Lajas (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈlaxas]) is a town and municipality of Puerto Rico located in the Lajas Valley in southwestern Puerto Rico, on the southern coast of the island, bordering the Caribbean Sea, south of San Germán and Sabana Grande; east of Cabo Rojo; and west of Guánica.

Catalan Jews from Majorca were part of the early settlers in the south of Borikén (Puerto Rico).

Puerto Rico was ceded by Spain in the aftermath of the Spanish–American War under the terms of the Treaty of Paris of 1898 and became a colony of the United States.

In 1899, the United States Department of War conducted a census of Puerto Rico finding that the population of Lajas was 8,789.

[2] The village of La Parguera is a popular tourist destination to see the famous Bahía Fosforescente (Phosphorescent Bay) and its numerous keys and islets.

[3] Parador La Parguera was founded by Puerto Rican comedian Henry LaFont (Julio Pancorbo Ortiz).

[4] People from the El Combate community in barrio Boquerón are known as mata con hacha ("those who kill with axes") based on folklore about a fight over the salinas, where those from Cabo Rojo fought with axes against people from the adjacent town of Lajas.

The municipal buildings, central square and large Catholic church are located in a small barrio referred to as "el pueblo".

The record high for the town is 103 °F (39 °C).Lajas is famous for its main touristic attraction, Bahía Fosforescente (La Parguera), a place where bioluminescent dinoflagellates of different colors appear when the water moves.

[39] The flag consists of three horizontal stripes; the top one is green, the center one is white and the bottom one is light yellow.