Boricua is what Puerto Ricans call themselves. Not Puerto Rican — Boricua. The name comes from Boriquén, the Taíno name for the island before Spanish colonization. Choosing that name — the Indigenous name, the one that predates the colonial one — is a statement about where the pride comes from.
What does Boricua mean and where does the word come from?
Boricua derives from Boriquén (also spelled Borikén), the original Taíno name for Puerto Rico meaning "Land of the Valiant Lord" or "Great Land of the Valiant and Noble Lord." The Taíno people were the Indigenous inhabitants of the island before Spanish colonization beginning in 1493. According to researchers at the University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez, the term Boricua became a point of cultural pride and self-identification particularly as Puerto Ricans in the diaspora sought language that honored their roots beyond the Spanish colonial framework. Using Boricua is a way of saying: we were here before the name you gave us.
Why do Puerto Ricans in the diaspora especially identify with the word Boricua?
In New York, Chicago, Orlando, and every other city where Puerto Ricans built communities, Boricua became shorthand for a specific kind of pride — one that carries the island even when the island is thousands of miles away. It is on flags, murals, tattoos, team jerseys, and the names of restaurants and bodegas. When a Puerto Rican in Hartford calls themselves Boricua, they are claiming a lineage that the colonial word "Puerto Rican" does not quite capture.
At Smile Mas, we create pieces for the full Puerto Rican diaspora — for everyone who knows exactly what Boricua means and says it with their whole chest.
Keep reading:
- Wepa: The Boricua Expression That Says Everything
- Chicano: The Identity Term That Refused to Disappear
- Immigrant Identity: What It Means to Carry Two Cultures
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