Cariibean Culture and Jamaica

989 Words4 Pages
The Caribbean is a region of the world that is washed up by the Caribbean Sea and all of the islands within it as well as those that border its coastlines; some of which are independent countries while others are territories of other foreign countries. These are the names of some of the Caribbean countries; Cuba, Puerto Rico, Haiti, Trinidad & Tobago (one country), Dominican Republic, Bahamas, Jamaica, Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands and Curacao. The Caribbean is most known for its warm, tropical climate, unique culture and extreme biodiversity (abundant of plant and animal life). Because of this feature the Caribbean is considered a biodiversity hotspot. Culture is a term that is widely used by many persons and researchers as such may be perceived it differently. However, one of Kluckhohn’s (cited in Geertz, 1994) definitions for culture is “The total way of life of a people.” In this simple definition, culture is manifested in much of the things we do, learn, practice, believe and experience. For example, in Jamaica some aspects of its culture are manifested in its music (reggae), language (patois) and even sports (athletics, football etc.) and in Trinidad, who have a rich culture in carnival which comprises of music and dancing. It is therefore not only the tropical climate and natural beauty that the different Caribbean countries have in common but also a rich and strong historical background despite their geographical location. The cultural history of the Caribbean “dates back to the arrival of the paleo-Indians in the region in about 5000 B.C. This group had a very primitive civilization. These were followed by the meso-Indians around 500 B.C. and then the neo-Indians around 300 B.C.” (Campbell 2004). The neo-Indians were indeed the people who Columbus encountered when he and his sailors made their appearances in the Caribbean in the 14th century. However,

More about Cariibean Culture and Jamaica

Open Document