Verified answer

Generally speaking, it is not much. It is similar to or less than Native Americans in the U.S. Unlike in Puerto Rico and the Caribbean, there are still isolated indigenous peoples on reservations. Latin American never had reservations because Spanish, Portuguese and French colonizers had different ideologies. Their motive was to conquer and dominate all. The English and Dutch Protestants took the natives and separated them (ex. U.S., South Africa). In both scenarios, indigenous populations were exploited (sometimes enslaved) and massively killed (disease and warfare). Those who remained alive were incorporated into a European colonial society differently though.

If you call someone Native American or indigenous in the U.S., we literally interpret it as ancestry. We actually have very vague criteria when it comes to cultural identity being integral to ethnicity. It is what leads labels in our society creating dysfunction. In contrast, if you went to Mexico and spoke to a person of 100% Aztec ancestry and told them they are indigenous or Aztec, rather than Mexican, they'd take it as though you're calling them an outsider to their national culture. It isn't that they don't regard the importance of Aztec culture to Mexican culture. It is very important. What they believe is that their culture is a diffusion of the two and to call them one or the other would be not considering them Mexican. Similarly, many other central and South Americans see it the same way.

In the case of the Caribbean, islands tended to have lower indigenous populations than mainland areas. Besides that, what ever populations there were got killed due to disease they weren't immune to. Unlike on the mainland, there was no where to run to. I believe approximately 30,000 Taino lived in the Caribbean prior to Spanish arrival. Most were killed. Even if 5,000 survived, this would eventually be largely absorbed by Spanish and other European immigration, as well as African slaves who had been brought to the island. This is why throughout the Caribbean, most ancestry is European, African or a combination of the two. Puerto Rico and Aruba are two of the more European descended islands. Cuba is as well and was even more prior to many upper class Cubans leaving when Castro took over.

Here is the problem.

1) We aren't even sure of what a Taino actually looks like.

2) People have a way of tagging something to make things seem like they make sense. Some people think ''Well he doesn't look 100% white, he doesn't look 100% black, so he must be this.'' In reality, this person always turns out being a combination of white and black and very little if any Taino roots.

You could take Jennifer Lopez, Erik Estrada and Chayanne and put them into Spain, Portugal or southern Italy, and they'd all camouflage well into the ethnic image of the majority of those populations. Something most people don't realize is that Spanish, Italians, Portuguese, Greeks and even many French simply don't look like the the typical white American. They look much more like white Latin Americans and particularly white South Americans. Just look at the people who have told you they were ''Italian'' in NYC or the area. Then go to Italy. You'd think you saw two completely different ethnicities. Why? People mix. No one is truly purely anything. You have no idea how many people I've seen insist they were ''100% Sicilian'', yet have relatively pale skin. Does it exist in Sicily? Maybe a little. Most of the population is olive-skinned though. Not quite for those who say they are in the U.S. though. Environment plays into that too though. My point is if you spent a week in Italy (especially Sicily) besides culturally, you'd think you were in Sao Paolo or San Juan more than Bensonhurst, Brooklyn, simply by the way people look. Do the field research for yourself if you don't believe me.

There is no clear cut answer I can give you. I'm not sure there is an accurate one out there. Nor is there a way to measure it. I'd guess one-quarter to one-third of the population (especially in rural areas) has some Taino in them. I'd guarantee few of those people are more than 1/8 or 1/16 though.

An important thing to keep in mind about studies (whether biological or social) are manipulated by who is researching them. The funny thing I find about these types of surveys is they have all sorts of percentages with not so concrete evidence. Third rate ''scholars'' conducted that study according to the 61%. It may be possible even that much of the island has a little bit of Taino ancestry. Would you doubt white Oklahomans do too though? It doesn't change that most white southerners and midwesterners who say they're part Native American are overwhelmingly predominantly white.

You can see that American has Americanized their cultural views on what ethnicity is just for this study to have even be done. What value does it have manipulating statistics? Or even knowing something like that? It is a shame Puerto Rico allows themselves to be Anglocized and Americanized while compromising their cultural identity. I guess they don't have a choice though. At least there is still an identifiable and overwhelming Puerto Rican Latin culture on the island in comparison to Alaskans, Hawaiians and people in Guam who barely have their cultures and don't speak their languages first hand anymore if they even know their tongue.

Puerto Rico Taino

The most recent dna numbers find the average puerto rican with 15% quantum which is above one eighth. Many individual are 23 to 25% which is a quarter. A few have been found to have 39% which is almost half.

Don't forget former baseball star Ruben Sierra ..

Tough to say how many PR's are of Taino descent, or have enough Taino blood to be at least somewhat familiar with the customs. Most mixing in PR happened between whites and blacks. Interesting question though.

“A recent study conducted in Puerto Rico suggests that over 61 percent of the population possess Taíno mitochondrial DNA”

(3RD page, first paragraph-last sentence --> http://www.kacike.org/MartinezEnglish.pdf ) This link contains the scientific research paper, from a scientific journal

You might also want to read these (for a better comprehension) http://americantaino.blogspot.com/2009/03/tracing-...

http://www.uprm.edu/news/docs/UPRMNews2008009.pdf

Taino Indians were nearly wiped out into extinction by European diseases, and slavery. Many Taino Indians chose suicide than become adopted into European colonial life.Taino Indians were able to survive hiding in the interior mountainous areas of Puerto Rico.They eventually assimilated into Puerto Rican culture and mixed with the European, and African populations of the island.The average modern day Puerto Rican contains between 10 to 20 percent Taino DNA. Dominicans, Cubans, Jamaicans, and Haitians contain smaller amounts.Certain words we use in the English language come from the Taino language, Babacua-Barbacue, Hammacka-Hammock