Records from Puerto Rico offer a great history of naming trends on the island, from Spanish influences, to Classical (Greek and Roman) references, to 'American-sounding' first names in the recent past.

• Old World Names Puerto Rican Genealogy Records
• Old World Names Puerto Rican Genealogy Site
• Old World Names Puerto Rican Genealogy History

Old World Names Puerto Rican Genealogy Records

• Greek origin: Hipólito/a (Hippolytus), Telésforo (Telesphoros), Ceferino/a (Zephyrus)
• Roman origin: Agripino/a (Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa, architect of Caesar's Rome)
• German origin: Clotilde, Anselmo/a

In addition, the website, PuertoRicanGenealogy.Weebly.Com deftly explains the common practice of 'multiple surnames', which can actually make your Puerto Rican genealogy research easier!:

Puerto Rico is a commonwealth and territory of the United States after the Spanish American War of 1898. Puerto Ricans are natural-born citizens of the United States. Ancestry.com has made available the Puerto Rico Civil Records after 1885 as well as the census from 1910, 1920, 1930, 1935, and 1940 under US census rules. Last Name Maternal Surname First Name Middle Name Other Name Alternate Spelling. Genealogy Research Surnames Ancestry Records Puerto Rican DNA Nicknames explained About Who's Who Historical Resources Blog Puerto Rican Migration Language& Culture of Spain Old World Names Pueblos Tales from the States Hometown Cuentos. The Puerto Rico family history research page lists data collections relevant to Puerto Rico. Start your search here to find ancestors originating from Puerto Rico and to research historical records pertaining to Puerto Rico.

Puerto Rican genealogy is made exponentially easier because of the use of multiple surnames. Puerto Rico used the Spanish practice of using the last names of both parents. A child born would be given a first and middle name and then the first last name of the father followed by the first last name of the mother. (e.g. Maria Luisa Rivera Garcia.) You may find it written with or without the word y meaning 'and' between the two last names. (e.g. Tomas Rivera y Castro.) Upon marriage, a Puerto Rican woman could choose to add her husband's last name by adding the word de meaning 'of' before her husband's first last name. (e.g.Maria Luisa Rivera Garcia de Felicianoor Maria Luisa Rivera y Garcia de Feliciano.)
To the average American, that seems like a mouthful but for a genealogist, it is a practice that is extremely useful for various reasons. First, because it is easy to track a person over periods of time in various documents. Second, it aids in finding siblings if you are looking to create a larger family tree. Third, upon discovering cousins or grandchildren living in the home, you can investigate to find out who the parents are by tracing the two last names. And of course, the most obvious, there is no issue with finding maiden names! It is amazingly easier to trace back further generations with the mother's name already known.

Old World Names Puerto Rican Genealogy Site

Rather than include long lists of names, below are suggested resources—at NYPL and online—that explain surname practices, first names and their translations, and nicknames with origins. It is intended that this serve as reference when viewing handwritten digitized records.

NYPL Catalog by Subject:

Old World Names Puerto Rican Genealogy History

• Names, Personal -- Spanish -- Dictionaries.