Christopher Columbus: The First European to Reach Puerto Rico (1493)

The first documented European arrival in Puerto Rico was Christopher Columbus during his second voyage. On November 19, 1493, he sighted the island and named it San Juan Bautista in honor of St. John the Baptist. Columbus and his crew were the first Europeans to encounter the island, which had been inhabited for centuries by the Taíno people, who called it Borikén. This began the Spanish colonial era that lasted over 400 years.