BASIC
INFORMATION
Full
Country Name: JAMAICA
Capital
Kingston
Largest city Kingston
Official language
English
Government
Constitutional
Area 10,991 km²
(166th)
Population
July 2005 est. 2,651,000 (138th)
Currency Dollar
(JMD)
Time
zone (UTC-5)
Internet
TLD .jm
Calling
code +1-876
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GEOGRAPHY
& BACKGROUND
Jamaica
is an island nation of the Greater Antilles,
240 kilometres (150 mi) in length and as
much as 85 kilometres (50 mi) in width situated
in the Caribbean Sea. It is 635 kilometres
(391 mi) east of the Central American mainland,
150 kilometres (93 mi) south of Cuba, and
180 kilometres (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, then the British West
Indies Crown colony of Jamaica, the country's
population is composed mainly of the descendants
of former African slaves. It is the third
most populous Anglophone country in the
Americas, after the United States and Canada.
Jamaica
is the third largest island in the Caribbean,
and the fourth largest country. The island
of Jamaica is home to the Blue Mountains
(Jamaica) inland and surrounded by a narrow
coastal plain. For this reason, most major
cities are located on the coast. Chief towns
include the capital Kingston, Spanish Town,
Mandeville, Montego Bay, Ocho Rios, and
Port Antonio.
The
climate in Jamaica is tropical, with hot
and humid weather, although 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 like rainforests.
The
majority of Jamaicans, at least 90%, are
of West African descent, their ancestors
having been abducted from Africa during
the slave trade. People of mixed heritage,
including Arawak/Taino Indian and African,
West European and African, or Chinese and
East Indian, make up about 4.9% of the population.
People of Cuban, Lebanese, Syrian, South
Asian, European, and other minorities are
also present.
Over
the past several decades, hundreds of thousands
of Jamaicans have emigrated, especially
to the United States but also to Canada,
the United Kingdom and other countries.
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. English is the most obvious influence
on Patois, but it includes words and syntax
from Spanish, Yoruba, Akan, Arawak, French,
Chinese, Portuguese, and East Indian languages.
In general, Patois differs from English
in both pronunciation and syntax. The language's
characteristics includes similarities with
both Irish and West African forms of English
in pronouncing 'TH' as if it was the letter
D or T, omitting some initial consonant
sounds, principally the 'H'. For example,
the word “there” is pronounced
as “dere,” the word theater
is pronounced as “teater.” A
number of linguists believe Patois is a
separate language; others consider it an
alternate form of English.
Research
shows that 80.0% of Jamaica's population
are Christian. The majority of them are
Protestants, which is primarily due to the
influence of British colonialism, and later
the influence of US denominations. Roman
Catholicism, which arrived with early Spanish
colonisation, also enjoys a significant
presence on the island. The top 5 denominations
in Jamaica today are: Church of God: 21.2%,
Seventh-day Adventist: 9.0%, Baptist: 8.8%,
Pentecostal: 7.6%, and Anglican: 5.0%
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. 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. Hinduism and Buddhism
also appear due to immigration from India
and China. Islam and Judaism are less than
half a percent.
For
more information please visit
http://www.fco.gov.uk/
or
visit
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