Jamaican Culture Research Paper

The country that I chose to conduct a culture analysis on is Jamaica. Jamaica is a third world country located in North America and the 3rd largest island in the Caribbean Sea. There is a 2.5 million population, which equally divided between urban and rural areas. The country runs approximately 146 miles long and varies between 21- 52 miles wide. The climate is tropical and its main tourist attraction is their beautiful beaches. The capital of Jamaica is Kingston, which has a population of more than 645,000. Kingston is the chief port of Jamaica and is along the southeastern coast of the island. It is covered by the “Blue Mountains”, which is thickly covered which tree ferns. The Blue Mountains experiences an average of 200 inches of rain annually, resulting in topsoil erosion and an abundance of streams. Peasants nurture coffee, usually grown on large plantations, in the valleys of the mountains. It is amongst the most expensive coffees in the world and is exported mainly to Japan.

In an article written in the Jamaica Observer, Haughton (2017) describes the state of Jamaica as an under-developed child who continues to depend on its parents for approval. “For many years colonialism milked Jamaica and other Caribbean countries by imposing a false identity on our people, diminishing resources that affected growth and development (Haughton, 2017).

Some popular traditions in Jamaica are. They paint their houses, hang new curtains, and decorate for Christmas. When it’s 6:00p.m. that’s when the evening starts of the “Grand

Food is another obvious way to demonstrate the diversity of culture in Trinidad. As are the people, food is influenced by almost every part of the world. There dishes traditional to the Caribbean, prepared with products naturally found on the island. There are dishes with influences from the Spanish conquistadors with their meats and different fruits, also the Indian immigration brought curry flavors and dishes to Trinidad. A very well known Indian dish on the island is roti, which consists of flat bread wrapped around a spicy stew of meat, potatoes, and vegetables. The English, French and Dutch brought large-scale cultivation of sugarcane. Initially the Carib's diet consisted of meats such as guinea pig, alligator, fish, iguana and turtle. Cassava, pineapple and cashews are native to Trinidad as well. The Spanish arriving on the island were intrigued by this method of

According to the Jamaica Information service, there are more than one hundred Christian religions practiced in the country. For many Jamaicans, church attendance strengthen extended family and kinship bonds. The church provides them with information, emotional and sometimes financial support in times of crisis. Among the religious practices in Jamaica, there are also a number of African-origin religions that are practiced such as Revivalism and Rastafarianism.

The music industry in Jamaica is one of the most influential in the world. Popular music genres such as reggae and dancehall was both originated in Jamaica. Likewise, rap and hip hop was stated by a Jamaican, called Kool Herc. Bob Marley is also a famous music artist from Jamaica. His music played an important role in many movements in Jamaica and all over the world. The most famous one is the fight against apartheid in South Africa. Dancing is also important in Jamaica. A famous proverb in Jamaica, is that “those who can’t dance, blame it on the music”. In all african countries, music and dancing is really normal and it’s like this in Jamaica too. It is normal to dance on the streets in public and have fun, while listening to music. By all means music and dancing is undoubtedly important for Jamaica and the culture is mostly based around

The island of Jamaica is very rich in culture and has many historic turnabouts throughout the years. The country has a rich and complex history including being the first country to have Arawak and Taino Indians settle there.

To start with Jamaica’s roadways are the opposite of the United States. The people were different as well. The clothing attire they wore was way different from what I was used too. When I say being used to, I mean a sort of “ethnocentrism” (Wood 169). If I viewed it as different (stereotype; Wood 47), then I was used to something else, but considering I was in a different

Jamaica is a land of diverse cultures. It has a number of different racial ethnic groups .The largest group however is the blacks or Africans so 'Jamaica’s culture' is predominantly black. Interwoven is also the European culture which these blacks learnt from their former white slaves masters. You will find Indians living in Jamaica also. Many Indians came to Jamaica as indentured servants and stayed, they too have an input in the Jamaica’s culture.

One of the most challenging things that Jamaicans have had to cope with is the physical and psychological isolation. On the island, the country is so small that it is easy to visit extended family members on a daily basis. Here, in the United States, however,

In a quaint little village tucked away on a beautiful Caribbean island, lays the seaside town of Runaway bay. A town filled with deep rooted culture on an island filled with welcoming natives. The pleasant vibes of reggae music and Rastafarian culture flow from the hills to the sandy shores. This island rich with tropical fruits and spices is located in the heart of the Greater Antilles. History tells that the enslaved island once known to its natives as “Xaymeca”, has come a long way in becoming the independent nation known today as Jamaica. In the Sea of many islands known as the West Indies, Jamaica stands peaceful, welcoming tourist and expanding rapidly. From an early age my passion for the island and its culture

     The land of Jamaica is very small. The total land mass area of the island is 4,243 square miles. Stretching 146 miles from east to west and at its furthest points north to south, approximately 51 miles (Encyclopedia Americana, 2001, P 670). Within this area, the land is

Rastafari is the religion that developed in Jamaica in the 1930’s as a result of the crowning of Haile Selassie I as king in 1930. The people that belong to this religion are known by many different names: Rastafarians, Rastas, Sufferers, Locksmen, Dreads or Dreadlocks. Rastas are often viewed as “pot-heads” with long dreadlocks and gnarly beards who simply claim to belong to Rastafari to justify smoking marijuana. Rastas are often viewed as modern day hippies who smoke marijuana and listen to reggae music and nothing more. The issue is that most of the world views Rastas this way, but know nothing about their religion, Rastafari, and the many beliefs that belong to it and drive their cultural

Today Spanish names still exist in the form of rivers, family names, and towns(JNHT 2). The Spanish implemented a new form of economy on the island based on shipbuilding and repairs in order to maintain the trading post in the Caribbean. Jamaica relied heavily on the trade of fruits and animal skins in order to produce revenues for the Spanish Empire. Jamaica proved to be an unworthy colony for the Spanish because of the lack of prosperity of agriculture.

In the 1930s, right after coronation of Haile Selassie I as emperor of Ethiopia, a religious following was started in Jamaica known as Rastafari, an Abrahamic belief.The most famous Rastafari is arguably Bob Marley, whose reggae music gained the Jamaican movement international recognition. Spiritual and moral traits vary widely within the religion, causing members to either to see it as a way of life or more as a religion. But what is uniting members across the world is the messiahship and divinity of the first emperor, Selassie.