Jamaica#History

The indigenous people, the Taíno, called the island Xaymaca in their language,{{efn|As represented in Old Spanish orthography, meaning it began with a "sh" sound}} meaning the "Land of Wood and Water" or the "Land of Springs".{{cite web|url=http://www.uctp.org/VocesIndigena.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071016055722/http://www.uctp.org/VocesIndigena.html |archive-date=16 October 2007 |title= Taíno Dictionary |publisher= The United Confederation of Taíno People |access-date=18 October 2007|language=Spanish}} Yamaye has been suggested as an early Taíno name for the island as recorded by Christopher Columbus.{{cite book |last1=Atkinson |first1=Lesley-Gail |title=The Earliest Inhabitants: The Dynamics of the Jamaican Taíno |year=2006 |publisher=University of the West Indies Press |isbn=978-976-640-149-8 |page=1 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=M33aOoslSTMC&q=yamaye%20%20 |access-date=1 March 2021 |language=en |archive-date=20 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210520042517/https://www.google.co.uk/books/edition/The_Earliest_Inhabitants/M33aOoslSTMC?hl=en&gbpv=1&bsq=yamaye++ |url-status=live }}

Jamaicans often refer to their home island as "yaad" – the Jamaican Patois word for yard, meaning home. Other colloquial names such as "Jamrock", "Jamdown" ("Jamdung" in Jamaican Patois), or briefly "Ja" are also widely used.{{cite web |title=Yaad |website=Wiwords |url=https://wiwords.com/words/yaad |access-date=9 August 2024}}{{User-generated inline|date=August 2024}}{{cite web|title=CIA World Factbook – Jamaica|url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/jamaica/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210111023238/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/jamaica|archive-date=11 January 2021|access-date=29 July 2019}}{{Failed verification|date=August 2024}}

{{Main|History of Jamaica}}

{{Main|Pre-Columbian Jamaica}}

There is no archaeological evidence of any human presence on Jamaica until about 500.{{Cite book |last1=Keegan |first1=William F. |title=The Caribbean before Columbus |last2=Hofman |first2=Corinne L. |author-link2=Corinne Hofman |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2017 |isbn=9780190647353 |edition=ebook |location=New York. New York |pages=10}} A group known as the "Redware people" after their pottery arrived circa 600,[https://www.britannica.com/place/Jamaica/History "Jamaica"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190420082314/https://www.britannica.com/place/Jamaica/History |date=20 April 2019 }}, Encyclopædia Britannica. followed by the Taíno circa 800, who most likely came from South America.Atkinson, Lesley-Gail. "The Earliest Inhabitants: The Dynamics of the Jamaican Taíno." They practised an agrarian and fishing economy, and at their height are thought to have numbered some 60,000 people, grouped into around 200 villages headed by caciques (chiefs). The south coast of Jamaica was the most populated, especially around the area now known as Old Harbour.{{cite web |url=http://www.jamaicans.com/articles/primearticles/taino.shtml |title=The Taino of Jamaica (Jamaica) |publisher=Jamaicans.com |date=1 April 2001 |access-date=4 July 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090416013904/http://www.jamaicans.com/articles/primearticles/taino.shtml |archive-date=16 April 2009 |url-status=dead }}

Though often thought to have become extinct following contact with Europeans, the Taíno in fact still inhabited Jamaica when the English took control of the island in 1655. Some fled into interior regions, merging with African Maroon communities.{{cite journal |last1=Fuller |first1=Harcourt |last2=Torres |first2=Jada Benn |date=2018-01-02 |title=Investigating the "Taíno" ancestry of the Jamaican Maroons: a new genetic (DNA), historical, and multidisciplinary analysis and case study of the Accompong Town Maroons |journal=Canadian Journal of Latin American and Caribbean Studies |volume=43 |issue=1 |pages=47–78 |doi=10.1080/08263663.2018.1426227 |s2cid=166204004 |issn=0826-3663}}{{cite journal |last1=Madrilejo |first1=Nicole |last2=Lombard |first2=Holden |last3=Torres |first3=Jada Benn |date=2014-11-13 |title=Origins of marronage: Mitochondrial lineages of Jamaica's Accompong Town Maroons |journal=American Journal of Human Biology |volume=27 |issue=3 |pages=432–437 |doi=10.1002/ajhb.22656 |pmid=25392952 |s2cid=30255510 |issn=1042-0533}}{{cite web |url=http://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20140705/lead/lead5.html |title='I am not extinct'—Jamaican Taino proudly declares ancestry |date=2014-07-05 |website=jamaica-gleaner.com |access-date=2019-02-15 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190206044422/http://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20140705/lead/lead5.html |archive-date=6 February 2019 |url-status=live }} The Jamaican National Heritage Trust is attempting to locate and document any remaining evidence of the Taíno.{{cite web |url=http://www.jnht.com/archaeology/barbican_rescue.php |title=Jamaican National Heritage Trust |date=28 September 2007 |access-date=26 June 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928013715/http://www.jnht.com/archaeology/barbican_rescue.php |archive-date=28 September 2007}}

{{main|Colony of Santiago}}

File:Cristobal Columbus20231003 115330.jpg in St. Ann Parish]]

Christopher Columbus was the first European to see Jamaica, claiming the island for Spain after landing there in 1494 on his second voyage to the Americas. His probable landing point was Dry Harbour, called Discovery Bay,{{cite web |url=http://www.columbusnavigation.com/cctl.shtml|title=A Christopher Columbus Timeline |last=Pickering |first=Keith A. |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060421053355/http://www.columbusnavigation.com/cctl.shtml |archive-date=21 April 2006 |url-status=dead |access-date=18 April 2018}} and St. Ann's Bay was named "Saint Gloria" by Columbus, as the first sighting of the land. He later returned in 1503; however, he was shipwrecked and he and his crew were forced to live on Jamaica for a year while waiting to be rescued.Samuel Eliot Morison, Admiral of the Ocean Sea: A Life of Christopher Columbus, 1942, pp. 653–54. Samuel Eliot Morison, Christopher Columbus, Mariner, 1955, pp. 184–92.

One and a half kilometres west of St. Ann's Bay is the site of the first Spanish settlement on the island, Sevilla, which was established in 1509 by Juan de Esquivel but abandoned around 1524 because it was deemed unhealthy.{{cite web |title=History of Jamaica |url=http://www.jnht.com/jamaica/hist_spanish.php |publisher=Jamaica National Heritage Trust |access-date=30 September 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100926083214/http://jnht.com/jamaica/hist_spanish.php |archive-date=26 September 2010}} The capital was moved to Spanish Town, then called St. Jago de la Vega, around 1534.{{cite web |title=Spanish Town |url=http://www.jnht.com/heritage_site.php?id=217 |publisher=Jamaica National Heritage Trust |access-date=30 September 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100925160737/http://jnht.com/heritage_site.php?id=217 |archive-date=25 September 2010}} Meanwhile, the Taínos began dying in large numbers, both from introduced diseases and from enslavement by the Spanish. As a result, the Spanish began importing slaves from Africa to the island.{{cite web|title=Jamaican History I|url=http://www.discoverjamaica.com/gleaner/discover/geography/history1.htm|publisher=Discover Jamaica|access-date=23 August 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130805083846/http://www.discoverjamaica.com/gleaner/discover/geography/history1.htm|archive-date=5 August 2013}}

Many slaves managed to escape, forming autonomous communities in remote and easily defended areas in the interior of Jamaica, mixing with the remaining Taino; these communities became known as Maroons. Many Jews fled the Spanish Inquisition to live on the island.{{cite book |title=The Portuguese Jews of Jamaica |author=Arbell, M. |isbn=9789768125699 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-35vXOgop6QC |year=2000 |publisher=Canoe Press}} They lived as conversos and were often persecuted by the Spanish rulers, and some turned to piracy against the Spanish Empire's shipping.

Kritzler, Edward, The Jewish Pirates of the Caribbean, Anchor, 2009, p. 15, {{ISBN|0767919521}}

By the early 17th century it is estimated that no more than 2,500–3,000 people lived on Jamaica.{{cite book |last=Parker |first=Matthew |date=2011 |title=The Sugar Barons}}{{page needed|date=July 2019}}

{{Main|Colony of Jamaica}}

File:Morgan,Henry.jpg was a Caribbean pirate, privateer, plantation owner and slaveholder; he had first come to the West Indies as an indentured servant, like most of the early English colonists.[http://www.historynet.com/henry-morgan-the-pirate-who-invaded-panama-in-1671.htm "Henry Morgan: The Pirate Who Invaded Panama in 1671"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080612044508/http://www.historynet.com/henry-morgan-the-pirate-who-invaded-panama-in-1671.htm |date=12 June 2008 }}, Historynet.com.]]

The English began taking an interest in the island and, following a failed attempt to conquer Santo Domingo on Hispaniola, Admiral William Penn and General Robert Venables led an invasion of Jamaica in 1655.*{{cite book |last=Parker |first=Matthew |date=2011 |title=The Sugar Barons}} Battles at Ocho Rios in 1657 and the Rio Nuevo in 1658 resulted in Spanish defeats; in 1660 the Maroon community under the leadership of Juan de Bolas switched sides from the Spanish, and began supporting the English. With their help, the Spanish defeat was secured.{{cite web|title=Jamaica's English History|url=http://www.jnht.com/history_english.php|publisher=Jamaica National Heritage Trust|access-date=3 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160317015826/http://www.jnht.com/history_english.php|archive-date=17 March 2016|url-status=live}} In 1661 English civil government was formed and Roundhead soldiers turned their attention to governance and agricultural responsibilities.{{cite journal | url=https://doi.org/10.2307/1923356 | doi=10.2307/1923356 | jstor=1923356 | last1=Bennett | first1=J. Harry | title=Cary Helyar, Merchant and Planter of Seventeenth-Century Jamaica | journal=The William and Mary Quarterly | year=1964 | volume=21 | issue=1 | pages=53–76 | issn = 0043-5597 | url-access=subscription }}

When the English captured Jamaica, most Spanish colonists fled, with the exception of Spanish Jews, who chose to remain. Spanish slave holders freed their slaves before leaving. Many slaves dispersed into the mountains, joining the already established maroon communities.{{cite web|last=Benitez|first=Suzette|title=The Maroons|url=http://scholar.library.miami.edu/slaves/Maroons/individual_essays/suzette1.html|access-date=30 September 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100823070511/http://scholar.library.miami.edu/slaves/Maroons/individual_essays/suzette1.html|archive-date=23 August 2010|url-status=dead}} During the centuries of slavery, Jamaican Maroons established free communities in the mountainous interior of Jamaica, where they maintained their freedom and independence for generations, under the leadership of Maroon leaders such as Juan de Serras.Mavis Campbell, The Maroons of Jamaica 1655–1796: a History of Resistance, Collaboration & Betrayal (Massachusetts: Bergin & Garvey, 1988), pp. 14–25.

Meanwhile, the Spanish made several attempts to re-capture the island, prompting the British to support pirates attacking Spanish ships in the Caribbean; as a result piracy became rampant on Jamaica, with the city of Port Royal becoming notorious for its lawlessness. Spain later recognised English possession of the island with the Treaty of Madrid (1670).C. V. Black, History of Jamaica (London: Collins, 1975), p. 54. After that, the English authorities sought to rein in the worst excesses of the pirates.

In 1660, the population of Jamaica was about 4,500 white and 1,500 black.[http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/08270a.htm Donovan, J. (1910). Jamaica.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091029204716/http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/08270a.htm |date=29 October 2009 }} Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company By the early 1670s, as the English developed sugar cane plantations worked by large numbers of slaves, black Africans formed a majority of the population.[http://arquivo.pt/wayback/20090628132038/http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m2005/is_n1_v28/ai_16106981/pg_2 Trevor Burnard, "A failed settler society: marriage and demographic failure in early Jamaica"], Journal of Social History, Fall, 1994. The Irish in Jamaica also formed a large part of the island's early population, making up two-thirds of the white population on the island in the late 17th century, twice that of the English population. They were brought in as indentured labourers and soldiers after the conquest of 1655. The majority of Irish were transported by force as political prisoners of war from Ireland as a result of the ongoing Wars of the Three Kingdoms.{{Cite web |url=https://tudorstuartireland.files.wordpress.com/2014/01/tsi-2015-abstracts.pdf |title=Archived copy |access-date=19 August 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161014000146/https://tudorstuartireland.files.wordpress.com/2014/01/tsi-2015-abstracts.pdf |archive-date=14 October 2016 |url-status=dead }} Migration of large numbers of Irish to the island continued into the 18th century.{{cite web |url=http://www.irlandeses.org/0711rodgers2.htm |title=Rodgers, Nini, 'The Irish in the Caribbean 1641–1837: An Overview' |publisher=Irlandeses.org |access-date=2017-09-25 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171119044057/http://www.irlandeses.org/0711rodgers2.htm |archive-date=19 November 2017 |url-status=live }}

A limited form of local government was introduced with the creation of the House of Assembly of Jamaica in 1664; however, it represented only a tiny number of rich plantation owners.Cundall, Frank. (1915) [https://archive.org/details/cu31924020417527/page/n45 Historic Jamaica.] London: Institute of Jamaica. p. 15. In 1692, the colony was rocked by an earthquake that resulted in several thousand deaths and the almost complete destruction of Port Royal.{{cite web |url=https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/world/events/1692_06_07.php |title=Historic Earthquakes: Jamaica 1692 June 07 UTC |last=USGS |date=21 October 2009 |access-date=6 December 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120408181146/http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/world/events/1692_06_07.php |archive-date=8 April 2012}}

{{main|Slavery in colonial British America}}

File:Duperly (1833) Destruction of the Roehampton Estate January 1832.png

During the 1700s the economy boomed, based largely on sugar and other crops for export such as coffee, cotton and indigo. All these crops were worked by black slaves, who lived short and often brutal lives with no rights, being the property of a small planter-class. In the 18th century, slaves ran away and joined the Maroons in increasing numbers, and resulted in The First Maroon War (1728 – 1739/40), which ended in stalemate. The British government sued for peace, and signed treaties with the Leeward Maroons led by Cudjoe and Accompong in 1739, and the Windward Maroons led by Quao and Queen Nanny in 1740.Bev Carey, The Maroon Story: The Authentic and Original History of the Maroons in the History of Jamaica 1490–1880 (Kingston, Jamaica: Agouti Press, 1997), pp. 315–355.

A large slave rebellion, known as Tacky's War, broke out in 1760 but was defeated by the British and their Maroon allies.{{cite web |url=http://www.jamaicans.com/culture/articles_culture/tackys_rebellion.shtml |title=Jamaican Culture |publisher=Jamaicans.com |date=2014-06-20 |access-date=2015-04-16 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151016000555/http://www.jamaicans.com/culture/articles_culture/tackys_rebellion.shtml |archive-date=16 October 2015 |url-status=live }} After the second conflict in 1795–96, many Maroons from the Maroon town of Cudjoe's Town (Trelawny Town) were expelled to Nova Scotia and, later, Sierra Leone.File:Hakewill, A Picturesque Tour of the Island of Jamaica, Plate 04.jpgBy the beginning of the 19th century, Jamaica's dependence on slave labour and a plantation economy had resulted in black people outnumbering white people by a ratio of almost 20 to 1. Although the British had outlawed the importation of slaves, some were still smuggled in from Spanish colonies and directly from Africa.{{citation needed|date=August 2019}} While planning the abolition of slavery, the British Parliament passed laws to improve conditions for slaves. They banned the use of whips in the field and flogging of women; informed planters that slaves were to be allowed religious instruction, and required a free day during each week when slaves could sell their produce,History of the Catholic Church in Jamaica, {{ISBN|978-0-829-40544-6}}, p. 68. prohibiting Sunday markets to enable slaves to attend church.{{citation needed|date=February 2016}} The House of Assembly in Jamaica resented and resisted the new laws. Members, with membership then restricted to European-descended Jamaicans, claimed that the slaves were content and objected to Parliament's interference in island affairs. Slave owners feared possible revolts if conditions were lightened.

The British abolished the slave trade in 1807, but not the institution itself.[http://countrystudies.us/caribbean-islands/8.htm The Sugar Revolutions and Slavery] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110622222104/http://countrystudies.us/caribbean-islands/8.htm |date=22 June 2011 }}, U.S. Library of Congress. In 1831 a huge slave rebellion, known as the Baptist War, broke out, led by the Baptist preacher Samuel Sharpe. The rebellion resulted in hundreds of deaths and the destruction of many plantations, and led to ferocious reprisals by the plantocracy class.{{cite book |title=The Abolition of Slavery – The British Debate 1787–1840 |first=Cécile |last=Révauger |author-link =Cécile Révauger |pages=107–108 |publisher=Presse Universitaire de France |date=October 2008 |isbn=978-2-13-057110-0}}

File:Proclamation_of_the_abolition_of_slavery_in_the_Colony_of_Jamaica,_August_1,_1838,_in_Spanish_Town_(cropped).jpg, accompanied by Revd James Phillippo, proclaiming the abolition of slavery in the colony of Jamaica, on 1 August 1838, from the King's House in Spanish Town]]

As a result of rebellions such as these, as well as the efforts of abolitionists, Britain outlawed slavery in its empire 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 free people of colour (mixed race); and 311,070 were slaves.

The resulting labour shortage prompted the British to begin to "import" indentured servants to supplement the labour pool, as many freedmen resisted working on the plantations. Workers recruited from India began arriving in 1845, Chinese workers in 1854.{{cite web|url=http://www.embassyofjamaica.org/ABOUThistory.htm|title=Embassy of Jamaica, Washington, DC|website=www.embassyofjamaica.org|access-date=27 May 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080620044655/http://www.embassyofjamaica.org/ABOUThistory.htm|archive-date=20 June 2008|url-status=dead}} Many Jamaicans are descendants of South Asian and Chinese people.{{cite news |title=Out of Many, One People: Chinese-Jamaicans Treasure Their Roots and Their Communities |author=Hemlock, Doreen |url=http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/2005-04-17/features/0504140989_1_jamaican-chinese-new-year-chinese-heritage |newspaper=The Sun-Sentinel |date=17 April 2005 |access-date=27 May 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171109134431/http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/2005-04-17/features/0504140989_1_jamaican-chinese-new-year-chinese-heritage |archive-date=9 November 2017 |url-status=dead }} Over the next 20 years, several epidemics of cholera, scarlet fever, and smallpox hit the island, killing almost 60,000 people (about 10 per day).{{citation needed|date=July 2019}} Nevertheless, in 1871 the census recorded a population of 506,154 people, 246,573 of whom were males, and 259,581 females. Their races were recorded as 13,101 white, 100,346 coloured (known as the Browning Class), and 392,707 black.{{cite book |date=1908 |title=Handbook of Jamaica |url=https://archive.org/details/handbookjamaica04cundgoog |location=Google Books |publisher=Jamaica Government |page=[https://archive.org/details/handbookjamaica04cundgoog/page/n50 37]}} There was an economic slump in this period, with many Jamaicans living in poverty. Dissatisfaction with this, and continued racial discrimination and marginalisation of the black majority, led to the outbreak of the Morant Bay rebellion in 1865, led by Paul Bogle, which was put down by Governor John Eyre with such brutality that he was recalled from his position. His successor, John Peter Grant, enacted a series of social, financial and political reforms while aiming to uphold firm British rule over the island, which became a Crown Colony in 1866. In 1872 the capital was transferred from Spanish Town to Kingston.

File:Marcus Garvey 1924-08-05.jpg, father of the Back to Africa Movement and Jamaica's first National Hero]]

In 1907, Jamaica was struck by an earthquake which, together with the subsequent fire, resulted in considerable destruction in Kingston and caused the deaths of between 800 and 1,000 people.J. F. Wilson [https://books.google.com/books?id=AsKRgxpfL_gC&pg=PA69 Earthquakes and Volcanoes: Hot Springs] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191215072629/https://books.google.com/books?id=AsKRgxpfL_gC&pg=PA69 |date=15 December 2019 }}, pg. 70, BiblioLife (2008), {{ISBN|0-554-56496-3}}

Unemployment and poverty remained a problem for many Jamaicans. Various movements seeking political change arose as a result, most notably the Universal Negro Improvement Association and African Communities League founded by Marcus Garvey in 1917. As well as seeking greater political rights and an improvement for the condition of workers, Garvey was also a prominent Pan-Africanist and proponent of the Back-to-Africa movement.{{cite web|title=Historian situates 'back-to-Africa' movements in broad context|url=http://news.stanford.edu/news/2006/march1/colonize-030106.html|work=1 March 2006|date=March 2006|publisher=Stanford.edu|access-date=24 August 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120729121919/http://news.stanford.edu/news/2006/march1/colonize-030106.html|archive-date=29 July 2012|url-status=live}} He was also one of the chief inspirations behind Rastafari, a religion founded in Jamaica in the 1930s that combined Christianity with an Afrocentric theology focused on the figure of Haile Selassie, Emperor of Ethiopia. Despite occasional persecution, Rastafari grew to become an established faith on the island, later spreading abroad.

The Great Depression of the 1930s hit Jamaica hard. As part of the British West Indian labour unrest of 1934–39, Jamaica saw numerous strikes, culminating in a strike in 1938 that turned into a riot.Hamilton, Janice. Jamaica in Pictures, p. 30. Twenty-First Century Books (2005), {{ISBN|0-8225-2394-9}}{{Cite book|title=Arise Ye Starvelings: The Jamaican Rebellion of 1938 and its Aftermath|last=Post|first=Ken|publisher=Martinus Nijhoff|year=1978|isbn=9024721407|location=The Hague, Netherlands}}

As a result, the British government instituted a commission to look into the causes of the disturbances; their report recommended political and economic reforms in Britain's Caribbean colonies.{{cite journal |last=Fraser |first=Cary |title=The Twilight of Colonial Rule in the British West Indies: Nationalist Assertion vs. Imperial Hubris in the 1930s |journal=Journal of Caribbean History |year=1996 |volume=30 |issue=1/2 |page=2 |url=http://connection.ebscohost.com/c/articles/45526514}} {{dead link |date=August 2019 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes}} A new House of Representatives was established in 1944, elected by universal adult suffrage. During this period Jamaica's two-party system emerged, with the creation of the Jamaican Labour Party (JLP) under Alexander Bustamante and the People's National Party (PNP) under Norman Manley.

Jamaica slowly gained increasing autonomy from the United Kingdom. In 1958 it became a province in the Federation of the West Indies, a federation of several of Britain's Caribbean colonies. Membership of the Federation proved to be divisive, however, and a referendum on the issue saw a slight majority voting to leave. After leaving the Federation, Jamaica attained full independence on 6 August 1962. The new state retained, however, its membership in the Commonwealth of Nations (with the British monarch as head of state) and adopted a Westminster-style parliamentary system. Bustamante, at the age of 78, became the country's first prime minister.{{cite encyclopedia |title=Jamaica: Self-government |url=http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/299716/Jamaica/214972/Self-government#ref515864 |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica |access-date=24 August 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121229101146/http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/299716/Jamaica/214972/Self-government#ref515864 |archive-date=29 December 2012 |url-status=live }}{{cite web |title=The West Indies Federation |url=http://www.caricom.org/jsp/community/west_indies_federation.jsp?menu=community |work=2011 |publisher=CARICOM |access-date=24 August 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130929234257/http://www.caricom.org/jsp/community/west_indies_federation.jsp?menu=community |archive-date=29 September 2013 }}

{{Main|Independence of Jamaica}}

Strong economic growth, averaging approximately 6% per year, marked the first ten years of independence under conservative JLP governments; these were led by successive Prime Ministers Alexander Bustamante, Donald Sangster (who died of natural causes within two months of taking office) and Hugh Shearer. The growth was fuelled by high levels of private investment in bauxite/alumina, tourism, the manufacturing industry and, to a lesser extent, the agricultural sector. In the 1967 Jamaican general election, the JLP were victorious again, winning 33 out of 53 seats, with the PNP taking 20 seats.Dieter Nohlen (2005), Elections in the Americas: A data handbook, Volume I, p. 430.

In terms of foreign policy Jamaica became a member of the Non-Aligned Movement, seeking to retain strong ties with Britain and the United States whilst also developing links with Communist states such as Cuba.

File:Michael Manley.jpg, Prime Minister 1972–1980 and 1989–1992]]

The optimism of the first decade was accompanied by a growing sense of inequality among many Afro-Jamaicans, and a concern that the benefits of growth were not being shared by the urban poor, many of whom ended up living in crime-ridden shanty towns in Kingston. This led to the voters electing the PNP under Michael Manley in 1972. The PNP won 37 seats to the JLP's 16.

Manley's government enacted various social reforms, such as a higher minimum wage, land reform, legislation for women's equality, greater housing construction and an increase in educational provision.{{cite web |url=http://michaelmanley.org/about/trade-unionist/ |title=Trade Unionist |first=Peter Scott Chrysalis |last=Communications |access-date=11 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180428093659/http://michaelmanley.org/about/trade-unionist/ |archive-date=28 April 2018 |url-status=live }} Internationally he improved ties with the Communist bloc and vigorously opposed the apartheid regime in South Africa.

In 1976, the PNP won another landslide, winning 47 seats to the JLP's 13. The turnout was a very high 85 percent.Dieter Nohlen (2005) Elections in the Americas: A data handbook, Volume I, p. 430. However, the economy faltered in this period due to a combination of internal and external factors (such as the oil shocks). The rivalry between the JLP and PNP became intense, and political and gang-related violence grew significantly in this period.

By 1980, Jamaica's gross national product had declined to some 25% below its 1972 level.{{citation needed|date=July 2019}} Seeking change, in 1980 Jamaicans voted the JLP back in under Edward Seaga, the JLP winning 51 seats to the PNP's nine seats. Firmly anti-Communist, Seaga cut ties with Cuba and sent troops to support the US invasion of Grenada in 1983. The economic deterioration, however, continued into the mid-1980s, exacerbated by a number of factors. The largest and third-largest alumina producers, Alpart and Alcoa, closed; and there was a significant reduction in production by the second-largest producer, Alcan.{{citation needed|date=July 2019}} Reynolds Jamaica Mines, Ltd. left the Jamaican industry. There was also a decline in tourism, which was important to the economy.{{citation needed|date=July 2019}} Owing to rising foreign and local debt, accompanied by large fiscal deficits, the government sought International Monetary Fund (IMF) financing, which was dependent on implementing various austerity measures. These resulted in strikes in 1985 and a decline in support for the Seaga government, exacerbated by criticism of the government's response to the devastation caused by Hurricane Gilbert in 1988.{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1988/11/27/magazine/showdown-in-jamaica.html|title=Showdown in Jamaica|date=27 November 1988|work=The New York Times|access-date=19 September 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160919230610/http://www.nytimes.com/1988/11/27/magazine/showdown-in-jamaica.html|archive-date=19 September 2016|url-status=live}} Having now de-emphasised socialism and adopting a more centrist position, Michael Manley and the PNP were re-elected in 1989, winning 45 seats to the JLP's 15.Nohlen, D (2005) Elections in the Americas: A data handbook, Volume I, p. 430, {{ISBN|978-0-19-928357-6}}.

The PNP went on to win a string of elections, under Prime Ministers Michael Manley (1989–1992), P. J. Patterson (1992–2005) and Portia Simpson-Miller (2005–2007). In the 1993 Jamaican general election, Patterson led the PNP to victory, winning 52 seats to the JLP's eight seats. Patterson also won the 1997 Jamaican general election, by another landslide margin of 50 seats to the JLP's 10 seats. Patterson's third consecutive victory came in the 2002 Jamaican general election, when the PNP retained power, but with a reduced seat majority of 34 seats to 26. Patterson stepped down on 26 February 2006, and was replaced by Portia Simpson-Miller, Jamaica's first female Prime Minister. The turnout slowly declined during this period of time, from 67.4% in 1993 to 59.1% in 2002.

During this period various economic reforms were introduced, such as deregulating the finance sector and floating the Jamaican dollar, as well as greater investment in infrastructure, whilst also retaining a strong social safety net. Political violence, so prevalent in the previous two decades, declined significantly.Franklyn, Delano (ed.): 2002. The Challenges of Change: P. J. Patterson Budget Presentations 1992–2002. Kingston, Jamaica: Ian Randle Publishers.

In 2007 the PNP was defeated by the JLP by a narrow margin of 32 seats to 28, with a turnout of 61.46%.{{cite web |publisher=Caribbean Elections: Jamaican Election Centre |title=Jamaican general election results 3 September 2007 |url=http://www.caribbeanelections.com/jm/elections/jm_results_2007.asp |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201205164530/http://www.caribbeanelections.com/jm/elections/jm_results_2007.asp |archive-date=5 December 2020 |access-date=24 December 2020}} This election ended 18 years of PNP rule, and Bruce Golding became the new prime minister.[http://www.jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20070909/news/news2.html Pollster's diary: virtual motion picture of campaign 2007] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080622031614/http://www.jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20070909/news/news2.html |date=2008-06-22}}, Jamaica Gleaner, 9 September 2007. Golding's tenure (2007–2010) was dominated by the effects of the global recession, as well as the fallout from an attempt by Jamaican police and military to arrest drug lord Christopher Coke in 2010 which erupted in violence, resulting in over 70 deaths.{{cite news |url=http://edition.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/americas/05/27/jamaica.violence/ |title=OAS body raises concerns over Jamaica as death toll rises |date=27 May 2010 |publisher=CNN |access-date=27 May 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100530095457/http://edition.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/americas/05/27/jamaica.violence/ |archive-date=30 May 2010 |url-status=live}} As a result of this incident Golding resigned and was replaced by Andrew Holness in 2011.

Independence, however widely celebrated in Jamaica, has been questioned in the early 21st century. In 2011, a survey showed that approximately 60% of Jamaicans believe that the country would have been better off had it remained a British colony, with only 17% believing it would have been worse off, citing as problems years of social and fiscal mismanagement in the country.{{cite news |url=http://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20110628/lead/lead1.html |title=Give Us The Queen! |date=28 June 2011 |work=The Gleaner |access-date=13 February 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120209064054/http://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20110628/lead/lead1.html |archive-date=9 February 2012}}{{cite web |url=http://www.ibtimes.com/most-jamaicans-would-prefer-remain-british-294753 |title=Most Jamaicans Would Prefer To Remain British |last=Ghosh |first=Palash |date=29 June 2011 |access-date=13 February 2017 |website=International Business Times |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170214102304/http://www.ibtimes.com/most-jamaicans-would-prefer-remain-british-294753 |archive-date=14 February 2017 |url-status=live }} Holness and the JLP were defeated in the 2011 Jamaican general election, which saw Portia Simpson-Miller and the PNP return to power. The number of seats had been increased to 63, and the PNP swept to power with a landslide 42 seats to the JLP's 21. The voter turnout was 53.17%.{{cite web |publisher=Caribbean Elections: Jamaican Election Centre |title=Jamaican general election results 29 December 2011 |url=http://www.caribbeanelections.com/jm/elections/jm_results_2011.asp |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201208122455/http://www.caribbeanelections.com/jm/elections/jm_results_2011.asp |archive-date=8 December 2020 |access-date=24 December 2020}}

Holness's JLP won the 2016 general election narrowly, defeating Simpson-Miller's PNP, on 25 February. The PNP won 31 seats to the JLP's 32. As a result, Simpson-Miller became Opposition Leader for a second time. The voter turnout dipped below 50% for the first time, registering just 48.37%.{{cite web |publisher=Caribbean Elections: Jamaican Election Centre |title=Jamaican general election results 25 February 2016 |url=http://www.caribbeanelections.com/jm/elections/jm_results_2016.asp |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200731030013/http://www.caribbeanelections.com/jm/elections/jm_results_2016.asp |archive-date=31 July 2020 |access-date=24 December 2020}}

In the 2020 general election, Andrew Holness made history for the JLP by accomplishing a second consecutive win for the Jamaica Labour Party, winning 49 seats to 14 won by the PNP, led this time by Peter Phillips. The last time a consecutive win occurred for the JLP was in 1980. However, the turnout at this election was just 37%, probably affected by the coronavirus pandemic.[http://jamaica-gleaner.com/article/news/20200903/javotes2020-jlp-trounces-pnp-49-14-seats JLP Trounces PNP 49 To 14 Seats] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200905085739/http://jamaica-gleaner.com/article/news/20200903/javotes2020-jlp-trounces-pnp-49-14-seats |date=5 September 2020 }} The Gleaner, 3 September 2020

{{main|Politics of Jamaica}}

{{further|Foreign relations of Jamaica|Republicanism in Jamaica}}

File:King Charles III (July 2023).jpg]]

File:Parliament.jm.jpg ]]

Jamaica is a parliamentary democracy and constitutional monarchy.{{cite web |url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Jamaica |title=Encyclopedia Britannica – Jamaica |access-date=29 July 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190930100130/https://www.britannica.com/place/Jamaica |archive-date=30 September 2019 |url-status=live }} The head of state is the King of Jamaica (currently King Charles III),{{cite web |title=Queen and Jamaica |url=http://www.royal.gov.uk/MonarchAndCommonwealth/Jamaica/Jamaica.aspx |url-status=dead |publisher=The British Monarchy |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120920160534/http://www.royal.gov.uk/MonarchAndCommonwealth/Jamaica/Jamaica.aspx |archive-date=20 September 2012}} represented locally by the Governor-General of Jamaica.{{cite web |url=http://www.royal.gov.uk/output/Page4923.asp |title=The Monarchy Today: Queen and Commonwealth |access-date=25 June 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070607011458/http://www.royal.gov.uk/output/Page4923.asp |archive-date=7 June 2007}} The governor-general is nominated by the Prime Minister of Jamaica and the entire Cabinet and then formally 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 reserve powers for use in certain constitutional crisis situations. The position of the monarch has been a matter of continuing debate in Jamaica for many years; currently both major political parties are committed to transitioning to a republic with a president.Rob Crilly, [https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/04/16/jamaica-unveils-plan-to-ditch-queen-as-head-of-state/ "Jamaica unveils plan to ditch Queen as head of state"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190729204338/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/04/16/jamaica-unveils-plan-to-ditch-queen-as-head-of-state/ |date=29 July 2019 }}, The Telegraph, 16 April 2016. Retrieved 3 September 2016.[http://jamaica-gleaner.com/article/commentary/20150912/editorial-monarchy-and-beyond "Editorial: The Monarchy And Beyond"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190729203341/http://jamaica-gleaner.com/article/commentary/20150912/editorial-monarchy-and-beyond |date=29 July 2019 }}, The Jamaica Gleaner, 12 September 2015. Retrieved 3 September 2016.

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, which was passed by the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which gave Jamaica 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.

The Judiciary of Jamaica operates on a common law system derived from English law and Commonwealth of Nations precedents. The court of final appeal is the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council, a court of the British Crown based in London. A proposal has been made to replace the Privy Council with the Caribbean Court of Justice as part of a wider push toward full decolonization.{{cite news |last1=Burton |first1=Zahra |last2=Demony |first2=Catarina |title=Jamaican government urged to 'fully decolonise' with bill to ditch King Charles |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/jamaican-government-urged-fully-decolonise-with-bill-ditch-king-charles-2025-03-01/ |access-date=11 June 2025 |agency=Reuters |date=March 1, 2025}}

Jamaica has traditionally had a two-party system, with power often alternating between the People's National Party (PNP) and Jamaica Labour Party (JLP). The party with current administrative and legislative power is the Jamaica Labour Party, after its 2020 victory. There are also several minor parties who have yet to gain a seat in parliament; the largest of these is the National Democratic Movement (NDM).

{{Main|Jamaica Defence Force}}

File:FN FAL DA-SD-04-01067.jpg in 2002]]

The Jamaica Defence Force (JDF) is the small but professional military force of Jamaica. The JDF is based on the British military model with similar organisation, training, weapons and traditions. Once chosen, officer candidates are sent to one of several British or Canadian basic officer courses depending on the arm of service. Enlisted soldiers are given basic training at Up Park Camp or JDF Training Depot, Newcastle, both in St. Andrew. As with 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.{{citation needed|date=July 2019}}

The JDF is directly descended from the British Army's West India Regiment, which was formed during the colonial era.{{cite web|title=Jamaica Defense Force History|url=http://www.jdfmil.org/overview/background/background2.php|publisher=Jamaica Defense Force|access-date=10 October 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101025200223/http://www.jdfmil.org/overview/background/background2.php|archive-date=25 October 2010|url-status=usurped}} The West India Regiment was used extensively throughout 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 World War II. The West Indies Regiment was reformed in 1958 as part of the West Indies Federation, after dissolution of the Federation the JDF was established.{{Cite web|title=Origins {{!}} JDF.org The Official Website of The Jamaica Defence Force|url=https://www.jdfweb.com/history/|access-date=2021-09-21|language=en-GB|archive-date=21 September 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210921031952/https://www.jdfweb.com/history/|url-status=live}}

The Jamaica Defence Force (JDF) comprises an infantry Regiment and Reserve Corps, an Air Wing, a Coast Guard fleet and a supporting Engineering Unit.{{cite web|title=Jamaica Defense Force General Information|url=http://www.jdfmil.org/overview/background/background3.php|publisher=Jamaica Defense Force|access-date=10 October 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101025200228/http://www.jdfmil.org/overview/background/background3.php|archive-date=25 October 2010|url-status=usurped}} 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 is divided between seagoing crews and support crews who conduct maritime safety and maritime law enforcement as well as defence-related operations.{{cite web|title=JDF Coast Guard Roles|url=http://www.jdfmil.org/Units/coast_guard/cg_roles.php|publisher=Jamaica Defense Force|access-date=10 October 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110511104441/http://www.jdfmil.org/Units/coast_guard/cg_roles.php|archive-date=11 May 2011|url-status=usurped}}

The role of the support battalion is to provide support to boost numbers in combat and issue competency training in order to allow for the readiness of the force.{{cite web|title=The Combat Support Battalion (Cbt Sp Bn)|url=http://www.jdfmil.org/Units/combat_Support/CSB_home.php|publisher=Jamaica Defense Force|access-date=10 October 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101008022534/http://jdfmil.org/Units/combat_Support/CSB_home.php|archive-date=8 October 2010|url-status=usurped}} The 1st Engineer Regiment was formed due to an increased demand for military engineers and their role is to provide engineering services whenever and wherever they are needed.{{cite web|title=1st Engineering Regiment History|url=http://www.jdfmil.org/Units/engineers/er_history.php|publisher=Jamaica Defense Force|access-date=11 October 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110511104425/http://www.jdfmil.org/Units/engineers/er_history.php|archive-date=11 May 2011|url-status=usurped}} The Headquarters JDF contains the JDF Commander, Command Staff as well as Intelligence, Judge Advocate office, Administrative and Procurement sections.{{cite web|title=Headquarters Jamaica Defence Force (HQ JDF)|url=http://www.jdfmil.org/Units/hq_jdf/hqjdf_home.php|publisher=Jamaica Defense Force|access-date=11 October 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101125090433/http://jdfmil.org/Units/hq_jdf/hqjdf_home.php|archive-date=25 November 2010|url-status=usurped}}

In recent years the JDF has been called on 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.{{Cite web |title=No Plans To Merge JCF And JDF – Minister Chang – Jamaica Information Service |url=https://jis.gov.jm/no-plans-to-merge-jcf-and-jdf-minister-chang/ |access-date=2025-03-04 |language=en-US}} In 2017, Jamaica signed the UN treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.{{cite web |url=https://treaties.un.org/Pages/ViewDetails.aspx?src=TREATY&mtdsg_no=XXVI-9&chapter=26&clang=_en |title=Chapter XXVI: Disarmament – No. 9 Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons |publisher=United Nations Treaty Collection |date=7 July 2017 |access-date=16 August 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190806220546/https://treaties.un.org/Pages/ViewDetails.aspx?src=TREATY&mtdsg_no=XXVI-9&chapter=26&clang=_en |archive-date=6 August 2019 |url-status=live }} In September 2024 the AP reported that "20 soldiers and four police officers are scheduled to arrive in Haiti to support the UN-Kenya lead mission and they would provide command, planning and logistics support." Jamaica's PM had pledged a total of 170 soldiers and 30 police officers, but said that all would not deploy at once.{{Cite web |date=2024-09-10 |title=Jamaica to deploy a limited number of soldiers and police to help fight gangs in Haiti |url=https://apnews.com/article/jamaica-police-soldiers-haiti-gangs-mission-f3d04bd20847bdba3a53f3a1c8a1a8d6 |access-date=2025-03-04 |website=AP News |language=en}}

{{main|Parishes of Jamaica}}

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

In the context of local government the parishes are designated "Local Authorities". These local authorities are further styled as "Municipal Corporations", which are either city municipalities or town municipalities.{{cite web |title=Local Government Act, 2015 |url=http://www.localauthorities.gov.jm/sites/default/files/resources/local_governance_bill_2015.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160913220934/http://localauthorities.gov.jm/sites/default/files/resources/local_governance_bill_2015.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-date=13 September 2016 |website=localauthorities.gov.jm |access-date=17 January 2018}} Any new city municipality must have a population of at least 50,000, and a town municipality a number set by the Minister of Local Government. There are currently no town municipalities.

The local governments of the parishes of Kingston and St. Andrews are consolidated as the city municipality of Kingston & St. Andrew Municipal Corporation. The newest city municipality is the Municipality of Portmore, created 2003. While it is geographically located within the parish of St. Catherine, it is governed independently.

{{clear}}

{{Jamaica parishes imagemap}}

{{Main|Geography of Jamaica|Geology of Jamaica}}

File:Doctors-Cave-Beach.jpg is a popular destination in Montego Bay.]]

File:Start of the Blue Mountains just north of Kingston, Jamaica.jpg]]

Jamaica is the third-largest island in the Caribbean.{{cite web|title=County Background – Jamaica|url=http://www.bvsde.paho.org/bvsana/e/fulltext/perfiles/jamaica.pdf|publisher=Pan American Health Organization|access-date=11 October 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161130153040/http://www.bvsde.paho.org/bvsana/e/fulltext/perfiles/jamaica.pdf|archive-date=30 November 2016|url-status=dead}} It lies between latitudes 17° and 19°N, and longitudes 76° and 79°W. Mountains dominate the interior: the Don Figuerero, Santa Cruz, and May Day mountains in the west, the Dry Harbour Mountains in the centre, and the John Crow Mountains and Blue Mountains in the east, the latter containing Blue Mountain Peak, Jamaica's tallest mountain at 2,256 m. They are surrounded by a narrow coastal plain.{{cite web|title=Geography of Jamaica|url=http://www.discoverjamaica.com/gleaner/discover/geography/geography.htm|publisher=Jamaica Gleaner|access-date=11 October 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180518020038/http://www.discoverjamaica.com/gleaner/discover/geography/geography.htm|archive-date=18 May 2018|url-status=dead}} Jamaica has two cities, the first being Kingston, the capital city and centre of business, located on the south coast and the second being Montego Bay, one of the best known cities in the Caribbean for tourism, located on the north coast. Kingston Harbour is the seventh-largest natural harbour in the world,{{cite web|title=Port Authority History|url=http://www.portjam.com/nmCMS.php?p=history|publisher=Port Authority of Jamaica|access-date=11 October 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110509235846/http://www.portjam.com/nmCMS.php?p=history|archive-date=9 May 2011|url-status=dead}} which contributed to the city being designated as the capital in 1872. Other towns of note include Portmore, Spanish Town, Savanna la Mar, Mandeville and the resort towns of Ocho Ríos, Port Antonio and Negril.{{cite web|title=Jamaican Cities|url=http://www.my-island-jamaica.com/jamaican_cities.html|publisher=My Island Jamaica|access-date=11 October 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100917103147/http://www.my-island-jamaica.com/jamaican_cities.html|archive-date=17 September 2010|url-status=dead}}

Tourist attractions include Dunn's River Falls in St. Ann, YS Falls in St. Elizabeth, the Blue Lagoon in Portland, a dormant volcano's crater,{{Cite web |date=January 13, 2023 |title=Blue Lagoon |url=https://portlandmc.gov.jm/attractions/blue-lagoon |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220617151241/https://portlandmc.gov.jm/attractions/blue-lagoon |archive-date=June 17, 2022 |access-date=January 13, 2023 |website=Portland Municipal Corporation}} and Port Royal, site of a major earthquake in 1692 that helped form the island's Palisadoes tombolo.{{cite web|title=Kingston tourist destinations|date=23 March 2023|url=https://cheapholidayhacks.com/holidaydestinations/a-journey-through-the-caribbean-a-guide-to-its-culture-and-history/|access-date=12 April 2023|archive-date=6 December 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231206213505/https://cheapholidayhacks.com/holidaydestinations/a-journey-through-the-caribbean-a-guide-to-its-culture-and-history/|url-status=live}}

Among the variety of terrestrial, aquatic and marine ecosystems are dry and wet limestone forests, rainforest, riparian woodland, wetlands, caves, rivers, seagrass beds and coral reefs. The authorities have recognised the tremendous significance and potential of the environment and have designated some of the more "fertile" areas as "protected". Among the island's protected areas are the Cockpit Country, Hellshire Hills, and Litchfield forest reserves. In 1992, Jamaica's first marine park, covering nearly {{convert|15|km2|sqmi}}, was established in Montego Bay. Portland Bight Protected Area was designated in 1999.{{cite web |url=http://www.unesco.org/csi/act/jamaica/jamai2.htm |title=CSI Activities (Portland Bight, Jamaica) |publisher=Unesco.org |access-date=20 October 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130309111105/http://www.unesco.org/csi/act/jamaica/jamai2.htm |archive-date=9 March 2013 |url-status=live }} The following year Blue and John Crow Mountains National Park was created, covering roughly {{convert|300|mi2|km2}} of a wilderness area which supports thousands of tree and fern species and rare animals.

There are several small islands off Jamaica's coast, most notably those in Portland Bight such as Pigeon Island, Salt Island, Dolphin Island, Long Island, Great Goat Island and Little Goat Island, and also Lime Cay located further east. Much further out – some 50–80 km off the south coast – lie the very small Morant Cays and Pedro Cays.

File:Koppen-Geiger Map JAM present.svg

The climate in Jamaica is tropical, with hot and humid weather, although higher inland regions are more temperate.{{cite web|title=Jamaica Climate and Weather|url=http://www.wordtravels.com/Travelguide/Countries/Jamaica/Climate|publisher=Word Travels|access-date=11 October 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100627015148/http://www.wordtravels.com/Travelguide/Countries/Jamaica/Climate/|archive-date=27 June 2010|url-status=dead}} Some regions on the south coast, such as the Liguanea Plain and the Pedro Plains, are relatively dry rain-shadow areas.{{cite web |title=Climate of Jamaica |url=http://www.discoverjamaica.com/gleaner/discover/geography/climate.htm |publisher=Jamaica Gleaner |access-date=11 October 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180429091454/http://www.discoverjamaica.com/gleaner/discover/geography/climate.htm |archive-date=29 April 2018 |url-status=dead}}

Jamaica lies within the Main Development Region for Atlantic tropical cyclone activity, and because of this, the island sometimes suffers significant storm damage.{{cite web |title=Construction and Building in Jamaica |url=http://www.projects-abroad.org/volunteer-in-latin-america/building/jamaica/ |publisher=Projects Abroad |access-date=11 October 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101205171026/http://www.projects-abroad.org/volunteer-in-latin-america/building/jamaica/ |archive-date=5 December 2010 |url-status=dead }} Hurricanes Charlie and Gilbert hit Jamaica directly in 1951 and 1988, respectively, causing major damage and many deaths. In the 2000s (decade), hurricanes Ivan, Dean, and Gustav also brought severe weather to the island.

{{see also|Jamaican moist forests|Jamaican dry forests}}

File:Red-billed_streamertail(_Trochilus_polytmus)_adult_male_2.jpg]]

File:Epicrates subflavus.jpg]]

File:Stoplight-parrotfish.jpg]]

Jamaica's climate is tropical, supporting diverse ecosystems with a wealth of plants and animals. Its plant life has changed considerably over the centuries; when the Spanish arrived in 1494, except for small agricultural clearings, the country was deeply forested. The European settlers cut down the great timber trees for building and ships' supplies, and cleared the plains, savannas, and mountain slopes for intense agricultural cultivation. Many new plants were introduced including sugarcane, bananas, and citrus trees.

Jamaica is home to about 3,000 species of native flowering plants (of which over 1,000 are endemic and 200 are species of orchid), thousands of species of non-flowering flora, and about 20 botanical gardens, some of which are several hundred years old.{{cite web |url=http://old.jamaica-gleaner.com/pages/history/story0021.html |title=Jamaica's Botantical{{sic|hide=y}} Gardens Worth More Than Gold |author= |website=Jamaica Gleaner |publisher=Jamaica Gleaner Newspaper |access-date=23 January 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190130103325/http://old.jamaica-gleaner.com/pages/history/story0021.html |archive-date=30 January 2019 |url-status=live }}{{cite news |last=Aiken, Wilson, Vogel, Garraway PhD |first=Karl, Byron, Peter, Eric |date=21 January 2007 |title=LETTER OF THE DAY: Biologists speak on Cockpit mining |url=https://www.mona.uwi.edu/lifesciences/cockpit.htm |work=University of the West Indies |location=University of the West Indies, Mona, Jamaica |access-date=23 January 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100712155740/http://www.mona.uwi.edu/lifesciences/cockpit.htm |archive-date=12 July 2010 |url-status=live }} Areas of heavy rainfall also contain stands of bamboo, ferns, ebony, mahogany, and rosewood. Cactus and similar dry-area plants are found along the south and southwest coastal area. Parts of the west and southwest consist of large grasslands, with scattered stands of trees. Jamaica is home to three terrestrial ecoregions, the Jamaican moist forests, Jamaican dry forests, and Greater Antilles mangroves.

Jamaica's fauna, typical of the Caribbean, includes highly diversified wildlife with many endemic species. As with other oceanic islands, land mammals are mostly several species of bats of which at least three endemic species are found only in Cockpit Country, one of which is at-risk. Other species of bat include the fig-eating and hairy-tailed bats. The only non-bat native mammal extant in Jamaica is the Jamaican hutia, locally known as the coney. Introduced mammals such as wild boar and the small Asian mongoose are also common. Jamaica is also home to about 50 species of reptiles,{{cite web|url=http://www.reptile-database.org|title=THE REPTILE DATABASE|work=reptile-database.org|access-date=7 April 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151102083427/http://reptile-database.org/|archive-date=2 November 2015|url-status=live}} the largest of which is the American crocodile; however, it is only present within the Black River and a few other areas. Lizards such as anoles, iguanas and snakes such as racers and the Jamaican boa (the largest snake on the island), are common in areas such as the Cockpit Country. None of Jamaica's eight species of native snakes is venomous.{{cite web |url=http://www.cockpitcountry.com/Amphibians%20%26%20Reptiles.html |title=Amphibians and reptiles found in Cockpit Country jamaica |publisher=Cockpitcountry.com |access-date=31 October 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120110142008/http://www.cockpitcountry.com/Amphibians%20%26%20Reptiles.html |archive-date=10 January 2012 |url-status=dead }}

Jamaica is home to about 289 species of birds of which 27 are endemic including the endangered black-Billed parrots and the Jamaican blackbird, both of which are only found in Cockpit Country. It is also the indigenous home to four species of hummingbirds (three of which are found nowhere else in the world): the black-billed streamertail, the Jamaican mango, the Vervain hummingbird, and red-billed streamertails. The red-billed streamertail, known locally as the "doctor bird", is Jamaica's National Symbol.{{cite web|url=http://jis.gov.jm/symbols/jamaican-national-bird-the-doctor-bird/|title=The Doctor Bird – Jamaica Information Service|work=jis.gov.jm|access-date=8 March 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180321065148/http://jis.gov.jm/symbols/jamaican-national-bird-the-doctor-bird/|archive-date=21 March 2018|url-status=live}} Other notable species include the Jamaican tody and the Greater flamingo,{{cite web |url=https://www.cms.int/flamingos/en/country/jamaica |title=High Andean Flamingos (Jamaica) |publisher=Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (Germany) |access-date=2 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190203085427/https://www.cms.int/flamingos/en/country/jamaica |archive-date=3 February 2019 |url-status=live }}

One species of freshwater turtle is native to Jamaica, the Jamaican slider. It is found only on Jamaica and on a few islands in the Bahamas. In addition, many types of frogs are common on the island, especially treefrogs.

Jamaican waters contain considerable resources of fresh and saltwater fish.{{cite web |url=http://www.fishbase.org/Country/CountryChecklist.php?c_code=388&vhabitat=all2&csub_code= |title=All fishes reported from Jamaica |work=fishbase.org |access-date=14 October 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130909194629/http://www.fishbase.org/Country/CountryChecklist.php?c_code=388&vhabitat=all2&csub_code= |archive-date=9 September 2013 |url-status=live }} The chief varieties of saltwater fish are kingfish, jack, mackerel, whiting, bonito, and tuna. Fish that occasionally enter freshwater and estuarine environments include snook, jewfish, mangrove snapper, and mullets. Fish that spend the majority of their lives in Jamaica's fresh waters include many species of livebearers, killifish, freshwater gobies, the mountain mullet, and the American eel. Tilapia have been introduced from Africa for aquaculture, and are very common. Also visible in the waters surrounding Jamaica are dolphins, parrotfish, and the endangered manatee.{{Cite web|url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/sea-cows-used-to-walk-on-land-in-africa-and-jamaica-2742073/|title=Sea Cows Used To Walk on Land in Africa And Jamaica|first=Rachel|last=Nuwer|author-link=Rachel Nuwer|website=Smithsonian Magazine|access-date=7 April 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200402204116/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/sea-cows-used-to-walk-on-land-in-africa-and-jamaica-2742073/|archive-date=2 April 2020|url-status=live}}

Insects and other invertebrates are abundant, including the world's largest centipede, the Amazonian giant centipede. Jamaica is the home to about 150 species of butterflies and moths, including 35 indigenous species and 22 subspecies. It is also the native home to the Jamaican swallowtail, the western hemisphere's largest butterfly.{{cite web |url=http://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20140629/arts/arts1.html |title=Beautiful Butterflies – Jamaican Swallowtails Among Those on Display at IOJ |date=29 June 2014 |website=Jamaica Gleaner |publisher=Jamaica Gleaner Newspaper |access-date=23 January 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190124041455/http://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20140629/arts/arts1.html |archive-date=24 January 2019 |url-status=live }}

Coral reef ecosystems are important because they provide people with a source of livelihood, food, recreation, and medicinal compounds and protect the land on which they live.{{cite journal |last=Edwards |first=Peter E.T. |date=March 2009 |title=Sustainable financing for ocean and coastal management in Jamaica: The potential for revenues from tourist user fees |journal=Marine Policy |volume=33 |issue=2 |pages=376–385 |doi=10.1016/j.marpol.2008.08.005 |bibcode=2009MarPo..33..376E |s2cid=14123041 |url=https://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/14769/1/MPRA_paper_14769.pdf |access-date=24 September 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170922024647/https://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/14769/1/MPRA_paper_14769.pdf |archive-date=22 September 2017 |url-status=dead}} Jamaica relies on the ocean and its ecosystem for its development. However, the marine life in Jamaica is also being affected. There could be many factors that contribute to marine life not having the best health. Jamaica's geological origin, topographical features and seasonal high rainfall make it susceptible to a range of natural hazards that can affect the coastal and oceanic environments. These include storm surge, slope failures (landslides), earthquakes, floods and hurricanes.{{cite web |url=http://nepa.gov.jm/symposia_03/Policies/OceanandCoastalZoneManagementPolicy.pdf |title=Toward Developing a National Policy on Ocean and Coastal Zone Management |date=June 2000 |website=nepa.gov.jm |access-date=2018-12-16 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181225031022/http://nepa.gov.jm/symposia_03/Policies/OceanandCoastalZoneManagementPolicy.pdf |archive-date=25 December 2018 |url-status=live }} Coral reefs in the Negril Marine Park (NMP), Jamaica, have been increasingly impacted by nutrient pollution and macroalgal blooms following decades of intensive development as a major tourist destination.{{cite journal |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/225357464 |title=Sewage pollution in Negril, Jamaica: Effects on nutrition and ecology of coral reef macroalgae |date=July 2011 |journal=Chinese Journal of Oceanology and Limnology |volume=29 |issue=4 |page=775 |access-date=2018-12-16 |bibcode=2011ChJOL..29..775L |last1=Lapointe |first1=B. E. |last2=Thacker |first2=K. |last3=Hanson |first3=C. |last4=Getten |first4=L. |doi=10.1007/s00343-011-0506-8 |s2cid=84875443 |archive-date=20 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210520042531/https://www.researchgate.net/publication/225357464_Sewage_pollution_in_Negril_Jamaica_Effects_on_nutrition_and_ecology_of_coral_reef_macroalgae |url-status=live }} File:RaftShilouette20221019 134124.jpg

Another one of those factors could include tourism: being that Jamaica is a very touristy place, the island draws numerous people travelling here from all over the world. The Jamaican tourism industry accounts for 32% of total employment and 36% of the country's GDP and is largely based on the sun, sea and sand, the last two of these attributes being dependent on healthy coral reef ecosystems. Because of Jamaica's tourism, they have developed a study to see if the tourist would be willing to help financially to manage their marine ecosystem because Jamaica alone is unable to. The ocean connects all the countries all over the world, however, everyone and everything is affecting the flow and life in the ocean. Jamaica is a very touristy place specifically because of their beaches. If their oceans are not functioning at their best then the well-being of Jamaica and the people who live there will start to deteriorate. According to the OECD, oceans contribute $1.5 trillion annually in value-added to the overall economy.{{cite web|url=http://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/environment/brief/oceans|title=Oceans, Fisheries and Coastal Economies|website=World Bank|access-date=2018-12-16|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181225030929/http://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/environment/brief/oceans|archive-date=25 December 2018|url-status=live}} A developing country on an island will get the majority of their revenue from their ocean.

Pollution comes from run-off, sewage systems, and garbage. However, this typically all ends up in the ocean after there is rain or floods. Everything that ends up in the water changes the quality and balance of the ocean. Poor coastal water quality has adversely affected fisheries, tourism and mariculture, as well as undermining biological sustainability of the living resources of ocean and coastal habitats. Jamaica imports and exports many goods through their waters. Some of the imports that go into Jamaica include petroleum and petroleum products. Issues include accidents at sea; risk of spills through local and international transport of petroleum and petroleum products. Oil spills can disrupt the marine life with chemicals that are not normally found in the ocean. Other forms of pollution also occur in Jamaica. Solid waste disposal mechanisms in Jamaica are currently inadequate. The solid waste gets into the water through rainfall forces. Solid waste is also harmful to wildlife, particularly birds, fish and turtles that feed at the surface of the water and mistake floating debris for food. For example, plastic can be caught around birds' and turtles' necks, making it difficult to eat and breath as they begin to grow, causing the plastic to get tighter around their necks. Pieces of plastic, metal, and glass can be mistaken for the food fish eat. Each Jamaican generates 1 kg (2 lbs) of waste per day; only 70% of this is collected by National Solid Waste Management Authority (NSWMA)—the remaining 30% is either burnt or disposed of in gullies/waterways.{{cite web |url=http://www.un.org/Depts/los/consultative_process/documents/6_davis.pdf |title=MARINE DEBRIS: JAMAICA'S RESPONSE |date=6–10 June 2005 |website=www.un.org |access-date=2018-12-16 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200107223159/https://www.un.org/Depts/los/consultative_process/documents/6_davis.pdf |archive-date=7 January 2020 |url-status=live }}

There are policies that are being put into place to help preserve the ocean and the life below water. The goal of integrated coastal zone management (ICZM) is to improve the quality of life of human communities who depend on coastal resources while maintaining the biological diversity and productivity of coastal ecosystems. Developing an underdeveloped country can impact the oceans ecosystem because of all the construction that would be done to develop the country. Over-building, driven by powerful market forces as well as poverty among some sectors of the population, and destructive exploitation contribute to the decline of ocean and coastal resources. Developing practices that will contribute to the lives of the people but also to the life of the ocean and its ecosystem. Some of these practices include: Develop sustainable fisheries practices, ensure sustainable mariculture techniques and practices, sustainable management of shipping, and promote sustainable tourism practices.

{{Further|Demographics of Jamaica|Jamaican people}}

File:Street in Montigo Bay Jamaica Photo D Ramey Logan.jpg, Jamaica's second-largest city]]

Breakdown of responses to the 2011 census by the University of the West Indies.

Jamaica's diverse ethnic roots are reflected in the national motto "Out of Many One People". Some dispute the appropriateness of the motto because Jamaicans are overwhelmingly of a single race. The Jamaican founding fathers were mostly White or brown men and unrepresentative of the views of the country's majority Black population.{{cite journal | url=https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/09213740211014331?icid=int.sj-full-text.similar-articles.3 | doi=10.1177/09213740211014331 | title=Jamaica, Covid-19 and Black freedom | date=2021 | last1=Thame | first1=Maziki | journal=Cultural Dynamics | volume=33 | issue=3 | pages=220–232 | url-access=subscription }}{{cite web | url=https://www.jamaicaobserver.com/2015/08/01/out-of-many-one-people-motto-or-myth/ | title=Out of many, one people: Motto or myth? – Jamaica Observer | date=2 August 2015 }}{{cite web | url=https://jamaica-gleaner.com/article/focus/20240526/maziki-thame-race-and-legitimacy-jamaican-politics | title=Maziki Thame | Race and legitimacy in Jamaican politics | date=26 May 2024 }}

Most of the population of 2,812,000 (July 2018 est.) are of African or partially African descent, with many being able to trace their origins to the West African countries of present-day Ghana and Nigeria.{{cite book|title=Liverpool and Transatlantic Slavery |first1=David |last1=Richardson |first2=Anthony |last2=Tibbles |first3=Suzanne |last3=Schwarz |publisher=Liverpool University Press |year=2007 |page=141 |isbn=978-1-84631-066-9 |url={{Google books|IeM1rrKiQosC|page=PA141|keywords=|text=|plainurl=yes}}}} Other major ancestral areas are Europe, South Asia, and East Asia.{{citation needed|date=August 2023}} It is uncommon for Jamaicans to identify themselves by race as is prominent in other countries such as the United States, with most Jamaicans seeing Jamaican nationality as an identity in and of itself, identifying as simply being "Jamaican" regardless of ethnicity.{{Cite web|url=http://jamaicans.com/jamaicanrace/|title=Out of Many One People, We Are A Race Apart|first=George|last=Graham|date=30 July 2007|website=Jamaicans.com|access-date=7 April 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180616204108/http://jamaicans.com/jamaicanrace/|archive-date=16 June 2018|url-status=live}}{{cite web |url=http://jamaicans.com/reasons-many-jamaicans-dont-understand-racism/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180304113229/http://jamaicans.com/reasons-many-jamaicans-dont-understand-racism/ |archive-date=4 March 2018 |title= 5 Reasons Many Jamaicans Don't Understand Racism |website=jamaicans.com |last=Benjamin |first=Glen|date=17 May 2016 }} A study found that the average admixture on the island was 78.3% Sub-Saharan African, 16.0% European, and 5.7% East Asian.{{cite journal|author1=Simms, Tanya M.|author2=Rodríguez, Carol E.|author3=Rodríguez, Rosa|author4=Herrera, René J.|title=The genetic structure of populations from Haiti and Jamaica reflect divergent demographic histories|date=May 2010|doi=10.1002/ajpa.21194|pmid=19918989|url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/38094802|access-date=18 May 2015|journal=Am J Phys Anthropol|volume=142|issue=1|pages=49–66|archive-date=20 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210520042520/https://www.researchgate.net/publication/38094802_The_Genetic_Structure_of_Populations_from_Haiti_and_Jamaica_Reflect_Divergent_Demographic_Histories|url-status=live}}

A more precise study was conducted by the local University of the West Indies – Jamaica's population is more accurately 76.3% African descent or Black, 15.1% Afro-European (or locally called the Brown Man or Browning Class), 3.4% East Indian and Afro-East Indian, 3.2% White, 1.2% Chinese and 0.8% Other.

The Jamaican Maroons of Accompong and other settlements are the descendants of African slaves who fled the plantations for the interior, where they set up their own autonomous communities.Michael Sivapragasam, [http://explore.bl.uk/primo_library/libweb/action/display.do?tabs=moreTab&ct=display&fn=search&doc=BLL01019153409&indx=1&recIds=BLL01019153409&recIdxs=0&elementId=0&renderMode=poppedOut&displayMode=full&frbrVersion=&frbg=&&dscnt=0&scp.scps=scope%3A%28BLCONTENT%29&vl(2084770704UI0)=any&tb=t&vid=BLVU1&mode=Basic&srt=rank&tab=local_tab&dum=true&vl(freeText0)=michael%20sivapragasam&dstmp=1546605833202 After the Treaties: A Social, Economic and Demographic History of Maroon Society in Jamaica, 1739–1842] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210520042522/https://l.sharethis.com/sc?event=pview&version=buttons.js&lang=en&sessionID=1621484722616.41079&hostname=explore.bl.uk&location=%2Fprimo_library%2Flibweb%2Faction%2Fdisplay.do&product=widget&fcmp=false&fcmpv2=false&publisher=ad1af46f-5d2b-4f49-aa8c-10f1ffaecf51&bsamesite=true&consent_cookie_duration=188&consent_duration=189&gdpr_domain=.consensu.org&gdpr_method=cookie&url=http%3A%2F%2Fexplore.bl.uk%2Fprimo_library%2Flibweb%2Faction%2Fdisplay.do%3Ftabs%3DmoreTab%26ct%3Ddisplay%26fn%3Dsearch%26doc%3DBLL01019153409%26indx%3D1%26recIds%3DBLL01019153409%26recIdxs%3D0%26elementId%3D0%26renderMode%3DpoppedOut%26displayMode%3Dfull%26frbrVersion%3D%26frbg%3D%26dscnt%3D0%26scp.scps%3Dscope%253A(BLCONTENT)%26vl(2084770704UI0)%3Dany%26 tb%3Dt%26vid%3DBLVU1%26mode%3DBasic%26srt%3Drank%26tab%3Dlocal_tab%26dum%3Dtrue%26vl(freeText0)%3Dmichael%2Bsivapragasam%26dstmp%3D1546605833202&title=After%20the%20treaties%20%3A%20a%20social%2C%20economic%20and%20demographic%20history%20of%20Maroon%20society%20in%20Jamaica%2C%201739-1842.%20-%20British%20Library&sop=false&samesite=None |date=20 May 2021 }}, PhD Dissertation, African-Caribbean Institute of Jamaica library (Southampton: Southampton University, 2018), pp. 23–24.E. Kofi Agorsah, "Archaeology of Maroon Settlements in Jamaica", Maroon Heritage: Archaeological, Ethnographic and Historical Perspectives, ed. E. Kofi Agorsah (Kingston: University of the West Indies Canoe Press, 1994), pp. 180–81.Craton, Michael. Testing the Chains. Cornell University Press, 1982, p. 70. Many Maroons continue to have their own traditions and speak their own language, known locally as Kromanti.{{cite journal|author=Bilby, Kenneth|year=1983|title= How the "older heads" talk: A Jamaican Maroon spirit possession language and its relationship to the creoles of Suriname and Sierra Leone |journal= New West Indian Guide / Nieuwe West-Indische Gids|volume=57|issue=1/2|pages=37–88|doi=10.1163/13822373-90002097|doi-access=free}}

Asians form the third-largest group (after the Browning Class – i.e. descendants of the mulattos during slavery and other interracial mixtures subsequent to emancipation) and include Indo-Jamaicans and Chinese Jamaicans.[https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/jamaica/ The World Factbook] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210124190707/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/jamaica/ |date=24 January 2021 }} CIA (The World Factbook): Jamaica Most are descended from indentured workers brought by the British colonial government to fill labour shortages following the abolition of slavery in 1838. Along with their Indian counterparts, Chinese Jamaicans have also played an integral part in Jamaica's community and history.{{citation needed|date=August 2024}}

There are about 20,000 Jamaicans who have Lebanese and Syrian ancestry.{{Cite web|url=http://old.jamaica-gleaner.com/pages/history/story0056.htm|title=Jamaica Gleaner: Pieces of the Past:The Arrival of the Lebanese|website=old.jamaica-gleaner.com|access-date=7 April 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190918051912/http://old.jamaica-gleaner.com/pages/history/story0056.htm|archive-date=18 September 2019|url-status=live}} Most were Christian immigrants who fled the Ottoman occupation of Lebanon in the early 19th century. Eventually, their descendants became very successful politicians and businessmen.{{citation needed|date=August 2024}}

The first wave of English immigrants arrived on the island in 1655 after conquering the Spanish, and they have historically been the dominant group. The first Irish immigrants came to Jamaica in the 1600s as war prisoners and, later, as indentured laborers. The Scots have also made a significant impact on the island. According to the Scotland Herald newspaper, Jamaica has more people using the Campbell surnames than the population of Scotland itself, and the highest percentage of Scottish surnames outside of Scotland. Scottish surnames account for about 60% of the Jamaican telephone directories.{{citation needed|date=July 2019}} The first Jamaican inhabitants from Scotland were exiled "rebels". They were later followed by ambitious businessmen who spent time between their great country estates in Scotland and the island. As a result, many of the slave-owning plantations on the island were owned by Scottish men, leading to a large number of mixed-race Jamaicans with Scottish ancestry. High immigration from Scotland continued until well after independence.{{citation needed|date=July 2019}}

File:Northern suburbs of Kingston, Jamaica.jpg, Jamaica's capital and largest city]]

There is also a significant Jamaican population of Portuguese descent that is predominantly of Sephardic Jewish heritage.{{Cite web |title=Portuguese In Jamaica {{!}} Why and When Did They Arrive? |url=https://www.my-island-jamaica.com/portuguese_in_jamaica.html |access-date=2023-05-14 |website=My-Island-Jamaica.com |archive-date=14 May 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230514130718/https://www.my-island-jamaica.com/portuguese_in_jamaica.html |url-status=live }}{{Cite book |last=Mirvis |first=Stanley |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctv10sm932 |title=The Jews of Eighteenth-Century Jamaica: A Testamentary History of a Diaspora in Transition |date=2020 |publisher=Yale University Press |doi=10.2307/j.ctv10sm932 |jstor=j.ctv10sm932 |isbn=978-0-300-23881-5 |s2cid=219044870 |access-date=14 May 2023 |archive-date=14 May 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230514130717/https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctv10sm932 |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |last=Community |date=2020-10-13 |title=Jews in Jamaica |url=https://jewishmuseum.org.uk/2020/10/13/jews-in-jamaica/ |access-date=2023-05-14 |website=The Jewish Museum London |language=en-US |archive-date=14 May 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230514130718/https://jewishmuseum.org.uk/2020/10/13/jews-in-jamaica/ |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |title=PORTUGALITY in Jamaica |url=https://portugality.yolasite.com/jamaica-en.php |access-date=2023-05-14 |website=portugality.yolasite.com |archive-date=1 December 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221201085840/https://portugality.yolasite.com/jamaica-en.php |url-status=live }} The first Jews arrived as explorers from Spain in the 15th century after being forced to choose between expulsion or conversion to Christianity. A small number of them became slave owners or pirates.{{cite news |last=Urken |first=Ross Kenneth |title=The Forgotten Jewish Pirates of Jamaica |url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/travel/forgotten-jewish-pirates-jamaica-180959252/ |work=Smithsonian Magazine |date=7 July 2016|access-date=28 January 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190129181306/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/travel/forgotten-jewish-pirates-jamaica-180959252/ |archive-date=29 January 2019 |url-status=live }} Judaism eventually became very influential in Jamaica and can be seen today with many Jewish cemeteries around the country. During the Holocaust, Jamaica became a refuge for Jews fleeing persecution in Europe.{{Cite book |last=Newman |first=Joanna |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1117311744 |title=Nearly the new world: the British West Indies and the flight from Nazism, 1933-1945 |date=2019 |isbn=978-1-78920-334-9| publisher=Berghahn |location=New York |pages=14 |oclc=1117311744}}

By 2015 immigration had increased, coming mainly from China, Haiti, Cuba, Colombia, and Latin America; 20,000 Latin Americans lived in Jamaica.{{cite web|url=http://www.tozion.org/Rastafari%20Jamaica.html|title=Jamaica *Rastafari * ToZion.org *|website=www.tozion.org|date=2015-07-28|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180115110423/http://www.tozion.org/Rastafari%20Jamaica.html|archive-date=15 January 2018|url-status=dead}} In 2016, Prime Minister Andrew Holness suggested making Spanish Jamaica's second official language.{{cite web|url=http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/PM-wants-Spanish-to-be-Jamaica-s-second-language|title=Jamaica Observer Limited|website=Jamaica Observer|access-date=2019-08-05|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180304172406/http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/PM-wants-Spanish-to-be-Jamaica-s-second-language|archive-date=4 March 2018|url-status=live}} About 7,000 Americans live in Jamaica.{{citation needed|date=October 2014}}

{{Main|Jamaican Patois|Jamaican English}}

Jamaica is regarded as a bilingual country, with two major languages used by the population.Ronald C. Morren and Diane M. Morren (2007). [http://www-01.sil.org/silewp/2007/silewp2007-009.pdf Are the goals and objectives of Jamaica's Bilingual Education Project being met?"] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170516230512/http://www-01.sil.org/silewp/2007/silewp2007-009.pdf |date=16 May 2017}} – SIL International (working paper). Retrieved 31 August 2015. The official language is (Jamaican) English, which is "used in all domains of public life", including the government, the legal system, the media, and education. However, the primary spoken language is an English-based creole language called Jamaican Patois (or Patwa). The two exist in a dialect continuum, with speakers using a different speech register depending on the context and to whom they speak. "Pure" Patois, though sometimes perceived as merely a particularly aberrant dialect of English, is essentially mutually unintelligible with standard English and linguists consider it a distinct language, though most of its vocabulary originally derives from English. A 2007 survey by the Jamaican Language Unit found that 17.1 percent of the population were monolingual in Jamaican Standard English (JSE), 36.5 percent were monolingual in Patois, and 46.4 percent were bilingual, although earlier surveys had pointed to a greater degree of bilingualism (up to 90 percent).{{cite journal |last=Jettka |first=Daniel |date=2010 |title=English in Jamaica: The Coexistence of Standard Jamaican English and the English-based Jamaican Creole |url=http://www.daniel-jettka.de/pdf/JETTKA-The_language_situation_of_Jamaica.pdf |journal=Hamburg Centre for Language Corpora |publisher=Hamburg University |access-date=31 August 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151115010332/http://www.daniel-jettka.de/pdf/JETTKA-The_language_situation_of_Jamaica.pdf |archive-date=15 November 2015 |url-status=dead}} The Jamaican education system had only in about 2015 begun to offer formal instruction in Patois while retaining JSE as the "official language of instruction".Claude Robinson (30 March 2014). [http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/columns/English-lessons-for-Jamaica_16372740 "English lessons for Jamaica"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151010104228/http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/columns/English-lessons-for-Jamaica_16372740 |date=10 October 2015 }} – Jamaica Observer. Retrieved 31 August 2015.

Additionally, some Jamaicans use one or more of Jamaican Sign Language (JSL), American Sign Language (ASL) or the declining indigenous Jamaican Country Sign Language (Konchri Sain).{{e25|jcs|Konchri Sain}} Both JSL and ASL are rapidly replacing Konchri Sain for a variety of reasons.

{{main|Jamaican diaspora}}

Many Jamaicans have emigrated to other countries, especially the United Kingdom, the United States, and Canada. In the case of the United States, about 20,000 Jamaicans per year are granted permanent residence.{{cite web |url=https://www.dhs.gov/immigrationstatistics |title=United States immigration statistics |publisher=Dhs.gov |date=23 June 2009 |access-date=4 July 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081204130555/http://www.dhs.gov/immigrationstatistics |archive-date=4 December 2008 |url-status=live }} There has also been emigration of Jamaicans to other Caribbeans countries such as Cuba,{{cite encyclopedia |url=http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761569844_2/Cuba.html |title=Jamaicans to Cuba |publisher=Encarta.msn.com |access-date=4 July 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091029160356/http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761569844_2/Cuba.html |archive-date=29 October 2009 |url-status=dead}} Puerto Rico, Guyana, and The Bahamas. It was estimated in 2004 that up to 2.5 million Jamaicans and Jamaican descendants lived abroad.[https://web.archive.org/web/20050427212932/http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/columns/html/20040620T150000-0500_61511_OBS_LINKING_THE_JAMAICAN_DIASPORA.asp Linking the Jamaican Diaspora]. Jamaica Observer. 20 June 2004.

About 800,000 Jamaicans live in the United Kingdom, making them by far the country's largest African-Caribbean group. Large-scale migration from Jamaica to the UK occurred primarily in the 1950s and 1960s when the country was still under British rule. There are Jamaican communities in most large UK cities.{{cite web|url=http://www.iomlondon.org/doc/mapping/IOM_JAMAICA.pdf |title=Jamaica: Mapping exercise |publisher=International Organization for Migration |location=London |date=July 2007 |access-date=27 May 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110511105031/http://www.iomlondon.org/doc/mapping/IOM_JAMAICA.pdf |archive-date=11 May 2011 }} Concentrations of expatriate Jamaicans are quite considerable in numerous cities in the United States, including New York City, Buffalo, the Miami metro area, Atlanta, Chicago, Orlando, Tampa, Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, Hartford, Providence and Los Angeles.Jones, Terry-Ann. Jamaican Immigrants in the United States and Canada: Race, Transnationalism, and Social Capital. New York, NY: LFB Scholarly Publishing LLC, 2008. 2–3; 160–3. Print. In Canada, the Jamaican population is centred in Toronto,{{cite web|title=Census Profile, 2016 Census – Toronto (CMA)|publisher=Statistics Canada|url=https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2016/dp-pd/prof/details/page.cfm?Lang=E&Geo1=CMACA&Code1=535&Geo2=PR&Code2=35&Data=Count&SearchText=toronto&SearchType=Begins&SearchPR=01&B1=Ethnic%20origin&TABID=1|access-date=2018-08-13|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180813114501/https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2016/dp-pd/prof/details/page.cfm?Lang=E&Geo1=CMACA&Code1=535&Geo2=PR&Code2=35&Data=Count&SearchText=toronto&SearchType=Begins&SearchPR=01&B1=Ethnic%20origin&TABID=1|archive-date=13 August 2018|url-status=live}} with smaller communities in cities such as Hamilton, Montreal, Winnipeg, Vancouver and Ottawa.{{cite web |title=Census Profile, 2016 Census | date=8 February 2017 |url=https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2016/dp-pd/prof/details/page.cfm?Lang=E&Geo1=CSD&Geo2=PR&Code2=01&SearchType=Begins&SearchPR=01&TABID=1&B1=All&type=0&Code1=3506008&SearchText=ottawa |access-date=2020-06-21 |archive-date=6 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200806063218/https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2016/dp-pd/prof/details/page.cfm?Lang=E&Geo1=CSD&Geo2=PR&Code2=01&SearchType=Begins&SearchPR=01&TABID=1&B1=All&type=0&Code1=3506008&SearchText=ottawa |url-status=live }} Jamaican Canadians comprise about 30% of the entire Black Canadian population.[http://www12.statcan.ca/census-recensement/2006/dp-pd/hlt/97-562/pages/page.cfm?Lang=E&Geo=PR&Code=01&Table=2&Data=Count&StartRec=1&Sort=3&Display=All&CSDFilter=5000 Ethnic origins, 2006 counts, for Canada, provinces and territories—20% sample data] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160818195955/http://www12.statcan.ca/census-recensement/2006/dp-pd/hlt/97-562/pages/page.cfm?Lang=E&Geo=PR&Code=01&Table=2&Data=Count&StartRec=1&Sort=3&Display=All&CSDFilter=5000 |date=18 August 2016 }}, Statistics Canada (2006). Retrieved on 11 August 2008.[http://www12.statcan.ca/census-recensement/2006/dp-pd/hlt/97-562/pages/page.cfm?Lang=E&Geo=PR&Code=01&Table=1&Data=Count&StartRec=1&Sort=2&Display=Page Visible minority groups, 2006 counts, for Canada, provinces and territories—20% sample data] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171114042710/http://www12.statcan.ca/census-recensement/2006/dp-pd/hlt/97-562/pages/page.cfm?Lang=E&Geo=PR&Code=01&Table=1&Data=Count&StartRec=1&Sort=2&Display=Page |date=14 November 2017 }}, Statistics Canada (2006). Retrieved on 19 March 2011.

A notable though much smaller group of emigrants are Jamaicans in Ethiopia. These are mostly Rastafarians, in whose theological worldview Africa is the promised land, or "Zion", or more specifically Ethiopia, due to reverence in which former Ethiopian Emperor Haile Selassie is held.{{cite news|url=http://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20100618/news/news4.html|first=Patrina|last=Pink|title=Jamaican Rastas Bring Cultural Diversity To 'Promised Land'|newspaper=Jamaica Gleaner|date=2010-06-18|access-date=2013-03-11|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190730210828/http://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20100618/news/news4.html|archive-date=30 July 2019|url-status=live}} Most live in the small town of Shashamane about 150 miles (240 km) south of the capital Addis Ababa.{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/1639646.stm|first=Nita|last=Bhalla|title=The town that Rastafarians built|work=BBC News|date=2001-11-05|access-date=2013-03-11|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190730210816/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/1639646.stm|archive-date=30 July 2019|url-status=live}}

{{Main|Crime in Jamaica}}

{{see also|Prisons in Jamaica|LGBT rights in Jamaica}}

When Jamaica gained independence in 1962, the murder rate was 3.9 per 100,000 inhabitants, one of the lowest in the world.{{cite web|url=https://www.focal.ca/en/publications/focalpoint/307-september-2010-don-robotham|title=Crime and crisis in Jamaica|website=www.focal.ca|access-date=2019-06-28|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190730212158/https://www.focal.ca/en/publications/focalpoint/307-september-2010-don-robotham|archive-date=30 July 2019|url-status=live}} By 2009, the rate was 62 per 100,000 inhabitants, one of the highest in the world.{{cite web |url=http://www.focal.ca/en/publications/focalpoint/307-september-2010-don-robotham |title=Crime and crisis in Jamaica |publisher=Focal.ca |access-date=2017-09-25 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160421211313/http://www.focal.ca/en/publications/focalpoint/307-september-2010-don-robotham |archive-date=21 April 2016 |url-status=live }} Gang violence became a serious problem, with organised crime being centred around Jamaican posses or "Yardies". Jamaica has had one of the highest murder rates in the world for many years, according to UN estimates.{{cite web |url=http://www.nationmaster.com/graph/cri_mur_percap-crime-murders-per-capita |title=Nationmaster Crime Stats |publisher=Nationmaster.com |access-date=4 July 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080929181837/http://www.nationmaster.com/graph/cri_mur_percap-crime-murders-per-capita |archive-date=29 September 2008 |url-status=dead }}{{cite web |url=http://www.unodc.org/documents/data-and-analysis/Caribbean-study-en.pdf |title=Crime, violence and development: trends, costs, and policy options in the Caribbean |access-date=26 December 2007 |page=37 |publisher=United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080228023900/http://www.unodc.org/documents/data-and-analysis/Caribbean-study-en.pdf |archive-date=28 February 2008 |url-status=live }} Some areas of Jamaica, particularly poor areas in Kingston, Montego Bay and elsewhere experience high levels of crime and violence.{{cite web |title=Jamaica Travel Advice: Safety and Security |work=Foreign Travel Advice |publisher=Government of the United Kingdom |url=https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/jamaica/safety-and-security |access-date=25 June 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140614052657/https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/jamaica/safety-and-security |archive-date=14 June 2014 |url-status=live }}

However, there were 1,683 reported murders in 2009 and 1,447 in 2010.{{Cite web |title=Crime Statistics |url=https://jcf.gov.jm/stats/ |access-date=April 25, 2023 |website=Jamaica Constabulary Force |date=12 October 2020 |archive-date=25 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230425170025/https://jcf.gov.jm/stats/ |url-status=live }} After 2011 the murder rate continued to fall, following the downward trend in 2010, after a strategic programme was launched.{{cite web |url=http://go-jamaica.com/news/read_article.php?id=29278 |title=Prime Minister Golding Speaks on Crime Reduction |date=9 June 2011 |website=The Gleaner |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170104074825/http://jamaica-gleaner.com/power/29278 |archive-date=4 January 2017 |url-status=dead |access-date=16 December 2017 }} In 2012, the Ministry of National Security reported a 30 percent decrease in murders.Pachico, Elyssa (2012-3-30). "Jamaica Murder Rate Dropped 30% in 2012". InSightCrime: Organized Crime in the Americas. Retrieved 2012-12-1. Nevertheless, in 2017, murders rose by 22% over the previous year.{{cite web |url=http://rjrnewsonline.com/local/jamaicas-murder-tally-over-1500-this-year |title=Jamaica's Murder Tally Over 1,500 This Year |website=rjrnewsonline.com |access-date=15 December 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171215111501/http://rjrnewsonline.com/local/jamaicas-murder-tally-over-1500-this-year |archive-date=15 December 2017 |url-status=live }}

Many Jamaicans are hostile towards LGBT and intersex people,{{cite magazine |last=Padgett |first=Tim |title=The Most Homophobic Place on Earth? |url=http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1182991,00.html |magazine=Time |date=12 April 2006 |access-date=26 April 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060619081126/http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1182991,00.html |archive-date=19 June 2006 |url-status=dead}}{{cite web |url=https://2009-2017.state.gov/documents/organization/204673.pdf |title=2012 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices: Jamaica|publisher= Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, U.S. Department of State| pages=20–22 |access-date=25 May 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170326151431/https://2009-2017.state.gov/documents/organization/204673.pdf |archive-date=26 March 2017 |url-status=live}}{{cite web |title=Jamaica Travel Advice: Local Laws and Customs |work=Foreign Travel Advice |publisher=Government of the United Kingdom |url=https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/jamaica/local-laws-and-customs |access-date=25 June 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140614052706/https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/jamaica/local-laws-and-customs |archive-date=14 June 2014 |url-status=live }} and mob attacks against gay people have been reported.{{cite news |last=Lacey |first=Marc |title=Attacks Show Easygoing Jamaica Is Dire Place for Gays |newspaper=The New York Times |date=24 February 2008 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/24/world/americas/24jamaica.html |access-date=19 March 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090416022316/http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/24/world/americas/24jamaica.html |archive-date=16 April 2009 |url-status=live }}{{cite web |title=Jamaica: Shield Gays from Mob Attacks |publisher=Human Rights Watch |date=31 January 2008 |url=https://www.hrw.org/en/news/2008/01/31/jamaica-shield-gays-mob-attacks |access-date=19 March 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090312143653/http://www.hrw.org/en/news/2008/01/31/jamaica-shield-gays-mob-attacks |archive-date=12 March 2009 |url-status=live }}{{cite press release |title=Document – Jamaica: Amnesty International condemns homophobic violence |publisher=Amnesty International |date=15 April 2007 |url=https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/amr38/004/2007/en/ |access-date=19 March 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190112150026/https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/amr38/004/2007/en/ |archive-date=12 January 2019 |url-status=live }} Numerous high-profile dancehall and ragga artists have produced songs featuring explicitly homophobic lyrics.{{cite web |url=http://www.ccprcentre.org/doc/2012/05/G1147116.pdf |title=Concluding Observations of the Human Rights Committee: Jamaica, United Nations Human Rights Committee, CCPR/C/JAM/CO/3, paragraph 8, pages 2-3, 17 November 2011 |access-date=11 November 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131111093406/http://www.ccprcentre.org/doc/2012/05/G1147116.pdf |archive-date=11 November 2013 |url-status=live}} This has prompted the formations of LGBT rights organisations, such as Stop Murder Music."[https://www.splcenter.org/fighting-hate/intelligence-report/2015/jamaicas-anti-gay-murder-music-carries-violent-message Jamaica's Anti-Gay 'Murder Music' Carries Violent Message] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150707073902/http://www.splcenter.org/get-informed/intelligence-report/browse-all-issues/2010/winter/harmonies-of-hate |date=7 July 2015 }}" by Leah Nelson, The Intelligence Report, The Southern Poverty Law Center. 27 February 2011 Homosexuality is illegal and punishable by imprisonment.{{cite web |title=State Sponsored Homophobia 2016: A world survey of sexual orientation laws: criminalisation, protection and recognition |url=http://ilga.org/downloads/02_ILGA_State_Sponsored_Homophobia_2016_ENG_WEB_150516.pdf |work=International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association |date=17 May 2016 |access-date=10 April 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170902183618/http://ilga.org/downloads/02_ILGA_State_Sponsored_Homophobia_2016_ENG_WEB_150516.pdf |archive-date=2 September 2017 |url-status=live }}{{cite news |title=71 Countries Where Homosexuality is Illegal |url=https://www.newsweek.com/73-countries-where-its-illegal-be-gay-1385974 |work=Newsweek |date=4 April 2019 |access-date=16 August 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191211204842/https://www.newsweek.com/73-countries-where-its-illegal-be-gay-1385974 |archive-date=11 December 2019 |url-status=live }}

{{see also|List of cities and towns in Jamaica}}

{{Largest cities

| country = Jamaica

| stat_ref = [http://wups.statinja.gov.jm/WUP/2016Annual%20Publications_2016%20Demographic%20Statistics.pdf_STATINJa.pdf Demographic Statistics 2016], pp. 15–16 (2011 Census)

| list_by_pop =

| div_name =

| div_link = Parishes of Jamaica{{!}}Parish

|city_1 = Kingston, Jamaica{{!}}Kingston

|div_1 = Kingston Parish{{!}}Kingston

|pop_1 = 661,862

|img_1 = PortofKingston.jpg

|city_2 = Portmore, Jamaica{{!}}Portmore

|div_2 = Saint Catherine Parish{{!}}Saint Catherine

|pop_2 = 182,153

|img_2 =

|city_3 = Spanish Town

|div_3 = Saint Catherine Parish{{!}}Saint Catherine

|pop_3 = 147,152

|img_3 =

|city_4 = Montego Bay

|div_4 = Saint James Parish, Jamaica{{!}}Saint James

|pop_4 = 110,115

|img_4 = Montego bay-1001.jpg

|city_5 = May Pen

|div_5 = Clarendon Parish, Jamaica{{!}}Clarendon

|pop_5 = 61,548

|city_6 = Mandeville, Jamaica{{!}}Mandeville

|div_6 = Manchester Parish{{!}}Manchester

|pop_6 = 49,695

|city_7 = Old Harbour, Jamaica{{!}}Old Harbour

|div_7 = Saint Catherine Parish{{!}}Saint Catherine

|pop_7 = 28,912

|city_8 = Savanna-la-Mar

|div_8 = Westmoreland Parish{{!}}Westmoreland

|pop_8 = 22,633

|city_9 = Ocho Rios

|div_9 = Saint Ann Parish{{!}}Saint Ann

|pop_9 = 16,671

|city_10 = Linstead

|div_10 = Saint Catherine Parish{{!}}Saint Catherine

|pop_10 = 15,231

}}

{{Main|Religion in Jamaica}}

File:Mandeville Church by AAlexander.jpg church in Manchester Parish. Christianity is the largest religion in Jamaica.]]

Christianity is the largest religion practised in Jamaica. About 70% are Protestants; Catholics are just 2% of the population. According to the 2001 census, the country's largest Protestant denominations are the Church of God (24%), Seventh-day Adventist Church (11%), Pentecostal (10%), Baptist (7%), Anglican (4%), United Church (2%), Methodist (2%), Moravian (1%) and Plymouth Brethren (1%).{{cite web |url=https://2001-2009.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2007/90259.htm |title=Jamaica |publisher=State.gov |date=14 September 2007 |access-date=4 July 2009 |archive-date=6 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200806172333/https://2001-2009.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2007/90259.htm |url-status=live }} Bedwardism is a form of Christianity native to the island, sometimes viewed as a separate faith.{{cite book|last =Stan Simpson and David Person|title =Home away from Home: Africans in Americas, Volume 1, Ch 19: Land of Maroons|publisher =Institute for Advanced Journalism Studies|year =2003|url =http://www.ncat.edu/iajs/research/Africans_in_Americas_Volume1/Ch19_Land_of_Maroons.pdf|access-date =2008-01-27|archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20090704193223/http://www.ncat.edu/iajs/research/Africans_in_Americas_Volume1/Ch19_Land_of_Maroons.pdf|archive-date =2009-07-04|url-status=dead }}{{Cite web|url=http://www.jnht.com/site_bedwards_tomb.php|title=Bedward's Tomb|website=www.jnht.com|access-date=7 April 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191130194040/http://www.jnht.com/site_bedwards_tomb.php|archive-date=30 November 2019|url-status=live}} The Christian faith gained acceptance as British Christian abolitionists and Baptist missionaries joined educated former slaves in the struggle against slavery.{{cite web|title=Jamaican Christian Missions:Their Influence in the Jamaican Slave Rebellion of 1831–32 and the End of Slavery|first=Rachael|last=Elam|url=http://www.eiu.edu/~historia/archives/2005/Elam.pdf|access-date=2010-04-06 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090327080958/http://www.eiu.edu/~historia/archives/2005/Elam.pdf|archive-date=27 March 2009}}

The Rastafari movement has 29,026 adherents, according to the 2011 census, with 25,325 Rastafarian males and 3,701 Rastafarian females. The faith originated in Jamaica in the 1930s and though rooted in Christianity it is heavily Afrocentric in its focus, revering figures such as the Jamaican black nationalist Marcus Garvey and Haile Selassie, the former Emperor of Ethiopia.Savishinsky, Neil J. "Transnational popular culture and the global spread of the Jamaican Rastafarian movement." NWIG: New West Indian Guide/Nieuwe West-Indische Gids 68.3/4 (1994): 259–281. Rastafari has since spread across the globe, especially to areas with large black or African diasporas.Stephen D. Glazier, Encyclopedia of African and African-American Religions, 2001, p. 263.{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9h5KDRfZ-JgC&q=kongo+immigrants+to+jamaica+kumina&pg=PA259 |title=Afro-Caribbean Religions: An Introduction to Their Historical, Cultural, and Sacred Traditions |last=Murrell |first=Nathaniel Samuel |date=2010-01-25 |publisher=Temple University Press |isbn=9781439901755 |access-date=1 November 2020 |archive-date=15 April 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210415014108/https://books.google.com/books?id=9h5KDRfZ-JgC&q=kongo+immigrants+to+jamaica+kumina&pg=PA259 |url-status=live }}

Various faiths and traditional religious practices derived from Africa are practised on the island, notably Kumina, Convince, Myal and Obeah.{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pJPBkj4P38wC |title=Three Eyes for the Journey: African Dimensions of the Jamaican Religious Experience |last=Stewart |first=Dianne M. |date=2005-07-07 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=9780198039082 |access-date=30 July 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200206202622/https://books.google.com/books?id=pJPBkj4P38wC |archive-date=6 February 2020 |url-status=live }}{{cite book |title=The Encyclopedia of Caribbean Religions: Volume 1: A – L; Volume 2: M – Z |first1=Patrick |last1=Taylor |first2=Frederick |last2=Case |year=2013 |publisher=University of Illinois Press |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XOyYCgAAQBAJ&q=Yankipong&pg=PA476 |isbn=9780252094330 |access-date=1 November 2020 |archive-date=15 April 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210415034448/https://books.google.com/books?id=XOyYCgAAQBAJ&q=Yankipong&pg=PA476 |url-status=live }}Paul Easterling, "The Ifa' Diaspora: The Art of Syncretism, Part 5 – Obeah and Myal" in [http://www.afrometrics.org/africana-religious-studies-series/the-ifa-diaspora-the-art-of-syncretism-part-5-obeah-and-myal] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190730214923/http://www.afrometrics.org/africana-religious-studies-series/the-ifa-diaspora-the-art-of-syncretism-part-5-obeah-and-myal|date=30 July 2019}} (Afrometrics.org, 2017).

Other religions in Jamaica include Jehovah's Witnesses (2% population), the Bahá'í faith, which counts perhaps 8,000 adherents{{cite web |title=Map Source: www.worldmap.org |url=http://www.worldmap.org/maps/other/profiles/jamaica/Jamaica%20Profile.doc |year=2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303170428/http://www.worldmap.org/maps/other/profiles/jamaica/Jamaica%20Profile.doc |archive-date=3 March 2016}} and 21 Local Spiritual Assemblies,{{cite news |last=Bahá'í International Community |author-link=Bahá'í International Community |title=Jamaicans celebrate 4th National Baha'i Day |newspaper=Bahá'í World News Service |date=11 August 2006 |url=http://news.bahai.org/story/468 |access-date=4 December 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181106235210/https://news.bahai.org/story/468/ |archive-date=6 November 2018 |url-status=live }} Mormonism,{{cite web |title=Jamaica – LDS Statistics and Church Facts | Total Church Membership |url=https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/facts-and-statistics/country/jamaica |publisher=Mormonnewsroom.org |access-date=6 August 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190628013405/https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/facts-and-statistics/country/jamaica |archive-date=28 June 2019 |url-status=live }} Buddhism, and Hinduism.{{cite web |url=http://old.jamaica-gleaner.com/pages/history/story0074.html |title=Jamaica Gleaner: Pieces of the Past: Out of Many Cultures: Roads and Resistance: RELIGIOUS ICONS part 2 |website=old.jamaica-gleaner.com |access-date=2018-10-16 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190815122842/http://old.jamaica-gleaner.com/pages/history/story0074.html |archive-date=15 August 2019 |url-status=live }}{{cite web |url=https://www.visitjamaica.com/feel-the-vibe/people/faith/ |title=Faith in Jamaica {{!}} Learn More About What We Believe |website=www.visitjamaica.com |access-date=2018-10-16 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190513082314/https://www.visitjamaica.com/feel-the-vibe/people/faith/ |archive-date=13 May 2019 |url-status=live }} The Hindu Diwali festival is celebrated yearly among the Indo-Jamaican community.[http://www.religiousintelligence.co.uk/country/?CountryID=55 religiousintelligence.co.uk] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090221114046/http://www.religiousintelligence.co.uk/country/?CountryID=55 |date=21 February 2009 }}, [http://religiousfreedom.lib.virginia.edu/nationprofiles/Jamaica/rbodies.html religiousfreedom.lib.virginia.edu] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090221114046/http://religiousfreedom.lib.virginia.edu/nationprofiles/Jamaica/rbodies.html |date=21 February 2009 }}

There is also a small population of about 200 Jews, who describe themselves as Liberal-Conservative.{{cite web |author1=Haruth Communications |author2=Harry Leichter |url=http://www.haruth.com/JewsJamaica.html |title=Jamaican Jews |publisher=Haruth.com |access-date=4 July 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091111044215/http://www.haruth.com/JewsJamaica.html |archive-date=11 November 2009 |url-status=live }} The first Jews in Jamaica trace their roots back to early 15th-century Spain and Portugal.{{cite web |first=Mark |last=Dawes |title=Jews hold firm Life goes on in Old Synagogue |url=http://www.jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20030610/mind/mind2.html |work=The Gleaner |date=10 June 2003 |access-date=11 March 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110510014048/http://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20030610/mind/mind2.html |archive-date=10 May 2011}} Kahal Kadosh Shaare Shalom, also known as the United Congregation of Israelites, is a historic synagogue located in the city of Kingston. Originally built in 1912, it is the official and only Jewish place of worship left on the island. The once abundant Jewish population has voluntarily converted to Christianity over time.{{Cite web |last=Korney |first=Stephanie |date=2017-02-15 |title=Jews in Jamaica: A Long History & Three "Firsts" |url=https://jamaicans.com/jews-jamaica-long-history-three-firsts/ |access-date=2025-01-01 |website=Jamaicans and Jamaica – Jamaicans.com |language=en-US}} Shaare Shalom is one of the few synagogues in the world that contains sand covered floors and is a popular tourist destination.{{Cite news|url=https://www.haaretz.com/jewish-footprints-in-the-caribbean-sand-1.5281292|title=A Synagogue Drawn in the Sand|first=Dana Evan|last=Kaplan|newspaper=Haaretz.com|date=10 August 2012|access-date=7 April 2020|via=Haaretz|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180619190049/https://www.haaretz.com/jewish-footprints-in-the-caribbean-sand-1.5281292|archive-date=19 June 2018|url-status=live}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/travel/Caribbean-synagogue-sand-floor-180963581/|title=Why Sand Covers the Floor of One of the Western Hemisphere's Oldest Synagogues|website=Smithsonian Magazine|access-date=7 April 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190416073857/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/travel/Caribbean-synagogue-sand-floor-180963581/|archive-date=16 April 2019|url-status=live}}

File:Hussay Celebration in Jamaica.jpg

Other small groups include Muslims, who claim 5,000 adherents. The Muslim holidays of Ashura (known locally as Hussay or Hosay) and Eid have been celebrated throughout the island for hundreds of years. In the past, every plantation in each parish celebrated Hosay. Today it has been called an Indian carnival and is perhaps most well known in Clarendon where it is celebrated each August. People of all religions attend the event, showing mutual respect.{{cite web |url=http://caribbeanmuslims.com/hosay-festival-westmoreland-jamaica |title=Hosay Festival, Westmoreland, Jamaica |website=caribbeanmuslims.com |date=14 February 2009 |access-date=3 March 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180304054809/http://caribbeanmuslims.com/hosay-festival-westmoreland-jamaica |archive-date=4 March 2018 |url-status=live }}{{cite news| last=Tortello | first=Rebecca |newspaper=Jamaica Gleaner|url=http://old.jamaica-gleaner.com/pages/history/story0057.htm |title=Out of Many Cultures The People Who Came The Arrival of the Indians|date=3 November 2003|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170701070917/http://old.jamaica-gleaner.com/pages/history/story0057.htm |archive-date=1 July 2017 |url-status=live }}

{{Main|Education in Jamaica}}

The emancipation of the slaves heralded the establishment of an education system for the masses. Prior to emancipation there were few schools for educating locals and many sent their children off to England to access quality education.{{citation needed|date=July 2019}} After emancipation the West Indian Commission granted a sum of money to establish Elementary Schools, now known as All Age Schools. Most of these schools were established by the churches.{{cite web |url=http://www.jis.gov.jm/education/html/20041212T090000-0500_4438_JIS_MORAVIAN_CHURCH_CONTRIBUTING_MUCH_TO_EDUCATION.asp |title=Moravian Church Contribution to Education in Jamaica |access-date=22 December 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071123064227/http://www.jis.gov.jm/education/html/20041212T090000-0500_4438_JIS_MORAVIAN_CHURCH_CONTRIBUTING_MUCH_TO_EDUCATION.asp |archive-date=23 November 2007}} This was the genesis of the modern Jamaican school system.

Presently the following categories of schools exist:

• Early childhood – Basic, infant and privately operated pre-school. Age cohort: 2 – 5 years.
• Primary – Publicly and privately owned (privately owned being called preparatory schools). Ages 3 – 12 years.
• Secondary – Publicly and privately owned. Ages 10 – 19 years. The high schools in Jamaica may be either single-sex or co-educational institutions, and many schools follow the traditional English grammar school model used throughout the British West Indies.
• Tertiary – Community colleges; teachers' colleges, with the Mico Teachers' College (now The MICO University College) being the oldest, founded in 1836; the Shortwood Teachers' College (which was once an all-female teacher training institution); vocational training centres, colleges and universities, publicly and privately owned. There are five local universities: 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, formerly West Indies College; the University of the Commonwealth Caribbean, formerly the University College of The Caribbean; and the International University of the Caribbean.

Additionally, there are many community and teacher training colleges.

Education is free from the early childhood to secondary levels. There are also opportunities for those who cannot afford further education in the vocational arena, through the Human Employment and Resource Training-National Training Agency (HEART Trust-NTA) programme,{{cite web |url=http://www.moec.gov.jm/news/speeches/ict2003.htm |title=Transforming the Jamaican Education System |access-date=22 December 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080520221921/http://www.moec.gov.jm/news/speeches/ict2003.htm |archive-date=20 May 2008 |url-status=dead}} which is opened to all working age national population{{cite web | url=http://www.unevoc.unesco.org/worldtvetdatabase1.php?ct=JAM | title=Vocational Education in Jamaica | publisher=UNESCO-UNEVOC | date=August 2012 | access-date=26 May 2014 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140528010330/http://www.unevoc.unesco.org/worldtvetdatabase1.php?ct=JAM | archive-date=28 May 2014 | url-status=dead }} and through an extensive scholarship network for the various universities.

{{Main|Economy of Jamaica}}

File:Negril-Beach.jpg with a hotel and restaurant]]

File:JamesBondBeach2.jpg]]

Jamaica is a mixed economy with both state enterprises and private sector businesses. Major sectors of the Jamaican economy include agriculture, mining, manufacturing, tourism, petroleum refining, financial and insurance services. Tourism and mining are the leading earners of foreign exchange. Half the Jamaican economy relies on services, with half of its income coming from services such as tourism. An estimated 4.3 million foreign tourists visit Jamaica every year. According to the World Bank, Jamaica is an upper-middle income country that, like its Caribbean neighbours, is vulnerable to the effects of climate change, flooding, and hurricanes. In 2018, Jamaica represented the CARICOM Caribbean Community at the G20 and the G7 annual meetings.{{cite news |url=http://jamaica-gleaner.com/article/commentary/20181201/elizabeth-morgan-jamaica-caricom-and-g20-summit |title=Ja/Caricom and the G20 Summit |publisher=Jamaica Gleaner newspaper |access-date=21 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190222042130/http://jamaica-gleaner.com/article/commentary/20181201/elizabeth-morgan-jamaica-caricom-and-g20-summit |archive-date=22 February 2019 |url-status=live }} In 2019 Jamaica reported its lowest unemployment rate in 50 years.{{cite web|url=https://jis.gov.jm/features/lowest-unemployment-in-50-years/|title=Lowest Unemployment in 50 Years|publisher=Jamaica Information Service (Government of Jamaica)|access-date=21 February 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190221112222/https://jis.gov.jm/features/lowest-unemployment-in-50-years/|archive-date=21 February 2019|url-status=live}}

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{{cite web |url=http://www.mof.gov.jm/mof-media/media-centre/press/2569-goj-divestment-and-projects-programme-to-generate-billions-in-investment-opportunities-for-jamaican-capital.html |title=GOJ Divestment and Projects Programme to Generate Billions in Investment Opportunities for Jamaican Capital |publisher=Government of Jamaica Ministry of Finance and Public Services |access-date=23 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190224062403/http://www.mof.gov.jm/mof-media/media-centre/press/2569-goj-divestment-and-projects-programme-to-generate-billions-in-investment-opportunities-for-jamaican-capital.html |archive-date=24 February 2019 |url-status=live }}{{cite web |url=http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/latestnews/Holness_says_divestment_of_state_assets_good_thing_for_Jamaica |title=Holness says divestment of state assets good thing for Jamaica |publisher=Jamaica Observer newspaper |access-date=23 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190224062310/http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/latestnews/Holness_says_divestment_of_state_assets_good_thing_for_Jamaica |archive-date=24 February 2019 |url-status=live }}{{cite web|url=http://jamaica-gleaner.com/article/news/20181114/dbj-bats-small-investors-wigton-divestment|title=DBJ Bats For Small Investors in Wigton Divestment|date=14 November 2018|publisher=Jamaica Gleaner newspaper|access-date=23 February 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190224003542/http://jamaica-gleaner.com/article/news/20181114/dbj-bats-small-investors-wigton-divestment|archive-date=24 February 2019|url-status=live}} Since 1991, the government has followed a programme of economic liberalisation and stabilisation by removing exchange controls,{{cite web |url=https://www.export.gov/article?id=Jamaica-Foreign-Exchange-Controls |title=Jamaica – Foreign Exchange Controls |website=export.gov |publisher=Government of the United States |access-date=23 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190224002029/https://www.export.gov/article?id=Jamaica-Foreign-Exchange-Controls |archive-date=24 February 2019 |url-status=live }}{{cite news |url=http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/business/-No-legal-restrictions-on-foreign-currency-quotes-_15570664 |title=No Legal Restrictions of Foreign Currency Quotes |website=Jamaica Observer |publisher=Jamaica Observer Newspaper |access-date=23 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190224002109/http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/business/-No-legal-restrictions-on-foreign-currency-quotes-_15570664 |archive-date=24 February 2019 |url-status=live }} floating the exchange rate,{{cite web |url=http://ctrc.sice.oas.org/trc/Jamaica/JamaicaTP.asp |title=Trade Reference Centre – Jamaica – Caribbean Trade Reference Centre |publisher=Trade Reference Centre – Jamaica – Caribbean Trade Reference Centre |access-date=23 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190228010302/http://ctrc.sice.oas.org/trc/Jamaica/JamaicaTP.asp |archive-date=28 February 2019 |url-status=live }}{{cite web |url=https://2009-2017.state.gov/e/eb/rls/othr/ics/2011/157299.htm |title=2011 Investment Climate Statement — Jamaica |publisher=U.S. Department of State |access-date=21 May 2019 |archive-date=8 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230208230306/https://2009-2017.state.gov/e/eb/rls/othr/ics/2011/157299.htm |url-status=live }} cutting tariffs,{{cite web |url=https://www.export.gov/article?id=Jamaica-Import-Tariffs |title=Jamaica – Import Tariffs |website=export.gov |publisher=Government of the United States |access-date=23 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190224001921/https://www.export.gov/article?id=Jamaica-Import-Tariffs |archive-date=24 February 2019 |url-status=live }} stabilising the Jamaican dollar, reducing inflation{{cite news |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-01-17/no-inflation-no-cry-jamaica-turns-to-reggae-to-promote-target |title=Jamaica Turns to Reggae Videos to Promote Inflation Target |publisher=Bloomberg |access-date=22 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190222151944/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-01-17/no-inflation-no-cry-jamaica-turns-to-reggae-to-promote-target |archive-date=22 February 2019 |url-status=live }} and removing restrictions on foreign investment.{{cite web |url=https://www.export.gov/article?id=Jamaica-Openness-to-Foreign-Investment |title=Jamaica – 1-Openness to & Restriction on Foreign Investment |publisher=U.S. Department of State |access-date=23 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190224002016/https://www.export.gov/article?id=Jamaica-Openness-to-Foreign-Investment |archive-date=24 February 2019 |url-status=live }} Emphasis has been placed on maintaining strict fiscal discipline, greater openness to trade and financial flows, market liberalisation 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 privatisation programmes. The free-trade zones at Kingston, Montego Bay and Spanish Town allow duty-free importation, tax-free profits, and free repatriation of export earnings.{{cite web |url=http://thecommonwealth.org/our-member-countries/jamaica/economy |title=Jamaica (Economy) |work=The Commonwealth |publisher=Official Commonwealth Website (UK) |access-date=23 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190224001931/http://thecommonwealth.org/our-member-countries/jamaica/economy |archive-date=24 February 2019 |url-status=live }}

Jamaica's economy grew strongly after the years of independence, but then stagnated in the 1980s, due to the heavy falls in price of bauxite and fluctuations in the price of agriculture. The financial sector was troubled in 1994, with many banks and insurance companies suffering heavy losses and liquidity problems. According to the Commonwealth Secretariat, "The government set up the Financial Sector Adjustment Company (Finsac) in January 1997 to assist these banks and companies, providing funds in return for equity, and acquired substantial holdings in banks and insurance companies and related companies..." but it only exasperated the problem, and brought the country into large external debt. From 2001, once it had restored these banks and companies to financial health, Finsac divested them." The Government of Jamaica remains committed to lowering inflation, with a long-term objective of bringing it in line with that of its major trading partners.

In 1996 and 1997 there was a decrease in GDP largely due to significant problems in the financial sector and, in 1997, a severe island-wide drought (the worst in 70 years) and hurricane that drastically reduced agricultural production.{{cite web |url=http://www.fao.org/docrep/005/y4632e/y4632e0m.htm |title=Jamaica |publisher=Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations |access-date=23 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190217064745/http://www.fao.org/docrep/005/Y4632E/y4632e0m.htm |archive-date=17 February 2019 |url-status=live }} In 1997 and 1998, nominal GDP was approximately a high of about 8 percent of GDP and then lowered to 4½ percent of GDP in 1999 and 2000.{{cite web|url=https://www.imf.org/external/np/loi/2000/jam/01/|title=Jamaica Letter of Intent July 19, 2000|publisher=International Monetary Fund|access-date=23 February 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190224062353/https://www.imf.org/external/np/loi/2000/jam/01/|archive-date=24 February 2019|url-status=live}} 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.{{cite web |url=https://www.wto.org/english/tratop_e/tpr_e/tp085_e.htm |title=Jamaica: October 1998 |publisher=World Trade Organization |access-date=22 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190222151905/https://www.wto.org/english/tratop_e/tpr_e/tp085_e.htm |archive-date=22 February 2019 |url-status=live }}

Recent economic performance shows the Jamaican economy is recovering. Agricultural production, an important engine of growth increased to 5.5% in 2001 compared to the corresponding period in 2000, signalling the first positive growth rate in the sector since January 1997.{{cite web |url=http://www.fao.org/3/y4632e/y4632e0m.htm |title=Jamaica |publisher=Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations |access-date=23 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190224062347/http://www.fao.org/3/y4632e/y4632e0m.htm |archive-date=24 February 2019 |url-status=live }} In 2018, Jamaica reported a 7.9% increase in corn, 6.1% increase in plantains, 10.4% increase in bananas, 2.2% increase in pineapples, 13.3% increase in dasheen, 24.9% increase in coconuts, and a 10.6% increase in whole milk production.{{cite web |url=https://jis.gov.jm/growth-in-agriculture-subsectors/ |title=Growth in Agriculture Subsectors |publisher=Government of Jamaica (Jamaica Information Service) |access-date=23 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190224002115/https://jis.gov.jm/growth-in-agriculture-subsectors/ |archive-date=24 February 2019 |url-status=live }} 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 and continued expansion of alumina production through 2009 is planned by Alcoa.[http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/magazines/Business/html/20070428T200000-0500_122373_OBS_NO_GAS_FROM_TRINIDAD__VENEZUELA_BY_____.asp No gas from Trinidad, Venezuela by 2009 – Jamaica Observer.com] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080217022409/http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/magazines/Business/html/20070428T200000-0500_122373_OBS_NO_GAS_FROM_TRINIDAD__VENEZUELA_BY_____.asp|date=17 February 2008}}

at www.jamaicaobserver.com Jamaica is the fifth-largest exporter of bauxite in the world, after Australia, China, Brazil and Guinea. The country also exports limestone, of which it holds large deposits. The government is currently implementing plans to increase its extraction.{{cite web|url=http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/business-observer/limestone-research-finds-richest-deposits-in-st-elizabeth-portland-and-trelawny_95991|title=Limestone research finds richest deposits in St Elizabeth, Portland and Trelawny|publisher=Jamaica Observer newspaper|access-date=21 February 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190221112137/http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/business-observer/limestone-research-finds-richest-deposits-in-st-elizabeth-portland-and-trelawny_95991|archive-date=21 February 2019|url-status=live}}

A Canadian company, Carube Copper Corp, has found and confirmed, "...the existence of at least seven significant Cu/Au porphyry systems (in St. Catherine)." They have estimated that, "The porphyry distribution found at Bellas Gate is similar to that found in the Northparkes mining district of New South Wales, Australia (which was) sold to China in 2013 for US$820 million." Carube noted that Jamaica's geology, "... is similar to that of Chile, Argentina and the Dominican Republic – all productive mining jurisdictions." Mining on the sites began in 2017.{{cite web |url=http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/business/Carube-Copper-Corp-to-begin-mining-for-gold-and-copper-at-Bellas-Gate-in-April_91755 |title=Carube Copper Corp to begin exploring for gold and copper at Bellas Gate in April |last=Collinder |first=Avia |publisher=Jamaica Observer newspaper |access-date=21 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190221112329/http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/business/Carube-Copper-Corp-to-begin-mining-for-gold-and-copper-at-Bellas-Gate-in-April_91755 |archive-date=21 February 2019 |url-status=live }}

Tourism, which is the largest foreign exchange earner, showed improvement as well. In 1999 the total visitor arrivals was 2 million, an increase of 100,000 from the previous year.{{cite journal |last1=McDavid |first1=Hamilton |title=An Input-Output Analysis of the Jamaican Hospitality and Tourism Sector |journal=Social and Economic Studies: Sir Arthur Lewis Institute of Social and Economic Studies, University of the West Indies |volume=52 |issue=1 |pages=161–184 |jstor=27865318 |year=2003}} Since 2017, Jamaica's tourism has risen exponentially, rising to 4.3 million average tourists per year. Jamaica's largest tourist markets are from North America, South America, and Europe. In 2017, Jamaica recorded a 91.3% increase in stopover visitors from Southern and Western Europe (and a 41% increase in stopover arrivals from January to September 2017 over the same period from the previous year) with Germany, Portugal and Spain registering the highest percentage gains.{{cite news|url= http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/latestnews/Jamaica_sees_European_tourism_boom|title= Jamaica sees European tourism boom|newspaper= Jamaica Observer|access-date= 21 February 2019|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20190221112039/http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/latestnews/Jamaica_sees_European_tourism_boom|archive-date= 21 February 2019|url-status= live}} In 2018, Jamaica won several World Travel Awards in Portugal winning the "Chairman's Award for Global Tourism Innovation", "Best Tourist Board in the Caribbean" "Best Honeymoon Destination", "Best Culinary Destination", "World's Leading Beach Destination" and "World's Leading Cruise Destination".{{cite web |url=http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/latestnews/Jamaica_sweeps_World_Travel_Awards_?profile=1228 |title=Jamaica sweeps World Travel Awards |publisher=Jamaica Observer newspaper |access-date=23 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190224002104/http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/latestnews/Jamaica_sweeps_World_Travel_Awards_?profile=1228 |archive-date=24 February 2019 |url-status=live }}{{cite web |url=https://www.mot.gov.jm/news-releases/jamaica-scores-big-travvy-tourism-awards |title=Jamaica Scores Big With Travvy Tourism Awards |publisher=Jamaica Ministry of Tourism |access-date=23 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190224062409/https://www.mot.gov.jm/news-releases/jamaica-scores-big-travvy-tourism-awards |archive-date=24 February 2019 |url-status=live }} Two months later, the Travvy Tourism Awards held in New York City, awarded Jamaica's Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett, with the inaugural Chairman's Award for, "Global Tourism Innovation for the Development of the Global Tourism Resilience and Crisis Management Centre (GTRCM)". Bartlett has also won the Pacific Travel Writer's Association's award in Germany for the, "2018 Best Tourism Minister of the Year".{{cite news |url= http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/latestnews/Bartlett_is_Worlds_Tourism_Minister_of_the_Year?profile=1470 |title= Bartlett is World's Tourism Minister of the Year |publisher= Jamaica Observer newspaper |access-date= 23 February 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20190224002135/http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/latestnews/Bartlett_is_Worlds_Tourism_Minister_of_the_Year?profile=1470 |archive-date= 24 February 2019 |url-status= live }}

Petrojam, Jamaica's national and only petroleum refinery, is co-owned by the Government of Venezuela. Petrojam, "..operates a 35,000 barrel per day hydro-skimming refinery, to produce Automotive Diesel Oil; Heavy Fuel Oil; Kerosene/Jet Fuel, Liquid Petroleum Gas (LPG), Asphalt and Gasoline." Customers include the Power industry, Aircraft refuellers, and Local Marketing companies.{{cite web|url= http://www.petrojam.com/about-us|title= PetroJam (About Us)|publisher= PetroJam (Government of Jamaica)|access-date= 20 April 2016|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160406100753/http://www.petrojam.com/about-us|archive-date= 6 April 2016|url-status= live}} On 20 February 2019, the Jamaican Government voted to retake ownership of Venezuela's 49% share.{{cite web|url= https://jis.gov.jm/house-approves-bill-to-retake-ownership-of-petrojam-shares/|title= House Approves Bill to Retake Ownership of Petrojam Shares|publisher= Jamaica Information Service (Government of Jamaica)|access-date= 21 February 2019|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20190222095208/https://jis.gov.jm/house-approves-bill-to-retake-ownership-of-petrojam-shares/|archive-date= 22 February 2019|url-status= live}}

Jamaica's agricultural exports are sugar, bananas, cocoa,{{cite web |url=http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/editorial/jamaican-cocoa-could-be-sweet-again_48936 |title=Jamaican cocoa could be sweet again |publisher=Jamaica Observer newspaper |access-date=21 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190221112213/http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/editorial/jamaican-cocoa-could-be-sweet-again_48936 |archive-date=21 February 2019 |url-status=live }} coconut, molasses{{cite web |url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Jamaica/Economy |title=Jamaica Economy |publisher=Britannica Encyclopedia |access-date=21 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190221113351/https://www.britannica.com/place/Jamaica/Economy |archive-date=21 February 2019 |url-status=live }} oranges, limes, grapefruit,{{cite web |url=http://jamaica-gleaner.com/article/business/20170818/shortage-creates-price-surge-fresh-citrus |title=Shortage Creates Price Surge for Fresh Citrus |last=Collinder |first=Avia |date=18 August 2017 |publisher=Jamaica Gleaner newspaper |access-date=21 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190221112416/http://jamaica-gleaner.com/article/business/20170818/shortage-creates-price-surge-fresh-citrus |archive-date=21 February 2019 |url-status=live }} rum, yams, allspice (of which it is the world's largest and "most exceptional quality" exporter),{{cite journal |title=Medicinal Properties of the Jamaican Pepper Plant Pimenta dioica and Allspice |journal=Current Drug Targets |volume=13 |issue=14 |pages=1900–1906 |pmc=3891794 |year=2012 |last1=Zhang |first1=L. |last2=Lokeshwar |first2=B.L. |pmid=23140298 |doi=10.2174/138945012804545641}} and Blue Mountain Coffee which is considered a world renowned gourmet brand.

Jamaica has a wide variety of industrial and commercial activities. The aviation industry is able to perform most routine aircraft maintenance, except for heavy structural repairs. There is a considerable amount of technical support for transport and agricultural aviation. Jamaica has a considerable amount of industrial engineering, light manufacturing, including metal fabrication, metal roofing, and furniture manufacturing. Food and beverage processing, glassware manufacturing, software and data processing, printing and publishing, insurance underwriting, music and recording, and advanced education activities can be found in the larger urban areas. The Jamaican construction industry is entirely self-sufficient, with professional technical standards and guidance.{{cite web |url=http://www.jamaica-gleaner.com/pages/history/story0070.htm |title=History of Aviation in Jamaica: Part I |publisher=Jamaica-gleaner.com |access-date=4 July 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090717101044/http://www.jamaica-gleaner.com/pages/history/story0070.htm |archive-date=17 July 2009}}

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%.[http://www.statinja.com/ Statistical Institute of Jamaica] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180417202235/https://www.statinja.com/ |date=17 April 2018 }} at www.statinja.com An investment programme 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.{{citation needed|date=February 2019}} Jamaica was ranked 79th in the Global Innovation Index in 2024.{{Cite book |author=World Intellectual Property Organization |year=2024 |title=Global Innovation Index 2024: Unlocking the Promise of Social Entrepreneurship |url=https://www.wipo.int/web-publications/global-innovation-index-2024/en/ |access-date=2024-10-06 |website=www.wipo.int |page=18 |publisher=World Intellectual Property Organization |language=en |doi=10.34667/tind.50062 |isbn=978-92-805-3681-2}}

In 2006, Jamaica became part of the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME) as one of the pioneering members.{{cite web |url=https://caricom.org/media-center/communications/press-releases/statement-prime-minister-dr-keith-rowley-on-csme |title=Statement – Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley on CSME |publisher=CARICOM }}{{Dead link|date=January 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}

The global economic downturn had a significant impact on the Jamaican economy for the years 2007 to 2009, resulting in negative economic growth. The government implemented a new Debt Management Initiative, the Jamaica Debt Exchange (JDX) on 14 January 2010. The initiative would see holders of Government of Jamaica (GOJ) bonds returning the high interest earning instruments for bonds with lower yields and longer maturities. The offer was taken up by over 95% of local financial institutions and was deemed a success by the government.{{cite web |url=https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/WP/Issues/2016/12/31/Jamaica-Debt-Exchange-40043 |title=Jamaica Debt Exchange |publisher=IMF |access-date=22 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190222095221/https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/WP/Issues/2016/12/31/Jamaica-Debt-Exchange-40043 |archive-date=22 February 2019 |url-status=live }}

Owing to the success of the JDX program, the Bruce Golding-led government was successful in entering into a borrowing arrangement with the IMF on 4 February 2010 for the amount of US$1.27b. The loan agreement is for a period of three years.{{cite web |url=http://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20100205/business/business1.html |title=Jamaica Gleaner News – IMF says yes – US$1.27b loan for Jamaica approved – US$950m fund for financial sector |publisher=Jamaica-gleaner.com |date=5 February 2010 |access-date=31 October 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111002000926/http://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20100205/business/business1.html |archive-date=2 October 2011 |url-status=live }}

In April 2014, the Governments of Jamaica and China signed the preliminary agreements for the first phase of the Jamaican Logistics Hub (JLH) – the initiative that aims to position Kingston as the fourth node in the global logistics chain, joining Rotterdam, Dubai and Singapore, and serving the Americas.{{cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/jamaica-china-ports-idUSL1N0MT0WL20140401|title=Jamaica signs deal for China-built cargo shipping hub|work=Reuters|date=April 2014 |access-date=1 July 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151016000540/http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/04/01/jamaica-china-ports-idUSL1N0MT0WL20140401|archive-date=16 October 2015|url-status=live}} The Project, when completed, is expected to provide many jobs for Jamaicans, Economic Zones for multinational companies{{cite web|url=http://jis.gov.jm/proposed-caymanas-economic-zone-one-16/|title=Proposed Caymanas Economic Zone To Be One of 16|work=Jamaica Information Service |access-date=12 April 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191123044313/https://jis.gov.jm/proposed-caymanas-economic-zone-one-16/|archive-date=23 November 2019|url-status=live}} and much needed economic growth to alleviate the country's heavy debt-to-GDP ratio. Strict adherence to the IMF's refinancing programme and preparations for the JLH has favourably affected Jamaica's credit rating and outlook from the three biggest rating agencies. In 2018, both Moody's and Standard and Poor Credit ratings upgraded Jamaica's ratings to both "stable and positive" respectively.{{cite web |url=http://www.mof.gov.jm/mof-media/media-centre/press/2397-moody-s-investor-services-upgrades-jamaica-sovereign-rating-and-revises-outlook-from-positive-to-stable.html |title=Moody's Investor Services Upgrades Jamaica Sovereign Rating and Revises Outlook from Positive to Stable |publisher=Government of Jamaica (Ministry of Finance and Public Services) |access-date=23 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190224062315/http://www.mof.gov.jm/mof-media/media-centre/press/2397-moody-s-investor-services-upgrades-jamaica-sovereign-rating-and-revises-outlook-from-positive-to-stable.html |archive-date=24 February 2019 |url-status=live }}{{cite web |url=http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/latestnews/_Rating_agency_gives_positive_outlook_for_Jamaica?profile=1228 |title=Rating agency gives positive outlook for Jamaica |work=Jamaica Observer |access-date=23 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190224002040/http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/latestnews/_Rating_agency_gives_positive_outlook_for_Jamaica?profile=1228 |archive-date=24 February 2019 |url-status=live }}

Main articles: Science and technology in Jamaica and List of Jamaican inventions and discoveries

The Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) sector is guided by the National Commission on Science and Technology (NCST) and the Scientific Research Council (SRC). Both are under the direction of the Ministry of Science, Energy, and Technology.

Since the 1990s, the government has set an agenda to push the development of science and technology in Jamaica. Despite some successes, such as the growth of the nutraceutical industry, it has been difficult to translate the results into domestic technologies, products and services – largely because of national budgetary constraints. However, with Jamaica's improved fiscal space, coming out of its recent IMF programme, the government has pledged to increase expenditure on research and development.{{Cite web|date=May 2019|title=IMF Lending Case Study: Jamaica|url=https://www.imf.org/en/Countries/JAM/jamaica-lending-case-study|access-date=22 October 2021|website=IMF|language=en|archive-date=22 October 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211022042507/https://www.imf.org/en/Countries/JAM/jamaica-lending-case-study|url-status=live}}{{Cite web|date=12 March 2021|title=Joel Allen {{!}} Enabling innovation critical for Jamaica's socio-economic development|url=https://jamaica-gleaner.com/article/commentary/20210312/joel-allen-enabling-innovation-critical-jamaicas-socio-economic|access-date=22 October 2021|website=jamaica-gleaner.com|language=en|archive-date=9 October 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211009002033/https://jamaica-gleaner.com/article/commentary/20210312/joel-allen-enabling-innovation-critical-jamaicas-socio-economic|url-status=live}}

Jamaicans have made some noteworthy scientific and medical contributions. Amongst these include the discovery of kwashiorkor, the pioneer of treatments for pediatric sickle cell anemia and the invention of various spacecraft support systems.

{{further|Transport in Jamaica}}

File:Halfway Tree Transport Center, Kingston, Jamaica.jpg

The transport infrastructure in Jamaica consists of roadways, railways and air transport, with roadways forming the backbone of the island's internal transport system.

{{main|Roads in Jamaica}}

The Jamaican road network consists of almost {{convert|21000|km|mi}} of roads, of which over {{convert|15000|km|mi}} is paved.[https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/jamaica/ The CIA World Factbook – Jamaica] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210124190707/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/jamaica/ |date=24 January 2021 }}. Retrieved 2015-09-16. The Jamaican Government has, since the late 1990s and in cooperation with private investors, embarked on a campaign of infrastructural improvement projects, one of which includes the creation of a system of freeways, the first such access-controlled roadways of their kind on the island, connecting the main population centres of the island. This project has so far seen the completion of {{convert|33|km|mi}} of freeway.{{citation needed|date=July 2019}}

{{main|Railways of Jamaica}}

Railways in Jamaica no longer enjoy the prominent position they once did, having been largely replaced by roadways as the primary means of transport. Of the {{convert|272|km|mi}} of railway found in Jamaica, only {{convert|57|km|mi}} remain in operation, currently used to transport bauxite. On 13 April 2011, a limited passenger service was resumed between May Pen, Spanish Town and Linstead.{{Cite web |date=2011-04-13 |title=Train coaches roll into Old Capital for test run |url=https://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20110413/lead/lead3.html |access-date=2024-02-02 |website=jamaica-gleaner.com |language=en |archive-date=2 February 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240202205325/https://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20110413/lead/lead3.html |url-status=live }}

File:Montego Bay plane Photo D Ramey Logan.jpg aircraft landing at Montego Bay (2013)]]

File:Norman Manley International Airport.jpg

There are three international airports in Jamaica with modern terminals, long runways, and the navigational equipment required to accommodate the large jet aircraft used in modern and air travel: Norman Manley International Airport in Kingston; Ian Fleming International Airport in Boscobel, Saint Mary Parish; and the island's largest and busiest airport, Sir Donald Sangster International Airport in the resort city of Montego Bay. Manley and Sangster International airports are home to the country's national airline, Caribbean Airlines. In addition there are local commuter airports at Tinson Pen (Kingston), Port Antonio, and Negril, which cater to internal flights only. Many other small, rural centres are served by private airstrips on sugar estates or bauxite mines.

{{see also|Lighthouses in Jamaica}}

Owing to its location in the Caribbean Sea in the shipping lane to the Panama Canal and relative proximity to large markets in North America and emerging markets in Latin America, Jamaica receives much traffic of shipping containers. The container terminal at the Port of Kingston has undergone large expansion in capacity in recent years to handle growth both already realised as well as that which is projected in coming years.[http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/html/20051117T220000-0500_92733_OBS_PORT_AUTHORITY__MAERSK_IN_MAJOR_DEAL.asp The Jamaica Observer] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070926232147/http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/html/20051117T220000-0500_92733_OBS_PORT_AUTHORITY__MAERSK_IN_MAJOR_DEAL.asp |date=26 September 2007}}. Retrieved 27 June 2007. Montego Freeport in Montego Bay also handles a variety of cargo like (though more limited than) the Port of Kingston, mainly agricultural products.

There are several other ports positioned around the island, including Port Esquivel in St. Catherine (WINDALCO), Rocky Point in Clarendon, Port Kaiser in St. Elizabeth, Port Rhoades in Discovery Bay, Reynolds Pier in Ocho Rios, and Boundbrook Port in Port Antonio.

To aid the navigation of shipping, Jamaica operates nine lighthouses.[http://www.mtw.gov.jm/general_information/reports/TransportStatisticsReport2003_2004.pdf Annual Transport Statistics Report: Jamaica in Figures 2003-2004] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130315174612/http://www.mtw.gov.jm/general_information/reports/TransportStatisticsReport2003_2004.pdf |date=2013-03-15}}, Ministry of Transport and Works, July 2005. They are maintained by the {{Cite web |url=http://www.portjam.com/ |title=Port Authority of Jamaica |access-date=11 October 2010 |archive-date=19 October 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111019134844/http://www.portjam.com/ |url-status=live }} an agency of the Ministry of Transport and Works.{{Cite web |url=http://www.mtw.gov.jm/ |title=Ministry of Transport and Works |access-date=30 July 2019 |archive-date=22 July 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110722070810/http://www.mtw.gov.jm/ |url-status=live }}

{{see also|Solar power in Jamaica}}

File:Jamaica electricity production.svg

File:Jamaica renewable electricity production.svg

Jamaica depends on petroleum imports to satisfy its national energy needs. Many test sites have been explored for oil, but no commercially viable quantities have been found.{{cite web |url=http://www.pcj.com/industry_stat.htm |archive-url=https://archive.today/20010203232100/http://www.pcj.com/industry_stat.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=3 February 2001 |title=Petroleum Corp of Jamaica, Petroleum Industry Statistics |access-date=21 July 2007}} The most convenient sources of imported oil and motor fuels (diesel, gasoline, and jet fuel) are from Mexico and Venezuela.

Jamaica's electrical power is produced by diesel (bunker oil) generators located in Old Harbour. This facility has been further equipped with liquid natural gas capability and storage. Other smaller power stations (most owned by the Jamaica Public Service Company,{{Cite web |url=http://www.myjpsco.com/ |title=Jamaica Public Service Company |access-date=1 January 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110107125651/http://www.myjpsco.com/ |archive-date=7 January 2011 |url-status=dead }} the island's electricity provider) support the island's electrical grid including the Hunts Bay Power Station, the Bogue Power Station Saint James, the Rockfort Power Station Saint Andrew and small hydroelectric plants on the White River, Rio Bueno, Morant River, Black River (Maggotty) and Roaring River.{{cite web |url=http://www.myjpsco.com/about_us/power_plants.php |title=JPS – JPS' Power Plants |access-date=1 January 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101202075147/http://www.myjpsco.com/about_us/power_plants.php |archive-date=2 December 2010}} A wind farm, owned by the Petroleum Corporation of Jamaica, was established at Wigton, Manchester.{{cite web |url=http://www.wwfja.com |title=Wigton Wind Farm Company |access-date=25 March 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080417201155/http://www.wwfja.com/ |archive-date=17 April 2008 |url-status=dead }}

Jamaica has successfully operated a SLOWPOKE-2 nuclear reactor of 20 kW capacity since the early 1980s.{{cite web |url=https://world-nuclear.org/information-library/non-power-nuclear-applications/radioisotopes-research/research-reactors |title=Research Reactors |date=21 May 2024 | website=world-nuclear.org |access-date=21 October 2024}}

In 2024, the Government committed to adding small modular reactors (SMR) to the country's energy mix, signing a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL) and Canadian Nuclear Laboratories to promote the adoption of nuclear power in Jamaica.{{cite web |url=https://jis.gov.jm/govt-signs-mou-to-advance-nuclear-technologies-adoption-in-jamaica/ |title=Gov't Signs MOU to Advance Nuclear Technologies Adoption in Jamaica |date=23 October 2024 | publisher=The Jamaica Information Service |access-date=26 October 2024}}

Jamaica imports approximately {{convert|80000|oilbbl}} of oil energy products per day, including asphalt and lubrication products. Just 20% of imported fuels are used for road transportation, the rest being used by the bauxite industry, electricity generation, and aviation. 30,000 barrels/day of crude imports are processed into various motor fuels and asphalt by the Petrojam Refinery in Kingston.{{cite web |url=http://www.petrojam.com/about-us/corporate-fact-sheet |title=Corporate Fact Sheet | Petrojam Limited |publisher=Petrojam.com |access-date=2017-09-25 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160415220606/http://www.petrojam.com/about-us/corporate-fact-sheet |archive-date=15 April 2016 |url-status=dead }}

Jamaica produces enormous quantities of drinking alcohol (at least 5% water content), most of which appears to be consumed as beverages, and none used as motor fuel. Facilities exist to refine hydrous ethanol feedstock into anhydrous ethanol (0% water content), but as of 2007, the process appeared to be uneconomic and the production plant was idle.{{cite web |url=http://www.pcj.com/petrojam/associate_text.htm |title=Petroleum Corp of Jamaica, Petrojam Ethanol |access-date=21 July 2007 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20070717000252/http://www.pcj.com/petrojam/associate_text.htm |archive-date=17 July 2007 |url-status=dead}} The facility has since been purchased by West Indies Petroleum Ltd. and repurposed for petroleum distillates.

{{main|Telecommunications in Jamaica}}

Jamaica has a fully digital telephone communication system with a mobile penetration of over 95%.[http://globaltechforum.eiu.com/index.asp?layout=newdebi&country_id=JM&country=Jamaica&title=Doing+eBusiness+in+Jamaica&channelid=6 Doing eBusiness in Jamaica] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110928173029/http://globaltechforum.eiu.com/index.asp?layout=newdebi&country_id=JM&country=Jamaica&title=Doing+eBusiness+in+Jamaica&channelid=6 |date=28 September 2011 }}, The Economist Intelligence Unit.

The country's two mobile operators – FLOW Jamaica (formerly LIME, bMobile and Cable and Wireless Jamaica) and Digicel Jamaica have spent millions in network upgrades and expansion. The newest operator, Digicel was granted a licence in 2001 to operate mobile services in the newly liberalised telecom market that had once been the sole domain of the incumbent FLOW (then Cable and Wireless Jamaica) monopoly. Digicel opted for the more widely used GSM wireless system, while a past operator, Oceanic (which became Claro Jamaica and later merged with Digicel Jamaica in 2011) opted for the CDMA standard. FLOW (formerly "LIME" – pre-Columbus Communications merger) which had begun with TDMA standard, subsequently upgraded to GSM in 2002, decommissioned TDMA in 2006 and only utilised that standard until 2009 when LIME launched its 3G network.{{cite web |url=http://www.cwc.com/assets/uploads/files/Press%20Releases/3g%20launch%20in%20jamaica.pdf |title=LIME 3G launch in 2009 |access-date=23 May 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160625182344/http://www.cwc.com/assets/uploads/files/Press%20Releases/3g%20launch%20in%20jamaica.pdf |archive-date=25 June 2016 |url-status=dead }} Both operators currently provide islandwide coverage with HSPA+ (3G) technology. Currently, only Digicel offers LTE to its customers{{cite web |url=https://www.telegeography.com/products/commsupdate/articles/2016/06/13/digicel-jamaica-launches-lte/ |title=Digicel Jamaica launches LTE |last=TeleGeography |access-date=14 June 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160806170506/https://www.telegeography.com/products/commsupdate/articles/2016/06/13/digicel-jamaica-launches-lte/ |archive-date=6 August 2016 |url-status=live }} whereas FLOW Jamaica has committed to launching LTE in the cities of Kingston and Montego Bay, places where Digicel's LTE network is currently only found in, in short order.

A new entrant to the Jamaican communications market, Flow Jamaica, 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. Cable and Wireless Communications (parent company of LIME) acquired the company in late 2014 and replaced their brand LIME with FLOW.{{cite web |url=http://www.cwc.com/live/news-and-media/press-releases/new-flow-brand-unveiled-in-jamaica.html |title=Cable & Wireless Communications – New Flow Brand Unveiled in Jamaica |website=www.cwc.com |access-date=23 May 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160625152402/http://www.cwc.com/live/news-and-media/press-releases/new-flow-brand-unveiled-in-jamaica.html |archive-date=25 June 2016 |url-status=dead }} FLOW Jamaica currently has the most broadband and cable subscribers on the island and also has 1 million mobile subscribers,{{cite web |url=http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/business/Flow-celebrates-hitting-one-million-customers_61486 |title=Flow celebrates hitting one million customers |website=Jamaica Observer |access-date=23 May 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160524044859/http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/business/Flow-celebrates-hitting-one-million-customers_61486 |archive-date=24 May 2016 |url-status=live }} second to Digicel (which had, at its peak, over 2 million mobile subscriptions on its network).

Digicel entered the broadband market in 2010 by offering WiMAX broadband,{{cite web |url=https://www.telegeography.com/products/commsupdate/articles/2010/08/23/digicel-launches-wimax-to-non-business-users/ |title=Digicel launches WiMAX to non-business users |last=TeleGeography |website=www.telegeography.com |access-date=23 May 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160306013556/https://www.telegeography.com/products/commsupdate/articles/2010/08/23/digicel-launches-wimax-to-non-business-users/ |archive-date=6 March 2016 |url-status=live }} capable of up to 6 Mbit/s per subscriber. To further their broadband share post-LIME/FLOW merger in 2014, the company introduced a new broadband service called Digicel Play,{{cite web |url=http://www.digicelgroup.com/jm/en/Play.html |title=Home |website=www.digicelgroup.com |access-date=23 May 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160521133001/http://www.digicelgroup.com/jm/en/Play.html |archive-date=21 May 2016 |url-status=live }} which is Jamaica's second FTTH offering (after LIME's deployment in selected communities in 2011{{cite web|url=https://www.telegeography.com/products/commsupdate/articles/2011/12/16/lime-jamaica-launches-100mbps-ftth-service/|title=Lime Jamaica launches 100Mbps FTTH service|last=TeleGeography|access-date=23 May 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160624125845/https://www.telegeography.com/products/commsupdate/articles/2011/12/16/lime-jamaica-launches-100mbps-ftth-service/|archive-date=24 June 2016|url-status=live}}). It is currently only available in the parishes of Kingston, Portmore and St. Andrew. It offers speeds of up to 200 Mbit/s down, 100 Mbit/s up via a pure fibre optic network. Digicel's competitor, FLOW Jamaica, has a network consisting of ADSL, Coaxial and Fibre to the Home (inherited from LIME) and only offers speeds up to 100 Mbit/s. FLOW has committed to expanding its Fibre offering to more areas in order to combat Digicel's entrance into the market.

It was announced that the Office and Utilities Regulations (OUR), Ministry of Science, Technology, Energy and Mining (MSTEM) and the Spectrum Management Authority (SMA) have given approval for another mobile operator licence in January 2016.{{cite web|url=https://www.telegeography.com/products/commsupdate/articles/2016/05/05/jamaican-government-approves-third-mobile-player/|title=Jamaican government approves third mobile player|last=TeleGeography|access-date=23 May 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160624135952/https://www.telegeography.com/products/commsupdate/articles/2016/05/05/jamaican-government-approves-third-mobile-player/|archive-date=24 June 2016|url-status=live}} The identity of this entrant was ascertained on 20 May 2016, when the Jamaican Government named the new carrier as Symbiote Investments Limited operating under the name Caricel.{{cite web|url=http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/business/Caricel---first-Jamaican-company-to-get-mobile-spectrum-licence_61594|title=Caricel – first Jamaican company to get mobile spectrum licence|website=Jamaica Observer|access-date=23 May 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160523110812/http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/business/Caricel---first-Jamaican-company-to-get-mobile-spectrum-licence_61594|archive-date=23 May 2016|url-status=live}} The company will focus on 4G LTE data offerings and will first go live in the Kingston Metropolitan Area and will expand to the rest of Jamaica thereafter.{{citation needed|date=June 2020}}

{{Main|Culture of Jamaica}}

File:Bob-Marley-in-Concert Zurich 05-30-80.jpg, one of the most famous reggae artists from Jamaica]]

{{Main|Music of Jamaica}}

Jamaican culture 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.Dave Thompson (2002) Reggae and Caribbean Music. Backbeat Books. p. 261. {{ISBN|0879306556}}. These have themselves gone on to influence numerous other genres, such as punk rock (through reggae and ska), dub poetry, New Wave, two-tone, lovers rock, reggaeton, jungle, drum and bass, dubstep, grime and American rap music. Some rappers, such as The Notorious B.I.G., Busta Rhymes, and Heavy D, are of Jamaican descent.

Bob Marley is probably the best known Jamaican musician; with his band the Wailers he had a string of hits in 1960s–70s, popularising reggae internationally and going on to sell millions of records.{{cite web |url=https://www.biography.com/news/bob-marley-biography-facts |title=7 Fascinating Facts About Bob Marley |access-date=10 October 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171010155428/https://www.biography.com/news/bob-marley-biography-facts |archive-date=10 October 2017 |url-status=live }}{{cite book |first=Jason |last=Toynbee |title=Bob Marley: Herald of a Postcolonial World |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BkDohE6Qd3oC&pg=PA1969 |access-date=23 August 2013 |date=8 May 2013 |publisher=John Wiley & Sons |isbn=978-0-7456-5737-0 |pages=1969– |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131012235034/http://books.google.com/books?id=BkDohE6Qd3oC&pg=PA1969 |archive-date=12 October 2013 |url-status=live }} Many other internationally known artists were born in Jamaica, including Toots Hibbert, Millie Small, Lee "Scratch" Perry, Gregory Isaacs, Half Pint, Protoje, Peter Tosh, Bunny Wailer, Big Youth, Jimmy Cliff, Dennis Brown, Desmond Dekker, Beres Hammond, Beenie Man, Shaggy, Grace Jones, Shabba Ranks, Super Cat, Buju Banton, Sean Paul, I Wayne, Bounty Killer and many others. Bands that came from Jamaica include Black Uhuru, Third World Band, Inner Circle, Chalice Reggae Band, Culture, Fab Five and Morgan Heritage.

{{Main|Jamaican literature}}

The journalist and author H. G. de Lisser used his native country as the setting for his many novels.Michael Hughes, "De Lisser, Herbert G.", A Companion to West Indian Literature, Collins, 1979, pp. 40–42. Born in Falmouth, Jamaica, de Lisser worked as a reporter for the Jamaica Times at a young age and in 1920 began publishing the magazine Planters' Punch. The White Witch of Rosehall is one of his better-known novels. He was named Honorary President of the Jamaican Press Association; he worked throughout his professional career to promote the Jamaican sugar industry.

Roger Mais, a journalist, poet, and playwright wrote many short stories, plays, and novels, including The Hills Were Joyful Together (1953), Brother Man (1954), and Black Lightning (1955).Hawthorne, Evelyn J. "The Writer and the Nationalist Model", Roger Mais and the Decolonization of Caribbean Culture, NY: Peter Lang, 1989, p. 7.

Ian Fleming, who had a home in Jamaica where he spent considerable time, repeatedly used the island as a setting in his James Bond novels, including Live and Let Die, Doctor No, "For Your Eyes Only", The Man with the Golden Gun, and Octopussy and The Living Daylights.{{cite web|title=Ian Fleming International Airport opened in Jamaica!|url=http://www.ianfleming.com/pages/news/index.asp?NewsID=128|work=News & Press|publisher=Ian Fleming Publications|access-date=14 December 2011|date=17 January 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120722035913/http://www.ianfleming.com/pages/news/index.asp?NewsID=128|archive-date=22 July 2012}}

Marlon James (1970), novelist has published three novels: John Crow's Devil (2005), The Book of Night Women (2009) and A Brief History of Seven Killings (2014), winner of the 2015 Man Booker Prize.{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/15/magazine/from-jamaica-to-minnesota-to-myself.html|title=From Jamaica to Minnesota to Myself|last=James|first=Marlon|work=The New York Times|date=10 March 2015|access-date=27 June 2018|language=en|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190731160335/https://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/15/magazine/from-jamaica-to-minnesota-to-myself.html|archive-date=31 July 2019|url-status=live}}

{{See also|List of Jamaican films}}

Jamaica has a history in the film industry dating from the early 1960s. A look at delinquent youth in Jamaica is presented in the 1970s musical crime film The Harder They Come, starring Jimmy Cliff as a frustrated (and psychopathic) reggae musician who descends into a murderous crime spree.Kenner, Rob (2009) "[https://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/21/movies/21rhone.html Trevor Rhone, a Writer of 'The Harder They Come,' Dies at 69] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190730222733/https://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/21/movies/21rhone.html |date=30 July 2019 }}", The New York Times, 21 September 2009, retrieved 11 November 2012 Other notable Jamaican films include Countryman, Rockers, Dancehall Queen, One Love, Shottas, Out the Gate, Third World Cop and Kingston Paradise. Jamaica is also often used as a filming location, such as the James Bond film Dr. No (1962), Papillon (1973) starring Steve McQueen, Cocktail (1988) starring Tom Cruise, and the 1993 Disney comedy Cool Runnings, which is loosely based on the true story of Jamaica's first bobsled team trying to make it in the Winter Olympics.

{{Main|Jamaican cuisine}}

File:Curry Goat with rice and peas (in this case kidney beans).jpg with rice and peas]]

The island is famous for its Jamaican jerk spice, curries and rice and peas which is integral to Jamaican cuisine. Jamaica is also home to Red Stripe beer and Jamaican Blue Mountain Coffee.

(From the Jamaica Information Service){{cite web|url=http://www.jis.gov.jm/special_sections/This%20Is%20Jamaica/symbols.html |title=National Symbols of Jamaica |publisher=Jis.gov.jm |date=6 August 1962 |access-date=26 June 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060619153047/http://www.jis.gov.jm/special_sections/This%20Is%20Jamaica/symbols.html |archive-date=19 June 2006 }}

• National bird: red-billed streamertail (also called doctor bird) (a hummingbird, Trochilus polytmus)
• National flower – lignum vitae (Guiacum officinale)
• National tree: blue mahoe (Hibiscus elatus)
• National fruit: ackee (Blighia sapida)
• National motto: "Out of Many, One People."

File:Jamaica motto.jpg

{{Main|Sport in Jamaica}}

Sport is an integral part of national life in Jamaica and the island's athletes tend to perform to a standard well above what might ordinarily be expected of such a small country. While the most popular local sport is cricket, on the international stage Jamaicans have tended to do particularly well at track and field athletics.{{cite web|title=Jamaican Sports An Overview|url=http://www.jamaicans.com/culture/sports/cricketjamaica.shtml|publisher=My Island Jamaica|access-date=11 October 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101129180138/http://www.jamaicans.com/culture/sports/cricketjamaica.shtml|archive-date=29 November 2010|url-status=dead}}

The country was one of the venues of 2007 Cricket World Cup and the West Indies cricket team is one of 12 ICC full member teams that participate in international Test cricket.{{cite web|title=Test and ODI cricket playing nations|url=http://www.cricinfo.com/rankings/content/current/page/211271.html|publisher=Cricinfo|access-date=11 October 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101108101831/http://www.cricinfo.com/rankings/content/current/page/211271.html|archive-date=8 November 2010|url-status=live}} The Jamaica national cricket team competes regionally, and also provides players for the West Indies team. Sabina Park is the only Test venue in the island, but the Greenfield Stadium is also used for cricket.{{cite web|title=Cricket Ground Information|url=http://www.windiesonline.com/west_indies_cricket_grounds|publisher=Windies Online|access-date=11 October 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110511195543/http://www.windiesonline.com/west_indies_cricket_grounds|archive-date=11 May 2011|url-status=usurped}}{{cite web|title=Greenfield Stadium|url=http://www.surfindia.com/cricket/greenfield-stadium.html|publisher=Surf India|access-date=11 October 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090803064555/http://www.surfindia.com/cricket/greenfield-stadium.html|archive-date=3 August 2009|url-status=live}}

File:Usain Bolt after 200 m final Beijing 2015.jpg is widely considered the greatest sprinter of all time.]]

Since independence, Jamaica has consistently produced world-class athletes in track and field. Over the past six decades Jamaica has produced dozens of world-class sprinters, including Olympic and world champion Usain Bolt, world record holder in the 100 m for men at 9.58s, and 200 m for men at 19.19s. Other noteworthy Jamaican sprinters are Arthur Wint, the first Jamaican Olympic gold medalist; Donald Quarrie, Elaine Thompson double Olympic champion from Rio 2016 in the 100 m and 200 m, Olympic champion and former 200 m world record holder; Roy Anthony Bridge, part of the International Olympic Committee; Merlene Ottey; Delloreen Ennis-London; Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, the former world and two-time Olympic 100 m champion; Kerron Stewart; Aleen Bailey; Juliet Cuthbert; three-time Olympic gold medalist; Veronica Campbell-Brown; Sherone Simpson; Brigitte Foster-Hylton; Yohan Blake; Herb McKenley; George Rhoden, Olympic gold medalist; Deon Hemmings, Olympic gold medalist; as well as Asafa Powell, former 100 m world record holder and two-time 100 m Olympic finalist and gold medal winner in the men's 2008 Olympic {{nowrap|4 × 100 m}}. American Olympic winner Sanya Richards-Ross was also born in Jamaica.

Association football and horse-racing are other popular sports in Jamaica. The national football team qualified for the 1998 FIFA World Cup. Horse racing was Jamaica's first sport. Today, horse racing provides jobs for about 20,000 people including horse breeders, groomers, and trainers. Also, several Jamaicans are known internationally for their success in horse racing including Richard DePass, who once held the Guinness Book of World Records for the most wins in a day, Canadian awards winner George HoSang, and American award winners Charlie Hussey, Andrew Ramgeet, and Barrington Harvey.{{cite news |last=Tortello |first=Rebecca |title=Jamaican Horse racing History: The sport of kings |url=http://old.jamaica-gleaner.com/pages/history/story0078.html |work=Jamaica Gleaner |location=Jamaica |access-date=22 January 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190207044649/http://old.jamaica-gleaner.com/pages/history/story0078.html |archive-date=7 February 2019 |url-status=live }}

Race car driving is also a popular sport in Jamaica with several car racing tracks and racing associations across the country.{{Cite news |last=Graham |first=Neville |date=14 April 2017 |title=New Cars To Light Up Dover |url=http://jamaica-gleaner.com/article/sports/20170415/new-cars-light-dover |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190124102110/http://jamaica-gleaner.com/article/sports/20170415/new-cars-light-dover |archive-date=24 January 2019 |access-date=22 January 2019 |work=Jamaica Gleaner |location=Jamaica}}

The Jamaica national bobsled team was once a serious contender in the Winter Olympics, beating many well-established teams. Chess and basketball are widely played in Jamaica and are supported by the Jamaica Chess Federation (JCF) and the Jamaica Basketball Federation (JBF), respectively. Netball is also very popular on the island, with the Jamaica national netball team called The Sunshine Girls consistently ranking in the top five in the world.{{cite web |author=IFNA |title=Current World Rankings |url=http://www.netball.org/thrilling-world-class-events/current-world-rankings |access-date=3 November 2013 |author-link=International Federation of Netball Associations |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161203014509/http://www.netball.org/thrilling-world-class-events/current-world-rankings |archive-date=3 December 2016 |url-status=dead }}

Rugby league has been played in Jamaica since 2006.{{Cite web|url=http://rugbyleaguejamaica.com/history/|title=Jamaica Rugby league History|access-date=7 April 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191002122248/http://rugbyleaguejamaica.com/history/|archive-date=2 October 2019|url-status=live}}

The Jamaica national rugby league team is made up of players who play in Jamaica and from UK based professional and semi professional clubs (notably in the Super League and Championship). In November 2018 for the first time ever, the Jamaican rugby league team qualified for the Rugby League World Cup after defeating the USA and Canada. Jamaica will play in the 2021 Rugby League World Cup in England.{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.com/sport/rugby-league/46250413 |title=Rugby League World Cup: Jamaica reach tournament for first time |work=BBC Sport |date=17 November 2018 |access-date=19 November 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181119221352/https://www.bbc.com/sport/rugby-league/46250413 |archive-date=19 November 2018 |url-status=live }}

According to ESPN, the highest paid Jamaican professional athlete in 2011 was Justin Masterson, starting pitcher for the baseball team Cleveland Indians in the United States.{{cite web |url=https://www.espn.com/espn/story/_/id/7858737/floyd-mayweather-united-states-best-paid-athlete-espn-magazine |title=Best-paid athletes from 200 countries |work=ESPN |date=4 May 2012 |access-date=4 May 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120504192643/http://espn.go.com/espn/story/_/id/7858737/floyd-mayweather-united-states-best-paid-athlete-espn-magazine |archive-date=4 May 2012 |url-status=live }}

{{portal|Jamaica|Caribbean|Countries}}

• Index of Jamaica-related articles
• List of Jamaicans
• Outline of Jamaica

{{notelist}}

{{reflist}}

{{refbegin|30em}}

• {{cite book |last=Ahmed |first=Faiz |title=The Development Path Taken by Jamaica: A brief account of the islands natural-history, economic policies, and social conditions |url=http://www.islandvulnerability.org/m/ahmedm.pdf |year=2008 |access-date=2 April 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121003211109/http://www.islandvulnerability.org/m/ahmedm.pdf |archive-date=3 October 2012 |url-status=dead }} (pp. 45–83)
• {{cite book |last=Arbell |first=Mordehay |title=The Portuguese Jews of Jamaica |url={{Google books|-35vXOgop6QC|keywords=|text=|plainurl=yes}} |publisher=Canoe Press |year=2000 |isbn=978-976-8125-69-9}}
• Ammar, N. "From Whence they came". Jamaica Journal.
• Bahadur, Gaiutra. Coolie Woman: The Odyssey of Indenture. The University of Chicago (2014), {{ISBN|978-0-226-21138-1}}
• {{cite journal |last=Bernstein |first=Antje |date=2006 |title=English in Jamaica: The Coexistence of Standard Jamaican English and the English-based Jamaican Creole |url=http://www.grin.com/en/e-book/71333/english-in-jamaica-the-coexistence-of-standard-jamaican-english-and-the |journal=English Language and Literature Studies |volume=seminar paper |access-date=31 August 2015 |archive-date=24 September 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924024032/http://www.grin.com/en/e-book/71333/english-in-jamaica-the-coexistence-of-standard-jamaican-english-and-the |url-status=live }}
• {{cite book |last=Chapman |first=Valentine Jackson |title=The marine algae of Jamaica: Myxophyceae and Chlorophyceae |url={{Google books|uSyxbwAACAAJ|keywords=|text=|plainurl=yes}} |year=1961}}
• {{cite book |last=Chapman |first=Valentine Jackson |title=The marine Algae of Jamaica: Part II: Phaeophyceae and Rhodophyceae |url={{Google books|UyHEQQAACAAJ|keywords=|text=|plainurl=yes}} |year=1963}}
• Hall, D. "Bounties European Immigration with Special Reference of the German Settlement at Seaford Town, Parts 1 and 2". Jamaica Journal, 8, (4), 48–54 and 9 (1), 2–9.
• {{cite book |last=Issa |first=Suzanne |title=Mr Jamaica, Abe Issa: a pictorial biography |url={{Google books|L1cQAAAACAAJ|keywords=|text=|plainurl=yes}} |year=1994 |publisher=S. Issa |isbn=978-976-8091-69-7}}
• Jacobs, H. P. (2003). Germany in Jamaica. Indian heritage in Jamaica. Jamaica Journal, 10, (2,3,4), 10–19,
• {{cite journal |last1=Mullally |first1=R. |year=2003 |title='One Love' The Black Irish of Jamaica |journal=Jamaica Journal |volume=42 |pages=104–116}}
• {{cite journal |last1=Parboosingh |first1=I.S. |title=An Indo-Jamaica beginning |journal=Jamaica Journal |volume=18 |issue=3 |pages=2–10, 12}}
• {{cite book |last=Senior |first=Olive |title=Encyclopedia of Jamaican Heritage |url={{Google books|URx7AAAAMAAJ|keywords=|text=|plainurl=yes}} |year=2003 |publisher=Twin Guinep Publishers |isbn=978-976-8007-14-8}}
• {{cite book |last1=Sherlock |first1=Philip Manderson |last2=Bennett |first2=Hazel |title=The Story of the Jamaican People |url={{Google books|Weh6AAAAMAAJ|keywords=|text=|plainurl=yes}} |year=1998 |publisher=Ian Randle Publishers |isbn=978-1-55876-145-2}}
• {{cite book |first=Ian |last=Thomson |title=The Dead Yard: Tales of Modern Jamaica |url={{Google books|hJliXDXchE8C|keywords=|text=|plainurl=yes}} |year=2009 |publisher=Nation Books |isbn=978-0-571-22761-7}}
• {{cite book |last=Williams |first=Joseph John |title=Whence the "Black Irish" of Jamaica? |url={{Google books|gyJ7AAAAMAAJ|keywords=|text=|plainurl=yes}} |year=1932 |publisher=L. MacVeagh, Dial Press, Inc.}}
• The Gleaner. Seaford Town Advertising Feature. 14 August 2003, [https://newspaperarchive.com/kingston-gleaner-aug-14-2003-p-35/ D7] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190818013550/https://newspaperarchive.com/kingston-gleaner-aug-14-2003-p-35/ |date=18 August 2019 }}-[https://newspaperarchive.com/kingston-gleaner-aug-14-2003-p-36/ D8] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190818013552/https://newspaperarchive.com/kingston-gleaner-aug-14-2003-p-36/ |date=18 August 2019 }}.

{{refend}}

{{Spoken Wikipedia|date=2005-09-23|en-Jamaica-Part-1.ogg|en-Jamaica-Part-2.ogg}}

{{Sister project links|voy=Jamaica|d=Q766}}

; Governmental details

• [https://web.archive.org/web/20090220161140/http://jamaica.gov.jm/ Government of Jamaica] (archived 20 February 2009)
• [https://www.royal.uk/jamaica Jamaica] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210621221442/https://www.royal.uk/jamaica |date=21 June 2021 }} at the Royal Family website
• [http://jis.gov.jm/ Official website of the Jamaica Information Service] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110225023826/http://www.jis.gov.jm/ |date=25 February 2011 }}
• [http://www.cabinet.gov.jm/ The Cabinet Office of the Government of Jamaica] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110429223121/http://www.cabinet.gov.jm/ |date=29 April 2011 }}

• [https://web.archive.org/web/20081210080622/https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/world-leaders-1/world-leaders-j/jamaica.html Chief of State and Cabinet Members] (archived 10 December 2008)

; General information

• [https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/jamaica/ Jamaica] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210111023238/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/jamaica |date=11 January 2021 }}. The World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency.
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20080607085034/http://ucblibraries.colorado.edu/govpubs/for/jamaica.htm Jamaica] from UCB Libraries GovPubs (archived 7 June 2008)
• [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/country_profiles/1190968.stm Jamaica] from the BBC News
• {{Wikiatlas|Jamaica}}
• {{Osmrelation}}
• [http://www.dloc.com/inlj National Library of Jamaica] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131213172702/http://www.dloc.com/inlj |date=13 December 2013 }} materials in the [http://www.dloc.com/ Digital Library of the Caribbean] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111231135159/http://www.dloc.com/ |date=31 December 2011 }}
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20100122124019/http://virtualtravel.cz/jamaica/portland/winnifred-beach/beach.html JAMAICA VIRTUAL TOUR IN HD – many locations around the island] (archived 22 January 2010)
• [http://www.ifs.du.edu/ifs/frm_CountryProfile.aspx?Country=JM Key Development Forecasts for Jamaica] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120702010913/http://www.ifs.du.edu/ifs/frm_CountryProfile.aspx?Country=JM |date=2 July 2012 }} from International Futures

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Category:Greater Antilles

Category:Countries in the Caribbean

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Category:States and territories established in 1962

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