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Puerto Rico Glossary

Puerto Rico Glossary

The words, places and institutions that come up when you plan a trip to Puerto Rico, explained in plain language. Each entry says what it is, why it matters and what to do about it.

150 terms

Where to stay

Where to stay Hospedería endosada Lodging with official endorsement from the Tourism Company, which verifies quality, safety and registration... Where to stay Impuesto de habitación A lodging tax added on top of the room rate and collected by the Tourism Company. The percentage varies by type of... Where to stay Parador A small inn endorsed by the official parador program of the Tourism Company, created in 1973 to send travelers beyond... Where to stay Posada (hospedaje pequeño) A small no frills lodging, usually family run, more informal than a parador and with no official endorsement...

Crafts

Crafts Artesanía de higüera Objects made from the dried fruit of the higüera tree, hollowed out and then carved or painted. It yields güiros,... Crafts Careta de vejigante The mask of the vejigante character, horned and painted in strong colors. In Ponce it is made of papier mâché with... Crafts Mundillo Bobbin lace woven by hand over a cylindrical cushion, inherited from Spain and preserved above all in Moca, in the... Crafts Santos de palo Religious figures carved in wood by artisans called santeros, a tradition centuries old on the island. They are... Crafts Sombrero de pava A wide brimmed straw hat worn by mountain farmers that became a symbol of jíbaro identity. It appears in monuments,...

Drinks

Drinks Café puertorriqueño Arabica coffee grown in the central mountains, above all around Yauco, Adjuntas, Jayuya and Maricao. It is roasted... Drinks Chichaíto A shot of white rum with anise liqueur, served very cold and usually poured from a bottle kept in the freezer. It is... Drinks Coquito A Christmas drink of coconut milk, condensed milk, spices and rum, served very cold in small glasses. It is the local... Drinks Malta (bebida de malta) A dark non alcoholic malt soda, sweet and thick, that goes with fritters at any kiosk. It tastes like unfermented... Drinks Maví A fermented drink of Afro Caribbean origin made from the bark of the maví tree with sugar and spices such as anise... Drinks Medalla Light A light beer brewed in Puerto Rico that works as the island's default beer, especially at the beach and at roadside... Drinks Piña colada A cocktail of rum, cream of coconut and pineapple, and the official drink of Puerto Rico. Two venues, one in Old San... Drinks Pitorro A high proof artisanal rum, traditionally distilled outside the legal system, that appears in island homes at... Drinks Ron puertorriqueño Cane rum produced on the island under its own rules, with mandatory oak aging for the aged categories. Puerto Rico is...

Coast and sea

Coast and sea Bahía bioluminiscente An enclosed bay where the water lights up blue green when disturbed, thanks to a dense population of light emitting... Coast and sea Bahía Mosquito The bioluminescent bay on Vieques, recognized by Guinness World Records as the brightest in the world. It is visited... Coast and sea Balneario (playa pública) A government run public beach with restrooms, showers, parking and lifeguards during set hours. There is usually a... Coast and sea Cayo A small sand and coral islet with no services and often no shade, reached by boat. They sit off Fajardo, around La... Coast and sea Corriente de resaca A narrow channel of water rushing back out to sea that drags swimmers away from shore. It is the real hazard on north... Coast and sea Dinoflagelado A single celled marine microorganism that fires a flash of light when the water is stirred. It is what makes the... Coast and sea La Parguera A coastal village in Lajas, in the southwest, home to the island's third bioluminescent bay and a maze of cays and... Coast and sea Laguna Grande The bioluminescent lagoon in Fajardo, the easiest to reach from San Juan since it is under an hour and a half by car.... Coast and sea Marea roja A massive bloom of microalgae that stains the water red or brown and can affect fish and swimmers. In Puerto Rico it... Coast and sea Paseo tablado A wooden walkway over the shore or the mangrove, built so people can walk without stepping on fragile ground. Some... Coast and sea Playa Bandera Azul An international award granted each season to beaches, marinas and boats that meet water quality, safety and... Coast and sea Playa Flamenco A horseshoe shaped beach on Culebra with white sand and very calm water, ranked among the best in the Caribbean by... Coast and sea Protector solar seguro para arrecifes Sunscreen with mineral filters and no oxybenzone or octinoxate, which is what nature reserves and snorkel operators... Coast and sea Sargazo A brown seaweed that arrives in floating mats from the Atlantic and piles up on the shore, mostly between spring and...

Culture

Culture Aguinaldo (canción navideña) A Puerto Rican Christmas song, played on cuatro, güiro and frame drums, sung house to house during parrandas. It is... Culture Barril de bomba A drum originally built from a rum barrel with a goatskin head, the rhythmic base of bomba. At least two are played:... Culture Bomba (música y baile) An Afro Puerto Rican genre of drum, song and dance born among enslaved communities on the coast. What makes it... Culture Cuatro puertorriqueño The national string instrument, with ten strings in five double courses and a body shaped like a violin. It is the... Culture Danza puertorriqueña A nineteenth century ballroom genre, elegant and slow, that was the music of urban society in Ponce and San Juan. Its... Culture Décima A sung ten line stanza that trovadores improvise over jíbaro music, often as a verbal duel between two singers. The... Culture Güiro A percussion instrument made from the dried hollowed fruit of the higüera gourd, with grooves scraped by a metal... Culture Jíbaro A mountain farmer of Puerto Rico and, by extension, the symbol of the island's rural identity. The classic image... Culture Pandereta de plena A round hand drum with no jingles that gives plena its sound. It is played as a set of three sizes: the largest keeps... Culture Plena puertorriqueña A genre of hand frame drums and voice born in Ponce in the early twentieth century, known as the sung newspaper... Culture Reguetón An urban genre shaped in Puerto Rico in the nineties out of Panamanian reggae en español and rap, coming up through... Culture Salsa (género musical) A Caribbean genre that crystallized in New York with Puerto Rican musicians at its core and came back to the island... Culture Trulla (parranda) A surprise late night visit to someone's house with instruments, singing aguinaldos until they open the door. The... Culture Vejigante The masked character of Puerto Rican festivals, in a bright costume with many horns and an inflated bladder used to...

Festivals

Festivals Carnaval de Ponce The historic carnival of Ponce, on the south coast, held in the days before Ash Wednesday. Its central figure is the... Festivals Día de Reyes January 6, when children receive gifts from the Three Kings, a bigger day than Christmas in many island households.... Festivals Festival Casals A classical music festival founded in 1957 by cellist Pablo Casals, who spent his last years in Puerto Rico. It runs... Festivals Fiestas de la Calle San Sebastián The island's biggest urban festival, in January, when Old San Juan fills for several days with music, giant headed... Festivals Fiestas de Santiago Apóstol The festival of Loíza, on the north coast, held in late July and regarded as the liveliest expression of Afro Puerto... Festivals Fiestas patronales The yearly festival of each of the 78 municipalities in honor of its patron saint, set up in the town plaza with... Festivals Navidades boricuas The island's Christmas season, which starts in late November and does not end until the San Sebastián Street Festival... Festivals Noche de San Juan The night of June 23, when half the island heads to the beach and at midnight walks backward into the water several...

Food

Food Alcapurria A torpedo shaped fritter of green banana and taro root dough stuffed with seasoned ground beef or with land crab. It... Food Amarillos (plátano maduro frito) Slices of ripe plantain fried until the edges caramelize and the inside turns soft. They are the sweet counterpoint... Food Arroz con dulce Rice cooked in coconut milk with ginger, clove and cinnamon, served cold and cut into squares. It is denser and more... Food Arroz con gandules The national dish of Puerto Rico: rice cooked with pigeon peas, sofrito, annatto and often pork. It shows up at every... Food Arroz mamposteao Day old white rice sautéed with stewed beans, sofrito and often bacon or ham. It started as a way to use leftovers... Food Asopao A soupy rice halfway between stew and soup, usually with chicken or seafood, built on sofrito, annatto and olives. It... Food Bacalaíto A wide flat fritter of batter and shredded salt cod, fried until the edges turn thin and crisp. Along with the... Food Chillo frito A whole red snapper fried with crisp skin and served head on, almost always with tostones and rice. It is the... Food Empanadilla A half moon of thin dough stuffed with beef, cheese, pizza filling or seafood and fried to order. In many areas it is... Food Jibarito A sandwich that swaps bread for two large flattened plantains, with meat, cheese, lettuce and tomato in between. Its... Food Kioskos de Luquillo A row of beachfront food stalls at Luquillo on the northeast coast, dozens of them in a line running from fry... Food Lechón asado A whole pig marinated and roasted for hours over charcoal on a turning spit until the skin turns to crackling. It is... Food Lechonera A roadside restaurant built around roast pork, almost always cafeteria style with communal tables. The meat is carved... Food Limber A homemade frozen treat set in a small plastic cup that you eat by pushing it up from the bottom. Flavors include... Food Mallorca (pan dulce) A soft coiled sweet bread dusted with powdered sugar, descended from the Majorcan ensaimada and adopted as its own on... Food Mofongo The signature dish of Puerto Rican cooking, made from fried green plantain mashed in a wooden mortar with garlic, oil... Food Mojo isleño A sauce of tomato, onion, olives, capers and peppers served over fried fish. It is associated above all with the... Food Pan sobao A soft, faintly sweet white bread that comes out of island bakeries several times a day. It is the base of local... Food Pastel de masa A dough of green banana, taro and pumpkin wrapped around seasoned pork, tied in a plantain leaf and boiled. It is not... Food Pilón (mortero de madera) The wooden mortar and pestle used to mash plantain, garlic and pork cracklings. It is the tool that defines mofongo,... Food Piononó A strip of ripe plantain coiled into a ring, filled with seasoned ground beef, battered and fried. It comes out sweet... Food Pique criollo A homemade hot sauce of chili peppers in vinegar, often with garlic, pineapple or fruit, living in a reused bottle on... Food Piragua A cone of hand shaved ice topped with fruit syrup, sold from brightly painted carts in plazas and at beaches. In... Food Quesito A puff pastry roll filled with cream cheese and glazed with sugar, baked in every bakery on the island. You eat it... Food Recao (culantro) A long serrated leaf herb, stronger than cilantro and in the same aromatic family. It is the ingredient that gives... Food Relleno de papa A ball of mashed potato stuffed with stewed beef, breaded and deep fried until golden. It is the heaviest item on the... Food Ruta del Lechón The stretch of route PR-184 through Guavate, in Cayey, where the island's best known roast pork restaurants sit one... Food Sancocho A thick meat stew loaded with root vegetables: taro, yam, cassava, plantain and pumpkin cooked until they thicken the... Food Sazón con achiote A spice blend built on annatto that turns rice, stews and fritters that familiar orange. Annatto is the seed that... Food Sofrito A raw aromatic base blended in advance and kept on hand to start almost any stew: sweet aji peppers, onion, garlic,... Food Tembleque A dessert of coconut milk set with cornstarch, served cold and dusted with cinnamon. It wobbles when you move it,... Food Tostones Green plantain slices fried once, flattened and fried again until crisp. They are the default side with almost any... Food Trifongo A mofongo variant that mashes three bases in the same mortar, normally green plantain, ripe plantain and cassava. It... Food Tripleta A sandwich on soft sobao bread with three meats, usually pork, ham and beef, with fries inside and mayoketchup. It is...

History

History Adoquín azul A block of iron slag with a bluish sheen that has paved the streets of Old San Juan since the late nineteenth... History Casco urbano The historic center of a Puerto Rican town, always laid out the same way: the plaza in the middle, the church on one... History Castillo San Cristóbal The largest Spanish fortification built in the Americas, raised to defend San Juan by land while El Morro faced the... History Castillo San Felipe del Morro A sixteenth century fortress raised on the headland commanding the entrance to San Juan Bay, with six levels and a... History Cemí A sacred Taíno object, usually of stone or wood and often triangular, representing a deity or an ancestral spirit. It... History Garita A stone sentry box with a domed roof and narrow windows, set into the walls of San Juan. It became the visual symbol... History Hacienda cafetalera A mountain coffee estate, many of them from the nineteenth century, with a main house, drying platforms and sometimes... History La Fortaleza A sixteenth century building that started as a fortification and ended up as the governor's official residence, in... History Murallas de San Juan The sandstone defensive belt that ringed the old city, largely preserved on the seaward side. The red painted Puerta... History Observatorio de Arecibo A radio telescope built in 1963 inside a natural karst sinkhole near Arecibo, for decades the largest single dish in... History Parque Ceremonial Indígena de Caguana A Taíno site in Utuado, in the mountainous center, with ceremonial plazas called bateyes framed by carved monoliths.... History Petroglifo A carving made on rock by Indigenous peoples, with faces, round eyes and figures, found in rivers, caves and... History Plaza de recreo The central square of every town, with trees, benches, the church facing it and the town hall alongside, working as... History Taíno The Indigenous people who inhabited Puerto Rico, which they called Borikén, when the Spanish arrived in 1493. Their... History Viejo San Juan The historic core of San Juan, founded in the sixteenth century on an islet and still partly ringed by its walls. It...

Local slang

Local slang Boricua The word Puerto Ricans use for themselves, derived from Borikén, the Taíno name of the island. It carries pride and... Local slang Borinquen The Taíno name of Puerto Rico, also written Borikén, still alive as the island's poetic name. It appears in the... Local slang Chévere An adjective meaning good, nice or great, common in Puerto Rico and across much of the Caribbean and South America.... Local slang China (la naranja) In Puerto Rico a sweet orange is called a china, and orange juice is jugo de china. The word comes from the historic... Local slang Chinchorreo Hopping between several chinchorros in one day, eating and drinking a little at each stop. It is a well established... Local slang Chinchorro A simple roadside or neighborhood bar with fritters, cold beer and loud music. It is not a lesser venue, it is its... Local slang Janguear To go out or hang around with no fixed plan, a direct adaptation of the English hang out. The noun is jangueo and it... Local slang Pana (amigo) Friend or buddy, in an informal and affectionate register. It appears in the phrase mi pana for someone you trust and... Local slang Wepa An exclamation of joy and approval, the local shout of celebration. It comes out when the good song starts, when... Local slang Zafacón A trash can or bin, in the Spanish of Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic. It is one of the words that most...

Nature

Nature Arrecife de coral The living coral formation that rings much of the coast and the smaller islands, and the reason for almost all... Nature Bosque Seco de Guánica A subtropical dry forest on the south coast, designated a biosphere reserve and considered one of the best preserved... Nature Cavernas del Río Camuy A cave system carved by one of the largest underground rivers in the hemisphere, in the island's north. The public... Nature Charco (poza de río) A natural freshwater pool in a mountain river, often with a waterfall or a rock to jump from. They are the weekend... Nature Coquí A tiny frog endemic to the Caribbean that sings at nightfall and is named after its own two note call, co-kee. Puerto... Nature Cotorra puertorriqueña A green parrot endemic to the island and one of the most endangered birds in the Caribbean, with a very small wild... Nature Cueva Ventana A cave near Arecibo whose mouth opens like a window over the Río Grande de Arecibo valley. The visit is guided, with... Nature El Yunque The tropical rainforest in the island's northeast, managed by the federal Forest Service and the only tropical forest... Nature Flamboyán A broad crowned tree that fills with red or orange flowers through the summer months. It is not native, but it is the... Nature Manglar A coastal forest of trees that grow with their roots in salt water, forming narrow channels and fish nurseries. In... Nature Mangle rojo The mangrove species that grows at the water's edge on those unmistakable arching prop roots. It forms the tunnels of... Nature Región cárstica A belt across the island's north made of eroded limestone, with rounded hills called mogotes, sinkholes and caves. It... Nature Ruta Panorámica A linked chain of mountain roads crossing the island east to west along the central range, from Yabucoa to Mayagüez.... Nature Tabonuco A large pale barked tree that gives its name to the lowest and wettest forest zone in El Yunque. Its aromatic resin...

Practical

Practical Agua de la llave Tap water in Puerto Rico is treated and generally drinkable, and people drink it normally in urban areas. After heavy... Practical Apagón A power outage, common on the island because of the state of the grid and worse since 2017. It can last minutes or... Practical AutoExpreso The electronic tolling system on the island's highways, built on a sticker tag linked to a prepaid balance. The main... Practical Cobertura móvil y roaming For a United States line, Puerto Rico falls inside the domestic plan and most tariffs charge no roaming. For a... Practical Código de área 787 y 939 The two area codes of Puerto Rico, which coexist across the whole island rather than splitting it into zones. You... Practical Estatus de territorio Puerto Rico is an unincorporated territory of the United States, with its own government and US citizenship for those... Practical Hora del Atlántico Puerto Rico runs on Atlantic Standard Time all year and does not change clocks for daylight saving. That means it... Practical Huracán María The major hurricane that crossed Puerto Rico on September 20, 2017 and caused the island's worst recent crisis, with... Practical Inspección agrícola de salida A luggage check carried out when leaving Puerto Rico for the rest of the United States, run by the federal... Practical IVU (impuesto sobre ventas) Puerto Rico's sales and use tax, 11.5 percent, made up of 10.5 percent commonwealth and 1 percent municipal. Prepared... Practical Propina Puerto Rico tips like the rest of the United States, between 15 and 20 percent at table service restaurants. For... Practical Temporada alta High season runs from mid December through April, with drier weather, less heat and higher flight and lodging prices.... Practical Temporada de huracanes The official Atlantic season running from June 1 to November 30, with peak activity between August and October. Most...

Getting around

Getting around Aeropuerto Luis Muñoz Marín The island's main airport, in Carolina next to San Juan, and the gateway for nearly all international and mainland... Getting around Alquiler de carro Renting a car is the practical way to see Puerto Rico beyond the metro area, because intercity public transport is... Getting around Aplicaciones de transporte Ride hailing apps work well across metro San Juan and its tourist areas, with short waits and predictable pricing.... Getting around Autopistas principales The island's fast network rests on two toll corridors: one running west from San Juan along the north coast and one... Getting around Carro público A shared van or car running a fixed route between towns, stopping at the plaza or the municipal terminal, and the... Getting around Ferry de Ceiba The boat service linking the Ceiba terminal in the east with Vieques and Culebra, which replaced the old departures... Getting around Guagua The word for bus in Puerto Rican Spanish and much of the Caribbean. In metro San Juan the transit authority runs them... Getting around Tapón (atasco) A traffic jam, in island Spanish. Metro San Juan gets heavy jams at rush hour and also on Sunday evenings coming back... Getting around Tren Urbano A single line metro connecting Bayamón, Guaynabo and part of San Juan, with stations at office districts, hospitals... Getting around Vuelo en avioneta Short hops in light aircraft between San Juan or Ceiba and the islands of Vieques and Culebra, taking roughly 10 to...