Jamaica
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Jamaica | ||||||
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| Motto: "Out of many, one people" | ||||||
| Anthem: Jamaica, Land We Love Royal anthem: God Save the Queen |
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| Capital (and largest city) |
Kingston |
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| Official languages | English | |||||
| Government | Parliamentary democracy | |||||
| - | Monarch | Elizabeth II | ||||
| - | Governor-General | Kenneth Hall | ||||
| - | Prime Minister | Portia Simpson-Miller | ||||
| Independence | ||||||
| - | from the United Kingdom | August 6, 1962 | ||||
| Area | ||||||
| - | Total | 10,991 km² (166th) 4,244 sq mi |
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| - | Water (%) | 1.5 | ||||
| Population | ||||||
| - | July 2005 estimate | 2,651,000 (138th) | ||||
| - | Density | 252 /km² (49th) 653 /sq mi |
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| GDP (PPP) | 2005 estimate | |||||
| - | Total | $11.69 billion (131st) | ||||
| - | Per capita | $4,300 (114th) | ||||
| GDP (nominal) | 2005 estimate | |||||
| - | Total | $9.730 billion (101st) | ||||
| - | Per capita | $3,657 (79th) | ||||
| Gini? (2000) | 37.9 (medium) | |||||
| HDI (2004) |  0.724 (medium) (104th) |
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| Currency | Jamaican dollar (JMD) |
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| Internet TLD | .jm | |||||
| Calling code | +1-876 | |||||
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, 240 kilometers (150 mi) in length and as much as 85 kilometers (50 mi) in width situated in the Caribbean Sea. It is 635 kilometers (391 mi) east of the Central American mainland, 150 kilometers (93 mi) south of Cuba, and 180 kilometers (112 mi) west of the island of Hispaniola, on which Haiti and the Dominican Republic are situated. Its indigenous Arawakan-speaking Taíno inhabitants named the island Xaymaca, meaning either the "Land of Springs," or the "Land of Wood and Water." Formerly a Spanish possession known as Santiago, it later became the British West Indies Crown colony of Jamaica. It is the third most populous anglophone country in the Americas, after the United States and Canada.
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[edit] History
The original Arawak or Taino people from South America first settled on the island between 1000 and 4000 BC. Although some claim they became virtually extinct following contact with Europeans, others claim that some survived. Whatever the case the culture of the Arawaks is deeply evident and rooted in the food Jamaicans eat, some words they use in the dialects, the cultural medicine they practice and the art that remained and is now housed in British museums. Jamaica was claimed for Spain after Christopher Columbus first landed there in 1494. Columbus used it as his family's private estate. The British Admiral William Penn (father of William Penn of Pennsylvania) and General Venables seized the island in 1655. During its first 200 years of British rule, post Spanish rule, Jamaica became one of the world's leading sugar exporting nations and produced over 77,000 tons of sugar annually between 1820 and 1824, which was achieved through the massive use of imported African slave labour. When this was not enough the British imported Indian and Chinese indentured servants in the early 1800s that remained in Jamaica from then until present day.
By the beginning of the 19th century, the United Kingdom's heavy reliance on slavery resulted in blacks outnumbering whites by a ratio of almost 20 to one, leading to constant threat of revolt. Following a series of rebellions, slavery was formally abolished in 1834, with full emancipation from chattel slavery declared in 1838.
In 1945, Sir Horace Hector Hearne became Chief Justice and Keeper of the Records in Jamaica and sat in the Supreme Court, Kingston between 1945 and 1950/1951 before going on to become Chief Justice in Kenya.
Jamaica slowly gained increasing independence from the United Kingdom. In 1958, it became a province in the Federation of the West Indies, a federation among all of the British West Indies. Jamaica attained full independence by leaving the federation in 1962.
Strong economic growth averaging about six percent per annum marked its first ten years of independence under conservative governments led successively by Prime Ministers Alexander Bustamante, Donald Sangster and Hugh Shearer. The growth was fueled by strong investments in bauxite/alumina, tourism, manufacturing industry and to a lesser extent the agricultural sector. However, the initial optimism of the first decade vanished following a change in Government (the PNP - People's National Party) in 1972, Jamaica lagged economically with its gross national product falling in 1980 to some twenty-five percent below the level previously obtained in 1972. Rising foreign and local debt accompanied by large fiscal deficits resulted in the invitation of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) financing from the USA 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 the closure of the first (Alpart) and third (Alcoa) largest alumina producers, significant reduction in production by the second largest (Alcan), the exit of Reynolds Jamaica Mines Ltd from the Jamaican industry and reduced flows from tourism. During the 1980s Jamaica was still a prosperous country though increases in crimes and petty theft began to weigh on the island.
The former capital of Jamaica was Spanish Town in the parish of St. Catherine, the site of the old Spanish colonial capital. The Spanish named the town Santiago de la Vega. In 1655 when the British captured the island, much of the old Spanish capital was burned by the invading British troops. The town was rebuilt by the British and renamed Spanish Town. It remained the capital until 1872, when the city of Kingston was named the capital under questionable circumstances.
[edit] Politics
Jamaica's current Constitution was drafted in 1962 by a bipartisan joint committee of the Jamaica legislature. It came into force with the Jamaica Independence Act, 1962 of the United Kingdom Parliament, which gave Jamaica political independence. This was followed by a reformation to the Island's Flag.
The Jamaican head of state is Queen Elizabeth II, who officially uses the title "Queen of Jamaica" when she periodically visits the country or performs duties overseas on Jamaica's behalf. The Queen is represented by a Governor-General, nominated by the Prime Minister and the entire cabinet. All the members of the cabinet are appointed by the Governor General on the advice of the Prime Minister. The Queen and her Governor-General serve largely ceremonial roles, apart from their potent reserve power to dismiss the Prime Minister or Parliament.
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 appointed by the Prime Minister, and the parliamentary Leader of the Opposition.
In February 2006, Prime Minister 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 Mr. P.J. Patterson demitted office, Mrs. Simpson-Miller became the first female Prime Minister of Jamaica. Former Prime Minister Patterson had held office since the 1992 resignation of Michael Manley. Mr. P.J. Patterson was re-elected three times, the last being in 2002. The current leader of the opposition is Bruce Golding.
Jamaica has traditionally had a two party system, with power often alternating between the People's National Party and Jamaica Labour Party (JLP).
Jamaica is a full and participating member of the Caribbean Community, or CARICOM.
[edit] Administrative divisions
Jamaica is divided into 3 counties and subdivided into 14 parishes.
- Surrey (county) in the east, containing the following parishes:
- Middlesex (county) in the centre, containing the following parishes:
- Cornwall (county) in the west, containing the following parishes:
[edit] Geography
Jamaica is the third largest island in the Caribbean. The island of Jamaica is home to the Blue Mountains inland and is surrounded by a narrow coastal plain. Most major towns and both cities are located on the coast. Chief towns include the capital city Kingston, Portmore, Spanish Town, Mandeville, Ocho Rios, Port Antonio, and the city of Montego Bay.
The climate in Jamaica is tropical, with hot and humid weather, although higher inland regions have a more temperate climate. Some regions on the south coast, such as the Liguanea Plain and the Pedro Plains are relatively dry rain-shadow areas.
[edit] Economy
Jamaica is a mixed, free-market economy with state enterprises as well as private sector businesses. Major sectors of the Jamaican economy include agriculture, mining, manufacturing, tourism and financial and insurance services. Tourism and mining are the leading foreign exchange earners.
Supported by multilateral financial institutions, Jamaica has, since the early 1980s, sought to implement structural reforms aimed at fostering private sector activity and increasing the role of market forces in resource allocation. Since 1991, the Government has followed a program of economic liberalization and stabilization by removing exchange controls, floating the exchange rate, cutting tariffs, stabilizing the Jamaican currency, reducing inflation and removing restrictions on foreign investment. Emphasis has been placed on maintaining strict fiscal discipline, greater openness to trade and financial flows, market liberalization and reduction in the size of government. During this period, a large share of the economy was returned to private sector ownership through divestment and privatization programs.
The macroeconomic stabilization program introduced in 1991, which focused on tight fiscal and monetary policies, has contributed to a controlled reduction in the rate of inflation. The annual inflation rate has decreased from a high of 80.2% in 1991 to 7.9% in 1998. inflation for FY1998/99 was 6.2% compared to 7.2% in the corresponding period in CUU1997/98. The Government remains committed to lowering inflation, with a long-term objective of bringing it in line with that of its major trading partners.
After a period of steady growth from 1985 to 1995, real GDP decreased by 1.8% and 2.4% in 1996 and 1997, respectively. The decrease in GDP in 1996 and 1997 was largely due to significant problems in the financial sector and, in 1997, a severe island-wide drought (the worst in 70 years) that drastically reduced agricultural production. In 1997, nominal GDP was approximately J$220,556.2 million (US$6,198.9 million based on the average annual exchange rate of the period).
The economy in 1997 was marked by low levels of import growth, high levels of private capital inflows and relative stability in the foreign exchange market.
Recent economic performance shows the Jamaican economy is recovering. Agricultural production, an important engine of growth increased 15.3% in third quarter of 1998 compared to the corresponding period in 1997, signaling the first positive growth rate in the sector since January 1997. Bauxite and alumina production increased 5.5% from January to December, 1998 compared to the corresponding period in 1997. January's bauxite production recorded a 7.1% increase relative to January 1998. Tourism, which is the largest foreign exchange earner, showed improvement as well. In the third quarter of 1998, growth in tourist arrivals accelerated with an overall increase of 8.5% in tourism earnings in 1998 when compared to the corresponding period in 1997. Paul Pennycooke is now the Director of Tourism for the island.
Since the first quarter of 2006, the economy of Jamaica has undergone a period of staunch growth. With inflation for the 2006 calendar year down to 6.0% and unemployment down to 8.9%, the nominal GDP grew by an unprecedented 2.9%[1]. An investment program in island transportation and utility infrastructure and gains in the tourism, mining, and service sectors all contributed this figure. All projections for 2007 show an even higher potential for economic growth with all estimates over 3.0% and hampered only by urban crime and public policies.
In 2006, Jamaica became part of the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME) as one of the pioneering members.
[edit] Exports and imports
Exports: (1999) 1,238 billion $ (Natural resources: 55.7%, Food 19.1%, Bananas 4%, Chemical 3.6%, Machinery 2.2%). The main export countries: USA 33.4% , United Kingdom 13.4%, France 5%, Germany 4%, Canada 14.1%, Netherlands 10.2%, Norway 5.8%, Japan 2.3%. Imports: (1999) 2,89 billion $ (Energy 50.5%, Machinery and Equipment 7.6%, Consumer goods 33.2%). The main import countries: USA 48.1%, Trinidad and Tobago 7.8%, Japan 6.9%, United Kingdom 3.7%, France 5%, Canada 3%.
[edit] Communications
Jamaica has a fully digital telephone communication system with a mobile penetration of over 95%.[2] The country’s three mobile operators - Cable and Wireless (marketed as bmobile) , Digicel, and Oceanic Digital (operating as MiPhone) - have spent millions in network upgrade and expansion. The Irish owned Digicel has become a generic term for mobile phones in Jamaica. Both Digicel and Oceanic Digital were granted licenses in 2001 to operate mobile services in the newly liberalized telecom market that had once been the sole domain of the incumbent Cable and Wireless monopoly. Digicel opted for the more widely used GSM wireless standard, while Oceanic opted for the CDMA standard. Cable and Wireless, which had begun with TDMA, subsequently upgraded to GSM, and currently utilizes both standards on its network. With wireless usage increasing, land lines supplied by Cable and Wireless have declined from just over half a million to roughly about three hundred thousand as of 2006.[3] In a bid to grab more market share, Cable and Wireless recently launched a new land line service called HomeFone Prepaid that would allow customers to pay for minutes they use rather than pay a set monthly fee for service, much like prepaid wireless service. A new entrant to the Jamaican communications market, Flow Jamaica, recently laid a new submarine cable connecting Jamaica to the United States. This new cable increases the total number of submarine cables connecting Jamaica to the rest of the world to four. In its 'Watch,Talk,Click' campaign, Flow Jamaica is also currently rolling out several residential services: Cable Television, Digital Telephone, and Broadband Internet. Island-wide coverage however, is not yet available.
Two more licenses were auctioned by the Jamaican government to provide mobile services on the island, including one that was previously owned by AT&T Wireless but never utilized, and one new license. Industry analysts argue that with a near market saturation, there is very little room for new operators.
[edit] Demographics
The CIA world factbook data states that Jamaica's population consist mainly of: African-Black 90.9 percent, Mixed 7.3 percent, East Indian 1.3 percent, White 0.2 percent (mainly Irish), Chinese 0.2 percent, Other (mostly Syrian) 0.1 percent. Immigration from countries such as China, Colombia, South Asia, and many parts of the West Indies have seen a steady rise.
Over the past several decades, hundreds of thousands of Jamaicans have emigrated, to the United Kingdom (because of an encouragement in the 1960s), the United States, Canada and other countries. The determining factor has often been family location and economic circumstances that determine how far they are able to travel. This emigration appears to have been tapering off somewhat in recent years. Canada also has a guest worker program (Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program) which draws on workers from the Caribbean, and especially from Jamaica. The language of government and education is English, although the patois form of Jamaican Creole is widely spoken. Most Jamaicans can use both Patois and English depending on the circumstances and often combine the two. British English is the most obvious influence on Patois, but it includes words and syntax from Spanish, Arawak, French, Chinese, Portuguese, and East Indian languages which is evidence of the long standing mixing of the people. In general, Patois differs from English in both pronunciation and syntax, having many intonations to indicate meaning and mood. The language's characteristics include similarities with Irish forms of English in pronouncing 'TH' as if it were the letter D or T, and omitting some initial consonant sounds, principally the 'H'. For example, the word "there" is pronounced as "dere". A number of linguists believe Patois is a separate language, while others consider it to be a dialect of English.
Research shows that 65.3% of Jamaica's population is Christian. The majority being Protestant, which is primarily due to the influence of British colonialism, and the later influence of denominations from the U.S. Today, the five largest denominations in Jamaica are: Church of God, Seventh-day Adventist, Baptist, Pentecostal and Anglican.
Non-Christian religions are numerous, the largest being the Rastafari movement which was founded on the island and reveres the late Emperor Haile Selassie I of Ethiopia. The second largest non-Christian religion is Hinduism, due to the vast amount of immigrants from India. Obeah is a belief system with roots in the West African Yoruba Orisha traditions and has similarities to Vodon, Santeria, Candomble and other imports to the Americas which arrived with enslaved West Africans, and individuals from the People's Republic of China. Islam, Buddhism and Judaism are less than half a percent.
[edit] Emigration
Over the past several decades, close to a million Jamaicans have emigrated, especially to the United States, the United Kingdom and Canada. This emigration appears to have been tapering off somewhat in recent years, however the great number of Jamaicans living abroad has become known as the "Jamaican diaspora". Due to Commonwealth law and Jamaica's history with Great Britain, most Jamaican emigrants have followed a path first to the UK, and then if they do not remain in the UK, on to other Commonwealth countries such as Canada. Today that trend has changed with more Jamaican emigrants going directly to the United States, Canada, other Caribbean nations, Central & South America, and even Africa (most notably Egypt and Ethiopia) without having to pass through the UK first.
Concentrations of expatriate Jamaicans are large in a number of cities in the United States, including New York City, the Miami metro area, Atlanta, Orlando, Tampa, Washington, D.C, Philadelphia, Hartford and Los Angeles. In Canada, the Jamaican population is centred in Toronto; in the United Kingdom, Jamaican communities exist in most large cities where they make up the larger part of the British African-Caribbean community.
New York City is home to the largest Jamaican diaspora community of all, with a large community along Flatbush, Nostrand and Utica Avenues in Brooklyn—centred around the neighbourhoods of Prospect Heights, Lefferts Gardens, Flatbush, East Flatbush, Crown Heights, Canarsie, and Flatlands. The Bronx, Queens and Westchester County also have significant Jamaican ex-pat communities. Flatbush, Nostrand, and Utica Avenues feature miles of Jamaican cuisine, food markets & other businesses, nightlife and residential enclaves. Throughout the summer months of June, July, August and early September, there are a variety of plays, dance performances concerts, festivals representing Jamaican & Caribbean culture; and culminates during the last week in August leading up to Labor Day Monday in September with the Parade/Carnival along Eastern Parkway in Brooklyn. Events include a Children's Parade, Steel Pan competition, various concerts & parties, J'ouvert in the early morning hours on Labor Day; and later on Labor Day Monday, the various mas camps 'bruk out & whine' for the Judges' panel in front of the Brooklyn Museum.
In Toronto, the Jamaican community is large. Caribbean areas of the city are located in parts of Rexdale, Scarborough, Jane and Finch, Lawrence Heights, Weston, sections of Downtown Toronto and York, which also includes a Little Jamaica neighbourhood that is identifiable along Eglinton Avenue West. The Jamaican community influences the city in a huge way. The world's largest festival, called Caribana (the celebration of Caribbean culture) is an annual event here. Jamaica Day is in July and the Jesus in the City Parade attracts many Jamaican Christians. This festival is held downtown every September, shutting down Yonge Street - the busiest main street in downtown Toronto. Reggae and Gospel now have made it into Toronto's mainstream.
London has a strong Jamaican diaspora. Close to 4% of Londoners are of Jamaican heritage. Many are now at least second-, if not third- or fourth-generation Black British Caribbeans. Also a further 2% of people in London are of mixed Jamaican and British origin, the largest mixed-race group of the country and the fastest-growing.
One of the largest and most famous Jamaican expatriate communities is in Brixton, South London. More large Jamaican communities in London are Tottenham and Hackney in North London, Harlesden in North-West London, and Lewisham in South-East London. The highest concentration of Jamaicans are in the Inner-city South London boroughs. Other Jamaican communities include the areas of St Pauls and Easton in Bristol, Chapeltown in Leeds, Moss Side in Manchester, Toxteth in Liverpool, Burngreave in Sheffield, Handsworth, Lozells, and Aston in Birmingham, and St Anns and Hyson Green in Nottingham. More recently many resort and wild-life management skilled Jamaicans have been trending emigration toward such far-flung nations as Australia, New Zealand and Indonesia. The nation continues to have a severe problem with barrel children--those left on their own by parents seeking a better life abroad.
[edit] Education
The emancipation of the slaves heralded in the establishment of Jamaican Education System for the masses. Prior to emancipation there were some elite schools for the plantocracy. Others sent their children off to England to access quality education.
After emancipation the West Indian Commission granted a sum of money to establish Elementary Schools, now known as All Age Schools, for the children of the freed slaves. Most of these schools were established by the churches. This was the genesis of the stratified system of education that is still currently embedded in the policies of the 21st century.
Presently the following categories of schools exist:
Early childhood – Basic, Infant and privately operated pre- school. Age cohort – 1 – 5 years.
Primary – Publicly and privately owned (Privately owned being called Preparatory Schools). Ages 5 – 12 years.
Secondary – Publicly and privately owned. Ages 12 – 18 years. The high schools in Jamaica may be either single-sex or co-educational institutions. Many follow the traditional English grammar school model e.g., St. Hugh's High School for Girls, Wolmer's Girls and Boys Schools, Kingston College (boys), Jamaica College (boys), St. George's College (boys), Convent of Mercy Academy (popularly known as Alpha)(girls), Campion College and Vauxhall High (co-ed), Holy Childhood High School (girls), the St. Andrew High School for Girls,The Queens High School(girls) High school for girls, the Immaculate Conception High School (girls), which is also one of the top ranking Catholic schools on the island, Munroe College (boys), Clarendon College, Glenmuir High (co-ed),the Ardenne High School (co-ed) Excelsior High School; although there are several good technical high schools. Chief among these are the St. Andrew Technical High School, the St. Elizabeth Technical High School and Kingston Technical High School - all co-educational institutions.
Tertiary - Community Colleges, Teachers’ Colleges, Vocational Training Centres, Colleges and Universities - Publicly and privately owned. There are five local universities namely: The University of the West Indies (Mona Campus); the University of Technology, Jamaica formerly The College of Art Science and Technology (CAST); the Northern Caribbean University; the University College of the Caribbean and the International University of the Caribbean. Additionally there are many teacher training and community colleges including: Mico, Bethlehem and Shortwood Teacher training colleges and Exed, Portmore and Montego Bay Community Colleges.
There is no free education in Jamaica above the Primary Level. Although there isn't free education, there are opportunities for those who can't afford further education in the vocational arena through the Human Employment and Resource Training-National Training Agency (HEART Trust-NTA) programme and through an extensive scholarship network for the various universities.
[edit] Military
The Jamaica Defence Force (JDF) is the small but professional military force of Jamaica. The JDF is based upon the British military model with organization, training, weapons and traditions closely aligned with Commonwealth Realm Countries. Once chosen, officer candidates are sent to one of several British or Canadian basic officer courses depending upon which arm of service they are slated for. Enlisted soldiers are given basic training at JDF Training Depot, Newcastle. As on the British model, NCOs are given several levels of professional training as they rise up the ranks. Additional military schools are available for speciality training in Canada, the United States, and the United Kingdom.
The JDF is directly descended from the British West Indies Regiment formed during the colonial era. The West Indies Regiment was used extensively by the British Empire in policing the empire from 1795 to 1926. Other units in the JDF heritage include the early colonial Jamaica Militia, the Kingston Infantry Volunteers of WWI and reorganised into the Jamaican Infantry Volunteers in WWII. The West Indies Regiment was reformed in 1958 as part of the West Indies Federation. The dissolution of the Federation resulted in the establishment of the JDF.
The Jamaica Defence Force (JDF) comprises an infantry Regiment and Reserve Corps, an Air Wing, a Coast Guard fleet and a supporting Engineering Unit. The infantry regiment contains the 1st, 2nd and 3rd (National Reserve) battalions. The JDF Air Wing is divided into three flight units, a training unit, a support unit and the JDF Air Wing (National Reserve). The Coast Guard element is divided between sea-going crews and support crews. It conducts maritime safety and maritime law enforcement as well as defence-related operations. The support battalion contains a Military Police platoon as well as vehicle, armourers and supply units. The 1st Engineer Regiment provides military engineering support to the JDF. The Headquarters JDF contains the JDF commander, command staff as well as intelligence, judge advocate office, administrative and procurement sections.
In recent years the JDF has been called upon to assist the nation's police, the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) in fighting drug smuggling and a rising crime rate which includes one of the highest murder rates in the world. JDF units actively conduct armed patrols with the JCF in high-crime areas and known gang neighbourhoods. There has been vocal controversy as well as support of this JDF role. In early 2005, an opposition leader, Edward Seaga, called for the merger of the JDF and JCF. This has not garnered support in either organisation nor among the majority of citizens.
[edit] Arts and culture
Though a small nation, Jamaica is rich in culture, and has a strong global presence. The musical genres reggae, ska, mento, rocksteady, dub, and, more recently, dancehall and ragga all originated in the island's vibrant popular urban recording industry. Internationally known reggae musician Bob Marley was born in Jamaica and is very respected there. Many other internationally known artists who were born in Jamaica includes; Peter Tosh, Bunny Wailer, Jimmy Cliff, Desmond Dekker, Beenie Man, Grace Jones, Shabba Ranks, Supercat, Buju Banton, Sean Paul, I Wayne, Capleton, Bounty Killer and many others. Famous band artist groups that came from Jamaica includes the Black Uhuru, Third World, Inner Circle and more. The genre jungle emerged from London's Jamaican diaspora. The birth of hip-hop in New York also owed much to the city's Jamaican community.
Christianity remains a strong influence on cultural life, particularly in music. Most people learn their music at church, and biblical references are often used in popular songs. It is not uncommon for musicians to be playing dancehall music on Saturday night, and church music on Sunday morning.
The Rastafari movement was founded in Jamaica. This Back to Africa movement believes that Haile Selassie of Ethiopia is God incarnate, the returned black messiah, come to take the lost Twelve Tribes of Israel back to live with him in Holy Mount Zion in a world of perfect peace, love and harmony. Bob Marley, a convert to the faith, spread the message of Rastafari to the world. There are now estimated to be more than a million Rastafarians throughout the world.
Ian Fleming, who lived in Jamaica, repeatedly used the island as a setting in the James Bond novels, including Live and Let Die, Doctor No, For Your Eyes Only, The Man with the Golden Gun and Octopussy. In addition, James Bond uses a Jamaica based cover in Casino Royale. So far, the only Bond film to have been set in Jamaica is Doctor No.
The American film Cocktail, starring Tom Cruise, is one of the most popular films to depict Jamaica. A fascinating look at delinquent youth in Jamaica is presented in the 1970s cops-and-robbers musical film The Harder They Come, starring Jimmy Cliff as a frustrated (and psychopathic) reggae-musician who descends into a murderous crime spree.
Errol Flynn lived with his third wife Patrice Wymore in Port Antonio in the 1950s. He was responsible for developing tourism to this area, popularising raft trips down rivers on bamboo rafts.[1]
- National Bird — Doctor Bird (Green-and-black Streamertail, Trochilus polytmus)
- National Flower — Blue Mahoe (Hibiscus elatus)
- National Tree — Lignum Vitae (Guaiacum officinale)
- National Dish — Ackee and Saltfish (dried salted Cod)
- National Motto — "Out of Many, One People." (Unity among many cultures and races.)
[edit] External links
- Official website of Queen Elizabeth as Queen of Jamaica
- The Jamaica Information Service (JIS)
- Conservation in Jamaica, including
- Photos of coral reefs taken during a rapid ecological assessment
- Library and Information Association of Jamaica Website
- Cabinet Official Website
- The Jamaica Diaspora Organization Website
- The North American Jamaican American Alliance
- 2007 Jahmerican Documentary
- The Jamaican Wiki
- Jamaican Affairs
- The Jamaican Caves Organisation (JCO)
- Seven Oaks Sanctuary for Wildlife, Jamaica (SOS-Jamaica)
- Island Thresholds, Peabody Essex Museum's interactive feature, showcases the work of contemporary Caribbean artists and their exploration of identity, culture, and social justice.
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News stories from Wikinews |
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Learning resources from Wikiversity |
- Google News about Jamaica
- Encyclopaedia Britannica - Jamaica Country Page
- CIA World Fact Book entry on Jamaica
- Satellite maps on Google
- Statistical Institute of Jamaica
[edit] References
- ^ Dr. Rebecca Tortello The History of Jamaica - Captivated by Jamaica
