Jamaica

Flag Coat of arms

Motto: "Out of Many, One People"

Anthem: "Jamaica, Land We Love"
Royal anthem: "God Save the Queen"

Capital Kingston
(and largest city)
Official language(s) English
National language Jamaican Patois
91.2% black, 6.2% mixed, 2.6%
Ethnic groups 
other[1]
Demonym Jamaican
Parliamentary democracy and
Government
Constitutional monarchy
 - Monarch HM Queen Elizabeth II
 - Governor-General Patrick Allen
 - Prime Minister Bruce Golding
Independence
from the United
 -  6 August 1962 
Kingdom
Area
10,991 km2
 (166th)
 - Total
4,244 ) sq mi 
 - Water (%) 1.5
Population
 - July 2010 estimate 2,847,232[1] (133rd)
252/km2 (49th)
 - Density
656/sq mi
GDP (PPP) 2009 estimate
 - Total $23.797 billion[2] 
 - Per capita $8,777[2] 
GDP (nominal) 2009 estimate
 - Total $11.903 billion[2] 
  - Per capita $4,390[2] 
Gini (2000) 37.9 (medium) 
HDI (2010) 0.688[3] (high) (80th)
Currency Jamaican dollar (JMD)
Time zone (UTC-5)
Drives on the left
ISO 3166 code JM
Internet TLD .jm
Calling code +1-876

Jamaica (pronounced /dʒəˈmeɪkə/ ( listen)) is an island nation of the Greater Antilles,

234 kilometres (145 mi) in length and as much as 80 kilometres (50 mi) in width, and amounts to
10,990 square kilometres (4,243 sq mi). It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about 145 kilometres
(90 mi) south of Cuba, and 191 kilometres (119 mi) west of Hispaniola, the island harboring the
nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic. Its indigenous Arawakan-speaking Taíno
inhabitants named the island Xaymaca, meaning the "Land of Wood and Water", or the "Land of
Springs".[4]

Once a Spanish possession known as Santiago, in 1655 it became an English, and later a British,
colony, known as "Jamaica". It achieved full independence in 1962. With 2.8 million people, it is
the third most populous anglophone country in the Americas, after the United States and Canada.
It remains a Commonwealth realm with Queen Elizabeth II as head of state and Kingston is the
country's largest city and the capital.[5][6]

Contents
[hide]

 1 History
 2 Government and politics
o 2.1 Parishes
o 2.2 Military
 3 Geography
 4 Demographics
o 4.1 Ethnic origins
o 4.2 Language
o 4.3 Emigration
o 4.4 Crime
 5 Religion
 6 Culture
o 6.1 National symbols
 7 Sport
 8 Education
 9 Economy
 10 Infrastructure
 o 10.1 Transport
 10.1.1 Roadways
 10.1.2 Railways
o 10.2 Air transport
 10.2.1 Ports, shipping and lighthouses
o 10.3 Energy
o 10.4 Communication
 11 See also
 12 References
 13 Further reading
 14 External links

History
Main article: History of Jamaica

The Arawak and Taino indigenous people, originating in South America, settled on the island
between 4000 and 1000 BC.[7] When Christopher Columbus arrived in 1494, there were over 200
villages ruled by caciques (chiefs of villages). The south coast of Jamaica was the most
populated, especially around the area now known as Old Harbour.[7] The Tainos were still
inhabiting Jamaica when the English took control of the island.[7] The Jamaican National
Heritage Trust is attempting to locate and document any evidence of the Taino/Arawaks.[8]

Christopher Columbus claimed Jamaica for Spain after landing there in 1494 and his probable
landing point was Dry Harbour, now called Discovery Bay.[9] There is some debate as to whether
he landed in St. Ann's Bay or in Discovery Bay. St. Ann's Bay was the "Saint Gloria" of
Columbus who first sighted Jamaica at this point. One mile west of St. Ann's Bay is the site of
the first Spanish settlement on the island, Sevilla, which was abandoned around 1524 because it
was deemed unhealthy.[10] The capital was moved to Spanish Town, then called "Villa de la
Vega", around 1534 and is located in present day St. Catherine.[11]

Out of all the British colonies in the Caribbean, Spanish Town has the oldest Cathedral.[11] The
Spanish were forcibly evicted by the English at Ocho Rios in St. Ann, In 1655 the English, lead
by William Penn and General Robert Venables, took over the last Spanish fort in Jamaica.[12] The
name of Montego Bay, the capital of the parish of St. James, was derived from the Spanish name
manteca bahía (or Bay of Lard) for the large quantity of boar used for the lard-making industry.
[13]
Henry Morgan was a famous Caribbean pirate and privateer who had arrived in the West Indies
as an indentured servant, like many of the early settlers.[14]

In 1660, the population of Jamaica was about 4,500 whites and some 1,500 blacks and[15] as early
as the 1670s, blacks formed a majority of the population.[16]

When the English captured Jamaica in 1655 the Spanish colonists fled after freeing their slaves.
[12]
The slaves fled into the mountains, joining those who had previously escaped from the
Spanish to live with the Taínos.[17] These runaway slaves, who became known as the Jamaican
Maroons, fought the British during the 18th century.[17] The name is still used today for their
modern descendants. During the long years of slavery Maroons established free communities in
the mountainous interior of Jamaica, maintaining their freedom and independence for
generations.

During its first 200 years of British rule, Jamaica became one of the world's leading sugar-
exporting, slave-dependent nations, producing more than 77,000 tons of sugar annually between
1820 and 1824. After the abolition of the slave trade (but not slavery itself) in 1807,[18] the British
imported Indian and Chinese workers as indentured servants to supplement the labour pool.
Descendants of indentured servants of Indian and Chinese origin continue to reside in Jamaica
today.

By the beginning of the 19th century, Jamaica's heavy reliance on slavery resulted in blacks
outnumbering whites by a ratio of almost 20 to 1. Even though England had outlawed the
importation of slaves, some were still smuggled into the colonies. The British government drew
up laws regimenting the abolition of slavery, but they also included instructions for the
improvement of the slaves' way of life. These instructions included a ban of the use of whips in
the field, a ban on the flogging of women, notification that slaves were to be allowed religious
instruction, a requirement that slaves be given an extra free day during the week when they could
sell their produce as well as a ban on Sunday markets.
Map of Jamaica

In Jamaica these measures were resisted by the House of Assembly. The Assembly claimed that
the slaves were content and objected to Parliament's interference in island affairs, although many
slave owners feared possible revolts. Following a series of rebellions and changing attitudes in
Great Britain, the nation formally abolished slavery in 1834, with full emancipation from chattel
slavery declared in 1838. The population in 1834 was 371,070 of whom 15,000 were white,
5,000 free black, 40,000 ‘coloured’ or mixed race, and 311,070 slaves.[15]

In the 1800s, the British established a number of botanical gardens. These included the Castleton
Garden, set up in 1862 to replace the Bath Garden (created in 1779) which was subject to
flooding. Bath Garden was the site for planting breadfruit brought to Jamaica from the Pacific by
Captain William Bligh. Other gardens were the Cinchona Plantation founded in 1868 and the
Hope Garden founded in 1874. In 1872, Kingston became the island's capital.

In 1945, Sir Horace Hector Hearne became Chief Justice and Keeper of the Records in Jamaica.
He headed the Supreme Court, Kingston between 1945 and 1950/1951. He then moved to Kenya
where he was appointed Chief Justice.

Jamaican Prime Minister Michael Manley and his wife with US president Jimmy Carter in 1977.

Jamaica slowly gained increasing independence from the United Kingdom and in 1958, it
became a province in the Federation of the West Indies, a federation among the British West
Indies. Jamaica attained full independence by leaving the federation in 1962.

Strong economic growth, averaging approximately 6% per annum, marked the first ten years of
independence under conservative governments which were led successively by Prime Ministers
Alexander Bustamante, Donald Sangster and Hugh Shearer. The growth was fuelled by strong
investments in bauxite/alumina, tourism, manufacturing industry and, to a lesser extent, the
agricultural sector.

The optimism of the first decade was accompanied by a growing sense of inequality, and a sense
that the benefits of growth were not being experienced by the urban poor. This, combined with
the effects of a slowdown in the global economy in 1970, prompted the electorate to change
government, electing the PNP (People's National Party) in 1972. Despite efforts to create more
socially equitable policies in education and health, Jamaica continued to lag economically, with
its gross national product having fallen in 1980 to some 25% below the 1972 level. Rising
foreign and local debt, accompanied by large fiscal deficits, resulted in the invitation of the
International Monetary Fund (IMF) financing from the United States and others, and the
imposition of IMF austerity measures (with a greater than 25% interest rate per year).

Economic deterioration continued into the mid-1980s, exacerbated by a number of factors; the
first and third largest alumina producers, Alpart and Alcoa closed, and there was a significant
reduction in production by the second largest producer, Alcan. In addition, tourism decreased
and Reynolds Jamaica Mines, Ltd. left the Jamaican industry.

Government and politics

Main article: Politics of Jamaica
Further information: Foreign relations of Jamaica

Inside the Parliament of Jamaica

Jamaica is a parliamentary democracy and constitutional monarchy with the monarch being
represented by a Governor-General.[19] The head of state is Queen Elizabeth II, who officially
uses the title "Queen of Jamaica" when she visits the country or performs duties overseas on
Jamaica's behalf.[20] The Governor General is nominated by the Prime Minister and the entire
Cabinet and appointed by the monarch. All the members of the Cabinet are appointed by the
Governor-General on the advice of the Prime Minister. The monarch and the Governor-General
serve largely ceremonial roles, apart from their potent reserve power to dismiss the Prime
Minister or Parliament.

Jamaica's current Constitution was drafted in 1962 by a bipartisan joint committee of the
Jamaican legislature. It came into force with the Jamaica Independence Act, 1962 of the United
Kingdom Parliament, which gave Jamaica political independence.

The Parliament of Jamaica is bicameral, consisting of the House of Representatives (Lower

House) and the Senate (Upper House). Members of the House (known as Members of Parliament
or MPs) are directly elected, and the member of the House of Representatives who, in the
Governor-General's best judgement, is best able to command the confidence of a majority of the
members of that House, is appointed by the Governor-General to be the Prime Minister. Senators
are nominated jointly by the Prime Minister and the parliamentary Leader of the Opposition and
are then appointed by the Governor-General.
Embassy of Jamaica in Washington, D.C.

In February 2006, Portia Simpson-Miller was elected by delegates of the ruling People's National
Party (PNP) to replace P. J. Patterson as President of the Party. At the end of March 2006 when
Patterson demitted office, Simpson-Miller became the first female Prime Minister of Jamaica.
Former Prime Minister Patterson had held office since the 1992 resignation of Michael Manley.
Patterson was re-elected three times, the last being in 2002.

On 3 September 2007, Bruce Golding of the Jamaica Labour Party was voted in as Prime
Minister-Designate after achieving a 33 – 27 seat victory over Portia Simpson-Miller and the
PNP in the 2007 Jamaican general election. Portia Simpson-Miller conceded defeat on 5
September 2007.[21] On 11 September 2007, after being sworn in by Governor-General Kenneth
Hall, The Hon. Bruce Golding assumed office as Prime Minister of Jamaica.

Jamaica has traditionally had a two-party system, with power often alternating between the
People's National Party and Jamaica Labour Party (JLP). Over the past decade a new political
party called the National Democratic Movement (NDM) emerged in an attempt to challenge the
two-party system, though it has become largely irrelevant in this system, as it garnered only 540
votes of the over 800,000 votes cast in the 3 September elections. Jamaica is a full and
participating member of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM).

Parishes

Main article: Parishes of Jamaica

Jamaica is divided into 14 parishes, which are grouped into three historic counties that have no
administrative relevance.

Cornwall Middlesex Surrey

Capital km2 Capital km2 Capital km2
County County County
1 Hanover Lucea   450 6 Clarendon May Pen 1,196 11 Kingston Kingston 25
Port
2 Saint Elizabeth Black River 1,212 7 Manchester Mandeville    830 12 Portland Antonio
814

Montego St. Ann's Saint Half Way

3 Saint James Bay
  595 8 Saint Ann Bay
1,213 13 Tree
453
Andrew
Saint Spanish Saint
4 Trelawny Falmouth   875 9 Town
1,192 14 Morant Bay 743
Catherine Thomas
Savanna-la-
5 Westmoreland Mar   807 10 Saint Mary Port Maria    611