Jamaica

Jamaica lies in the Caribbean Sea, located 145 km south of Cuba between the Cayman Trench and the Jamaica Channel, the main sea lanes for the Panama Canal. Its land area is 10 830 km², making it the third largest island in the Caribbean after Cuba and Hispaniola. Kingston is the world's seventh‐largest harbour.

Jamaica is mostly mountainous, with a narrow and irregular coastal plain, and is itself the tip of a submerged mountain. It can be divided in three geographical regions: the eastern mountains, the central valleys and plateaus, and the coastal plains. About two‐thirds of the island, especially the central and western sections, are covered with a thick layer of limestone formed from remnants of corals and seashells.

A remote region in the central valleys and plateaus, known as Cockpit Country, is famous for its unusual limestone landscape with sinkholes (cockpits), as much as 120 m deep in places.

Jamaica's climate is tropical, influenced by the ocean and northeast trade winds. It is hot and humid on the coasts and temperate inland. The monthly average temperatures range from 24 to 27 °C -—
– ‒
- –
—--—
– ‒
- –
—--—
– ‒
- –
—--—
– ‒
- –
—-. Along the coast temperatures range between 22 to 31 °C, and from 15 to 22 °C at higher elevations. Temperatures may dip to as low as ‐10 °C in the peaks of the Blue Mountains.

Rainfall is seasonal, with May, September, October and November as the wettest months. Average annual rainfall is about 2 100 mm, but considerable variations occur from one year to another and from one region to another. The dry season lasts from December to April, occasionally turning into extended drought. -—
– ‒
- –
—--—
– ‒
- –
—--—
– ‒
- –
—--—
– ‒
- –
—-

Jamaica lies at the edge of the Atlantic hurricane belt. As a result, it is largely left untouched by hurricanes and tropical storms, which make a direct strike only every 11 years on average. The most destructive were hurricanes Charlie (1951) and Gilbert (1988). Earthquakes occur more often than hurricanes, as the island is located near the northern edge of the Caribbean Plate.

Jamaica's economy is heavily dependent on services, which account for around 70 per cent of GDP since 2000. Remittances from abroad (16 per cent of GDP) and tourism constitute an important source of foreign exchange. -—
– ‒
- –
—--—
– ‒
- –
—--—
– ‒
- –
—--—
– ‒
- –
—- Jamaica received over 4.2 million tourist arrivals in 2019 with an inbound tourism expenditure of almost 22 per cent over GDP -—
– ‒
- –
—--—
– ‒
- –
—--—
– ‒
- –
—--—
– ‒
- –
—-. Agriculture, forestry and fishing account for 8 per cent of GDP and provide one sixth of employment. The main agricultural products include sugarcane, bananas, coconuts, oranges, coffee, cacao and ginger. Jamaica is one of the world's largest exporters and producers of rum, and it exports some beer as well. Jamaica is a large producer of bauxite and alumina. The main manufacturing products are processed foods, textiles, metal and petroleum products, and key destinations include the United States of America, the Netherlands, Canada and Iceland.

Jamaica's folk music includes Mento, which is a form of music and dance with roots in Africa. It has greatly influenced reggae music. Its most famous performer, Robert 'Bob' Marley, was born in Jamaica.

Sports play an important role in the country's culture. Cricket, athletics, football and netball are the most popular sports. Widely known Jamaican sprinters are Usain Bolt and Shelly‐Ann Fraser‐Pryce.

Although Jamaica is a tropical nation, it has a Bobsled team which competes in the Winter Olympics. The 1988 Winter Olympics Jamaican bobsled team inspired the popular Disney film 'Cool Runnings'.