the century to zero.
After the arrival of Africans onto the island of Puerto Rico, they lost any power or freedom. The Spanish treated the Africans like livestock. Directly off of the boat, the subjugated Africans were branded, forced to concert to a new religion: Christianity. The new members of the underclass of Puerto Rican citizens were educated according to Spanish paradigms, and took the last names of their new masters.
As well be discussed throughout this website the African contribution to the island of Puerto Rico is the basis of Puerto Rican culture. When the Spanish colonizers first came to the island they bought almost no Spanish women. The Spanish men were forced to marry Taino women. After the decline of the Taino population, the Spanish married and created kin with African women. The children of these unions were called mestizos (union between Tainos and Spanish) and mulattoes (union between blacks and Spanish). The mestizo and the mulatto influence is the root culture that is the basis for modern day Puerto Ricans. These unions are the why you will find every shade of brown: from the darkest of the darks to the lightest of the lights and every shade in between.
This website will attempt to edify the reader on understanding the impacts and contributions that the Africans and their decedents have brought to the fabric of Puerto Rico. In the year 2014 we can still see the struggle of the past 500 years of history. Through an exploration of Puerto Rican music, linguistics, history, and literature this website will be a portal to the past which will help us explain the present and the future.
Note: While the site is mainly in English. There are some things that are in Spanish which I have decided to leave in Spanish to reflect the bilingual nature of the island. Almost 95 percent of my academic sources are in Spanish and all translations were done by me.
While reading the website I hope you learn and enjoy this cultural journey as much as I did,
Michael A.
http://ipoaa.com/africa_puertorico.htm
Http://historiadelespanol-w10.wikispaces.com/La+influencia+africana+en+el+dialecto+y+la+cultura+de+Puerto+Rico
The history of Black people in Puerto Rico beings with Puerto Rico’s former mother country: Spain. It is not well known but blacks in the eyes of the Spanish were not always seen as inferior beings like their Anglo-Saxon counterparts. Spain is geography separated from the rest of Europe by mountain ranges and its close proximity allowed for early contact, centuries of contact before the finding of the new world. A little knowledge about blacks in Spain’s history is important to know because it is the reason why the dominate culture of Puerto Rico is that of the mulatto and mestizo. Spain’s long history with people of diverse backgrounds allowed them, unlike their other European conquests to mix with people of color. The mixture of Puerto Ricans is due to the radical social attitudes of the first Spanish settlers.
The history of Africans in Puerto Rico began with the transportation of slave on ships from Africa to work. The Spanish needed slaves to work in the fields, to cultivate the land, and to build large fortifications like El Morro in Puerto Rico and throughout their new found land. The need for slaves in Puerto Rico was a necessity in the eyes of the Spanish because after enslaving the native Tainos conjoined with their lack of immunity to European infections and disease had left their population by the end of the century to zero.
After the arrival of Africans onto the island of Puerto Rico, they lost any power or freedom. The Spanish treated the Africans like livestock. Directly off of the boat, the subjugated Africans were branded, forced to concert to a new religion: Christianity. The new members of the underclass of Puerto Rican citizens were educated according to Spanish paradigms, and took the last names of their new masters.
As well be discussed throughout this website the African contribution to the island of Puerto Rico is the basis of Puerto Rican culture. When the Spanish colonizers first came to the island they bought almost no Spanish women. The Spanish men were forced to marry Taino women. After the decline of the Taino population, the Spanish married and created kin with African women. The children of these unions were called mestizos (union between Tainos and Spanish) and mulattoes (union between blacks and Spanish). The mestizo and the mulatto influence is the root culture that is the basis for modern day Puerto Ricans. These unions are the why you will find every shade of brown: from the darkest of the darks to the lightest of the lights and every shade in between.
This website will attempt to edify the reader on understanding the impacts and contributions that the Africans and their decedents have brought to the fabric of Puerto Rico. In the year 2014 we can still see the struggle of the past 500 years of history. Through an exploration of Puerto Rican music, linguistics, history, and literature this website will be a portal to the past which will help us explain the present and the future.
Note: While the site is mainly in English. There are some things that are in Spanish which I have decided to leave in Spanish to reflect the bilingual nature of the island. Almost 95 percent of my academic sources are in Spanish and all translations were done by me.
While reading the website I hope you learn and enjoy this cultural journey as much as I did,
Michael A.
http://ipoaa.com/africa_puertorico.htm
Http://historiadelespanol-w10.wikispaces.com/La+influencia+africana+en+el+dialecto+y+la+cultura+de+Puerto+Rico