Rican

Part of speech: adjective, noun

Definitions

1. Referring to a person originating from Puerto Rico or relating to Puerto Rican culture and heritage
2. Denoting an individual of Puerto Rican descent or anything associated with the island of Puerto Rico
3. Pertaining to the identity, people, or cultural aspects connected with Puerto Rico and its inhabitants

Etymology: "Rican" is a clipping of "Puerto Rican," which in turn is built from "Puerto Rico" plus the suffix "-an," the familiar English ending for a person or thing belonging to a place. "Puerto Rico" is Spanish for "rich port," a name Christopher Columbus gave the island during his second voyage to the Americas, though the exact wording of that name has been debated among historians. The shortened form works the way many ethnic and national labels do in everyday speech: the first syllable of the longer phrase is dropped, leaving the core of the identity word. Speakers of Spanish and English alike have used the clipped form informally, and it appears most often in casual or community speech, where it carries the same meaning as the full term.

Synonyms: Puerto Rican, Borican, Boricua