Taíno
The Indigenous people who inhabited Puerto Rico, which they called Borikén, when the Spanish arrived in 1493. Their mark survives in everyday language, in words such as hammock, hurricane, canoe, güiro and barbecue, and in the names of many towns. Their sites are visited mostly in the island's center and west.
Example
Words you use without thinking in English, such as hurricane and hammock, come from Taíno.
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Related terms
History
Cemí
A sacred Taíno object, usually of stone or wood and often triangular, representing a deity or an ancestral spirit. It...
History
Petroglifo
A carving made on rock by Indigenous peoples, with faces, round eyes and figures, found in rivers, caves and...
History
Parque Ceremonial Indígena de Caguana
A Taíno site in Utuado, in the mountainous center, with ceremonial plazas called bateyes framed by carved monoliths....
Local slang
Borinquen
The Taíno name of Puerto Rico, also written Borikén, still alive as the island's poetic name. It appears in the...
Frequently asked questions
Where can I see Taíno heritage on a short trip?
At the Caguana ceremonial park in Utuado, in museums in San Juan and Ponce, and at petroglyphs in several rivers and caves.
Are there Taíno people today?
There is no continuous recognized Taíno community, though identity revival movements exist and genetic studies show Indigenous ancestry in the present population.
