PUERTO RICANS CALL THEIR ISLAND BORINQUEN?
“the land of the brave lord.” It was the name the Taino
Indians gave the
of Puerto Rico.
was not their real name. It was the name Christopher Columbus gave
this indigenous group of Arawak Indians because taino
means peace and it was the first word out of their mouths when
they saw him in 1492. Christopher Columbus, by the way, was not
his real name—it was Cristóbal Colón.
Tainos were serene and the Spanish often called them “Gente de
Dios,” which later was shortened to “en Dios,” then “endios,” and
finally to “Indians.” Yes, “Indian”—they were called Indians not
because they were thought to live in India but because they were
children of God.
The Taino hunted,
fished, and gathered in their plentiful island. They slept in
hamacas, whose name has survived to mean “hammock.” So has
huracán, or hurricane—the god of ferocious winds who the Taino
understood no one would ever tame.
“Boricua,” from “Borinquen,”
is what Puerto Ricans call each other, particularly on the U.S.
mainland. Using the name is a form of bonding, reaffirming ancient