A
SHORT HISTORY
The
first inhabitants of Jamaica were a race of skilful hunters, fishermen and
Farmers
"The Taino Indians."
In
1494, Christopher Columbus arrived and claimed the island for Spain. Over work
and exposure to European diseases to which they had no immunity, resulted in
the extermination of the Taino.
Jamaica
became a British Colony in 1655 when the English captured it from the
Spaniards. The English imported many Africans slaves to work on the sugar
plantations. Jamaica remained a British Colony until 1962 when it became
independent.
Jamaica
is a part of the Commonwealth of Nations. It is a democratic country,
Meaning
that the people elect the government.
Jamaicans
acquired Universal Adult Suffrage in 1944. The Head of Government is the Prime
Minister, similar to the Canadian and British Heads of Government.
Jamaica
is home to 2.5 million people. While the majority are of African descent,
others are of Indian, Chinese, European, Lebanese and Jewish descent. Because
of intermarriage and the mixture of all these cultures, Jamaica's motto is
"Out Of Many One People".
It
is also estimated that another 2.5 million Jamaicans and their descendants live
outside of Jamaica. Jamaicans living overseas can be found in just about every
country around the world. The majority live in the U.K. Canada and the United
States and they have made a significant contribution to their adopted
communities.