Jamaica and Caribbean Dance Review Case Study

Jamaica

Jamaica is an island country of the Greater Antilles, situated in the northwestern Caribbean Sea, around 90 miles south of Cuba and 119 miles west of the island of Hispaniola, where Haiti and the Dominican Republic are found. As an island, Jamaica shares no borders; however, adjacent nations include the Dominican Republic, Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, Honduras, Mexico, and Belize. Jamaica is found near Central America. Jamaica measures around 145 miles long and 50 miles in width, adding up to 4,300 square miles. Jamaica is the third biggest island within the Caribbean. The island is home to the Blue Mountains inland and a plain around the island’s border[1].

Culture

The official language in the country is English, albeit since the country exchanged hands between several colonial powers, some elements of French and Spanish are incorporated into the local language. The type of English used, often sounds foreign and this unique language is called ‘Patois’. Patois makes further use of African and Portuguese phrases giving it more rhythm as opposed to traditional English[2].
The Jamaican culture is further defined by its music, dance, and art. An example of Jamaican art that defines the country’s society is the Afro-Caribbean style. The style largely borrows from experience that was brought by the skills of slaves from Africa. Jamaican art is expressed through paintings, collage, sculptures, craft works, and wood carving. Suffice it to say that some of the Jamaican art forms greatly reflect the features of classical European art – which was both an intuitive and primitive art style[3].

Customs

Jamaican customs help with characterizing the way of life of the general public. A number of these Jamaican traditions are practiced across the board. On the other hand, some are done just in a few sections of the island, and some are far expelled from the more elite classes of society. A considerable number of them are established in their African family line, yet the foundation and rationale to them may not be clear to the modern society. Jamaican customs are formal acts that are done over a particular stretch of time or at a particular occasion. This is exceptionally common in Jamaican culture and is essential in characterizing Jamaican society.

The most mainstream Jamaican customs are for most national occasions, for example, pudding at Christmas time, Christmas cake, Sorrel, Fried fish, and other national occasions[4].

Customs, for example, the internationally celebrated Nine Night after the passing of a friend or family member are a famous Jamaican custom that describes the Jamaican society. When a person dies in Jamaica, there are ceremonies which are performed in the individual’s home. The furniture in the room is adjusted and the bedding turned over. This is to guarantee that the individual’s soul won’t recognize the room, and in this way won’t have any desire to stay there. The religious society has enormous impact even in eating, as every dinner must be preceded by a prayer. Generally, meals are had before the TV, under a tree, at the entryway or anyplace that is agreeable to sit and meets expectations – particularly for those in the rustic parts. These among various other customs identify the way of living of the Jamaican people.

History

Jamaica, meaning the land of water and wood, became a Spanish colony in 1494. The Spanish colonialists ruled the Island nation until 1655 when they were removed by the British who transformed Jamaica into a key part of their domain. The British seizure of Jamaica was an immediate outcome of the expanding interest by the British crown in colonization, and Jamaica turned into an early and basic connection in the British growing empire[5].

The financial aspects of Jamaica focused on its crucial part in the triangular trade, trading rum, molasses, sugar and slaves for items from Britain and different provinces, and served to fuel British empire somewhere else. Jamaica turned out to be among the top colonial achievements of the British Empire, joining crown and private venture with a key maritime port to form an example that ended up being emulated across the Caribbean. Jamaica gained independence from the British Empire in 1962, but the residents continued to practice customs that identified with the long historic colonialism and slavery[6].

Economy

The Jamaican economy is inherently subject to dependence on the service industry, which represents more than 70% of GDP. The nation earns most of its foreign income from tourism, foreign remittance, and bauxite. It is important to note that tourism and remittances contribute to 30% of GDP, while bauxite contributes around 5% of GDP. The bauxite segment was hit heavily by the recent economic recession while the tourism business and settlement stream stayed flexible. Jamaica’s economy confronts numerous difficulties to development: corruption, a very high crime rate, unemployment, youth underemployment, and a very large debt.

The debt servicing expenses make up a considerable part of the administration’s financial plan, constraining its capacity to subsidize the discriminating framework and social projects needed to drive development. Jamaica’s financial development rate in the past has been largely stagnant, averaging less than one percent for every year since the 90s. Jamaica’s debt is to a great extent the aftereffect of government bailouts to underperforming areas of the economy, most prominently to the poorly-run financial segments. In mid-2010, the Jamaican Government started the Jamaica Debt Exchange to resign costly residential bonds and to ultimately reduce the amount used to service the debt. Regardless of these endeavors, debt is still a major concern for the country causing the legislature to arrange another IMF deal in May 2013 to get an estimated $1 billion for the country[7].

Food

Jamaican dishes are normally produced using meats, vegetables and seasonings, making a dominant part of nourishment found in Jamaica moderately healthy. Vegetables and fruits, for example ackee and callalloo, are indigenous to the nation and are very popular across the nation. Blended with saltfish, ackee turns into Jamaica’s National Dish. Organic products developed in Jamaica range from the debilitated sweetstop to the tart pomegranate. Breadfruit, cerasse, guinep, jackfruit, naseberry, roan, soursop, stinking toe, and tamarind are some different natural products become on the island that numerous explorers might not have ever experienced some time recently. A famous food preparation strategy among local people and voyagers alike is the “jerk” system. The procedure of yanking and jabbing meat with something sharp, then filling those openings with jerk flavoring, ended up providing the Maroons (Jamaican slaves who got away from British slavery) with a highly required food conservation strategy[8].

Jerk pork, indeed, can be followed back to Cormantee tribe’s hunters in West Africa before slavery took them to the Caribbean, however, “jerk” appears to originate from the Spanish word charqui – which meant “snapped or dried. Jamaica is additionally home to various extraordinary refreshments. Hot teas on the island are thick and brothy, frequently made with fish or kelp. Jamaica’s Blue Mountain coffee is probably the most looked for on the planet, and the island has strict guidelines concerning its creation[9].

Politics and Religion

Jamaica is a constitutional monarchy as well as a parliamentary democracy[10]. Under this system of governance, the prime minister along with the members of the cabinet are held responsible for running the legislature as well as the executive. While European pilgrims did not ban most European religions, they were less tolerating of African religions. The settlers often believed that these African religions would help to unite the slaves, permitting them to ascend in rebellion. Since Jamaica’s autonomy in 1962, various U.S. – based temples have advanced toward this Caribbean island. In spite of the fact that the Church of England was the fundamental religion of the colonialists, Baptists and individuals from the Church of God have developed to make up a much bigger part of the populace in later years.

A mix of Christian and African convictions has made various much smaller combined religions. The most common of these joined the African religion of Myal with Christianity to shape Revivalism. This religion then split into two more groups. Rastafari is the most noticeable non-Christian religion on the island. It turned into a major prospect as a grass-roots religion in the 1930s and was elevated as a distinct option apart from the European religions. Rastafarians often worship the Ethiopian ruler Haile Selassie, or Ras Tafari. Rastafarians additionally put a lot of faith in resurrection and that believers ought not to trim or brush their hair or facial hair. The accentuation of the conviction is on sustaining the inward soul in every individual, which has influenced the dialect with its expansion of “I” as a prefix for some words[11].

Clothing

In spite of the fact that nowadays it has gotten to be ordinary for see men and ladies in modern fashion, customary garments still form an integral part of the culture among a sizeable portion of local people. The conventional attire style of Jamaica draws from both British and slave society. Regularly, conventional attire for ladies was produced using calico fabric and is usually very colorful, from the layered dresses to the vital head scarfs, which served to keep hair set up properly and shield from the warmth of the sun. These scarfs were particularly wrapped and set by folding a bit of material into equal parts, tying it around the crown of the head, and afterward tucking it in a specific manner to keep it from slipping off. Garments worn by women in the past were usually comfortable and loose. Men’s garments had a tendency to be baggy jeans and shirts made of the characteristic natural fabrics. They didn’t dress as vividly as ladies, and striking outlines and conflicting hues were infrequently discovered – they favored a more stifled style in their day-to-day dressing, additionally picked comfort over every other aspect. In more present day times, Rastafarian-impacted apparel has turned into an integral part of the way of life. The clothing is colored to mirror the perspectives of the religion as well as the colors of the Ethiopian flag. To finish it all off, the tam cap would be worn on the head to cover the dreadlocks[12].

How to Evangelize through Dance

Dance forms an integral part of Jamaican society. In spite of the deep infusion of culture in the religion of the Jamaican people, dance can still be used to teach the local people about current and acceptable religious practices. Furthermore, this can achieved by joining with the members of different denominations in a bid to show the unity that the Church pushes for. This will be in an attempt to get the locals to take up more religious practices in their churches. The dance could be a combination of the local dances as well as the modern dances. In essence, the dance should be a reflection of the ideologies of the modern church, while respecting the traditions of the local Jamaican people.

Dance in Jamaica

Dance and music are an integral part of the society in Jamaica. Over the years, music has been used to communicate more effectively with the members of society – especially the youth. Traditional reggae has often been used in this means, often pursuing themes of social liberation. However, the most popular dance in Jamaica is the Jonkonnu, and is usually referred to as the slave dance[13].
History of the dance

The main origins of Jonkonnu mirror Jamaica’s long colonial history. The British seized control of Jamaica from the Spanish in 1660 and set up a frontier station there. Albeit some African slaves effectively lived on the island, in the late seventeenth century the English pilgrims started to import slaves from West Africa in incredible numbers to take a shot at their sugar manors. The English colonialists conveyed numerous social customs with them to Jamaica, including the festival of Christmas with music, dances, disguises, and mumming. The African slaves held their own music, dance, and masquerade customs, for which they, as well, looked for an outlet. These two social streams fused in Jamaican Christmas festivities, leading to the birth of Jonkonnu[14].

How the Dance Enveloped

As a practice, Jonkonnu is very connected with slavery – and slavery is personally associated with the Caribbean. As a major aspect of the Middle Passage, sailors as often as possible halted in ports to offer or “season” slaves before proceeding to business sectors in New Orleans or Charleston. The dance honored the individuals who, upon their passageway into the violence of Plantation America, vanish. In the event that they leave no permanent written record, they get to be eradicated from that composed record on which most of history depends[15].
The dance therefore represented the plight of the slaves, who had experiences that were unique to them. Memory subsequently serves as a record in this case, and one place that memorized records surface is in performance art. The conditions inside New World slave economies were awful, the occasions significantly traumatic with echoes undulating into the present.

Cultural meaning of the Dance

Jonkonnu recounts a story, and is often presented like a play with every dancer getting a particular character to depict. The act of Jonkonnu is an approach to proclaim that one is not erased by the colonization of the Americas. It is additionally a means to proclaim that one won’t be removed from history. Slaves in Jamaica were torn from their country and conveyed to another region with peculiar sights, sounds, and tastes and additionally individuals who were very different from them. So as to keep the association with their country, they did what they knew: they celebrated through dance and music. Through this festival, they opposed their persecution on two of the three days of rest given to them every year: the day after Christmas and New-Years. Junkanoo has been a vital piece of the improvement of Jamaican society. It additionally served to help make and form Jamaican society, while still telling its story. For example, Junkanoo is an account of the resilience and freedom of the people[16].

References
Bastyra, Judy. 2007. Living In Jamaica. North Mankato, Minn.: Sea-to-Sea Publications.
Cia.gov,. 2015. ‘The World Factbook’. https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/jm.html.
Jamaica Information Service,. 2015. http://jis.gov.jm/information/jamaican-history/.
Littlesugar, Amy, and Ian Schoenherr. 1997. Jonkonnu. New York: Philomel Books.
Rashford, John. 2010. ‘Jamaican Food: History, Biology, Culture’. Ethnobiology Letters 1: 12. doi:10.14237/ebl.1.2010.76.
Sheehan, Sean, and Angela Black. 2004. Jamaica. New York: Benchmark Books.
Sloat, Susanna. 2010. Making Caribbean Dance. Gainesville: University Press of Florida.

[1] Cia.gov,. 2015. ‘The World Factbook’. https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/jm.html.
[2] Rashford, John. 2010. ‘Jamaican Food: History, Biology, Culture’. Ethnobiology Letters 1: 12. doi:10.14237/ebl.1.2010.76.
[3] Rashford, John. 2010. ‘Jamaican Food: History, Biology, Culture’. Ethnobiology Letters 1: 12. doi:10.14237/ebl.1.2010.76.
[4] Sheehan, Sean, and Angela Black. 2004. Jamaica. New York: Benchmark Books.
[5] Rashford, John. 2010. ‘Jamaican Food: History, Biology, Culture’. Ethnobiology Letters 1: 12. doi:10.14237/ebl.1.2010.76.
[6] Jamaica Information Service,. 2015. http://jis.gov.jm/information/jamaican-history/.
[7] Cia.gov,. 2015. ‘The World Factbook’. https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/jm.html.
[8] Rashford, John. 2010. ‘Jamaican Food: History, Biology, Culture’. Ethnobiology Letters 1: 12. doi:10.14237/ebl.1.2010.76.
[9] Rashford, John. 2010. ‘Jamaican Food: History, Biology, Culture’. Ethnobiology Letters 1: 12. doi:10.14237/ebl.1.2010.76.
[10] Cia.gov,. 2015. ‘The World Factbook’. https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/jm.html.
[11] Bastyra, Judy. 2007. Living In Jamaica. North Mankato, Minn.: Sea-to-Sea Publications.
[12] Bastyra, Judy. 2007. Living In Jamaica. North Mankato, Minn.: Sea-to-Sea Publications.
[13] Sloat, Susanna. 2010. Making Caribbean Dance. Gainesville: University Press of Florida.
[14] Littlesugar, Amy, and Ian Schoenherr. 1997. Jonkonnu. New York: Philomel Books.
[15] Littlesugar, Amy, and Ian Schoenherr. 1997. Jonkonnu. New York: Philomel Books.
[16] Sloat, Susanna. 2010. Making Caribbean Dance. Gainesville: University Press of Florida.