Taíno Symbols in Modern Puerto Rican Culture: From Petroglyphs to Clothing
Walk through Old San Juan, browse Puerto Rican art markets, or scroll through the feeds of diaspora Boricuas — and you'll see them everywhere: ancient symbols carved by the Taíno people thousands of years ago, reimagined in tattoos, murals, jewelry, and clothing.
This isn't nostalgia. It's a cultural reclamation movement — and it's one of the most powerful things happening in modern Puerto Rican identity.
Who Were the Taíno and Why Are Their Symbols Relevant Now?
The Taíno were the indigenous people of Borikén — Puerto Rico before the Spanish renamed it. They built sophisticated communities, developed agriculture, created art, and left behind petroglyphs carved into rock faces across the island. When the Spanish arrived in 1493, colonization devastated the Taíno population — but their bloodlines, their language, and their symbols survived. (For the full history, see who were the Taíno?)
DNA studies show Taíno mitochondrial DNA in over 60% of Puerto Ricans tested. The Taíno were never truly gone. And today, more and more Boricuas are choosing to make that visible.
The Symbols You'll See Most Today
The Sol Taíno — The Sun
The most iconic Taíno symbol — a circular sun face with radiating features, found carved into rocks across Puerto Rico. It represents life, power, and the divine. The Sol Taíno is the symbol most frequently adopted in modern Puerto Rican art and cultural expression. You'll see it in tattoos, murals, jewelry, and on our Sol Taíno Hoodie, which lives in the Símbolos collection.
Cemí / Zemi
Three-pointed stone figures that represented Taíno deities and spiritual forces. The most important was Yocáhu, the god of cassava and the sea. Cemí imagery appears throughout modern Puerto Rican art as a connection to spiritual roots.
The Frog (Coquí)
The Taíno depicted the coquí frog in their petroglyphs — they recognized it as a sacred presence long before it became Puerto Rico's national symbol. Today it is probably the most reproduced Puerto Rican symbol of all; we wrote about that, and why we don't print it, in the history of the coquí.
The Turtle
Sea turtles appear frequently in Taíno petroglyphs, representing longevity, wisdom, and the connection between land and sea. The turtle is one of the most beloved Taíno symbols among modern Puerto Ricans reclaiming indigenous heritage.
Guabancex — The Hurricane Spirit
The Taíno had a goddess for hurricanes — Guabancex, the Spirit of the Storm. In a place that has been shaped by hurricane after hurricane, this symbol carries particular resonance. Puerto Rico's survival through Maria and every storm before it echoes the Taíno understanding: the storm is part of the island's story, not the end of it.
Wearing Them With Care
These symbols were sacred before they were decorative. If you wear one, it's worth knowing what it meant to the people who carved it — our guide to the meaning of Taíno symbols is a good place to start.