Puerto Rico was settled by a succession of peoples beginning 2,000 to 4,000 years ago; these included the Ortoiroid, Saladoid, and Taíno. It was then colonized by Spain following the arrival of Christopher Columbus in 1493. Puerto Rico was contested by other European powers, but remained a Spanish possession for the next four centuries. An influx of African slaves and settlers primarily from the Canary Islands and Andalusia vastly changed the cultural and demographic landscape of the island. Within the Spanish Empire, Puerto Rico played a secondary but strategic role compared to wealthier colonies like Peru and New Spain. By the late 19th century, a distinct Puerto Rican identity began to emerge, centered around a fusion of indigenous, African, and European elements. In 1898, following the Spanish–American War, Puerto Rico was acquired by the United States.
The album was well received by critics who complimented George's production and Anthony's youthful voice. Anthony received two awards for "Best New Artists" at the Billboard Latin Music Awards and the Lo Nuestro Awards. The album produced three singles: "Hasta Que Te Conocí", "Palabras del Alma", and "Si Tú No Te Fueras", all of which charted on the Billboard Hot Latin Songs chart. As of 2002, Otra Nota has sold over 300,000 copies. (Full article...)
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Puerto Rico currently has the fourth-most active players in Major League Baseball (MLB) among Latin American jurisdictions, behind the Dominican Republic, Venezuela and Cuba. More than three hundred players from the archipelago have played in the major leagues since 1926. This includes players who were born in either one of the archipelago's islands and those of Puerto Rican heritage. Only those players who have worked in the major leagues are listed, not those active in the minor leagues, nor negro independent leagues.
For years, it was considered that the first player from Puerto Rico to play in the major leagues was Hiram Bithorn in 1942. But this changed in December 2020, when seven Negro baseball leagues between 1920 and 1948 were recognized as "major leagues." Thus, the first Puerto Rican to play baseball on the major leagues was Jose "Gacho" Torres, who debuted in 1926. (Full article...)
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"A Puro Dolor" is a song recorded by Puerto Rican band Son by Four. It was written by Omar Alfanno and released as the first single of the second studio album of the band in 2000. Two versions of the track were produced by Oscar Llord for the album; one as a salsa and the other as a ballad. The ballad version was arranged by Alejandro Jaén.
The song reached number-one on Billboard Top Latin Songs chart, and became the longest running chart topper of its history, spending 20 weeks at the top; this record was broken five years later by Colombian singer Shakira with "La Tortura" which spent 25 weeks at number-one. "A Puro Dolor" also reached the Billboard 100; this led to the recording of an English-language version of the track "Purest of Pain", which was also charted in the United States. (Full article...)
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Vuelve (transl.Come Back) is the fourth studio album by Puerto Rican singer Ricky Martin. Sony Discos and Columbia Records released it on February 12, 1998. Martin worked with producers KC Porter, Robi Draco Rosa, and Desmond Child to create the album. Following the worldwide success of the song "María" from his previous album, A Medio Vivir (transl.Half Alive) (1995), Martin returned to the studio and began recording material while on tour. Vuelve is a Latin record with Latin dance numbers and pop ballads. "María" caught the attention of FIFA, who asked Martin to write an anthem for the 1998 FIFA World Cup being held in France. Martin subsequently recorded "La Copa de la Vida", composed by Porter, Rosa, and Desmond Child for the World Cup.
Critics' reviews of the album were generally positive; they praised its uptempo tracks and its production, though some criticized it for containing too many ballads. Martin received several accolades, including the Best Latin Pop Performance at the 41st Annual Grammy Awards in 1999. Vuelve debuted at number one on the US Billboard Top Latin Albums chart and peaked at number forty on the Billboard 200. Martin's performance of "La Copa de la Vida" on the Grammy Awards show was credited for boosting the album's sales. Certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), it sold more than 888,000 copies in the United States, standing as the 10th best-selling Latin album in the country. Vuelve reached number one in Norway, Portugal, and Spain, as well as the top 10 in seven other countries, including Australia and Italy. As of 2008, the album had sold over six million copies worldwide. (Full article...)
After being drafted by the San Francisco Giants in 2004, Sánchez quickly worked his way through the Giants' minor league system. In 2006, he was called up to the major leagues and was used mostly in a long relief role. In 2007, he made the team out of spring training and was again used mostly in long relief, though he spent part of his season in the minors. In 2008, he made the Giants' starting rotation and remained in it for the entire year, except for a stint on the disabled list. (Full article...)
Rodríguez was awarded the ALMVP award in 1999. He won the 2003 World Series with the Florida Marlins and played in the 2006 World Series while with the Tigers. In 2009, he set an MLB record by catching his 2,227th game, passing Carlton Fisk. He had the best career caught-stealing percentage of any major league catcher, at 45.68% (versus a league average of 31%), and he had nine seasons with a caught-stealing rate of 50% or higher. Only one major league catcher (Yadier Molina) has more putouts. (Full article...)
As an amateur, Cotto represented Puerto Rico in the lightweight and light welterweight divisions at various international events, including the 1999 Pan American Games, the 2000 Olympics, and the 1998 Junior World Championships; the latter in which he won a lightweight silver medal. Having begun his professional career in 2001, Cotto defeated Kelson Pinto for the WBO light welterweight title in 2004. He made six successful defenses before vacating the title to move up in weight. In his first welterweight fight, in 2006, Cotto defeated Carlos Quintana for the vacant WBA title. He successfully defended it four times before a career first loss to Antonio Margarito in 2008. The following year, Cotto won the vacant WBO welterweight title and defended it once before losing it to Manny Pacquiao in the same year. (Full article...)
Lyrically, the song follows the protagonist talking to her lover, assuring him that she is going to be with him. Queen performed the song for the first time on Don Francisco Presenta. Furthermore, the video for the song reached the top of the music video countdown hosted by Terra Networks. (Full article...)
"Quiero Bailar" ('I Want To Dance') is a song by Puerto Ricanreggaetónrecording artistIvy Queen, from the platinum edition of her third studio album, Diva (2003). It was composed by Queen alongside her then-husband Gran Omar, produced by Iván Joy and released as the lead single from the album in 2004. Lyrically, "the song talks about a guy expecting sex after a dance like it was a bad thing." Addressing the topic of female autonomy of the body, the song has become recognized as a female empowerment anthem.
The song became the first Spanish-language song to reach the top position on Miami's WPOW Rhythmic Top 40, the first Spanish song to do so, while reaching the Top 10 of the Billboard Latin Rhythm Airplay chart. The song has become known as the first female reggaeton feminist anthem among songs that lyrically degraded women. An accompanying music video was filmed for the song which featured cameos from her ex-husband Omar Navarro, known artistically as Gran Omar. (Full article...)
The species name, angelae, is a tribute to Angela Kepler, one of its discoverers. These birds are insectivores, as they feed by gleaning small insects off the habitat leaves. (Full article...)
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Captain Humbert Roque Versace, Medal of Honor recipient
In Puerto Rico, boxing is considered a major sport, having produced more amateur and professional world champions than any other sport in its history. Puerto Rico ranks 5th worldwide between countries with most boxing world champions in history (only behind USA, Mexico, UK and Japan). Also, in year 2004, became the first country to have had, at least, one world champion in every single one of the 17 current boxing weight divisions throughout the history (Provided that John Ruiz is considered as Puerto Rican and not counting Bridgerweight division). Puerto Rico ranks first in champions per capita with an astonishing 16 in every one million people. February 9, 2008 was the first time that boxers from Puerto Rico had held three of the four major welterweights titles (World Boxing Association, International Boxing Federation and World Boxing Organization) when Carlos Quintana defeated Paul Williams to join Miguel Cotto, and Kermit Cintron as champions in the division.
Individually, Puerto Rican world champions have earned numerous achievements. These include, Wilfredo Gómez's record for most defenses in the super bantamweight division and for most successive knockouts by a titleholder. On March 6, 1976, at age 17, Wilfred Benítez became the youngest world champion in the history of the sport. On September 3, 1994, Daniel Jiménez established a world record for the quickest knockout in a championship fight, defeating Harald Geier in 17 seconds (currently the second fastest). Juan Manuel López is sixth in this category, having defeated César Figueroa in 47 seconds during his first defense. Ossie Ocasio was the first World Boxing Association (WBA) cruiserweight champion, winning it on February 13, 1982. This accomplishment was mimicked in other organizations: José de Jesús, José Ruíz Matos, John John Molina and Héctor Camacho did it in their respective divisions in the World Boxing Organization (WBO). On June 7, 2014, Miguel Cotto made history by becoming Puerto Rico's first four-division world champion. In women's boxing, Amanda Serrano was the first IBF super featherweight champion and the first Puerto Rican boxer (male or female) to win major world titles in seven different weight classes (Camacho made it first, but four of his titles were considered minor world titles). Also, in 2023, Serrano was the first Puerto Rican to be Undisputed world champion in a single division (featherweight), having won the four belts on each of the major boxing organizations (WBO,WBC,IBF and later WBA). (Full article...)
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"Rezo" (English: "I Pray") is a song by Puerto Rican entertainer Carlos Ponce from his 1998 eponymous debut album. The song was co-written by Ponce and Freddy Piñero, Jr. with productions being handled by Emilio Estefan and Kike Santander. It was released as the lead single from the album on May 12, 1998. A pop and tropicalpower ballad with a gospel chorus, the singer leads a prayer for a woman he desires. A remix of the track was also included in the album. The song received positive reactions from three music journalists.
The song was a recipient of a Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI) Latin Award in 2000. Commercially, it topped the charts in all the Spanish-speaking countries of Central America as well as the BillboardHot Latin Songs and Latin Pop Airplay charts in the United States. It also reached number four and three in Colombia and the Mexican ballads charts, respectively. A music video for "Rezo" was filmed and features Mexican model Barbara Coppel. It was nominated in the category of Video of the Year at the 11th Annual Lo Nuestro Awards in 1999. (Full article...)
The Okeechobee hurricane of 1928, also known as the San Felipe Segundo hurricane, was one of the deadliest hurricanes in the recorded history of the North Atlantic basin, and the fourth deadliest hurricane in the United States, only behind the 1900 Galveston hurricane, 1899 San Ciriaco hurricane, and Hurricane Maria. The hurricane killed an estimated 2,500 people in the United States; most of the fatalities occurred in the state of Florida, particularly in Lake Okeechobee. It was the fourth tropical cyclone, third hurricane, the only major hurricane of the 1928 Atlantic hurricane season, and remains the deadliest disaster in Florida’s history to date. It developed off the west coast of Africa on September 6 as a tropical depression, but it strengthened into a tropical storm later that day, shortly before passing south of the Cape Verde islands. Further intensification was slow and halted late on September 7. About 48 hours later, the storm strengthened and became a Category 1 hurricane on the Saffir–Simpson hurricane wind scale. Still moving westward, the system reached Category 4 intensity before striking Guadeloupe on September 12, where it brought great destruction and resulted in 1,200 deaths. The islands of Martinique, Montserrat, and Nevis also reported damage and fatalities, but not nearly as severe as in Guadeloupe.
Around midday on September 13, the storm strengthened into a Category 5 hurricane and peaked with sustained winds of 160 mph (260 km/h). About six hours later, the system made landfall in Puerto Rico; it remains the only tropical cyclone on record to strike the island at Category 5 intensity. Very strong winds resulted in severe damage in Puerto Rico; 24,728 homes were destroyed and 192,444 were damaged throughout the island, leaving over 500,000 people homeless. Heavy rainfall also led to extreme damage to vegetation and agriculture. On Puerto Rico alone, there were 312 deaths and about US$50 million ($887 million today) in damage. While crossing the island and emerging into the Atlantic, the storm weakened slightly, falling to Category 4 intensity. It began crossing through the Bahamas on September 16, where it resulted in 18 fatalities. (Full article...)
The Music of Puerto Rico has evolved as a heterogeneous and dynamic product of diverse cultural resources. The most conspicuous musical sources of Puerto Rico have primarily included African, TainoIndigenous, and European influences. Puerto Rican music culture today comprises a wide and rich variety of genres, ranging from essentially native genres such as bomba, jíbaro, seis, danza, and plena to more recent hybrid genres such as salsa, Latin trap and reggaeton. Broadly conceived, the realm of "Puerto Rican music" should naturally comprise the music culture of the millions of people of Puerto Rican descent who have lived in the United States, especially in New York City. Their music, from salsa to the boleros of Rafael Hernández, cannot be separated from the music culture of Puerto Rico itself. (Full article...)
Pellot used the name Vic Power during his major league career, but played as Victor Pellot when he played winter baseball in Puerto Rico. He was an AL All-Star for four seasons playing in five of the six All-Star games that were played, and won seven consecutive Gold Glove Awards. (Full article...)
... that In 1963, the Air National Guard Base, at the San Juan International airport in Puerto Rico, was renamed "Muñiz Air National Guard Base" in honor of Lieutenant Colonel José Antonio Muñiz, a co-founder of the "PRANG"?[2]
... that Lieutenant Colonel Olga E. Custodio made history when she became the first female Hispanic U.S. military pilot and that after retiring from the military she became the first Latina to become a commercial airline captain?[4]
... that on September 11, 2001, Marc H. Sasseville, now a Brigadier General, was given the mission of finding United Airlines Flight 93 and destroying it, even if it meant ramming the plane. The tactic would be similar to the suicide military tactics known as kamikaze missions used by the military aviators from the Empire of Japan in World War II?[5]
... that Brigadier General Irene M. Zoppi is the first Puerto Rican female to reach the rank of Brigadier General in the United States Armed Forces?[6]
... that Marta Carcana is the first woman Adjutant General of the Puerto Rican National Guard?[7][8]
... that President Barack Obama awarded the Medal of Honor to Juan E. Negrón, Demensio Rivera, Miguel Vera and Félix Conde Falcón bringing the total Puerto Rican recipients of said honor to nine? Prior to the Medal of Honor upgrade, which was made on March 18, 2014, they all had been awarded the Distinguished Service Cross Medal.[9]
Image 5'La escuelo del Maestro Cordero' by Puerto Rican artist Francisco Oller. (from Culture of Puerto Rico)
Image 6Sugar cane workers resting at the noon hour, Rio Piedras. Photograph by Jack Delano, a photographer for the Farm Security Administration. Ca. 1941. (from History of Puerto Rico)
Image 7El Imparcial headline: "Aviation (US) bombs Utuado" during Nationalist revolts. (from History of Puerto Rico)
Image 9The 45-star flag, used by the United States during the invasion of Puerto Rico, was also the official flag of Puerto Rico from 1899 to 1908. (from History of Puerto Rico)
Image 10"El desastre es la colonia" (the disaster is the colony), words seen on light meter six months after Hurricane Maria (from Culture of Puerto Rico)
Image 11Hurricanes Irma and Maria sharply reduced the availability of electricity throughout the island (from History of Puerto Rico)
Image 12Raising the US Flag over San Juan, October 18, 1898. (from History of Puerto Rico)
Image 17The original Lares revolutionary flag. The first "Puerto Rican Flag" used in the unsuccessful Grito de Lares (Lares Uprising). (from History of Puerto Rico)
Image 20Royal Cédula of Graces, 1815, which granted legal entry of some foreigners to Puerto Rico. (from History of Puerto Rico)
Image 21An 1899, caricature by Louis Dalrymple (1866–1905), showing Uncle Sam harshly lecturing four black children labelled Philippines, Hawaii, Puerto Rico and Cuba (from History of Puerto Rico)
Image 23Los Reyes Magos painted by Hipolito Marte Martinez, "In Puerto Rico, Melchior is always represented with dark skin" (from Culture of Puerto Rico)
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