A city without citizens? Puerto Rican colonial maps

Officially, Puerto Rico is an «unincorporated territory» of the United States. This designation was certified by the enactment, in 1952, of the Free Associated State or Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. According to the United States Census Bureau (2010), 99% of Puerto Rico’s inhabitants live in urban areas, the development of which reflects the country’s colonial status in a context where the Commonwealth seems exhausted (in the 6th November 2012 plebiscite, 54% of the voters opposed the status quo). The title «A city without citizens?» is a rhetorical question that inquires into the antecedents of this non-city in which a mainly urban population lives.

Key words: Puerto Rico, Commonwealth, suburbanization, coloniality, United States

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