Jamaica

Experience why Jamaica is one of the most special places on earth. Immerse yourself in our culture. It’s as vibrant as our art, as unique as each sunset and as diverse as our people.
In just 4,244 square miles, Mother Nature has packed you one of the most interesting combinations of flora, fauna and physical geographical features: Jamaica, the Heartbeat of the Caribbean. 235 kilometres long and 93 kilometres at the widest point, the island of Jamaica is the third largest in the Caribbean Sea, located approximately 18 N, 77 W, in the heart of the Caribbean Basin. Just fewer than 3 million people live on the island, mostly in the cities of Kingston and Montego Bay, but large towns such as Portmore, Spanish Town and Mandeville have significant populations. Jamaica is a land of mountains, plateaux and plains, dominated by a series of mountain ranges that run across the centre of the island. Almost half the island is above 300 metres, and the highest point, Blue Mountain Peak, rises 2,256 metres above sea level. Many of Jamaica’s 120 rivers originate in these highlands, watering the land on their way to the Caribbean Sea. The climate varies from tropical on the coastal plains, to temperate in the highlands of the interior, and the flora is a highly diverse combination of tropical and sub-tropical vegetation. There are 1,022 kilometres of coastline; reef-protected white sand beaches characterise the north, while the coastline of the south has predominantly black sand beaches.

Truly a nation “out of many, one people” Jamaica is a multifaceted mosaic of international customs and traditions. Our ancestors, from Africa, Asia, Europe and the Middle East, have helped to shape our culture, creating one that is uniquely Jamaican. When visiting our island home, take time to experience our culture… it’s what sets us apart from other Caribbean destinations. Reason with a Rastafarian about life, love or politics. Lose yourself in the rhythms and movements of a people who still refuse to be constrained. Visit one of our many theatres or stage shows and delight in our performing arts, showcasing everything from Jonkonnu to jazz. Want to dance too? Join in the wild revelry of Carnival and Augus’ Mawnin or just follow the reggae beat, pulsing from street corners and rum bars island wide. After that, share a meal with us –ackee and saltfish with roast breadfruit, escoveitched fish, bammy and festival – our epicurean feasts will tantalize your taste buds. In Jamaica, you’ll discover new worlds, and familiar ones too, lots to learn about, and even more to love. No wonder we’ve been called ‘the biggest little island in the world…’ It’s a title we can live with.

Jamaica is a natural muse. Our land gleams in Technicolor, as lofty Blue Mountains spill onto verdant plains, shimmering sands and turquoise seas. Our people are bold, brash and bubbly, hailing from around the globe to give a spectrum of skin tones, customs and traditions. Our rich history and culture provide a plethora of ideas, images and untold stories. Given all this, it’s no wonder Jamaicans pulse with a creative energy that overflows into whatever we do. It’s in the way we talk, walk, dance, dress and in the countless other nuances making up the fabric of our everyday lives. Our creativity, however, is perhaps most tangible in our visual art, which uses our country’s inspirational palette to give a physical reflection of everything we are, have been and will be.

Religion is omnipresent in Jamaica – everywhere you go it permeates academic debates, ceremonies, business and political life. We are a predominantly Christian country, with large groups of Baptists, Anglicans and Roman Catholics. Other religions, such as Islam, and Judaism are also represented on a small scale, adding to the diversity of our nation’s heritage.

On August 6, 1962, Jamaica became an independent nation. At the stroke of 12 that hot summer night, the Union Jack of Great Britain was lowered, and with much expectation, celebration and relief, the Jamaican people commemorated the rising of their own colours – black, green and gold – with dances, parades and religious ceremonies. There is a well-known adage asserting proudly that the heart of the Jamaican people has never ceased to dance. It’s true – dancing is an integral part of everyday Jamaican life. We dance everywhere and for all occasions – for worship, cultural celebrations, formal events and social gatherings. Once there’s music, hips gyrate, hands start to clap while round buttocks roll, and everyone – old and young alike – finds himself or herself moving to the infectious rhythmic beat.

Our cuisine is as diverse as our people, as unique as our island. If there’s one thing that Jamaican people love it’s a “likkle bickle”. We enjoy our food, and for good reason too. Here in Jamaica, Mother Nature has blessed us with fertile ground and a near perfect tropical climate. For instance, we have so many varieties of mangoes that we have run out of names and have simply started to number them. Somehow, everything that grows in Jamaica seems just a little sweeter, just a little more flavourful. Maybe it’s the sun. Maybe it’s the touch of love we put into planting, reaping and cooking.

In Jamaica, smiles beam from faces in hues ranging from rich coffee to condensed milk-sweetened cocoa. These warm faces bear physical features that are seldom duplicated. There are small noses, proud noses, strong chins, blue eyes and dark ones too, full lips, fine mouths, corkscrew curls and unruly locks. To appreciate these shapes and shades and to understand our rich history and heritage is to think on a global scale. Nearly every race is represented here – African, English, Spanish, Irish, Scottish, Indian, Chinese, German, and Syrian. They came – to conquer, colonize, unwillingly or in search of a better life, settling over time to call this island home. They’ve jumbled and fused, creating the most extraordinary racial and cultural medley, the Jamaican people.

Thumping, infectious and passionate sounds are the trademarks of Reggae, Jamaica’s most internationally recognized music and the heartbeat of our people. Everywhere you turn, hypnotic beats blare from car stereos or black boom boxes stacked high at nightclubs and street corners. Although this is Jamaica’s music, its origins are in the villages of Africa where our forefathers mourned the passing of an ancestor, heralded the birth of a son or celebrated the end of a harvest with song and dance.

Jamaica is classified a developing country. We have a mixed, free-market economy consisting of a combination of state-owned entities and private-sector organisations. Our two most important economic sectors are tourism and mining with agriculture and manufacturing also contributing to the economy. Tourism and mining are responsible for earning most of the valuable foreign exchange needed for trade.

Jamaica is the largest English-speaking island in the Caribbean and the third largest in the region. With a total land area of 4442 square miles (10991 sq. km.), the island is 146 miles long with widths varying between 22 and 51 miles (35 and 82 km).

Jamaica is an independent country, completely self-governed since 1962 when the island ceased to be a British colony. After Independence, Jamaica chose to be a part of the British Commonwealth, and to keep the Queen of the United Kingdom as the constitutional monarch, the titular head of the country. The Government of Jamaica was patterned on the Westminster model of government, and is composed of the Queen as head of state, and a bicameral Parliament. In Jamaica, the Governor General, who is appointed by Her Majesty upon the recommendation of the Prime Minister of Jamaica, represents the Queen.

After almost five hundred years of European occupation and governance, Jamaica gained its independence from Britain on August 6, 1962. We Jamaicans are extremely proud of our diverse heritage and of our independence. We display this pride openly through our national symbols, motto, anthem and pledge, and by honouring those who helped us make our own way.

Centuries ago, the island’s colonizers brought several plants from all around the world to Jamaica. We have the Spanish to thank for gems like sugarcane, citrus, plantains and bananas, and Captain Bligh, an English Naval Commander, for breadfruit and coconuts. Similarly, the ackee, an essential part of our national dish, ackee and saltfish, and our national fruit was brought from Africa aboard a slave ship.

For centuries, Jamaica has welcomed settlers from all around the world. This small island has played host to the Amerindians who discovered it, to Europeans who fought to own it, to Africans forced to call it home and to Asians, Indians and Middle Easterners searching for a better life. Each group carried with it a story and tradition, throwing everything into Jamaica’s melting pot. After centuries of brewing, all have blended together to give the island its rich history and heritage –an international smorgasbord of legends, cultures and customs, all displayed right here against the background of Jamaica’s beautiful mountains and valleys. Jamaica’s first inhabitants were the Tainos, an Arawak-speaking people, believed to be originally from South America. The Tainos called the island “Xaymaca” meaning “land of wood and water”. These peaceful, seafaring people greeted Columbus when he first visited the island in 1494. Columbus described Jamaica as “the fairest isle mine ever eyes beheld…” His arrival marked the beginning of five hundred years of European occupation and governance. Initially, the Spanish settled near St. Ann’s Bay at Sevilla Nueva (New Seville), but eventually moved to Villa de la Vega, “the city on the plains”, now called Spanish Town. Their new city swiftly flourished, becoming the island’s centre of activity.

During the 1650s, the British captured Jamaica from the Spanish. In a last ditch attempt at defiance, the Spanish settlers freed and armed their slaves, who sought refuge in the island’s interior. The Maroons, as these ex-slaves came to be called, continuously defied the island’s new colonizers. The only army ever to defeat the mighty British, the Maroons still exist in modern day Jamaica.

Under British rule, Jamaica became a busy and wealthy colony. By the 18th century, the island was “the jewel of the British Crown”, producing 22% of the world’s sugar on large, lucrative plantations. This success came at great cost to the African people, thousands of whom were forcefully brought to the New World as slaves.

As a result of the cruel and oppressive slavery system, Jamaica had more revolts than other West Indian islands. Reports of frequent slave uprisings and other forms of resistance, coupled with brutal planter-militia reprisals, troubled the European conscience. In time, anti-slavery sentiments grew strong in Europe, culminating in the Emancipation Act of 1834. The Act made provision for all slaves under the age of six to gain immediate freedom. All others were to serve a period of apprenticeship for four to six years. The apprenticeship period worked well in theory. In practice, however, it was little better than slavery. Planters continued to abuse their apprentices, and withheld guaranteed provisions and wages. Subsequently, full emancipation was granted in 1838, two years earlier than planned. Eager to sever connections with the symbol of their enslavement, many labourers left the plantation, settling across the island. To provide an alternative, affordable work force, the planters recruited indentured workers from China and India. After their period of indenture, a lot of Chinese and Indians stayed in the island, adding to Jamaica’s eclectic mix of cultures.

After 1838, sugar productivity and profitability declined, forcing Jamaica to diversify its economy. Although crops such as bananas and coffee provided sound substitutes, other industries eventually became the driving force of Jamaica’s economy, outgrowing agricultural exports. Like the changing economy, Jamaican politics also transformed with the end of slavery. In 1866, the island implemented the crown colony system of government. Under this new system promises of education, health care and other social reforms gave hope to a newly freed generation. But decades later, social disappointment festered, leading to a spate of incidents of civil unrests, and heralding the birth of the trade union movement.

Out of these disturbances arose Jamaica’s foremost labour organizations and political parties. Norman Manley’s People’s National Party and Alexander Bustamante’s Jamaica Labour Party would go on to dominate Jamaica’s political scene into the 21st century. Two important and significant changes – universal adult suffrage in 1944 and independence from Britain in 1962 –set the stage for a people once conquered, controlled and constrained, to become themselves the architects of a new nation.