1527–1842: The slave trade to Puerto Rico spanned over three centuries, with early arrivals managed by Spanish and Portuguese traders and later shipments dom…

1527–1842: The slave trade to Puerto Rico spanned over three centuries, with early arrivals managed by Spanish and Portuguese traders and later shipments dominated by French and British merchants. West Central Africa was the consistent primary source of labor, though significant numbers also arrived from Upper Guinea and the Bight of Biafra. Captives were often brought to the island from other Caribbean re-export centers like Saint Thomas and Havana rather than directly from the African coast. The relatively smaller scale of the Puerto Rican trade compared to Cuba or Saint-Domingue resulted in a different social and racial dynamic on the island.