In 2007, there were over 5,000 Muslims residing in Puerto Rico, representing about 0.1% of the population.Institute of Islamic Information and Education: Number of Muslims and Percentage in Puerto Rico Retrieved June 11, 2009.Percent Puerto Rican population that are Muslims Retrieved June 8, 2009. The early Muslim community largely consisted mainly of Palestinian and Jordanian immigrants who arrived between 1958 and 1962. At the time, the vast majority of Puerto Rico's Muslims lived in CaguasMuslim Minorities in the West: Visible and Invisible, By Yvonne Yazbeck Haddad, Jane I. Smith, pg. 266 – a city in the island's central region located south of San Juan – where they operated restaurants, jewelry stores and clothing outlets. A storefront mosque on Calle Padre Colón in the Río Piedras district of San Juan served the entire religious community on the island during earlier years, however, today there are mosques and Islamic centers in Aguadilla, Arecibo, Hatillo, Ponce, Vega Alta, and San Juan.Muslim Students Association @ Polytechnic University of Puerto Rico The American Muslim Association of North America (AMANA) also has an office in Cayey.
History Muslims first appeared in Puerto Rico in the 16th century when so-called Moriscos served as adventurers, traders, or enslaved laborers during the Spanish colonization of the Americas. Enslaved Muslims from West Africa were also transported to the island during the same period. Although the number of Muslims living in Puerto Rico was probably significant, these early communities didn't survive and were soon converted to Catholicism or other more syncretic African diasporic faiths.
Recently, there has been an increasing number of converts to Islam.
Notable mosques This is a list of notable mosques (Arabic: Masjid, Spanish: Mezquita) in Puerto Rico, including Islamic places of worship that do not qualify as traditional mosques.
NameImage Location Year GroupS = Sunni Islam; SH = Shia Islam; A = Ahmadiyya; ND = Non-denominationalNotes Centro Islámico de Ponce Ponce Río Piedras Mosque San Juan 1981 First mosque established in Puerto Rico. The mosque has a capacity of 200 men and 40 women and is located next to the University of Puerto Rico, Río Piedras Campus. Al-Faruq Mosque Vega Alta 1992 Largest mosque in Puerto Rico, with a capacity of 1,200 men and 120 women. Masjid Montehiedra San Juan 2007 The mosque has a capacity of 400 men and 50 women. Features an Islamic weekend school.Islamic Center of Aguadilla PR-111 in Palmar, Aguadilla, Puerto Rico
Notable Puerto Rican Muslims Hector Camacho Jr., professional boxer
See also
Latin American Muslims Islam by country Latino Muslims
References
Further reading
External links
Muslim Students Association @ Polytechnic University of Puerto Rico A Database of Islamic Centers and Mosques in Puerto Rico