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Canóvanas, Puerto Rico

Canóvanas, Puerto Rico

Canóvanas is a city in Puerto Rico, located in the north-east of the island. It is, along with San Juan, Bayamón, Guaynabo and Carolina, one of the cities that comprises the so called Metropolitan Area of Puerto Rico. Large numbers of African slaves lived in the Canóvanas area. Because of this, a considerable large number of Canóvanas' population is Black. Canóvanas was also home of a large number of Taíno Indians. Because of this, Canóvanas' professional sports teams have traditionally been nicknamed the Indios. In 1983, BSN's Indios won Puerto Rico's national basketball championship and they repeated in 1984, but they eventually disappeared during the 1990s. The Indias women's volleyball team has also won a number of championships. In Horse-racing, Canóvanas is home to El Nuevo Comandante, Puerto Rico's most famous horse track, since 1972. In 1983, an infamous criminal act occurred in Canóvanas when police tried to intervene in a dispute between a land's owner and a group of homeless that build their wooden houses in the private sector. Villa sin Miedo as the residents called. The dispute occurs because of disagreements and breaking of verbal contract between the parts. During the dispute, one policeman was shot on his lung and died shortly after, many other officers and residents were injured in a case that received wide media attention in Puerto Rico.

External link

- [http://canovanaspr.com/ Spanish language site about Canóvanas] Category:Municipalities of Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico

:This article is about the caribbean territory of Puerto Rico. For the German board game, see Puerto Rico (game) The Commonwealth of Puerto Rico (Spanish: Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico) is a self-governing unincorporated organized territory of the United States located east of the Dominican Republic in the northeastern Caribbean. Puerto Rico, the smallest of the Greater Antilles, includes the main island of Puerto Rico and a number of smaller islands and keys, including Mona, Vieques, and Culebra.

History

Main article: History of Puerto Rico When Europeans first arrived, the island of Puerto Rico was inhabited by a group of Arawak Indians known as Taínos. The Taínos called the island "Borikén." The first European contact was made by Christopher Columbus during his second voyage to the Antilles, on November 19, 1493. Some say that Puerto Rico was not discovered by Columbus but by Martín Alonso Pinzón in 1492 when he separated from Columbus and went exploring on his own. The Pinzón family was given one year by the Spanish court to start a settlement in Puerto Rico which would give them a claim to the island. However, they did not succeed. Originally named San Juan Bautista, in honor of Saint John the Baptist, the island ultimately took the name of Puerto Rico (Rich Port), while the name San Juan is now delegated to its capital and largest city. Spanish conquistador Juan Ponce de León became the island's first governor to take office, while Vicente Yáñez Pinzón was the first appointed governor, though he never arrived on the island. The island was soon colonized and briefly became an important stronghold and port for the Spanish empire in the Caribbean. However, colonial emphasis during the late 17th–18th centuries focused on the more prosperous mainland territories, leaving the island impoverished of settlers. Concerned about threats from its European enemies, over the centuries various forts and walls were built to protect the port of San Juan. Fortresses such as La Fortaleza, El Castillo San Felipe del Morro and El Castillo de San Cristóbal were built. The French, Dutch and English made attempts to capture Puerto Rico, but failed to wrest long-term occupancy of the island. In 1809, while Napoleon occupied the majority of the Spanish peninsula, a populist assembly based in Cadiz recognized Puerto Rico as an overseas province of Spain with the right to send representatives to the Spanish Court. The representative Ramon Power y Giralt died soon after arriving in Spain; and constitutional reforms were reversed when autocratic monarchy was restored. Nineteenth century reforms augmented the population and economy, and expanded the local character of the island. After the rapid gains of independence by the South and Central American states in the first part of the century, Puerto Rico and Cuba became the sole New World remnants of the large Spanish empire. Toward the end of the 19th century, poverty and political estrangement with Spain led to a small but significant uprising in 1868 known as "El Grito de Lares." The Puerto Rican goal was to achieve personal freedom, the abolition of slavery, and full self-government. The uprising was easily and quickly crushed. Leaders of this independence movement included Ramón Emeterio Betances, considered the "father" of the Puerto Rican nation, and other political figures such as Segundo Ruiz Belvis. Later, another political stronghold was the autonomist movement originated by Roman Baldorioty de Castro and, toward the end of the century, by Luis Muñoz Rivera. In 1897, Muñoz Rivera and others persuaded the liberal Spanish government to agree to a Charters of Autonomy for Cuba and Puerto Rico. The following year, Puerto Rico's first, but short-lived, autonomous government was organized. The charter maintained a governor appointed by Spain, who held the power to annul any legislative decision he disagreed with, and a partially elected parliamentary structure. On July 25, 1898 at the outbreak of the Spanish–American War, Puerto Rico, being a colony of Spain, was invaded by the United States of America with a landing at Guánica. Spain was forced to cede Puerto Rico, along with Cuba and the Phillippines, to the United States under the Treaty of Paris (1898) . The twentieth century began under the military regime of the United States with officials, including the governor, appointed by the President of the United States. In 1917, the Jones-Shafroth Act approved by the United States Congress granted Puerto Ricans U.S. citizenship. Natural disasters and the Great Depression impoverished the island. Some political leaders demanded change; some, like Pedro Albizu Campos, would lead a nationalist (The Puerto Rican Nationalist Party) movement in favor of independence. He would eventually die by what he claimed was a conspiracy set in place by the U.S. Federal Government. Muñoz Rivera initially favored independence, but saw a severe decline of the Puerto Rican economy, as well as growing violence and uprisings, at the hands of the U.S. government and opted to create the "commonwealth" option as an eventual stepping stone to full independence. Puerto Rican Nationalist Party]] Change in the nature of governance of the island came about during the latter years of the Roosevelt–Truman administrations, as a form of compromise spearheaded by Luis Muñoz Marín and others, and which culminated with the appointment by President Harry S. Truman in 1946 of the first Puerto Rican-born governor, Jesús T. Piñero. In 1948, the United States granted the right to democratically elect the governor of Puerto Rico. Luis Muñoz Marín would become the first elected governor of Puerto Rico. On November 1, 1950, Puerto Rican nationalists Griselio Torresola and Oscar Collazo attempted to assassinate President Harry S. Truman. In response, Truman allowed for a genuinely democratic referendum in Puerto Rico to determine the status of its relationship to the United States . Puerto Rico adopted its own constitution in 1952 which adopted a commonwealth relationship with the United States . During the 1950s Puerto Rico experienced a rapid industrialization, with such projects as Operation Bootstrap which aimed to industrialize Puerto Rico's economy from agriculture-based into manufacturing-based. Present-day Puerto Rico has become a major tourist destination and a leading pharmaceutical and manufacturing center. Still, Puerto Rico continues to struggle to define its political status. A number of plebiscites have been held in recent decades to decide whether Puerto Rico should request independence, enhanced commonwealth status, or statehood. Narrow victories by commonwealth supporters over statehood advocates have not yielded substantial changes in the relationship between the island and the United States. However, commonwealth--which once had the support of well over 75% of the voting population--now has less than 50% support. This decrease has been met with an expanded support for statehood for the island, with both groups holding an equal share of support. The independence ideal, once the second leading ideology on the island in the general elections, is now supported by 3–6% of the voting population.

Geography

Main article: Geography of Puerto Rico Geography of Puerto Rico The archipelago of Puerto Rico consists of the main island of Puerto Rico and various smaller islands, including Vieques, Culebra, Mona, Desecheo, and Caja de Muertos. Of the latter five, only Culebra and Vieques are inhabited year-round. Mona is uninhabited through large parts of the year except for employees of the Puerto Rico Department of Natural Resources. The mainland measures some 170 km by 60 km (105 miles by 35 miles). It has a population of approximately 4 million. The capital city, San Juan, is located on the main island's north coast and has a population of approximately 430,000. The mainland is mostly mountainous with coastal areas in the north and south regions of the island. The main mountainous range is called "La Cordillera Central" (The Central Range). The highest elevation point of Puerto Rico, Cerro de Punta (1338 meters), is located in this range. Another important peak is El Yunque with a maximum elevation of 1,065m. Some beautiful beaches on the western side of the island are Jobos Beach, Maria's Beach, Domes Beach and Sandy Beach. Puerto Rico has nine lakes (none of them natural) and more than 50 rivers. Most of these rivers are born in the "Cordillera Central." The rivers in the northern region of the island are bigger and with higher flow capacity than those of the south region.

Geology

El Yunque Puerto Rico is composed of Cretaceous to Eocene volcanic and plutonic rocks, which are overlain by younger Oligocene to recent carbonates and other sedimentary rocks. Most of the caverns and karst topography on the island occurs in the northern Oligocene to recent carbonates. The oldest rocks are approximately 190 million years old (Jurassic) and are located at Sierra Bermeja in the southwest part of the island. These rocks may represent part of the oceanic crust and are believed to come from the Pacific Ocean realm. Puerto Rico lies at the boundary between the Caribbean and North America plates. This means that it is currently being deformed by the tectonic stresses caused by the interaction of these plates. These stresses may cause earthquakes and tsunamis. These seismic events, along with landslides, represent some of the most dangerous geologic hazards in the island and in the northeastern Caribbean.

Politics

Main article: Politics of Puerto Rico The island government is based on the U.S. Republic system composed of 3 branches: the Executive branch headed by the Governor, the Legislative branch consisting of a bicameral Legislative Assembly (a Senate and a House of Representatives) and the Judicial branch. The legal system is based on a mix of the Civil Law and the Common Law systems. The governor as well as legislators are elected by popular vote every four years. Members of the Judicial branch are appointed by the governor and approved by the senate. The island is divided into 78 municipalities, which elect a mayor and municipal assembly. Puerto Rico's formal Chief of State is the President of the United States; however, most of the executive functions are carried out by the governor. The current Constitution of Puerto Rico was approved through referendum in 1952, and ratified by the U.S. Congress, which maintains ultimate sovereignty over Puerto Rico. Under the 1952 constitution, Puerto Rico is a territorial commonwealth of the United States and is permitted a high degree of autonomy. Still, Puerto Rico does not have voting representation in the U.S. Congress; neither does it have any delegates to the U.S. Electoral College, and therefore Puerto Rican citizens have no representation in the U.S. Presidential elections. A non-voting Resident Commissioner is elected by the residents of Puerto Rico to the U.S. Congress. Residents of the island do not pay federal income tax on income from island sources, although they do pay a hefty tax to local authorities. Further, island residents pay social security taxes and other federal taxes. Also, they haved limited access to several key federal programs. As U.S. citizens, Puerto Ricans are subject to military service and most federal laws. Puerto Rico's three major political parties are most distinguished by their position on the political status of Puerto Rico. The Popular Democratic Party (PPD) seeks to maintain or improve the current Commonwealth status, the New Progressive Party (PNP) seeks to fully incorporate Puerto Rico as a U.S. state, and the Puerto Rican Independence Party (PIP) seeks national independence. Three Puerto Rico status referenda have been held since the ratification of the 1952 constitution. Support for the commonwealth has eroded from over 60% in 1967 to about 48%, while support for statehood has grown to about 46%. In the 1998 referendum independence received 2.5%, but the "None of the above" option received more than 50%. Pro-statehooders claim that this option garnered the majority of votes due to a joint effort by commonwealth and pro-independence supporters to stop statehood. Puerto Ricans living on the island are not counted among the Hispanics residing in the U.S.; in fact, they are not included in the U.S. population count at all, although all Puerto Ricans are U.S. citizens. Puerto Rico also is not included in the Current Population Surveys that the Census Bureau conducts to update its decennial census.

U.S. Commonwealth

Although Puerto Rico is, politically speaking, a Commonwealth of the United States, Puerto Ricans and people from other nations refer to Puerto Rico as a país, the Spanish word for country or nation. This is a very common and accepted international status given to all dependent territories, also called dependent "states" by the UN. This is highlighted by the fact, for example, that Puerto Rico is an independent country in the sports world, even having their own Olympic teams. In the jargon of international law, an inhabited territory that is not a first-order administrative division, but rather forms an external, non-sovereign territory governed by a sovereign one, is both a "state" and a "country". But none of these cases —neither U.S. "states" nor dependent "states/countries"—are considered sovereign international entities.

Economy

Main article: Economy of Puerto Rico The economic conditions in Puerto Rico have improved dramatically since the Great Depression due to external investment in capital-intensive industry such as petrochemicals pharmaceuticals and technology. Once the beneficiary of special tax treatment from the U.S. government, today local industries must compete with those in more economically depressed parts of the world where wages are not subject to U.S. minimum wage legislation. In recent years, some U.S. and foreign owned factories have moved to lower wage countries in Latin America and Asia. Puerto Rico is subject to U.S. trade laws and restrictions. Puerto Ricans had a per capita GDP estimate of $17,700 for 2004 , which demonstrates a growth over the $14,412. level measured in the 2002 Current Population Survey by the Puerto Rican Legal Defense and Education Fund . In that survey, Puerto Ricans have a 48.2% poverty rate. By comparison, the poorest State of the Union, Mississippi, had a median level of $21,587, according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s Current Population Survey, 2002 to 2004 Annual Social and Economic Supplements .

Demographics

Main article: Demographics of Puerto Rico Puerto Rico has sometimes been said to have a "White" majority, an extinct Amerindian population, persons of mixed ancestry, Africans and a small Asian minority. However, broad US census categories have disallowed the mixed ancestry of most Puerto Ricans to be officially acknowledged; and most on the island tend to agree that what is "Puerto Rican" is generally a mixture between Amerindian, African, and Spanish genetic heritage. According to a 2003 study funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation, 61 percent of all Puerto Ricans have Amerindian mitochondrial DNA, 27 percent have African and 12 percent Caucasian . During the 1800s hundreds of Corsican, French, and Portuguese, along with a large numbers of immigrants from the Canary Islands and numerous Spanish loyalists from Spain's former colonies in South America, arrived in Puerto Rico. Other settlers have included Irish, Scots, Germans, and many others who were granted land from Spain during the Cedula de Gracias of 1815, which allowed European Catholics to settle in the island with a certain amount of free land. Emigration has been a major part of Puerto Rico's recent history as well. Starting in the Post-WWII period, due to poverty, cheap air fare, and promotion by the island government, waves of Puerto Ricans moved to the mainland United States, particularly New York City. This continued even as Puerto Rico's economy improved and the birth rate declined. Emigration continues at the present time, and this, combined with Puerto Rico's greatly lowered birth rate, suggests that the island's population will age rapidly and start to decline sometime within the next couple of decades. According to the 2000 US Census, 95% of the population consider themselves of Puerto Rican descent (regardless of race or skin color), making Puerto Rico one of the most culturally homogenous societies in the world . Since its colonization, Puerto Rico has become the permanent home of over 100,000 legal residents who immigrated from not only Spain, but from Latin America as well. Cubans, Dominicans, Colombians, Panamanians, Curacaoans, and Santomeños can also be accounted for as settlers. The variety of surnames which exist in Puerto Rico suggests widespread immigration to the island from many regions.

Languages

The official languages of the island are Spanish and English. Spanish is the primary language in business and government; English is taught as a second language in schools.

Religion

The Roman Catholic religion has been historically dominant and is the religion of the majority of Puerto Ricans, although the presence of Protestant, Latter-Day Saint (Mormon) and Jehovah's Witnesses denominations has increased under American sovereignty, making modern Puerto Rico an interconfessional country. Taíno religious practices have to a degree been rediscovered/reinvented by a few handfuls of advocates. Kongo belief, known as Mayombe or Palo, has been around since the days of the arrival of enslaved Africans. Although, Santeria (stronger and more organized in Cuba) is practiced by some, Palo Mayombe (an African belief system which originated with Bantu tribes brought into Puerto Rico as slaves for over 500 years) finds more adherence among individuals who practice some form of African Traditional Religion. See also Protestants in Puerto Rico.

Culture

Main article: Culture of Puerto Rico

Education

Education in Puerto Rico is divided into four levels. These are elementary, intermediate, high school and the university level. Students can attend either a public or a private school. Public schools are run by the state while private schools are run by private institutions, predominantly the Roman Catholic Church. The only public university system in Puerto Rico is the University of Puerto Rico.

Sports

Main article:Sports in Puerto Rico Puerto Rico currently has its own Olympic team and participates in the Summer Olympics and the Winter Olympics, as well as international representation in many other sporting events including the Pan-American Games, the Central American Games, and the Caribbean World Series. Further, it has its own representatives in beauty pageants including Miss World and Miss Universe. Boxing, basketball, and baseball are popular. They have their own professional baseball leagues, though San Juan hosted the Montréal Expos for several series in 2003 and 2004 before they moved to Washington, D.C. and became the Washington Nationals. On September 29, 2005 Major League Baseball announced that opening rounds of the newly formed World Baseball Classic, a 16-country tournament featuring top players, would be held in San Juan in March 2006.

Municipalities (Municipios)

San Juan For a complete list of the municipalities of Puerto Rico see: List of municipalities in Puerto Rico As a commonwealth associated with the United States, Puerto Rico does not have any first-order administrative divisions as defined by the U.S. Government, but there are 78 municipalities at the second level. Mona Island is not a municipality, but part of the municipality of Mayagüez). Each municipality has a mayor and a municipal legislature elected for a 4 year term. The first municipality (back then called town) of Puerto Rico, San Juan, was founded in 1521. In the 16th century two more municipalities were established, Coamo (1570) and San Germán (1570). Three more municipalities were established in the 17th century. These were Arecibo (1614), Aguada (1692) and Ponce (1692). The 18th and 19th century saw an increase in settlement in Puerto Rico. 30 municipalities were established in the 18th century and 34 more were established in the 19th century. Only six municipalities were founded in the 20th century. The last municipality was Florida, founded in 1971 . The municipalities are further subdivided into barrios, and those into sectors.

External links

Official sites

- [http://www.bdepr.org Economic Development Bank]
- [http://www.gdb-pur.com Government Development Bank]
- [http://www.gobierno.pr/ Government of Puerto Rico]
- [http://www.fortaleza.gobierno.pr/ Governor]
- [http://www.icp.gobierno.pr Institute of Puerto Rican Culture]
- [http://www.ati.gobierno.pr Integrated Transport Alternative]
- [http://www.meetpuertorico.com/ Puerto Rico Convention Bureau]
- [http://www.camaradepuertorico.org/ Puerto Rico House of Representatives]
- [http://www.senadopr.us/ Puerto Rico Senate]
- [http://www.prteconline.com/ Puerto Rico Technoecnomic Corridor]
- [http://www.gotopuertorico.com Puerto Rico Tourism Company]
- [http://www.fomentocomercialpr.com Puerto Rico Trade]
- [http://www.house.gov/fortuno/ Resident Commissioner (US House)]
- [http://www.ceepur.org/ State Electoral Commission (CEEPUR)]
- [http://www.upr.edu University of Puerto Rico]
- [http://www.pridco.com Puerto Rico Industrial Development Company]

References

# [http://www.yale.edu/lawweb/avalon/diplomacy/spain/sp1898.htm Treaty of Paris (1898)]. # Act of July 3, 1950, Ch. 446, 64 Stat. 319. # [http://www.lexjuris.com/lexprcont.htm Constitution of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico - in Spanish (original)]. # [http://topuertorico.org/constitu.shtml Constitution of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico - in English (translation)]. # [http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/rq.html CIA - The World Factbook -- Puerto Rico]. # [http://www.prldef.org/ PRLDEF]. # [http://www.census.gov/hhes/www/income/medincsizeandstate.html U.S. Census - Median Family Income]. # [http://www.indiancountry.com/content.cfm?id=1065462184&print=yes Indian Country Today, October 6, 2003]. # [http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/QTTable?_bm=y&-geo_id=04000US72&-qr_name=DEC_2000_SF1_U_DP1&-ds_name=DEC_2000_SF1_U Puerto Rico DP-1 Profile of General Demographics Characteristics : 2000]. # [http://www.linktopr.com/fundacion.html LinktoPR.com - Fundación de los Pueblos]. # [http://www.un.org/documents/ga/res/8/ares8.htm General Assembly Resolutions 8th Session United Nations].

Notes

[1] See http://www.un.org/documents/ga/res/8/ares8.htm Category:Former Spanish colonies Category:Insular areas of the United States Category:Puerto Rico ko:푸에르토리코 ja:プエルトリコ simple:Puerto Rico

Bayamón, Puerto Rico

Bayamón (not to be confused with Bayamo, Cuba) is a city in northern Puerto Rico.

History

Called "El Pueblo del Chicharrón". Juan Ramírez de Arrellano established Bayamón as a town in May 22, 1772. Derives its name from a local Indian chief Bahamon, others claim that the name came from the Taíno word Bayamongo, which is the name of one of the rivers that cross the city.

Other information

Bayamón, Puerto Rico, is one of Puerto Rico's largest cities situated in what is considered to be the Metropolitan Area. Founded in 1772, the city of Bayamón was named after taino Indian chief or cacique. It shares its metropolitan area status with San Juan, Guaynabo, Toa Baja, Cataño and Carolina. Bayamón was always a progressive city. The only reason that, unlike Ponce, Aguadilla and Mayagüez, it doesn't count with an airport is probably its proximity to San Juan. Bayamón's most progressive times came during the tenure of Ramón Luis Rivera as mayor. He lasted in the city hall from 1976 to 2001. Rivera was asked by his party, the New Progressist Party, to run for governor, but the main reason why he didn't do that was his lack of understanding of English. However, he thought of Bayamón as his piece of art, and he shaped it into an incredible place to live. English During his tenure, he built many exotic touristic attractions that Bayamoneses, Puerto Ricans and international tourists have enjoyed for years. These include El parque del tren, which is a park featuring what was, until 2001, Puerto Rico's only working train, and an example of a DC-3 that used to fly for United Airlines. However El Parque del Tren was destroyed. A suspension bridge believed to be one of only 3 of its type in all of Puerto Rico and a science park known as Parque De Las Ciencias, and last but not least, the City Hall itself. It shall be noted, that Bayamón's suspension bridge is a pedestrian bridge only; in other words, people cross an avenue on this bridge, it was not built for automobile use. Rivera built a city hall that crosses over an avenue. While passing through a connecting corridor, right above the avenue, passing cars can be seen underneath. It's believed to be the only of its class around the world. City Hall Bayamón is also one of the cities to host the Tren Urbano in 2003. Tren Urbano is Puerto Rico's second working passenger train, after Bayamón's park trensito. Famous Bayamoneses include Francisco Oller, Chuito el de Bayamón, musician Omar Rodriguez-Lopez and world boxing champions Hector 'Macho' Camacho and Daniel Santos. The famous boxing fight between Alexis Arguello and Alfredo Escalera (their first; their equally legendary rematch was held in Rimini, Italy) was held there in 1978. The Vaqueros de Bayamón are the city's BSN representatives and the team with the most championships in history, with 13.

Districts

- Buena Vista
- Cerro Gordo
- Dajaos
- Guaraguao Abajo
- Guaraguao Arriba
- Hato Tejas
- Juan Sánchez
- Minillas
- Nuevo
- Pájaros
- Pueblo
- Santa Olaya Guaraguao is also the name of a bird in Puerto Rico. It is also called Puerto Rico Broad-Winged Hawk

External links

Official sites

- [http://www.municipiodebayamon.com/ City of Bayamón]
- [http://www.gobierno.pr/GPRPortal/StandAlone/MunicipalityInformation.aspx?Filter=160/ Bayamón site on Puerto Rico portal]

Colleges / Schools / Universities

- [http://www.uprb.edu/ University of Puerto Rico in Bayamón]
- [http://bc.inter.edu/ Inter-American University of Puerto Rico - Bayamón Campus ]
- [http://www.ucb.edu.pr/ Bayamón Central University]
- [http://www.aupr.edu/ American University of Puerto Rico]
- [http://www.caribbean.edu/ Caribbean University]
- [http://www.uccaribe.edu/ Universidad Central del Caribe] Category:Municipalities of Puerto Rico
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Guaynabo, Puerto Rico

Guaynabo is a municipality in the northern part of Puerto Rico. Guaynabo is considered, along with neighbors San Juan, Bayamon and Carolina and Toa Baja, to be one of the cities of the Area Metropolitana or Metropolitan Area in Puerto Rico. Long considered to be just a drive-by town for drivers who were going from San Juan to the western part of Puerto Rico, Guaynabo went through a large economic revitalization in the 1980s, under mayor Alejandro "Junior" Cruz. However, parts of the city have also served as a San Juan suburb preferred by upper-midddle and high income families. Perhaps due to this fact, today, Guaynabo has the highest per capita income in Puerto Rico. With Cruz at the helm, many shopping strips and malls were built, as well as Mario "Quijote" Morales Coliseum (then called Mets Pavilion). In addition, many manufacturing plants such as Hanes' plant set foot in Guaynabo then. Guaynabo has, at different times, been voted the most picturesque and cleanest town in Puerto Rico. Mayor Cruz died in the early 1990s, and Hector O' Neill became his successor at the mayor's office. Under O' Neill, Guaynabo has continued to grow economically. Guaynabo's BSN team, the Guaynabo Mets, won national championships in 1980, 1982 and 1989, commanded by the player after whom the coliseum was named, and his brother in law Federico "Fico" Lopez. Category:Municipalities of Puerto Rico

Carolina, Puerto Rico

Carolina is a city located in the northern part of Puerto Rico, a short distance from San Juan. Along with San Juan, Bayamón, Guaynabo, Toa Baja and Cataño, it is considered to be a part of the island's metropolitan area. Don Gaspar Martínez donated the land where the municipality of Carolina was originally founded. He named the land "San Fernando de la Carolina" in honor of his daughter, Carolina. The name has since been shortened to Carolina. The city is known as "Tierra de Gigantes" (Land of Giants) not only for well-known Carolina resident Don Felipe Birriel González (who was 7'11"), but also in honor of other eminent people from Carolina such as poet Julia de Burgos and baseball player Roberto Clemente. Carolina was also the home of Jesús T. Piñero, the first Puerto Rican governor to be appointed in that position by the United States government. Carolina, led since the 1980s by mayor José Aponte, is one of Puerto Rico's most important touristic centers. Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport, while wrongfully credited to San Juan, is actually located in an area, Isla Verde, that is geographically a part of Carolina. Also located in Carolina are a large group of hotels, which sit by Carolina's large beach area. Carolina also is home to many large housing projects and to Plaza Carolina, one of Puerto Rico's largest malls. In recent years, Carolina has seen the building of the Ciudad Deportiva Roberto Clemente or Roberto Clemente Sports City, a sports and recreation facility that aims to become a sports school for the youth, and the Roberto Clemente Walker Stadium, host to many entertainment events and to the 2003 Caribbean World Series. In addition to that, it has the Coliseo Guillermo Angulo, where the BSN's Gigantes de Carolina play, as well as the Gigantes of Puerto Rican women's professional basketball, the Gigantes of men's professional volleyball, and the Gigantes of women's professional volleyball. The Gigantes of professional baseball use the Clemente Walker stadium. Famous natives from Carolina include: mayor Jose Aponte, former world boxing champion Wilfredo Benitez, his father and trainer Goyo Benitez, his mother Clara Benitez, fellow former world boxing champions Esteban De Jesus and Alfredo Escalera; Roberto Clemente, and the man after whom all the sports teams in Carolina are named: El Gigante de Carolina (The Carolina Giant), who is believed to have been, at 7 plus feet, the tallest Puerto Rican in history. There is a statue dedicated to him in Carolina.

References

- Carolina municipality general information [http://www.gobierno.pr/GPRPortal/StandAlone/MunicipalityInformation.aspx?Filter=162] (In Spanish) Category:Municipalities of Puerto Rico

Taíno

The Taíno are pre-Colombian indigenous Amerindian inhabitants of the Greater Antilles islands, which include Cuba, Hispaniola (Haiti and the Dominican Republic), Puerto Rico, Jamaica and the Bahamas. The seafaring Taíno are relatives of the Arawakan peoples of South America. Taíno of the Bahamas were known as Lucayan. Their language is a member of the Arawakan linguistic family, also found in South America. The Taíno culture was nearly destroyed in the 16th century, decimated by introduced diseases, and forced assimilation into the plantation economy that Spain imposed in its Caribbean colonies, with its subsequent importation of African slave workers. There was substantial mestizage as well as several Indian pueblos that survived into the 19th Century (Cuba). The Spaniards who first arrived in the Bahamas, Cuba and Hispaniola in 1492, and later in Puerto Rico in 1508, did not bring women. They took Taino wives in civil marriages, and had mestizo children. At the time of Columbus's arrival in 1492, there were five Taíno "kingdoms" or territories on Hispaniola, each led by a principal Cacique (chieftain), to whom tribute was paid. Another indigenous group called the Carib lived in the islands. This group is said to be another Arawakan related people originally from South America. The Tainos and the Carib would sometimes battle each other. At the time of the Spanish Conquest, the largest Taíno population centers may have contained around 3,000 people or more.

Culture and Lifestyle

In the center of a typical Taíno village (yucayeque) was a flat court (batey) used for various social activities such as games, various festivals and public ceremonies. Houses would surround this court. The Taíno played a ceremonial ball game called "Batu" between opposing teams (of 10 to 30 players per team) using a solid rubber ball. Batu was also used for conflict resolution between communities. Taíno society was divided into four main sections: # naboria (common people) # nitaíno (sub-chiefs) # bohique (priests/healers) # cacique (chieftains) Often, the general population lived in large circular buildings (bohio), constructed with wooden poles, woven straw, and palm leaves. These houses could hold 10-15 families. The caciques and his family would live in rectangular buildings (caney) of similar construction, with wooden porches. Taíno home furnishings included cotton hammocks (hamaca), mats made of palms, wooden chairs (dujo) with woven seats, platforms, and cradles for children. The Taíno practised a mainly agrarian lifestyle but also fished and hunted. A frequently worn hair style featured bangs in front and longer hair in back. They sometimes wore gold jewellery, paint, and/or, shells. Taíno men sometimes wore short skirts. Taino women wore a similar garment (nagua) after marriage. The Taíno spoke a form of Arawak and used the words: barbacoa (barbecue), hamaca (hammock), canoa (canoe), tabaco (tobacco), yuca (yucca) and Huracan (hurricane) which have been incorporated into the Spanish and English languages. Some Taíno practiced polygamy. Men, and sometimes women, might have 2 or 3 spouses, and the caciques would marry as many as 30. The Taíno indians originally came from what is today Venezuela and moved through the Caribbean and into parts of Florida.

Food and Agriculture

The Taíno diet was centered around vegetables, meat and fish. There never were many large wild animals to hunt on the islands, but small animals such as rodents, bats, worms, ducks, turtles, and birds were utilized. Taíno groups in the interior of the islands relied more on agriculture. Their crops were raised in a conuco, a large mound, which was packed with leaves to prevent erosion and then planted with a variety of crops to assure that something would grow, no matter what the weather conditions. They used a coa, an early kind of hoe made completely out of wood. One of the primary crops cultivated by the Taíno was cassava, which they ate as a flat bread similar to a burrito or pizza shell. The Taíno also grew maize, squash, beans, peppers, sweet potatoes, yams, peanuts as well as tobacco.

Technology

The Taíno used cotton, hemp and palm extensively for fishing nets and ropes. Their dugout canoes (Kanoa) were made in various sizes, which could hold from 2 to 150 people. An average sized Kanoa would hold about 15 - 20 persons. They used bows and arrows, and sometimes put various poisons on their arrowheads. They used spears for fishing. For warfare, they employed the use of a wooden war club, which they called a macana, that was about one inch thick and was similar to the cocomaque.

Religion

The Taíno respected all forms of life and recognized the importance of giving thanks, as well as honoring ancestors and spiritual beings whom they called Cemi or Zemi. [http://www.hartford-hwp.com/Taino/photos/zemi.html (meaning)] Many stone carvings of Cemi have survived. Some of the stalagmites of the Caves of Dondon were carved into the figures of Cemi. The Cemi are sometimes represented by toads, turtles, snakes, caiman and various abstract and human-like faces. Some of the carved Cemi include a small table or tray which is believed to be a receptacle for hallucinogenic snuff called Cohoba prepared from the beans of a species of Anadenanthera tree. These trays have been found with ornately carved snuff tubes. During certain ceremonies, the Taíno would induce vomiting with a swallowing stick. This was to purge the body of impurities, both a literal physical purging and a symbolic spiritual purging. After the serving of communal bread, first to the Cemi, then to the cacique, and then to the common people; the village epic would be sung and accompanied by maraca and other instruments. Taíno oral tradition explains that the sun and moon come out of caves. Another story tells that people once lived in caves and only came out at night, because it was believed that the Sun would transform them. The origin of the oceans is described in the story of a huge flood which occurred when a father murdered his son (who was about to murder the father), and then put his bones into a gourd or calabash. These bones then turned to fish and the gourd broke and all the water of the world came pouring out. The Supreme God was called "Yucahú", which means "white yuca", or "the spirit of the yuca", for the yuca was the main source of food of the Taínos, and as such it was revered. The Taínos of Quisqueya (Dominican Republic) called him "Yucahú Bagua Maorocotí", which means "White Yuca, great and powerful as the sea and the mountains". "Yucahú" was also the invisible spirit of the sky, whose mother was "Atabey", the mother of the gods and spirit of the waters. Other names for this goddess include "Guabancex", "Atabei", "Atabeyra", "Atabex", and "Guimazoa". "Huracán" was the evil god of storms, although some historians claim this was only the Taíno term for "storm", and the real goddess of storms was "Guabancex". Other minor gods or "cemíes" include "Boinayel" (god of rain, in other sources the Sun god), the messenger "Guataubá", "Deminán Caracaracol" (who broke the gourd and caused the flooding of the world and the spreading of the waters), "Opiyelguabirán" (a dog-shaped god), and "Maketaori Guayaba" (the ruler of the Coaybay, the underworld). The Taínos believed that the souls of the dead go to Coaybay, the underworld, and there they rest by day, and when night comes they assume the form of bats and eat the fruit "guayaba". Some anthropologists assert that some or all of the Petwo Voodoo rites may have their origins in Taíno religion.

Columbus and the Taíno

Columbus and his crew, landing in the Bahamas on October 12th, 1492 were the first Europeans to encounter the Taino people. It was Columbus who called the Taino "Indians", an identification that has grown to encompass all the indigenous peoples of the Western Hemisphere. There is debate as to how many Taíno inhabited Hispaniola when Columbus landed in 1492. The Catholic priest and contemporary historian Bartolome de Las Casas wrote (1561) in his multivolume History of the Indies: :"There were 60,000 people living on this island [when I arrived in 1508], including the Indians; so that from 1494 to 1508, over three million people had perished from war, slavery and the mines. Who in future generations will believe this?" It is proposed by some historians today that Las Casas's figures for the pre-contact levels of the Taino population were an exaggeration and that a figure closer to one million is more likely. The Taino population estimates range all over, from a few hundred thousand up to 8,000,000. They were not immune to European diseases, notably smallpox, but many of them were worked to death in the mines and fields, put to death in harsh put-downs of revolts or committed suicide to escape their cruel new masters. Some academics have suggested that the numbers the population had shrunk to 60,000 and by 1531 to 3000 in Hispanola. On Columbus' 2nd voyage, he began to require tribute from the Taíno in Hispanola. Each adult over 14 years of age, was expected to deliver a certain quantity of gold. In the earlier days of the conquest, if this tribute was not observed, the Taino were either mutilated or executed. Later on, fearing a loss of labor forces, they were ordered to bring 25 lb (11 kg) of cotton. This also gave way to a service requirement called "encomienda". Under this system, Taino were required to work for a Spanish land owner for most of the year, which left little time to tend to their own commuity affairs.

Taino opposition

In 1511, several caciques in Puerto Rico allied with the Caribs and tried to oust the Spaniards. The revolt was pacified by the forces of Governor Juan Ponce de León. In Hispanola, a Taino Chieftain named Enriquillo also mobilized over 3000 remaining Taino in a rebellion in the 1530s.

Taíno Heritage in Modern Times

Many people still claim to be decendants of the Taíno, most notably among Puerto Ricans, both on the island and US mainland. Taíno decendants have been active in trying to assert a call for recognition of their tribe. Recently, a few Taíno organizations, such as The United Confederation of Taíno People [http://www.uctp.org/] and The Jatibonicù Taíno Tribal Nation of Boriken (Puerto Rico) [http://www.taino-tribe.org], have been established to put forth these claims. Lambda Sigma Upsilon, Latino Fraternity, Incorporated adapted the Taíno Indian as their cultural identity symbol in 1979. (see [http://www.lsu79.org])

References

# United Confederation of Taino People http://www.uctp.org/ # [http://www.hartford-hwp.com/Taino/jatibonuco.html The Jatibonicù Taino Tribal Band of New Jersey] (A Tribal Government Affairs website) # [http://www.taino-tribe.org/index.html The Jatibonicù Taino Tribal Nation of Boriken] (Puerto Rico Tribal Government website) # DeRLAS. [http://www.udel.edu/LASP/Vol1-2MartinezC.html Some important research contributions of Genetics to the study of Population History and Anthropology in Puerto Rico]. Newark, Delaware: Delaware Review of Latin American Studies. August 15, 2000. # The Role of Cohoba in Taino Shamanism Constantino M. Torres in Eleusis No. 1 (1998) # Shamanic Inebriants in South American Archaeology: Recent lnvestigations Constantino M. Torres in Eleusis No. 5 (2001) Category:Native American tribes Category:History of Puerto Rico Category:Indigenous peoples of the Caribbean Category:Arawakan languages Category:Languages of the Caribbean Category:Ethnic groups of the Caribbean

1983

1983 (MCMLXXXIII) is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar.

Events

January

- January 2 - The musical Annie is performed for the last time after 2,377 shows (Uris Theatre on Broadway, New York City).
- January 8 - Riot in the Sing Sing prison
- January 10 - Mafia hitman Roy DeMeo is found dead in a trunk of his own car
- January 15 - Mafioso Meyer Lansky dies at Mount Sinai hospital
- January 19 - Klaus Barbie, Nazi war criminal, is arrested in Bolivia.
- January 22 - Björn Borg retires from tennis after winning 5 consecutive Wimbledon championships.
- January 24 - 25 members of the Red Brigades are sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder of Aldo Moro
- January 26 - Lotus 1-2-3 is released.
- January 31 - Seatbelt use for drivers and front seat passengers becomes mandatory in the United Kingdom.

February

- February 2 - Giovanni Vigliotto goes on trial for multiple counts of bigamy - 105 women
- February 3 - Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Fraser is granted a double dissolution of both houses of parliament for a double dissolution election for the March 5. Bob Hawke replaces Bill Hayden as federal ALP leader
- February 4 - Karen Carpenter(The Carpenters) died of Cardiac Arrest due to a prolonged battle with Anorexia Nervosa.
- February 6 - Klaus Barbie is charged with war crimes
- February 7 - Iran opens an invasion in the southeast of Iraq.
- February 13 - US President Ronald Reagan proclaims 1983 "The Year of the Bible".
- February 16 - The Ash Wednesday bushfires in Victoria and South Australia claim the lives of 76 people in one of Australia's worst ever fires.
- February 19 - Benjamin Ng and Willie Mak kill 13 in an attempted robbery in Seattle, Washington
- February 23 - The Environmental Protection Agency announces its intent to buy out and evacuate the dioxin-contaminated community of Times Beach, Missouri.
- February 24 - A special commission of the U.S. Congress releases a report critical of the practice of Japanese internment during World War II.
- February 25 - US playwright Tennessee Williams found dead in his hotel room

March

- March 1
- Balearic Islands and Madrid become autonomous communities of Spain
- Swatch introduce their first timepieces
- March 5 - Madame Chiang Kai-shek's birthday Bob Hawke Elected Australian Prime Minister
- March 8 - IBM releases the IBM PC XT
- March 8 - President Ronald Reagan calls the Soviet Union an "evil empire."
- March 11 - Hawke Ministry sworn in, Andrew Peacock becomes Federal Opposition leader
- March 16 - Demolition of the radio tower Ismaning, the last radio tower in Germany built of wood.
- March 23 - Strategic Defense Initiative: President Ronald Reagan makes his initial proposal to develop technology to intercept enemy missiles. The media dub this plan "Star Wars."

April

- April 7 - During STS-6, astronauts Story Musgrave and Don Peterson perform the first space shuttle spacewalk (duration: 4 hours, 10 minutes).
- April 11 National Economic Summit held In Canberra
- April 15 - American Public Radio founded; changes its name to the current Public Radio International in 1994
- April 15 - The first non-American Disney theme park opens in Japan as Tokyo Disneyland
- April 18 - The U.S Embassy is bombed in Beirut, killing 63 people.
- April 22 - Soviet embassy official Valery Ivanov is expelled from Australia for allegedly trying to recruit spies in the Australian government.
- April 23 - Stern magazine in West Germany announces it has Hitler diaries
- April 25 - Maine schoolgirl Samantha Smith is invited to visit the Soviet Union by its leader Yuri Andropov after he read her letter in which she expressed fears about nuclear war.

May

- May 6 - Stern magazine publishes "Hitler Diaries" (later found to be forgeries).
- May 9 - Pope John Paul II retracts the ban of Galileo Galilei
- May 16 - London police begin the use of wheel clamps on illegally-parked vehicles.
- May 16 - NSW Premier Neville Wran steps down in response to allegations rasied by ABC program Four Corners That he Attempted to influence the NSW Majestry
- May 17 - Lebanon, Israel, and the United States sign an agreement on Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon.
- May 25 - Return of the Jedi opens in the United States.

June

- Shipbreaking begins on the beach at Alang in Gujarat.
- 9 June: Conservative Margaret Thatcher, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom since 1979, won a landslide victory (42% of the popular vote) over Michael Foot, who led a highly-divided and weakened Labour Party which earned only 28% of the vote. The much improved economy (after 2-3 years of restructuring), her victory in the Falkands, as well as shrinking unemployment rates consolidated her election victory.
- June 13 - Pioneer 10 becomes the first manmade object to leave the solar system.
- June 18 - Sally Ride becomes first American woman in space on the Space Shuttle Challenger.

July

- July 1 - A North Korean Ilyushin Il-62M jet en route to Conakry Airport in Guinea crashed into the Fouta Djall Mountains in Guinea-Bissau, killing all 23 people on board.
- July 1 - High Court Blocks construction of the Franklin Dam In Tasmania
- July 7 - Samantha Smith flies to the Soviet Union.
- July 16 - Sikorsky S-61 disaster: helicopter crash off the Isles of Scilly, causing 20 fatalities
- July 18 - Michael Litton was born.
- July 20 - Government of Poland announces end of the martial law and amnesty for political prisoners.
- July 22 - Australian Dick Smith completes his solo circumnavigation in a helicopter
- July 23 - Gimli Glider: Air Canada flight 143 crash-lands in Gimli, Manitoba.
- July 25 - The outbreak of anti-Tamil riots in Sri Lanka which left over 3,000 Tamils massacred and millions of dollars worth of their property was destroyed. This genocide is the beginning of a deadly civil war in Sri Lanka.
- July 25 - Metallica released their debut album Kill 'Em All.
- July 28 New South Wales premier Neville Wran exonerated by Street Royal Commision over claims raised by ABC (Australian Broadcasting Corporation) program Four Corners which claimed,he attempted to influence the NSW majestry

August

- August 4 - Thomas Sankara became President in Upper Volta.
- August 18 - Hurricane Alicia hits the Texas coast, killing 22 and causing over US$1 billion in damage (1983 dollars).
- August 18 - 5 people are killed and 18 others injured when a road train is deliberatly driven into a motel at Ayers Rock (Uluru) NT (The driver, Douglas Edward Crabbe, was found guilty of this in March 1984)
- August 21 - In the Philippines, opposition politician Benigno Aquino is assassinated just as he returns from exile
- August 24 - Old Philadelphia Arena is destroyed by arson
- August 21 - Benigno Aquino, Jr., Philippines opposition leader, assassinated in Manila

September

- September 1 - Cold War: Korean Air Flight 007 is shot down by a Soviet jet fighter when the commercial aircraft entered Soviet airspace. All 269 on board die.
- September 4 - Six men walk underwater across the Sydney Harbor - 82.9 km in 48 hours
- September 5 - Tom Brokaw becomes lead anchor for NBC Nightly News
- September 6 - The Soviet Union admits to shooting down Korean Air Flight 007, stating that the pilots did not know it was a civilian aircraft when it violated Soviet airspace
- September 10 - Jon B. Minnoch, heaviest man in USA, dies weighing 362 kg. When he was admitted to hospital in March 1978, his weight was 635 kg
- September 16 - Donna Griffiths of Pershore, England, stops sneezing after continuous series of sneezes for 978 days, since January 13 1981
- September 23 - Violence erupts in New Caledonia between native Kanaks and French expatriates. The French government withdraws the promise of independence
- September 23 - Mass outbreak in Maze prison - 38 prisoners hijack a lorry and crash out of the gate - one guard dead and 5 others injured. 19 of the prisoners are later apprehended.
- September 23 - Barbara Turnbull, an 18 year old Canadian girl, was shot in the neck and became paralyzed for life during a store robbery in Mississauga, Canada.
- September 25-26 - Soviet military officer Stanislav Petrov averts a worldwide nuclear war.
- September 27 - The GNU project was announced publicly on the net.unix-wizards and net.usoft newsgroups.

October

- October 2 - Neil Kinnock is elected leader of the British Labour Party.
- October 4 - Richard Noble sets a new land speed record of 633.468 mph, driving Thrust 2 at the Black Rock Desert, Nevada.
- October 7 - Plan to abolish Greater London Council announced.
- October 12 - Japan's ex Prime Minister Tanaka Kakuei found guilty of taking a $2 million bribe from Lockheed and sentenced to 4 years in jail.
- October 19 - Maurice Bishop, the President of Grenada, and 40 others are shot in a military coup
- October 22 - In Bonn, West Germany people demonstrate for nuclear disarmament
- October 23 - A suicide truck-bombing destroys the United States Marine Corps barracks at Beirut International Airport, killing 241 US servicemen.
- October 24 - Arthur Hutchinson kills three members of Laitner family and rapes their daughter in the Sheffield suburb of Dore.
- October 25 - United States invades Grenada.
- October 27 - Pope John Paul II visits Mehmet Ali Ağca in prison to forgive him. Ali Ağca is the Turkish gunman who attempted to kill Pope John Paul II in 1981
- October 30 - The first democratic elections in Argentina after seven years of military rule are held.

November

- November 2 - Martin Luther King Day: At the White House Rose Garden, President Ronald Reagan signs a bill creating a federal holiday on the third Monday of every January to honor American civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr.
- November 5 - The worst offshore diving accident ever to take place, happened on board the Byford Dolphin rig in the North Sea of the coast of Norway. Five divers where killed and one severely wounded in an explosive decompression accident.
- November 11 - President Reagan became the first U.S. chief executive to address the Diet, Japan's national legislature.
- November 13 - The first US cruise missiles arrive at Greenham Common airbase in England amid protests from peace campaigners.
- November 15 - The Turkish part of Cyprus declares independence.
- November 16 - A jury in Gretna, Louisiana acquits Ginny Foat of the murder of Argentine businessman Moses Chaiyo.
- November 17 - The Zapatista Army of National Liberation founded.
- November 24 - 15-year-old Lynda Mann is found raped and strangled in the village of Narborough, England (Colin Pitchfork is sentenced to life imprisonment in 1988)
- November 26 - Brinks Mat robbery: In London, 6,800 gold bars worth nearly UK£26 million are taken from the Brinks Mat vault at Heathrow Airport. Only a fraction of the gold was ever recovered, and only two men were convicted of the crime.
- November 30 ASIO agents bungle a training exercise on the Melbourne Sheraton
- Microsoft Word is first released.

December

- December 9 - The Australian Dollar is floated, by Federal treasurer Paul Keating. Under the old flexible peg system, the Reserve Bank bought and sold all Australian dollars and cleared the market at the end of the day. This initiative was taken by the government of Bob Hawke.
- December 13 - The Denver Nuggets and the visiting Detroit Pistons combined for an NBA record 370 points, with Detroit winning in triple overtime, 186-184.
- December 17 - A fire at a discotheque in Madrid, Spain, kills 83 people.
- December 17 - An PIRA car bomb kills six Christmas shoppers and injures 90 outside Harrods in London.
- December 31 - Brunei gains independence from United Kingdom.
- December 31 - Two bombs explode in France. One on the Paris train kills 3 and injures 19. The other at Marseille station kills 2 and injures 34.

Unknown dates

- Democratic reform in power in Argentina.
- Roxanne Pulitzer divorces Herbert Pulitzer
- Gerard Debreu wins the Bank of Sweden Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel
- Leopold Kohr, the people of Belau, Amory and Hunter Lovins / Rocky Mountain Institute and Manfred Max-Neef / CEPAUR win the Right Livelihood Award
- McDonald's introduces the McNugget
- In Australia, the Northern Territory decriminalizes homosexual acts between consenting adults
- The immunosuppressant cyclosporine was approved by FDA, leading to a revolution in the field of transplantation.
- Flashdance and Return of the Jedi are box-office hits.
- Drug Abuse Resistance Education (DARE) program launched in U.S.
- Kellogg's introduces Crispix cereal.

Births

January-March

- January 2 - Kate Bosworth, American actress
- January 18 - Samantha Mumba, Irish singer and actress
- January 19 - Hikaru Utada, Japanese singer and songwriter
- February 7 - Elin Grindemyr, Swedish model
- February 8 - Jim Verraros, American singer
- February 23 - Mido, Egyptian footballer
- March 10 - Carrie Underwood, American singer
- March 14 - Bakhtiyar Artayev, Kazakh boxer
- March 14 - Taylor Hanson, American musician
- March 21 - Bruno Langley, British actor

April-June

- April 13 - Schalk Burger, South African rugby player
- April 15 - Ilya Kovalchuk, Russian hockey player
- April 17 - Miguel Cabrera, Venezuelan Major League Baseball player
- April 22 - Matt Jones, American football player
- April 22 - Sean Muir, American playwright
- April 23 - Daniela Hantuchova, Slovakian tennis player
- May 11 - Matt Leinart, American football player
- May 11 - Holly Valance, Australian actress and singer
- May 14 - Amber Tamblyn, American actress
- May 27 - Bobby Convey, American soccer player
- May 30 - Jennifer Ellison, British actress
- June 4 - Ivan, Italian writer
- June 6 - Joe Rokocoko, New Zealand rugby player
- June 8 - Kim Clijsters, Belgian tennis player
- June 30 - Cheryl Tweedy, British singer

July-September

- July 2 - Michelle Branch, American singer
- July 11 - Marie Eleonor Sernehlot, Swedish musician (A-Teens)
- July 13 - Liu Xiang, Chinese athlete
- July 21 - Eivør Pálsdóttir, Faroese singer and composer
- July 21 - Kellen Winslow Jr., American football player
- July 22 - Shelby Belle, Canadian actress
- July 23 - Rebecca Cartwright, Australian actress
- July 23 - Aaron Peirsol, American swimmer
- August 6 - Robin van Persie, Dutch football player
- August 14 - Mila Kunis, Ukrainian actress
- August 19 - Tammin Sursok, Australian actress
- August 23 - Nicol David, Malaysian squash player
- August 24 - Christopher Parker, British actor
- September 17 - Jennifer Peña, American singer
- September 21 - Maggie Grace, American actress

October-December

- October 2 - Efren Ramirez, American actor
- October 5 - Nicky Hilton, American model and socialite
- October 24 - Brian Vickers, American race car driver
- October 30 - Diana Karazon, Jordanian singer
- November 16 - Fallon Bowman, South African-born guitarist (Kittie)
- November 18 - Jon Johansen, Norwegian computer programmer
- December 6 - Bryan Habana, South African rugby player
- December 12 - Katrina Elam, American singer
- December 12 - Brad Smith, American football player
- December 13 - Otylia Jędrzejczak, Polish swimmer
- December 15 - René Duprée, Canadian professional wrestler
- December 18 - Ryan Dowling, American Singer/Songwriter/Mandolinist for the band The Tipplin' Weigh
- December 20 - Lucy Pinder, British model

Deaths

January-March

- January 11 - Shri Ghanshyam Das Birla, Indian industrialist and educator (b. 1894)
- January 15 - Meyer Lansky, Russian-born gangster (b. 1902)
- January 23 - Fred Bakewell, English cricketer (b. 1908)
- January 24 - George Cukor, American film director (b. 1899)
- January 28 - Frank Forde, fifteenth Prime Minister of Australia (b. 1890)
- February 4 - Karen Carpenter, American singer (b. 1950)
- February 12 - Eubie Blake, American musician and songwriter (b. 1887)
- February 14 - Lina Radke, German athlete (b. 1903)
- February 22 - Sir Adrian Boult, English conductor (b. 1889)
- February 25 - Tennessee Williams, American playwright (b. 1911)
- March 3 - Hergé, Belgian comics creator (b. 1907)
- March 3 - Arthur Koestler, Austrian writer (b. 1905)
- March 8 - William Walton, English composer (b. 1902)
- March 9 - Ulf von Euler, Swedish physiologist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1905)
- March 15 - Rebecca West, English-born writer (b. 1892)
- March 17 - Haldan Keffer Hartline, American physiologist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1903)

April-June

- April 4 - Gloria Swanson, American actress (b. 1897)
- April 22 - Earl 'Fatha' Hines, American musician (b. 1903)
- May 8 - Frank Aiken, Irish Foreign Minister (b. 1898)
- May 8 - John Fante, American writer (b. 1909)
- May 14 - Roger J. Traynor, American judge (b. 1900)
- May 19 - Jean Rey, President of the European Commission (b. 1902)
- May 21 - Kenneth Clark, British art historian (b. 1903)
- May 22 - Albert Claude, Belgian biologist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1899)
- June 2 - Stan Rogers, Canadian musician (b. 1949)
- June 12 - Norma Shearer, Canadian-born actress
- June 18 - Marianne Brandt, German industrial designer (b. 1893)
- June 25 - Alberto Ginastera, Argentine composer (b. 1916)

July-September

- July 1 - Buckminster Fuller, American architect (b. 1895)
- July 4 - John Bodkin Adams, alleged English murderer (b. 1899)
- July 7 - Vicki Morgan, American model (murdered) (b. 1952)
- July 23 - Georges Auric, French composer (b. 1899)
- July 29 - Raymond Massey, Canadian actor (b. 1896)
- July 29 - David Niven, English actor (b. 1910)
- August 16 - Earl Averill, baseball player (b. 1902)
- August 21 - Benigno Aquino Jr., Filipino politician (b. 1932)
- September 1 - Larry McDonald, U.S. Congressman (plane crash) (b. 1935)
- September 10 - Felix Bloch, Swiss-born physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1905)
- September 25 - King Léopold III of Belgium (b. 1901)
- September 26 - Tino Rossi, Corsican singer (b. 1907)

October-December

- October 6 - Terence Cardinal Cooke, American Catholic archbishop (b. 1921)
- October 8 - Joan Hackett, American actress (b. 1934)
- October 18 - Willie Jones, baseball player (b. 1925)
- October 28 - Otto Messmer, American cartoonist (b. 1892)
- November 7 - Germaine Tailleferre, French composer (b. 1892)
- November 15 - John Le Mesurier, British actor (b. 1912)
- December 2 - Fifi D'Orsay, Canadian actress (b. 1904)
- December 6 - Lucienne Boyer, French singer (b. 1903)
- December 11 - Sir Neil Ritchie, British general (b. 1897)
- December 21 - Paul de Man, Belgian-born literary critic (b. 1919)
- December 25 - Joan Miró, Catalan painter (b. 1893)

Nobel Prizes

- Physics - Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar, William Alfred Fowler
- Chemistry - Henry Taube
- Medicine - Barbara McClintock
- Literature - William Golding
- Peace - Lech Wałęsa
- Economics - Gerard Debreu

Templeton Prize

- Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn Category:1983 als:1983 ko:1983년 ja:1983年 simple:1983 th:พ.ศ. 2526