Arecibo (; ) is a

city A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...

and

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

on the northern coast of

Puerto Rico ; abbreviated PR), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is a Government of Puerto Rico, self-governing Caribbean Geography of Puerto Rico, archipelago and island organized as an Territories of the United States, unincorporated territo ...

, on the shores of the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the ...

, located north of Utuado and Ciales; east of Hatillo; and west of Barceloneta and

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

. It is about west of

San Juan San Juan, Spanish for Saint John (disambiguation), Saint John, most commonly refers to: * San Juan, Puerto Rico * San Juan, Argentina * San Juan, Metro Manila, a highly urbanized city in the Philippines San Juan may also refer to: Places Arge ...

, the capital city. Arecibo is the largest municipality in

by area, and it is the core city of the Arecibo Metropolitan Statistical Area and part of the greater San Juan–Bayamón, PR Combined Statistical Area. It is spread over 18 ''barrios'' and Arecibo Pueblo (the downtown area and the administrative center of the city). Its population in 2020 was 87,754. The

Arecibo Observatory The Arecibo Observatory, also known as the National Astronomy and Ionosphere Center (NAIC) and formerly known as the Arecibo Ionosphere Observatory, is an observatory in Barrio Esperanza, Arecibo, Puerto Rico owned by the US National Science F ...

, which housed the Arecibo telescope, the world's largest radio telescope until July 2016, is located in the municipality. The Arecibo telescope collapsed on December 1, 2020. Arecibo is the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Arecibo.

Etymology and nicknames

The name ''Arecibo'' comes from

Arasibo Aracibo (born c. 1480s) was a Taíno ''Cacique'' in Puerto Rico who governed the area which is now named after him (now spelled Arecibo). Pre-Columbian era Aracibo governed a tribe whose village was located by the shore of the river "Abacoa" (n ...

, Taíno cacique of the ''yucayeque'' "settlement" of Abacoa, where the Spanish town of Arecibo was established in 1556. The word ''Arasibo'' itself most likely comes from the

Taíno The Taíno are the Indigenous peoples of the Caribbean, Indigenous peoples of the Greater Antilles and surrounding islands. At the time of European contact in the late 15th century, they were the principal inhabitants of most of what is now The ...

words ''ara'', possibly meaning or related to "people", and ''siba'', most likely meaning "rock" or "stone". This name also lends itself to the name of the

river A river is a natural stream of fresh water that flows on land or inside Subterranean river, caves towards another body of water at a lower elevation, such as an ocean, lake, or another river. A river may run dry before reaching the end of ...

which flows through the municipality into the

. Some of the city's nicknames are ''Villa del Capitán Correa'' ("Villa of Captain Correa"), after Antonio de los Reyes Correa, a Spanish soldier who famously and successfully defended the city from a British invasion; ''La Muy Leal'' "the very loyal" after a title often granted to Spanish colonial cities; and ''Diamante del Norte'' "

Diamond Diamond is a Allotropes of carbon, solid form of the element carbon with its atoms arranged in a crystal structure called diamond cubic. Diamond is tasteless, odourless, strong, brittle solid, colourless in pure form, a poor conductor of e ...

of the North" due to the city's location in the northern coast of the island.

History

When the

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

arrived, they found the area occupied by the indigenous

, led by Xamaica

Cacique A cacique, sometimes spelled as cazique (; ; feminine form: ), was a tribal chieftain of the Taíno people, who were the Indigenous inhabitants of the Bahamas, the Greater Antilles, and the northern Lesser Antilles at the time of European cont ...

(chief) of the ''yucayeque'' (town) then named Abacoa. Spanish colonists settled Arecibo in 1556, which they named for the cacique. It was their fourth settlement on the island, after Caparra (which later became

), San German, and Coamo. Arecibo was officially founded as a town by the Spanish crown on May 1, 1616, under the governorship of Captain Felipe de Beaumont y Navarra, when the

King of Spain The monarchy of Spain or Spanish monarchy () is the constitutional form of government of Spain. It consists of a Hereditary monarchy, hereditary monarch who reigns as the head of state, being the highest office of the country. The Spanish ...

granted the land (and the Taino living there) to Lope Conchillos. For some time the island was competed for by other European powers. On August 5, 1702, Captain Antonio de los Reyes Correa, commanding 30 militiamen, successfully defended Arecibo from an attack by two

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

warships under William Whetstone. Whetstone's ships landed 40

marines Marines (or naval infantry) are military personnel generally trained to operate on both land and sea, with a particular focus on amphibious warfare. Historically, the main tasks undertaken by marines have included Raid (military), raiding ashor ...

and sailors on two rowboats, but Correa's troops ambushed the invaders, killing 22 and forcing the remainder to retreat. Spanish cannon fire also killed 8 men onboard Whetstone's ships. The Spanish defenders suffered one killed and three wounded, including Correa. This gave the city its nickname "The Village of Captain Correa". In 1778, Arecibo, by royal decree, was awarded the "Villa" status, though it was not integrated as such until 1802. In 1850 it was awarded the "Muy Leal" (very loyal) title. Over time, large part of its territory became separate municipalities. These include Manati, Barceloneta,

, Utuado, Jayuya, Hatillo, Camuy, Quebradillas and Isabela. In 1982, it was promoted to city status, though it continued to be known by its previous nickname.

Hurricane Maria Hurricane Maria was an extremely powerful and devastating tropical cyclone that affected the northeastern Caribbean in September 2017, particularly in the U.S. territory of Puerto Rico, which accounted for 2,975 of the 3,059 deaths. It is the ...

on September 20, 2017, triggered extensive flooding, and damage to infrastructure with over 3,000 people losing their homes. Two hospitals were damaged and the hurricane caused

deaths Death is the end of life; the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain a living organism. Death eventually and inevitably occurs in all organisms. The remains of a former organism normally begin to decompose sho ...

as well.

Geography

Arecibo is located in the Northern Coastal Plain region of Puerto Rico, extending inland into the Northern Karst Belt. It lies on the

north of Utuado, east of Hatillo, and west of Barceloneta and

. The city occupies an area of 127 square miles (330 km²), of which, , is water. The

Río Grande de Arecibo The ''Río Grande de Arecibo'' (also gazetted as Arecibo River in English) is a river of Puerto Rico. The headwaters lie in the mountains to the south of Adjuntas. From there it flows north until it reaches the Atlantic Ocean near Arecibo. The t ...

is the main river in the municipality, running through the middle of it. South of the municipality, in the

karst Karst () is a topography formed from the dissolution of soluble carbonate rocks such as limestone and Dolomite (rock), dolomite. It is characterized by features like poljes above and drainage systems with sinkholes and caves underground. Ther ...

region, it forms the Dos Bocas Lake, a primary source of water for northern Puerto Rico. Several rivers feed the Río Grande, including the Tanamá River. Caño Santiago is an artificial canal created in the 19th century by partially diverting the Tanama River's waters tobarrios a small temporary stream, to supply water to poor neighborhoods in Arecibo, discharging into the Arecibo River near its mouth. In the 1950s it was modified to pass slightly more south of the city center. Poor maintenance, sediment and pollution has again turned the canal into a temporary stream. East of the river lies Caño Tiburones, a vital marshland area providing habitat for many birds and wildlife. Arecibo has two forest reserves. Cambalache Forest Reserve is located along Barceloneta's municipal limits while Río Abajo State Forest is located between Arecibo and Utuado. Caves include Cueva Ventana, which overlooks the valley formed by the Rio Grande de Arecibo, and Cueva del Indio (Cave of the Indian), where paintings made by prehistoric

indigenous peoples There is no generally accepted definition of Indigenous peoples, although in the 21st century the focus has been on self-identification, cultural difference from other groups in a state, a special relationship with their traditional territ ...

have been seen. Environmental impact studies have been done to consider remedies for

flood A flood is an overflow of water (list of non-water floods, or rarely other fluids) that submerges land that is usually dry. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide. Floods are of significant con ...

ing that often occurs in Arecibo.

Barrios

Like all municipalities of Puerto Rico, Arecibo is subdivided into barrios. The municipal buildings, central square and large Catholic church are located in a small barrio referred to as , near the center of the municipality. #

Arecibo barrio-pueblo Arecibo barrio-pueblo is a barrio and downtown area that serves as the administrative center (seat) of Arecibo, a municipality of Puerto Rico. Its population in 2010 was 8,488. As was customary in Spain, in Puerto Rico, the municipality has a ba ...

including Jareales subbarrio # Arenalejos # Arrozal # Cambalache # Carreras # Domingo Ruíz # Dominguito # Esperanza # Factor # Garrochales # Hato Abajo # Hato Arriba # Hato Viejo # Islote # Miraflores # Río Arriba # Sabana Hoyos #

Santana Santana may refer to: Transportation * Volkswagen Santana, an automobile * Santana Cycles, manufacturer of tandem bicycles * Santana Motors, a former Spanish automobile manufacturer * Sailboat designs by W. D. Schock Corp ** Santana 20 ** Santan ...

# Tanamá

Sectors

Barrios (which for US census purposes, are like minor civil divisions) in turn are further subdivided into smaller local populated place areas/units called sectores (''sectors'' in English). The types of ''sectores'' may vary, from normally ''sector'' to ''urbanización'' to ''reparto'' to ''barriada'' to ''residencial'', among others.

Special Communities

(Special Communities of Puerto Rico) are marginalized communities whose citizens are experiencing a certain amount of

social exclusion Social exclusion or social marginalisation is the social disadvantage and relegation to the fringe of society. It is a term that has been used widely in Europe and was first used in France in the late 20th century. In the EU context, the Euro ...

. A map shows these communities occur in nearly every municipality of the commonwealth. Of the 742 places that were on the list in 2014, the following barrios, communities, sectors, or neighborhoods were in Arecibo: and .

Climate

Tropical monsoon climate, occasionally also known as a tropical wet climate or tropical monsoon and trade-wind littoral climate in climate classification, is a relatively rare type of climate. The Köppen Climate Classification subtype for this climate is " Am". (Tropical Monsoon Climate).

Tourism

Landmarks and places of interest

The Arecibo Harbor is managed by the

Puerto Rico Ports Authority The Puerto Rico Ports Authority (PRPA) (; AP) is a government-owned corporation of Puerto Rico charged with developing, operating, and overseeing all seaports and airports in Puerto Rico. The Authority is ascribed to the Department of Transpor ...

Arecibo is one of the oldest colonial towns in

(1616). Among its historic buildings is the Cathedral of Saint Philip the Apostle, built beginning in the late 18th century. The first church, built in the middle of the 17th century, was destroyed by an earthquake in 1787. Construction of its replacement began soon after, although it was not completed until 1846. Four days after its dedication, another earthquake seriously damaged it. Repairs were not completed until 1882. The 1918 earthquake damaged the vault so badly that it was replaced by a flat concrete roof; a vaulted ceiling of composition board was placed inside. The cathedral of Arecibo is Puerto Rico's second-largest church after the Cathedral of San Juan. The plan is rectangular with three

nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...

s; the side naves are cut short to allow large flanking chapels, which occupy almost half the length of the church. The

apse In architecture, an apse (: apses; from Latin , 'arch, vault'; from Ancient Greek , , 'arch'; sometimes written apsis; : apsides) is a semicircular recess covered with a hemispherical Vault (architecture), vault or semi-dome, also known as an ' ...

is semicircular, and has an unusual half-dome covering it. The facade is a triangular composition of three stages. The top stage, a short central tower, is a later addition, according to local architects and historians. Neoclassic ornamentation is used in an academic fashion on the lowest stage, but the other two show a less traditional use of bands and

pilaster In architecture, a pilaster is both a load-bearing section of thickened wall or column integrated into a wall, and a purely decorative element in classical architecture which gives the appearance of a supporting column and articulates an ext ...

s. The Renaissance-style windows are uncommon in Puerto Rican churches, but the central tower over the entrance is a common motif used throughout the island. Arecibo town hall

The

City Hall In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or municipal hall (in the Philippines) is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses the city o ...

, built in 1866, served as jail to revolutionaries of '' El Grito de Lares'' in 1868. In the 1918 earthquake, the frontal section of the building was destroyed. When repairs were made, a tower and clock were added to the building. In 1978, the building was restored to its original form. The City Hall of Arecibo is typical of these regional seats of government. It is relatively modest in size, of stuccoed masonry, with an academically correct composition, having a pedimented center pavilion which projects slightly. The lower story is rusticated, with arched openings; the three doorways in the center giving the effect of a ''

loggia In architecture, a loggia ( , usually , ) is a covered exterior Long gallery, gallery or corridor, often on an upper level, sometimes on the ground level of a building. The corridor is open to the elements because its outer wall is only parti ...

.'' The upper windows all have segmental pediments and balconies; the central trio share one long balcony. Architectural detailing is modest, but the building is graceful and charming. In 1898 the

Spaniards Spaniards, or Spanish people, are a Romance-speaking ethnic group native to the Iberian Peninsula, primarily associated with the modern nation-state of Spain. Genetically and ethnolinguistically, Spaniards belong to the broader Southern a ...

built the Punta Los Morrillos Lighthouse. It was automated in 1964 and is still in use. A small park, Arecibo Lighthouse and Historical Park, has been established around it. The

was the home of Arecibo telescope, once the largest single-aperture radio telescope ever constructed and one of the world's most powerful radar-radio telescopes. The observatory's purpose was to support scientific studies. It attracted several

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood ...

directors who have filmed there; most recently ''

GoldenEye ''GoldenEye'' is a 1995 spy film, the seventeenth in the List of James Bond films, ''James Bond'' series produced by Eon Productions, and the first to star Pierce Brosnan as the fictional Secret Intelligence Service, MI6 agent James Bond (lit ...

'' and '' Contact''. The radio telescope was used in 1974 to send the

Arecibo message The Arecibo message is an interstellar radio message carrying basic information about humanity and Earth that was sent to the globular cluster Messier 13 in 1974. It was meant as a demonstration of human technological achievement, rather than ...

to space. The telescope collapsed in 2020. Casa Ulanga was originally a residence built by Spanish immigrant Francisco Ulanga, and has served multiple uses over the years. It was used as a bank, store, city hall of Arecibo, hospital, jail, tribunal, and is now operated as the Arecibo Cultural Center. is an

archeological site An archaeological site is a place (or group of physical sites) in which evidence of past activity is preserved (either prehistoric or historic or contemporary), and which has been, or may be, investigated using the discipline of archaeology an ...

where

drawings can be found. The " Birth of the New World" is a statue depicting

Christopher Columbus Christopher Columbus (; between 25 August and 31 October 1451 – 20 May 1506) was an Italians, Italian explorer and navigator from the Republic of Genoa who completed Voyages of Christopher Columbus, four Spanish-based voyages across the At ...

and is located in Islote, Arecibo. . The statue is the work of Russian sculptor Zurab Tsereteli, and it is the tallest statue in the Americas. Other places of interest in Arecibo include: *The Cambalache Forest Reserve * Dos Bocas Lake which is a reservoir located between the municipalities of Arecibo and Utuado. * Paseo Victor Rojas (Victor Rojas Walk) also known as or simply , was built in 1881 where the Fort San Miguel's ruins once were * Manuel "Petaca" Iguina Coliseum which is home of the Arecibo Captains basketball team. * Museum of Art and History of Arecibo which has art from local artists and shows the city's history Arecibo beaches include Los Morillos, Los Negritos, Poza del Obispo, and Las Tunas. Beach in Arecibo is considered a dangerous beach. To stimulate local tourism during the COVID-19 pandemic in Puerto Rico, the

Puerto Rico Tourism Company The Puerto Rico Tourism Company (, or simply ''Turismo'') is the government-owned corporation in charge of tourism matters and regulations in Puerto Rico. The company was created during Governor Luis A. Ferré's administration (1969-1973) to coo ...

launched the ''Voy Turistiendo'' (I'm Touring) campaign in 2021. The campaign featured a passport book with a page for each municipality. The Arecibo passport page lists , , and the Arecibo Light House and Historical Park, as places of interest.

Culture

Festivals and events

Arecibo began celebrating its patron saint festival in 1616. Arecibo celebrates its

patron saint A patron saint, patroness saint, patron hallow or heavenly protector is a saint who in Catholicism, Anglicanism, Eastern Orthodoxy or Oriental Orthodoxy is regarded as the heavenly advocate of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, fa ...

festival in May. The is a religious and cultural celebration that generally features parades, games, artisans, amusement rides, regional food, and live entertainment. Other festivals and events celebrated in Arecibo include: * Bicycle competition – January * (Parachuting festival) – February * Arecibo Carnival – February * Folklore Festival – July * Beach festival – July * Artisan Fair – September * Cetí Festival – November * Centennial of the Puerto Rican flag – December

Sports

Arecibo has two professional sports franchises, the Lobos de Arecibo in the Roberto Clemente Professional Baseball League (a.k.a. Liga de Béisbol Profesional Roberto Clemente or LBPRC), and the

Capitanes de Arecibo The Capitanes de Arecibo are a Puerto Rican professional basketball team based in Arecibo that competes in the Baloncesto Superior Nacional (BSN) league. In 2010, the team also had the distinction to play in the Premier Basketball League (PBL) ...

in the National Superior Basketball League (Baloncesto Superior Nacional or BSN).

Baseball

The Lobos won the 1983 then-known Liga de Béisbol Profesional de Puerto Rico (LBPPR) national baseball championship and the 1983 Caribbean World Series, the only time the franchise won both titles. At that time, they had

MLB Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

prospect Dickie Thon, then also of the

Houston Astros The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West Division. They are one of two major leag ...

, on their roster. Thon then suffered a life-threatening and career-affecting eye injury during an Astros game in 1984. The Lobos won a championship again in 1996.

Basketball

The Capitanes won their first ever BSN national championship in 1959. After that, the Capitanes have not had much luck in their basketball tournaments for the next few decades. However, that would begin to change in 2002, as they started to turn things around, by reaching the BSN semifinals; yet they lost the series to the

Vaqueros de Bayamón The ''vaquero'' (; , ) is a horse-mounted livestock herder of a tradition that has its roots in the Iberian Peninsula and extensively developed in what what is today Mexico (then New Spain) and Spanish Florida from a method brought to the Americ ...

by losing four straight games, after having a 3–0 series lead, thus failing their chances to make into the finals. In 2005, the Capitanes won the BSN national championship by defeating the Vaqueros de Bayamón in a four-game sweep. This was the first championship in 46 years. In 2007 they got to the finals, losing in the overtime on the seventh game of the series against the Cangrejeros de Santurce. In 2008 Arecibo won their third BSN national championship, this time against the Gigantes de Carolina. In 2010, they won their fourth BSN national title in six seasons, this time against the Vaqueros de Bayamón.

Radio stations

WCMN-FM WCMN-FM (107.3 MHz), branded on-air as HOT 102, is a radio station broadcasting a Top 40/CHR format. Licensed to Arecibo, Puerto Rico Arecibo (; ) is a Arecibo barrio-pueblo, city and Municipalities of Puerto Rico, municipality on the nor ...

– Hot 102 107.3 FM (re-transmitter) * WCMN-AM – NotiUno 1280 AM * WNIK-FM – Super K 106 FM * WNIK-AM – Radio Unica * WMIA-AM – MIA Radio Arecibo 1070 AM

Economy

Arecibo's economy is diverse with pharmaceuticals, agriculture and fishing. Vaqueria Ceiba Del Mar is located in Arecibo and is one of the largest on the island of Puerto Rico. They also have operations in Hatillo. After

, the farm had to consolidate their three operations into one.

Business

Arecibo's main shopping mall is Plaza del Atlantico as well as the one situated in the neighboring town of Hatillo, Plaza del Norte. In 2021, Hilton was constructing a hotel in Arecibo.

Industrial

Arecibo is home to Fortune 500 corporations such as Merck,

General Electric General Electric Company (GE) was an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in 1892, incorporated in the New York (state), state of New York and headquartered in Boston. Over the year ...

. Other important companies are Thermo King Corporation, Eaton, Los Cidrines, Expressway Eco Printing, Arecibo Tropical Flag and ABB.

Demographics

According to the 2010 Census the municipality of Arecibo is 99%

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

of which 78% identifies as white (of European descent), 4.6% black ( Afro-Puerto Rican descent), and 1.2% with two or more races. The majority of the population is mostly of

descent, but there has been intermarriage with more recent groups from other parts of Europe, with some having Middle Eastern, French, Italian, American or of other descent. People who are multi-racial may also have ancestors more than one of the European groups, and among more than one African nation as well. Puerto Rico was ceded by

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

in the aftermath of the

Spanish–American War The Spanish–American War (April 21 – August 13, 1898) was fought between Restoration (Spain), Spain and the United States in 1898. It began with the sinking of the USS Maine (1889), USS ''Maine'' in Havana Harbor in Cuba, and resulted in the ...

under the terms of the

Treaty of Paris of 1898 The Treaty of Peace between the United States of America and the Kingdom of Spain, commonly known as the Treaty of Paris of 1898, was signed by Restoration (Spain), Spain and the United States on December 10, 1898, and marked the end of the ...

and became a territory of the United States. In 1899, the United States conducted its first

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of Puerto Rico finding that the population of Arecibo was 36,910.

Government

All municipalities in Puerto Rico are administered by a

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

, elected every four years. The current mayor of Arecibo is

Carlos (Tito) Ramírez Irizarry Carlos may refer to: Places ;Canada * Carlos, Alberta, a locality ;United States * Carlos, Indiana, an unincorporated community * Carlos, Maryland, a place in Allegany County * Carlos, Minnesota, a small city * Carlos, West Virginia ;Elsewhe ...

, of the Popular Democratic Party (PPD). He was first elected at the 2020 general elections. The city belongs to the Puerto Rico Senatorial district III, which is represented by two Senators. In

2024 The year saw the list of ongoing armed conflicts, continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Myanmar civil war (2021–present), Myanmar civil war, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudane ...

, Brenda Pérez Soto and Gabriel González, both from the New Progressive Party (PNP), were elected as District Senators.

Symbols

The has an official flag and coat of arms. The flag and coat of arms were adopted in 1968 with Resolution 12 passed by the government of Arecibo.

Flag

The flag of

Arecibo Arecibo (; ) is a Arecibo barrio-pueblo, city and Municipalities of Puerto Rico, municipality on the northern coast of Puerto Rico, on the shores of the Atlantic Ocean, located north of Utuado, Puerto Rico, Utuado and Ciales, Puerto Rico, Ciale ...

derives its composition and colors from the coat of arms of the city. It is divided vertically in two equal parts. The left side is blue having a belt that stands for "Captain Correa", a local military hero from Spanish times. The right side is made up of blue and yellow diamonds alternating in a checkerboard pattern referring to the coat of arms of Felipe de Beaumont y Navarra, governor of

(1614–1620) and founder of the city. The crown represents The Cacique (chieftain) Arasibo (Fransico Jamaica Arasibo). The turtles represent the ancientness of the city (the third city of Puerto Rico) also because of the indigenous people of the region and that the hunting of turtles was a source of wealth. The towers were a form to describe the population of a settlement. Three towers represent a municipality, four towers represent a village, and five towers represent a city.

Coat of arms

Smithsonian 1901 map of Puerto Rico caciques

The shield is divided by diagonal lines in golden and blue rhombuses with a blue stripe in the superior part, in which resides an opened five-point crown and which is adorned with drawings characterizing the art of the Taínos. The people of Arecibo also honored Captain Antonio de los Reyes Correa by including a gold colored belt in their coat of arms with the words "Muy Leal", which means "Very Faithful", in representation of Correa. This combination of symbols represents the Indian

(Chieftain) from whom the population's name derives, the governor that erected the town and the hero Captain Correa who defended the town from a British invasion.

Nicknames

Arecibo is known as ''"La Villa del Capitán Correa"'' (Captain Correa's Villa) after the Puerto Rican hero

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

Antonio de los Reyes Correa of the Spanish Army, who drove off a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

Navy invasion by ambushing forces led by rear-admiral William Whetstone. Arecibo is also known as ''"El Diamante Del Norte"'' (The Diamond of the North).

Transportation

Arecibo has a small noncommercial airport, named Antonio (Nery) Juarbe Pol Airport, which currently has no

commercial airline An airline is a company that provides air transport services for traveling passengers or freight (cargo). Airlines use aircraft to supply these services and may form partnerships or alliances with other airlines for codeshare agreements, in ...

flights. PR-22 (unsigned Interstate PR-2) passes through the city, but bypasses downtown. Downtown can be accessed via PR-2, PR-10 and PR-129. There are 51 bridges in Arecibo. The collapsed during Hurricane Georges in 1998 but was rebuilt. Despite it being an important bridge leading into the urban downtown center of Arecibo, it was closed again in early 2017 due to damage caused by the sea and reopened in 2021 after repairs.

Education

The first school in Arecibo was established on October 12, 1805. Today, Arecibo is home to several public and private schools distributed through its barrios. Public education is handled by the State Department of Education. There are also several colleges and universities located in the city including: * University of Puerto Rico at Arecibo *

Interamerican University of Puerto Rico The Inter American University of Puerto Rico (Spanish: ''Universidad Interamericana de Puerto Rico''; often abbreviated to ''UIPR'' or ''Inter'') is a private Christian university with its main campus in San Germán, Puerto Rico. It also has ...

* Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico * National University College It also has several other technical institutions like ICPR Junior College.

Notable people

The following is a list of notable people from Arecibo: * Antonio de los Reyes Correa – military hero *

– Taino Cacique * Cayetano Coll y Cuchí – the first President of

Puerto Rico House of Representatives The House of Representatives of Puerto Rico () is the lower house of the Legislative Assembly of Puerto Rico, the bicameral territorial legislature of Puerto Rico. The House, together with the Senate, control the legislative branch of the go ...

* Cayetano Coll y Toste – historian * Delma S. Arrigoitia – author *

Edna Coll Edna Coll Pujals (July 24, 1906 – November 19, 2002) was a Puerto Rican educator and author. She was president of the Society of Puerto Rican Authors in San Juan. Coll was also the founder of the Academy of Fine Arts in Puerto Rico."Figuras H ...

– educator * Francisco Gonzalo Marín – poet who fought for Cuba's independence * Isabel Cuchí Coll – journalist * José Coll y Cuchí – politician; founder of Puerto Rican Nationalist Party * Luisa Capetillo – union leader/civil rights activist * Manuel Zeno Gandía – author * María Cadilla – educator * Melba Acosta – Secretary of Treasury of PR * Myrta Silva – singer *

René Marqués René Marqués (October 4, 1919 – March 22, 1979) was a Puerto Rican people, Puerto Rican short story writer and playwright. Early years Marqués was born, raised and educated in the city of Arecibo. He developed an interest in writing at a ...

– playwright * Ruben Natal-San Miguel – photographer * Samuel Garcia Roman – artist * Iann Dior – Rapper and singer * Vanya Quiñones - university president

Gallery

Leones del Fuerte, Plaza Colon, Arecibo, Puerto Rico - panoramio.jpg, Lion in Plaza Colón Playa La Poza del Obispo - Arecibo, Puerto Rico - panoramio (1).jpg, in Arecibo Plaza Colon, Arecibo, Puerto Rico - panoramio.jpg, Buildings in Plaza Colon in Arecibo downtown () Arecibo beach.jpg, A beach in Arecibo 20180315-OC-PJK-0073 TONED (26162694337).jpg, Cow from in Arecibo Faro de Punta los Morrillos.jpg, lighthouse Edificio Oliver.jpg, Edificio Oliver

References

External links

Puerto Rico Government Directory
{{Authority control Municipalities of Puerto Rico San Juan–Caguas–Guaynabo metropolitan area Populated places established in 1556 1550s establishments in the Spanish West Indies 1556 establishments in the Spanish Empire 16th century in Puerto Rico