Nuyorican is a portmanteau word blending "New York" (or "Nueva York" in Spanish) and "Puerto Rican," referring to Puerto Ricans located in or around New York City, their culture, or their descendants (especially those raised or currently living in the New York metropolitan area). This term is sometimes used for Puerto Ricans living in other areas in the Northeastern US Mainland outside New York State as well. The term is also used by Islander Puerto Ricans (Puerto Ricans from Puerto Rico) to differentiate those of Puerto Rican descent from the Puerto Rico-born.
History
The term
Nuyorican arose in the mid-1960s, used by Puerto Ricans entering the United States following World War II, and gained popularity in the 1970s and 1980s.
This term is also used to refer to the
Spanish language spoken by New York Puerto Ricans. An estimated 1,800,000 Nuyoricans are said to live in New York City, the largest Puerto Rican community outside Puerto Rico. Nuyoricans are not considered Puerto Ricans by some island Puerto Ricans due to cultural differences, which remains a point of controversy among both groups of Puerto Ricans.
[ The Nuyorican's Dilemma: Categorization of Returning Migrants in Puerto Rico] Despite the controversial label of “Nuyorican” the histories of New York, and Puerto Rico are undeniably intertwined. For example, the Puerto Rican flag was created in 1895 New York by Juan de Mata Terreforte along with 59 other exiled independistas.
Nuyorican has a broad meaning; originally it meant Puerto Ricans, both island-born and mainland-born, living in New York, but many island-born Puerto Ricans use the term to describe assimilated Americans of Puerto Rican descent living in any US state, or very assimilated people of Puerto Rican ancestry who may be more culturally aligned with African Americans, though still identifying as Puerto Rican.
Ethnic enclaves centered on Puerto Ricans include Spanish Harlem,
Manhattan; Williamsburg,
Brooklyn; Bushwick, Brooklyn; and the
South Bronx.
Although Florida has received some dispersal of the population, there has been a resurgence in Puerto Rican migration to New York and New Jersey primarily due to economic and cultural considerations,
Etymology
The
Oxford English Dictionary cites this word as evolving slowly through roughly the last third of the 20th century, with the first cited reference being poet Jaime Carrero using
neorriqueño in 1964 as a
Spanish language adjective combining
neoyorquino and
puertorriqueño. Many other variants developed along the way, including
neoricano,
neorican (also written as
Neo-Rican and
Neorican), and
newyorican (also written as
New Yorrican).
Nuyorican itself dates at least from 1975, the date of the first public sessions of the Nuyorican Poets Café. Some of the best known "Nuyoricans" who have written and performed their experiences of being a Puerto Rican in New York are: Miguel Piñero, Miguel Algarín,
Piri Thomas, Sandra María Esteves, Willie Colón,
Pedro Pietri, and
Giannina Braschi.
Some of the newer poets include
Willie Perdomo, Flaco Navaja,
Nancy Mercado,
Emanuel Xavier, Edwin Torres, J.L. Torres, Caridad de la Luz aka La Bruja,
Lemon Andersen, and Bonafide Rojas.
Historically, the term has been used as a derogatory term by native Puerto Ricans when describing a person that has Puerto Rican ancestry but is born outside of Puerto Rico.
The term is used by some members of this community to identify their history and cultural affiliation to a common ancestry while being separated from the island, both physically and through language and cultural shifts. This distance created a dual identity that, while still somewhat identifying with the island, recognizes the influences both geography and cultural assimilation have had.
History
Many Nuyoricans are second- and third-generation Puerto Rican living in mainland USA whose parents or grandparents arrived in the New York metropolitan area during the
Gran Migración (Great Migration). Puerto Ricans began to arrive in New York City in the nineteenth century but especially following the passage of the Jones-Shafroth Act on March 2, 1917, which granted U.S. citizenship to virtually all Puerto Ricans.
[ Jones-Shafroth Act , U.S. Library of Congress, accessed May 25, 2010.] The
Gran Migración accelerated migration from Puerto Rico to New York during the 1940s and 1950s, but such large-scale emigration began to slow by the late 1960s.
[ The Gran Migración , Maura Isabel Toro-Morn, Marixsa Alicea, Migration and Immigration: A Global View.] Due to this large scale immigration there is a huge Puerto Rican influence that can be felt throughout New York. For instance along with African Americans, Puerto Ricans have had a major influence on popular genres of music such as Hip-Hop,
which is a genre of music originating out of the inner city neighborhoods of New York. Another significant contribution is the infamous Puerto Rican Day Parade which has its origins in 1958 Spanish Harlem.
In 2000, the Puerto Rican population of New York was over 1,050,000.[ Atlas of Stateside Puerto Ricans: Abridged Edition without Maps. Angelo Falcon. Puerto Rico Federal Affairs Administration. ca. 2002. Page 3. Retrieved 13 December 2013.] As of the 2010 census, Puerto Ricans represented 8.9 percent of New York City alone (32% of the city's Hispanic community), and 5.5% of New York State as a whole.
Historically, Nuyoricans resided in the predominantly Hispanic/Latino section of Upper Manhattan known as Spanish Harlem, and around the Loisaida section of the East Village, but later spread across the city into newly created Puerto Rican/Nuyorican enclaves in Brooklyn, Queens, and the South Bronx. Today, there are fewer island-born Puerto Ricans than mainland-born Puerto Ricans in New York City. Even though Puerto Ricans are one of the most prevalent ethnic groups in New York City, Americans weren’t always so welcoming to their Nuyrorican neighbors. Aside from the racism that Puerto Rican migrants experienced upon moving into the Tri-state area,
Prominent figures of the Nuyorican movement include poets and novelists Piri Thomas, Julia de Burgos and Giannina Braschi, while Miguel Algarín, Miguel Piñero, and Pedro Pietri co-founded the Nuyorican Poets Café, a performance space for Nuyorican poets and musicians.[' Photographing Puerto Rican New York, With A 'Sympathetic Eye ', NPR News, October 26, 2013.]
Notable Nuyoricans
File:Marc Anthony 2010.jpg|Marc Anthony
File:Herman_Badillo.JPG|Herman Badillo
File:Robert Garcia.jpg|Robert Garcia
File:Lisa_Lisa,_American_singer.jpg|Lisa Lisa
File:TIFF 2019 jlo (1 of 1)-2 (48696671561) (cropped).jpg|Jennifer Lopez
File:Council Member Melissa Mark-Viverito (6217502867) (cropped).jpg|Melissa Mark-Viverito
File:Rosie Mendez 2011 CROPPED.png|Rosie Méndez
File:Lin-Manuel Miranda by Gage Skidmore.jpg|Lin-Manuel Miranda
File:Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Official Portrait.jpg|Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
File:MJ Rodriguez.png|Mj Rodriguez
File:Josieserrano.jpeg|José E. Serrano
File:Sonia Sotomayor in SCOTUS robe.jpg|Sonia Sotomayor
File:Ritchie Torres 117th U.S Congress.jpg|Ritchie Torres
File:Neil deGrasse Tyson in June 2017 (cropped).jpg|Neil deGrasse Tyson
Nuyoricans have made breakthrough contributions in government, science, law, culture, and the humanities, including those who have broken records, significantly impacted U.S. pop culture, won landmark cases that changed laws, or have been recognized by national awards.
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Big Pun – Rapper
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Adrienne Bailon – Emmy Award-winning presenter, actress, and singer
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Eugenio Alvarez – Late U.S. representative from New York State.
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Al Diaz – Graffiti artist and component of SAMO alongside his friend, Jean Michel Basquiat.
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Carmelo Anthony – Basketball player
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Marc Anthony – Record holder in the Guinness World Record for best-selling salsa music artist and the most number-one albums on the Billboard Tropical Albums charts.
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Amanda Ayala – Singer/Songwriter
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Arturo Alfonso Schomburg – Historian and Writer during Harlem renaissance.
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Herman Badillo – Late U.S. representative from New York State
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Jean-Michel Basquiat – Artist, whose painting Untitled (1982) sold for $110.5 million in 2017, a new record high for an American artist at auction.
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Giannina Braschi – Writer, a National Endowment for the Arts Literature Fellow, published the first Spanglish novel Yo-Yo Boing!
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Miguel Braschi – Attorney, won the landmark legal case Braschi v. Stahl Associates Co. in the New York State Court of Appeals, which marked the first time state law recognized a gay couple as a family.
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Irene Cara – Actress and singer
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John Carro – was the first Nuyorican to be named a judge on the NY State Supreme Court, Appellate Division.
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Julia de Burgos- Puerto Rican poet, journalist, and educator.
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Luis Ferré-Sadurní is a journalist with The New York Times.
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Willie Colon – trombonist, vocalist, composer, arranger, bandleader, producer
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Robert Garcia – late U.S. representative from New York State
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Daniel Hernandez – Rapper
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Coleman Hughes — Author, musician, and host of the Podcast, Conversations with Coleman
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Kayel – Latin freestyle singer and frontman for TKA
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La India – Freestyle and Sals singer
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Little Louie Vega & Kenny Dope from Masters at Work
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J.I the Prince of New York – rapper
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George Lamond – Freestyle singer
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Lisa Lisa – Freestyle singer
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Jennifer Lopez – performing artist, entrepreneur, and founder of Nuyorican Productions, made Forbes list of most powerful entertainers, with annual earnings in excess of US$52 million.
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Ricky Vega – Former World Champion Professional Wrestler
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Rita Moreno – first Hispanic woman to receive an Oscar, and was an actress, singer and dancer.
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Lynda Lopez – journalist and author
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Sonia Manzano – multiple Emmy winner, actress, screenwriter, author, singer, and songwriter.
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Margarita López – first openly lesbian councilwoman and female Puerto Rican elected to the New York City Council, serving from 1998 through 2006
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Melanie Martinez – Puerto Rican American singer-songwriter born in Astoria, Queens, NY
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Melissa Mark-Viverito – Speaker of the New York City Council from 2014 through 2017
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Angie Martinez – Rapper and radio host
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Lisette Melendez – Freestyle singer
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Rosie Méndez – former member of the New York City Council (2006-2018)
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Lin-Manuel Miranda – creator of the Broadway musical Hamilton, won the Pulitzer Prize in Drama.
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Nicholasa Mohr – Author
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Richie Narvaez – Author
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Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez – politician who serves as the U.S. representative from New York's 14th congressional district.
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Antonio Pagán – late and first openly gay male and Puerto Rican elected to the New York City Council, serving from 1994 through 1998; former New York City Commissioner of Small Businesses (1998–2002)
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Noel Pagán – Freestyle singer
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Eddie Palmieri – multi-Grammy winning pianist, bandleader, NEA Jazz Master
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Rosie Perez – Actress and choreographer
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Damian Priest – professional wrestler
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Tito Puente – multi-Grammy winning timbalero, composer, arranger, bandleader
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Princess Nokia – rapper
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Charles Rangel – former U.S. representative from New York
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Sylvia Rivera – Late LGBT rights activist
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Mj Rodriguez – Actress
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David Rosado – former U.S. representative from New York
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Sa-Fire – Latin freestyle singer
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Bobby Sanabria – multi-Grammy nominated drummer, percussionist, bandleader, educator
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José E. Serrano – former U.S. representative, serving multiple districts in New York State
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Sonia Sotomayor – the first Nuyorican lawyer to become a United States Supreme Court Justice.
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Cynthia Torres – Freestyle singer
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Edwin Torres – New York State Supreme Court judge and author of Carlito's Way
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TKA – Freestyle band
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Judy Torres – Latin freestyle singer and radio host
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Ritchie Torres – U.S. representative for New York's 15th congressional district
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Neil deGrasse Tyson – Astrophysics and television host of the PBS series and . He is the first person of Puerto Rican descent to be Director of the Hayden Planetarium in New York City.
See also
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African Americans
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Bushwick, Brooklyn
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Cultural assimilation
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New York Latino English
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New York City ethnic enclaves
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Nuyorican Movement
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Nuyorican Poets Café
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Puerto Ricans in New York City
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Puerto Ricans in the United States
-
Racial inequality in the United States
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Sunset Park, Brooklyn
-
Teatro Puerto Rico
External links
