Puerto Rico

H

Trade

The island’s economy has become increasingly integrated into the U.S. economy. The great majority of Puerto Rico’s exports go to the mainland and about half of imports come from there. The European Union is another significant market for Puerto Rico’s exports.

The volume of Puerto Rico’s trade soared and the makeup of its exports changed drastically in the late 20th century. In 1940 exports were largely made up of traditional agricultural products, such as sugar and tobacco, and handicrafts, such as needlework. By the 2000s exports consisted chiefly of pharmaceuticals, computer and electronic products, and medical equipment. Raw materials and petroleum were the leading imports.

IV

People of Puerto Rico

According to the 2000 census, Puerto Rico had 3,815,909 inhabitants, an increase of 8.1 percent over the 1990 figure of 3,536,910. The population estimate for 2009 was 3,971,020. The average population density in 2009 was 448 persons per sq km (1,160 persons per sq mi), a higher density than in any state. In 2000 whites constituted 80.5 percent of the population, blacks 8 percent, Asians 0.2 percent, Native Americans 0.4 percent, and those of mixed heritage or not reporting race 11 percent. Hispanics, who may be of any race, were 98.8 percent of Puerto Rico’s population. Spanish and English are the official languages of the commonwealth, but Spanish is the primary language. The majority of the people are Roman Catholic.

During most of the nearly 400 years of Spanish colonial rule, Puerto Rican society was legally divided into castes. The highest caste consisted of whites. The middle caste was composed of free blacks and mulattos (individuals of mixed European and African descent). Slaves made up the lowest caste. Puerto Rican society was also divided into social classes. Within these classes, there was more fluidity. In the upper class were plantation owners, other large landowners, wealthy merchants, and leading bureaucrats. The middle class included small-scale farmers, merchants, artisans, and bureaucrats. The lower class included unskilled laborers, artisans, and small storekeepers. Whites were found in the upper, middle, and lower classes, but they were never slaves. The clergy also spanned all three classes and were generally white. Free people of color were generally in the middle and lower social classes with a few ascending to the upper class. Slaves did not have any social mobility; they consistently remained at the bottom of the society.

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Following the abolition of slavery in 1873, Puerto Rico’s social structure changed. The sharp division between classes began to blur. This process accelerated after the economy industrialized in the 1940s and 1950s. By the early 21st century, Puerto Ricans had increased social mobility and much greater opportunities because of universal access to education and a more developed economy. Although some vestiges of the traditional social structure still persisted and not all remnants of racial prejudice were eliminated, modern society in Puerto Rico by and large permitted a great deal of social and economic mobility.

A

Principal Cities

When Puerto Rico began to industrialize in the 1940s, many people migrated from the countryside to the cities. As a result, the urban population increased dramatically over the following decades. The proportion of the population living in rural areas declined from 70 percent in 1940 to 42 percent in 1970. In 2003, 98 percent of the population lived in urban areas. In 2000 the major cities included San Juan (421,958), Ponce (155,038), Caguas (88,680), Arecibo (49,318), and Mayagüez (78,647).

San Juan, the capital and chief port, is the most important city on the island. Government offices, industries, the University of Puerto Rico, and the majority of tourist hotels and entertainment facilities are concentrated in the San Juan area. San Juan is one of the oldest cities in the western hemisphere, founded in the early 16th century. The many colonial buildings and fortresses found in the old section of the city, known as Old San Juan, preserve the Spanish flavor of the city. The population of San Juan itself has not increased greatly over the past several decades, but tremendous growth has occurred in cities within the San Juan metropolitan area. Major cities in the San Juan metropolitan area include Bayamón (2000 population, 203,499), Carolina (168,164), and Guaynabo (78,806).

B

Religion

About three-fourths of Puerto Rico’s population is Roman Catholic, although a much smaller number regularly attends religious services. After the United States acquired Puerto Rico in 1898, Protestantism grew in influence and popularity, with all major sects represented. In recent decades, Pentecostal fundamentalism has gained followers (see Pentecostal Movement). As is typical throughout Latin America, a number of Puerto Ricans practiced religions that blend Catholicism with other traditions. Some islanders ascribe to spiritualism, a belief that spirits of the dead inhabit the island, and others practice Santería, an Afro-Caribbean belief system brought to Puerto Rico from Cuba. There is also a small Jewish community.

C

Migration

According to the 2000 U.S. census, some 3.4 million Puerto Ricans lived on the U.S. mainland, the majority of them in the states of New York, New Jersey, and Florida. In general, Puerto Ricans migrated to the mainland in search of better economic opportunities.

Migration was particularly extensive during the first decades of industrialization, from the early 1940s through the 1960s. As people moved from rural to urban areas, the new manufacturing companies did not have enough jobs to offer. With no jobs in the cities, many Puerto Ricans left the island to go to the mainland to find employment. In fact, one of the reasons that Operation Bootstrap was successful was that hundreds of thousands of Puerto Ricans migrated to the mainland United States, easing economic pressure on the island.

Migration tends to increase during economic recessions on the island, and decline as the economy recovers. Migration helps relieve competition for jobs in Puerto Rico and decreases the number of people the relatively impoverished island has to feed. It also provides a source of external income as emigrants on the mainland send cash to relatives in Puerto Rico, thus somewhat aiding the island’s economy.

The migration of Puerto Ricans to the United States has created a Puerto Rican presence in the mainland nearly as large as the population of the island itself. By the 2000s many Puerto Ricans were second- or third-generation residents of the mainland. Some traced their heritage back even further.

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