Jamaica : (noun)
1: a country on the island of Jamaica; became independent of
England in 1962; much poverty; the major industry is
tourism [syn: Jamaica]
2: an island in the West Indies south of Cuba and west of Haiti
[syn: Jamaica]
Based on WordNet 2.0
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Jamaica : \Ja*mai"ca\, n.
One of the West India is islands.
Jamaica ginger, a variety of ginger, called also white
ginger, prepared in Jamaica from the best roots, which
are deprived of their epidermis and dried separately.
Jamaica pepper, allspice.
Jamaica rose (Bot.), a West Indian melastomaceous shrub
({Blakea trinervis), with showy pink flowers.
Based on Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary
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Nutmeg \Nut"meg\, n. [OE. notemuge; note nut _ OF. muge musk, of
the same origin as E. musk; cf. OF. noix muguette nutmeg, F.
noix muscade. See Nut, and Musk.] (Bot.)
The kernel of the fruit of the nutmeg tree ({Myristica
fragrans), a native of the Molucca Islands, but cultivated
elsewhere in the tropics.
Note: This fruit is a nearly spherical drupe, of the size of
a pear, of a yellowish color without and almost white
within. This opens into two nearly equal longitudinal
valves, inclosing the nut surrounded by its aril, which
is mace The nutmeg is an aromatic, very grateful to the
taste and smell, and much used in cookery. Other
species of Myristica yield nutmegs of inferior
quality.
American, Calabash, or Jamaica, nutmeg, the fruit of
a tropical shrub ({Monodora Myristica). It is about the
size of an orange, and contains many aromatic seeds
imbedded in pulp.
Brazilian nutmeg, the fruit of a lauraceous tree,
Cryptocarya moschata.
California nutmeg, tree of the Yew family ({Torreya
Californica), growing in the Western United States, and
having a seed which resembles a nutmeg in appearance, but
is strongly impregnated with turpentine.
Clove nutmeg, the Ravensara aromatica, a laura ceous tree
of Madagascar. The foliage is used as a spice, but the
seed is acrid and caustic.
Jamaica nutmeg. See American nutmeg (above).
Nutmeg bird (Zo["o]l.), an Indian finch ({Munia
punctularia).
Nutmeg butter, a solid oil extracted from the nutmeg by
expression.
Nutmeg flower (Bot.), a ranunculaceous herb ({Nigella
sativa) with small black aromatic seeds, which are used
medicinally and for excluding moths from furs and
clothing.
Nutmeg liver (Med.), a name applied to the liver, when, as
the result of heart or lung disease, it undergoes
congestion and pigmentation about the central veins of its
lobules, giving it an appearance resembling that of a
nutmeg.
Nutmeg melon (Bot.), a small variety of muskmelon of a rich
flavor.
Nutmeg pigeon (Zo["o]l.), any one of several species of
pigeons of the genus Myristicivora, native of the East
Indies and Australia. The color is usually white, or
cream-white, with black on the wings and tail.
Nutmeg wood (Bot.), the wood of the Palmyra palm.
Peruvian nutmeg, the aromatic seed of a South American tree
({Laurelia sempervirens).
Plume nutmeg (Bot.), a spicy tree of Australia
({Atherosperma moschata).
Based on Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary
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Jamaica :
Introduction Jamaica
--------------------
Background: Jamaica gained full independence
within the British Commonwealth in
1962. Deteriorating economic
conditions during the 1970s led to
recurrent violence and a dropoff in
tourism. Elections in 1980 saw the
democratic socialists voted out of
office. Subsequent governments have
been open market oriented. Political
violence marred elections during the
1990s.
Geography Jamaica
-----------------
Location: Caribbean, island in the Caribbean
Sea, south of Cuba
Geographic coordinates: 18 15 N, 77 30 W
Map references: Central America and the Caribbean
Area: total: 10,991 sq km
land: 10,831 sq km
water: 160 sq km
Area - comparative: slightly smaller than Connecticut
Land boundaries: 0 km
Coastline: 1,022 km
Maritime claims: measured from claimed archipelagic
baselines
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM
continental shelf: 200 NM or to edge
of the continental margin
contiguous zone: 24 NM
Climate: tropical; hot, humid; temperate
interior
Terrain: mostly mountains, with narrow,
discontinuous coastal plain
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Blue Mountain Peak
2,256 m
Natural resources: bauxite, gypsum, limestone
Land use: arable land: 16.07%
permanent crops: 9.23%
other: 74.7% (1998 est.)
Irrigated land: 250 sq km (1998 est.)
Natural hazards: hurricanes (especially July to
November)
Environment - current issues: heavy rates of deforestation;
coastal waters polluted by
industrial waste, sewage, and oil
spills; damage to coral reefs; air
pollution in Kingston results from
vehicle emissions
Environment - international party to: Biodiversity, Climate
agreements: Change, Climate Change-Kyoto
Protocol, Desertification,
Endangered Species, Law of the Sea,
Marine Dumping, Marine Life
Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban,
Ozone Layer Protection, Ship
Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of
the selected agreements
Geography - note: strategic location between Cayman
Trench and Jamaica Channel, the main
sea lanes for the Panama Canal
People Jamaica
--------------
Population: 2,680,029 (July 2002 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 29.1% (male 399,249;
female 380,864)
15-64 years: 64.1% (male 858,433;
female 859,174)
65 years and over: 6.8% (male
81,321; female 100,988) (2002 est.)
Population growth rate: 0.56% (2002 est.)
Birth rate: 17.74 births/1,000 population (2002
est.)
Death rate: 5.45 deaths/1,000 population (2002
est.)
Net migration rate: -6.65 migrant(s)/1,000 population
(2002 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.81 male(s)/
female
total population: 1 male(s)/female
(2002 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 13.71 deaths/1,000 live births (2002
est.)
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 75.64 years
female: 77.73 years (2002 est.)
male: 73.65 years
Total fertility rate: 2.05 children born/woman (2002 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: 0.71% (1999 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/ 9,900 (1999 est.)
AIDS:
HIV/AIDS - deaths: 650 (1999 est.)
Nationality: noun: Jamaican(s)
adjective: Jamaican
Ethnic groups: black 90.9%, East Indian 1.3%, white
0.2%, Chinese 0.2%, mixed 7.3%,
other 0.1%
Religions: Protestant 61.3% (Church of God
21.2%, Baptist 8.8%, Anglican 5.5%,
Seventh-Day Adventist 9%,
Pentecostal 7.6%, Methodist 2.7%,
United Church 2.7%, Brethren 1.1%,
Jehovah's Witness 1.6%, Moravian
1.1%), Roman Catholic 4%, other,
including some spiritual cults 34.7%
Languages: English, patois English
Literacy: definition: age 15 and over has ever
attended school
total population: 85%
male: 80.8%
female: 89.1% (1995 est.)
Government Jamaica
------------------
Country name: conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Jamaica
Government type: constitutional parliamentary
democracy
Capital: Kingston
Administrative divisions: 14 parishes; Clarendon, Hanover,
Kingston, Manchester, Portland,
Saint Andrew, Saint Ann, Saint
Catherine, Saint Elizabeth, Saint
James, Saint Mary, Saint Thomas,
Trelawny, Westmoreland
Independence: 6 August 1962 (from UK)
National holiday: Independence Day, first Monday in
August (1962)
Constitution: 6 August 1962
Legal system: based on English common law; has not
accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch: chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II
(since 6 February 1952), represented
by Governor General Sir Howard Felix
COOKE (since 1 August 1991)
head of government: Prime Minister
Percival James PATTERSON (since 30
March 1992) and Deputy Prime
Minister Seymour MULLINGS (since NA
1993)
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the
governor general on the advice of
the prime minister
elections: none; the monarch is
hereditary; governor general
appointed by the monarch on the
recommendation of the prime
minister; prime minister and deputy
prime minister appointed by the
governor general
Legislative branch: bicameral Parliament consists of the
Senate (a 21-member body appointed
by the governor general on the
recommendations of the prime
minister and the leader of the
opposition; ruling party is
allocated 13 seats, and the
opposition is allocated eight seats)
and the House of Representatives (60
seats; members are elected by
popular vote to serve five-year
terms)
elections: last held 18 December
1997 (next to be held by March 2002)
election results: percent of vote by
party - NA%; seats by party - PNP
50, JLP 10
Judicial branch: Supreme Court (judges appointed by
the governor general on the advice
of the prime minister); Court of
Appeal
Political parties and leaders: Jamaica Labor Party or JLP [Edward
SEAGA]; National Democratic Movement
or NDM [Bruce GOLDING]; People's
National Party or PNP [Percival
James PATTERSON]
Political pressure groups and New Beginnings Movement or NBM;
leaders: Rastafarians (black religious/racial
cultists, pan-Africanists)
International organization ACP, C, Caricom, CCC, CDB, ECLAC,
participation: FAO, G-15, G-19, G-77, IADB, IAEA,
IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IFAD, IFC,
IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol,
IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LAES,
NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD,
UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO,
WMO, WToO, WTrO
Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Seymour
MULLINGS
consulate(s) general: Miami and New
York
FAX: [1] (202) 452-0081
telephone: [1] (202) 452-0660
chancery: 1520 New Hampshire Avenue
NW, Washington, DC 20036
Diplomatic representation from the chief of mission: Ambassador Sue
US: McCourt COBB
embassy: Jamaica Mutual Life Center,
2 Oxford Road, 3rd floor, Kingston 5
mailing address: use embassy street
address
telephone: [1] (876) 929-4850
through 4859
FAX: [1] (876) 926-6743
Flag description: diagonal yellow cross divides the
flag into four triangles - green
(top and bottom) and black (hoist
side and outer side)
Economy Jamaica
---------------
Economy - overview: The economy, which depends heavily
on tourism and bauxite, has been
stagnant since 1995. After five
years of recession, the economy grew
0.8% in 2000 and 1.1% in 2001, but
the global economic slowdown,
particularly in the United States
after the 11 September terrorist
attacks, has stunted the economic
recovery. Serious problems include:
high interest rates; increased
foreign competition; a pressured,
sometimes sliding, exchange rate; a
widening merchandise trade deficit;
and a growing internal debt, the
result of government bailouts to
various ailing sectors of the
economy, particularly the financial
sector. Depressed economic
conditions have led to increased
civil unrest, including a mounting
crime rate. Jamaica's medium-term
prospects will depend upon
encouraging investment, maintaining
a competitive exchange rate, selling
off reacquired firms, and
implementing proper fiscal and
monetary policies.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $9.8
billion (2001 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 1.1% (2001 est.)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $3,700
(2001 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 7%
industry: 28%
services: 65% (2000 est.)
Population below poverty line: 34.2% (1992 est.)
Household income or consumption by lowest 10%: 2.9%
percentage share: highest 10%: 28.9% (1996)
Distribution of family income - Gini 36.4 (1996)
index:
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 6.9% (2001 est.)
Labor force: 1.13 million (1998)
Labor force - by occupation: services 60%, agriculture 21%,
industry 19% (1998)
Unemployment rate: 16% (2000 est.)
Budget: revenues: $2.23 billion
expenditures: $2.56 billion,
including capital expenditures of
$232.5 million (FY99/00 est.)
Industries: tourism, bauxite, textiles, food
processing, light manufactures, rum,
cement, metal, paper, chemical
products
Industrial production growth rate: -2% (2000 est.)
Electricity - production: 6.74 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 89.44%
hydro: 3.22%
other: 7.34% (2000)
nuclear: 0%
Electricity - consumption: 6.27 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (2000)
Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (2000)
Agriculture - products: sugarcane, bananas, coffee, citrus,
potatoes, vegetables; poultry,
goats, milk
Exports: $1.6 billion (f.o.b., 2001 est.)
Exports - commodities: alumina, bauxite; sugar, bananas,
rum
Exports - partners: US 35.7%, EU (excluding UK) 15.9%,
UK 13%, Canada 10.5% (1999)
Imports: $3.1 billion (f.o.b., 2001 est.)
Imports - commodities: machinery and transport equipment,
construction materials, fuel, food,
chemicals, fertilizers
Imports - partners: US 47.8%, Caricom countries 12.4%,
Latin America 7.2%, EU (excluding
UK) 4.7% (1999)
Debt - external: $5.2 billion (2001 est.)
Economic aid - recipient: $102.7 million (1995)
Currency: Jamaican dollar (JMD)
Currency code: JMD
Exchange rates: Jamaican dollars per US dollar -
47.277 (December 2001), 45.996
(2001), 42.701 (2000), 39.044
(1999), 36.550 (1998), 35.404 (1997)
Fiscal year: 1 April - 31 March
Communications Jamaica
----------------------
Telephones - main lines in use: 353,000 (1996)
Telephones - mobile cellular: 54,640 (1996)
Telephone system: general assessment: fully automatic
domestic telephone network
domestic: NA
international: satellite earth
stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic
Ocean); 3 coaxial submarine cables
Radio broadcast stations: AM 10, FM 13, shortwave 0 (1998)
Radios: 1.215 million (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 7 (1997)
Televisions: 460,000 (1997)
Internet country code: .jm
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 21 (2000)
Internet users: 60,000 (2000)
Transportation Jamaica
----------------------
Railways: total: 272 km
standard gauge: 272 km 1.435-
m gauge; note - 207 km, belonging to
the Jamaica Railway Corporation,
were in common carrier service but
are no longer operational; the
remaining track is privately owned
and used to transport bauxite (2000)
Highways: total: 19,000 km
paved: 13,433 km
unpaved: 5,567 km (1997)
Waterways: none
Pipelines: petroleum products 10 km
Ports and harbors: Alligator Pond, Discovery Bay,
Kingston, Montego Bay, Ocho Rios,
Port Antonio, Rocky Point, Port
Esquivel (Longswharf)
Merchant marine: total: 1 ships (1,000 GRT or over)
totaling 21,954 GRT/25,250 DWT
ships by type: petroleum tanker 1,
includes some foreign-owned ships
registered here as a flag of
convenience: Latvia 2, United States
2 (2002 est.)
Airports: 35 (2001)
Airports - with paved runways: total: 11
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 3
under 914 m: 5 (2001)
Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 24
914 to 1,523 m: 2
under 914 m: 22 (2001)
Military Jamaica
----------------
Military branches: Jamaica Defense Force (including
Ground Forces, Coast Guard, and Air
Wing), Jamaica Constabulary Force
Military manpower - military age: 18 years of age (2002 est.)
Military manpower - availability: males age 15-
49: 747,043 (2002 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military males age 15-
49: 523,550 (2002 est.)
service:
Military manpower - reaching males: 27,729 (2002 est.)
military age annually:
Military expenditures - dollar $30 million (FY95/96 est.)
figure:
Military expenditures - percent of NA%
GDP:
Transnational Issues Jamaica
----------------------------
Disputes - international: none
Illicit drugs: major transshipment point for
cocaine from South America to North
America and Europe; illicit
cultivation of cannabis; government
has an active manual cannabis
eradication program; corruption is a
major concern
Based on CIA World Factbook 2002 [CIA_World_Factbook]:
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Jamaica, IA (city, FIPS 39225)
Location: 41.84550 N, 94.30719 W
Population (1990): 232 (104 housing units)
Area: 1.2 sq km (land), 0.0 sq km (water)
Zip code(s): 50128
Jamaica, NY
Zip code(s): 11430, 11432, 11433, 11434, 11435, 11436
Jamaica, VA
Zip code(s): 23079
Jamaica, VT
Zip code(s): 05343
Based on CIA World Factbook 2002 [CIA_World_Factbook]:
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